The National tribune., 1909-07-22

C. A. STORKE.
sleeve to hold the meal and the bean
rations, the half canteen to cook the
Scant ration in and the pint cup, which
had more uses than any other culinary
article ever had. Upon reaching Camp
Sorghum for the first time 1 was in alb
solute despair. My clothes were in tat
ters; I had nothing in which to carry
my rations, nothing in which to cook
them. and no covering from the Decem-
Der winds and cold. My coat an ordi-
nary dress coat of the private soldier,
was frilled in its sleeves from the elbow
down to the wrist, and the shirt sleeves
were gone. One of the tails of my coat
had cut off, and had used the severed
part to patch the knee of one pant leg,
and was saving the other tail for the
same necessary service to the other leg,
and the unpatched leg was uncovered
at every step. One of my shoes had a
top and no sole and the other had a
sole and no top, and many day have
/ stood in line when the roll was called
and brought up the unprotected foot
against the other leg to keep it from
the frosty ground. For a hat / had
secured an old pant leg. and had made
a turban out of it. The seam of the
back of my coat near the shoulder had
ripped for six or eight inches and
showed the cotton batting and the dead
lice which infested it.
But good luck was mine. Shortly
after entering the prison at Florence l
met comrade of my regiment who
was captured at the same time was
captured. but of another company, and
had been among those sent from An
dersonvilIe to Charleston and thence to
Florence, and he took me in under his
blanket and permitted me to draw ra-
tions with him. However. ii was NOT
for me to remain long at Florence. On
the 18th day of December an order
came to select a thousand for parole.
and II was my good luck to be among
those selected as tOo.ill to return to the
regiment, and therefore desirable to
exchange. and l came ont of Charles
ton, and was soon on board the pro-
peller Verona. on the way TO Annapolis.
and with us came the news that Sher-
man had reached the sea.
The Monument to Wirz.
Now. as to the monument to WirZ.
| 1t is inexcusable. Wirz was hung, not
because the prisoners were not .ex-
changed, but because he made the life
of prisoners uncomfortable. I will admit
that all of us who had been under his
| rule at Andersonviile were prejudiced
against him, and that our prejudice:
were such as to color our testimony
| But there are certain facts which no.
body, not even the Confederates them.
| selves, will deny. Until the famou:
| Providential Spring broke out nine,
| tenths of the prisoners obtained thcil
drinking water from the creek Often
/ have gone for water at the creek, and
reached as far as safety would permi
me to reach so as to get the pur,st
water possible, and have found mag
gots in the bottom of the cup. Often.
have drank water with maggots swim
ming in the water for this reason. Now
Is it denied that by the use OF few
boards the water could have beer
brought in from without the stockadf
unpoiluted? Again. you know, ant
every one who ever was in Anderson
vile during the Summer of 1864 knows
the scarcity of wood. Never did navt
| wood during all the time ] was in An
ldersonville sufficient to cook even musf
or rice so that ii was eatable. much los.
meal or beans. Ii the rice got TO {
boil it had to be considered. cooked
and IL the mush began to emit steam i
also was done; and never did l sec {
bean. or a pea, better called, which
was cooked sufficiently to make it cat.
liable. Now, this was the fact, and ye
lyous know, and 1 know and all th,
lguards at Andersonville know, tina
from where l slept, just opposite the
third guard post from the northeas
corner. l could have pitched a ston
into pitch-pine forest. 1t follows tha
Wirz could have furnished the prison
ers reasonable sufficiency Of wood i
he had SO desired.
Hounds Torture Prisoners.
Again, one of the charges of tn,
court-martial that tried Wirz was tina
l he c1If ha dc 10
torture escaping prisoners. Now, lit
tie incident that came under my oh
lseryation cOnvinces my mind, and ougl
to any fair-minded man, that tnis wa
true. / have heard. and you hav
heard, the hounds bay. as they wer
taken around the prison Gaily, bur tn
fact that 1 relate is proof positive tina
they were used as charged.
One of the memories of my last day
at Andersonville Is that of Little Fathe
Hamilton. the only minister of any de
nomination that ever saw at Andar
sonville. Offering up prayers for the dy
( ling beside poor fellow who had bee
Z torn and wounded by dogs. had stoc
beside him before the little father cam
D in. end heard from him his story. II
Y had been in the so-called hospIta
: which, you remember, was without tn
L stockade in the southeast. This hosp
n tai, with its grounds, reached acrns
0 1.-THE creek that ran thru the prison. Thi
n prisoner told me that he had been q
k inmate of the hospital, and when I'll
I heavy storm came that tore way III
Y stoclkade in the neighborhood of th
r place where the dead line crossed tn
e creek. that he had thrown himself int
q -.eek, and endeavored to escape
;, that he did get beyond the limits
the guards and away for short time
( that the dogs We're set upon his tract
S ana, being too weak to climb Il tree an
: thus escape them, he was badly tori
9 Now. believe this dying man. he ha
= no cause to tell to me a falsehood. NJ
G lyou and / know, and / doubt whe'he
0 there be a solitary guard who was /:
o Andersonville who does not ienow, thf
q this charge was true.
A Southern Protest.
, Again, there is a letter written by on
, | of the Andersonville guards. in Jun,
1864 which was sent To -JefferSOu Dayi: