The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-01-25

A personal reminiscence of J. D. Max well, who joined the Montgomery Greys, May 9th, 1881. left for Corinth. Miss, on May 12th, 1861:
 From Corinth, Miss, to Lynchburg. Va, Lynchburg to Richmond. from there to Manassas, which was the first battle I was engaged in,
 From Manassas I went to Yorktown. and we had a pretty heavy engagement at Williamsburg, on our way back to Richmond. l was in the battle of Seven Pines and from there to Boonsboro, Md. battle of South Mountain, there I re- mained. eight weeks and two days.
 My next battle was at Culpepper Court House, then Fredericksburg, next Gaines Farm, next at Mechanicsville, Orange Court House. Battle of the Wilderness. seven days fight in front of Richmond, Fredericksburg again, Second Battle of Manassas, next Gettysburg, Pa At Get tysburg I was detailed by our authori- ties to take care of the wounded on the battlefield. which I did and was cap tured along with our wounded. From there I was sent to Baltimore by the Yankees and put in prison. From Bal timore l was sent to Point Lookout, Md, where there were about - thousand of our men in prison. At this place I was DduIy treated. we were ndlI ClOlHSu anu half fed. Men would eat rats and any thing. almost Negro guards would shoot in our tents for no cause whatever. There was five of our men killed in one tent one night while they were asleep. It was a terrible place. so far as treat ment was concerned, and our men de- vised all kinds of plans to escape. One fellow took a dead man out of coffin and used the coffin as a boat to cross the Potomac. From Point Lookout I was sent back to Baltimore, and from there to Elmira, N. Y, a deathly hole Here We had poor treatment, even for prison CTS, in fact we were not treated as good as dogs Our men would make hooks and the scraps out of slop Har- rels. One of our men killed Yankee s dog, skinned it and eat it. Rats didn' [ stand any show at all.
 The fellow that killed and eat the dog was punished by putting a barrel shirt on him and marching him up and down until he fell dead. The Yankees were awful mean to us prisoners. and all eff forts in the world were made to escape. Fox Maull and others succeeded in dig ging a tunnel by sinking well in their tent or rather under 1t. They made their escape during the night and travelled 300 miles to Lynchburg. The snow was about three feet deep on the ground the night they escaped.
 When the Yankees found out how the prisoners had escaped they were very mad and went about over the prison grounds punching iron rods into the ground and tearing up tents. They found eighteen more tunnels started, some of them almosra out. Three of our men went to the dead house in the pris- on and gave the officer $50 to let them k,I-n coffins and they got in, the lids were tackled on with chip under it so they could get air; they were carried out next day by Yankee lieutenant and a negro detail in the direction of Niagara Falls to be buried. When the detail went to throwing dirt on them they kicked the lids and up they came The Lieutenant and detail didn't stay to finish their job, went back to prison in double quick ! time, where the Lieutenant fell from exhaustion and came very near not sur- viving.
 I was paroled at this prison on March g. 1865, and left for home at once. I was 1 twenty-two days and nights on the road | back to Montgomery, where I arrived on March g, 1865. I had three brothers in the same company I was in. Joe Max well, William Maxwell and Hans Max well. My brother Joe was killed at BoAnesboro. Md. He uied In my arms and I buried him. He was 21 years old when killed. My brother William was wounded three times, at battle of Seven Pines. Boonsboro, Md. and at Freder- icksburg. My brother Travis and myself were not wounded.
 Montgomery has been my home for fifty years. and I expect to die here among my friends, and when the AL mighty sees fit to remove me from earth to Heaven I hope to be remembered by having tombstone palced on my grave by my friends of the Sophie Bibb Chap ter, Y. D. c. I want my name. Com pany and Regiment and a Confederate flag engraved on my tomb.
 Written for the Records of Sophie Blob
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