North and be free from
war. When the call for deserter volunteers was arranged, the greatest fun
started among the four thousand prisoners. They would make all kinds of
humorous remarks about the deserter volunteers. When one would step out,
"You are welcome to him; he is as cowardly as any of your hirelings. There
goes another; we are glad to get rid of him, for he never was any good,"
etc. About thirty volunteered and were removed from their fellows. Then he
called for three hundred volunteers who wished to be exchanged at
once--sent up to Richmond, where they could go to fighting again. We
raised a yell, and about two hundred rushed forward. He then called, "Come
on, all who want more fighting." There was much stir, comrades hunting up
each other so as to keep together. Company F rallied and joined the
fighting column, except five or six, who held back and afterwards went up
to Washington with the deserter volunteers. We were marched to the wharf
and put on a steamboat that carried us to Point Lookout Prison, Maryland,
instead of Richmond for exchange. At the time we volunteered so briskly we
did not believe we would be exchanged, and its very evident that not many
wished to be, for they all believed that the war would be over in a few
weeks.

While on the wharf a nice, clever old citizen came up to me, a beardless
boy, and entered into a conversation. He said, "It is very fortunate for
you that you were taken prisoner. You are in the hands of a civilized and
Christian people who will treat you well and you will not have to fight
any more. The war will be over in six months, and you can then return to
your loved ones at home." I heard him patiently, and he felt he was making
a good impression on me. Then I retorted: "You are putting it off for six
months now, are you? I thought you said you would whip us in three months
at the start." He turned away and seemed to lose interest in me. I was
from the inside and could have told him the war would be over in six
weeks.

We had a good voyage. Stopped a half hour at Fortress Monroe, where there
was a great deal of shipping, including war vessels of all nations. We
arrived at Point Lookout, Md., at sunset. Our names were recorded and we
were overhauled and ushered into prison. There were about three thousand
there when we arrived, on the first boat load of the spring campaign. We
were assigned quarters in tents already occupied. I thought they would be
glad to see us and he