The front page is dominated by the ongoing war crimes trial of Captain Henry Wirz, commandant of the notorious Andersonville prison camp. A bombshell letter from Confederate Colonel Chandler exposes the "damnable brutality" of General J.H. Winder, who told Chandler it would be better to let half the Union prisoners die so they could care for the remainder. The evidence implicates Jefferson Davis and the Confederate government directly in the prison's horrific conditions. Meanwhile, General Steedman in Savannah has discovered what appears to be a brewing rebellion in Georgia, ordering the seizure of firearms distributed to "designing men" across the state within thirty days. In lighter news, General Grant received a warm welcome in Freeport, while General Sherman has purchased a $35,000 residence in St. Louis. The paper also reports that notorious forger Edward H. Ketchum faces twelve indictments that could land him in state prison for fifty-five years.

This September 1865 snapshot captures America grappling with the messy aftermath of civil war. Four months after Appomattox, the nation is wrestling with how to handle war criminals, prevent new rebellions, and reintegrate the South. The Wirz trial represents one of the first major war crimes prosecutions in American history, while Steedman's discovery in Georgia shows how fragile the peace really was. The casual mentions of Grant's triumphant tour and Sherman's house-hunting reveal how quickly some Americans were trying to return to normalcy, even as the country struggled with fundamental questions about justice, reconciliation, and what it meant to be one nation again.

• Edward H. Ketchum faces twelve indictments - one for larceny and eleven for forgery - that would require "fifty-five years to serve out his time in State Prison" if convicted on all counts
• A steamboat boiler explosion on the Reindeer killed four people and severely scalded thirty passengers traveling between Natchez and New Orleans
• Springfield's population according to the just-completed census is 16,000, making it "probably the fourth city in the State" of Illinois
• General Sherman purchased his St. Louis residence for exactly $35,000 and plans to make it his permanent home
• A charity ball "for the benefit of Union and rebel soldiers" was scheduled for Sunday night in New Orleans - former enemies dancing together for a good cause

• The paper mentions ex-Confederate Secretary Judah Benjamin arriving in England from Cuba aboard the steamer Seine, which "came very near burning at sea" - Benjamin would become a successful barrister in London and is the only Confederate cabinet member to achieve post-war prominence
• General Sherman's $35,000 St. Louis house purchase was enormous money - equivalent to about $650,000 today - showing how well Union generals were compensating themselves after victory
• The Atlantic Telegraph Company formally announced they won't attempt to recover their failed transatlantic cable this year, with underwriters settling it as a "total loss" - it would take until 1866 to successfully connect America and Europe by wire
• Judge Thomas Chandler Haliburton, creator of the character "Sam Slick," died - his folksy Yankee peddler character had helped shape American humor and would influence Mark Twain
• The Wirz trial was groundbreaking as one of America's first war crimes prosecutions, establishing precedents that would echo through Nuremberg and beyond