SOUTHERN MILITARY PRISONS AND ESCAPES —BY— WARREN HEWITT MEAD. * ^sj fS© SOUTHERN MILITARY PRISONS AND ESCAPEvS. ISY LIETT. WAISREN HEWITT iFEAD, SIXTH KENTUCKY CAVALRY, [Prepared and read by reciuest before the Minnesota Loyal Legion, at Minneapolis, Nov. 11, 1890.] General Sheniian expressed an evident truth when ho Av rote to the mayor of Atlanta: "War is cruelty, and you cannot retine it;'" and nowhere in Ihe o-reat civil war was it more forci))ly ilhistrated than in the experiences of the Fed- eral prisoners of war in the South. Much has hcen written C(mcernino; their treatment at the hands of the C(mfederates, and unveritied accounts of many thinos have sometimes l)een given to the public by i)ers()ns who obtained their informa- tion seconddiand. This personal narrative relates to nearly two years of prison life in Libl)y Prison, Richmond, and Danville, Va. ; Macon, Ga. ; Charlest(m and Columbia, S. C, and two escapes; and it pertains chiefly to att'airs within the writer's own knowledge, and to incidents of his personal experience. The ])attle of Chickamauga was fought principally on the 19th and 2(>th days of Septemljcr, 1S63, and one of the results was the capture by the Confederates of over 0,000 Union prisoners, tfpon the flanUs of the Union army, and to protect its retreat, there was (-onsiderabh^ cavahy tiirlitino- on Monday, the 21st. On that (hiy, at the extreme Federal ri<,dit, the Third lirio-ade of Col. E. M. McCook's tirst division of cavalry (of MitchelPs corps), composed of the 4th, iMh, and (ith Kentucky cavah-y reo;iments, under the command of CoL Louis I). Watkins, of the Oth, to which reoiment I he- longed, was eni2:a<>ed in coverin<>' the retreat of th(^ Union forces and guarding- wagons from \hv hattU'tield to Chatta- nooga, when we were assailed in front and on the iiank by Wheekn-'s division of R(^bel cavalry. My innnediate com- mand, composted of two companies of my regiment, received the brunt of the attat^k in front, and kept the enemy at bay until the remainder of the ])riga(k' extricated itself and escaped. At al)out -t oVlock in the afternoon, near Pond Springs, (la., our small force of less than one hundred men was surrounded by Terry's Texas Cavalry Kang(»rs, and my- self and tin; adjutant of my regiment, TJeut. Hugh B. Kelly, with sixty-tAvo men, were taken ])risoners. After having been guarded at the place of capture until dark, the encnny compelled us to make a toilsome march that night to the railroad near Ringgold, a distance of about ten miles. We were here placed upon cars and carried southward with other prisoners to Kingston, arriving there the follow- ing afternoon, when we were locked in the court house. Here, thirty hours after our capture, we received the tirst food, a small cake of corn bread being given to each prisoner. On the 28d we were removed to Atlanta, and remained there three days in an open tield east of the city, without shelter or blankets. From Atlanta we were taken, with nnmy others captured at Chickamauga, by the way of Augusta, (la., and Columbia, S. C, to Charlotte, N. C. The cars used for transporting the prisoners were ordinary freight cars, the s cloor oil one side closed and fastened; a sentinel was placed at each side of the open door on the opposite side, and sev- eral guards were upon the top of each car. We stopped at Augusta long enough to purchase a little fruit and bread from the slaves, who crowded around us, and to afford an opportunity for certain elderly slave-holders to express their opinion of us and Northern people generally in not the most flattering terms. At Charlotte we Avere marched from the cars to a tield near the city, and remained there all night, sleeping without blankets between the rows of standing corn grown on a part of the field. The prisoners gathered a few ripe ears, which were toasted at the fires and eaten with the eagerness of half -famished men. The next night we were ordered to form in line in order to be marched to the station for removal to Richmond. Several had planned to escape. Holes had been dug in tlie sandy earth, large enough to admit the body of a man below the surrounding surface; but, unfortunately, as the guards, like a line of skirmishers, were marching over the occupied grounds, one of them fell into one of these excavations upon a live Yankee ! A careful examination with lights was then ordered, disclosing other holes similarly filled, and one of our number Avas found in the top of a tree. After sharp admonitions we were again placed in freight cars and taken to Richmond, one change having been made in going more than 1000 miles. We were crowded together in the cars, like sheep, without room to sit down and with no water or suitable accessories. Reaching Richmond a little past midnight, September 80th, the ofiicers and enlisted men were separated, the for- mer, in ominous darkness, being marched to that famous bastile, Lil)by Prison, soon to realize that — " War's least horror is the ensanguined field." Libby Prison — since rciuoxcd to the city of (liicao^o, uiiero it now stands ])r('S('rN'('(l as a war relic — was jni old brick l)uil(lin sentinels at a])j)ointed stations around tlie buildinu'. On that dark moriiino- about forty ofticers were conducte(l into the ofHee of Major ThomasP. Turner, the connnandant of the [)ris()n. who evidently had been seleete(l for that })()si- tion on account of his bittei' hostility to the Northern peopl(\ One by one we were called and directed to oiv(> up om' money — Turner stating- that if we did so willino-|y. it woidd be returned to us when we were e.