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Our Suffering Prisoners

Our Suffering Prisoners image
Parent Issue
Day
14
Month
October
Year
1864
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

We present in a concise iorm, from official documenta, the vital pcints in volved in Linooln's refusal to ruleu.se the thirty-five thousund Union piisontrs, now dying at tho late oí ono hundred a d;iy, in the pentiluniial prison of Andersouville, Georgia. Is the man who thus doorns our nuighbors and friends to doath at the shrine of aboli-. tiouism and negro eqnality, worthy to be reiestated in the Presiduutial chair herbassofar dishonorcd ? Is he the muil vvith whoiii to entrust the lives and propcrty and deatiny of thirty milliona ot people ? Úoud thu following extracts froui official documenta, showing why our prisoners die, and why the responsibihty of tbeir Buffêririgs resis witli Abraham Lincoln : TUE OFFER F LIXCOLX's OOMMISSIONER OF EXOHAN'GE. Mr. Ould has not proposed to yield to us a uertain number of prisoneis ui war, and reeeivo a like numbur in return, wliich would be a most happy consuinmation that would be at once aecepted by this goverutnen'; E. A. HrrcHcocK, Major-General and Cotn. of Exchango. TUE ACClïrl'ANCE Oï TUE 1ÍJEBEL C0MM1SS10XÜB. EïCIlMOND, Aug. 10, 18G-1. I now consent to the abovo proposals, and agree to delivor to you the pnsoners held in captivity by the Confedérate authorities, providcd you agrea to deliver an ecjual number of Confedérate offiuera and men. As equal nuniberH are deli.ve.red Iroin time to time, they wiil b declared exchauged. Robuht Uui.d, Cinfedoiatu Com'r of Exchange. TI1H RKJKf'lION OF TUK ACCKl'TANOE llï LINCOLN'S AND IHTCIH'OOK's AGKNT Al'TEJt ÏIlltKH VytJEÍÍBi' D EMHUUATION. Vaiuna, Va , Aug. 31, 18G4. I have no ooinmiinication on the Piibject lrom our lullioriüos, nor aio i yct authonzeil to naku an aostver, JOÜN E. JVIlLKdlil), Mujor and Assist't Agent for Exehange. TIU: ÜKASO.N FOK TUK JIKJEUTION TUK NKiiRO TUE ONI.Ï OHSl'AC [,!■',. Tiie wrongs, indigniiie-! iind privat'uuis sufierèu by our (white) solder'8 wiiuiJ (tiove riie to consent to dhyIhing tu procure their cxuliangi', exccpt to baïtéf awav tlie lioni-r aml íaitii oí tlu; güverüuieiil, uf thu UniU'il Slate.1, wbioh luis been solernniy plodgod to thu colored soldiurs in tho rauks. linx.i. F. Brn.i'!:, Maj r General and Agent of Exchange. nll other questions between us uj;iy be puistponed lor future settlement, but the fair exchange of colored soldiors and t hei i' while ollioers will be ïBsisted onrby the governmcnt bef'oro anotlier rebui soldijr or bffioer Will be excbanged. W'ii.i.k.m Winnv,, Solioitoi' of ihe Wav Depurtnieui. BOiv rnii Tiirn: soldikks suekek and dik. Ki-.i.n thë lüomorial of the Thirty five Thousarul Perishing Prisoners in the Pen of Pesülence aud Faiiiiiio at Audersouville, (a. TUT. S1TLATION OF TUK J1HN. To the Prfsidtnt uf the Uuite.l S.ttca : 'l'hee tliirly-üve thuusand are confi;ied iu u field of bibö thiily acres, eiiolosed by'a board fence heavily guarded. Ábout onethird have various kinds of indifferent shelter, or I even .shade of auy knd, and are oxposed to the stonns and rains, uhich are of almost daily occurrenee; the cold dews of the .night, and the more terrible efieots of the sun striking with almost tropical fierccnesH upon their unprotected Imada. The muss of men jostle and crowd eaoh otilar up and down tho hmits of their enelosure, in storm or hun, and others lie down upou tho pitileBrt earth at night with no ofher covering ihan tho clothing npon their backs, few of iha.