The National tribune., 1884-04-03
uINISTERING ANGELS
The Touching "reminiscences of a
Devoted Army Nurse.
by Mrs. Earrie. Dada Ease,s. N. D.. Syracuse " II

of the enemy. AT the hospital all had plenty
to eat; but at the camps around they We're on
| half rations.
Many refugees from Georgia were encamped
at the time near Chattanooga, on their way
North; but, as all communication had been
cut Off, they could proceed no farther. There
was much suffering among them and many
| died from exposure.
One day as was passing through one of the
wards, man wearing q white star on his cap
spoke to me. / recognized him as Chauncey
Pease one of the Goth New York whom / had
known at Acquia Creek. He was a most faith
! ful nurse, and, might add, there were many
excellent nurses among those who were assign
! ed to that work. ! an not able to recall the
names of many, but some of them will not be
forgotten by those for whom they cared.
About the 10th of January Misses Bell and
| Chamberlain who had been visiting u.s. from
the hospitals in Nashville, left, taking with
| them Miss Dysart, who had been with us about
two months. Miss Dysart had had charge of
| the diet kitchen She was succeeded by Miss
futile. / then had two sections to visit, con-
/ sisting OF 1872 beds. In Que section all were
/ sick with measles. Many were new recruits,
and they got sick very easily,-especially the
conscripts sand seemed discouraged and low
/ spirited. One boy said; g If I should get we'll,
would have 10 20 to my regiment, and would
as soon die" He never had been with his regi-
inent; or, if so, only for short time 1t often
happened that those apparently nearly recov-
cred from the disease wGuld grow careless suf
| fer a relapse, and die
One pGoi fellow, whose name I do not re-
member, was brought into my ward very sick
with pneumonia. The regimental surgeon had
said nothing was the matter with him. SO he did
! not get the care he needed till he came to the
hospital, and then it was too1ate. Many life
! was similarly sacrificed.
/ Peter Horan mere hoy, with sandy hair
| Ionged TO one of the Northern States-whieh
one cannot call to mind. Knowing that he
/ had no relations or friends to whom | could
write, cut off a lock of his hair, which / still
have, that he might not be wholly forgotten.
One poor boy, whose measles had settled
on his lungs, and who lived less than two
! days after he was brought to the hospital
would call out: Woman!" every time / en-
| tered the ward, and once added this very
strange expression: on are the God blessed
/ est woman ] ever saw" The only morning he
was there / gave him his breakfast-the little
tea that he was able to take-and he asked: ''Y on
viii stay with me all day, wont you?" was
sorry to tell him there were other sick ones who
would be looking for me, and | must go and see
them. He soon became delirious, and in few
! hours was dead. He had been away from home
but few weeks. Another, who had been very
sick with inflammation of the lungs. and for
whom / had prepared some stewed dried
! peaches, said: You are the best woman ever
saw"
A soldier spoke to me as / was passing
through the ward whom / did not recognize.
Where have ] known you before? " inquir-
! ed. "At Winchester" he replied. He was
wounded and taken prisoner at the time of
Banks retreat, and / well remember when he
was brought in from the battlefield. He i'm
| proved rapidly, went home, and received his
I discharge, but in year or so afterwards he
volunteered again in the same regiment
VISITING THE WARDS.
The morning of March 10th was beautiful.
and thought / would write home, as 1 seldom
had an opportunity. After / had swept and
busted my room, | concluded to visit the wards
! first took some papers TO distribute, a can
of tomatoes, which had got from the Christian
| Commission, and bottle of blackberry wine
| from the Indiana State agency. / entered my
own ward-No. la two-story building. con-
sisting of twenty-four beds in each story and
| the first man / came to was German, belong
| ing to the 1SSth Ohio, who had been sick a
long time with chronic diarrhea and was very
/ weak. Next 10 him was Wilson, who had been
| there about three months, suffering with liver
complaint He looked badly, and we knew he
| could never recover unless by change of
| climate; $50 he was put down for discharge.
Next TO him was q man who was very sick
when first brought there but was then able to
| walk about little. Next to him was boy
sick and delirious A day or two before he
asked me: Which would you rather haye-a
coon or 'poSsum?" He then asked for one OF
| my papers to read. ] gave him childs paper,
and Fulton paper to New York boy little
| farther on. Just across the ward was Ken
lucky soldier who had been In the service ever
since the commencement of the war. He was
completely worn out had a low fever, and was
unconscious most of the time Beside him was
/ zyha Ead
quite well until the night before, when he had
been taken with cough, followed suddenly by
q hemorrhage of the lungs went OH up stairs.
and one Of the patients asked me to send him
for his dinner some soup made of water, butter,
pepper and salt, with crackers broken in it. /
happened to have some crackers, for which /
had paid thirty cents pound, so he got the
dinner he ordered.
In ward they were all convalescent End
most OF them able TO sit up. In ward 3 few
wounded were still left. During the summer
before that had been the gangrene ward where
so many died. In each of these two-story
buildings, which had been assigned to me-
there were forty beds, yet scarcely one
on which l could not recall that some one had
died, while on some several deaths had oc-
Cured.
One section was not able to visit that day
till after supper One dear young boy. sick
with measles. said: II was afraid you had left
dreamed last night that you came and gave
me two lemons" "0h," said /, lyon want
some lemonade, do you?" / told him / could
not get any lemons, but / would prepare o
drink for him, and the last thing / did was to
prepare and carry it TO him.
HIGH PRICES
1t was with difficulty that we procured deli.
cacies for those who were very sick We could
scarcely get chickens at any price-never fol
less than one dollar each. Eggs were from
sixty to eighty cents per dozen; milk was fifty
cents per quart and one day paid one dollar
for pail of potatoes. At times they were five
dollars per bHshel. / felt very grateful to the
friends at the North and West who sent me
funds with which to buy these necessaries foI
the sick and wounded.
On the 22d of March. 1855 man named
Ellis, belonging to the lst Wisconsin battery
died in my ward His younger brother, a
member of the same battery, came to the hos.
pital in great distress, as this was the third
brother he had lost in the army He said he
wished to send the body home, but he had not
been paid off in long time and did not have
enough money. His home was in Morayia
near Auburn, n. Y. 1t happened that / had
, some money with me, which felt could spare
, for while, SO | let him have it, and directed
|. him TO Mr.. Reed, of the Sanitary Commission
! knowing he would render him assistance in
getting coffin. ] also asked one of the ward
surgeons to embalm his brothers remains
which he did. The next syening the brother
called, and told me how well he had succeeded
. in arranging everything.
n,, = L..