\chan<2:e(l. I)ut that if lu; was comjx'lled to search us the money found would be con- fiscated. Most of the ])risoners obeyed, and se\'eral thousand dollars Avere there aiven u]); a few se(n"eted their pocket- books and claimed they were penniless and tlierel)y escaped such robbery. Turner took from me $7'2 in brii^ht. crisp greenbacks, which I ne\'er saw afterwards, and I never heard that any money so taken from prisoners was ever returned. We were turned over to the prison clerk, who. with a lighted candle, conducted us by a narrow stairway to the room above; and. as soon as we entered, he locked the door and left us in the dai'k to tind out for ourselves what the new (juarters atibrded. Hardly liad we entered the room, the floor of which was covered with j)i-isoners, befoi-c the cry Avas heard, ''Fresh tish I " which was re})eated many timers m that and adjoining rooms. In a moment Ave Avere sur- rounded by prisoners, who rushed uj^on us first one way and then another, crying out, "'Give them air!" ''Dip them in water ! " and like beAviklering expressions. I began to think we were in a den of robl)ers. Afterwards I well understood that all ''fresh tish," as new prisoners were termed, had to pass through a like initiation. AVe had no blankets or overcoats and nothing save the eh)thes in which Ave were captured. A daylight examination of the interior of this prison reveak^d that six rooms of the two u})perniost stories were allotted t(» about liJOO Federal officers, of every rank, besides one room in the tirst story, which was su[)})lie(l with water and used during the day as a cook-room; these gave to each man a space nine by three feet to eat, wash, sleep and take exercise. Xo benches, stools, eJiairs or ta))les were fur- nished. The prisoners, aftei' a few months, made a- number of sucii articles fi'om tiie boxes sent by Northern friends. Most of tile officers captured at Cliickamauga remained in the h)wcr middh' room. Prisoners were not adowed to go \vithin live feet of the windows, of which there wqiv three at each end of the rooms, secured with iron bars. The guards were instructed to fire upon any })risoner seen at these windows. One officer was severely wounded, the gu;ird having seen him throuah ;i boarded enclosure at the side of the prison where formerly there had l)een an outside door. Tlu' hat of another, one day, was visi):)le from the outside, and he, being notified, moved baek just in time for a ball to })ass and bury itself in the beam above. Capt. Forsyth, of Toledo, Ohio, was shot and instantly killed near me by one of the guards not on duty, and he was not at the time within eight feet of the window. Across the street, in a northeasterly direction, were situated the Pemberton buildings, wherein were confined several thousand of onr enlisted men, and shots tired into the Avindows of that ))uil(lin*2: were often lieard. In December, the officers captured at Chickamaui>a obtained a blanket apiece from a supply sent by the U. S. Sanitary Connnission, Avhich were distributed by the Con- federates. During the winter months it was bitter cold, as there were no fires save those in the cook stoves used in the room beloAV durina' the day. There were no lights except the candles jmrchased by the prisoners for their own use, and these had to be extinguished at It i'. m. Each had his own particular })lace to eat antl sleep, and all slept on the flooi- dove-tailed together, like tish in a basket, overcrowded and with imperfect ventilation. Libby Prison had been used as a military priscm from the commencement of the war. Little attention had been given to its cleanliness and purilication, and it had become infested, from top to l)ottom, with Acrmin, of the kind Avell known to soldiers. These parasites were on the walls and floors, and upon eveiything, reminding us of the third plague of Egypt. No possil)le mode of living, no amount of personal attention, could ]^revent their presence and poisonous bites. Every seam in our ch)thes needed daily inspection, and the clothing required boiling in water at least three times a week to prevent the greatest multiplication. In January, 1804, a plan of escape was conceived, and for this purpose a secret company was organized. But few were admitted to the secret, for there were informers among us, willing to secure favor, l)y betraying any plan of escape. In the cook room already mentioned there was a large chinmey running from the basement to the top of the building. In this room a hole Avas broken through the chinmey near the floor, large enough to admit the body of a man. Crawling through that aperture, feet foremost, and dropping down ten feet Avon Id bring a person into the dark and empty basement under the adjoining room. The side opposite the chimney