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THE ISTATIOtfAL TRIBUTE: WASHINGTON, D. 0., SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 1882.
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FARM AND FIRESIDE.
Some Practical Suggestions for Our
Agricultural Headers.
In former ages it was considered neces
sary to allow land to rest at least one year
out of seven for the purpose of recuperation.
But as lauds in anything like good condi
tion would, if left undisturbed, soon become
a mass of weeds, the seeding of which would
furnish crops of weexls to all the adjoining
lands, the plowing of the ground became a
matter of necessity, so that these fallow
lands, as they were called, were frequently
turned over during their resting term, aud,
in consequence, gave good crops when again
pown. But their improved condition was
not owing to rest : rather the reverse ; the
frequent plowings turned over new surfaces
io be more directly acted upon by the atmos
phere, which caused more rapid and search
ing decomposition than could have taken
place if the laud had not been disturbed.
When land is not cropped it is said to be
resting: but why land should need resting is
not explained, except that it improves in
available plant food as already noted, aud
this it will do in a tenfold manner if plowed
and worked. Resting, in this sense, does
not mean repose. Lands should never be
idle, in the sense that the are neglected.
There are some parts of the country where
two crops can be taken from land yearly,
but in most all parts one crop can be secured
as a matured crop, and another as a manure
crop, to bo plowed under when-the main crop
is put in. The time will come when this
method will become popular, as it certainly
will be profitable.
A NEW POTATO.
The Rural Kcw Yorker speaks highly of a
new potato, called the Blush, which is inter
mediate between the Beauty of Hebron and
the White Elephant, which are respectively
the best early and the best late varieties.
The Blush has been fairly tested during the
present year, along with fourteen other new
kinds, aud it was the only variety that did
not materially suffer from the drought, and it
yielded more than any two others put to
gether. The tubers are of medium size and
singularly uniform, never growing very large
and yielding very few small one3. The vines
bear small leaves and the stems are notable
for their branching habit and slenderness.
The potato is of the very first quality, and
the plant seems to be remarkably adapted to
a dry season. It will form one of the series
of valuable seeds and tubers which will be
distributed to the subscribers of the Hural
Kcw Yorker. We cannot refrain from re
marking that the articles distributed by this
paper are of the very highest order of merit ;
ilioy are new and mostly rare things, and
not the surplus stock of cultivators. How
infinitely more valuable to the country are
these desseminations, as compared to the
flood of fifth-rate chromos which one so fre
quently meets with, as so-called gifts.
ACTION OF LIME OX LAND.
Sir J. B. Lawes, in summing up remarks
on lime, says: "Lime, therefore, acts in a
double capacity ; it furnishes an important
ingredient in the food of roots and legumin
ous plants, and in addition it furnishes the
key by which stores of organic nitrogen in
the soil are unlocked and rendered available
as the food of plants. It is in this latter
capacity that its functions are more liable to
be abused. As lime does not furnish any of
the more important or more costly ingre
dients which plants require to form their
structure and seed, it is quite evident that
these must be derived from the soil; this
being the case, if the views of those who
hold that agriculture should be carried on
without any reduction of the fertility of the
soil, are correct, it is evident that an applica
tion of lime should be accompanied by an
application of all those ingredients which
arc carried away in the crojs or by feeding
with stock."
WHEAT GROWING.
At a meeting of the Oxford (Pa.) Farmers'
Club a member stated that in regard to wheat
fertilizers he would put clover first, stable
manure second, and commercial fertilizers
last. He put clover first because it was
cheapest, and because he alw.'vys grew heavy
wheat on a clover sod. He would either cut
the first crop for hay or would pasture fill
the middle of July. He had grown thirty
bushels of wheat to the acre on clover stubble
on land which, two years before, produced
less thau eight bushels. For every load of
stable manure which he applied as a top
dressing, he expected an extra bushel of
wheat. He did not find commercial manures
certain in their action.
carrot tops for hay.
It is stated that the tops of carrots, mowed
off about the time that the roots have com
pleted their growth, and made into hay, pro
duces a fodder of which animals areexlremly
fond. Very few farmers cultivate carrots for
feeding stock, notwithstanding that horses
aud cattle eat them greedily and thrive well
upon them. As the preservation of succu
lent food in silos becomes general it is prob
able that ensilage will not be confined to
green corn stems and leaves : carrots, tur
nips, parsnips, and other vegetable matter, if
cut up and mixed with the grasses in filling
silos, would undoubtedly add to the intrinsic
value of the food, and afford a variety to the
animals fed upon it.
