Col. William A. Pew, jr.

Twelve Months with the Eighth
Massachusetts Infantry in the
Service of the United States

By HARRY E. WEBBER

With an Introduction byMaj. Gen. J. P. Sanger, U. S. A.
(retired). Sometime Commander of the Third
Division, First Army Corps,
U. S. A.

SALEM, MASS.
Newcomb & Gauss, Printers
1908

Copyright, 1908
By Harry E. Webber

To the Officers and Men of the
Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V.,
this volume is dedicated

CONTENTS.

[Pg 9]

Preface

It is a habit with the citizens of old Essex, one of the pioneer counties of the grand old Commonwealth of Massachusetts, to point with pride to the fact that since the earliest days of the settlement, she was ever ready to take up arms at the country's call, and her sons were always found ready and willing to go forth to do battle for what they believed to be the right.

The record of her soldiers and sailors is a splendid one, and her sons have nobly represented her on land and on sea. It is perhaps a far cry from the early days of the settlement to the opening of hostilities in the last conflict at arms in which the men of the county figured.

In the earlier events the hazards of warfare were perhaps more, but on the other hand, in those days it was necessary for all men able to handle a gun to fight, while in the recent clash at arms the men who answered their country's call volunteered their services, seeking the privilege of bearing arms rather than having the duty forced upon them. Honor to them all, not only for "what they did, but all they dared."

Massachusetts has furnished her full quota of men at every call of the country. Old Essex has given her share, and as one of the Essex Regiments, the Eighth has figured on several occasions.

Of those previous to 1898 this volume has no detailed account to present, but it is a matter of pride to the citizens of this county that it is said of the Eighth Massachusetts that it was the first National Guard regiment ready, after a canvass of its officers and men, to volunteer,[10] and was one of the first to leave the state in the service of the nation in the conflict with Spain.

The call to arms on this occasion did not come unexpectedly. For some months events had been so shaping themselves that it was evident to all close observers of national affairs that a conflict was almost inevitable, and the government had been placing itself in a position to enable the country to acquit itself creditably when the clash came.

War has been declared between nations for many causes, some of them trivial. Some have been wars of oppression, some of conquest, and so on, but the conflict of 1898 was in its way unique. It was a war waged in the interests of humanity. For years upon years, one of our next door neighbors, so to speak, the island of Cuba, lying just off our southern coast, had felt the iron heel of the despots of the Kingdom of Spain. As act after act of oppression galled upon the natives of the island they were stirred to revolt, only to be subdued and then subjected to even more crushing indignities.

The last great revolt was perhaps the best organized of any, and spreading from one end of the island to the other, became of such magnitude as to almost reach the dignity of a war between nations instead of the rebellion of a colony against its dominating power.

With the same spirit that made heroes out of our forefathers in the days of '76, the Cubans fought for their rights and for independence, and their gallant struggles not only enlisted the almost universal sympathy of this country, but many soldiers of fortune from the United States fought under the Cuban colors.

While the attitude of the government was diplomatically neutral, the press and a large majority of citizens were[11] out and out sympathizers with the Cuban cause, and it was but a question of a short time before arms, ammunition, supplies and men found themselves surreptitiously on the way to Cuba, in aid of the cause of the islanders.

Naturally this state of affairs was resented by the Spaniards, and the feelings of the two nations gradually became more and more strained, even though diplomatically there was no breach.

No doubt the sensational press, especially the so-called "yellow journals", had a great deal to do with inflaming the public passion, but carefully planned investigations of the conditions on the island revealed a state of affairs so gross that the worst stories of cruelty and inhumanity seemed plausible, and the feeling against Spain eventually became so bitter that it needed only the spark to kindle the flame of war.

This was eventually furnished, and is one of the blackest chapters of the Cuban war, by the destruction of an American warship while lying peacefully at anchor in Havana harbor, under the guns of the Spanish forts, and in a time of peace.

The "Maine" had been ordered to Cuban waters to look out for American interests. She was received in due form by the Spanish authorities, and her berth was picked out by them. While lying at anchor on the night of February 15, 1898, she was blown up from the outside, presumably by a mine, and many lives lost, while many more men were horribly injured.

This was undoubtedly the specific act that led to the opening of war between the United States and Spain, the details of which will be found in other volumes.

It is the purpose of this book to treat simply of the part played in the conflict by the Eighth Regiment, Massachu[12]setts Infantry, U. S. V., which was the official designation of the boys of the Eighth Regiment Infantry, Massachusetts Volunteer Militia, when called into the service of the United States.

Although one of the first volunteer regiments to get away, it so happened that it was so assigned for duty that it missed getting into an engagement with the enemy, although being sent to Cuba and performing several months of its service there. It was the first foreign service of the regiment, and was a performance that will take a prominent part in the history of the Eighth Massachusetts, which embraces so long and honorable a record.

[13]

Introduction

[14]
[15]

I have been requested by the author, Mr. Harry E. Webber, to write some account of the Eighth Massachusetts Regiment, while under my command during the Spanish-American war.

I reported for duty in Chickamauga Park, June 20th, 1898, and was assigned to the Second Brigade, First Division of the First Corps, consisting of the Third Illinois, Fourth Pennsylvania, and Fourth Ohio Regiments. These were all good regiments, especially the Fourth Pennsylvania, under Colonel David B. Case. As I expected to remain with this brigade throughout the war, I began an inspection by company, battalion, and regiment, so that I might learn something more about their actual condition, and the capacity of the officers than could be learned on parade. I mention this circumstance, not because it concerns the Eighth Massachusetts, but because the information I gathered was of the greatest use to me later on in dealing with other volunteer regiments.

I did not complete this inspection, however, as on the 28th of June, I was assigned to the command of the Third Division of the First Corps, composed of the Twelfth Minnesota, Fifth Pennsylvania, First South Carolina, Eighth Massachusetts, Twelfth New York, Twenty-First Kansas, Ninth Pennsylvania, Second Missouri, and First New Hampshire. Subsequently, during the changes and vicissitudes which occurred, there were assigned or[16] attached to this Division, the Third United States Volunteers, Engineers, the Fifth Missouri, the One Hundred and Sixtieth Indiana, the Second, Third and Fourth Kentucky, Third Mississippi, First Territorial, and the Third and Fourth Immune Regiments of Infantry, and one squadron of the First Kentucky Cavalry,—so that I had ample opportunity to observe and compare different volunteer regiments.

The Eighth Massachusetts arrived in the Park May 19th, and came under my observation about one month later, and before I joined the Third Division. It was the only volunteer regiment I saw fully uniformed in khaki. As this dress was new to me, it attracted my attention at once, and I rode over twice to the Second Brigade of the Third Division for a better look at the regiment, which, needless to say, made a very favorable impression.

As will doubtless be remembered, the Third Division remained in the Park until the 21st of August, when it was transferred to Lexington, Kentucky, where it went into camp on the Bryan road at Clark's Farm, about five miles east of the city. There it remained until November 4th, its official designation was changed by orders from the War Department, to the Second Division, First Army Corps, and on the 10th it was ordered to Georgia, the Headquarters Signal Company, Third United States Volunteers, Engineers, and First Brigade to Columbus, the Second Brigade to Americus, and the Third Brigade to Albany. At this time the Second Brigade consisted of the Eighth Massachusetts, Twelfth New York and Fourth Kentucky, under Brigadier General Waites, U. S. V. The Fourth Kentucky was ordered to be mustered out, leaving the other two regiments to compose the Brigade, and this[17] arrangement was not changed while the Division remained in service.

On the 16th of November I was relieved from the command of the Second Division and ordered to the Second Brigade, relieving General Waites, and was thus brought into closer contact with the Eighth Massachusetts. The Brigade remained in Americus until November 26th when, under orders from the War Department, the headquarters, the Brigade Hospital and the Twelfth New York Regiment, were ordered to Charleston, S. C. en route to Matanzas, Cuba, where it arrived January 1st.

A few days later the Eighth Massachusetts rejoined, and not long thereafter the One Hundred and Sixtieth Indiana, Third Kentucky, Tenth United States Infantry, and six troops of the Second United States Cavalry which composed the garrison of the city and district of Matanzas, and the Second Brigade of the Second Division of the First Army Corps, practically ceased to exist. When the Third Division became the Second Division, Major General Ludlow was assigned to command it. He remained in command until December 17th when I was ordered to relieve him. I rejoined the Second Brigade in Americus December 26th and went with it to Cuba.

The Eighth remained in Matanzas until April 4, 1899, when it sailed for Boston, where it was mustered out of the service of the United States, and reverted to its status as a regiment of the National Guard. While it was not given to the Eighth Massachusetts to undergo the supreme test of the battlefield, it proved beyond the shadow of a doubt by its calm indifference to death in other forms and its devotion to duty, that it would have met that test with a glorified record of good discipline and steadfast courage. Who among all of those who had the misfortune to re[18]main in Chickamauga Park through the summer of 1898, will ever forget the trials and dangers of that encampment? From forty to sixty thousand men huddled together within an area not too large for a sedentary camp of two divisions.[1]

Prior to August 1st the camps of all the regiments of the Third Division, were in the woods with an average of from six to eight men in a tent, many of which were unfit for occupancy. Polluted water, insufficient supplies and protection from the incessant rains of that year, and the fact that neither the camp nor the tents were ever moved, from lack of space, produced their inevitable result, and when the Third Division left the Park, August 21st, there were twenty-nine officers and 1237 enlisted men on the sick report, out of 337 officers and 9464 men present; or, in other words, one officer out of twelve and one man out of eight. Although questioned at the time by those high in authority, it is now well known that a large proportion of the sick had typhoid fever; in fact it was epidemic.[2]

My recollections of Chickamauga Park are not pleasant for reasons which I cannot very well explain here. It is sufficient to say that I was fully cognizant of the wretched conditions which sent the sick report higher each day and subjected the sick in hospital to needless privation and suffering, but was powerless to prevent or ameliorate them. In fact, for administrative purposes, I was very little more than a figure head, although held responsible by the [19]regiments, whose appeals for a relief which never came while we remained in the Park, were most distressing to me. At that time the collapse of the war had not been foreseen, and although the Spanish forces in the eastern district of Santiago, Cuba had capitulated July 16, it was not until the protocol of August 12th, providing for a cessation of hostilities, that we felt the war was over and that the Third Division would probably never fire a hostile shot. In the meantime, however, under the orders of the Corps Commander, the Division was held in readiness to move at a moment's notice, and every effort was made to prepare it for service against the Spaniards.

To this end, and on the day after I assumed the command, orders were issued to prepare the Division for active service in accordance with the instructions of the War Department. These prescribed the clothing, ammunition, and rations to be carried on the person and in the two wagons allowed each company,—all other clothing and all other personal belongings of the men to be packed in boxes legibly marked with the company and regiment, and turned over to the depot quartermaster for storage or shipment. To render the officers and men expert in packing, and to determine just what could be carried under the instructions referred to, each regiment was required to strike tents and pack up, after which it was marched to the regimental parade grounds, followed by its wagons, and inspected by the Brigade Commander. It was well understood that all regimental and company property which had not been disposed of when marching orders were received, must be abandoned.

As up to the time I assumed command of the Division there had been no target practice, on July 1, Major Edward H. Eldredge, of the Eighth Massachusetts, was[20] appointed Inspector of Rifle Practice, and preparations were at once made to begin target practice. Nothing could have been more fortunate than the selection of the major for this most important branch of instruction. Conscientious, enthusiastic, and thoroughly competent, he had the target ranges established, and the Division at work firing within a week, and this was continued daily (Sunday excepted), until just before the Division left the Park.

On July 26 a division rifle competition was held, each regiment furnishing a team of 12 men; ten shots were fired off hand by each man, at 160 yards (possible score 600 points). The highest score was made by the Eighth Massachusetts with 481 points; the lowest score was 409.

In the course of the instruction it was found that many men had never fired a gun and were correspondingly ignorant of this most important requirement. What would they have done in the line of battle? Well, I will tell you. Those who were not killed would have been perfectly demoralized until they either ran away or perhaps were wounded, in which case they would have added vastly to the cares of the Division Commander and his medical staff. In either case, they would have been of no possible use except as stretcher bearers. Nothing could be more objectionable on the part of the high military authorities than to send such men under fire, and there is no possible excuse for it.

Other measures taken to prepare the Division for active service were careful instruction in guard duty, the service of advance guards and outposts, by battalions and regiments; litter drill and "first aid."

As it was rumored that the First Corps would be sent against Havana, orders were issued for the formation of[21] a pioneer detachment in each regiment to consist of one officer, two non-commissioned officers and ten privates, to be specially selected for their practical knowledge of the duties of pioneers, viz: the removal of obstructions, corduroying roads, the building, repair and destruction of simple bridges, culverts, railroad beds and embankments, and the use of high explosives. No difficulty whatever was experienced in finding the men who in the discharge of their duties rendered most valuable services to the Division.

To give the brigade and regimental commanders some idea of the difficulty of forming the Division in line of battle on broken and obstructed ground, and to exercise the officers and men in preserving the line, supplying ammunition, and caring for the wounded,—problems in which the entire Division took part, were carried out practically.

Many of you will doubtless remember those exercises and how difficult it was to form the Division in line without wide gaps between brigades, or to move it in any direction without breaking the formation. These problems, although extremely simple, were of great benefit as a relief to the monotony of drill, and in testing the field efficiency of the medical and ordinance services.

In the meantime, the Corps Commander, with the First Division of the Corps, left the Park en route to Cuba and Porto Rico, and on August 15th I went to Lexington to select a camp for the Third Division, in which the typhoid had spread rapidly, and on August 21st, the movement to Lexington began. Although we left between three and four hundred men in the hospital when we moved to Lexington, the Division was so thoroughly impregnated with this disease and with malarial fever that more cases were[22] inevitable, and the hospital of 1000 beds, which was established in anticipation of this very contingency, proved inadequate, and but for the timely removal of the convalescents to other places, would have needed a large extension. Those of the regiment now living will not have forgotten the struggle which then took place to stamp out the typhoid fever. It was a fight to a finish, in which every available means known to medical and sanitary science was used during a period of three months.

For the information of those members of the regiment who have joined since the war with Spain, and because it was the most serious condition which confronted the regiment during its service in the field, I venture to give some account of our efforts to overcome this dread disease.

In selecting and arranging the site of the Division encampment, I was influenced more by sanitary requirements than by any other considerations whatever. To the camp of each regiment fifty acres of cleared land were allowed. This insured wide company streets, sufficient space between tents to admit of their being moved, plenty of room for the regimental and battalion staffs, guard tents, cook tents, sinks, corrals, and regimental parade grounds, with sufficient isolation from neighboring regiments.

Ground was also set aside for division and brigade headquarters, and for a general parade ground, the division hospital and the various departments of supply, and these were far enough removed from each other and the troops to prevent any encroachment. All told, the Division occupied about 1000 acres.

The different camps were then laid out by the division engineer, aided by the pioneer corps, and a copious supply of pure water secured, and all the sinks (kitchen and men's), were dug, ditched and housed, and tent floors made[23] ready before the first regiment of the Division arrived, so that there was no occasion for defiling the ground or for unnecessary exposure to the weather.

As soon as practicable after the regiments arrived, the following sanitary orders were carried into effect. A non-commissioned officer was placed in charge of every sink, who received his instructions from the regimental surgeon as to the use of chloride of lime, quick lime, crude petroleum and corrosive sublimate, large quantities of which were provided by the medical purveyor and chief quartermaster of the Division.

For example, a box of the chloride of lime was kept in each of the men's sinks and it was the duty of the non-commissioned officer in charge to see that a small quantity was thrown into the sink three times daily, and that the sink floors were scrubbed every morning and then mopped with a solution of corrosive sublimate. All the men's sinks were lighted at night. Quick-lime and crude petroleum were also used in all the sinks, not only as disinfectants, but to keep the flies away.

Tents were moved once each week, the sites vacated thoroughly sprinkled with quick-lime, the under surface of the floors lime washed, and the tent floors mopped with a solution of corrosive sublimate; tent walls were raised, clothing and bedding thoroughly aired daily; all bed sacks were filled with clean straw, the old straw burned, and the bed sacks boiled every month, and whenever a man was sent to the hospital his bed sack received the same treatment; all water barrels were burned out every two weeks, all stable manure removed from the camp daily, and together with all other refuse, burned, and for this purpose regimental or brigade crematories were constructed as might be most convenient.

[24]

Facilities were provided in each company for washing and bathing and every soldier was required to bathe at least twice each week and to keep his hair and beard neatly trimmed. All drinking water was boiled and filtered and the men cautioned against drinking water of any other kind.

The indiscriminate sale and use of farm products, garden truck, fruit, pies, cakes, and all soft drinks were prohibited, nor were hucksters permitted in any of the regimental camps without the written authority of the commanding officer.

To insure the execution of these instructions, a division sanitary inspector was appointed, whose duty it was to visit the camp of each regiment daily and, together with the medical officer on duty and officer of the day, make inspection of the police of the camp, giving all needful orders for the correction of sanitary abuses and defects.

As no regimental hospitals were contemplated by the War Department, and none were permitted in Camp Hamilton, men sick enough to require treatment in bed were removed to the division hospital. On arriving there their clothing was removed and carefully disinfected, labeled and packed away, and if their cases were of doubtful character they were sent to the detention ward until the nature of their disease could be determined, when they were disposed of accordingly.

At 2 P. M. daily a medical officer of each regiment reported at the division hospital, and with the medical officer in charge of the wards, visited the sick of his regiment and decided whether they should be returned to duty or not. This had a very good effect, as it brought the medical officers of the regiment into daily contact with the sick of their own regiments, which was a great comfort to[25] them, and besides kept the medical officers fully informed of their condition.

As far as possible the sick of the different regiments were kept together, and no one except the regimental and company commanders, the medical officers, chaplains, and immediate relatives of the sick were allowed to visit them. This restriction was rendered necessary by the danger of infection in typhoid cases, and to prevent the excitement and noise caused by visitors.

I am aware that many of the requirements and restrictions ordered at that time were considered harsh and unnecessary and gave rise to some bad feeling and grumbling, but as they had the unqualified approval of the medical staff, I had no hesitation in enforcing them. That they were fully justified was clearly shown by the results.

Within a short time after our arrival in Lexington the number of sick increased so rapidly that the division hospital was filled to overflowing. But in the course of five or six weeks, and as a consequence of our strenuous efforts, the number began to diminish, until finally, and before the Division moved to Georgia in November, not a single case remained in the Division outside of the hospitals, and no new cases were ever reported to me while the Division remained in service.

Of the part taken by the Eighth Massachusetts in this heroic struggle, a great deal might be written by way of commendation. It is probably sufficient to say that Colonel Pew and his officers appeared to realize fully the gravity of the situation, and relying on the good discipline and high order of intelligence of the rank and file, had but little difficulty in carrying out the sanitary regulations of the camp, thus preserving the lives of many of the men.