was the founchition of the east side of the prison, from which foun(hiti()n a hirge stone was removed about six feet below the surface of the outside ground and a tunnel commenced. Two men would work day and night. The only implements used were the half of a tin canteen and an old trowel picked up from the tools of a workman making repairs in the })ris()n. One, l>y the use of these implements, would loosen the earth in the tunnel and put it in a l)lanket, which the other, at night time, would convey out of the tunnel into the corner of the dark room, at the side of which the tunnel com- menced. Ca})t. 1. N. Johnson, of the 6th Kentucky Infantry, who is justly entitled to the chief credit for this wonderful and daring enterprise, labored in this tunnel nun'c than two weeks and remained in it all tlay. His absence led the prison authorities to l)elieve that one prisoner had escaped. Food was taken to him at night by another officer, who then assisted in the work. This tunnel was about sixty-five feet long; it was dug under the beat of the sentinels and came out aljout thirty feet beyond the guard in an old shed used for storage. The tunnel was completed February 9th, except breaking through the further end. On that night the prisoners were notified, and all night long they were passing out. One hundred and fifteen thus escaped from the prison. It was slow work; the passage was difficult, and two large men — one of whom was Col. Strcight, the noted raider — stuck in the tunnel, which delayed considerably the exodus. The prisoner, before he entered the tunnel, would nearly strip himself and tie his clothing in a compact bundle, and push it s alu'jid of liini in his passnof^ throuah. which was accomplished .])V sonu'thina" like the iiio\('incnt of a snake thronuh heavy o-rass. The Innnel was closed \\\) at (hiyliolil and the hoh' in the ehiiniu'v conceah'd. Al)onl one-lialf of the jjiisonei's who thus escaped were ca])tnre(l before lhe_\' sncceech'd in reach- ing onr lines, thirty miles distant. When i'ecai)tiired they Avere ])ut in (hmijeons imdei' the cook-room— dark cells, unfurnished and with around tlooi's. coverecl uiuch of the time with water, in \\hich the inmates had to slee]) or remain standina". They were scantily fed and comi)elle Kichmond fortifica- tions, and, after a few hours of l)risk cannonadina by the Confederates, took up a line of mai-ch down the ])eninsula without serious loss. 9 This was the most memorable day of my prison life. Some of the guards who came in to drive ns all into one room, so as to be eoimted imt throuoh a single door— which Avas the prison daily roll-call— disclosed to us all they knew concerning KilpatrickV raid. The dull booming of artillery was heard at intervals during the day, which proved that our troops were already engaging the enemy in the fortifica- tions. No language can describe the hopes and feelhigs of the prisoners at that time. The prison officials showed unmistakable signs of fear. There was hurrying to and fro in the streets and extra guards were visible. It was then the Confederate authorities set to work to undermine the Libby Prison. Several tons of powder were placed under the thick walls and in the Ijasement rooms below us, with complete ai-rangements to tire it at a moment's notice. Such a plan iov wholesale and atrocious nnuder is without a parallel in the history of any civilized nation. Notwithstanding this terril)le situation w^e were undismayed, and secretly organ- ized ourselves into companies, with chosen leaders, so as to be ready for any emergency, hoping to be supplied with arms in case our troops entered the city and to aid in the rescue. Men were selected to use the movable stairs reach- ino- to the cook-room in battering down the doors leading to the street, ui)on the first appearance of the Federal uniforms. That night there was no sleep; the prisoners were prepared for action, and listened all night for the tramp of the oncom- ino- liberators; we moved noiselessly about like specters in a cave of gloom, waiting and trusting— but, alas! our deliverers came not. The inspector of the prison took pains to inform us that if Kilpatrick should succeed in entering Richmond it would not help us, as the prison would be blown up before he would sutler us to Ije rescued. Latouch, the a<» prisoners; an officer selected in each division would again distribute the portion assigned to it to s(|uads of ten. and the squad would then subdivide the amount received to its messes, composed of one or more. The daily alloAvance. brought in every morning, was a small cake of corn bread, about the size of a man's fist, leaked from unsifted meal, four ounces of beef, or, in lieu thereof, a half pint of worm-eaten peas, a gill of rice and a very little salt. With the exception of the salt, none of these articles would have been salable in any American mai'ket. One-fourth of the time no meat Avas issued, and at one time, for thirty consecutive days, not an ounce Avas sent in. According to the usages of modern Avarfare, prisoners of Avar are entitled to the same rations that are given to soldiers; such our government gave to Confederate prisoners. Dr. Hammond, formerly Surgeon General of the Army, places the amount of solid food recpiired to maintain the organism of a healthy adult American, up to the full measure of *Pollard, the Southoni writer, in liis liistoi-y cntitlod "The Lost Cause," (p. 508), acknowledges tliat the Riclinioiul Koveriinient placed several tons of powder under Libby Piison at this time, but also says it was for the purpose of intimidating the prisoners, wliicli conchision niiiy well be doubted as to the limit of the iiitoutioii oi the horril)le purpose. 