THE CITIZEN, FRIDAY, MAY, 30, 1913.
PAGE THREE
Thomas Crossley
Graphic Sketches
"Written for the Wayne Counteanand The Citizen by Frank P. Woodward.
iNE of the most familiar faces
in Wayne county is that of
Thomas Crossley, who rep
resents W. B. Holmes &
Co. anion e: the stores of this and ad
joining counties wherever their lines
of trade extend. Mr. Crossley Is an
exceedingly modest and retiring gen
tleman who always has a cheery
word for all of his acquaintances.
Few would suspect that he passed
through experiences in the Civil War
that are as full of Interest as the
pages of a thrilling romance. Mr.
Crossley seldom talks about his war
record, and is far removed from that
class of individuals who are con
stantly boasting that, "Me and Gen
eral Grant, wo whipped the Rebels!"
When the Great Rebellion broke
out the Crossley family lived in Con
necticut in Simsbury, about 10 miles
west of Hartford, which city was the
nome or Harriet ueecner stowe, wuo
wrote "Uncle Tom's Cabin," the book
that did more to precipitate the Civil
War than probably any other publi
cation with the possible exception of
"The Impending Crisis," which was
known as "The Helper Book," a pro
duction of Hinton A. Helper, of Salis
bury, North Carolina. The subject
of this story of real events says he
saw Mrs. Stowe in Hartford on sev
eral occasions.
The air of New England was
charged to the limit with the electric
first of patriotism, and war meetings
were held in the village and town-
THOMAS CItOSSLEV.
ship school houses. In 18G2 Thomas
Crossley was nearly 21 years of age,
and he longed to go to the front. Ho
effected an enlistment in a nine-j
months' company of volunteers, but
the short term men were not taken,
and he was disappointed. Nothing
daunted at his ill luck, as he con
sidered it, young Crossley enlisted at
Hartford, and on August 2G, 18G2,
not yet being old enough to vote, he
was mustered into service in the 16th
Connecticut Regiment of Infantry,
bound by a contract that read "three
years, or during the war," which was
a questionable phrase in many peo
ple s minds at the time, some De
lieving that it called for a three
years' service anyway, and that if
the war went on for four, or five, or
any number of years the person un?
der such contract was bound to the
service. The phrasing was eventual
ly changed to the more understand
able wording of " three years, unless
sooner discharged," which fixed the
maximum limit and whose terms
could not be misunderstood.
Three weeks after being mustered
in, on September 17, the regiment to
which young Crossley belonged took
part in the fierce battle of Antletam.
About 300 of the lGth Regiment
Connecticut Infantry were numbered
TTl nnP TT1R WnilT1l1fJ1 HUM IIIIK-
m i. Miuiviiu 111111 luh miliiLmn ui will
-1 - 1 1.1 xi e
in a way that shattered many of his
rpnmH ni I iihili i hiii .
After Antletam camo Fredericks-
11 j i ni.uM-.i
lit II Lllti MIUUU 11 L 1111U11Y . LUUL LU 11
n viririmiL mull ivuvuu IjUuiilv
. A li. IIXT..1 T.. J.1 1 n tf J
RTl V 1T1C.1C1HI1LH III UUU UL 11 1 H UUSL
i t i a t it., n .1 .1 1 it
UU lUtVU ID UUHi UUU HUD UCCU 1U1
I me siuKG spoKun 01 uiu iuwii wus
rvniLT III I Mill III H II.
, On January 24, 18G4, the Union
Inn. a small town at the extreme
.vestern end of Albemarle Sound,
rhero they spent the winter. On
Vpril 1G tho town was attackod by
iiH iteuuiu wiiuau uumuura uiiiuuumu
li irtnii lUiifuu lu i.uuu mull, uuu
. j in rnn In AAA i
vlin wnrn under thn onmmnnil of
leneral Hoke. Tho garrison of
ninn en iiinrs iioTonninpi inn mxKfin
vna rnmnnftorl rtf hilt "IfiAft mpn. ntirl
'of tli!a cmnll ffirplsnn n morn linnrl.