KILLING CABHAGE WORMS.
A correspondent of the Elinira Farmers'
Club says that after trying the effects of
Bprinkling with red pepper, with black pep
per, dry salt, a mixture of dissolved salt and
saltpetre together, dusting with wheat bran
and middlings, he found that none of these
remedies had anj' perceptible effect on the
worms. He then tried German insect pow
der, and, on sprinkling the worms with it,
in ten minutes every worm to which, it was
applied curled up and fell to the ground, and
in fifteen minutes was dead. He used four
pounds of the powder, costing seventy-five
cents per pound, on 18,000 cabbages, and
thus saved his crop, which he sold at good
prices. He regards this powder as perfect a
remedy for the green cabbage worm as Paris
green is for the potato beetle.
PROGRESSIVE FARMERS.
The American Grange Bulletin a paper
which is conducted with much spirit and
rim in the interests of the grange, which
fiimply means the interest of agriculture in
its widest sense claims that the Order of
the Patrons of Husbandry has and is doing
much to help on the work of Agricultural
Colleges and Experimental Stations. No one
who is familiar with tho history of the
Order for the past fifteen years will gainsay
this claim ; and it caunot well be otherwise,
as the members of the Grange are composed
of the most intelligent and progressive farm
ers of the country. No person can be an
active member of the Order and be longer
indifferent to the success of all' public meas
ures which have in view the material im
provement of society and the advancement
of education in its widest field of action.
GIKDLING GRAPES.
The practice of girdling fruiting branches
of grapes, by removing a ring of bark one
fourth of an inch in width, has long been an
occasional practice; but we see that it is
considered to be of sufficient importance to
form an experiment by an Agricultural Col
lege. Tho effect of this ringing is to hasten
to some apparent extent the coloring, and
slightly the ripening, of the fruit. Anyone
familiar with fruit which has been thus
operated upon could tell it blindfold while
eating it. Grapes that have been gathered
from ringed branches are characterized by
thick, leathery skins and a want of finish in
their flavor; but, then, both bunches and
berries will run larger than the ordinary
crop, and that is a great matter with some.
CA1115AGES.
The earliest varieties of cabbage out of a
list of 29 sorts were Early Oxheart and Non
pareil. These were planted in the cold
frame April 8th ; vegetated April ISth; were
transplanted May 2Gth, and samples were in
eating condition on July 2Gth. About two
days later came Yilmorin's Early Flat Dutch
and Newark Early Flat Dutch. Early Ulm
Savoy, Early Jersey Wakefield, and Early
Winnigstadt wero fit for the table August
1st. The finest heads thus far are from Vil
morin's Early Flat Dutch.
TO INCREASE SUGAR IN GRAPES.
Prof. Goessmau, of the Massachusetts Ag
ricultural College, in a paper on tho relation
of mineral manures to the quality of fruitj
says that the fruit of the wild grape, the
vines of which had received no fertilizer,
gave S.22 per cent, of sugar, while tho same
sort, that had been fed with phosphoric acid
and other fertilizers, produced fruit with
ld.'M per cent, of sugar in its juico. The
fruit from an unfertilized Concord vine gave
13.89 per cent, of sugar, aud the manured
one produced 15.43 per cent, of sugar.
THRASHING OUT SEED WHEAT.
Experiments made with samples of wheat
thrashed with a thrashing machine aud with
a flail to ascertain which was the least in
jurious to the germinating vitality of the
grain, demonstrated that about one-fifth
more of that thrashed with the flail vege
tated than of that thrashed with a machine.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS.
Our Agricultural Editor's Weekly Clint With His
Readers.
"I found the following sentence in one of
my agricultural papers: 'True, we can en
graft one species of plant upon another and
produce a hybrid.' I was not aware that
hybrids were produced in this way; I
thought they were produced from seeds, and
if I am wrong I would be glad to know it."
E., Cincinnati, O. Ans. : Grafting is a means
of extending or propagating a plant ; it does
not originate new forms, and, therefore,
cannot produce hybrids, as suggested in the
sentence quoted.