[26]

Before leaving this subject, and at the risk of exhausting your patience, I can not refrain from giving you a word of warning. Of all the diseases which infest sedentary camps, such as those established in the United States and Cuba during the recent war, none is more insidious or deadly in its effects than typhoid fever.

It would be very unusual indeed for a regiment of the National Guard or of Volunteers to assemble in camp at any time without bringing with it at least one case of undeveloped typhoid fever. Now, a week may elapse before such a case is discovered and reported, and in the meantime the man who has it may have given it to a dozen other men through fecal and urinary discharges, and through carelessness in using the sink in washing his hands and bathing, and in keeping his clothing absolutely free from that kind of pollution. Hence the importance of personal cleanliness and the strictest enforcement of all the sanitary rules which may be established.

In a camp of regular soldiers thoroughly instructed in the duties of sentinels, and not afraid to enforce their orders, this is not difficult, but among volunteers where guard duty is often not understood, or is looked upon with disfavor, and but little sense of individual responsibility, it is a very difficult matter, and such camps may speedily and easily become hot beds for the spread of typhoid and other diseases.

Bear this in mind and resolve that should the exigencies of the military service ever require you to go into camp again, you will not only keep yourselves clean, but will insist on a clean camp, clean kitchens and sinks, clean food and mess kits, and that you will mercilessly punish all infractions of sanitary rules, as well as the sentinels or other guards who knowingly permit them.

[27]

I remained in command of the Second Division until November 16th, when I was relieved, and on the 21st assumed command of the Second Brigade at Americus. Although I knew the Eighth Massachusetts quite well, I now determined to know it thoroughly, and on November 28th, commenced an inspection of the regiment by battalion, and in order that every officer and enlisted man might attend, it was ordered that no guard or other detail would be furnished by the battalion under inspection.

I began with the First Battalion of the Eighth Massachusetts and wound up with the Third Battalion, giving each just such a critical inspection as was prescribed for regulars. In other words, I made a careful examination of the arms and equipments, clothing, camp and garrison equipage, mess books, records and drills of each company, battalion and regiment.

Target practice was resumed as soon as the Brigade was settled in camp, and each regiment was given the most careful and detailed instruction in outpost duties and those of the advanced guard. An effort was also made to instruct the Brigade in the principles of a front and flank attack, beginning at short distances, which were extended finally to 3000 yards over obstructed ground, the enemy's position being indicated, and as far as possible the exercises made as realistic as possible.

The month spent at Americus was full of professional interest and profit, and caused me to realize more fully the very great advantage of a brigade camp over larger ones, and how much better it would have been at the outset to have fully equipped each regiment in its State camp, to then have assembled it with other regiments in a brigade camp—preferably in the same State—commanded by a thoroughly competent and active general officer, there[28] to receive the preliminary instruction so easily given under such circumstances, and so next to impossible in the camp of a Division of an army corps.

The Eighth Massachusetts and Twelfth New York were fairly well equipped when I joined them in the Park, but the First South Carolina regiment was without arms, equipment or uniforms. The men ate with their fingers for several weeks, and relied on such crude dishes as could be improvised from tomato-cans, etc. I have no doubt that much of the complaint made by this regiment about the rations, was chiefly due to this.

The Eighth Massachusetts in two detachments left Americus January 6th and 8th, and arrived in Matanzas January 10th and 13th and went into camp near Fort San Severino on the west side of the bay.

On the 12th of January the last of the fifteen thousand Spanish soldiers under Generals Merina and Molina, composing the garrison of Matanzas, sailed away, and about 8 o'clock in the evening, General Bettancourt and his detachment of insurgent troops marched into the city, which went wild with excitement. The First Battalion Eighth Massachusetts and Twelfth New York were held in readiness that night lest there should be any hostile demonstration towards the Spanish residents of the city. It turned out that the natives were so intent on celebrating the departure of the Spanish troops that no attention was paid to anything else, and apart from that the night passed quietly.

On January 12th Major-General J. H. Wilson relieved me from command of the Department of Matanzas, and on the following day I was assigned to command the District of Matanzas with headquarters in the city. Up to this time I had been interested chiefly in arranging for[29] the evacuation of the Spaniards, in caring for the troops, and getting them settled in camp.

On January 5th a bureau of street cleaning and sanitation had been established as the result of a careful inspection of the city, and the prevalence of yellow fever during the preceding month. Six deaths had occurred, and we were all somewhat solicitous about the future. Two cases occurred, one a civilian who died, the other a soldier, who recovered.

As a precautionary measure the old yellow fever hospital was burned and a new one of canvas erected near the district hospital. I then gave my attention to the very serious and delicate duties connected with the administration of the District and City of Matanzas, in accordance with the laws of war, and the orders of the President.

Although by virtue of the military occupation of Cuba martial law prevailed, it was the President's wish that as far as possible the inhabitants might be secured in their persons, and property, and in all their private rights and relations as long as they performed their duties, and that they be protected in their homes, their employments, and in the free exercise of their religion. That as far as possible the municipal laws such as related to the private rights of persons and property, and provided for the punishment of crime, should be continued in force, to be administered by the ordinary tribunals substantially as they were before the occupation.

The frame work of municipal government in Cuba was excellent, far better in some respects than our own, but Spaniards filled nearly all the insular, provincial and municipal offices and municipal government was under the direct supervision of the provincial and insular[30] governments. Nevertheless, the municipal organization was complete, excellent of its kind, and ample for the government of the city and district, and I determined at the outset to instil into the local authorities a proper sense of their responsibilities and authority as the agent of a free and liberal government, and to require them to perform all their duties, using the troops only when necessary to aid their efforts to maintain law and order and to prevent any disorderly conduct on the part of the officers or men. To this end a provost marshal with a suitable guard was appointed and Fort San Severino was converted into a military prison.

The scope of this article will not admit of a detailed account of all that was done for the people and City of Matanzas during our stay there. It is probably sufficient to say that we cleaned and disinfected the city and established a system of sanitation so thorough that a recent traveler through the island told me that Matanzas was the cleanest and healthiest city in Cuba, and that there had been no case of yellow fever there since we left. To accomplish this a certain number of our officers and non-commissioned officers and men associated with the various city officials, who were, however, required to take the lead, the officers acting as advisers and assistants when necessary.

Matanzas was suffering at that time from the effects of the reconcentration ordered by General Weyler, and the population has been increased from about 25,000 to 40,000, chiefly refugees. As soon as it could be done these people were returned to their old homes, or provided with homes elsewhere. In the meantime, they, together with all other indigent poor, to the number of 19,373, were fed by the United States Government. Prior to this many—[31]chiefly children—died of starvation, and many more would have followed but for the timely arrival of the troops.

Some idea of what was done by the Army for the people of Matanzas may be gathered from the vital statistics of the city. During the year 1897 there were 6,729 recorded deaths, and in 1898, 5,972, or an average of 6,350 or over 500 deaths per month. In April, 1899, the last report rendered before we left showed a total of 68 deaths, quite a perceptible decrease in four months. I have enlarged somewhat on this subject because the results of our efforts were so gratifying, and because the Eighth Massachusetts took an important part in this work, especially Chaplain George D. Sanders.

Another most useful and special service rendered by the Eighth was a settlement of the first strike ever inaugurated in Matanzas. Labor unions and strikes were unknown before American occupation, but it was not long before labor union delegates from the States arrived in Havana, and soon unions were formed and rumors of strikes reached Matanzas, to be followed later by two delegates who organized a union and started a strike for shorter hours and higher pay among the employees of the railway and the stevedores engaged in loading the annual sugar crop, then arriving in vast quantities. As a large number of the native workmen did not care to strike, those who did immediately began the kind of intimidation usually resorted to in this country, and several were assaulted and more threatened, and the situation became serious.

At this point the manager of the road appealed to me for protection and I sent two companies of the Eighth to the freight yards to see that protection was given. I gave no instructions but relied on the experience and good sense[32] of the officers and men, and they ended the strike to my entire satisfaction. No doubt they can recall the circumstances, and the very effective measures resorted to.

That they were good and sufficient may be inferred from the fact that no one ever complained of them, except the two delegates, and they were told they could go to jail or leave town, which latter they did by the first available train, and peace and contentment prevailed thereafter to the end.

On the 20th of January commenced the festivities to celebrate the evacuation of Cuba by the Spaniards, and on February 22nd another fiesta was held in honor of General Maximo Gomez, at that time the idol of the Cubans. Upon both occasions the entire population thronged the streets and the greatest excitement prevailed. General Gomez remained in Matanzas three days, and with his departure the city settled down into its usual calm.

Thanks to the tact and excellent conduct of the troops, nothing occurred to disturb the festivities; the crowds were handled with great skill and with due regard to their susceptibilities and their first taste of personal liberty—not only as individuals but as a community. And to the very great honor of the troops it may be said that this was ever the rule in dealing with the residents of the city, no complaint of misconduct, public or private, having ever been made to me.

The Eighth Massachusetts was especially fortunate in gaining the good will of the Cubans, and when it left Matanzas was the recipient of a letter of enthusiastic commendation from the mayor of the city. A copy of the letter was sent to me, and the very complimentary expressions of the mayor were neither exaggerated nor[33] unmerited. The regiment deserved a great deal from the people of Matanzas, and it was very gratifying to me to know that they appreciated your services.

I regret that in this brief sketch I have not been able to go more into detail concerning the duties, the trials and successful achievements of the Eighth Massachusetts during the Spanish War. It is sufficient for me to say as your brigade and division commander, that while we were together, a day rarely passed that I did not ride through your camp, turn out the guard and take a general look around, and on every Sunday make a careful inspection, and it gives me the greatest pleasure to say that in point of efficiency the regiment had few equals, and no superiors, among the volunteer regiments which came under my observation.

Proper esprit de corps and a high sense of duty pervaded the regiment, due in great measure to the excellent example of Colonel Pew and his field officers, Lieutenant-Colonels Bailey and Stopford and Majors Eldredge and Graves. During the summer of 1907 I visited the regiment in camp at South Framingham and was glad to note that the instruction and the experience of the war had not been forgotten.

In conclusion I beg to remind you that while all military efforts should be directed towards the preparation of soldiers for the great tests of the battlefield, because so much may depend on the result, there are other tests which if successfully borne, entitle soldiers to as much credit as good conduct under fire, although they may not bring them as much renown.

Among disciplined soldiers it is the exception to find one who does not behave well under fire, but it by no means follows that the bravest will not falter in their duty[34] if beset in a sedentary camp with plague, pestilence or famine. It is not as much of a strain on the nerves to see a soldier killed in battle as to see him die of an epidemic disease, nor do I believe it is as hard for the soldier. When a soldier goes under fire, he is facing the very contingency for which he enlisted and for which he has been trained. He knows he may be shot and wounded or killed, but his duty lies unequivocally before him and appeals directly to his pride and to his manhood in a way disease can never do. Who will say then that the men who fought the battle of San Juan deserved more credit than those who died from typhoid fever while acting as volunteer nurses to their comrades or in the discharge of other duties, when by getting a furlough or running away they could have avoided all risk. The excitement of battle and the example of brave men have made a hero of many a man who but for that would have run away.

But in a typhoid fever camp death lurks everywhere and there is no stimulating excitement to strengthen those who have to face it.

Therefore the highest honors should not be given solely to those soldiers who are so fortunate as to do their duty under fire, but to those as well who do their duty where-ever they may be, regardless of consequences, and in all the circumstances which may attend them.

Do not therefore complain, as I have heard some of you do, or tinge your recollections of the war with regret, because you did not take part in the only battle that was fought, but, hoping for better luck next time, find supreme satisfaction in the reflection that you did your whole duty in places where death was quite as imminent as on San Juan Hill, and that no other regiment, regular or volunteer, could have done more.

J. P. Sanger,

Major General, U. S. A., Retired.

[35]

The Call to Arms

[36]
[37]

Between February 15th, when the U. S. S. Maine was destroyed in the harbor of Havana, and March 28th, 1898, when Congress received the report of the Naval Board of Inquiry, declaring the Maine to have been destroyed by an exterior explosion, public opinion in the United States was crystalizing in favor of declaring war with Spain and recognizing the independence of Cuba.

On March 16th a meeting of the officers of the Eighth Regiment Infantry, M. V. M., was held in the Headquarters of the regiment at Salem. The officers, with one exception, authorized the Colonel to tender their services as part of any quota Massachusetts might be called upon to furnish. Company commanders were directed to interview each member of their companies and report to the Adjutant the number of men ready to volunteer. The reports of the various company commanders, show that by April 1st, all but eleven men had authorized the Colonel to tender their services. It is said that the Eighth was the first National Guard Regiment in the country ready, after a careful canvass of its officers and men, to volunteer.

On March 29th resolutions declaring war with Spain were introduced into both houses of Congress. Congress had appropriated $50,000,000 for national defence, and the Legislature of Massachusetts followed with an appropriation of $500,000 to equip troops.

War was coming and troops were to be needed. This much was certain, but no one could tell how the necessary troops would be raised. It was rumored that the military advisors of the government were divided in their councils,[38] and that some favored the retention of the Militia for local defence, and the organization of new regiments of volunteers to fill the expected call. For weeks the Adjutant was ready to tender the services of the Eighth as a militia, or volunteer regiment, whichever way the call came. The tension was so great that on April 22nd the following letter was sent to the Governor:—

The above letter was acknowledged by the following communication:—

[39]

On April 23rd the President called for one hundred twenty-five thousand volunteers, and on April 25th war was declared with Spain. During the evening of the 25th, Governor Wolcott was notified by a telegram from the Secretary of War, that the Massachusetts quota, under the call of the President, would be four regiments of infantry, and three batteries of heavy artillery. Nothing was yet decided how these regiments should be raised.

The infantry organizations in Massachusetts Militia were at this time five line regiments and two corps of cadets. This information as to the Massachusetts quota[40] increased the suspense, as it was apparent, that even if militia regiments were accepted, all could not go. About this time the newspapers published statements from the Governor, which were construed to mean, the state militia would be used for local defence, as there was much talk of a descent upon the Massachusetts coast by Cevera's fleet, which was then rendezvouing at the Cape Verde Islands.

The suspense of the militia was not relieved until late in the afternoon of April 27th, when the Governor received a letter from the Secretary of War, requesting him to furnish four regiments of infantry to serve for the period of two years unless sooner discharged. In his letter the Secretary of War expressed a desire that as far as practicable, the National Guard be given preference.

To meet this summons to arms, the Governor, by an order issued April 28th, designated as the four infantry regiments to be offered the privilege of volunteering under this call, the Second, Sixth, Eighth and Ninth. The commanding officers of these regiments were required to cause an individual canvass to be made of their subordinate officers and enlisted men, to ascertain and make careful record of those desiring to volunteer. These were to be held subject to future orders and at the earliest possible day, mustered into the service of the United States.

On the same evening that this communication was received from the Secretary of War, the Governor notified the Colonel of the Eighth Regiment to report to him in person the next morning at the State House, Boston. Colonel William A. Pew, Jr. immediately notified all the officers of the regiment to meet him at the State House the following afternoon at 2 o'clock. The commanding officers of the four regiments designated, to be given the[41] privilege of volunteering, met the Governor at the State House in the forenoon of April 28th, and received their official orders. They were directed to recruit their companies to seventy-four men, and were informed that the field, staff, and company officers would be appointed by the Governor, upon the recommendation of the commanding officer of each regiment.

At 2 o'clock in the afternoon, Colonel Pew met the officers of the Eighth at the State House, and arranged the details for the organization of the regiment. The various company commanders had already received orders from Regimental Headquarters to secure a list of recruits, so that if called into the active service, they would have their companies at war strength. The militia companies at this time were allowed sixty men in the State service.

From the State House, company commanders immediately proceeded to their home stations, and began recruiting to seventy-four men.

Although the night of April 28th was stormy, and rain fell in torrents, excitement was high, and the company armories of the Eighth were filled with militiamen, and recruiting was brisk. There was no difficulty in securing the additional men.

In about all the cities and towns immediately following the call for troops, Volunteer Aid Societies or Relief Committees were formed at mass meetings, and various sums of money were raised to equip the volunteers or to look after their families.

On April 29th, the Eighth Regiment was ordered to report at the State Camp Grounds at South Framingham, on Thursday, May 5th, at 11 o'clock, A. M. The camp was placed under the command of Col. E. P. Clark, the senior officer.

[42]

From April 28th to May 5th, was a continuous round of excitement and bustle in the armories.

The companies were ordered to assemble on Lowell Street near the Union Station in Boston not later than 10.30, May 5th. The scenes about the armories of the various companies on May 5th was most pathetic, as the wives, mothers, or sweethearts of the men gathered for the farewell. In every instance the companies were escorted to the station by local or military bodies, and the demonstrations which took place as the companies marched through the crowded streets had not been duplicated since the call of President Lincoln was answered in 1861.

At Newburyport, the public and parochial schools were given a half holiday, and the streets were decorated with flags and bunting. Company A was escorted to the railroad station by the Mayor and members of the City Government, the Grand Army Post, and members of the Fire Department. The streets were filled with thousands of people, who displayed their enthusiasm by cheers and the waving of flags and handkerchiefs. A field piece was fired at brief intervals and the church bells and steam whistles joined in the chorus of God speeds.

At Amesbury, the streets through which Company B passed, were packed with humanity. Whistles of the factories were blown, bells were rung, and there was a general outburst of enthusiasm. The company was escorted to the train by the Grand Army Veterans and members of the High School Battalion.

At Marblehead, cheering crowds greeted the members of Company C, under the escort of the Grand Army Post and a delegation of citizens. Previous to starting from the Armory, the Selectmen spoke words of farewell to the soldiers.

[43]

In Lynn, patriotism was at fever heat. The factories and schools closed, and thousands lined the streets. Flags were flying from all staffs, and many were carried by the people along the line of march. Companies D and I were escorted to the station by General Lander Post, G. A. R., and the English and Classical High School Battalions. The Mayor and members of the City Government reviewed the parade. At Central Square, near the station, twenty thousand people gathered, and as the train bearing the Lynn volunteers steamed out of the station, there arose a mighty cheer for the soldier boys.

In Beverly, business was suspended, and the citizens turned out en masse to bid good bye to Company E. The company was escorted by the Grand Army Post, Fire Department, school children, and a cavalcade of citizens.

At Haverhill, Company F and the Regimental Drum Corps were given a most enthusiastic send off. The company was escorted by the Grand Army Post and Sons of Veterans. Mayor Chase delivered a farewell address at the City Hall, after which the line of march was taken to the station, where a crowd, numbering fifteen thousand, witnessed their departure.

