English Diary 1

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5th. Prisoners at the old trade of exchanging with the guards for tobacco. I am glad I do not use the weed. Rations four biscuits and about four ounces of pork and half a pint of bean soup for today. Froze hard last night and quite a snow this morning. The guards say it is an unusual thing for this section. We can see the rebel capitol from here and a flag on each end of it. From the view I can get from the windows here, Richmond appears to be quite a large place and contains some handsome buildings. Our windows are iron barred like a Northern prison, and the guards will shoot anyone who sticks his hands out or gets too close to the bars.

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6th. Rations same as yesterday. The guards say to us : "Uuns are eaten 'uuns' rations fast, and uuns will soon have to eat the corn dodger like we 'uns." That is the Southern dialect.

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7th. Doctors in this morning examining the sick. A great many of the prisoners have sore arms from the effect of the vaccination. The doctors say they cannot account for it without it is that our blood is in poor condition. For the life of me I cannot see how it could be otherwise in such an infernal place as this.

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8th. Things beginning to look blue for us since the cutting down of the U. S. rations. We now only receive about half the quantity we did formerly. Several of the boys taken out to the hospital today with their arms in a dreadful condition. I am glad that I washed my vaccination out, or I would be in the same fix as those poor fellows.

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9th. Rations two biscuits and about four ounces of pork per a man.

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10th. Half a loaf of corn dodger, two biscuits and four ounces of beef; better than yesterday. We are glad of that, as yesterday's rations did not last long. I am under the weather today and cannot do or say much. One thing I must do as long as I can sit up, and that is what we call "louse." We are not particular who sees us, for all must perform the same work two or three times a day.

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11th. Some of the prisoners have died from the effects of the vaccination, which gave them such sore arms. It is distressing to hear the moans of the poor fellows. They say that the vaccine was poisoned purposely to kill us. One of the guards boasted of it and said it was true. One of the prisoners was taken out to the hospital and had his arm amputated below the shoulder. The young doctors say they must have something to practice on and that a Yankee will answer the purpose as well as anything else. Rations the same as yesterday.

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12th. Two months a prisoner today. What a change in my condition. I believe I am 25 pounds lighter. When I came in here I was clean and in good health. Now I am in poor health and I am sorry to say dirty and my rags are full of vermin.

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13th. Rations for today three biscuits and about four ounces of beef; better than we have received for some time.

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14th. Quite sick this morning and cannot get up off the floor. A severe headache, neck and head swollen, cannot go after my rations I feel so bad, but I hope I will be better tomorrow.

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15th. Not any better today. I have not tasted anything since this time yesterday.

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16th. A little better this morning. Almost frozen lying on the ground without anything under or over me. I ate a little soup today. I don't care for the rations.

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17th. Feel much better today. I think it must be a heavy cold that I have, as I feel my bones all sore. About three hundred prisoners passed by here this morning on their way to Barrett's prison, about two blocks down from us. They were well fixed; the most of them have their overcoats and look well. Poor fellows! they won't look so well two months from now.

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18th. One-half of the prisoners will die from sore arms. They say that it is the same in the rest of the Richmond prisons. Some of the best men in the world are almost falling to pieces through the treachery and malice of the doctor against the Northern soldier. Brady of my company died today from the effects of the vaccine, his arm almost falling off. Poor fellow, how he suffered. This is getting to be a horribly sickening place, with suffering of all kinds, disease and starvation.

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19th. Prison rations about the same. Not enough change the last three or four days to mention. The rebel guards say that there are five or six amputations every day now in the hospital, and it gives the young doctors a chance to practice in that line. While we were talking, one of the guards came up and said he was on guard at the hospital day before yesterday and was a witness to twelve amputations in four hours, three dying. The guards say they will all die as there is no care taken of them after the amputation.

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20th. The rebel quartermaster came into the building this morning and read off a long list of names, saying there were boxes for them from the North and to come and get them. While he was reading off the list, you could have heard a pin drop. Among the list was my name. Oh! how glad I was when I heard that name! About twenty of us went over to the quartermaster's storehouse and sure enough the boxes were there. We had to open them in the presence of the officer and two of the guards. He took everything out that he thought unlawful to pass into our hands. He took a book from my box called "The Collegians of Ireland," but I said nothing, for if I did, he would not let me have it at all. So I carried the box over to the prison on my shoulder. A happier set of fellows never walked into Pemberton than we, with the boxes. The other poor fellows gathered around us to see the good things from home. My box contained one large sweet cake, tea, coffee and sugar, salt, pepper, writing paper and envelopes, two pairs of drawers and shirts, which I needed badly, stockings and several other things very useful in a place like this. It came in time for a Christmas present and more appreciated than any I ever received.

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21st, Some of those that received boxes yesterday had some of the things stolen from them last night. Mine is safe. I had some tea this morning. How good it tasted. Gave some to three or four of the sick boys who are close to me. I wish I had enough to give them all some. Three or four of us belonging to the one company are going to keep watch over it by turns. And of course I have to pony up with them. If I don't do that, it will be all stolen from me in one night.

pony up means to pay money, to pay what one owes, to make good a debt

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22d. Prison rations I care very little for at present. I forgot to say I received a ham and two dried beef tongues. How I do enjoy to go to my box and take a piece of boiled ham. I think it is the best thing I ever ate.

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23d. I don't feel very well this morning. Probably been eating too much. I must be a little careful with what I eat. It is very strange I do not get a letter from home. I sent two and they must have received them, or I would not have received the box. Three of us who received boxes got one of the guards to bring us in an armful of wood for us to cook our tea and coffee, and we paid him three dollars in Confederate money, which is equal to thirty cents in our money.

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24th. Webb and Gallagher, two of my company, watched my box last night. Culberson and myself go on watch tonight. There is a great deal of stealing among the prisoners, and starvation is the cause of it all.