something for him. But the Rebels didn't want the poor Judas, and he finds he has eaten dirt without advantage." Escape from Libby During the second week of February 1864, 109 Union officers took part in what was later dubbed by the press as the Libby Prison escape. Captain Morton Tower of Company B, 13th Mass. Infantry, wrote in his published memoirs about his successful escape: "On the night of February 9th, as soon as it was sufficiently dark, the exodus from the prison commenced. Major Hamilton, Col. Thomas E. Rose, and some of the projectors were the first to pass through. Col. Davis of the 4th Maine and myself had passed through the tunnel to the yard just as the clocks of Richmond were striking twelve. Near daybreak we reached a thicket of woods where we stopped to rest." Capt. Tower and Col. Davis eluded recapture and soon joined 57 other escapees who also made it to the Union lines.("Army Experience of Morton Tower- his escape from Libby Prison", "Memoirs of Capt. Morton Tower", June 1870) The Charleston Mercury carried the story: ("Particulars of the Escape of the Yankee Officers from the Libby Prison", The Charleston Mercury, February 16, 1864) Three tunnels were built: the first ran into water and was abandoned. The second hit the building's log foundation. The third reached a small carriage shed 15 m (50 ft) away. Escapes were regular occurrences at both Federal and Confederate prisons. Letters from Libby The Christian Recorder and other papers, from both Republican and divided states, sometimes included letters from prisoners prior to the fall of Richmond in early April 1865. The rules of Libby Prison limited men to six lines for their letters to family and friends. Here is an example: "My Dear Wife. - Yours received - no hopes of exchange - send corn starch - want socks - no money - rheumatism in left shoulder - pickles very good - send sausages - God bless you - kiss the baby - Hail Columbia! - Your devoted husband." After the war In 1907, nails from Libby prison were melted down and used to cast the Pokahuntas Bell for the Jamestown Exposition. The front door of Libby Prison is displayed in the American Civil War Museum, located at the former Tredegar Iron Works in Richmond. Before and after 1865, federal representatives, military officials, and hospital staff often attempted