'ul of northern men, for four days
vttliatnnil ihn naKnlllt' nt fillpli n (in
ferior force, which was aided by the
ron-clad ram "Albemarle." This
vas one of the sharpest of tho en
ire number of battles of the war,
nnslilfirlni? thn nnmhfir of min nn.
'npfiil. Thn Tlfihnl InKS wns mnrn
han tho entire number of the gar-
I m, 1 .1 1 L
ison. iiiuro cuuiu uu uui one re
ult, and after four days of conflict
he garrison was obliged to surrend
r. Lamentable Incident
)f tho Plymouth Battle.
At tho siege of Plymouth, North
'arolina, was re-enacted one of the
amentablo Incidents of tho conduct
i me vjivu war, in mo massacre oi
bout 100 negroes, also the massa-
ro of two companies of North Care-
TiinTiR. ' rnnoo rnmnnnma wnrn rnm.
Aon1 rW v nr n nnn I aa I r hn
'ederal government, and In their
War Story
s
of Andersonville
massacre they became national mar
tyrs. The first Incident of the kind
has gone down in history as the Fort
Pillow Massacre, where negro men,
women and children wore merciless
ly bayoneted to death.
The Rebel Citizen and
Ills Two Hnndsomo Daughters.
Mr. Crossley told another incident
of the Plymouth siege that shows
once moro how Yankee ingenuity
will break down prejudice and win
out in the face of almost Insurmount
able obstacles. In the town llveu
a man in whoso family there were
two good-looking daughters. Quito
naturally these girls were a magnet
for tho Union soldiers; but, alas!
they could not, by hook or crook, get
an introduction or effort an entranco
to the home in which tho charmers
dwelt. Finally two bright men con
ceived a scheme which they secured
permission from their superior offi
cer to carry out. In due tlmo they
appeared at the Rebel homo with
blank books, and stated that they
were making a census of the town.
They got in the home. Tho girls
were as pleased to see them as they
were to see the girls. Further than
that the obstinate Rebel father lost
his prejudice, welcomed them to his
family circle, and the friendship thus
begun lasted through the war and
extended into the days of peace that
followed.
If you have guessed that young
Crossley was one of the two happy
Yankees, you are mistaken, and he
doesn't even know the names of
those men. He knows of the inci
dent, and that is all.
Crossley Taken From Plymouth
To Andersonville.
About May 1, 18G4, the prisoners
were taken from Plymouth, N. C,
to Andersonville, which is located
about GO miles south qt Macon,
Georgia. Andersonville was opened
as a military prison in February,
1SG4, the last prisoner leaving its
hateful environs in April, 18G5.
The prisoners were met by a
bustling officer in a Captain's uni
form who distinguished himself by
uttering tho most villainous threats
and the most blasphemous language
imaginable. This individual was
none other than the infamous Cap
tain Wirz who proved himself subse
quently to be a fiend incarnate. Af
ter the close of the war he was tried
and most properly executed for his
unwarranted cruelty.
How tho Prisoners Wore
Disposed of A Resolution.
The prisoners on their arrival at
Andersonville were counted and put
in messes of ninety each, with a
Union sergeant over each mess. It
was the duty of the sergeants to
look after the sick, the dead and to
draw and distribute the Tations. For
thl3 service he received an extra ra
tion. Mr. Crossley was chosen as
one of these sergeants.
There were about 8,000 prisoners
in the enclosure when Mr. Crossley
and his unfortunate comrades reach
ed It. Most of these prisoners had
been brought from the Belle Isle and
Llbby prisons, and they scarcely re
sembled white men. They were
starved, emaciated and nearly naked.
Tho actual condition of the wretched
men was beyond description. Tho
outlook for the future, or of ever re
turning to "the land of the free and
the home of tho bravo" was gloomy
enough. After witnessing the horri
ble sights and listening to the stories
of the prisoners Mr. Crossley resolv
ed that he would do all in his power
to survive the prison experience and
return to "God's country" in Con
necticut. Description of tho Famous
Andersonvillo Prison.