In answer to "A temperance woman," we
would remark that the common recipe for
making wines fiom currants, blackberries,
and grapes, of adding three quarts of water
to one quart of pressed juice, and adding
to this mixture three pounds of the best
white sugar, aud then setting the whole to
ferment, will make a pleasant, but not a
temperance drink. We suppose that it
would contain at least from twenty to
twenty-five per cent, of alcohol.
A Washington subscriber wishes to
know if the popular idea that a seed
ling lemon tree will not fruit until it is
grafted, is correct. Ana.: "We find that very
many people entertain this idea. We pre
sume that it has originated from the fact
that seedling lemon trees take many years
growth before fruiting. As a matter of
course they will fruit when old enough, but
grafting oftentimes hastens this period.
"Is the Japan plum the same thing as the
Japan persimmon?" N., Orange co., Fla.
Ans. : The plants are distinct. The plant
known in the southern States as Japan plum
is Pholinia Jajwnica, a plant closely allied to
the hawthorn family. Tho Japan persim
mon is much like our native persimmon, the
fruit being larger, and in some (not all) of
its many varieties, sweeter and less astrin
gent than our native kinds.
"Novice" wishes to know whether
he would be justified in seeding his
farm largely to Lucerne for the purpose of
making it into hay for marketing. Ans.:
We doubt whether the plant can be looked
upon as specialty adapted for hay, and it is
still more doubtful whether it would find
purchasers in city markets.
E. 0. G., of New Brunswick, N. J., is in
formed that the Eucalyptus globulus, the
so-called Australian anti-fever tree, will not
stand the climate in any portion of that
State. A few degrees of frost destroys it.
PHYSICAL ACTION OF MANURES.
To the Editor National Tuihunk:
The mechanical or physical action of barn
yard manure upon the soil to which it is
applied, affords an important subject of
study. It is one of those beautiful effects
produced by the simlcst agent, but which,
until fully understood, seems inexplicable.
Thus we find that manure, nnder certain
circumstances; gives to sandy soils increased
stability and consistency. On the other
hand, we find it rendering tenacious, clayey
soils more mellow and friable. jhit these
two opposite results are not produced by
manures in the same condition, or in the
same state of decay. The farmer who de
sires to render a sandy soil more firm, would
scarcely select as the agent fresh strawy
mauure, for the simple reason that the
rigidity of the straw would produce results
the very opposite of thoso he sought. Well
rotted manure should be applied to sandy
soils for this purpose. Tho soil in this case
needs compressing, and rotted manure is
a very efficient agent for this purpose. On
stiff, tenacious soils the strawy mauure is
what is wanted; it renders them more
friable, admits the free passage of rain and
atmosphere, and in a variety of ways pro
motes fertility aud easier management.'
These thoughts aro not new, though they
possess a high importance and ought to be
understood by every farmer. G. J., Dela
ware co., Pa.
"It is not necessary for a man to bo poor to
he honest." Certainly not. But it seems sort
o' halfway necessary for a man to bo poor if ho
is honest. Quiz.
HOME, SWEET HOME.
Something for Our Young Folks to
Head in Their Quiet Hours.
Luncheon favors aro a pretty fancy used
to designate the place of each guest at the
table. There are many varieties, one of tho
most popular a satin bag which is filled with
French bon-bons. Two circular pieces of
card-board are cut for the bottom ; they may
be the size round of a coffee-cup, each cov
ered with satin, and overhanded together
with sewing-silk the same shade as the satin.
A straight piece of card-board is then cut to
fit exactly around tho circular piece. It
should be two inches high. This is also
covered plainly with satin, nnd tho edge
overhanded to that of the circular piece,
forming around box without a cover. Join
the seam very carefully that it may have a
neat appearance. A full bag of satin is then
securely sewed to the upper edge of the box,
the top of the bag to have a hem half an
inch wide, and just below it a casing through
which a ribbon is run for a drawing string.
Trim the upper and lower edges of the box
with a fine silk cord, and paint round the
side of it a pretty design of flowers. On one
of tho strings the name of the guest for
whom it is intended should be painted in
fancy lettering, either gilt or some color that
will contrast well with the satin. The bags
are filled with French candies, and laid be
side each place at the table. Tho effect is
good to have each bag a different color and
arrange them so that they may contrast'well.
A miniature straw wheelbarrow, gilded, is
very pretty filled with fresh-cut flowers; a
ribbon-bow with ends is tied on one handle,
aud on one end of the bow the name of the
guest is painted. These little arrangements
decorate tho table, and arc dainty little
souvenirs which may be kept by each guest.
