These men are outlaws who have not only broken their oaths to the Government, but who have deserted from its service, and turned its arms against it.
They are perjurers and traitors, and in addition, the oath they administer to us is under compulsion and for that reason is of no account." Still another class, mostly made up from the old Raider crowd, enlisted from natural depravity.

They went out more than for anything else because their hearts were prone to evil and they did that which was wrong in preference to what was right.

By far the largest portion of those the Rebels obtained were of this class, and a more worthless crowd of soldiers has not been seen since Falstaff mustered his famous recruits.
After all, however, the number who deserted their flag was astonishingly small, considering all the circumstances.

The official report says three hundred and twenty-six, but I imaging this is under the truth, since quite a number were turned back in after their utter uselessness had been demonstrated.

I suppose that five hundred "galvanized," as we termed it, but this was very few when the hopelessness of exchange, the despair of life, and the wretchedness of the condition of the eleven or twelve thousand inside the Stockade is remembered.
The motives actuating men to desert were not closely analyzed by us, but we held all who did so as despicable scoundrels, too vile to be adequately described in words.