11 physical and mental capability, at about forty ounces daily, two-thirds vegetable and one-third animal. The French ration issued to soldiers in the Crimea was -121 ounces solid food. The P^nglish ration is about 41 ounces; our government ration is about the same. The ration issued to prisoners in Libby Prison Avas from ttn to sidetn ounces daily, and that of very inferior quality. Our greatest privilege was to do our own cooking. The rations would be (]uickly seized and cooked upon the three stoves in the cook-i'oom. and all eaten at a single meal, and still our hunger was unapi)eased and we would have to wait twenty-four hours before anything more could be had. The peas — or, as they were sometimes called, "'North Carolina beans" — were made the basis of a kind of soup. They were the most unpalatal^le food ever eaten l)y man; indeed they arc not an article of food except for cattle. Never before or since have I seen their like. Singularly as it may ap])eai', there was not one of these peas issued which did not contain within it a little black bug, about the size of a tiax-seed. Hours of search failed to find a single pea not thus inhabited. When l)oilcd, Ihc top of the water or "souj),'' would l)e covered with these bugs, thoroughly cooked. At first some of the more fastidious ofhcers would split each pea and remove the bug; but they soon learned that, in the absence of meat, the bugs gave body and sub- stance- to the SOU}), improvetl its flavor, and altogether rendered it more palatable, though, of course, eaten under the iinpulse of hunger. Hunger, in captivity, signifies more than when elsewhere felt. To us it meant feeble and emaciated bodies; impair- ment of health and constitution; minds so oppressed with the hopelessness of our situation as to force strange and alarming conditions. Some, overcome l)y a consuming 12 despair, would at times foro^et their own names, and were micertain as to eonmion facts. These were exceptions, and were evidently of those who iniierited imperfections and were laekine: in const hut ional viiior. We were continualh' talkinjT of the food formerly eniovc*!. which seemed a lono- time ago. AVlien we hi}' (U)wn at nii:ht. it was to (hcani of feasts and tables spread with the rarest and richest food Few niahts passed without tiiis (h'lusion. The ])ris()ner Avouhl waken just as he was alxait to i)artake of a sumptuous repast, to tind it vanish in a (h'cani. It was a conunon tiiinof for one prisoner to ask another \\ hat luxuries he had for sui)per, meanino; what fare his niohliy dreams had prof- fered. The effect of such imprisonment upon the morals of the inmates can hardly he imairined. The uian who goes to bed huno-ry every nio-ht, for a considei'ablc length of time is hardly good. A starving man is seldom exem])lary. Many prisoners became demoralized, rank was ign()re(l. personal encount(n"s were of frecpient occurrence; seltishness was the supreme law — the natural result of such living. A portion of the tinu' we were allowed to receive boxes of provisions from fi'iends North, under flag of truce. ))y way of Fortress Monroe. They wei-e all examined ))y the Con- federates, and the clothes sometimes taken out. Often, as if to purposely taunt and exasperate us. the l)oxes were piled up and kept for days in plain sight of the i)risoners before they were delivered. Only a i)art of the prisoners received boxes, and all that were sent weri' not delivered. A Bible was sent by some kind friend in nearly every box, and usually a greenback was found thoughtfully enclosed between leaves pasted together. This book the Rebels seldom examined carefully and never ai)pr()priated, and the prisoner was glad- dened by the welcome gift thus secured. \ received several boxes containino- many delicacies and sulistanti:tl provisions, u sent by kind friends, (which of course were shared with less fortunate comrades,) and during- the last few months in this prison, the want of food was not my greatest deprivation. Every man developed a hobby. With some it was "how to escape;" with others it was "fancy cooking," and the hitter were never so well satisfied as when they could catch a mouse and prepare therefrom a cup of delicious soup. With some it was to car\'c articles from l)one and wood; with some it was chess or cards; others were silent and always alone. Major Harry A\^hit('. of Pennsylvania, tifterwards a Meml)er of Congress, had an irresistibk' desire to make poHtical speeches, hut he was not encouraged in tluit liouse. Capt. McGee, of Kentucky, made stump speeches while voices were loudly crying out, "Dry up!" '"Put him outl" but, like Demosthenes at the seashore, he would