At Gloucester, Company G marched through lanes of cheering citizens, the escort consisting of the Grand Army Post, the Fourth of July Committee, the High School Battalion, and the Sons of Veterans. The procession was led by the Mayor. Hon. W. W. French presented the Company with a silk flag on behalf of citizens, and the gift was accepted by Captain Edward J. Horton for the company.

Salem witnessed scenes of enthusiasm as Company H marched away. The streets were packed, and thousands of small flags were waved by the cheering citizens as the[44] company marched to the station, escorted by the Second Corps of Cadets, Grand Army Post, Naval Veterans, Letter Carriers and Clerks, the Salem Light Infantry Veteran Association, the Veteran Firemen Association, and a barouche containing among others, Francis D. Cahill, Salem's survivor of the Maine explosion. The Mayor and the City Government reviewed the parade at City Hall, and a large crowd packed the streets near the station to witness the train, containing the members of the company, pull out for Boston.

In Danvers, the people were early astir to give Company K a rousing farewell. It was escorted through the principal streets by a cavalcade, the Grand Army Post, High School Cadets, and a body of citizens.

Lawrence turned out in force to speed the departure of Company L. At the Armory, Rev. Dr. H. E. Barnes offered prayer, after which the men marched to the station escorted by the Grand Army Post and Battery C. As the train bore the company out of the station, Battery C fired a salute, and the whistles of the locomotives in the engine yard mingled with the cheers that arose from thousands of throats.

At Somerville, on the evening before departure, Company M was entertained by the citizens at Union Hall. The next morning they were escorted to the station by a large company of citizens, the Grand Army Posts, and members of the Relief Corps.

The reception of the regiment in Boston was equally enthusiastic. The Evening Transcript described the scenes along the line of march as follows:—

[47]

Muster In

[48]
[49]

Shortly after 2 o'clock on the afternoon of May 5th, the Eighth marched onto the State Camp Grounds at South Framingham. The Second and Ninth Regiments turned out with a hearty welcome as the Fife and Drum Corps swung through the gate playing "Teddy Was a Sojer."

When the four volunteer regiments were mustered into the service, they dispensed with bands. The Eighth, however, took its drum corps, which as early as March 16th had volunteered, through the Drum Major. Drum Major Thomas was and still is (1908) an institution in the regiment. No one remembers when he was not Drum Major. Rumor says he was drummer boy at Bunker Hill, Lundy Lane and Chepultepec, and all know he marched with Sherman to the sea. Invincible against fever and malaria, he is never sick. Always busy, never complaining or tired, he is a cheerful regimental inspiration. Time does not change him, except as it adds new glories in the form of service stripes. His reveille from Low Scotch, through Austrian, Hessian, Double Drag, Dutch, to Quick Scotch, is always welcome as an eye opener. It is a tradition that the Colonel gets up before reveille for the mere pleasure of seeing Thomas lead, and of watching the drum sticks rattle. It is certainly true that the regiment was never late when Thomas led the band.

Camp was soon established. The Second Regiment, which assembled May 3rd, occupied the right of the line; next came the Ninth, which came into camp May 4th, followed by the Eighth. On the left was reserved a position for the Sixth, which was to assemble the next day. Ad[50]jutant Edward H. Eldredge was detailed as Brigade Adjutant General, and his place on the Regimental Staff was filled by Lieutenant Thomas D. Barroll of L Company.

Dame Rumor was soon busy spreading reports that the United States, personified by impartial and inexorable army surgeons, was rejecting men as unfit for foreign service. Already ten officers of the Second had been rejected for physical deficiencies. What pledges, words and wills had been unable to accomplish, the dread of a full service medical examination accomplished, and officers and men, who for years had smoked or broken minor rules of health, stopped on the moment to brace themselves for this ordeal.

The officers were ordered before the doctors the day after arriving in camp, and at intervals of twenty minutes they reported in groups of threes. Major Dudley B. Purbeck, who had recently suffered from a serious illness, was rejected. There was much excitement in the streets of Company C when it was reported that Captain James Tucker, Lieutenants Edgar J. Marshall and Frank B. Denning had failed to pass. The Selectmen and influential citizens of Marblehead were appealed to, and in some way secured a re-examination and a reversal of the finding in the case of Lieutenant Denning, who was finally mustered and commissioned as Captain.

After the officers had passed, the enlisted men faced the surgeons, the companies going up in alphabetical order. Many men were rejected and sent home. It was the rule not to muster a company until it had a full complement of qualified officers and men. The process was slow, and it was not until May 10th that the first company of the Eighth was mustered, followed in rapid succession[51] by the others. The last company was mustered May 11th, and the Colonel sworn in.

The ceremony of mustering was interesting and impressive. Companies were marched to Brigade Headquarters, with the men arranged alphabetically in line. Facing the colors, taking off their hats, and raising their right hands, after roll call, they subscribed the following oath administered by Captain Erastus M. Weaver, U. S. A.:—

There was much pleasant rivalry between the Eighth and Ninth Regiments in a race to be first mustered in the United States service. The last company of the Ninth was mustered in just before the last company of the Eighth, and the Colonel of the Eighth being the last officer in the Regiment to be mustered into the service, was mustered in before the Colonel of the Ninth. The important question was never settled, which regiment was first mustered into the United States service.

After a company was mustered into the service, its Captain was given a copy of the Articles of War, and directed to read them to his company. From this tiresome reading of all the articles at once, a company wag said it was the general impression that the whole regiment was ordered by the President to suffer death or such other penalty as the court martial should prescribe.

The designation of the Regiments as finally mustered into the United States service, early became a matter of[52] interest. It was rumored that in as much as Massachusetts sent sixty-two regiments to the Civil War, the numbering of the regiments in the Spanish War was to begin where the numbering of the Civil War regiments left off. In that case the Eighth would be known as the Sixty-Third or Sixty-Fourth Regiment. This enumeration was followed in some states. The designation of the regiment was left to Governor Wolcott, who published as the official name, Eighth Regiment Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V.

The facings on the uniform was immediately changed from blue to white, and a collar device adopted consisting of crossed rifles with the figure eight above, and the abbreviation "Mass." below the rifles.

During the stay at Framingham everyone was busy, recruits were drilled, the regiment was exercised in striking and pitching tents, company cooks and kitchen police were made familiar with the army ration, battalions and companies were drilled, guards were instructed, and the usual parade and daily ceremonies held. The days were crisp and clear; the evenings, however, were chilly, but the dampness was dissipated by roaring camp fires on the parade, about which the soldiers clustered until taps.

It was the intention of the Adjutant-General of Massachusetts to have the regiments leave the State in order of the seniority of the Colonels. This would give third place to the Eighth.

On May 13th, the Adjutant-General of the United States Army telegraphed the United States mustering officer at South Framingham to notify the Colonels of mustered regiments to report direct to the War Department when their regiments would be ready to leave the State. This notice was sent to the Headquarters of the Eighth and Ninth. Colonel Pew immediately telegraphed the[53] War Department that the Eighth was ready to leave at once, and in a few hours received a telegraphic order to take the regiment to Chickamauga Park, Georgia. Owing to the lack of railroad transportation, it was impossible for the Regiment to get away until May 16th.

Saturday, May 14th, was Eighth Regiment day at Camp Dewey. On Friday evening as soon as the soldiers were notified that the regiment was to hold itself ready to move at once, they rushed to the telegraph station and sent word to their friends at home that if they wished to see them, they should come to Camp Dewey in the morning, as it was expected that the Regiment would be on its way south by Saturday night.

Early in the morning, the friends of the soldiers began to arrive on the field, and every train brought crowds until by noon there were hundreds from every town and city having a company in the regiment. As the families of the soldiers came into camp, they brought with them boxes and bundles of the good things which a New England housewife knows so well how to cook, and during the hours between drills, there were family picnics all about the camp.

In the afternoon, Governor Wolcott and some of his staff visited the camp to present the officers with their commissions in the United States service. After passing in review before His Excellency, the Regiment formed three sides of a hollow square, with officers in the center. The Governor and his party formed a fourth side. The square was surrounded by friends of the Regiment, who covered half of the great parade ground. The remarks of His Excellency were deeply impressive, and at times he visibly showed the emotion which he felt. In a voice audible to everyone on the field, Governor Wolcott said:—

[54]

After presenting the commissions, Governor Wolcott said:—

[55]

The following officers received their commissions from Governor Wolcott on this occasion:—

Colonel—William A. Pew, Jr. of Salem.

Lieutenant Colonel—Edwin W. M. Bailey of Amesbury.

Majors—William Stopford of Beverly; Frank A. Graves of Marblehead; Edward H. Eldredge of Boston.

Adjutant—Lieutenant Thomas D. Barrol of Boston.

Quartermaster—Lieutenant Charles F. Wonson of Gloucester.

Surgeon—Major William Cogswell of Salem.

Assistant Surgeons—Lieutenant Thomas L. Jenkins of Topsfield; Lieutenant Frank P. T. Logan of Gloucester.

Chaplain—Rev. George D. Sanders of Gloucester.

Company A, Newburyport—Captain, Alexander G. Perkins; First Lieutenant, George W. Langdon; Second Lieutenant, George H. Dow.

Company B, Amesbury—Captain, Horace S. Bean; First Lieutenant, John M. Pettingill; Second Lieutenant, Frank Stinson.

Company C, Marblehead—Captain, Frank B. Denning; First Lieutenant, Linville H. Wardwell; Second Lieutenant, Frederic P. Smith.

Company D, Lynn—Captain, Charles T. Hilliker; First Lieutenant, Thomas J. Coby; Second Lieutenant, William F. Young.

Company E, Beverly—Captain, Frederick W. Stopford; First Lieutenant, Charles H. Farnham; Second Lieutenant, Francisco A. DeSousa.

Company F, Haverhill—Captain, William C. Dow; First Lieutenant, Per Justus Swanberg; Second Lieutenant, David E. Jewell.

Company G, Gloucester—Captain, Edward J. Horton; First Lieutenant, Charles M. McIsaac; Second Lieutenant, James C. Nutt.

[56]

Company H, Salem—Captain, Walter P. Nichols; First Lieutenant, George N. Jewett; Second Lieutenant, Augustus G. Reynolds.

Company I, Lynn—Captain, John E. Williams; First Lieutenant, Francis H. Downey; Second Lieutenant, William H. Perry.

Company K, Danvers—Captain, A. Preston Chase; First Lieutenant, Henry W. French; Second Lieutenant, Stephen N. Bond.

Company L, Lawrence—Captain, James Forbes; First Lieutenant, James H. Craig; Second Lieutenant, Roland H. Sherman.

Company M, Somerville—Captain, Herbert W. Whitten; First Lieutenant, George I. Canfield; Second Lieutenant, Frederick W. Pierce.

From May 14th to May 16th the Regiment waited, uncertain when its train transportation would arrive. Shortly after noon on the 16th, camp was struck. It was a damp and dreary day. There was no large crowd to cheer their departure, as the home stations of the companies were too remote, and the movement too sudden for the friends of the regiment to see them off. Late in the afternoon the regiment passed in review before Governor Wolcott, and took up its line of march for the railroad station. There it was quickly embarked in three sections. Each battalion had a section consisting of eleven cars, one for baggage, one for guard quarters, and two for each company. A Wagner sleeper was furnished on each section for the accommodation of the officers. The first section pulled out of the station at South Framingham at 6 o'clock, followed shortly afterwards by the others. The last section left at 6.30. The three sections carried 47 officers and 896 men.

[57]

Chickamauga

[58]
[59]

The route of the regiment to Chickamauga was through the valleys of the Hudson and Shennandoah. The cities of New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington and Knoxville, were seen in passing, but stops were only made to allow the officers to obtain meals for themselves and coffee for the men. The Government furnished travel rations for the men consisting of hard tack, canned corned beef, beans and tomatoes, and a money allowance for coffee. In their year of service, no one in the regiment ever discovered a use for canned tomatoes as a travel ration.

During the trip hard tack circulated as souvenirs among the girls at the various stops, usually inscribed with the donor's name and address, and given in exchange for pieces of ribbon and other feminine favors. Enthusiastic crowds were in evidence at all the stations, where they gathered to see the troop trains pass. The men were confined to the cars, but managed to carry on many flirtations and make exchanges through the windows. Every day they were taken out at some stop for a run around or a bit of setting up exercise, and once the Third Battalion took advantage of a mountain stream for bathing purposes.

On the morning of May 19th the regiment awoke to find itself in the Citico Freight Yard, just outside the city of Chattanooga, together with other troop trains containing the men of the Twelfth New York, and the Twenty-First Kansas, with whom the regiment subsequently brigaded. After spending a day in the freight yard, the sections began late in the afternoon to slowly travel the fourteen miles between Chattanooga and Chickamauga Park.[60] At Battle Station the battalions disembarked, the baggage was piled near the track and left under guard, while the regiment enjoyed its first bivouac on a neighboring hill.

The Colonel reported to General Brooke and was told that a camp site would be assigned and transportation for the baggage furnished the following day.

Chickamauga Park is a National Reservation in the northwestern corner of the State of Georgia, embracing some ten squares miles of territory, and commemorates the battle which was fought there in 1863. The park is wooded, with here and there open fields. Much of the underbrush had been cleared away, and good dirt roads constructed by the Government. The water supply consisted of a few dozen wells, which had supported a small farming population before the Government purchased the land. The soil is clayey above a limestone formation, which frequently outcrops and renders digging difficult. The months of May and June are liable to be pleasant and dry, but in July and August, abundant rain turns the ground where vegetation is worn off, into a mire of sticky mud. On one side, the Park is bounded by Chickamauga Creek, meaning in the Indian tongue, "The River of Death", and into this creek the whole surface of the Park drains. The Government intended to organize on this ground the First, Third and Sixth Army Corps, and at one time assembled about 55,000 men for this purpose. The camp was named, Camp George H. Thomas, in honor of the gallant soldier who rendered conspicuous service to the Federal cause in the battle of Chickamauga.

The Eighth Regiment was assigned to the Second Brigade, Third Division, First Army Corps. As Colonel William A. Pew, Jr. was the senior Colonel in the three regiments comprising this brigade, he was assigned to the[61] command, pending the arrival of a Brigadier General, and the command of the Eighth Regiment devolved upon Lieutenant Colonel Edwin W. M. Bailey. Colonel Pew remained in command of the Brigade until June 29th, when he was succeeded by General Waites of Texas. Lieutenant Thomas D. Barroll, the Regimental Adjutant, and Lieutenant Charles F. Wonson, the Regimental Quartermaster, were detailed to Brigade Headquarters, and acted respectively as Adjutant General and Brigade Quartermaster. Their places in the regiment were filled by the detail of Lieutenant George W. Langdon, Acting Regimental Adjutant, and Lieutenant George I. Canfield, Acting Regimental Quartermaster, while Lieutenant Augustus G. Reynolds acted as Regimental Commissary.

The Third Division of the First Army Corps encamped on the Alexander Bridge road, near the southeastern corner of the Park, and about three miles from the railroad station. The camp of the Eighth was located in the woods, which were not dense, but more than sufficient for shade purposes. The tents of the Commanding Officer and his staff faced the west. Fifty paces in front of Headquarters were the tents of the line officers, and fifty paces in front of the quarters of the line officers were the heads of the Company streets. The tents of the men faced south, and were five paces apart. The Company streets were thirty paces wide. Thirty paces from the last tent in the Company street were the Company kitchens, and fifty paces in rear of the kitchens, were the Company sinks. The Eighth had the longest camp front of any Regiment in the Park, and later when sickness began to appear in the various camps, the wisdom of this arrangement was apparent.

Until May 23rd, when wagons and mules were issued[62] to the Regiment, water was scarce. Every farm well in the vicinity was under guard, and had a line of details waiting for a turn at the pump handle. The wells were pumped dry many times daily. The details remained in line waiting for them to fill up. Chickamauga Creek was already contaminated by drainage, and long expeditions were made to obtain enough water for drinking and cooking purposes.

With the issuing of transportation, water was hauled for all purposes from the Blue Spring, some five miles from camp, until the Government constructed a pipe line and brought water to the vicinity of every camp. This pipe line water was never used in the Regiment for drinking, and during the whole stay of the Regiment at Chickamauga, all drinking water was daily brought from the Blue Spring.

The lack of water led to the circulation of many absurd rumors at home. It was reported that the wells had been poisoned by the Spanish spies, and that some had been detected in the act and shot. The water famine was much exaggerated in the reports from Chickamauga. The regiment undoubtedly suffered much inconvenience at first, but not greater than should have been expected from the hurried manner in which the troops were brought together.

For some time the army mule was a source of entertainment and worry to the regiment. The Government issued to each regiment twenty-seven wagons and one hundred and eight mules. Previous to this issue, these mules were assembled in a large corral near the railroad station. Usually, a detail of four men was sent to draw a wagon, four mules and harnesses. The mules were turned over to this detail, together with various parts of harnesses and a wagon, as they came from the factory. It was the duty[63] of the detail to hold the mules and at the same time assemble harnesses and wagon. This was new work for most of the men, and the outfits were brought into camp after many sad experiences. It was not unusual for the detail to start from the corral driving in a careful manner, but after going a mile or two without mishap, the desire to speed a little overcame this caution, and the mules were urged to a trot or canter. As few of these animals had been broken, the first turn of a road presented an opportunity for a spill.

There was such a turn near the camp of the Eighth, and many of the men used to sit under the trees watching the details from other regiments navigate their mules around the bend. Often mules would continue on a straight course into the woods, and bid up when some tree separated the leaders and threw them down, with the wheel mules and wagon piled on top. This performance was at first a daily occurrence, and apparently resulted in no injury to the mules or men.

Another source of amusement was to hire the darkies who loafed about the camps, to break the mules. They were usually ridden bare back, and succeeded in throwing their riders several times before they would submit.

The mule quarters at first consisted of a cable stretched from tree to tree, to which the mules were fastened by halters. This was the practice in all the camps, and every night each regiment lost from ten to twelve mules. The mules usually wandered around the park until appropriated by some Quartermaster to make up his quota.

After submitting for a few nights to this loss, Lieutenant Colonel Bailey determined to construct a corral of rails, and for this purposes obtained permission to use the top rails of various fences along the Alexander road. This[64] work of construction took place on a moonlight night, and in the morning it was discovered that the rail fences for a long distance had disappeared, and a large area in the camp of the Eighth was surrounded with a Virginia fence some 12 feet high. The detail charged with the work of construction stoutly maintained, when explanation was demanded, that none of them had taken anything but "top rails". With this improvised stable the Quartermaster of the Eighth was able to maintain his supply of mules.

There were two entrances to this corral at which sentinels were maintained, with orders to allow any stray mules to go in, but none to come out. Every morning an extra surplus of mules was found in the corral.