The Andersonville prison was an
enclosure of about 12 acres surroun
ded by a stockade of pine logs 25
feet long placed upright side by side
in a trench 5 feet deep, thus tho top
of the stockado was about 20 feet
abovo the surface of the camp. Out
side of this stockado 100 feet distant
was another stockade, and 40 feet
farther out was the third stockade,
thus almost effectually shutting out
all hope of escape.
About 1G feet inside the Inner
stockado was tho celebrated "dead
lino," which was formed by sinking
posts into tho ground about 20 feet
apart and projecting from the
ground about 3 feet. To these posts
were nailed four Inch strips. Tho
"dead line" extended around tho four
sides of the enclosure, and prisoners
were warned not to lean against It
or to touch It. Violators of this rule
were liable to be shot. Indeed, a
great many prisoners were shot to
death, and some of them undoubted
ly chose this short, present and ef
fectual meanB of effecting exchange.
For shooting a "dead liner" a prem
ium was awarded of a furlough. Tho
shooting was done by guards who
were stationed in sheds that were
built Into and on top of the stockade.
There woro 58 of these sheds and
they wero 90 feet apart. The older
Robel soldiers on guard were not so
much to bo feared as were tho boy
guards who ovldently did not appre
ciate the awiuiness of taking human
life.
Moro Descriptive Matter
Pertaining to Andersonville.
As previously stated, tho prison
camp was comprised of about 12
acres. Out of this area must bo sub
tracted the space occupied by tho
"dead-lino" and the stockado. Tho
camp was on two hillsides with a
small stream running between them.
Tho stream and some swamp mado an
area of about 3 acres moro that must
also bo subtracted from the 12 acres.
In July about GOO feet were added to
the stockade on tho north end, thus
Increasing the acreage from 4 to 5
acres. This addition made the camp
with tho following dimensions: En-
tiro length, 1,610 feet. Entire width
779 feet.
Rations What They AA'cro and
How They Wero Divided.
Tho prisoners in Andersonville
were not like tho certain rich man
of Scripture who "fared sumptuous
ly every day." Indeed, they re
sembled that other individual who
longed for the dogs to come and lick
his sores. Rations wero supposed
to he issued onco a day. Certain It
Is they wero never issued more than
once, and sometimes they wero miss
ed entirely.
The rations consisted of corn
bread, mush, meal, and occasionally
cow peas, and once in a very great
while a small piece of bacon. Some
times salt was given to the prisoners,
not frequently, however, as salt was
a very scarce article In the South
during tho Civil War.
Of courso all of the "good things"
enumerated above were not Issued at
one tlmo. Tho list simply enumer
ates tho range of eatables, not quan
tity, frequency of issue or condition
and quality. The common ration was
about a pint of raw meal, sometimes
served with the cob ground very
fine along with the grain. As the
prisoners wero sick and weak this
diet was extremely irritating to the
intestinal canal, and added material
ly to the mortality record.
The rations wero issued to the
sergeants in charge of tho messes of
90 each. These were sub-divided to
squads of 15, and some member of
the 15 would sub-divide the amount
so that each prisoner got his share.
Another ration, prized equally as
much as the grant of food, was the
ration of wood that was occasionally
Issued. This ration was divided and
sub-divided in the same ratio of pro
portion as that of food. An ordinary
ration was a 4 foot stick of cord
wood. Squads of men would unite
in tho use of their rations of wood,
which was economical and the cook
ing was better.
How Would You Liko a
Crossley Gcorffin Dumpling?
Mr. Crossley gave the recipe for a
famous article of food he used to
compound and most thoroughly en
joy while in Andersonville. It made
him feel as hungry just to think
about it as it did in his boyhood
days when he read about that famous
historical character,
" Little Jack Horner, who sat in a
corner
Eating' a Christmas pie;
Who thrust in his thumb
And pulled out a plumb,
And said, 'What a great boy
am I!' "
He certainly must have been a great
boy, a very resourceful lad, to make
his thumb do the work that his fore
finger is supposed to do. But now
regarding Mr. Crossley's famous
" Georgia Dumpling." Here is how
he made it: Sift your pint of meal;
don't try too hard to get rid of tho
ground corn cob; instead of saleratus
use some lye that you obtain by
leaching some water through wood
ashes; this lye imparts a beautiful
green tint to the dumpling; form
your meal in balls about 1 Inches
in diameter, and boil until you get
so hungry you can't wait any longer,
and if you had been in Andersonvillo
you will know how good that tasted.
