Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1909-10-27

| Ou-hSu tHSir StdHuaFuSs ana IN the
excess of their bitter affection mixed
the ashes of their eagles with wine
and SO drank them. So with our Of
ficers in their dark days at Macon.
where on that fourth of July, 1867
a terrible year for all our prisoners
of war-without means of defence or
! aggression, they fearlessly bore aloft
and cheered the flag they loved so
dearly, for which they were suffer
ing untold horrors.
While but comparatively few of my
companions in the prison pens of the
south are living today, those wSo
have been spared will never cease
to remember with the liveliest feel
ings their unique celebration OF our
country's natal day while confined at
Macon, July 4, 1864.
Patriotism in AndersonviIle.
/ have before me a book entitled,
Chris ianity in the Army, from which
the following is taken:
With all the exeruciating torrents
inflicted upon our brave patriots in
Andersonville, with few exceptions,
their heroic devotion to their coun-
ry never abated; though surround
ed with fiji h, cruelty, starvation, muir
der and death. they still chung to
the dear old flag with unyielding per-
tinacity. choosing rather to die mar
tyrs han traitors. While few took
he oath of allegiance and Joined the
confederacy. expecting thereby to es-
cape and fee to our lines, the great
body of the men stood, with unshak-
en- confidence and unfiinching hearts.
for God and their country This was
he true spirit of martyrdom. To
face the belching cannon, to storm
batteries, make charges, and capture
forts, requires pluck and strong cour-
age; but to face aviation, hunger
and murder, to drag out life more
intolerable than dea b itself, amidst
such fiendish cruelty and barbarity
as characterized this ssaughter-pen,
required something more than pluck
and courage. And to endure all this
when the government they had
SO nebly volunteered to defend, treat-
ed them as they thought, with such
spirit of ind ference as led them
to believe it had forsaken them, man
Tested self-sacrifcing heroism I'M
paralleled in the history of the world;
and some ines. when number re-
duced to the extremity of want. with
death staring them in the face, ulo
go over to the confederacy, the feet
ing of the great mass of the soldiers
was. Il would ra her have died a
eozen deaths than be guilty of such
disloyalty." After they had been
years in the army, and several months
in Andersonville. we hear them say,
Il am not sorry that l enlisted
No, true patriotism, like true love.
never dies out. II is stronger than
death And with the unquenchable
fire burning in their bones and blaz-
ing upon the altar of their hearts,
thir cen thousand brave martyrs,
rather than turn traitors. chose To
and torments of AndersonyiHe, ana
leave their uncofined bodies to tell
he tragic story OF their sad fate,
Being excluded from the world, and
deprived of all news from the army
ana concerning the war, except what
they heard from prisoners coming in.
their condition was not only express
sibly wretched but dreary and lone
": vet, like the captive Jews In Ba-
bylon, thev never forgo heir coun
try. Detected. discouraged and heart
broken, as they were, yet, methinks.
can hear them exclaim n the lar
guage Of the Psalmist. IF | for~n-
thee. o my country. let my
hand forget her cunning"
Hence, with all their cruelties
when any encouraging news came
from the army, Groves would col
lect, and sing with joy few patri-
otto songs, such as, Red. White and
Blue, Nv Country. It's of Thee, and
S ar-Spangled Banner. At this the
rebel guards were surprised and
somewhat confused. as though they
hardly knew what it meant. Devot.
edIy attached to their country. and
having so long shared each others
hardships and misfortunes. they be-
came warmly attached to each other;
and, says one of them. eve loved
one another as brothers"
Even in the hospital, while racked
with pain and writhing in agony from
the most malignant forms # diar-
rhoea, dropsy and scurvy, they ex-
pressed their strongest desires and
most earnest longings for success
and victory to crown our arms. Their
patrio ism was of the undying kind.
With the same heroic devotion W,
which they went forth to fight The
battles of their country, firmly cling
ing to the dear old flag, they died
the most excruciable deaths possible
for rebel tyrants to infiict The Sc
we're shock Of battle, all the unutter-
able horrors Of starvation, death and
murder Of AndersonvilIe, failed TO
lessen their unfaltering devotion to
their bleeding country: and dying,
even. BIZ starvation and torture. mar
tyr-like, their last prayers we're for
victory and union.