Year: 1859

p CAsTIGLIoNE, Monday, june %. 1859.


The day after the battle, instead of going foi


ward with the headquarters of the army, re


manned behind to see the wounded and go owe


tie ground where the fight had been the mos
I severe. During the whole of Friday night, am


all through Saturday and Sunday, the wound
, ed of both armies continued to be brought in


They were removed from the field where the


lay as rapidly as possible, and brought to som,


point where their wounds could be dressed


All the churches and accessible buildings O
this town public and private, were occupied
, the officers being generally taken TO private


houses so far as practible. But for thousand.


no shelter whatever could be found, and they
. were from necessity left in the open air. As


fast as their wounds could be dressed they were


removed to the next town beyond is


Montechairo, five miles distant,-and from


thence TO Brescia, twelve miles farther. that be-


ing the first town OF any considerable size and


at all adequate to the care of such an immense


number OF persons. I was at .dontccliaro when


the great procession began to arrive.


At the entrance Of the town stands large


building used hospital. fronting u.5on q
small open space and being placed at the an
gle of two diverging roads. As the wounded
arrived, those of them who could go no further
were taken off the carts and left here, while the
rest moved on to Brcscia I never saw so
heartrendng a sight rs was presented in front
of that hospital. The army seems not 10 be
provided with any means of removing the
wounded, and relies entirely upon the convey
ances they c;a procure from the surrounding
pcasantry. Everything for miles around had
been called into requisition. Fer the most
part they consisted OF the rude, heavy oy-carts
OF the farmers, made to carry stone OF other
ponderous articles over the fields. Each Of
them had a fat platform six or eight feet wide
and twelve or ff cen long. Some hay was
spread upon this, and upon that the wounded
soldiers were placed as thickly as they could
be laid-wthout shelter of any kind, or pillows
for their heads, or blankets for their limbs, ex-
cept such as they might happen to have upon
! them.


The weather has been excessively warin,-
the storm on the day OF the battle being the
last rain that has iallen,--and yesterday and to-


day the sky has been perfectly clear and the air
heated with the warmost rays OF an Itaiaa sun.
The roads are perfectly hard and very dusty ::
! and it was utterly impossible for well persons
to travel along them with any comfort without
protection of some kind from the heat. I GU
can Judge then Of the intense suffering which
! these thousands Of MANNED and muti'atcd crea-
lures must have endured during that fearful
! Journey Of ten or fifteen miles-performed at
the sowest pace Of heavy oxen, and compelled
constantly to stop by some interruption to the
procession 1t was enough to melt the most
obdurate heart to see the state in, which they
arrived. The peasants who drove them seemed
not to have the slightest sense Of tl@i2 ccndi-
ton, to take the least pains to alleviate their
agony Some of the sol (iers Themselves whose
wounds were least sarious aud permitted them
to move ahout-hld cut branches from the vii
lows and other trees that border the read and
made of them Il slight shade for some OF those
who could only lie upon their backs Their faces
turnea to the brazen and the burning sky.


As far as the eye could sec, dense cloud of


white dust marked the approach Of The advanc-
inc train As the carts came into town, many


of the poor wretches stretched out their hands.


piteollsly crying for water, or tilr wine, as they


were perishing Of thirst The people of the


village had prepared 50 far as possible, fer their


reception. Committees had been appointed, a


quantity Of soup had been prepared and the
young women and men Of the place went to


supply the most pressing necessities Of the poor


creatures who were suffering Oh their behalf


They went about from cart TO cart, asking


what each needed and provided for them to


the best of their. ability. Austrans and


French were mingled indscrimnatcv and


were treated with precisely tic same Kindness


and attention. AS a general thing the Aus


trians were very badly wounded, and seemed


to suffer terribly.


They were, so far as had been convenient
placed upon the same carts-and frequently
: six or eight carts would arrive with none but
Austrians upon them; but still more Frequent
, " there would be three or four Austrians unon
a cart with twice as many Frcnchmen-iilll in
many eases [ have seen a French soldier assist
: ing the Austrian who lay by his side, into some
easier position, or endeavoring to procure fo1
him water or something else of which he seem


ed to be in need. All differences Of nationaii-
: ty were submerged in the intense and over
| mastering agonics of their common fate-
Upon one cart which came up lay an Austrian
: who had died on the road-and close by his
:, side was French soldier just able to raise
} himself from his place and beg for water. a,
he raised his head he looked over at his com


panion and said, as if envying his lot, pool
!. fellow-he needs nothing now The Austrian
C Law at full length upon the cart-his hand,
D crossed upon his breast, and his face, which
i was turned directly upward to the sun wearing
an expression of intense suffering. Five o1
. six others, less severely wounded, were sitting
in front.


Upon another cart lay poor fellow, en-
a tirely naked above his waist, except broaC


bandage which had been placed around hi
9 body to protect frghtful would received from
I musket ball in his side-the ball seemed t.
e have passed entirely through his todv-hi
s face was pale and inexpressibly sad-and h
IS had Just strength enough left to lift himseI
u up and beg for water 1t was immedatel,
q brought, and as soon as his condition was per
d ceived, he was lifted off the cart in the h!anke
y on which he was lying and placed in the hal
: of the hospital, but he lived only few min
is utes longer. AS they were lifting him out
I, the blanket was drawn from under the feet G
Is another poor fellow lying in the same cart


and the motion exorted from him a cry of an
p guish more intense than l ever heard before.
II But it is utterly useless TO multiply notice
III of individual cases Of suffering. Indeed
II would be impossible to mention hundredt
III part OF the instances of dreadful agony whic
er attracted my attention at the time:--and
y each of them could bc described in writing
y not even faint impression wond he given
ol the fearful horrors of the scene as it met th
y, eye of a spectator. IT You can imagine III
OF open area in front of the City Hall filed wit
h' carts, upon every one of which lay from Eve


ten or twelve men in soldiers uniform SO Il
as they were dressed at all.--nearly all bar
III headed their faces clothes and hands elottc
=" with blood. groaning and writhing in pain,-