The wagon master, who was a civilian employee, and had been hired by the Quartermaster on account of his experience with mules, soon had his pick of all the mules in the Park. His first duty in the morning was a readjustment of mule property. Any surplus was held and delivered to inquiring Quartermasters who had lost mules. As all mules look alike to most Quartermasters, it came to pass in the course of time, that the wagon master of the Eighth had by far the best mule teams of any Regiment. It was, in fact, a selection from the mules of fifty odd regiments.

Apparently no one suspected this process of eliminating poor mules, and the corral of the Eighth was looked upon as a public benefaction, where lost mules could usually be found and identified. The process of identification was directed and controlled by the experienced wagon master of the Eighth.

During May the evenings were delightfully cool in contrast with the heat of the day. Work finished, with parade and after supper, the men collected in groups to sing,[65] listen to the drum corps, or gossip about the future of the regiment. Rumors of immediate moves were always in circulation. It was generally believed that the First Corps was destined to invest Havana in the fall, but this belief was often shaken by rumors of orders to go to Manila, Honolulu, Santiago, or Porto Rico. The regiment was always expecting marching orders in the immediate future.

Almost every large congregation contains some men who need a free application of soap and water. In a camp where many men are herded together, the personal cleanliness of each soldier is a factor in the general health.

As soon as the pipe line was established, and water was abundant, orders were issued in regard to bathing, and were enforced by weekly inspections. The men were required to strip in quarters, and were examined by the surgeons. The first inspection disclosed an unfortunate who had secreted on his person, a liberal amount of Georgia real estate.

Eight husky sergeants, armed with fresh stable brooms and soap, were detailed to accompany the victim to the stand pipe. The detail, clad only in their birthday clothes, marched through the camp, conducting the victim in solemn procession, to the place of execution. The novel sight of the naked detail and prisoner attracted many spectators from the regiment, who observed the enforced bathing, and materially assisted by their advice and presence the cleansing operation. The man was washed as he had never been washed before.

The result of this public exhibition deterred others from disregarding bathing regulations. During the service of the regiment, no other man was ever reported as the result of these inspections, for personal uncleanliness.

[66]

At midnight on May 28th, the first death occurred in the regiment. Private Herbert O. Burnham, Company D, passed away at the Regimental Hospital. He contracted pneumonia at Framingham, was taken sick on the train, and gradually grew worse until the end came. The next night, a second member of the command obeyed the summons and was mustered out by death. Clarence L. Bartol of Company C, died at the Regimental Hospital of heart disease. The two deaths coming so close together, produced an effect upon the men, and caused them to realize more fully the duties of the service upon which they had entered.

The regiment early established a club for the enlisted men where they could loaf and make small purchases. These clubs were authorized by Army Regulations, and known as Post Exchanges or Canteens. They were managed by a council of officers. The profits on all sales went to the men. Regular dividends were declared and paid to company commanders, and were accounted for by them to the government, as a part of their company fund. Canteen dividends could be used only to improve the ration or condition of the men. The sale of beer and light wines was permitted.

The Eighth carried on its list of Canteen supplies, draught beer, which was furnished by a Chattanooga brewery, together with a supply of ice sufficient to keep the beer cool. This was the only supply of ice in camp, and the only place where a cool drink could be had.

In close proximity to the Canteen, was the Y. M. C. A. tent, which offered another home for the enlisted men where they could read, write letters, play games, and meet for social or religious purposes. The most excellent young gentlemen in charge, viewed with disapproval the[67] sale of beer in the rival club. The beer was also condemned by the surgeons, on the ground that it was not up to standard in quality, and that the poor quality of the beer aggravated intestinal troubles.

One day at mess the Commanding Officer entered into an agreement with the Y. M. C. A. representative, that the sale of beer should be prohibited at the Canteen as long as the Y. M. C. A. furnished for the enlisted men a barrel of distilled ice water in front of their tent. The Regimental Quartermaster furnished daily transportation to Chattanooga where barrels of distilled water and ice were purchased from the brewery company, and duly installed by the Y. M. C. A. This supply was maintained during the time the regiment remained at Chickamauga. The water and ice cost as much as beer, but the expense was borne by contributions solicited by the Y. M. C. A. manager from the various friends of temperance in the north.

This substitution of water for beer gave the Colonel some notoriety as a temperance reformer, and caused him to receive much advice about running the regiment.

One lady who had devoted fifty years to the cause of temperance, wrote a poem which she sent to the Colonel and requested him to have the men learn it by heart and recite it in unison as part of the ceremony at evening parade.

Another friend of the cause sent a few thousand printed pledges, with the advice that the men be required to sign a few pledges each day and carry them in their various pockets. She thought every time anything was taken from a pocket, a pledge would come out, and stimulate by its sight, each man to renewed interest to the cause of temperance.

The old battleground offered opportunities to the sou[68]venir hunters, and many bullets, pieces of shells and rifles were picked up and sent home. Another craze was collecting State buttons from the uniforms of volunteers from various states. These buttons treated to a gold wash and attached to a belt, were favorite souvenirs for sweethearts.

In addition to his duties as Battalion Commander, Major Edward H. Eldredge was detailed as Division Inspector of Rifle Practice. Under his supervision a rifle range was opened near the Alexander Bridge, and twenty-seven targets were installed. Three targets were assigned to each regiment of the Division for daily use. Lieutenant George W. Langdon of Company A, acted as Inspector, and supervised the regimental work at this range. Near the end of July, a division rifle match was shot, in which the following scores were made:—

The war strength of a company in the United States service was 106 enlisted men. Under the first call, Massachusetts was required to furnish three batteries of Heavy Artillery. Influence was at once brought to bear upon the authorities at Washington to accept the First Heavy Artillery as a Regiment of twelve batteries. To accomplish this and keep within the quota allowed Massachusetts, infantry companies were cut down to 74 men. To this extent the four infantry regiments which were[69] raised for foreign service, were crippled to increase the strength of the coast guard.

Upon the second call for volunteers, it was decided to raise the infantry companies to full war strength of 106 men, and about the first of June the Eighth was ordered to send a recruiting detail of three officers and twelve men to Massachusetts for recruiting purposes. The officers in charge of this detail were Major William Stopford, Captain Herbert W. Whitten of Company M, and Lieutenant Henry W. French of Company K. The detail left Chattanooga on June 8th. The first batch of new recruits arrived at Chickamauga on June 25th, from which time until after the 4th of July, recruits arrived daily.

The average recruit who responds to the first call for volunteers, is usually an all around better man than the average recruit obtained upon subsequent calls. The interference with the original Government plan of raising four full regiments, not only weakened the regiment at first, but later lowered its morale by introducing a poorer class of men than could have been obtained if the companies had recruited to a full strength at their home stations under the first stimulus of war.

On June 12th the regiment had its first experience with a Southern rain storm. After a long dry spell, the heavens opened, and the floods descended. Innocent looking gullies became rushing brooks, which soon overflowed their banks and inundated many canvas homes. After the storm, a system of drainage was inaugurated, and the men were set to work on a main drain and connecting trenches, constructed on lines taught by experience.

In the wake of the storm, and as it were, a silver lining to the clouds, came Paymaster James C. Barr of the Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, M. V. M., with $17,500.[70] from the State of Massachusetts in payment of the men for the time they had served at the Framingham camp. This was the first pay the regiment received, and the paymaster was welcomed like flowers in the spring. He was met at the railroad station by an armed party and escorted to camp, where his little fortune was safely guarded until distributed in payment to the men.

On June 22nd Captain Walter H. Nichols of Company H resigned, making the first break among the officers of the regiment.

On June 26th the camp was stirred to excitement by reason of an order transferring the regiment to the First Brigade, First Division, First Army Corps. The First Brigade was composed of the Eighth Massachusetts, Second Wisconsin, and Fifth Illinois Regiments, and was commanded by General Oswald Ernst. The division was commanded by General J. M. Wilson. The Brigade was expected to move in a few days to Newport News, where it was to take transports for Santiago. Camp took on new life and excitement. All superfluous baggage was packed for storage or home shipment. The excitement lasted a number of days, but the regiment was doomed to disappointment, as the order was countermanded and the regiment restored to its former place in the Third Division.

July 4th was observed as a holiday. Congressman William H. Moody of the Sixth Massachusetts District, who was spending a few days in camp, delivered a patriotic address. A program of sports had been arranged for the day, but the arrival of the U. S. Paymaster caused the games to be called off. About $45,000 was paid to the regiment, the men being paid from May 5th to June 30th. Many of the men took advantage of the arrival of[71] the money for a trip to Chattanooga, where they passed the remainder of the day visiting the city or Lookout Mountain. In the evening there was a mammoth bonfire in camp, red fire was burned, and the drum corps gave a concert of patriotic airs, in celebration of the victory of Sampson over the fleet of Cevera off Santiago, the news of which was received that afternoon.

As the summer advanced, and the heat increased, reveille was sounded at 4.30 and drills were held at a correspondingly early hour, so that by the middle of the morning, all drills were over.

Soon after arriving in camp, the brigade was practiced in extended order and the use of cover. This drill was known to the men as "snake drill." Major Parker, of the Twelfth New York, a Regular Army officer, acted as instructor at first. Before many weeks the regiment became proficient in advancing on a position, and at the same time taking advantage of natural cover. On several occasions the regiment gave exhibitions for the benefit of officers of other organizations.

The evening parade was usually witnessed by many spectators. The field where it was held was near the camps of the Third Army Corps, and the men from this organization usually assembled to watch the ceremony. The drum corps had been increased to forty-seven pieces, and became celebrated for its military marches.

The men, early in the summer, discarded the blue uniform for brown canvas, and with the ponchos worn white side out in a yoke from the left shoulder, presented in ranks a natty and business-like appearance. Their drill and marching was excellent, and upon all ceremonies and reviews they created a most favorable impression.

On July 8th Captain Jacob C. R. Peabody arrived in[72] camp and assumed command of Company H. On July 11th Assistant Surgeon Thomas L. Jenkins resigned.

Late on July 14th, news was received that Santiago had fallen. A celebration was promptly inaugurated. The three regiments in the brigade interchanged marching calls, headed by their band or field music. As the Eighth marched through the camp of the Twelfth New York singing patriotic songs, they were received with a novel illumination, a man stood at the entrance of each tent holding a lighted candle. In the camp of the Twenty-First Kansas, speeches were made by the Colonels of both regiments, after which the Eighth returned to its camp.

On July 21st the camp was again stirred by the report that the regiment had been selected for Porto Rico, and would embark in a few days. There was much activity in camp securing requisitions for the men. General Brooke, who commanded the First Corps, left for Porto Rico, and some of the regiments of the corps reached that Island before the order was countermanded.

The dull routine of camp life, repeated disappointments in orders to move, continued excessive heat, rain and mud, and the prevalence of camp diseases, were fast impairing the efficiency of the First Corps. General Breckenridge who succeeded General Wade in command, immediately planned to break the monotony by a practice march. The Third Division was ordered on a march into Tennessee, and a detail was sent in advance to secure camp sites.

Pending this general movement, the Eighth was granted permission to make a short march to Pea Vine Ridge. The start was made at daybreak on July 19th along the Ringgold Pike, which had been traveled by Sherman in his march to Atlanta. The morning was spent in advanced[73] guard work. The farmers along the route cherished unpleasant memories of Northern troops, and spent their time guarding live stock while the regiment remained in the vicinity. Camp was made at noon near the Craven House, and the afternoon was devoted to play. Many of the men dammed a mountain brook and spent the afternoon splashing in its pools.

The Craven House was occupied by an old sailor from Newburyport, Massachusetts, who had ended his sea days many years before, and had settled with a Georgia wife in the Pea Vine Valley. The old gentleman was filled with enthusiasm to see the regiment, when he learned it was from Massachusetts, and had a company from old Newburyport. Unfortunately Company A had been left in Chickamauga as a camp guard. After the camp was established, the Colonel called to pay his respects. The excitement of the day had been too much for the old gentleman, and he was found stricken with apoplexy.

The neighbors were too busy watching their property to render assistance, and a detail from the regiment cared for the old gentleman until he died that night.

As the day wore on and no raids were made by the Northern troops upon barns or hen houses, the farmers allowed their curiosity to overcome their fears, and visited camp. They were soon selling peaches, butter milk and sweet potato pies to the troops. These pies were christened "rubbernecks" by the men, and were held in light esteem, although heavy as lead.

On July 23rd all the state knapsacks were condemned. They were little box affairs, covered with enamel leather, and had seen service at many a Framingham muster. They were piled at the head of each company street and burned. Blanket bags were later issued and were more acceptable.[74] The tents brought from Massachusetts had been earlier condemned as unserviceable, and were replaced by a new issue.

August 1st, Lieutenant George N. Jewett of Company H resigned.

On August 9th the regiment was presented with a new set of colors. During its term of service it had three sets, two furnished by Massachusetts, and one drawn from the Government Quartermaster's department. The Regimental flag furnished by the Quartermaster's department, bore the coat of arms of the United States upon a blue field. This flag was rarely carried, and is the only one of its kind in the collection of flags carried by Massachusetts regiments, preserved at the State House.

By the middle of August the camp in the woods was water logged. Continual rain had saturated the soil. The drains took care of surface water, but as there was no seepage through the clay the drains were powerless to carry off the mass of water imprisoned in the soil, and for which evaporation was the only escape. Rain and evaporation were in equilibrium. The mud on the legs of the men like mercury in a thermometer, registered the fluctuation from this equilibrium. Ordinary rubbers were useless, and sometimes rubber boots were inundated.

Although the Government had furnished no lumber for tent floors, the men had quite generally appropriated means to raise their beds above the ground. The larceny of boards was encouraged as a sanitary virtue. A few buildings which the Park authorities cherished as ancient landmarks, about which the tide of the great battle ebbed and flowed in 1863, has entirely disappeared. The companies of the Third Battalion had purchased lumber at Chattanooga and constructed tent floors. The quarters of[75] the enlisted men were on the highest ridge and were less exposed. The quarters of the Colonel and Staff were approachable only through a sea of liquid mud, and were shifted onto higher ground.

Application was repeatedly made for permission to change the camp. The order for a change came just before the regiment moved to Lexington. The First Battalion was the only unit to occupy the new camp, which was located in an open field on the eastern side of the Alexander Bridge road.

On August 19th Lieutenant Roland H. Sherman of Company L, resigned and was discharged.

In order to fill the vacancies in the line officers of the regiment, the following promotions were made while at Chickamauga: Second Lieutenant Augustus G. Reynolds was promoted to first lieutenant in Company H, and First Sergeant Thomas O. H. Pineau of that company was commissioned second lieutenant. First Sergeant Eugene Larrivee, of Company L, was commissioned second lieutenant in that company.

On August 21st orders were received to furlough all sick men, as the regiment was to leave Chickamauga. Some two hundred furloughs were issued. On the night of August 22nd a huge bonfire in camp celebrated the last night at Chickamauga. Early the next morning camp was broken, and the regiment marched to Rossville, Georgia, where it entrained early in the morning and was enroute to the blue grass region of Kentucky. Chickamauga was left with no regrets.

[76]
[77]

Sickness at Chickamauga

[78]
[79]

The prevailing sickness at Chickamauga was diarrhœa, dysentery and typhoid. During the spring and summer about 80,000 men passed through the park, but there were probably never over 50,000 encamped there at any one time. The board which investigated the sanitary conditions of 44,803 men at Camp Thomas, reported 9,960 probable cases of typhoid, and 713 fatal results from this disease. One man in every five suffered from this fever, and almost every man was afflicted with some intestinal disorder. Much has been said as to whether this suffering was preventable, and was due to ignorance and neglect, or was paid as the necessary price of war.

In the first call for troops the War Department expressed a desire that the States should give preference among volunteers to National Guard organizations, in the expectation that they were equipped and had been prepared for war by a previous training.

Massachusetts perhaps, satisfied this expectation as fully as any state. Her regiments were at least uniformed, armed, and equipped with means for preparing food, but they had no experience in caring for themselves in the field. The Government ration consisted of bread, coffee, potatoes, onions, canned tomatoes, fresh beef seven days, and bacon three days out of ten. One hundred rations were sufficient in quantity to feed one hundred men one day, but this required careful management on the part of company commanders, and proper preparation by company cooks. Any system of training men for the field should make provision for accustoming men to live, and live comfortably upon this ration.

[80]

It is not an answer to say that the United States Army in time of peace, does not live upon this ration, but supplements it by purchases from their company funds. A volunteer regiment going into the United States service, will have no company funds, and must live on the ration until companies accumulate funds, which ordinarily would be impossible in the field. Any system of training which fails to recognize this fact is false in theory and practice.

Previous to the Spanish War, the Massachusetts Militia were fed by caterers at their summer outings. There was a Commissary Department, but its officers were appointed for other reasons than efficiency and experience in handling supplies. Some states had commissary departments which furnished rations, and required the companies to prepare the food, but there was no where any systematic attempt to train men to manage and support life upon the Government ration.

Resulting from a lack of previous experience, the Massachusetts regiments suffered during the first six months of their field service. Men were starving in the regiments, because unable to assimilate the Government ration, which, through a lack of experience in handling and preparing, was served to them in a form which did not properly nourish, and aggravated and perpetuated the ordinary intestinal troubles which recruits usually experience when first taking the field. Many men were improperly nourished, their vitality lowered, and their power of resisting disease impaired. So far as this resulted from a defect in their militia training, the State of Massachusetts was responsible.

For a number of years the Massachusetts Militia had been equipped for eye service. The men were supplied with the equipments they could carry on their person, and[81] which contributed to the success of a parade, by giving it a ready-for-war appearance. Not much attention was paid to other equipments.

There was a limited supply of blankets, ponchos, buzzacotts and tentage, but not enough for all the troops. These were held at the Framingham Arsenal, and did duty for a mysterious field equipment, ready for instant use. There were no shelter tents or wagons. Some of the supplies were of a stage property kind. The shovels carried by an improvised pioneer corps in one of the Boston street parades, lasted two hours when used for digging by a detachment of the Eighth. The Militia of Massachusetts had never been properly equipped for field service.

The appropriation of $500,000 by the Legislature in April, enabled them to take the field better supplied than the Guard Regiments from many states, but they were never fully equipped by the State, or instructed in the A B C of a soldier's duty.

They had been assembled for years in brigade camps, and taught ceremonies and parades, but no attempt had been made to teach company commanders the important lesson of how to meet the requirements of the field, and care for their men under service conditions. The increasing sick list reported in all the camps, accentuated this absence of individual experience and trained company officers.

The War Department was as unprepared as the Militia of Massachusetts. The machinery for handling an army of 26,000 men in peace, was called upon to mobilize 275,000 men of war. It was altogether inadequate to meet the emergency. There were practically no reserve supplies. On April 23rd the Government had enough Springfield rifles to equip the volunteers, but that was all.[82] The cloth of the uniforms first issued to some regiments at Chickamauga, was not manufactured when the regiments were mustered into service.