FASHION NOTES.
Ball fringes are revived.
Jet remains in high favor.
Yellow remains in fashion.
Artistic styles prevail in Paris.
Hepped woolens will be much worn.
Peacocks' feathers are again in vogue.
Butterfly ornaments are very fashionable.
Ficelle strings appear on many fall bon
nets. Mousquetaire gloves are as popular as
ever.
Tho range of prices in new goods is very
wide.
Blue in all shades bids fair to bo very
popular.
Looped-backed draperies are no longer in
high fnvor.
Terra-cotta nnd brick red are coml
millinery.
Pinked ruches, called chicorees, a i
ing in vogue.
Chenille figured goods appear am .. It4 ;
fall importations. ' ;
Beads will bo used again for emti ;.$ 1
of evening dresses. r.
The small capote and tho large v ke will
be tho leading bonnets.
Jackets almost covered with soul
broidery will be worn.
Tapering crowns aro not so fashi -
ru
;.
large square and Hat ones.
Ivory white dresses with gold b ' i
mings are a fancy at present.
Two shades of smalt blue aro
combined in one hat or bonnet.
White and amber colored dresses are mudi
worn at American watering places.
Even hats, gloves, and shoes are adorned
with bead, tinsel, and silk embroideries.
Satin merveillcux of good body and fine
finish can be bought this fall for $1.35 a yard.
Bronze, gilt, old silver and jet ornaments
will a41 be much worn on hats and bonnets.
Dresses of one material bid fair to bo more
fashionable this fall than composite cos
tumes. The first importations of velvet nnd plush
brocades have flowers and figures in long
pile plush on velvet grounds.
New woolen plaids and checks come in the
aesthetic colors with broken, shaded lines and
bars of brick red, terra-cotta, gray, blue, aud
yellow.
Home-made, hand-made brown linen mittH
are embroidered in chain stich in fancy fig
ures, and worn with peasant costumes at
French watering places.
Short-waisted bodices, gathered at the
shoulders and waist, aro worn by young
ladies and misses in their teens in France
as well as in England. They give a youthful
air to tho wearer.
TEA-TARLE GOSSIP.
Five women are nominated for county
superintendents of schools in Illinois.
Some aristocratic ladies have planned an
exhibition of fans in Paris for tho winter.
The University of Mississippi has opened
all its departments to tho admission of
women.
Miss Constance Fenimore Woolson has
been at Baden Baden, completing a new
novel.
Miss Alice E. Freeman, a graduate of Syra
cuse University, has been elected president
of Wellcslcy College.
Miss Lucretia Noble, tho author of " Tho
Reverend Idol," lives in Wilbraham, Mass.,
where her father, a retired clergyman, set
tled in order to educate his four children at
tho academy.
Tho "Woman's Congress" for this year
will hold its sessions at Portland, Mo.
Mrs. William E. Dodgo has given $1,200
to found a woman's scholarship in the Grin
nel (Iowa) college for both sexes.
Mre. Judge Sherwood is the editor of tho
Sunday Journal of Toledo, of which her hus
band is proprietor and business manager.
Twenty additional women have been ap
pointed telegraphists at tho Taris Bureau
Central, and a similar number at Toulouse.
Tho Connecticut State law has just been
amended by the House of Representatives so
that women as well as men may vote on tho
election of trustees of Methodist churches.
The revival of Turkish embroidery owes
its initiation and success to Mrs. Arthur
Ilanson, who started it to help destitute
women in Constantinople. Many support
whole families by it, though it is paid for, of
course, at a very low rate.
Tho " Village Homes," at Addlestono, Sur
eey, for the rescue of little girls, owes jta
existence to tho Princess Mary, Duchess of
Teck, who is tho principal supporter f a
charity which has snatched many poor little
waifs from the border-laud of vice.
The South Dublin Union has emphatically
declared its approval of women as guardians
of the poor, and has petitioned Parliament
in favor of the removal of the restriction
which at present prevents women, duly
qualified as ratepayers, from being elected
in Ireland.
The Woman's Fortnightly Club of Chicago
have two courses of subjects for study and
discussion one "Continuous" the other
"Miscellaneous" for each season. The first
for 1882-S3, consists of the following sub
jects: Tho Revival of Learning: Petrarch
and Boccaccio. Chucer, his Works and his
Times. Republic of Venice. Romancers and
Chroniclers. The Exterior and Interior Ap
pearance of Books. Military-Religious Or
ders. The Court of the Medici : Savonarola.