talk above the storm, (ien. Neal Dow. who was one of the special exchanges, lectured on tenii)erance. Lieut. Col. Warren E. McMackin, of the iMst Illinois, Gen. Grant's old regiment, which lost heavily at the battle of Chickamauga, where he was caj)- tured, taught a Bible class. Several arm}' chaplains cap- tured at Chickamauga A\'ere, for a short time, among our number; so that frequently we had religious services in due form and regularity. Prayer meetings were also held on Sun- day evenings. The meetings were conducted in one corner of the room, Avhile all kinds of prison activities were going on around the faithful Ijand who did not neglect their worship. Amid all the distress we had our amusements. For a short time we had a literary society. A weekly paper, called the "Libby Chronicle,""' filled with prison news, was read. With nuisical instruments purchased from without, a few officers organized a band of minstrels, who gave several entertainments in the cook-room, and the performances ati'orded no little amusement. The songs and plays were 14 Original. The pr()<^rnininos were printed, and f preserved one of an entertaimnent «'iven Christmas Eve. 18<'>;5. The foHowinoj is a fac Kumle : MTOIIILS! MAnAOEft, COSJUHER, iCENIt 4RTIS1, CAPTAin OF THE %\ji t,RS LT C W CHAKDIEH C*PT H, W SAWYER lV'j p >on« LT FENTBESS LT BRISTOW 'i THtRSqAY^Eyi;Hma. DEa 24th, 1863. ;_-B»ci.-jdijV»..t.i.enB • C.pl. MASS j SUNG— Do ih«7 H.iol. ^i m^ .. U<">>-' v s ■ -A''j' JONES CflOKUS— ?kmoi^ .' ^T, .- '. . . - TROUPK Di.njlS.io \ .n.lVlu*o— ^-ert.i.'tf from -Lue.*^ ^^ _ H-'t tfog'nr Hi' j...^,.. C«pt^^M«*. v..A::.:.:'.^....V:-..'.--L.eo,'n„«..» l>ii*i— 0/ln^ ylrli Lmt ^<)ui*j .. .V>l|t» Lombard «oJ ^>i«-« Uigw^V.ol.'i "" ..y.Ui.»#. M«H. OikJl*. ■...! K«Q.U1I jjemg— ^lJ l.ili-r- i.'u»ioui -v * • t *^"'*^,M«:'^»""';/ »i?lLlfl¥Ills' JOE ^KlMM^.l;l^'^^ .p< MASS A.NPOf.PH PA.«.X THII^a . PHOTOGRAPH GALLERY VaoPUIETOli , ,C..p. MASff Bfli ■- _ Li KANUOLPli C'tl'MRVMAN,... _, ,> M»j NhiU'^K illW Il.tl, ..... r "ji JUNES l.UUU KtKI'tlfc . •■'P' .MA>iS >IUSlC'l.\N .. tV> ..... ».. .*Li.\,ClfANULt:it ME'll;EllofTHIil'Kt.-i 1.1 RV,VN uoiE ^ ;..: .\ .V. .\ 1 « ♦«.1-Hn OU.ICK 5»aN, . .. ^ .( L. MiJHAtI Xao.\**AV SWIIM^.-..'. .....■»..■:.V:^,^.....).l ■ KtNNtA IcN.ilAllDHl, ■ • C.pl M^WaLl'VS r^r^ ADU1S510N FR££ -Cb.iilfeii liKi » Not Admitted A'ljl It C K.NAGUS. After dark, when the prisoners had lain down to sleep, we had what was called the "catechism," which consisted of satirical questions with personal allusions. One would ask 15 in a loud voice, "Who was captured up a tree?" A perti- nent answer would come from another dh-ection, naming the officer. The questions and answers were true hits, and ^vt)uld be kept up for hours. Every man's history, in this way, was punctured amusingly. A brigadier-general once at- tempted, when he had been made the point of a question, to lecture the jn'isoners on conduct becoming officers of the U. S. Army, and forthwith missiles were flying around his venerable head, which made him get under his blanket in great haste. Whoever assumed the least importance was sure to meet with an effectual re])uft'. Letters of six lines were allowed to be written to friends in the North, and letters Avere received, subject, of course, to Ccmfederate inspection. "Letter day" was the great day. In the preparation of this address valuable aid has been ob- tained from letters written from various prisons to home friends, who kindly preserved and returned them to me. One of these, written in Libby Prison on coarse brown paper, and sent unsealed, is given: Libby Prison, Riclimond, Va., Xov. 18th, 1868. itf/\ss F. Hughes, Cumillus, N. F.— Dear Friend :— Sorry two months in Libby Prison have failed to bring me more than a single letter. Am well, but sorely pressed with hunger! No meat or bread furnished us to-day! I do wish for an exchange. There is no pros- pect for any at present. If I get away from here in one year it will be as soon as I expect. Yours, &c., AV. II. Mead, U. S. A., via Fortress Monroe. Those who had money could purchase the Richmond daily papers at fifty cents a copy, and nearly anything else at the same proportionate price. There was little money in the prison. On several occasions religious services were held in the prison, but no Protestant minister in Richmond preached, or offered to preach, to us. The Episcopal service was id I'ead ot\cl\ der'. A few pieces of sliell fell in ilie yard, hut no one was injured. The li'unners knew our hK-ation and avoided the huildini:- as much as possihle. At Hi'st. when ihc sharp, slu'ill shriek of the shot or sliell was heard. W(> \\()uld insl inclivcly seek shelter; hut we soon hecanic accustomed to the danacr, and it was a sublime pleasure to watch the smoke of the diseliarged nun and listen to the peculiar noise of the shell in its passan'c through the air. At nioht the siaht was thrillinu-; the tlash of the oun could he seen, followed hy the liii'htevas obtain- al)le. so wc subsisted almost entirely u})on the meager rations allowed of i'orn meal, rice and rancid bacon. On October 5th we were taken, in the usual way. to Columbia. I was weakened by illness