--"
Ash Hertz," a Confederate officer at
Johnson's Jeland, in a humorous letter to a friend sandwiches in the following touch of genuine pathos:
‘
We vary our monotony with an occasional exchange.
May I tell you what I mean by that?
Well, it is a simple ceremony.
God help us!
The "exchanged" is placed on a small wagon drawn by one horse, his friends form a line in the rear, an the procession moves; passing through the gate it winds its way slowly round the prison walls, to a little grove north of the inclosure, the "exchanged" is taken out of the wagon and lowered into the earth — a prayer — an exhortation — a spade — a head board — a mound of fresh sod — and the friends return to prison again and that's all of it. Our friend is "exchanged"--a grave attests the fact to mortal eyes, and one of God's angels has recorded the "exchange" in the book above.
Time and the elements will soon smooth down the little hillock which marks his lonely bed, but invisible friends will hover around it, till the dawn of that great day, when all the armies shall be marshalled into line again — when the wars of time shall cease and the great eternity of peace shall commence.
’