Joan of Arc, and other Women of the Period.
Tho miscellaneous course comprises the
following: The Sun-God or Fire Worship.
Thomas Carlyle. An Afternoon with Dick
ens. Researches of Darwin. Art in Chicago,
Illustrated. Literature for Children. Women
of the Modern Stage. American Hnmorists.
HOW TO TREAT THE HAIR.
Under tho signature of E.Louise, a lady
writes as follows to the Detroit Free Press
concerning the best way in which to treat
the hair:
Everyone knows, of course, that a lady's
good appearance depends not a little upon
the care bestowed upon the hair, and I need
not say that neglecting to have the hair
neatly brushed and kept within proper
bounds'indicateswant of taste more than al
most anything else. On the contrary, the
danger is that the hair will be injured by the
excessive or injudicious treatment it receives
with the hope of improving its appearance.
From ill-health, for example, the head is
often hot and feverish, and the hair becomes
harsh and dry. It will not then lie smoothly,
and resort is had to oil in various forms.
These "hair oils," whatever names they may
bear, are almost all made from sweet oil or
lard, perfumed with various extracts, and
they yield an immense profit; but their use
is in most cases positivelv injurious. When
the body is in health nature supplies the
scalp with an abundance of oil, exactly fitted
for the hair, aud when not in health no ex
ternal application of artificial oil can take
the place of the natural.
On the contrary, these artificial oils, in
spite of the perfumes they contain, become
rancid, and do more harm than good. They
clog up the natural oil ducts, the skin be
comes still more dry, and scales off in small
particles called " dandruff." Then resort is
had to "hair washes," which consist chiefly
of alcohol. These dissolve the dandruff and
stimulate the scalp, and at first seem to be
beneficial, but in the end are not so.
'Pioro is i)Ufc one application that is safe
eficial under all circumstances, and
. old water. No soap should over bo
th it, as this dissolves off the natural
v-. '. renders the hair dry aud stiff. But
jr. . . iter washes off dandruff without re-
mo :,i ; the oil and leaves the skin cool and
tii-w. and thus promotes tho growth and
h:-'th of the hair.
S'- o persons take cold in using cold water,
but , is can be prevented by wiping the hair
n- i1! j as possible and then putting on a
, - mg a cap or a handkerchief until tho
hi. ' is nearly dry.
v 'riling is the best time to wash the hair.
v ight the system is tired and debilitated,
if one lies down with tho hair wet tho
oration may produce a cold. This I
,.. a ite from experience. When formerly bath
ing both the head and body at night a cold
was the usual consequence, but latterly a
morning bath, taken as quickly as possible,
followed by a brisk rubbing with towels, is
indulged two or three times a week with no
resulting cold, but greatly to tho promotion
of health.
When tho hair needs anything to make it
lie smooth, whether after bathing and drying
it, or at other times, it is put in place with a
brush dampened with pure water, which is
quite as effectual as oil, and far more refined
and healthful. Let any one try cold water on
the hair for six months, with the precautions
indicated, and they will never return to any
other "hair oils" or "hair washes."
THE KITCHEN.
To make Fotato Salad Take from six to
eight medium-sized boiled potatoes, very
carefully cooked; let them get cold, then
slice them thin; two silver-skin onions
minced A'ery fine, so as to get the flavor and
not detect the onions in pieces ; mix the lat
ter with tho parsley and tho potatoes; season
with salt and cayenne pepper. Take one
third of a teaspoonful of dry mustard ;
moisten it with a teaspoonful of hot water;
put the yolks of two eggs in tho same dish,
beat together witli an egg-beater until well
mixed, then drop in your salad oil, beating
it all tho time until it thickens like a cus
tard, then add one and a half tablespooufuls
of vinegar, put it over your potatoes, and
mix all together. You can garnish the dish
with salad leaves or celery tops. It makes
a very pretty dish for the table.
For Canning Grapes Tho Concords aro
best. Cook tho pulps thoroughly, strain in
colander or sieve to remove seeds ; then boil
the pulp and skins together one-half to
three-quarters of an hour, not less, adding
sugar to taste. Use ordinary stone jars, fill
ing full; smear tho top of tho jar with hot
wax made of equal parts of rosin and tallow,
then stretch over the top new cotton sheet
ing, tying around the jar about an inch or
two from the top with a cord wound around
several times, then cover the cloth on top
with a layer of melted wax, and set in a cool
place; will keep until the next summer.