and- was without food from the time of leaving Charleston until the next da\', when taken from the cars in a cold rain. The surgeon in charge, after much entreaty, caused m\ removal with six other officers, also ill, to a hospital in the old Presbyterian college buildings in Columbia, which was used foi' the Confederate sick and wounded. Placed in a single room, and gcnerall}- 22 not suffering from any acute disease, we were not eonfined to our beds. The suriicoii in eliariic daily visited us and was attentive to otu' iiee(ls. One of our lunnWer. a Tennessee captain, had the ^'cHow fever, contracted liefore he left Charhston. A\'e did all for him we could: Imt ihuini:' the few days he continually urew worse. Me was an old })risoner and Kinncd for iiis home and friend> in Kast 'l'ennesse(>. w hei'c he had suffci-ed nmch at the hands of the Kehels. I was at his side durino- the last sta' *iuard." No shelter was furnished, and the prisoners had to burrow in the earth and construct coNcrings from Ijranchcs and twigs, or use for a tent the blankets needed for bodily coverino- duringf the winter nights. On arriving at this camp. Lieut. Munro B. Pulliam. of the 11th Kentucky Cavalry, and myself, pre- pared a lodging place by digging in the ground a cellardike s])ace of sufficient dimensions, and by the us(> of small poles 23 we gathered, made a frame overstrueture and then covered it with pine twigs. It was protection from the winter winds, hut did not keep out the rain. Priscmers who had money eouhl huy sweet liotatoes and other articles. The daily rations consisted of corn meal and rice, and occasionally soi-o-hum. about riflcen ounces in all j)er man. Many made their escape hy taking advantage of the i)riv- ilege of going out under guard to fetch wood from an adjoin- ing forest. A few ran hy the guard at night, and started for our distant lines. Most of those who eM-aix'd were recap- tured. Several alarms took place, and on these occasions the guard, ])eing of the undisciplined State militia, would tire into and across the camj). Jt was a common thing to hear shots at night, and the halls would whistle through the camp, (h)ing little injury, as every one slept behind embank- ments of earth thrown up around his hut. Occasionally, however, in this as in all the other prisons, deliberate nuu-- ders wei-e perpetrated I)y the guards. On the tirst day of December Lieut. Turl)ane, of the COth N. Y. Infantry, was inhumanly killed by a sentinel who. without warrant or ex- cuse, shot him in the back as he was walking (piietly near his (juarters. October 22d Lieut. Young, of the 4th Pennsyl- vania Cavalry, was deliberately shot by a sentinel while he Avas seated in his chair in the evening. He lived l)ut a few moments, after speaking a few Avords to his companions. This isolated field prison was a little world of itself. The prisoners were mostly of the better class of Northern society, l)ut freed so long fr(»m conventional restraints, their daily lives revealed natural dis})ositions and disclosed real characters. The shiftless and the heedful, the untidy and the neat, the vulgar and the retined, the profane and the devout — were all represented here, as in the outside world. Obedient to the unswerving logic of human nature, 24 tlic forces wliicli ijrodiirc the prolctaii'c Miid the i);itric'ian were here displayed notwilli.standina' the depressive eoiidi- tioiis. Like the rirst setth'is of a western toAVii, and for the same reasons, the older prisoners, llioiiiih the most raoyed, d(Muanded superior reeoiinition. and were the aristocrats of the colony. l)ecend)cr 11th we were notitied of another rcmoxal. Forlorn and wretclu'd. many of us harefoot. we were inarched throuiih the >tr('cls of Columbia, suhjected to taunting" remarks from children and citizens alona^ the way. ^^'e were [)laced in the eastern ])ortion of the Jnsane Asylum ii'rounds, two acres in extent, w hich had heen enclosed from the other ))ortion containini:' llu- asylum in that city. Strict ly ii'uarded from sentinel boxes uixm a liiiih fence, we auain set u|) housckcepini:'. Some lumber was furnished, so thai after awhile about one half of the otiicers built for ihcm- sehes (piarters. others making; low tents from blankets. My tent consisted of ii sin,<>"le blanket stretched over a horizontal l)ole about three feet hiofh, with the edges of the l)lanket on each side fastened to the ' 1)\' his audi- ence of destitute pi'isoners. whose faith in the tinal trium))h 25 of the orovernnicnt and its perpetuity under God's watchful care had nev(>r wavered. The opinions of this h^arncd and sincere man were afterwards radically ehancred. In a tent near the one I ()cen])ie(l. Lieut. S. H. M. layers, of the ,5th Iowa Infantry, composed that connnemorative song, "Sherman's March to the Sea." and it was sung in this prison l)ef(n-e it was heard of outside. A tine glee clul) often cheered the, })lace with this and other patriotic songs. The prisoners sutfered nuicli from insuthcient food and from want of fuel to cook with and keep warm. They were each allowed a i)iece of wood, about the size of an ordinary stick of stove wood, daily. 