Mr. Crossley says this famous dump
ling recipe can not be found in any
of the modern or ancient cook-books.
However, there is no copyright or
patent of any kind upon it, and he
hands It over freely and you may
use it when ever you want to. iHo
further said that he had not kept
faith with himself, for those dump
lings used to taste so good that ho re
solved while eating them, and never
being satisfied, that if he lived to re
turn to his home in the North he
certainly would eat his fill of Georgia
Dumplings. Remarkable as It may
seem, when he actually returned to
the land of clocks and nutmegs ho
lost all desire for them and he has
never tasted one from that Anderson
villo period to the present time.
Some Facts Regarding Fowl
Values in Andersonville.
A civilian had a suttler shop and
along with Federal soldiers was
made prisoner in Andersonville. He
had a brother in Georgia, and as ho
was not in the Federal service ho
could not bo held. When he was
released ho wanted to return to his
home, and necessarily must close out
his stock of groceries. Ho had no
difficulty in doing so, and at prices
that ran like this: Flour, ten dollars
a quart; potatoes, 50 cents each, and
salt, 25 cents a tablespoonful.
Tho Condition of Prisoners
Wns of Unprintable Nature.
A sad look swept over Mr. Cross
ley's face as ho referred to tho con
dition of tho prisoners in tho An
dersonvillo camp. Ho declared that
the awful condition is boyond de
scription, in fact that tho nature
of tho details would be actually un
printable. Tho prisoners wore ab
solutely without shelter from the sun
and the rain, with very few excep
tions. Tho poor fellows at the tlmo
of their capture had been robbed of
everything of value money, cloth
ing and hope, and life hold few
charms for them.
How tho Sick and tho
Dead AVcro Cared For.
As previously stated, a sergeant
was appointed oyer every 90 prison
ers one of whose duties It was to
caro for the sick and the dead. At
a certain hour in tho morning tho
sick were taken outside of the stock
ade where the doctors wero station
ed. Examinations were made, pre
scriptions wero given, and thon they
wero taken back into the camp. The
sick went from the camp and re
turned to it through the south gate.
All prisoners when first brought to
the camp wero conducted through
tho north gate. It was the duty of
tho sergeant to got medicine at a
certain tlmo in tho afternoons. Some
of the doctors wero very kind; oth
ers wero actually brutal. Supplies
were limited and scarce, and tho sick
prisoners had not tho relief from
that source that the awful conditions
demanded.
now tho' Dead AVcro
Removed and Burled.
When a prisoner died there was
pinned on his breast a slip giving
his namo, his company and his regi
ment. This was a good system ot
keeping a record of the number ot
deaths; yet, If a certain prisoner
to whom these records wore reported
had not made a duplicate copy, ono
of which lie 'turned over to the prison
authorities and the other which he
concealed and retained, tho actual
number of deaths would never have
been known, for the record in tho
hands of the Rebels was so appalling
that It was suppressed.
A detail of prisoners removed their
dead comrades outside the stockade
where tho record the body carried
was copied. The bodies were then
loaded, uncofilned, on army wagons,
The loading was not carefully done
and the dead prisoners were piled on
tho wagons like so much trash or
cordwood, arms and legs sticking up
into the air or hanging over tho
sides. In this way the loads of dead
soldier boys were removed to tho
cemetery. The wagons thus used
were the same wagons from which
rations wero served out to tho sur
viving prisoners.
Tho AVnter Supply of
tho Prison Cnmp.