For grapo jelly, tho grapes should not be
quite ripe.
To make Frangipane. Six eggs, two table
spoonfuls of Hour, grated rind of a lemon, two
ounces powdered sugar, tablespoouful of
orango water, half dozen macaroons, one pint
of milk. Beat the eggs, add milk, Hoar, sugar
aud flavoring, break up tho macaroons, put all
this in a stew-pan over a slow lire, stir it well,
and let it cook about twenty minutes ; havo
ready some pattypans or small dishes, lino
them with puff pastry, fill with the mixture
and bake in a quick oven about twenty
minutes.
To make CocoanutPndding. Three table
spoonfuls of corn starch, one quart of milk,
salt, teaspoonful of vanilla, four tablespooufuls
of cocoanut, two eggs. Put to boil thequartof
,milk, when boiling add the corn starch, which
should bo wet with a little cold milk, a little
salt, the eggs, vanilla, and lastly tho cocoanut
grated line, Servo hot with sauce,
SOUTHERN PRISON LIFE.
Free Lance Continues the Interesting
Story of His Captivity.-
XII.
Kov. nth. A thousand of the sick were
taken out of the stockade to-day to be sent
to Savannah for exchange. There is no
doubt but that they are going home, if they
can livo long enough to got there. It would
be an act of charity to take at least one-third
of them out to the graveyard and shoot them.
The poor fellows are delighted at the idea of
liberation. Their sunken eyes glitter, and
temporary strength, at least, inspires many
of them to make the necessary effort to get
out of the black holes of "Secessia." They
want to die under tho. old flag, if die they
must. I have heard of many mean things
being done by chivalrous, high-toned South
erners since I have been a prisoner. Tho
meanest, however, is that which is daily be
ing done at this prison at the present time.
A surgeon will come in and take the names
of men who are half dead with disease, and
tell them that Hhey aro enrolled to he sent
home, and will then go off and sell their
chances of exchange to men who are compara
tively well, but who happen to havo a few
dollars in greenbacks in their pockets. Such
men are generally prison sutlers, whom wo
regard with aversion, for those of them who
have made money have generally been on
excellent terms with the rebels. The well
man answers to the sick man's name and
goes home ; the other remains behind to die.
If I had $5 in greenbacks I could now buy
my way home, and so could any other p-is-oner
who had that much money.
Kov. 18th. It was nearly dark yesterday
before we got anything to eat. We were nearly
famished, and almost felt like eating one an
other. The rebels are still at work taking
out sick men. Quite alarge exchange of pris
oners must be taking place. We are cheered
by tho hope that perhaps every man in the
stockade, who doesn't die in the meantime,
will be on board of a Union transport before
ten days are over. In spite of ourselves the
siren Hope continues to delude us. Only a few
hundred prisoners remain at Andersonville.
A TOUCHING MEMENTO.
Kov. 10th. It rained last uight, and the
sick, lying on the cold ground outside of the
stockade, without shelter of any kind, were
exposed to the full fury of the storm. Many
of them, of course, died in consequence.
Twenty-four hours have elapsed since we
have drawn a ration, which means that we
have had nothing whatever to eat for that
period. This is owing to the exodus of tho
sick, wounded, and crippled. These rebels
never know how to do more than one thing
at a time, and they never do that correctly
unless they get a lot of Yankees to help
them. If they ever succeed in establishing
a government of their own it will one day
stagnate. The sick prisoners being sent away
fare only a trifle better than we are doing.
They are getting penurious rations of raw
sweet potatoes and raw beef doled out to
them. The task of feeding us will not be
likely to bring the confederacy to financial
bankruptcy. Those whom the rebels are en
rolling as " the sick" would be more properly '
classified under the head of "the dying."
