Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1889-01-21

survey OF Jne premises we IOunQ,
here and there, holes dug out in the
ground where men were burrowing
like prairie dogs, that they might
find some shelter and protection from
the cold winds and storms of winter
which drove down upon this, to us,
God forsaken island. When l say
that most Of these men were very
poorly clad and without blankets, it
can be seen that their suffering from
the cold was intense. 1t will not be
wondered that the death rate was
frightful. / was fortunate enough to
have a blanket and an overcoat, and
bunked with others who had blankets.
On the lower end of the island were
some tents used as hospitals. God
forbid that such hospitals and suffer-
ing be witnessed again in America.
| To saw nothing of the suffering and
sights within, / will mention the fact
that the dead were carried out just
beside the tents and there let remain,
to my personal knowledge, nine days,
until the stencil became so unendura-
BILE that the authorities were forced
to bury what remained of the bodies
and could be gathered up.
It was the study of the prisoner
by day and his dreams by night, how
he might escape, and my mind was
constantly engaged with the thought
of getting away from this Belle Isle,
or "Hell Isle.' as we called it. L
had plan of escape which was con-
fded to a comrade named Barrows
and we carried out the first part of it
successfully, but our courage was not
quite equal to the dangers that threat
ened us. We slipped the guards and
met at a point at the lower end of the
island one dark night, thinking to
trust our fortunes to the river, hoping
to swim down half mile or more
to the land shore, then to take our
chances of escape beyond. But the
night was very chilly and the water
was so cold that we thought best to
postpone the undertaking one month.
Meanwhile we were on our way to
Andersonville.
1t was at this place where was
called out by comrade to witness,
as he said, ''the toughest sight I ever
saw vet" We went out to the river
bank, when we saw lying on the
ground rather young-loo<ing boy,
dead, who had tightly grasped in his
hand an old bone, which he had pick
ed up somewhere with the vain hope |
of obtaining some food from it. The
boy had without doubt starved to |
death.
We hear once and a while the |
phrase, "hungry enough to eat a raw
dog" but | had never realized what
that would really mean, until l pass
ed the sad hours in prison. 1t was
on this same Belle Isle that l saw a
living illustration of this sort of hun
ger: The sergeant of the guard used
to come into camp almost every day,
accompanied by little yellow-and-
white dog and rather enticing look
ing cur he was too, for he was fat
and sleek. One night he CHANGED to
come in after dark, and the boys
made quick work with him, leaving
the hide and head on the ground.
The sargeant coming in next morning
discovered the remains of his faithful
equine companion and fell into the
greatest rage. He cursed the whole
Yankee kingdom. He ordered about
100 men into line and said: "Y You're
going to be exchanged, but not
id man of you leaves until you tell
who killed my dog" In their great
anxiety to leave some of them con-
sented to tell, and pointed to a tall,
lean Michigander as the author of the
dog murder. The Reb stepped up to
him and said, ''Did you kill my dog?"
81 did, sir" answered the prisoner.
"What did you do with him?'' asked
the sergeant. ''I ate a part of him,
and have the rest in my pocket"
Hereupon he pulled some of the dog
from his pocket. 'FNow," said the
Reb, ''you mnst eat the rest of the
dog before any of you leave this
place, and the poor fellow ate down,
in the presence of us all, the remain ,
der of the dog. seemingly with con- {
relish. About this time the 8
rebel lieutenant in charge came along, G
and, enquiring the cause of the delay ,
and the facts about the dog, he gave Y
the sergeant such cursing and blow {
ing up as | never heard. His heart t
was touched and with tears in his /
eyes, said, "When it comes to this,
that men will eat the raw flesh Of 2
dog, God knows they must be pretty +
hungry" t
We were soon marched from the a
Island to the cars and safely locked c
in. We had no knowledge, up to this a
time. where we were going, other q
than that we had received from the h
who owned the dog, and c
really supposed we were to be paroled /
and sent north but when the cars t
started and moved off southward, the t
terrible thought that we were to be v
carried to a prison pen flashed on our
minds and we fell into state bor- S
dering on to despair. Had we known v
then the suffering to be endured and t
the awful fact that the larger share q
of thoca on hoard vvapa to maat tho =