The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1890-08-17
now WEHUNG SIXMEN
r.cution Of the Thieves Of
Anders0nville Prison.
ulr.rnaoATs IN THE PEN.
2. 3. soldiers Organize vigilantes. and
e va Psrmission Of wirz. the De-
non, Execute the Criminals.

w.emxeroy CRY, Aug. u.-TCopy-
.x.hs.d IL talked last night with man
- .jded in the hanging of the six raiders
: tndersonsiIIe in July, 1864. These men
- 81 murderers. They were bounty
,.-nn>r,. thseves and scoundress, and the
e-fs,v Nsgazsnc of the current month re-
9. i tiern in its article on the Anderson
-. ,visorl. The full details of the exc
.-,;on however, have never been given to
=. r.bijc. II is one of the most remark
stt1trseedies of prison history during the
~ rsr. and it resulted in bringing order
- 4 chaos for the 25 900 men who were
ssreoed in the Andersonville stockade
cooeel John McElroy, the editor of the
rafosai Tribune, OF Washington. tells the
~.rs. He was one OF the youngest soldiers
e fhe late war. He shouldered musket
sssirteet,. was captured at Jonesviile, Va,
!. tssA and after short stay at the prison
z Richmond. found himself in Anderson
- The exchange of prisoners between
- North and the South stopped on the
q II July s1e63, and from this time on the
aasbsrn prisons rapidly tiled. In
Isnuary. 1854 there were fifteen thousand
erisoners in Richmond and DanviIle. and
4 ApriI. '64, the number of prisoners in
Inaersonviiie was $500. At the end OF
Nsy this number had increased to 1900,
"A Il the end of June to 5000. These
,.iders we're hung in July, and at the end
4 4 thst month there were 81, 900 prisoners
d the stockace.
Aa;d Colonel McElroy: "You cannot i'm
! .,;ne the crowded condition OF the prison.
II consisted, you know, OF field covering
about four city squares outside of which
u,ended q high stockade. Just inside OF
Ills stockade was road twenty feet wide
raining around the whole inside of the
prson, known as the dead line. The
yards we're ordered TO shoot the man VINO
- bis fingers over this line. and remem-
ia one day in fixing my tent, which was
\ }us on the edge of the dead line, l heard
liz ping of bullet and just escaped being
lot for having my elbow over the edge.
- prison was in the shape of rectangle
"a Il consisted of two hills which sloped
kwn towards the center through which
e creek perhaps one hundred feet wide.
3 the sides OF these hills were crowded
a thousands in the prison and at one
tine there was scarcely room enough for
N to lie down at once. The prisoners
ume from all parts of the United
sales and from all the divisions
Il the Union army. They did not know
|ne another, and the new arrivals SsFere as
hat Is q man in q strange town. During
As war there was q band of so-calied
Talon soldiers. who were In fact guerrillas
"a who preyed off of both sides. Some of
ttre weie bounty Jumpers, Others were
Union deserters, and others were made up
( TIE thieves and cut-throats who fol-
/ NJ the fortunes of war to make what they
- out OF either side. The rebels had
ugsured number of these men and they
Ma them for a time at Richmond, with
/ &idea Of exchanging them for Confed-
euie prisoners. Our company soon be-
uueacquainted with them, and when they
vns sent from Richmond 10 Anderson
~ We spotted them. As soon as
~ got into the prison they or.
! r1rzed themselves into a regular band Of