'I'hosc who had money could ])urchase food. If gold or greenbacks were sent by Northern friends, after nnich delay, their eijuivalent in Confederate money, as reckoned by the authorities, would l)e received. Later on. money could be obtained ))y giving gohl drafts on Northern friends living in the East, at the rate of a dollar in o-old for eio'ht dollars in Confederate money; at the same time one dollar in gold was worth tifty dollars in Confederate notes. The drafts of Western prisoners, who had no rela- tives or friends East, would not be accepted. 1 made a draft o\\ my father, in Cayuga County, N. Y.. for tifty dollars in gold. Several days after the draft had been sent, a blue slij) of pai)er, still preserved, was received, upon which was writt(;n, ''Good for $81)5).!»!»"— of course, in Confederate monev. On its [)resentation to a camp sutler, i)rovisions could be drawn and the amount endorsed thereon. I used it tifteen d:iys, and drew $222.^25 worth of meat and sweet ])otat()es. A piece of poor fresh beef, the si/e of a man's hand, ranged in })ricc fron) sj^l-f to if^lT. .■)(). February 14th, tSO:), Gen. Sherman had entered South Carolina and Avas nnirching towards Columbia, and his cannonadiuii" was heaid near the city. After a hasty sum- 26 mons to ])i'('[)an' tor MMotlicr move the prisoners were hur- riedly innrelied llirouiili :i misty rain and auaiii erowded in freight ears, and ai)out dark the train stai'ted northward. We had taken our hhnd-cets and trinkets, hut the removal was so sudden that only a few were furnished with provi- sions. Thei'e were ahout forty in the ear I was in. After leaviiiii' the city we considered the ])ossil)ility of eseape. (iuards were placed, as usual, two on the inside at the only ojjen dooi-, and two or three on the top of the car. It was decided to cut a hole in the Itottom of the ear. Several of the prisom^rs had a few useful tools, and amoni:' them was a small saw which had heen made from an ordinary ease knif<'. and had heen used in prison in sawing ])()ne and Avood to fashion articles to present to friends when released. After a small hole had been cut thi'ouoh the floor of the car with a knife, this saw was inserted and a piece ahout twenty inches stpiare sawed out. When the hole was finished the boards were re])laced to await the stoijpage of tlu' train, wlien ;dl who could were to ])ass through the hole, ^^dlile the sawing AAas being done officers stood U}) and sang "'Sher- man's March to the Sea." and some engaged in conversation with the inside guards. In this way the attention of the guards was diverted, and they did not discover what was going on. The train st()i)ped at A\'iimsborough, S. C, thirty-four miles north of C'olumbia, and after waiting until the whistle bknv signalling that it Avas s(»()n to start, about half a dozen in turn, myself among the munber, slipped through the hole and remained under the ear until the train started, for if we came out while it was standing there was danger of our l)eing seen. Several guards in charge of the train })assed alongside and uneomfortably near us while we lay erouching beneath the car. As soon as the train commenced to move 27 Ave crawled out betAveen the trucks and lay doAvn just outside of the rail, so as not to ))e seen l)y the guards on the top of the car. When the train had [)asse(l we arose. The sfuards discovered us, and iir(Kl at us and others who had escaped from some of the other ears. Luckily, no one was hiu't, and about a dozen escaped. Our exit through the bottom of the car Avas so difficult and hurried, no one being ])erniitted to speak, that 1 h)st my hat, which had 1)een made from a piece of old cloth; also, an oiU-loth sack which eontaincd my letters, diary, an address delivered in Libby Prison and many articles manufactured from l>one and wood of inesti- mable value to me. It Avas ten o'clock and we sej^arated, no more than tAvo going together. Myself and a Ncav York officer silently Avalked across a held in a westerly direction until Ave came to the road leading to Columl)ia. It Avas a bleak, stormy night; sleet and ice covered the fences and roads, Avounding the bare feet. Cautiously pass- ing along the way Ave came to a stream, deep and cold, Avhich had to be forded. We traveled all that night, and toAvards morning a blustering snow storm came on. At daylight, fatigued and hungry, Ave sought shelter in an old abandoned house Avhich stood Ijeside the road, and Avas Avith- out a floor and had no foundation, except at its corners. It had numerous openings, through Avhich the cold north Avind blew the snow against oiu- shivering forms as Ave lay doAvn to rest. While aa^c lay here two Confederate trcjopers Avent by, evidently looking for escaped prisoners. Remaining in this building until the middle of the after- noon, Ave determined to cross the road and take to the Avoods. In crossing, Ave espied a house and an elderly man at a dis- tance. Leaving the road Ave Avere soon in the Avoods, Avhich Avere full of sAwnmps. Wending our way soutliAvard as })est Ave could, treading the fallen trees and wading in water until 28 iiiii'lil. we found ourschcs near a railroad \\(K)d station, which Avas ill charffc of sonic iici:rocs. ^\'c wci'c