Large quantities of commissary supplies were purchased in the market, and rushed to the large camps for concentration. These supplies were uniformly of standard quality, and were accumulated in sufficient quantities at the depots, but were often delayed in distribution to the troops. Volunteer officers were at first unacquainted with the use of requisition blanks, and the red tape of Government issue, and the Commissary Department lacked facilities to make prompt and full deliveries. This was the earliest department, however, to get into working order, and subsequent complaints at Chickamauga were due to the inexperience of officers and men in handling the rations.

The Quartermaster's Department also made large purchases in the market, but were handicapped by having to wait for articles to be manufactured to fill orders. This department at Chickamauga was further handicapped by inefficiency and failure to appreciate the situation, and the necessary requirements of the troops.

As soon as wagon transportation was issued to the Eighth, they began to bring the water from the Blue Spring. This was a long haul, and required many barrels for transportation and storage in camp. The supply of barrels issued by the Quartermaster's Department to the regiment was inadequate. The Chief Quartermaster was repeatedly requested to furnish sufficient barrels for this purpose, and refused. The regiment subsequently purchased, at its own expense, at Chattanooga, sufficient receptacles.

The refusal of the Chief Quartermaster was reported to[83] the Inspector General's Department, and was thus commented upon:—

The Regimental Commander repeatedly asked the Quartermaster's Department for disinfectants and lumber; these requisitions were disallowed. Whatever supplies of this nature the regiment had, were purchased by private contribution, until the spread of disease excited public indignation and demanded liberal issues. After official investigation began, a change was noticed in the policy of the department. By the end of the summer it is probable that porcelain lined bath tubs would have been issued for the mere asking.

[84]

During the hot summer months, 75 per cent. of the men at Chickamauga were forced to wear heavy woolen clothing. The Eighth was the only regiment fully equipped with canvas suits. These had been purchased by the State of Massachusetts. If sufficient energy had been displayed by the Quartermaster's Department, the same clothing would have been purchased and issued to all the regiments. What supplies were on hand were held in small storehouses, and their issues blocked by lack of system and necessary labor to handle the goods.

The Medical Department at Chickamauga was inefficient and displayed lack of both professional and executive ability. There was an unnecessary shortage of medical supplies and hospital attendants. No provision was at first made for general hospitals. The sick were cared for in regimental hospitals, and later when these were abolished, in Division Hospitals. Division hospitals are organized to accompany troops in the field, and serve as a collecting station, where the injured receive temporary treatment and are transferred as soon as practicable to general hospitals.

The field hospitals at Chickamauga were swarmed with the sick, and were forced to become general hospitals, as no other provision had been made. The accommodations were inadequate. Hospital tents were insufficient in number, and were not supplied with proper furnishings. There was a lack of medicine and nourishing food. The nurses were enlisted men detailed from the various regiments, and were ignorant of their duties, and without experience.

The quarters and grounds were dirty, and the service was undisciplined, disorganized and demoralized. Until taken firmly in hand by General Sanger and reorganized,[85] the Third Division Hospital was a monument to the ignorance and incapacity of the Medical Department.

This Department was thus described in an inspection report:—

The medical officers of the Eighth were at all times zealous and efficient in instructing officers how to combat disease, and the regimental officers were intelligent and active in carrying out these instructions.

Before typhoid became epidemic, Colonel Pew assembled officers and men after evening parade, and explained[86] to them the nature and cause of this fever. He said this disease had already broken out, and he anticipated it would become a scourge to the troops, because of the unsanitary condition of the various camps. That it was caused by microscopic germs found in the discharges of the sick. That these germs were very tenacious of life, and increased and multiplied rapidly in filth. That when dry they would drift about in the air and lodge on food, clothing or the person. That they were harmless unless taken into the mouth, but as they were too small to be seen, there was always danger of contagion. That they were killed by boiling, and for that reason the men would be required to drink only boiled water, and keep their food protected against dust. That all human excreta must be deposited in the proper place, and covered with a paddle, as Moses taught the children of Israel to care for themselves in the Wilderness. That police regulations would be enforced, and camp conditions made as unfavorable as possible for the growth and development of these germs. He urged the men to appreciate the danger to which they were exposed, and to avoid it by complying strictly with all sanitary regulations.

The Medical Board appointed to examine into the causes of the existence and spread of typhoid in the national camp of 1898, reported that this fever was brought to Camp Thomas by the volunteers, and spread by the neglect of the rules of sanitation and military hygiene. Out of forty-eight regiments whose medical records were examined, nine regiments reached Chickamauga with developed cases of typhoid, twenty-five regiments developed cases within two weeks, and at the expiration of one month only two regiments of the forty-eight were free from this[87] disease. The first case of typhoid in the Eighth Regiment was reported July 13.

The average volunteer at Chickamauga had little discipline, and a slight knowledge of sanitation. He was willing to fight, as he had enlisted for that purpose, but he rather resented as an invasion of personal rights, any attempt to dictate what he should eat or drink. He did not accept in full faith the germ theory of disease, and was skeptical about the existence of bugs he could not see.

If water looked clear and was cool, he was unwilling to believe it was unwholesome, especially when it tasted sweet and satisfied his cravings. He was willing to believe that any water in which fish could swim, was good to drink, or to accept any other absurd test which was current.

The experience of an outpost from the regiment illustrates the chances intelligent college men would take, when it became a question of satisfying the appetite. This outpost was established on the banks of Chickamauga Creek, below the inflow of camp sewerage, and obtained their drinking water from a spring bubbling up in the slope of the bank. A sudden rain caused the creek to rise and submerge the spring. After the water subsided, the outpost discovered the surface of the spring covered with slime.

Someone suggested bad germs floated, and acting upon this theory, they plunged a canteen to the bottom of the spring, with the opening stopped by the thumb against the entrance of bacteria. When the canteen was on the bottom, the thumb was removed until the canteen was filled, the opening was then again plugged with the thumb, and the supply brought to the surface. Every member of this[88] outpost was stricken with typhoid as a result of this experiment.

Although orders had been issued to drink only boiled water, most men in the corps drank what they pleased. Unsatisfactory rations led many men to patronize the various food venders. Near the railroad station a swarm of booths sprung up, where all kinds of food were dispensed. These stands were not subject to medical inspection, and later were denounced by the Medical Department as sources of contagion.

The chief sources of contagion were company sinks. Digging and caring for sinks did not appeal to the men as heroic soldiering. They hated and shirked this duty and as a result the sinks of many regiments were so repulsive that the men refused to use them, and polluted territory surrounding the camp.

The care of the sinks was always a matter of great solicitude to the officers of the Eighth. Their cleanliness was insisted upon at all times with martinet rigidity, and men were punished for not using them, after the formality of a trial and conviction before a summary court.

It was recognized that these pest holes might become breeding grounds of flies which would infest the camp and carry contagion. The following extract from a circular shows to what extent this danger was appreciated.

Although the Eighth prevented flies breeding in its own camp, it could not prevent them swarming from other camps and spreading contagion. Flies increased and multiplied. A roast of beef exposed for a few minutes looked as black as a mass of charcoal, so dense was its surface packed with flies. Netting was purchased, and an attempt was made to keep all food covered. Some of the officers constructed mess quarters of scantlings covered with fly screens.

For two months the Eighth Regiment, fully realizing the danger to which it was exposed, fought against typhoid and combated it with intelligence and energy. During the last two months of its stay at Chickamauga, it was smitten with a heavy hand, and became the victims of a system which failed to furnish sanitary safeguards against the spread of communicable disease.

Digging was at all times difficult in the territory of the Eighth, as the soil was a hard clay and the outcropping ledges caused the abandonment of many sink holes when half dug. When the rainy season began a new danger threatened the regiment. The sinks would fill with water and stay full. Refilling the holes with lumps of clay that had been taken out, would cause an overflow and pollute the surrounding ground. Sinks had to be abandoned after every heavy rain, and new holes dug.

The ground in the rear of the camp was filled with open pits in which polluted water stagnated. It was noticed that this stagnant water became the breeding ground for insects. The ingenuity of the officers was taxed to invent a method of sealing these sinks. A happy suggestion oc[90]curred to a group of officers who had been in the habit of dining at an Italian Restaurant in Boston. They had seen flasks of Chianti sealed with a few spoonfuls of olive oil, and the analogy suggested oil to seal the sinks against insect life. A can of kerosene was secured, and the experiment tried.

As the oil spread over the surface of the water, it was noticed that it apparently interfered with the comfort of the wigglers, as they came to the surface. Crude petroleum was suggested as being stickier than refined oil, and a can was procured in Chattanooga and tried. Experiments showed that this oil often imprisoned the mother insect when laying eggs, and was a complete bar through which the wigglers, when grown, could not penetrate and emerge from the pits. Crude petroleum was purchased by the barrel and used in these open sinks.

From the Eighth Regiment the use of petroleum spread through the First and Third Corps, and subsequently became recognized throughout the country as a means of destroying mosquitoes and other insects that breed in stagnant waters.

The efforts which were made by the Eighth Regiment to maintain a sanitary camp, were recognized in the report of Colonel A. A. Woodhull, Deputy Surgeon General, U. S. A., on conditions in Camp George H. Thomas. Under the various sub-headings of his report, he refers to the regiment as follows:—

Under the sub-heading "Water Supply" he says:—

Under sub-heading "Character of Troops" he says:—

Again, under the heading "Third Division, First Corps" he says:—

Some of the volunteers were handicapped by the qualities of their officers. The American soldier responds to sympathetic leadership, but not to the sympathy that expresses itself in exaggeration of his hardships, and in frequent reference to his woes. This kind of talk destroys the back bone of resistance, and makes a company a mob of weaklings.

[92]

General Chaffee has said:—

The strength of the Eighth lay in the manhood of her officers and men, who were ready with a determined smile to face any game into which they were called.

A commission appointed by the President to investigate the sanitary conditions of the military camps of 1898 reported early in 1899. The report contains an allusion to the Eighth Massachusetts. It says:—

This was a great compliment to the volunteer regimental commander and his officers.

In some of the camps in the United States, no thoroughly well established rules of sanitation were observed. Little restriction was placed on drunkenness and immorality.[93] Soldiers did not seem to care how they lived, and their officers did not watch or teach them. Frequently the food was poorly cared for, and badly cooked, and the men were permitted to eat and drink anything and everything they could find. Sickness naturally followed in regiments where laxity prevailed.

The Eighth, according to evidence before the commission, followed just the opposite plan. Discipline was strict and impartial, and the health of the troops consequently of the best. They were a source of much admiration to all who saw them, both at Camp Thomas and the other places. No other regiment in the whole American army was similarly favored in the Commissioner's report.

[94]
[95]

Lexington

[96]
[97]

The Kentucky home of the Eighth was about five miles from Lexington on a knoll between the Bryan Pike and the Kentucky & Eastern Railroad. Access to the city and its markets was over the Pike or by rail from the station of Montrose, a few hundred yards away. A pipe line connecting with the city supply, brought water to the foot of every company street. Lumber was to be had upon requisition, and abundant facilities were offered for being and keeping well. The sun penetrating to every corner of the camp, dried the seeds of disease, and the breezes from the hay and clover fields blew away and dissipated the germs. The expanding green and golden fields rolling into distant stretches, rested eyes accustomed to the damp and closed woods of Georgia.

Men depressed by the atmosphere of Chickamauga, opened their eyes upon a new world, and began to experience the joy of living. The place, time of year, and the intelligent efforts of officers to stamp out disease, backed by unlimited Government supplies, infused new life into the tired and jaded regiments of the Third Division. General Sanger was indefatigable in his efforts to restore health, and was loyally supported by the line and medical officers.

It was not given to the Eighth, however, to overcome at once the results of their long stay at Chickamauga, surrounded by infection. For months they had fought contagion, and kept typhoid at bay, but were finally powerless against the swarm of flies that overspread their camp, depositing bacteria upon food and clothing. The[98] regiment left Chickamauga inoculated with poison, and during the first few weeks at Lexington, enteric fever broke out and was more prevalent than at any other period.

For a month the energies of the regiment were devoted to getting down to the bed rock of health. Sources of contagion were destroyed or removed. At sick call, men with abnormal temperatures were removed from their comrades, and sent to the general hospital. Suspicious cases were held under observation until the outcome was known. Sick men who might be a source of new contagion, were at once separated from the regiment, and so thoroughly was this work done, that more than half the regiment was away from the colors.

A systematic crusade was made against the old germs that had traveled with the regiment from Chickamauga hid in blankets, clothing or personal belongings. Corrosive sublimate and chlorinated lime were freely used.

Clothing and blankets were boiled, brushed, and hung up for sunshine and wind to work through. All excreta was collected in closed sinks from which flies were excluded, and germ life was poisoned with chemical agents.

Tent floors were daily washed with corrosive sublimate, and weekly stood on end for the under side to be dried and white washed. Location of tents were frequently changed, and the uncovered ground thoroughly treated with lime. The camp was thoroughly drained, policed, and was as near medically clean as the science of military hygiene permitted.

As soon as possible a new issue of tentage was obtained, and those used at Chickamauga were destroyed. Each tent was furnished with a floor, and wooden sleeping bunks.

[99]

Sales by pedlers were regulated by orders from Division Headquarters. Chickamauga Park had been overrun by fakirs selling cakes, pies and other foods, much of which was believed to have been contaminated, and to have materially contributed to the spread of camp diseases. As soon as the food pedlers appeared in the new camp, they were rounded up by the guard and expelled. Certain permits were issued, regulating the sale of foods. Pedlers were required to report to the Officer of the Day, and conduct their business under his direction and supervision.

Many men suffering from intestinal troubles, could not assimilate the sturdy Government ration, and large quantities of milk and eggs were daily needed for their nourishment. Such perishable articles were not furnished by the Government, and company commanders had to depend upon the company fund for their purchase.

The sale of beer was the chief source of revenue to the Canteen, and was accordingly resorted to. A commodious wooden building was erected as a Post Exchange, and a large ice box was constructed, where gallons of milk and hundreds of eggs were stored. Captain Horace S. Bean, of Company B, was put in charge of the Canteen, and made large purchases from the neighboring farmers. The favorite tipple served over the bar was a milk and egg shake. Many of the company commanders served an egg nog to each man at 10 A. M. and 4 P. M. daily. The best quality of beer was obtained from Milwaukee, and was hereafter retained as a regular Canteen supply, while the regiment remained in the service.

The profit on the sale of beer became a material factor in building up the health of the regiment, and augmenting the company funds. At one time over three thousand dollars was divided among companies as a Canteen dividend.

[100]

A new hospital tent was received from the Massachusetts Volunteer Aid Association, and was pitched on the left flank of the regiment. As the regimental hospital had been abolished, this was used as a dispensary. All soldiers requiring treatment reported to the dispensary, where their case was diagnosed by the regimental surgeon, and if it was found that the patient was in a condition requiring treatment, he was immediately sent to the Division hospital.

This was known as the John Blair Gibbs Hospital, and was situated about a mile from camp. It was presided over by a competent staff of skilled surgeons, assisted by a corps of trained nurses, from whom the men received excellent treatment.

During this period of recuperation, furloughs were freely given. This privilege was sometimes abused, and some men without any ailment, except a desire to go home, managed to pass the surgeons and secure a furlough. The "furlough walk" and "furlough face" came to be recognized as evidence of homesickness, and was more or less joked about among the men as means of obtaining a furlough. Nearly all the men, however, who were sent home, needed a change, and were granted furloughs as a sanitary precaution.

Lexington had been the home of Henry Clay, and as a compliment to the city, the camp was named Camp Henry Clay, in honor of the Kentucky statesman. This name was subsequently changed, as the War Department had adopted the practice of naming the camps in honor of soldiers who had fallen in the Spanish War, to Camp J. M. Hamilton, in honor of an officer in the Ninth United States Infantry, who fell at Santiago.

The "P jacket" first appeared in the regiment at Camp[101] Hamilton. Previous to its introduction, one unacquainted with military affairs, could not distinguish prisoners from other soldiers.

These jackets were a distinctive badge. They were a blue jumper with a large capital P painted in white upon the back, and a smaller letter P, and the prisoner's number painted upon the arm.

It was related that a party of young ladies visiting the camp, became very much interested in these uniforms; but not understanding the letter P, inquired its significance from one of the prisoners, and was smilingly told that it stood for "Perfect," and that the jacket was a badge of honor.

The condition of the regiment was a source of great solicitude to its friends at home, and many anxious inquiries were made as to its health and surroundings. On September 8th, Mayor Ramsdell of Lynn, visited the camp and remained a number of days. He was the first of several Northern people who visited the camp to inquire into and report upon the condition of the troops.

On September 8th, the camp was visited by a delegation from Massachusetts, headed by Colonel Benjamin S. Lovell of Weymouth, of the military committee of Governor Wolcott's council. This trip was the result of a story printed in a Cincinnati paper, to the effect that the Eighth was demoralized with typhoid fever.

Colonel Lovell and others, who were in attendance at the national encampment of the G. A. R., in the Ohio city, saw the report in the paper, and Colonel Lovell telegraphed for authority to proceed to Lexington and make an investigation, and permission was granted by Governor Wolcott.

A special car was chartered, and Colonel Lovell, Colonel[102] William M. Olin, secretary of the commonwealth, a veteran of the Civil War, who camped at Lexington in those stirring days, Captain J. G. B. Adams, sergeant-at-arms of the Massachusetts legislature, himself a past commander-in-chief of the G. A. R., accompanied by Mrs. L. A. Turner, prominent in Women's Relief Corps circles, and other Massachusetts people, made the trip to Lexington.

The day was spent in looking over the regiment, and Colonel Lovell, Colonel Olin and Captain Adams, made a thorough inspection of the regiment and its conditions, in regard to food, sanitary arrangements, and especially in regard to sickness. Colonel Lovell made a report to the governor upon his return home, and the same is on file at the State House, although it could not be located at the time this chapter was written.

At the close of the day, the entire party went back to Cincinnati, satisfied that the report was greatly exaggerated by the newspaper which had published the story, as there was but little typhoid among the men.

On September 12th, Mayor Chase of Haverhill, also visited the camp, being the guest of Company F of that city.

The troops quartered in and about Lexington were the Eighth Massachusetts, Twelfth New York, Twenty-First Kansas, One Hundred and Sixtieth Indiana, Third Kentucky, Fourth Kentucky, Third Mississippi, Second Missouri, Seventh United States Immunes, colored, Eighth United States Immunes, colored. On September 26th, the Twenty-First Kansas left for Fort Leavenworth, to be mustered out of the service, and upon the day following their place was taken by the First Territorial Regiment. This regiment was enlisted from the territories of New[103] Mexico, Arizona, Oklahoma, and Indian Territory, and was composed of ranchmen, cowboys, and some Indians. Their initial appearance in the camp of the Eighth was explosive. As soon as a camp site had been assigned them, and they were dismissed, they started on a round of visits to the various camps. The visit was made upon the run, accompanied by a continuous yelling and whooping. This whirlwind of noise passed through every company street in the New York and Massachusetts regiments without stopping, and disappeared to repeat the performance in the camps of other regiments. The most orderly member of the command was a large brown bear, which did duty as regimental mascot.

