The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1880-04-03

4 correspondent of the Boston Her0M who
recently visited the site of the prison at Ander-
sonvile writes as follows: Anderson is the
name Of a station on the Southwestern Rall-
road about sixty miles or two hours ride frotA
Macon. 1t Is nothing but a railroad station,
and the only other thing besides the railroad
which characterizes the spot is the immense
Union cemetery of some twenty acres, over
which floats the Star.Spangled Banner The
cemetery is constructed on the spot where the
prisoners were buried, and the trenches were
dug with such precision and regularity that
the soldiers were not generally disturbed, but
allowed to remain as their comrades inferred
them working under the watchtul eyes and the
fixed bayonets of the Georgia Home Guard.
| The cemetery Is surrounded by u stout brick
wall, with an iron gate, and Is under the super
vision of a superindent who lives on the
grounds. 1t is PLAIN spot There is not much
attempt made to ornament this city of our
martyred dead. 1t would take IA great deal of
even such influences as plants and flowers pos.
sess to diSpel the melancholy memories that
haunt this hill in the pine woods Of South
Georgia.
"Southcrners shun the spot, but the cemetery
| is much visited by Northern travellers, and the
register In the Superntendcnt'S lodge contains
many strange inscriptions besides the names OF
the visitors One lady asks forgiveness of God
| for the murderer of her brother, who sleeps in
| the cemetery Sentiments of passionate denun.
citation are more frequent. Occasionally a
man who was In the stOckade turns up among
! tue visitors. These men, whatever their nat
! ural temper, the Superintendent says, can al
most be distinguished 10y the effects of fear
dread, and vivid recollection, which come back
like shock into their faces as they again stand
on the now quiet and sunllt scene of their wal
experiences.
I'm the cemetery the ground is of general
level and the graves of the known and un
known, properly separated, range and rows
closely laid, as far As the eye can reach. There
are actually buried on this elevation l3,715
4 men. The soldier whose identity was prescrv
ed by his comrades is marked in his resting
j place by a white marble stone rising eighteen
inches above the level OF the ground. \ square
u marble block with the word Unknown on il
is repeated about one thousand times in the
cemetery There was no necessity for the con
tractor to swell his bill with mule bones in fill
ling up this buria-place. There were bone,
|, and millions of bones bones ready at hand
when he began his work to occupy him til
d long after he was wearled with it and longcd tC
i see il done The bodies of 1900 men who
Il perlshed not where death was neck and neck
i with hte.-on the battletield,-but in the com
parative ~ security of prison walls
! Part of the stocKade is still standing. There
were two rows of trees,-One inside the other
Il The outer row has fallen down, save for a few
posts here and there, but large part of the in
l ner wall still stands Trees have grown NJ
around the old pen, and a thick growth of I'm
luerbruSh now covers the site of the prison. Nc
{ traces of the famous brook that ran through
J the stockade remain, nor the wonderful we'll
d dug by the prisoners. II is all now a mIlC
aud peaceful section of country. Many of III,
; soldiers IN the cemetery have handsome head
: stones lifted Ia their memories by friends il
? the North, and efforts are frequently made L
have certain graves kept green with flower
e and shoyer-pOtn