-n having even u blanket. Thousands are without pants or coat, and hundreds without even a pair of dr awera to cover tbeir nakednesa. THE SCAN-TY KATION. To these men, as indeed to all prisoóere, there is issued throe qnarters of a pound of bread or meal, and oue-eighth of a pound of meat per day. Thia in the entire ration, and upon it the prisoner must live or die. The meal is ofien nnsif'ted and solifj anti -tbe ment, mich as in the North in consigned to tho soap maker. . .- ■ ; 8KJKNKS3 AND SEATH. But tó starvation and exposure, to sun, and eiokneisSj wbich prevaile to a most alarming uijd terrible extent. On an average or.e hundred die daily. It ne.eds no comment, no efforts at word painting, to rnake such a pieture stand out buldly in most horrible oolors. DES1-AÍR AND IDIOCÏ DEATI1 COÜRTED. They are fast hope and becomiug uttorly r.ecbleea of life. Numbers, crazed by their suft'rings, wander iibout in a state of idiooy ; others delilierately cross the "dead line," and are remorst'lessly ehot down, TUK UHAHACTUK ÖI MKX r.EFT TO RUCH A l'ATE 1!Y I.IN'COLN. Few of theui have been captured excepl iu the front of battie, in the deadly encounter, and only wheu overpowered by uuiubars. They constituís as gallant a portion of our armiea aa curry our bauners anywhere. If released, they would soon return to the army again, to do yigorous battie for our oause. WIIIT THEY SUFFER AND DIK THE MEN ONDERSTAND THE REASjDS- 7THE NEOROBS.' We are told tha't the only obstaolea in the way of exchange is the status of enK.sted negroes captured ('rom our urm'iL's, the Uniti;d States claiming that the cartel covers all who aail under ita flag, and the Confedérate States refusing to consider the oolorcd soldiers, heretofore elaves, as prisoners of war. TUE NEGRO PRISONERS FOR WIIOJJ ,OLR V.IIITK MKN ARU PACRIKICED - IIOW TH1SÏ LIVE AND AKK OAlliïD FOR, The blacks, on the contrary, are seldom imprisoned. They are distributed among the citizená, or employed oa government works. Under these circumstauces they receivo enough to est, and are workod no harder than they have been aecustömed to be. They are neither starving nor killed off by the pesfrüeneo in tno dungeonsof Richmond and Charleston. It is' true thuv are again made slaves ; but iheir slavery is freedom and happiness compared with the cruel e.tistonce imposed upon our gallatrf men. 'i'hey are nol, bereft of hope, as are the white so'diers, dying by piecemeal. Théir chancea ol escape are tenfold greater than those of tho white, soldiers, and their condition, ín all its lights, is tolerable in ejniparidon wilh that of the pri.soners of war now languishing iu the dei's and pens of Becession. VIKWS AND OONCLUSIONS 01' TUE MEM0RIAL1STS. We are profouudly impressed wilh the conviclion that the circumstances of the two classes of soldiers are so widely different that tho government cin h 'norably consent to an exehange, waving for a time the e.tablished principie justly claiiiicil tu be applicable in the case. Let thiriy-five thou.sand suffenng, starving and dying enlisted men aid this appeal. By prompt and decided action in their behalf thirty-five thous md héroes will be made happy. For Uie éight hundred commissioned offi ,:ors now prisouers we urge nothing. Althougli (leKWifis rl returuing to our duty, we c.iin henr inipi isonment wilh fortiun'p, it' tho enlisted inen whose sufferings vu krtov to bc iiitolorab'e, were rèsUnfd to liberly and lift.

Article

Subjects
Old News
Michigan Argus