The evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1907-1908, 1907-10-15
.X-PRSONERS
ELECT NEW
OFFICERS
7. Williams Heads
Association Started Here
Il Years Ago.

The New Jersey Association, Union Ex-
Prisoners of War, which was organized in
the Continental Hotel, Newark, twenty
one years ago this month, held its annual
session today in the rooms of Garfield Post,
G. A. r.. at 24S Market street. At one
time the association had more than 800
members. but death has reduced the num-
Der to thirty-fve or forty. Several old
comrades died since the last meeting,
among them Adjutant Joseph Peloubet. OF
Newark. Acting Adjutant Charles i. Hop
kins. of Boonton. read today letters from
widows. sons and fathers telling Of deaths
of comrades.
Before the business meeting was opened
by the commander. Almon n. Riker. of
B~elleville. the w~hite-haired veterans of the
Civil War who had suffered in Southern
prison pens exchanged "reminiscences of
those terrible months at Andersonville,
where. at one time. 35.M0 Union soldiers
were cooped up in IA space of about thirty
acres. and Of Belle Isle, Libby and Penn
berton prisons in Richmond Va. Com
mander Kicker was captured May "a, 1862,
and was In Belle Isle and other prisons
until exchanged in the September follow
ing.
Charles T. williams. Of Newark, suffered
the horrors Of Andersonyille under the IN
famous Captain Henry Wirz. He had the
satisfaction of being a witness at the trial
of Wirz by a military commission in 1865,
after the close of h war. on charges OF
willful murder OF Union soldiers, and saw
him hanged in the Old Capital Prison in
the city of Washington.
General Edward L. Hayes, of Glen
Ridge, IS years old, was the pride of all
the ex-prisoners. He was in seven South
ern prisons for Union officers. lie com
manded the First Brigade, Third Division,
of the Army of the West when he was
captured.
Is Captain Augustus Dusenberry, of New
ark. former Alderman. Assemblymah and
Police Commissioner. was captured by the
Confederates twice, once at the battle of
Antietam, and again in Sherman's march
to the sea-" He had a varied experience
as a prisoner, and made his escape twice
and reached the Union army in Tennessee,
after a long tramp through forests.
The election of officers resulted as fol-
lows: President, Charles T. Williams. OF
Garfield Post, Newark; senior vice-presi-
dent. William II. Bratton, Lincoln Post,
Newark, but a resident OF East Orange; ad-
iutant. Charles f. Hopkins, of John Hill
Post, Boonton; quartermaster, Henry G..
Myers, Hoboken; chaplain. Edward II.
Williams. of Uzal Dodd Post. Orange.
George NJ. Cadmus, of Bloomfield; N. V.
Compton. of Railway, and George Oughel-
tree. of Newark, were elected members OF
the executive committee. Delegates TO the
convention Of the national association
chosen We're: Augustus Dusenberry, Will
lam II. Bratton and Alfred Husk, all of
this city; alternates. Edward II. Smell, OF
Montclair; william S. Stout, of Newark,
and Charles b. Johnson, of Cedar Grove.
Robert S. Riley and David 7. Creighton,
who have long prison records, were elected
members of the association.
a / O'Clock the comrades took n
recess and went to Achtel-Stetter's for
dinner. AT $3.50 O'Clock they opened a
campfire in Garfield Post rooms and the
veterans fought their battles over again
and told of their experiences in the South
ern prisons, where thousands of men were
killed by famine and disease.