Some amusement was furnished one evening as the men assembled for parade, by a barouche containing four ladies of the town, driven by a stately colored man. They disappeared in the camp of the Twelfth New York, but shortly returned with the large letters I. C., in chalk on the back of the carriage.

The camp site of the Eighth had formerly been cultivated, but during the summer the land had run to weeds. These were waist high until mowed. During one of the early changes of guard, the old guard was marched by the Lieutenant through some of these weeds, towards the regimental parade, where they were to be dismissed. Suddenly the guard broke ranks, and each man rushed for his quarters. The Lieutenant stopped in amazement and shouted to his men, "What in blank are you running for"? Before he got an answer, a swarm of hornets attached themselves to his person, and he was soon running as fast as any member of his guard.

The men were encouraged to engage in sports as a recreation. At one time, foot ball was taken up in a mild[104] way, but after the Kentucky State College defeated Company H by a score of 59 to 0, interest in this strenuous sport died out.

Lexington was well supplied with entertainment, and on several occasions enlisted men attended the theatre and circus in a body.

Two evenings were known at the Opera House as Eighth Regiment nights, when the drum corps took part in the performance, and a large delegation from the regiment was represented in the audience.

The drum corps was well received throughout the south, and their rendering of Dixie was always greeted with Southern yells of approval.

On one occasion Company L was entertained at the home of Mrs. Kate Breen, where Lieutenant Breen, Inspector of Rifle Practice of the Ninth Massachusetts Infantry, was visiting. He acted as host, and left with the men a pleasant memory of his hospitality.

Dr. Horace B. Frost, of Boston, joined the regiment here, having been commissioned Assistant Surgeon, with the rank of Lieutenant, vice Jenkins, resigned.

The people of Lexington were most courteous and kind to the regiment. Many homes were opened, and the genial social life was welcomed as a help in making officers and men contented. On September 24th, the regiment was the guest of the Jockey Club at the Loudon Park. It gave an exhibition drill, and witnessed the races.

One of the features was a running race, open only to the officers of the Third Division. It was participated in by 20 officers, the leaders finishing in the following order:—

Major Nickerson, Seventh United States Cavalry; Lieutenant Hero, Fourth United States Artillery; Lieutenant-Colonel[105] Bailey; Colonel Pew; Major Eldredge; Adjutant Barroll, and Quartermaster Wonson, all of the Eighth Massachusetts; Lieutenant Horton, Twelfth New York, and Lieutenant Stinson, Eighth Massachusetts.

This contest was continued two other days, the "finals" being run off Saturday, open to the entire camp (12,000), any military horse, with an officer "up." The final was won by Lieutenant-Colonel Bailey, Eighth Massachusetts, on his mare "Alathea," with Adjutant Barroll, Eighth Massachusetts, second, on Colonel Pew's "Essex."

Ladies were frequently the guests of the regiment, and especially on review days. Two large reviews were held in which all the troops participated, one in honor of General Russell A. Alger, Secretary of War, and the other in honor of Governor Bradley of Kentucky. On September 20th, General Russell A. Alger arrived by rail, and was met at the station by the Second Brigade, and escorted to General Breckenridge's headquarters. Later on, a review was tendered by the Division. The Eighth paraded over eight hundred men, and from this time its numbers were continually increasing by the return of convalescents to duty, and the expiration of furloughs.

After the review, the Secretary of War inspected the Division Hospital and the various camps. He spent some time in the camp of the Eighth, chatting with the officers, and took occasion to compliment the regiment upon its intelligent struggle against typhoid at Chickamauga.

Early in August, the Secretary of War had sent Colonel Hopkins, Assistant Inspector General of the United States Army, to examine and report upon the condition of the troops at Chickamauga. Colonel Hopkins' report to the Secretary of War was subsequently published, but was unknown to the regiment at this time. In it he said that the[106] Eighth Massachusetts was the only regiment in the Park he was sure had complied with sanitary regulations, and that its low sick rate, as compared with that of other regiments, showed an intelligent appreciation of the situation by the officers, and an earnest effort to stop the spread of preventable disease, by the application of hygienic measures.

Later in the day, the Generals and Colonels of the Division met the Secretary at General Breckenridge's headquarters, and were invited to express their opinion on the sanitary conditions. Some of the officers bitterly denounced the inefficiency of the Quartermaster's Department and the Medical Department at Chickamauga; the Chief Surgeon of the corps was characterized as a horse doctor, and his professional qualifications were criticised.

Several changes of officers were made in October. On the 20th, General Breckenridge turned over the command of the Corps to General James H. Wilson, under whom the Eighth served until mustered out.

On the 7th, Rev. George D. Sanders, the Chaplain, resigned. The Rev. Milo H. Gates of Ipswich, was appointed to fill this vacancy November 11th, but before being mustered in, was thrown from a horse, and owing to his injuries was unable to pass the physical examination. Chaplain Sanders was subsequently re-appointed and joined the regiment in Cuba.

On October 24th, Lieutenant Francis H. Downey of Company I, died at the St. Joseph's Hospital in Lexington, of pneumonia. Funeral services were held over his remains in the city, and were attended by the officers of the regiment, and by Companies D and I. He was the only officer in the command who died during the service.

On the 28th, Lieutenant-Colonel Edwin W. M. Bailey[107] resigned, and Major William Stopford was promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel. The vacancy in majority was not filled, as the United States allowed at this time but two majors to a regiment. Colonel Stopford continued to command the First Battalion. Owing to the place of his promotion, he became known in Lexington society as the real Kentucky Colonel.

Lieutenant Stephen N. Bond of Company K, resigned on October 28th.

During the temporary absence of the regimental surgeon, Captain Rutherford of the Second Missouri, was assigned and remained on duty with the regiment several weeks.

After the Third Division had recovered its health, the proposition to make a practice march was again discussed. Lieutenant Francisco A. DeSousa of Company E, with a detail from the regiment, was sent over the road to Frankford, Kentucky, to locate camps and select a suitable place for rifle practice. It was the intention to have each regiment march to Frankford and spend a week at target practice. Owing to the lateness of the season and the approach of cold weather, the undertaking was abandoned.

On October 10th, General Waites, who was about to retire from the command of the Second Brigade, tendered the officers a reception at his quarters. Soon after the officers of the Eighth had returned to their camp, Colonel Pew received directions through a staff officer to issue ball ammunition, and hold his men in readiness to march. The order was immediately obeyed. No explanation was offered, and the regiment awaited developments.

In the quiet night the measured beat of marching was heard along the Bryan Pike, and the Regimental Guard reported the One Hundred and Sixtieth Indiana going[108] into Lexington to quell a riot. A member of the Third Kentucky on provost duty in the city, had shot and killed a soldier of the Twelfth New York, who refused to halt when ordered. The sentinel was arrested pending an inquiry.

A rumor spread through the camp that a number of the Twelfth New York and the First Territorial Regiments had started for the city to lynch this sentinel. There was more or less disturbance at the Montrose station by a mob of excited soldiers, and several shots were fired.

The Eighth was ordered to deploy one battalion as skirmishers across the Bryan Pike, and railroad track, and stop all soldiers. The other two battalions were to remain under arms in camp as a reserve. Colonel Stopford executed this deployment with the First Battalion. Nothing happened, and he was withdrawn before morning. The situation in the city was easily controlled by the provost guard with the help of the One Hundred and Sixtieth Indiana.

In October Governor Wolcott directed General Robert A. Blood, the Surgeon General of Massachusetts, to visit the camps of the Eighth and Fifth Massachusetts regiments and report on the sanitary condition, rations and hospital accommodations of these regiments. As a result of this trip, General Blood made the following report to the Governor:—

By the end of October the nights had become chilly, and although bed sacks and extra blankets were issued to the men, it was difficult to keep warm. Americus, Georgia, had been designated in orders as the future home of the Eighth Massachusetts and Twelfth New York and a detail from the Eighth was already upon the ground preparing a camp site.

Orders were issued for the Eighth to entrain on November 10th for Americus, and upon this date the regiment was transferred to the Second Brigade, Second Division, First Army Corps. The regiment had been ordered to entrain early in the morning near the Montrose station, but owing to the delay in loading the baggage of Brigade Headquarters, it was impossible for the Quartermaster of the Eighth to begin loading his baggage before afternoon.

The regiment had risen early, and had its breakfast before 5 o'clock, and in compliance with orders, all baggage had been packed and transported to the station. The day was cold and raw, and a steady downpour of rain had converted the camp site into a mass of mud. Tents had been struck and shipped to the station, and the men were required to remain on the camp ground all day without food or shelter, waiting for the passenger sections to pull in from Lexington.

Many of the men in their efforts to keep warm, drank too much whiskey, and a large number in the regiment became sadly demoralized. The guard house, a wooden structure, was set on fire, and some of the prisoners had a narrow escape from cremation. The event was known[111] as the evacuation of Lexington. The troop trains did not arrive until after dark, when the regiment embarked, and for the first time since five in the morning, the men were served with food and hot coffee. The departure from Lexington was sad and dispiriting and was made under trying conditions.

[112]
[113]

Americus

[114]
[115]

When the regiments of the Second Division were moved from Lexington, they were assigned to camps in southwestern Georgia, in the cities of Macon, Columbus, Americus and Albany. The Eighth Massachusetts and the Twelfth New York went to Americus, where three regimental camp sites had been prepared, and orders were issued for the Eighth United States Infantry to join the brigade. This order was countermanded, and no other regiments went to Americus.

On the morning of November 12th, the four sections bearing the Eighth Massachusetts and its impedimenta reached Americus. The two camp sites were about a mile from the city, and separated by the highway. The Eighth was assigned to a large sodded field, where substantial wooden company sinks had been constructed, water pipes laid to each company kitchen, and an electric street lighting system was being installed.

For a week the men of the Eighth were as industrious as ants. Each company erected a long shed at the foot of the company street, one end of which was closed in for a kitchen, in which was assembled every convenience for preparing food. The rest of the shed was used as a mess house, and furnished with long deal tables and benches, where the men could sit and enjoy their meals. Canvas awnings were attached to the long sides of the mess hall, to be used as a protection against rain and wind.

Deep pits were dug for kitchen sinks. These were covered with tree trunks and the dirt replaced and carefully arranged in a mound. A detachable hopper was[116] placed in the top of each mound to drain liquid wastes into the sinks; the solids were than collected in closed iron cans, and were carted twice daily to a crematory. The hoppers were enclosed in wooden boxes with covers, which were always resplendent with a fresh coat of whitewash.

Long wash stands were constructed with an overflow trough into the kitchen sinks. A pipe ran the length of these stands, with frequent faucets and iron wash basins. Each company was supplied with a bathing tent in which a shower bath was constructed, where the men could bathe every day if they so desired, and were required to bathe twice a week. Tent floors were provided, and lumber for bunks and clothing racks. A system of drainage was installed, and each company street ditched and crowned to the center.

Battalion water plants were constructed, where all the water supplied to the regiment for drinking purposes was boiled, filtered and iced.

The means for caring for the sick were excellent. In addition to a regimental hospital, used as a dispensary, but supplied with quarters sufficient to care for a number of men, there was a brigade hospital located in a dwelling house, and adjacent to this were erected a number of hospital tents with double boarded floors, and with sides also boarded, so that patients were as comfortable in the mild climate of Georgia as if they had been in the best managed institution of the kind in Boston. The Brigade Hospital was in charge of Major William Cogswell.

A building was erected for a post exchange, which was successfully operated by a council of officers consisting of Captains Alexander G. Perkins of Company A, William C. Dow of Company F, and Edward J. Horton of Company G. All necessaries that were needed by the men[117] were offered for sale here at reasonable rates, and its restaurant became famous for egg sandwiches and oyster stews. All these paraphernalia of comfort and health were daily inspected by company commanders, battalion commanders, regimental commander, and the brigade commander.

Just before Thanksgiving, Colonel Arnold A. Rand of Boston, visited the camp and reported its condition to Governor Wolcott. He said:—

The men were allowed much liberty between drills, and passes were issued to visit the city during the day. Many side trips were made to Andersonville to visit the site of the celebrated prison where many Federal soldiers were confined during the Civil War. Order was preserved in Americus by a provost guard, under command of Lieutenant George H. Dow of Company A. This guard arrested all soldiers found in the city without proper passes, and returned them to the guard houses of their respective regiments for trial for absence without leave.

The camp at Americus was at first named in honor of Major Forse. The name was subsequently changed to[118] Camp Gilman, as another camp had earlier received the name of Camp Forse.

During the first few days at Americus, the Eighth was greeted with many showers. The weather, however, was so mild that the men did not wear overcoats except as a protection against the rain. During the entire stay of the Eighth, wildflowers and roses were in full bloom.

On one side of the camp an extensive cotton field waved acres of bolls, breaking into white flowering balls, which at a distance looked like a sea of white roses. It is said that the low prices of cotton did not warrant picking this field, and it was left intact and beautified the approach to camp.

At no great distance were fields of sugar cane fit for harvesting, where the men were often welcomed and treated to a supply of chewing cane for the company. A solitary peanut farm was discovered by some of the soldiers in their peregrinations, and its product brought to camp.

The Georgia pines attracted much attention. Many of these trees were transplanted and grouped about the camp for landscape effect. Every line officer had one at his front door.

All the officers constructed wooden porches in front of their tents. The porch had two faces, in one of which was a door, and in the other a glass window. The interior space between the two faces was utilized for a Sibley stove, and the pipe was carried through the wooden roof of the porch. All these porches were whitewashed. A line of officers' tents looked like a row of diminutive cottages, and in the morning when every funnel was smoking, suggested the busy preparation of breakfast in many little homes.

The officers of the regiment, however, messed together[119] in a commodious building, which was divided into a dining hall and kitchen. The dining hall was also used as a regimental school room, and as a place for social meeting in the evening.

On one occasion a birthday dinner was given in this hall at which a historic cake figured. A lady sent this cake with an appropriate number of candles to one of the officers, and by way of a joke, wrote a letter to the Secretary of War, pretending to be the officer's sister, and asked to have the regiment held at Americus until her brother got his cake. This letter was preserved by Secretary Alger as a bonafide communication, and was later commented upon in his history of the War with Spain as follows:—

During the first few weeks at Americus, the camp was overrun with colored people. They came from far and near to see the soldiers. Many of them carried covered[120] baskets, and it was not long before a well-founded suspicion grew, that many of these baskets came into camp empty, and went out filled with plunder. The Eighth soon had a little race problem of its own to solve. In each company a squad of strong men assumed the duty of elevating the colored race.

The process of elevation consisted in capturing every colored man with a covered basket, and tossing him on a blanket into the air, until the arms of the soldiers got tired, and they could keep it up no longer. The sight of a negro with a basket was the signal for a rush in his direction with a blanket, and he was soon traveling skyward, in spite of every objection on his part to such treatment. For a few days, every such colored visitor was received in the open arms of a regulation blanket.

As objectionable visitors became scarce, and covered baskets disappeared, this moral propaganda ceased, and as far as the Eighth was concerned, the race problem was solved.

Major Edward H. Eldredge was detailed by General Waites to select a rifle range for the entire brigade. He selected one about half a mile from the camp, where targets were installed under his direction at 200 and 500 yards. It was reported that the regiment was to be armed with the Krag-Jorgensen rifles before the command was sent to Cuba, and it was the intention to have the soldiers spend a portion of each day at the range.

On November 20th, General Sanger arrived to relieve General Waites of the command of the Second Brigade. Under General Sanger, active preparations were at once begun for Cuba. Medical inspections were instituted to weed out officers and men unfit for foreign service. The regiment received a consignment of Krag-Jorgensen rifles,[121] and its supplies generally were overhauled and replenished. General Sanger made a thorough inspection of the regiment by battalions. This inspection lasted three days. Permission was obtained from the Adjutant-General of the Army to recruit the regiment to full strength, by transferring men from regiments in Massachusetts not yet mustered out. A number of men who served in Porto Rico with the Sixth Massachusetts, and were at home waiting muster out, were transferred to the Eighth under this permission, and joined the regiment in December and January.

On December 9th, General Wilson, the Corps Commander, and General Ludlow, the Division Commander, visited Americus to inspect the brigade. Owing to a severe storm, the review of the troops was omitted; but the camp was thoroughly inspected by the Generals.

At the hospital of the Eighth, General Wilson said to the officer in charge:—"Surgeon, this is a model hospital, because it has no patients." The health of the regiment had steadily improved since the end of the first month at Lexington, and on the morning of this inspection there were just 1000 men present for duty with the colors. On December 27th, for the first time in seven months, there was not a single soldier of the Eighth in either the Regimental, Brigade, or Division Hospital.

On December 12th the mess-house of Company L burned. A kettle of fat boiled into the fire, and the flames quickly caught the roof of the kitchen and spread, exploding a can of kerosene. The building was soon wrapped in a sheet of flames. The regiment turned out and saved the adjoining buildings, but the mess house, with all the company [122]supplies, was a total loss. The men of L were assigned to other companies for rations, until a new dining hall and kitchen were constructed.

About this time, Company L met with another loss, in the death of its mascot. The company had appropriated a young razor-back at Chickamauga, which, becoming attached to the company, followed it from camp to camp. He lived in the company street and was as familiar with the men as a well-trained dog. By Thanksgiving, the pig had grown to such proportions that he was ordered by higher authority, turned over to a butcher and served to the company as rations.

Company F had a lady goat as a mascot. She went through the service with the company, and was finally mustered out in Haverhill, where her descendents are numerous. The goat would follow the drum corps anywhere as long as it was marching away from camp, but immediately the direction was taken towards camp, the goat became obdurate and had to be pulled home.

Just before Thanksgiving, the Colonel received the following telegram from Captain Augustus P. Gardner:—

The proper answer was promptly wired, and the regimental commissary was sent into market to purchase turkeys and all that goes to make up a best Thanksgiving dinner. A similar dinner was furnished to the regiment at Christmas time by Hon. George von L. Meyer. These feasts were much appreciated by the men and were enjoyed amidst much merry making.

About this time several changes occurred among the commissioned officers, Captain Frank B. Denning and[123] Lieutenant Linville H. Wardwell of Company C leaving the service by resignation. Second Lieutenants F. A. DeSousa of Company E and David F. Jewell of Company F were promoted to first lieutenants. The former was assigned to Company I and the latter to Company K.

At the same time First Sergeant Loran J. Harvey of Company I, and Sergeant Alexander Robertson of Company E were commissioned as second lieutenants, after a competitive examination. The former was attached to Company E and the latter to Company F.