Anywhere ebe than here two-thirds of all the
men in the stockade would be considered fit
subjects for medical attendance. Going out
side of my rude shelter last evening I met a
miserable looking being shivering in the
rain. His right hand was thrust into his
bosom. As I approached him and spoke
kindly ho drew out his hand, and gave me
two photographs, one of his wife and tho
other of his child, and requested me to pre
serve them till morning, when he would call
for them. I have not seen him since, and
presume he is dead. One of them is indorsed
on the back, in fine business-like handwrit
ing, with the address of " Mrs. M. D. Hodges,
No. 174 West Nineteenth street, New York
City." The picture of tho child is that of a
handsomo boy about two and a half years
old, mounted on a gayly caparisoned hobby
horse. (If that child is still living he must
now be a young man about nineteen years
of age. I still have those pictures, and on
application will promptly forward them
to the relatives of the dead soldier. Although
sad souvenirs, they might be highly prized.)
Kov. 20th. The first prisoners who arrived
here found plenty of wood and brush in the
stockade, and were thus enabled to construct
tolerably good "shebangs." We who came
in last have not fared so well. There is no
town at the depot. It is a mere railroad
stopping-place. The region surrounding us
is covered with pine forests. Tho current
conundrum is: "Boys, which do you like the
best roasting in Andersonville or freezing
in Millen ? " There is a splendid vacant area
south of the brook that would answer for au
exercise ground, but I have yet to see,any
body utilize it for that purpose. In view of our
thin rations, the only exercise we require is
that of eating and breathing. Increased exer
cise with our masticating apparatus would
be extremely beneficial to most of us.
Kov. 21st. It rained very hard last night.
On waking up, we discovered that a large
number of prisoners had been marched out
of the stockade during the night. The
weather is cold. We believe that an exten
sive exchange is on foot. No rations issued
to-day. Nobody has anything to eat. Hun
ger is a bad bedfellow.
A RED-LETTER DAY.
(November 22d was a red-letter day in
prison annals, although we had no means of
knowing the fact. On that day Major
General G-. W. Smith moved out of Macon
at the head of twelve or fifteen regiments of
"white-coated militia," such as had slaugh
tered so many prisoners at Andersonville,
and without doubt a portion of the Ander
sonville garrison was included in the force.
Smith moved down the railroad ten miles
to attack a rear-guard of Sherman's army,
which consisted of only four regiments undor
the command of General Walcutt, with some
cavalry skirmishers to protect tho flanks of
tho little forco. These troops were armed
with repeating rifles, being the only infantry
in Sherman's army armed otherwise than
with muzzle-loading muskets. The militia
made a bold attack, but found a vast differ
ence between shooting unarmed prisoners
and fighting warlike Yankees. Walcutt's
men "warmed it to 'em in led-hot stylo,"
and in about twenty minutes a militia Bull
Run ensued, and the white-coated warriors
never stopped running till they reached tho
Btreets of Macon. Smith officially reported
that he had struck a whole division of the
Yankee army, and his frightened "melish"
probably thought they had "struck" an en
tire army corps. When a man is shut up in
a pen and has no gun it is much easier to
kill him than when he is in the open field
and has a fair chance at you. The same
night General Sherman unexpectedly discov
ered that he was eating his supper in the
house of Howell Cobb, late commander of
tho Andersonville garrison, and the individ
ual who pointed to thousands of graves filled
with the bodies of starved prisoners and
boastfully exclaimed: "That is the way I
would do for them ! " The house stood on
Cobb's plantation, but the great man himself
was not there. His corn, beans, peanuts,
poultry, fence-rails, and molasses were im
mediately confiscated, and a general order was
issued to "spare nothing," and many fires were
kindled. At the close of the war Cobb "ac
epted the situation "with great eagerness and
ostentation, and was undoubtedly influenced
to do so by the dread that his share of the
Andersonville atrocities might be inquired
into. Let him be remembered in history as
the fit associate of Wirz and Winder.
OFF FOR SAVANNAH.
Savannah, Kov. 23d. We left Millen
Prison in a hurry, night before last, march
ing out of the stockade in division of one
thousand men each. Ours was the last one
to leave. On passing out the gate at
about ten o'clock we were amazed to notice,
by the glare of some large fires, that not a
rebel soldier was anywhere in sight. Only
a few rebel officers waited us. As soon as
we had halted, in obedience to an order
given, a rebel colonel rode up and briefly
addressed us. The substance of his har
angue was, that we were about to be march
ed to the depot, a mile distant, without
guards, and were there to be placed on the
cars for Savannah, and that before twenty
four hours we would be on board Federal
transports and vessels of war. The sick had
all been exchanged, and our turn had come
at last. "Now," he concluded, "if any of
yon are d d fools enough to run away, you
can do it if you want to. Forward, march ! "
We responded with loud yells, and moved
down through the dark pine woods and on
to the railroad station without the desertion
of a man. Kilpatrick's cavalry reached
Millen thirty -six hours after our departure
and burned the railroad buildings. Five or
six dead bodies were found unburied in the
stockade, and 700 prison graves were counted.
