WORD FROM HOME "The arrival of the letter carriers was the occasion of immense excitement,  The regulation permitted but one letter a month, limited to a page.  Many gave the use of their names to others, and thus a very comfortable correspondence could be carried on.  By this system signatures became an article of commerce.  When there were none on the market or they had run up in price beyond the means of some anxious purchaser, I had recourse to borrowing a friend's name until next week.  The letter carrier was besieged at the door by the curious and the names of the fortunate winners in this lottery were echoed by many sympathizing voices. "The prison on Rock island gradually grew to self-reliance and became an independent city.  Intellectual life was possible.  A library on a large scale was contemplated.  Anything of a purely literary nature was admitted by the authorities.  French and German teachers announced themselves.  Such old scholars there were-antique pedagogues, inaptly cuaght up by the chances of war, who knew more of a the Punic or Peleponesian affairs than they did of the civil struggle which had landed them in prison.  Barracks were transformed into shops.  A lottery was established with a capital prize of several thousand dollars, and tales were told of immense amounts of money in the possession of some of the prisoners, smuggled in under buttons and in the heels and soles of boots or bow knots.  Bread was temptingly displayed in windows-also cakes and pies.  The making of rings and ornaments of cannel coal, gutta percha and silver developed much ingenuity.  A theater was established in one of the barracks.  'Hell's Half Acre' was in the main avenue and all manner of games were conducted there-keno was the most popular, as the conditions of the betting admitted of a larger number of chance takers.  The pot was made up of money or a certain quantity of tabacco, a loaf of bread or whatever the specialty of the cloth called for. "In the autumn of 1863 the offer was made by the Federal authorities to administer the oath of allegiance to the prisoners and to receive them into the Federal army to serve on the frontier.  A number of conscripted men, particularly those conscripted by General Price on his last raid in Missouri, accepted the conditions and were placed in barracks within the grounds, a new parapet being erected around them.  To this quarter was given the name of 'calf pen' by the prisoners.  There was at once noticed a great difference in the fare of the 'bull pen' and the 'calf pen.'  Those were the evil days and humiliation and hunger were among the sufferings of the obdurate.  Various punishments were devised against those cuaght in rebellious ways-riding a rail, hanging by the thumbs, wearing a ball and chain, etc., but on the whole the Federal government was liberal." Debbie Clough G-erischer G-erischer Family Web Site http://gerischer.rootsweb.com/ Assistant CC, Iowa Gen Web, Scott County http://www.celticcousins.net/scott/ List Manager for: IASCOTT-L * G-erischer-L * D-encker-L Fitzpatirck-L * V-lerebome-L * Huntington-L * Otis-L * Algar-L EIGS-L * Pickens-L * McNab-L * Patris-L - Rankin-L