On December 22nd the weather bureau, predicting a great storm, sent a telegram of warning to all the military camps. The telegram to the Eighth stated that the thermometer would drop 30 degrees. Not knowing just what to do with this information, the Colonel directed it to be published at evening parade. At evening parade, the orders of the day were read by the Adjutant, and on this occasion the telegram was read as the last part of the daily order; then followed the usual phraseology,—"By order of Colonel Pew." The reading of this telegram at the end of an order, caused considerable amusement in camp, at the idea that Colonel Pew would order the thermometer to drop 30 degrees.

A flag pole was furnished the regiment and erected near the center of the camp. On December 28th a garrison flag was received and broken out from this pole with appropriate ceremonies. Thereafter, at reveille and retreat it was hoisted and lowered. The flag and pole were carried to and used in Cuba. On being mustered out, the flag was presented to the regiment, and is now preserved at regimental headquarters.

During this stay at Americus, Major Frank A. Graves and Captain Charles T. Hilliker of Company D were ab[124]sent from the regiment most of the time on court martial duty at Columbus.

A common diversion in southern Georgia is cock fighting. Many mains were attended by members of the regiment. A number of officers were presented with railroad passes, and invited to go to Savannah to see a review of part of the Seventh Corps, previous to its embarkation for Havana. Permission was obtained for about 20 officers to make this trip. The train left Americus at midnight, but through some misunderstanding, the officers assembled at the hotel about 7 o'clock, and had an evening upon their hands.

One of the officers, thinking cock fighting was not tabooed by law, and having been told by a prominent citizen that a main could be arranged on short notice at any time, called up the citizen by telephone in the hotel lobby, and invited him to bring the cocks to the hotel and begin at once. He was promptly suppressed by the hotel proprietor, and the law explained to him. A quiet, gentlemanly main was tolerated, but not a public and bold defiance of the law.

A quiet, gentlemanly main was accordingly arranged for in a large upper room, occupied by the grand jury as sleeping apartments, while they were supposed to be engaged in an all-night session at the Court House. Various mysterious bundles were smuggled into these quarters by darkies, the windows were darkened, cocks were heeled, and fighting was soon in progress. After several fights had been pulled off, word came that the grand jury was about to leave the Court House, and retire for the night. There was a wild scramble to put the place in order, and a hurried exit of cocks and darkies. The officers brought up the rear of this retreat, and wished the grand jury a[125] pleasant night's rest as they passed them in the hotel corridors.

About the middle of December, General Ludlow, who commanded the Division, was ordered to Havana as a military governor. His place was taken by General Sanger, and the command at Americus devolved upon Colonel Pew.

Conical tents were issued in sufficient quantity to equip half the command. This was the regiment's first experience with khaki canvas. Company commanders were loath to substitute them for the wall tents which they had been using. Accordingly each company was required to erect these tents on one side of the company street. After the first night, almost every company commander informed headquarters that he had no objections to having his whole command in conical tents. It did not take the men long to discover the advantages of khaki canvas, and that they could burn a light behind it after taps, with no fear of detection. Conical tents at once became popular in all the companies.

On December 23rd, the Twelfth New York received orders to proceed to Charleston and embark with General Sanger for Matanzas. Major Eldredge was detached from the regiment to accompany General Sanger as a member of his staff. The command of the Third Battalion was assumed by Captain William C. Dow, of Company F. The New York regiment left Americus the day after Christmas. Fifty-four men and one officer remained behind as unfit for foreign service, and were temporarily attached to the Eighth until they could be mustered out.

On December 30th, the Eighth received orders to prepare for Cuba. They reported 40 officers, 1112 men, 29[126] wagons, 119 mules, 26 horses, and 26 civilian employees, with all necessary supplies ready to move at once.

At this time, when the regiment was anxious to move, and congratulating itself on the absence of all sickness, measles broke out. The matter was kept quiet, and every company was inspected by the surgeons twice daily, to detect and isolate suspected cases. The surgeons thought the spread of the disease could be stopped if everything in camp was boiled.

The last day of the year was as mild and pleasant as a summer day in the North. Early in the morning, active preparations began for boiling. Everything that could hold and boil water, was called into service. Caldrons, pots, pans, and kettles, were soon steaming all over the camp. Visitors were excluded for the day, and by noon time the whole regiment had committed its belongings to boiling water.

A naked drum corps furnished music for a couple of hours, and the men danced about like a mob of naked savages. At a distance, passing natives gathered on the highway and wondered what it was all about. The colored people were willing to believe that the evil one was at the bottom of it all. After the regiment had boiled itself free from germs, the guard was relieved, and went through the same process.

Everything in the regiment which could stand boiling, was boiled, and everything which could not stand a soaking was otherwise disinfected. Measles were thoroughly stamped out, and at the end of a week when the regiment left for Cuba, but five men remained behind for this reason.

On January 4th a large delegation of citizens visited camp to say good-bye. After evening parade Colonel Lane,[127] in behalf of the City of Americus, addressed the regiment. He spoke in laudatory terms concerning the conduct of the soldiers, and how the presence of Massachusetts troops in Georgia had created new bonds of sympathy between North and South.

Colonel Lane had requisitioned a wagon as a convenient platform from which to address the soldiers. Many citizens had come in carriages, and these carriages were wedged in about the orator, facing the regiment. At the conclusion of Colonel Lane's remarks, Drum Major Thomas, catching the enthusiasm of the moment, caused the drum corps to break into "Dixie" under the very noses of several hundred horses. Horses turned short in their shafts, and stampeded to the rear, the orator's platform slid from under him, and it was some time before the ceremonies of leave taking could be resumed with proper decorum.

The next evening the regiment returned the courtesy of this call by marching into town and holding an evening parade in the public square. On the return to camp, it found that Harry E. Stiles, its bandmaster in the Militia service, had reported for duty, to organize a band and accompany the regiment to Cuba.

More changes among the commissioned officers occurred during this month. Lieutenant Eugene Larrivee of Company L resigned. Chaplain George D. Sanders, who had resigned, was re-commissioned and rejoined the regiment. Lieutenant John M. Pettengill of Company B was promoted to captain and assigned to Company C. Second Lieutenants Frank Stinson of Company B and Frederic P. Smith of Company C were each made first lieutenants in their companies.

First Sergeant Edgar J. Whelpley of Company H,[128] First Sergeant James W. Jackman of Company K, Sergeant Charles R. Warner of Company I and Sergeant William H. Clendennin of Company M were commissioned second lieutenants. Lieutenant Whelpley went to Company C, Lieutenant Jackman to Company B, Lieutenant Warner to Company G and Lieutenant Clendennin to Company L.

On January 6th the First Battalion under command of Lieutenant Colonel Stopford, entrained for Savannah, where it embarked on board the transport Obdam. It broke camp during a rain storm on the coldest day the regiment had experienced in Georgia.

As soon as the Twelfth New York left, Colonel Pew began to collect a supply of lumber for use in Cuba. The buildings which this regiment had occupied were pulled down, and every board washed with a solution of corrosive sublimate. Two cars were obtained and loaded to accompany the regiment.

On the evening of January 8th the Second and Third Battalions and Headquarters entrained for Savannah. The most of January 9th was spent in being shifted about in the freight yards at Savannah. A casual visitor to one of the sections told the officers that the ground in the yard where they were was so saturated with pine pitch, that a lighted match dropped would start a conflagration. One of the officers, thinking to call this bluff, made an experiment. The visitor had told the truth, and the regiment had a conflagration on its hands. The flames licked up the ground as if it had been saturated with kerosene. The soldiers were powerless to stop the fire with the means at their disposal. The railroad fire department appeared with chemical tanks, and soon had it under control, before any damage had been done, except blistering a few cars.

[129]

In Savannah the Colonel received a letter from Major Eldredge, telling him the character of the camp site the regiment was to occupy at Matanzas. The Major suggested the men would have to use iron tent pins and do some blasting to make their Cuban home comfortable. The Depot Quartermaster at Savannah was called upon and furnished a supply of drills, sledge hammers, powder and iron rods. The soldiers spent most of the night in the cars, while details were loading supplies onto the transport. At 3 o'clock on the morning of January 10th, the men began to embark, and at daylight the transport Michigan had cast off, and was slowly steaming down the river. At last the regiment was off for Cuba.

Eighth Regiment Camp at Matanzas, Cuba

[130]
[131]

Matanzas

[132]
[133]

On January 10th the Obdam bearing the First Battalion of the Eighth, came to anchor at Matanzas, in a wide, shallow bay, where ships lie a mile or more off shore to discharge. Hills topped with palms, rose on either side of the city, which spread out on a strip of land between two little rivers, and straggled up the slopes, until the stone houses of the town proper gave place to palm thatched huts on the outskirts. The city upon a close inspection, was dirty and battered, but from the sea its pink and blue walls presented a picturesque appearance.

General Wilson, the Military Governor, and his staff, immediately landed, and were received by the Twelfth New York. The men of the Eighth witnessed this function from a distance. They were kept on the transport during the day, while their baggage was landed.

The military camps were located on the western shore of the bay, where the northeast trades blow continually across the bay from the open ocean, always insuring pure air. It was a scant mile from the city, and pipes from the municipal water service were laid, insuring a bountiful supply of water.

The camp of the Eighth lay behind the old Spanish Fort San Severino, and between the camp of the engineer battalion, and the Twelfth New York. A broad boulevard in a bad state of repair extended from the old fort to the town. All the troops were encamped along this boulevard, on ground that for rockiness and general hardness of appearance, outclassed any perpendicular farm in New England.

The rocks were of coral and volcanic origin, thrown up[134] ages ago, and appeared above the surface in many fantastic shapes. Every square yard had its share of rock jutting above the red soil in sharp pinnacles. The ground had been covered with brush and cactus, but the engineers had been at work during the week prior to the arrival of the Obdam, clearing this away, so that when the First Battalion landed, it found the ground cleared of all vegetation.

The landing was made at a small wharf near the fort, and a few steps across the dilapidated boulevard, brought the men to their future home. The regiment had an excellent site, the bay lay before it, and the ground rose in terraces from the water until it terminated in a range of hills a mile back of the camp.

Major Eldredge who had preceded the regiment as a member of General Sanger's staff, received the public property turned over to the United States by Spain, in accordance with the evacuation agreement, in Matanzas, and later in the City of Cardenas and other towns in the province. When the regiment arrived, he was busily engaged at Matanzas in establishing charities, and in reorganizing the police department. The country about the city, as in other parts of Cuba, was a waste, and the people were in a destitute condition. It was the first duty of the United States to care for the people, and supply them with food.

While the First Battalion was locating itself at Matanzas, the Second and Third Battalions were enjoying a delightful voyage. During the whole trip the sea was calm, and the Michigan glided along as smoothly as any pleasure yacht upon a summer cruise. Very few men complained of sea sickness, and soon got over any unpleasant feeling, and enjoyed the trip.

[135]

It was warm and stuffy where they were quartered in the hold, but their discomfort vanished with daylight, when they climbed on deck to loll in the shade and enjoy the steady northeast trade. The Michigan was formerly a freight vessel of the Warren Line, used as a cattle boat to carry live stock to England.

The enlisted men were assigned quarters between decks. There were no berths, but each man was furnished with a duck hammock, which at night was hung on hooks in wooden uprights. These hammocks were hung in tiers, one over the other. In the morning the hammocks were rolled and stored, and the quarters prepared for inspection, which took place twice daily, at 10 A. M., and just before retreat. These inspections were made by the Colonel, accompanied by the transport quartermaster, the police officer, medical officer, and master of the ship. After the morning inspection, daily exercise was required on deck.

Sometime during the day every man had a bath. They stripped on the forward deck, and were pumped upon with a stream of water from the ocean.

The officers quarters were as cramped as those of the men. There were only ten state rooms. The ships guard consisted of one company detailed for each day, the captain acting as officer of the day, and the lieutenants as officers of the guard. Each company commander provided his command with proper police utensils from the ships quartermaster, and looked after the policing of the company quarters. Cooking was done in the ship's galleys. During the trip, Stiles commenced work with the musicians on board, for the new regimental band. This nucleus had band practice every day.

During the second day the transport steamed along the[136] Florida coast within sight of a continuous stretch of beach sand and palm groves. At Jupiter Inlet a salute was exchanged with some guns mounted near the summer hotels, and the ship went so near the shore that the winter visitors could be counted on the hotel piazzas.

Late in the afternoon of the 12th, the first glimpse was caught of Cuba. During the night the transport lay off shore waiting for a pilot. On the morning of the 13th, a pilot came on board and the vessel steamed into the Bay of Matanzas, and came to anchor about two miles from the city. A guard detail was immediately placed upon the small wharf near San Severino to guard the baggage as it was landed. Details were made to clear up the ship and assist in discharging baggage and live stock.

As soon as the sentries were posted on the wharf, the soldiers began to be lightered to the shore. A corral was established near the wharf, where the horses and mules were soon assembled. Before night the men on the Michigan were landed, and had joined their comrades of the First Battalion in a pup camp, between the Boulevard and the water, under the walls of San Severino.

For a week the soldiers of the Eighth were busy preparing their new camp. Large hospital tents were issued to the command. Each company was divided into squads of six men under a corporal, and assigned to a tent. These tents were large enough to accommodate ten men, and in them seven men had all the room they required. A large fly was issued with each tent. As it was impossible to drive tent pins, large joists were used in the framing of the tent floors, and portions of these joists were extended on either side, to which the guy ropes were attached. The tent floors were laid about a foot above the surface of the[137] ground on posts. To every man there was issued a Gold Medal cot.

Each company, with the lumber brought from Americus, erected a frame mess house with substantial flooring, and constructed mess tables and seats. The roofs of these mess houses were covered with canvas, and in the rear of each a kitchen was built. The quarters of the battalion commanders were upon a terrace slightly raised above the level of the line officers street. Behind this terrace was another, the center of which was occupied by Regimental headquarters. On one side of this terrace, a Regimental hospital was established, and on the other end, a stable with a canvas roof for the horses and mules.

The greatest difficulty was experienced in constructing roads through this camp. The rocks cropped out in points, which had to be broken with sledge hammers, or blasted with powder. Major Graves performed the important duties of superintendent of streets, and soon had a beautiful macadamized road running the whole length of the camp in front of the line officers quarters.

From the center of this road, a well constructed way led to the field officers terrace, and to the corral on the headquarters terrace. Each company street was also macadamized. The rough pointed stones which had been broken off were laid as a foundation and gravel and sand were brought in as a covering. These roads were crowned in the center, and were a most creditable production, and the source of much favorable comment and praise. Major Graves was often congratulated upon the work of his new department.

The gray walls of San Severino early attracted the attention of the soldiers. It was an old Spanish fort[138] erected to defend the approach to Matanzas, and had just been evacuated by Spanish troops.

The Cuban visitors to camp who could make themselves understood, spread harrowing tales of death recently inflicted upon insurgents within its gloomy masonry. The old fort had been standing for centuries, and looked to the imagination like a suitable home for any kind of horror or torture. The tales told were to the effect that insurgents were often lined up in squads against the walls and shot to death, or decapitated and their bodies thrown into the bay. A special wall in the counterscarp was pointed out as the execution place.

The American soldiers, ever on the outlook for souvenirs, succeeded in probing many battered bullets from the coral masonry of this wall, which were sent home as evidence of these tales. The fort was soon occupied and used as a military prison.

Lieutenant James H. Craig of Company L was detailed as its first commander, and under him the casements were made habitable for its guards, and for the prisoners awaiting general court martial or serving sentences. An old piece of Spanish ordnance was mounted on the parapet and did duty for a sunrise and sunset gun.

This picturesque pile was always in the foreground of any outlook from the camp of the Eighth, and under its shade the men loafed, or took they daily dip in the waters of the bay. All shipping passed the fort or lay at anchor under its guns. In the morning or at night the water in front of it was alive with birds and pelicans, diving for food, with great fish bags hanging from their lower jaws, and in the lazy afternoons, these same birds were seen perched on pieces of flotsam taking siestas.

A few miles across the bay the walls of a settlement said[139] to be occupied by Cuban insurgents, broke with a broad band of glittering white between the bright blue of the water, and the green expanse of grass and palms, which on rolling hills, rose to meet the blue sky on a distant horizon. The steady trade wind, beginning about eight in the morning, and dying away just before sunset, rendered life in the shade of the fort pleasant and comfortable, however high the thermometer mounted in the sun.

As soon as the camp was put in condition, military work outside of guard and provost duty was usually performed in the early morning or late afternoon. During the middle of the day officers and men had leisure to enjoy the pleasure of just living and being in the tropics.

Much of the hard work in unloading transports and getting the camp sites ready for occupation was done by Cubans in the employ of the government. Some two hundred of these worked about the camps in squads, under the charge of non-commissioned officers from the engineer battalion. A large number were employed in cleaning up the city, and putting it in a sanitary condition. Much work was undertaken by the government to furnish employment to the poor.

Lieutenant Colonel William Stopford was appointed general police officer for all the camps, and had quite a force of civilian employees under him. In his sanitary work he was charged with the duty of destroying the many reconcentrado huts that had been constructed on the outskirts of the town. The sides of these huts were made of dried palm bark, and the roofs were thatched with palm leaves. They had been built by the poor country people compelled to come within the lines of concentration by the Spanish soldiery. Their owners were usually glad to take the fifteen dollars offered by the government and move[140] out. The purchase and moving out process was completed in a few minutes, and the evacuated homes set on fire.

There was a great deal of destitution throughout the cities and towns of Matanzas Province. Most of the towns had been occupied as fortified camps by the Spanish troops, and the people of the surrounding country had been brought within the limits of the camps to prevent their helping the insurgents.

The food supply was inadequate to support the population herded together in this way, and there were many deaths from starvation, and great mortality, especially among the children. Committees were formed throughout the Province for the purpose of getting food to these people. Captain Horace S. Bean of Company B was sent into the interior to organize these committees and superintend the distribution.

Chaplain George D. Sanders was detailed on special duty as chairman of the commission on charities and corrections for the District, where he served with much credit until mustered out.

Many poor people came to the camp to collect scraps of food that were thrown away. They were mostly children and were not burdened with much covering. They were special objects of pity to the soldiers, who supplied them with food and clothing. After the depots were opened in the city for the distribution of food, people were forbidden, for sanitary reasons, assembling about the mess houses.

The men were annoyed by other visitors for whom they had no compassion. There was a large variety of bugs and insects that made their homes among the coral rocks. Centipedes and tarantulas were especially unwelcome, as they formed the unpleasant habit of spending the night[141] in flannel shirt sleeves and trouser legs, and resented being disturbed in the morning when the owner put on his clothing. Fortunately, their bites, although very painful, were not deadly. It was soon discovered that they disliked tent floors which had been washed with a solution of corrosive sublimate, and after a while these pests either died, or migrated to other quarters, where they were treated to less frequent doses of corrosive sublimate.

