192 



CONGRESS, UNITED STATES. 



for provisions of every sort. They knew that 

 the Confederate authorities had offered to let 

 these be sent to them by their own Govern- 

 ment. They knew that had been rejected. 

 They knew of the offer of August 10, 1864. 

 They knew of the other offer, to return sick 

 and wounded without an equivalent. They 

 knew all these offers had been rejected. There- 

 fore they held a meeting and passed the fol- 

 lowing resolutions ; and I call the attention of 

 the gentlemen on the other side to these reso- 

 lutions. I ask if they will not believe the sur- 

 geons of their hospitals, if they will not believe 

 Mr. Stanton's report, if they will not believe 

 Surgeon-General Barnes's report ; I beg from 

 them to know if they will not believe the ear- 

 nest, heart-rending appeal of those starving, 

 suffering heroes ? Here are the resolutions 

 passed by the Federal prisoners the 28th of 

 September, 1864 : 



Resolved, That while allowing the Confederate au- 

 thorities all due praise for the attention paid to our 

 prisoners, numbers of our men are daily consigned 

 to early graves, in the prime of manhood., far from 

 home and kindred, and this is not caused intention- 

 ally by the Confederate Government, but by the force 

 of circumstances. 



"Brave men are always honest, and true 

 soldiers never slander. They say the horrors 

 they suffered were not intentional, that the 

 Confederate Government had done all it could 

 to avert them. Sir, I believe this testimony 

 of gallant men as being of the highest charac- 

 ter, coming from the sufferers themselves. 



" They further resolved : 



The prisoner is obliged to go without shelter, and 

 in a great portion of cases without medicine. 



Resolved, That whereas in the fortune of war it was 

 our lot to become prisoners, we have suffered pa- 

 tiently, and are still willing to suffer, if by so doing 

 we can benefit the country ; but we would most re- 

 spectfully be^f to say that we are not willing to suffer 

 to further the ends of any party or clique to the detri- 

 ment of our own honor, our families, and our coun- 

 try. And we would beg this affair to be explained 

 to us, that we may continue to hold the Government 

 in the respect which is necessary to make a good 

 citizen and soldier. 



" Was this touching appeal heeded ? Let 

 any gentleman who belonged to the ' clique 

 or-party ' that the resolutions condemn answer 

 for his party. 



" Now, sir, it was in reference to that state 

 of things exactly, that Dr. Jones reported, as 

 I have already read to the House, in his report 

 which was mutilated before that committee of 

 Congress, and in the trial of Wirz it was in 

 consequence of that very state of things that 

 Dr. Jones said that depression of mind, and 

 despondency, and homesickness of these poor 

 prisoners carried more to their graves than 

 did physical causes of disease. That was not 

 wonderful at all. 



" But, Mr. Speaker, why were all these ap- 

 peals resisted ? Why did the Federal authori- 

 ties refuse to allow their own surgeons to go 

 with their own soldiers, and carry them medi- 

 cine and clothing, and comfort and treatment? 



Why ? Why did they refuse to exchange man 

 for man, and officer for officer ? Why did they 

 refuse to stand up to their own solemn engage- 

 ments, made in 1862, for the exchange of pris- 

 oners ? Who is at fault ? 



" Sir, war is always horrible ; war alwaye 

 brings hardships ; it brings death, it brings 

 sorrow, it brings ruin-, it brings devastation. 

 And he is unworthy to be called a statesman, 

 looking to the pacification of this country, who 

 will parade the horrors inseparable from war 

 for the purpose of keeping up the strife that 

 produced the war. 



"I do not doubt that I am the bearer of 

 unwelcome messages to the gentleman from 

 Maine, and his party. He says that there are 

 Confederates in this body, and that they are 

 going to combine with a few from the North 

 for the purpose of controlling this Government. 

 If one were to listen to the gentlemen on the 

 other side he would be in doubt whether they 

 rejoiced more when the South left the Union, 

 or regretted most when the South came back 

 to the Union that their fathers helped to form, 

 and to which they will forever hereafter con- 

 tribute as much of patriotic ardor, of noble 

 devotion, and of willing sacrifice, as the con- 

 stituents of the gentleman from Maine. Oh, 

 Mr. Speaker, why cannot gentlemen on the 

 other side rise to the height of this great argu- 

 ment of patriotism ? Is the bosom of the coun- 

 try always to be torn with this miserable sec- 

 tional debate whenever a presidential election 

 is pending ? To that great debate of half a 

 century before secession there were left no 

 adjourned questions. The victory of the North 

 was absolute, and God knows the submission 

 of the South was complete. But, sir, we have 

 recovered from the humiliation of defeat, and 

 we come here among you and we ask you to 

 give us the greetings accorded to brothers by 

 brothers. We propose to join you in every 

 patriotic endeavor, and to unite with you in 

 every patriotic aspiration that looks to the 

 benefit, the advancement, and the honor of 

 every part of our common country. Let us, 

 gentlemen of all parties, in this centennial year, 

 indeed, have a jubilee of freedom. We divide 

 with you the glories of the Revolution and of 

 the succeeding years of our national life before 

 that unhappy division that four years night 

 of gloom and despair and so" we shall divide 

 with you the glories of all the future." 



Mr. Blaine: "I move the previous question 

 on the motion to reconsider." 



The previous question was seconded and the 

 main question ordered ; and under the opera- 

 tion thereof the motion to reconsider was 

 agreed to. 



The question then recurred on the passage 

 of the bill. 



Mr. Banks, of Massachusetts, said : " Mr. 

 Speaker, I gave notice yesterday that if I had 

 an opportunity I should move an amendment 

 to the bill before the House, proposing that 

 some declaration or oath should be made in 



