Trial of General Mercer for shooting Union soldiers.
--The court martial of
Brigadier-General Hugh W. Mercer, at
Savannah, for the alleged murder of seven Union soldiers, which has been going on since the 16th instant, seems to excite very little local interest.
It appears that the soldiers
General Mercer is charged with shooting were originally prisoners of war, taken from the
Union forces.
They were released from the
Southern prisons upon condition of taking the oath of allegiance to the
Confederacy and entering its military service.
There were three battalions of them, averaging ten companies each.
One of the battalions was stationed at
Savannah under
General Mercer.
They were all styled "Foreign Battalions" by the official promulgations of the
Confederate authorities.
The seven members of the
Savannah organization were caught in the act of deserting back to the
Federal side, and were shot while
General Mercer was in command of the post.
Evidence for the prosecution is difficult to secure, and the trial has been delayed.
General Mercer put in his parole by
Sherman in defence, claiming
United States protection under the Johnston-
Sherman agreement.