Democratic Northwest and Henry County news. [volume] (Napoleon, O. [Ohio]) 1894-1905, 1897-04-15
,rucifx with a broken jack knife.


innumerable, but though nearly all
were impracticable, yet unknown &c
their comrades, % men, pledged te
secrecy were at this time digging jr
the darkness the great tunnel through
which subsequently, Ito men escaped.
when get good and ready I'm
going to light OUT
This Kupp would say to the men
unfolding their schemes about him
but as he refused to tell how he plo.
posed getting away, he was laughed
at, and left to his bone carving.
Just before Christmas the Confed-
crate authorities, who refused to re-
ceive supplies for the prisoners from
the United States Government, pre-
mltted friends in the North to senc
down little food and clothing under
. flag Of truce, Uaiforms were con
! itrabaad, 50 that all the clothes tha
came through were of the citlzer
style and material. Our friends learn
ed of this privilege and its limita-
tions, through the brief open letters
we were permitted to send out once
Ia mon.h.
| In this way some food and cloth
ing came through to the officers from
the Northern States, and they gener
lally divided the former with thell
less fortunate comrades from Wes
Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky an
Missouri, whose old homes were still
the scenes of constant fighting.
Lieutenant Kupp received q hug
box, full of hams, sausages, preserves
cheese and other good things fror
the old farm, but neither memory o
past hunger nor fear OF the futur
prevented his inviting the men wh
had no boxes to help themselves. Q
all the things in the big box the on
; that most delighted Kupp's soul wa
a snit of butternut clothes, evidentl
of home manufacture, even to th
= cloth.
!, The Lieutenant soon 'shucked' b
blue rags and donned the new suit
. Thus attired, he strobe up and dow
! the Upper Potomac room,' a hunk
= bread in one hand and hunk OF ha
;, in the other, while his laughing con
!, rades demanded to know when b
left North Caliny.'
> sHlt don't mattah wen | left, r
y sponded Kupp, with an inimitab
J. mountaineer drawl, the thing that
a bothern' me now is wen an no
4 I'ze gwine ter git back
AS old soldiers will remember, Il
!, uniform of our most gallant friend
. the enemy, were anything but ur
. form about this time. The citiz'
~ ~ clothing, put aside at the beglnnil
- " of the war, was sent to the front fro
~ ~ home, though a gray hat, a pair
\ gray trousers, or gray coat was r
4 tanned whenever possible. Hundre
II of Confederates in "butternuts" pas
~ ed the prison along Carey street eve
:, day, and many of the guards abo
w Libby, or who came in every NOR
a a ing to count the prisoners, were DIRE
- ed in the same material.
The prison roll call, at this tin
n was more expeditions than efficie
Every morning. in the gray, ct
dawn of that bitterly cold winter,
Yankees were routed from the fo'
on which they lay and driven il
the upper Potomac, or upper Q
room-the latter was the name Civ
it by the Confederates. Through
opening in the wall the men W
counted into the upper Chlckamau
or upper middle room, where Il
were free to do as they pleased, wi
In the prescribed limits. The n
at the head of the line, and they W
usually the ones who had someth
to cook, made swift rush to the Il
er middle room, where there W
four old fashioned, rusty Kltc
stoves.
When the count was over and
Yankee reported missing, the qua
fled down to the west ground fl
room, where "Biack George" the
geant, and the Prison Clerk, "Ll
Ross" reported to Major Turner, c.
mandant of the prison.
One morning, early in Janu
1854, and about ten days after he
received the clothing from home
was noticed that Kupp, who was U
ally among the first counted out, b
to the rear, and on this occasion
the very last.
When Kupp came into the W
Chickamauga room, the guard
s~-,.srr. - 1o.xa Cos1iun tho n