Flowing down between tho two
hills of the Andersonville camp was
a little brook. This soon became pol
luted and actually unfit for use; and
yet, for months the poor fellows In
that Georgia camp had access to no
other water supply for any purposes
whatever. The very ground became
alive with vermin and contaminating
matter, and yet men had to drink
it and to cleanse their bodies and
rags in it. Undoubtedly many a
prisoner found himself repeating the
lines of Thomas Hood:
"Picture It, think of it,
Dissolute man!
Lave In it, drink of it,
Then, If you can,"
as he gazed upon Its loathsome con
dition; and when the burning sun
had sunk beneath the Georgia hills,
or wheu he vainly sought forgetful
ness in sleep, with the pure stars
twinkling in pity from the blue arch
above him, his tortured mind and
fevered body called in vain for the
cool springs, the sparkling rivulets
and the softly flowing rivers of his
native land in the North; and when
he awoke to the reality of his awful
condition, can it be thought as at all
strange that he longed for death and
the silence and peace of the grave,
with tho winds whispering ever so
gently liko a mother's lullaby, over
his resting place in the valley, or
on the hillsldo? Reader, Air. Cross
ley can picture to you what it meant
to spend months in- such a camp as
Andersonville was when the entire
supply of water was that little trickl
ing stream between the two hills that
served as filth sheds instead of water
sheds, and converted that streamlet
into a veritable sewer.
Here Is tho Strnngo Story
of "Provldcnco Spring."
Many people know something
about Andorsonville, but not all have
heard tho wonderful story of "Provi
dence Spring." As sketched above,
tho poor fellows were suffering for
water. There seemed to be a gen
eral cry of "Water! Water! We are
perishing for the want of water!"
Then a strange and wonderful event
occurred. At night when the sun
went down the cry for water was still
going up, but the only water was
the foul supply of the brook. Lo! in
tile morning a noble spring of pure,
cold, sparkling water was bursting
from the ground, and whose over
flow went bubbling on its way to
mingle and as far as possible purify
tho waters of the brook. This was
certainly a Providential act, and
many believe that it may rightly bo
classified as miraculous. Even tho
Rebels themselves came Into tho
camp to drink of the cold flowing
waters.
The springing forth of "Providence
Spring" brought hope into the
hearts of the prisoners, and they be
gan digging wells for themselves. Mr.
Crossley's men sank a 40 foot well.
For digging purposes they used brok
en canteens and any old pieces of tin
ware, drawing tho soil from the
depths In old tomato cans. It was
awfully slow work, but It gave them
something to do, and helped pass
away the time. At the depth of 40
feet they struck good, pure water.
Several years ago Mr. Crossley visit
ed tho camp, and his well was still
there and "Providence Spring" was
still flowing.
Tunnelling for Liberty
Under tho Stockade.
Pope has declared that "iHope
springs eternal in tho human breast."
Ono would naturally suppose that
hope would be dead, dead, dead
"thrice dead and plucked up by the
roots" In that Andersonvillo camp of
misery; but not so, Tho men spent
their time in a ceaseless battle
against vermin, with which tho very
ground was fairly alive, and in talk
ing about home. As men from the
same section of tho boloved North
gathered in groups they wero ever
talking of home, home home. This
was how mother cooked it; that was
tho way wife did it; the Sunday
plunge bath In tho cool and refresh
ing waters of tho sleepy old mill dam
was in fancy experienced onco more;
and what tho children and the homo
folks were doing was talked over and
over. Finally tho longing for home
grew so intense that it led to action
along tho lino of escape.
In some concealed place, probably
a shelter tent, a tunnel was started.
Tho excavation was made very cau
tiously with such implements ns
were available, such as broken knifo
blades and half canteens. Tho work
was started as near tho "dead-line"
as possible. First they dug down 8
feet, then straight out under the
"dead-lino" and the three lines of
stockade towards a hoped for free
dom. This work was done as quietly
and unaustentatlously as possible.
Few men could work at first, but as
tho tunnel progressed more and moro
men worked, kicking the soli back
from man to man until it was finally
carried to tho brook, probably In
some old pair of pants with the legs
tied at tho bottoms, where It was
cautiously dumped into tho water or
in somo place where it would not be
observed by tho guards or by spies
among tne prisoners.
