The Washington herald., 1915-01-24

tying them to piece of coal or rock,
and tossing them over the fence when
the guards were not looking.
Many of the officers had acquaint-
ances in the Northern cities who fur
/ nished them with clothing and money.
Provisions were not allowed to be sent
! in from outside the prison. but
sulter did business within the in
| closure. and those who had money
bought from him.
Gambling In Confinement.
THE money itself we were not per-
mitted to have" wrote Lieut.. Whites.
''In its stead the prison officials is
sued currency. 1t was called sheep
skin The prison officials would not
allow us to have the cold cash lest
and bribe an important guard. thereby
effecting an escape. The 'sheepskin'
| answered for trade.
/ We had a sutler who was real.
! genuine. down East Yankee. He loved
money. and would even furnish whis-
ky on the SLY He had only to go
| TO headquarters at the close of the
day and have his sheepskins cashed."
One of the main diversions in the
officers quarters was gambling. 1t
was a common thing to have several
faro tables in full swing in neigh
| borhood where some of the religious
! ly inclined folk. mostly political pris-
| oners. were listening to a sermon by
one of the several preachers at times
confined there. Weather made no diff
| ference TO the gamblers Rain or
! shine they crowded about the tables.
| placing their bets. or sitting in" to
( the game themselves. Sheepskins were
I used for gambling. the usual bet be
, ing five cents and the limit ten.
I On the whole. the prisoners were
! allowed many privileges. Many of
! them set up lemonade stands or booths
wnere other delicacIes Or small wares
Couid lie purchased. uumbe. 0f me
officers were parOIed and allowed free
/ &c m OF the island. Most of these met
had an easy time of il, and il was not
an unusual thing for one or more of
( them to have a social glass or two
! with the Federal officers.
There were courts and debating So
sieties," wrote Whites. classes in
/ French. Spanish and Greek. There
were Bible students and students in
the arts and sciences.
Sanitary Prison.
1T must be said to the credit of the
Federal prison officials that the sani-
/ Iary and hygienic arrangements were
/ as near perfect man could well
make them. These officials were ex-
ceedingly jealous of the health of the
! place
"Everything had TO be thoroughly
clean. Cleanliness was compulsory. A
laundry machine was furnished and
kind of laundering accomplished.
Blankets were required TO be busted
and summed regularly
Every few weeks the whole army
of prisoners was turned out into the
cold and there remained until the
III 1, ,sv1v H.
both inside and outside. This work
was performed by galvanized Yankees
"A galvanized Yankee was a Con-
federate prisoner who had swallowed
the yellow pup i. e. had taken the
oath of allegiance to the United States
government
The water was good and plentiful
Wharf Rats n Welcome Diet.
The prison fare is the most diff
cut as well as unpleasant part OF
prison life OF which to treat
To say that the fare was entirely in
, sufficient is putting it mildly
Think of being compelled to live on
. two ounces of meat and six ounces
OF bread per day. Yet this was
prison ration for us toward the close
of the war. This was totally made
Quate to appease hunger.
Men who had no other means OF
procuring something to eat were near
ly starved to death. They stalked
about listlessly. EaUnt looking, with
sunken cheeks and glaring eyes, which
reminded one of a hungry, ravenous
beast Hungry, hungry all the time.
of course we endeavored to re-
Iieve one another as far as We could.
often have l and others given our
entire day. ration from the mess hall
to some brother officer less fortunate
than ourselves.
Il have sene an officer peel an ap-
pie, throw the peeling upon the
ground. and Immediately an unfortu-
nate one would pick it up and raven
ously devour il. There were a great
many wharf rats burrowing under the
plank walks which traversed the open
court of che prison. These rodents
were much larger than our common
barn rats, and they were eagerly
sought by the starving officers.
There was a general warfare de-
CIared on the wharf rat in prison.
When these rats were taken and being
prepared, the odor arising therefrom
was certainly tempting to a hungry |
man, and when ready they were eaten |
with a keen relish. This will give |
some idea OF the straits to which some |
of the Confederate officers. and nearly |
all the privates. in prison at Fort !
Delaware, were reduced to by gaunt |
hunger"