The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1888-08-30

EDITOR NATIONAL TRIBUNE: In your issue
of July IL | dud a communication from Com
rade LoWden concerning the ProvidentiRl
Spring at Andersonville. / also notice others
on the same, subject all agreeing in substance
with Comrade Lowden's statement. ] was ia
AndersonVille from early in the Spring of "a
till September when | was sent to Charleston
s. G. My recollection of dates is very dim, and
/ am uncertain about the time left, but was
among the first to CO. only two or three parties
leaving before mine. My first knowledge OF
this spring was gained from the papers OF re-
ligious weekly just after the close of the war.
1t was pronounced IA modern miracle special
izterpositou OF Divine Providence, etc. OF
course, did not believe it. / have since be-
come convinced, however of the actual exist
ence oil such spring and am now able TO
throw little light OH the source OF it.
For some time before | left remember there
was q small seep between the dead line and the
st0ckade of pure spring water. Some enter
prising Yankee fixed spout so as 10 convey
this water within the limits of safety, and
person possessing sufficient patience could
secure tin cup full OF pure water occasionally,
but never had enough Of that virtue to get
TASTE and always slaked my thirst at the
branch. The spring always presented similar
appearance TO the Surgeons tent at sick call
when we were having three hours drill per
day. presume this was about the place whore
i
ago while travelling through the State of Ar
kansas, | stopped for the night with an ex-
rebel. After getting myself outside of a liberal
amount Of rusty bacon, soda biscuits and black
coffee, we lit our pipes, took seat on the porch
to allow the provender to digest and 10 gather
| strength for the coming combat with the insect
| kingdom.
The conversation turned on the late unpleas-
! antness, and we exchanged yarns. My host
ma he ass In mo flta atnf.
! ade at Andersonyiile. He said that on the
| north side Of the swamp was very fine spring
! that afforded right smart of good water, and
| that the st0ckade Was built right through it,
| and that it troubled them considerably to get
/ the logs solidly set there, but it was DONE and
| the spring completely choke up so that no
| sign Of IL could be seen He wondered at the
! time why the spring WAS not inCIosed but cal
| culated the officers knew what they were doing,
| aud they probably did. / have no doubt but
! this was the Proyidential Spring, which, after
| being choked up, made for itself an under
| ground outlet to tho creek, through which the
water escaped, till it became flushed by the
heavy rain spoken OF, when it broke out in a
new plaee.-JosEPH HALL, 60. A, I'D Mich,
! Edgar Springs, mo-
EDITOR NATIONAL TR1BUNE: During a
hard thunder storm the spring broke cut from
an old well that. the prisoners had dug for
| water on the north side of and perhaps so
yards from the slough and about the same
distance from the west stockade. So heavy
was tho rainfall daring this storm that por-
| ton of the stockade the upper side was
washed away. We all shouted ut the sight ss
the Israelites did when accomplishing Jericho.
| God caused to burst forth living spring OF
pure water to moisten the parched tongues OF
the dying and to refresh the yet living of the
starving hosts of the hated Yankee prisoners.
No! If nay memory Of Wirz is correct, he
would far rather have constructed troughs to
run the water from than to as. This is my
remembranee.-BEGJ. WILLIAMS Co. b, 9Th
Iowa Cav, San jose, Cal.
EDITOR NATIONAL TRIBUNE: I was Ia An
| dersonvile Ga, IN the 92d Detachment, Sd
Mess, aud remember about the spring breaking
out after a very heavy rain, Aug. 8, 1864 but
it is only within few years that i have
learned that there was any special dspensa-
tion of Providence in this, and it was gener-
ally understood that the Southern Cenfederacy
was so far removed from all humanity aud God
that there chance for any miracles; be-
sides the conyeniences for getting water were
so inadequate to the vast number of prisoners
that if there was any providential meaning il
was only for few. Let US stop this bosh.--
JoHN A. MILLER, Co. E, LIST Ohio, Dayton, o.
You will never realize the great benefit Hoods
sarsaparilla viii do you till you give tia fair trial