Tho tunnel method of escape was
not a great success. True, somo pris
oners actually escaped and retrained
their liberty; but almost Invariably
they were recaptured. Twenty fierce
and dangerous bloodhounds were V-
ery morning taken round the camp.
ana escape was almost an lmpossl
billty. Mr. Crossley tells of one
poor fellow who escaped four or five
times, and was invariably recaptured.
Finally they put a ball and chain on
him. There were men who actually
would tell the Rebel guards of pro
posed attempts to escape, by tun
nel or otherwise, the wages paid to
them for such Information being ex
tra rations. They were evidently
kinsmen of one Esau who sold his
birthright for some extra good ra
tions, which information comes to us
in the sacred record under tho name
of "a mess of pottage."
Raiders in tho Cnmp
How Thoy AVero Punished.
There Is an old saying that "mis
ery likes company." One would nat
urally conclude that In such a camp
of horrors one would constantly see
proof of that other saying, "a fellow
feeling makes us wondrous kind."
Strange as it may seem, right in that
Andersonville camp there wero men
known as "Raiders," "creatures"
would seem to be a more fitting
word to describe them than that of
"man." These creatures were bold,
reckless follows, who, under any and
all conditions, were desperadoes.
They were Union prisoners, too.
They robbed their fellow-prisoners,
and even did not hesitate to commit
(Continued on Page Six.)
It's Good to Hear
Years ago, before the Bell Telephone lines
stretched up and down the roads and the humming
wires bound farm to farm and city to countryside,
there were long periods of isolation and loneliness.
Busy summer days, bad roads, the storms in win
ter all prevented the frequent neighborly visits that
make country life so enjoyable.
To-day it's different. The farmer's wife who has
a Bell Telephone "visits" as often as she chooses. The
telephone has made this possible.
Mrs. Farmer, if you have no Bell Telephone, talk
to your husband to-day about it. Send for free book
let, "What Uncle Sam Says About the Rural Telephone."
THE BELL
AV. A.
i
Wayne County
Savings Bank
HONESDALE, PA.,
171 42 YEARS
THE BANK THE PEOPLE USE
BECAUSE we have been transacting a SUCCESSFUL
banking business CONTINUOUSLY since 1871
and are prepared and qualified torendorVALU
ABLE SERVICE to our customers.
liliAJAUSli; Ot OUr ilUlNUKA15ijl!j ItJIIUUltlJ 101' 15 UltXX- i
ONE years.
BECAUSE of SECURITY guaranteed by our LARGE
CAPITAL and SURPLUS of $550,000 00.
BECAUSE of our TOTAL ASSETS of $3,000,000.00.
BECAUSE GOOD MANAGEMENT has made us the
LEADING FINANCIAL INSTITUTION of
Wayne county.
BECAUSE of these reasons wo confidently ask you to
become a depositor.
COURTEOUS treatment to all CUSTOMERS
whether their account is LARGE or SMALL.
INTEREST allowed from the FIRST of ANY
MONTH on Deposits made on or before the
TENTH of the month.
OFFICERS :
AA B. HOL3IES, PRESIDENT. W. 8. SALMON, Cashier.
A. T. SEAIILE, Vlcc-Pr csident. AV. J. AVAItD, Asst. Cashier
DIRECTORS :
H. J. CONOEIt.
AV. B. HOLMES,
O. J. SMITH,
H. S. SALMON.
T. B. CLARK.
E. AV, GAMMELL
AV. F. SUYDAM,
ttftfMMtTfTTTMtttHJ!
SPENCER !
The Jeweler
would like to sec you If
you arc In the market!
for
JEWELRY, SILVER-;:
4.
t WARE, WATCHES,!
! CLOCKS,
I DIAMONDS,
: AND NOVELTIES I
t
J "UuHranteed articles only old."
4
Try our Cent-A-Word Column.
Your Voice, Jane,
TELEPHONE GO. of PENNA.
DELLMORE, Agent,
Honcsdule, Pn.
OF SUCCESS 1913
J. AV. PARLEY,
P. P. KIMBLE,
A. T. SEARLH,