Hello Hugh, I will yield to your sources as I find them reliable and when you think about it, it makes a lot of sense. My sources if you will would be known as secondary ie diaries etc. You have provided an excellent primarly source.

With the thousands of soldiers a certain percentage (extremly small) probably refused to sign the parole just out of human nature if nothing else. What would become of these soldiers? Chase would close its doors to the prison in 65' for example. Would the prisoners who refused to sign be taken to another prison like Delaware? Or would they be placed in a federal or state jail?

There was one soldier at Chase, when released went into the city of Columbus, and ended up killing a man and was taken to the Ohio State Pen. The only thing I remember about him is that he was from Arkansas. I'm sure Fort Delaware had it's small numbers of soldiers who refused to sign the parole also? What became of them?

Because the majority of prisoners were taken to Chase via train, could explain why some of them elected to walk? Some probably never wanted ride a train again after their experience as POW's.