The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1888-09-26
THE VOICE OF AN OLD SOLDIER.
A Man Who Suffered IN Andersonville Says
Few Words to His Old Comrades.

To THE EDIToR-Sir: / have been read
ing the proceedings of the late convention
of "ex-union prisoners of war" an organ
ization to which 1 am entitled to become
member if, indeed, | am not barred on
account of politics. When the dark clouds
of war spread their gloomy mantle over
the land in 1861, l, together with thou
sands of other democrats and republicans,
babe farewell to loved ones at home and
placed myself in the front of battle. We
went not as democrats or as republicans,
but as defenders of the union. Neither did
we 60 to war against democrats, but against
a rebellion that threatened the destruction
of the best government on earth. For
four long years we stood together side by
side in one common cause with but one
object in view, that object being to restore
the union. The question as to which po
litical party should have the glory was
never considered. We carried with us
no thought of politics. The hard
ships OF the camp, the march,
the battle, and the prison, were
endured by all without party distinction.
Now. that those questions have been set
tied for a quarter of a century, and that,
too, by an unconditional surrender of our
then enemy, am panied to know that we
have those among us who will get up in
our social reunions and mar the joys of
those occasions by insulting those old COM
rades because they did not suffer chain
of political slavery to be placed about
their necks One of the worst insults is
given by that God-hating God-reviling
infidel and republican Idol, Bob Ingersoll,
when he rs his reasons for not being
democi It ''all rebels were demo-
Gratis. undertake to say that there
was not q s.lgle, solitary democrat who
took up arms against the government.
The principles OF the democratic party
are the principles upon which this
government was founded, and the moment
man took up arms against the govern
ment he rebelled against the principles of
democracy, and thereby divorced himself
from the party, if he had ever belonged to
it. / am inclined to believe there is bet
ter reason for the old inidel to give for not
being a democrat, and that is, that there
is nothing in his mental composition sus-
ceptible of anything so elevated as dem
ocratic sentiment
Now, want to say if the Union prison
ers of war have any Just cause TO COM
plain of either of the old parties, most GER
tainly the complaint should be held against
the republican party. And l shall speak of
Andersonville only. While there were
thousands of poor, helpless beings in other
prisons equally as bad, during the month
of August, 1864, there were $4,000 at An
Jacksonville, and the death rate at that
place per day was 100 Now, if the repub-
lican party thought as much of us then
as they would have us think
they do now, they would have sacri-
feed Shermans entire army to have
liberated us poor, helpless beings. But
what did they do for us? The rebels were
willing and anxious TO exchange man for
man, but because we were not in a phys
ical condition to enter into active service at
once. we were denied the blessed privilege
of being exchanged, and hence the bones OF
1900 fathers, sons and husbands lie
moldering in one grave to-day, and if they
could rumble in their dusty bed
they would speak in thunder tones to
our soldier-loving republican statesmen,
and say to them, ooh, We hypocrites; you
say you loved me, but for me you would
make no sacrifice because / was weak.
We warn our living comrades to beware of
you and trust YOU not" A SOLDIER.
(0f 22d Ind. Vol.)
Fairland Ind Sept D.