hiiiiury and went to ihcir solitary cahin in rear of the wood supply just as they were ready for supjicr. Wv told tlicin wlio we wire and w hat we wanted. They spoke in w liis|)ers. and w illinnly i2a\'e us their only loaf of corn hread. fi'esii from the skillet. Lea\ ini;- them with many thanks, we returned to the woods and ate a <:rat<'ful meal, after which we traNclcd alonjj;- the railroad track a ivw miles and selected a ))lace for a nii>ht"s rest under a tree. Soon. se\('ral t rains passi'd to the north, and from our concealment could he seen in tin' lighted cars well-dressed women and children and household uoods. which con\ inced us that families wci'e Heeiuii- fi'oiii Columhia and that Sherman's army w as near. Karly the next morning heavy cannonading was heard to the southwest, and in that direction we jouriie\-ed all day in one unending swam]), tilled with shallow water, trunks of trees, and small islands of morass. Among these we picked our way guided li\ the welcome sound of Sherman's artillery heyond the rixcr. The harking of dogs was heard at the settlements, which skirted the woods, hut no human heing had been sec^n. Before the sun descended hehind the western trees, we came to the main I'oad running north of Columhia at a |)oint with woods on hoth sides. \'eiiluring to ci'oss the road, the otHcer who had heeii my only com])anion since esca])ing from the cars, reached the opposite side as I was in the middle of the road, when suddenly a Confederate trooper came dashing toward us. I told my companion to escajie and that my ca|)ture would saxc him. lie li the 1I(>1)('1 camp. A\'lK'n we reached its limit, we put down the saddles and were soon safe in a liiick underbrush, a few miles north of Col- umbia. Thai night ('olumbia was burned. Its fires lit up the skies, and the tall trees cast tlu^ir shadows across our silent pathway as we walked in the still forests between the I'ontendino- armies, now hushed in nio^ht's repose; and over friend and foe the lioht of that burning city, where recently I had l)een imprisoned, glared in mockery of treason's earliest crimes. That night we entered a ftu-m house as Confederate sol- diers, and were given a late supper by the mistress, who was attended ))y her slaves, but no white men were seen. Our hostess had l)een informed by retreating Confederates that afternoon that tlu^ Yankees would be along the next day, and she confided to us the wdiereabouts of her secreted stores, which were not afterwards revealed. After we had finished our meal, which was plain and even homely, ])ut Avhich is remembered as having been eaten with great satisfaction, we went into an adjoining tield, and be- neath a hawthorne slept a peaceful sleep. Early the next morning, as tlu; sun ushered in a bright tlay, our hearts were gladdened by hearing the reveille of Sherman's army to the southward, and we concealed ourselves near a road, believing our soldiers would soon come. Bef;e. so that tiie tliousaiids of Northern sohhers in Southern prisons (hn'inu' the period of their ca])ti\ity \ver(! not inactive, and really held an army at hay; hut at the same time the otticei's were deprived of promotion and all were compelled to undcrii'o imexampled })rivati()ns. Prison life at ten diti'erent i)laces in the South, coverinrmastered l)y evil lessons and false theories, were at times hateful and severe; hut the hardships and trials, wherever endured in our civil war, were not aindc^ss or futile. I»nt made possihie and enduring; a government \\hose permanence and unit}' the conflict secured. These recollections, and many more which cannot here l)e related, flit across my memory like shadow}^ pictures, whose dark shadesare lit up hy theretlt^ction that by such and greater sacrifices this nation was restored to a higher and grander life. Companions whose fortitude and heroism sustained them in many distressful hours, camiot now he mentione(l. Most of them have gone to untimely hut hallowed graves; those who remain carry ahout them the sure e\idence of their ])atri()tic sutfei'ings, and they are content with that reward which is found in the consciousness of having served their country in the hour of its greatest need. No lapse of time can remove from the pages of history the painful proofs of the infamy which the brief Confederate 33 rule fastened upon itself, by permitting the cruelest and most inexcusable wrongs to be inflicted upon defenseless prisoners. I know of no valid apology for the innumerable inhumani- ties that were perpetrated in many Southern prisons during the war, and yet it could hardly be otherwise than that an unrighteous cause, in the unholy endeavor to establish a government whose chief corner-stone was human slavery, would call to its aid every possible form of desperate power. Twenty -five years have passed since the memorable events of the war, and with the greatest charity let us remember not alwa3^s these things; but rather let us glory in a restored flag that proudly waves over increasing States, the symbol of freedom and progress, and may it through all the years to come, shelter and protect a peaceful and united people. St. Paul, Minn., Nov., 1890. R."l S9 *?«^' • :i