The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1895-08-29

Some startling Figures OF the Calam1L1es
of Camp and FieId-What the Soldiers
Passed Through-About One Out of Ev-
cry Two Killed or Injured In the Conflict.
Copyright, 1856.
The Warnings and those who with them
consider it an impertinence for spokesman
of the Grand rny to say, We saved the
nation, have thus far failed to enlighten
the liberal public as to who did save it.
Warning brought out one echo which declar-
ed that at the outside there are not more
than 80, 900 veterans alive VINO took part
in the fighting. 1t is often asserted that
there are more pensioners on the rolls
than there were soldiers in the army at
any one time, and so on to the end OF a
long category Of reasons assumed for not
recognizing soldiers claims 1t is also
stated that there are more pensioners on
the rolls than there are survivors, hence
! many must be inpostors, and that the SOL
diers who performed but little service are
on the same plane as those who bore the
brunt of the fighting. IL point of fact,
there are about 400, 900 surviving veterans
not now upon the roll, number large
enough to include all the men whose serv
ices were so trivial as to give them no
claim to pension. The disability laws
make no distinction as to length of service.
The pension is for disability 1t may
have occurred during the first day Of sol
diers term or at the end Of four years
hard service. Only a graded service pen
sion could reduce the inequalities which
exist with respect to amount Of allowance
for terms served by the pensioner. The
side Of the veterans can hardly be set forth
with adequacy and still keep within tho
bounds of self respect and modesty. They
went to the war voluntarily when the ma
ton was in danger, and it was the nation
which spread abroad at that time, with
striking emphasis and display, the idea
that all who suffered for the cause would
be showered with benefits at the end.
Nothing was too good to say to the volun-
teers then; nothing too much to promise.
The nation was saved and it is startling
commentary upon the result if the people
today are unable to recognize its saviors.
Historians and descriptive writer's have
labored to impress upon this generation
the services of leaders of certain armies
and of heroes of certain battlehelds. Yet
with all that has been written and re-
counted at the freside, the risks taken, the
deeds of valor performed, the sutfer1ngs
that fell to the armies universally and to
sure of life and limb for the glory Of the
flag are but little understood and appreci-
ated by those who at heart wish to do
full honor and justice to the veteran SOL
diers. There were about 2, 900, 900 individ-
uals in the war, and it is not too much
to say that every man who enlisted had
but one chance in two of escaping the hor-
rible evils of war. There were $50, 900
deaths in all during service, while tens Of
| thousands died Of the effects of service i'm
| mediately after discharge. There were
| also $50, 900 men wounded so severely as to
| be sent to a general hospital for treatment,
| and there were 5000, 900 cases of disease
| treated in the hospitals. If half Of the men
| in the whole army entered the hospital,
| every one victim to six diseases during
| his confinement there, it would not be sur
prising The war was long one, and the
| Union soldiers were wholly unprepared by
nature to endure the exposure to southern
| climes OF the victims sent to hospitals
about 24O, 900 died, and it is reasonable to
| suppose that at least as many more were
brought almost to the point Of death by
disease, and that they left the service
marked for life. Of those hit in battle
there were more than twice as many re-
cOveries as deaths reported, and no doubt
it would be fair to estimate the very dan
gerously sick who recovered at 400, 600
men, There were over $50, 600 men re-
ported missing or captured. Of course
| those known to have died are included in
this report They numbered 80, 900 among
the prisoners, leaving 100000 survivors,
most of whom brought back from captivity
tho evil effec' of confinement and priva-
ton Taking the four classes of casualties
| TO xT-bi
there were over million, as follows:
Deaths, all causes. .................... 599,OOU
Prisoners, SUI vived. 10000
Serious illness mot fatal) .............. 10000
1,15o,OOO
Many would be counted twice or even
three times in this list, which is official,
| except that fractions of q thousand are dis
carded But after allowing for all of the
repetitions the startling fact remains that
nearly 1000. 900 out Of the 1000, 600 men
! who wore the blue risked all that makes
life worth living.
And it is possible to verify on an extern
sive scale the facts assumed as basis for
this argument. In the 800 Union regi-
ments whose records are given infinitely in
Colonel Fox's work, "Regimental Losses"
the showing of casualties is greater than l
to 2, taking the deaths, wounds and the
dangerous cases recovered on the above
plan. Each of these regiments lost 100
men or more by death on the field of bat
tie. For the purposes of this argument
they are but typical. While there were
many hundreds of regiments in the Union
army where the loss of life in killed was
less than 100 in each, yet the service per-
formed was me of exposure equal to any
| IL Iolc yH3r.O
as important.
Table Of casualties in 800 regiments,
ed
| MAINE.
Killed. W'd'd. Died. Total
1st cavalry. .::..... IA 4S5 81 81 ,95S
| 1st heavy artillery. 423 goo 260 1543