The number of prisoners brought to Millen
was about 10,000. The first of them arrived
on the 12th of October, and the last on No
vember lGth. The stockade was vacated on
November 21st. Probably a thousand pris
oners enlisted in the rebel army. And yet
out of the whole number more than 700 died.
Sherman entered Millen at the head of the
Seventeenth Army Corps twelve days after
our departure. We were then loaded into
box cars, placed under guard and started for
Savannah. As usual we were crowded to
suffocation, there only being space enough
for a man to stand up, and not space enough
to permit of anyone sitting down. To travel
in this fashion is hard upon tolerably robust
men among us, and nearly kills a sick man.
DYING ON TJIE ROAD.
In fact, many prisoners die in the cars when
we travel, for we always take our death
rate with us. The bodies are buried at the.
end of the journey. We arrived at this city
on the morning of the 22d, and at about
noon drew rations for the first time since
the afternoon of the 20th. We are now.
convinced that we were badly sold. We aro
satisfied that some of Sherman's cavalry
must have been close to Millen the night
we left it. We are at present bivouacked in
a field outside the city, ostensibly for the
pnrpose of exchange. Fort Pulaski, ten or
fifteen miles down the river, is in possession
of the Union forces. A good many prison
ers jumped off the cars in coming here from.
Millen, but nearly all of them have been re
captured and roughly treated. The rations
issued to us here consist of sea-biscuits of
good quality, and, considering what we have
long been accustomed to, are fair in quantity.
We have good cause to ever kindly remem
ber the ladies of Savannah. This morning a
large committee of them came out to see us,
attended by a retinue of slaves, and followed
by several wagons loaded with wheat bread
and caldrons of coffee. It was the intention
of our fair benefactors to equitably divide
this sumptuous fare among us, but our hun
ger prompted ns to defeat their scheme by a
pardonable deed of impropriety. The wagons
had just been backed to within a fevr yards
of the dead line, when four or five hundred
of us sprang up, rushed across the line, and
cleaned out every wagon almost in the
twinkling of an eye. A loaf of bread was
my share of the spoils. The ladies raised
their hands in holy horror, and showered
indignant imprecations on us. Finally, de
claring that such conduct was all that could
be expected of " mean Yankees," they turned
their perturbed faces toward the city. Tho
sick prisoners brought from Millen have ac
tually been sent to the Federal fleet. They
were treated in the kindest manner by the
ladies of Savannah, who threw food to them
across the dead line, in spite of the snrly
efforts of the guards to prevent it. It is re
ported that they left behind them a letter
addressed to General Sherman, asking him
to deal gently with the city if he succeeds
in taking it.
A MEAT, OF RAW POTATOES.
Kov. 2Ath. I have often read of Savannah,
but never expected to see it, especially as the
guest of the confederate states. It was here
that Sergeant Jasper fell, in the Revolution
ary war. It is a nice little city of about
20,000 inhabitants, with broad, well-shaded
streets, and the devastation of war has not
yet smitten it. Lsist evening I passed across
the dead-line to get a bucket of water from
a creek eight or ten paces distant, as we are
allowed to do. The banks of the creek are
timbered, and I noticed that the sentry wa3
negligent. Hiding the bucket among somo
bushes I stole away unobserved, and striking
across the fields, indulged in a foraging expe
dition. At the distance of half a mile, near
some cabins, I found a sweet potato mound.
Scratching away the earth, I sat down and
had a banquet on raw potatoes. I then took
off my coat, knotted the ends of its sleeves,
.and filled itas full of potatoes aslcould travel
with, and returned to the prison bivouac and
divided with my chums. I made no attempt
to escape, for several reasons. We believe we
will be sent to the Federal fleet; the country
around ns is flat and open, and dangerous to
be chased on by bloodhounds; and there is a
picket line around the city. The people here
win very often hear the heavy cannonading
at Charleston.
To be continued.
Entered according to net of Congress In the year
18&2 by Tho National Tribune in tho oulce of thf
Librarian, of Conciosa at VTasuington.
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