CONGRESS, UNITED STATES. 



235 



have the higher claim upon the Government. 

 What is the history of it ? We began this war 

 without their help. We were disposed to ig- 

 nore them. We treated them in the manner in 

 which the public policy of the General Govern- 

 ment had treated them. But, sir, the God of 

 nations and the God of justice taught us a ter- 

 rible lesson. We were slow to learn it, but we 

 learned it at last. We learned that in this gi- 

 gantic strife it was necessary to our final suc- 

 cess, to secure the blessing of the God of na- 

 tions, that we should use for our defence in 

 this straggle this very class of our population. 

 We have called on them ; we have called them 

 into our service by hundreds and thousands, 

 and by our legislation we are inviting them 

 there again, and our armies in a great measure 

 are filled up with them. What will be the 

 effect, what will be the consequence, if it be 

 proclaimed to-day that the Government of the 

 United States have adopted a policy which 

 looks to the exchange of their white prisoners, 

 leaving the black prisoners to their fate? " 



Mr. Johnson replied : " I put it to the Sena- 

 tor from New Hampshire whether, if this state 

 of things shall exist, he would be willing that 

 there should be no exchanges. We have of 

 their prisoners, say thirty thousand; they have 

 of ours thirty thousand ; and of that thirty thou- 

 sand ten thousand are colored soldiers. They 

 are willing to exchange the twenty thousand that 

 they have of white soldiers for the twenty thou- 

 sand that we have of their white soldiers ; but 

 the United States say, No ; we will do no such 

 thing ; we will leave in rebel imprisonment, 

 subject to all the cruelties to which they are 

 subjected, the entire white soldiery of the Uni- 

 ted States, because we are unable to get back 

 more than a portion of our soldiers, the rebels 

 having decided, or being supposed to have de- 

 termined, that they would not release any of 

 their black prisoners. Does the honorable 

 member say that would be right ? He feels for 

 the black soldier not more strongly than I do. 

 I have said before, upon this floor, at the last 

 session, and, I believe, at the present session, 

 that I would go as far as any Senator in pro- 

 tecting any black man who might be enlisted 

 into the service of the United States, and shoul- 

 dered his musket to protect the rights of the 

 United States ; but while I feel all the sympa- 

 thy and all the obligation consequent upon the 

 extent of that proper sympathy to the black 

 prisoner, I cannot forget that there is sympathy 



v due to the white soldier, and an obligation 



v growing out of that sentiment." 



Mr. Wilson, of Massachusetts, said: "Now, 

 what was the simple proposition that I sub- 

 mitted ? It was a proposition to send two com- 

 missioners, or commissaries, if you choose to 

 call them so, to consult with the rebel author- 

 ities with a view to the better treatment of our 

 prisoners, and to devise a practicable system 

 ft>r that purpose. That such a commission 

 could do it, costing us, I admit, some money to 

 carry it out, I do not entertain a doubt. In 



fact, a few weeks ago a partial arrangement 

 was made with the rebel authorities by which 

 they sent cotton to New York, sold that cot- 

 ton, and took the proceeds and invested it for 

 the relief and benefit of their own prisoners in 

 our hands. General Beale, of Arkansas, a pris- 

 oner in Boston harbor, is engaged to-day in 

 carrying out that arrangement on their part. 

 General Hays, of Boston, a prisoner captured 

 on the Weldon Railroad, and a prisoner now, is 

 engaged, I understand, on our part in doing 

 something for the relief of our prisoners. This 

 partial relief already secured has done more to 

 alleviate the sufferings of our prisoners than all 

 the talk and all the speeches that have been 

 made in the Senate and the country ; and I be- 

 lieve that if we addressed ourselves to that matter 

 of humanity as we should, we could do a great 

 deal to relieve the sufferings of our brave sol- 

 diers in rebel hands. 



"There is nothing inconsistent with that 

 proposition in passing the Senator's resolution 

 for retaliation. I do not oppose that resolution 

 if the words ' in kind ' were stricken out of it. 

 The resolution originally reported from the 

 Committee on Military Affairs by the Senator 

 from Michigan I could not vote for. That res- 

 olution, in its preamble, arraigns the rebels for 

 barbarism and cruelty that would disgrace the 

 devils in the bottomless pit, and then asks us 

 to treat their men 'in kind.' I could not do it; 

 I could not vote for it. I have not the nerve, 

 and I thank God I have not the nerve, to carry 

 that out upon any being that breathes God's 

 air or walks His earth." 



Mr. Sprague, of Eh ode Island, said: "Sir, 

 the cause of this treatment of our men by the 

 rebels has not been so thoroughly understood 

 as it might have been. The Senator from Iowa 

 (Mr. Harlan) has suggested to you the good ef- 

 fects that have been produced by our retaining 

 the rebel prisoners in our hands. I agree 

 heartily with the suggestion that he made early 

 in this debate. I know something of the dis- 

 position of our people early in this war to let 

 their blows strike lightly upon the head of this 

 rebellion. I know that the disposition of our 

 soldiers was not to form their lines as steadily 

 as they should, and to do the real, hard service 

 that was demanded of them. This treatment 

 has been practised by the rebels upon Union 

 soldiers to bring about the very result that has 

 been brought about, and that is, an exchange 

 of prisoners. It was known that the exchange 

 proposed between this Government and the au- 

 thorities of Rebeldom was unfair ; it was known 

 that they captured private citizens and endeav- 

 ored to offset them with our soldiers. We re- 

 fused to agree to it; and these retaliatory meas- 

 ures on their part have been the means of pro- 

 ducing the results which have come to us in 

 the newspapers and otherwise. 



" I do not mean to apologize in any way for 

 these barbarities, but this much I will say : that 

 the refusal of this Government to exchange haa 

 wrought up the soldiers of our armies and the 