Everything in the City of Matanzas, including streets, people, buildings and language, were at first matters of great curiosity to the soldiers. The city was supposed to have a population of some 40,000, and was the chief sea port and capital of the province bearing the same name. The streets were narrow and ill kept. The sidewalks were not over two and a half feet wide, and most of the roadways were so rough that it would be impossible to drive a light American wagon over them without great discomfort.

The houses were mostly alike, built of stone or stucco, and many were colored a light blue or pink. They were built about a square court yard, and usually not over two stories in height. The front of the houses were flush with the sidewalks, and the windows barred on the outside. No glass was used, but behind the iron bars, were shutters, which, when opened, permitted anyone in the street to look upon the family life within the front room. The front door was usually large enough to allow a carriage to enter the house, and opened into a passageway leading to a court. The kitchen was in the corner of this court, or in a covered way leading into a back court. This back court was sometimes used as a stable, and the exit from the stable was through the court and front door of the house. Charcoal brasiers were used exclusively for cooking, and a stove was unknown. The sleeping rooms were usually[142] upon the second floor, and opened upon a balcony, which ran around three sides of the court. In the better class of houses there was usually a fountain in the court, surrounded by flowers and shrubbery.

Owing to the absence of decent roads, everything brought from the country had to be carried upon pack horses. The milk dealers carried their cans in the pouches of a huge saddle placed upon a very small horse. Fodder was carried through the streets on similar saddles, and a horse bearing a load of grass, looked as if he was going to a masquerade disguised as a hay cock. Venders peddled bunches of poultry tied together by the legs, and fishermen went about carrying blue lobsters hanging by their tails from sticks, and advertised their wares in shrill invitations to buy "langostas frescas."

Life in the streets and in the stores, the manner of preparing and marketing foods, the different business methods, and the Spanish language as a setting to all this strangeness, was new and interesting. The men enjoyed the custom of storekeepers charging different prices to officers and enlisted men over the same counter for the same article, and the bland way a haberdasher would meet an officer's protest, by telling him that everything ought to cost him more, as his pay was larger. On Sunday, the only places of business closed were the U. S. Quartermaster and Commissary Depots.

Sunday afternoons and evenings were holidays for everyone except the storekeepers, and during Lent the streets were filled with masqueraders. This manner of life was new to the men from New England. Passes to visit the city were freely issued, when not interfering with military duty, and men with good records were allowed to visit Havana for a few days.

[143]

The City Hall in Matanzas, known as the Municipal Palace, was situated on the Plaza in the middle of the city. The Plaza was planted with palms and other tropical trees, and was the center of business and social life. In the evening, one of the military bands furnished music, and the citizens promenaded or gathered about the tables in the restaurants, whose many open doors made them a continuation of the sidewalk. The buildings facing the square were stately and picturesque, and in the evening when the Plaza was thronged with merry groups, and the electric lamps sparkled among trees and fountains, life seemed very gay and foreign.

The provost guard was always on duty, and patrolled the streets to maintain order. During the last of the stay at Matanzas, Major Eldredge acted as Provost Marshal, and Companies M, E, K, and H were detached from the regiment as a permanent part of his guard, and were quartered in the old Spanish barracks.

On January 20th, the Cubans began a celebration in honor of independence. No restrictions were placed upon these festivities, but troops were held in readiness to suppress disorder. Many cruelties had been inflicted upon the people of Matanzas by representatives of the Spanish Government, and intense hatred was manifested against the power that repressed them so long. As many Spaniards remained in the city, it was feared, in the enthusiasm of the celebration, some outburst of violence might occur against them. General Betancourt, who commanded the Cuban insurgents, assured General Wilson that his people were too happy to commit any breach of the peace.

Orders were issued to the troops in camp that a single gun fired from San Severino, was the signal to assemble, and that any disturbance was to be at once suppressed. At[144] the end of the boulevard, near its entrance to the city, a marble statute of Alphonse XII, King of Spain, was walled up in a brick casing to hide it, and preserve it as a work of art against vandalism.

The celebration was held in a most peaceable and orderly manner, and was a joyful expression of gratitude for deliverance from oppression. Extensive preparations were made by the people; public and private buildings were decorated, and numerous arches spanned the streets, bearing appropriate inscriptions in both Spanish and English. One arch bore the inscription, "Hurrah for us." The word "us" painted in small letters, referred to the United States, and was evidently the way the author remembered the marks on Government property. The American and Cuban flags were waved together throughout the city.

The exercises commenced with a street parade of Cuban troops, the fire department, school children and citizens. The Eighth Drum Corps did duty at the head of the insurgent soldiers. In the afternoon, vespers were held in the Cathedral, and at night there was a display of fireworks and general public rejoicing throughout the city.

An interesting feature of the celebration took place the next day opposite the camp of the Eighth, where a solemn high mass of requiem was celebrated to the memory of some sixty persons who had been garroted on the spot by the public executioner. These were political prisoners who had suffered in the death chair, by having their necks broken while held in an iron collar, by a screw driven against their spinal cord, and operated on the back of the chair, very much as the screw of a letter press is worked.

An altar, covered with black velvet and decorated with silver fringe, was erected on the site of these executions. The priests and acolytes were dressed in black. During[145] the services the Cuban soldiers rested on their arms, and formed a military guard about the altar. The Eighth Regiment and the Cuban Infantry Bands furnished music for the mass. The relatives of the persons executed attended in deep mourning, and added to the solemnity of the services by their expressions of intense grief. The corner stone of a monument to the memory of these patriots was laid with Catholic ceremonies. A detail from the Engineer Battalion prepared and lowered this stone in place during the ceremonies.

In the afternoon the school children, dressed in American and Cuban colors, led by the Eighth Regiment Drum Corps, paraded and held a festival in the theatre. During the evening there were numerous balls and fetes and further exercises in the theatre. Twenty men from each company were given passes and allowed to go into town. On January 23rd the celebration concluded with a review of all the troops, before the Municipal Palace, to show that the American troops sympathized with the inhabitants in their festivities.

On February 9th, a shot was fired by a member of the Eighth Regiment in the discharge of his duty. It was the stormiest night the regiment experienced in Cuba. About midnight the sentinel in front of the Colonel's quarters thought he saw two men coming from the hills and creeping towards the tents. They refused to halt when challenged. The sentinel rested his rifle over a corner of the tent, with the muzzle a few inches above the Colonel's ear and fired. The sentinel reported that one of the men uttered an exclamation in good strong English, and the two beat a hasty retreat. As an investigation disclosed two goats in rear of the camp, it was generally supposed that the sentinel attributed some general remarks of[146] the Colonel about this occurrence, to one of the goats.

On February 11th all the troops at Matanzas were reviewed by General Breckenridge, Inspector General of the United States Army. The review took place upon the boulevard, and was followed by a careful inspection of the camps. This inspection was thus commented upon in his official report to the War Department:—

On February 20th the Regiment assisted in the reception of General Maximo Gomez, the Commander-in-Chief of the Cuban Army. The men of the Eighth were stationed about five paces apart on each side of the streets leading from the Plaza to the railroad station. An escort consisting of six troops of the Second United States Cavalry, the fire department of the city, societies of citizens, and the school children, all under the command of Colonel Pew, met the General at the station, and conducted him between the lines of the Eighth, to the Municipal Palace. The streets were decorated with flags, and the citizens turned out in holiday apparel. The General was received with all the honors due his exalted station and standing in the island. Enthusiasm was unbounded, and the Cuban General appeared much moved by the ovation accorded him along the entire route.

Flowers were showered upon him from the balconies,[147] and flags were everywhere waved. The General was slight in stature, appeared about seventy years of age, and was mounted on a handsome Cuban charger.

As the procession passed, the members of the Eighth fell in behind and brought up the rear in columns of fours. At the Municipal Palace the General reviewed the troops forming his escort. General Gomez remained in the city a number of days, and upon leaving was escorted to the railroad station by the Eighth.

During his stay, he visited the camps and spent some time at the target range, which had been installed under the direction of Major Eldredge. The General tried his hand at shooting, and received an excellent score card from Lieutenant Craig, who was in charge of the range. His visit was made the occasion of a reception and ball given at the theatre, by all the officers of the Garrison. This ball was the social function of the season, and was in acknowledgment of the many courtesies extended to the officers by the citizens of Matanzas.

The Twelfth New York was the first Volunteer Regiment to leave Matanzas. When the transport which was to carry it home, arrived in the bay, the band of the Eighth paraded through the line officers street, and company after company fell in and marched to the camp of the Twelfth to show the good feeling existing between the regiments. While marching over the band played "On the Bowery." As the column passed through the camp of the Twelfth, its band got together and joined the band of the Eighth on the march back, playing "Home, Sweet Home." The men of the two regiments fell in together behind the bands, and after marching through both camps, halted in the open space between the camps while the bands played "Auld Lang Syne."

[148]

On March 21st the Eighth, after evening parade, escorted the Twelfth New York to the wharf, where it embarked in lighters to go on board the transport "Meade", which sailed the following day.

On March 27th, orders were issued for the Eighth to be mustered out in Boston. On April 2nd, the transport "Meade" returned from New York, and the Eighth was ordered to embark the following day. In the evening the officers, with the band, called upon General Sanger to pay respects for the last time to their chief. During most of their service, they had served in his command. They appreciated the efforts he had made to maintain their health, and held in high esteem his qualities as an officer and soldier.

On the afternoon of April 3rd the post flag was lowered in the camp of the Eighth, and the regiment, numbering 46 officers and 1177 men, embarked. Early the next morning the transport steamed out of Matanzas Bay, and the foreign service of the regiment was ended.

Just before sailing, a messenger from the Municipal Government of Matanzas presented the Colonel with an official copy of a proclamation, which had been adopted and issued by the city the preceding day.

[150]
[151]

Muster Out

[152]
[153]

The trip to Boston was uneventful, except that sea sickness among the cooks and the novelty of handling rations on board ship, somewhat disarranged the commissary department.

Early Sunday morning, April 9th, Boston Light was sighted. At quarantine, Governor Wolcott boarded the ship bringing the welcome of the Commonwealth. In the afternoon the regiment disembarked at the New England docks, and marched to the South Armory. A salute was tendered the Mayor at City Hall, and the Governor at the State House. There was a tremendous outpouring of people to welcome the troops, and their demonstration was magnificent. The soldiers marching with rhythmic swing and perfect alignment, and their brown, hearty and healthy appearance, testified to the drill and discipline they had undergone during their term of service. The regiment was furloughed to report at the South Armory on April 12th, and the companies were dismissed to their home stations, where they were received with great demonstrations of joy and many impromptu celebrations.

On April 12th the companies reported in Boston. The men were quartered in the South Armory. There was practically nothing for them to do except guard duty and evening parade on Boston Common. This parade daily attracted a large crowd of spectators. The clerical force of each company however, was busy on the muster out rolls, and the quartermaster's department was straightening out its accounts with the government, and getting ready for the final reckoning.

On April 19th the men were dismissed to report on[154] April 28th, which was the day selected for mustering out the regiment.

A day or so previous to muster out a change occurred in the commissioned officers of the regiment. Captain Jacob C. R. Peabody of Company H, resigned to accept a position on General Ludlow's staff. First Lieutenant Augustus G. Reynolds was promoted to captain of the company, and Second Lieutenant William F. Young of Company D became first lieutenant of Company H, while Color Sergeant William F. Marston of Company G was commissioned a second lieutenant in Company D.

On the morning of April 28th the Eighth reported for its last day of duty. It did not take long to set the wheels of mustering out in motion. Every man discharged was given two months extra pay. One hundred eight thousand dollars in gold and silver representing the amount due the men was paid out. There was a large crowd present from all the towns represented by the companies. Captain Erastus M. Weaver officiated as mustering out officer. It took about half an hour to muster out each company, and the work was completed by 5.30.

At the time of muster out, the roster of the regiment was as follows, numerous changes having taken place during its term of service.

Colonel—William A. Pew, Jr. of Salem.

Lieutenant Colonel—William Stopford of Beverly.

Majors—Frank A. Graves of Marblehead, and Edward H. Eldredge of Boston.

Adjutant—Lieutenant Thomas H. Barroll of Boston.

Quartermaster—Lieutenant Charles F. Wonson of Gloucester.

Surgeon—Major William Cogswell of Boston.[155]

Assistant Surgeons—Lieutenant Frank P. T. Logan of Gloucester and Lieutenant Horace Bird Frost of Boston.

Chaplain—Rev. George D. Sanders of Gloucester.

Company A, Newburyport—Captain, Alexander G. Perkins; First Lieutenant, George W. Langdon; Second Lieutenant, George H. Dow.

Company B, Amesbury—Captain, Horace S. Bean; First Lieutenant, Frank Stinson; Second Lieutenant, James W. Jackman.

Company C, Marblehead—Captain, James M. Pettengill; First Lieutenant, Frederic P. Smith; Second Lieutenant, Edgar J. Whelpley.

Company D, Lynn—Captain, Charles T. Hilliker; First Lieutenant, Thomas J. Coby; Second Lieutenant, William F. Marston.

Company E, Beverly—Captain, Frederick W. Stopford; First Lieutenant, Charles H. Farnham; Second Lieutenant, Loran J. Harvey.

Company F, Haverhill—Captain, William C. Dow; First Lieutenant, Per Justus W. Svanberg; Second Lieutenant, Alexander Robertson.

Company G, Gloucester—Captain, Edward J. Horton; First Lieutenant, Charles M. McIsaac; Second Lieutenant, Charles R. Warner.

Company H, Salem—Captain, Augustus G. Reynolds; First Lieutenant, William F. Young; Second Lieutenant, Thomas O. H. Pineau.

Company I, Lynn—Captain, John E. Williams; First Lieutenant, Francisco A. DeSousa; Second Lieutenant, William H. Perry.

Company K, Danvers—Captain, A. Preston Chase;[156] First Lieutenant, David E. Jewell; Second Lieutenant, David F. Whittier.

Company L, Lawrence—Captain, James Forbes; First Lieutenant, James H. Creig; Second Lieutenant, William H. Clendennin.

Company M, Somerville—Captain, Herbert W. Whitten; First Lieutenant, George I. Canfield; Second Lieutenant, Frederick W. Pierce.

With the muster out of Colonel Pew, the Eighth Regiment Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V., ceased to exist, after just a year's service, reckoning from the day the rolls were opened for volunteers. It was in the service longer than any other regiment from Massachusetts, and while it never took part in a battle or skirmish, its record stands second to no other volunteer regiment in the service of the United States.

[157]

Welcome Home

[158]
[159]

No fault could be found by the members of the regiment with the receptions they received upon the return of the companies to the home stations. Although it was Sunday night, the enthusiasm knew no bounds, and in most places a large procession awaited the arrival of the company, took it under escort and started for the armory. Later, in most every place, official receptions were held, but they lacked the spontaneous enthusiasm which marked the welcome home on the arrival of the companies from the South Armory, Boston.

As these receptions took place within the year covered by the service of the regiment, it seems fitting that a brief account of them should find a place in this history of the organization.

Company A of Newburyport reached home about 9.15 o'clock, but its coming had been announced some two hours previously, by the sounding of the militia call on the fire alarm, consequently there was a tremendous crowd at the station, which gave the command a rousing cheer as the men stepped from the train.

A delegation of paraders were awaiting the arrival of the company and the line was soon formed in the following order; Newburyport Cadet Band; Mayor Huse and members of the city government; Company L, Massachusetts Naval Brigade; National Band of Newburyport; Company A, Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V.; Newburyport fire department; Newburyport Bicycle club and Shields Division, A. O. H. The line of march led through the principal streets which were packed with people who cheered and burned red fire as the company[160] passed. Wolfe tavern was finally reached, and there the festivities of the evening ended with a supper served the members of the company.

On April 23, Company A was officially entertained at a banquet which was spread in the armory and to which some 400 people sat down. Mayor Huse presided at the after dinner exercises and there was speaking by prominent citizens.

The Amesbury company, Company B, arrived from Boston at 9.40 o'clock and found a large crowd waiting its arrival, the fire alarm having sounded the warning of the company's approach. All the business houses were brilliantly illuminated and a salute was fired as the train rolled into the station. A parade was formed and passed through the principal streets in the following order; Drum corps; veterans of Company B; E. P. Wallace Post 122, G. A. R.; high school battalion; the fire department and Company B, Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V.

The official welcome home took place on April 26th, when there was a public reception to the members of the company from 4 to 6 o'clock at Armory Hall, followed by a big banquet in the evening, at which time Commander Charles E. Kennard of Post 122, G. A. R. presided and speeches were made by prominent townspeople.

The Grand Army post, headed by a drum corps, and hundreds of the people of Marblehead were at the station to welcome home Company C and gave the members a rousing reception. The company was escorted to Abbot Hall, where H. C. Sparhawk, chairman of the board of selectmen welcomed them home in the name of the town, and Captain Pettengill and Lieutenant Whelpley responded for the company. The men were then dismissed.

On April 14th, the town was alive with bunting and en[161]thusiasm, for this was the day of the official welcoming. A big parade was a feature of the day, the line being formed in the following order: Thomas Swasey, chief marshal, and staff; Excelsior Drum Corps; John Goodwin Post, G. A. R., barge containing crippled Civil War veterans; cannon captured by the U. S. S. Marblehead at Fort Cayo del Torei; Cuban mine pulled up at Guantanamo by the Marblehead, on drays; Company C, Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V.; officers of the fire department in carriages; Pickett Veteran Firemen's Association; Lafayette Brass Band of Salem; members of fire department; Phenix Veteran Firemen's Association; apparatus of the fire department; Thorner's Rough Riders. There was an exhibition drill by Company C, a supper and reception. The day's exercises wound up at Abbot Hall, where Henry C. Sparhawk, of the board of selectmen presided, and speeches were made by various people. Among the incidents of the day was the presentation of a button to every member of the company by the Volunteer Aid Association, through its president, Mrs. Mary E. Graves.

Central Square, Lynn, was black with people awaiting the home-coming of the members of Companies D and I of that city, and every train which passed through with companies aboard, bound homeward, was greeted with loud cheers. Finally, the Lynn companies arrived, and the air was rent with cheers, and excitement was at a high pitch. Cannon boomed and red fire was burned in quantities. Mayor Shepard had met the company at Boston, and found that it was the wish of the men to go directly home, so beyond this outburst of enthusiasm, nothing was done in the way of a welcome, the companies marching directly to the armory, and the men were there dismissed.

On April 13th, however, Lynn people officially received[162] the companies in a manner which will not soon be forgotten. The city was bedecked with bunting, and thousands crowded the streets through which the parade passed, and cheered to the echo the returned war veterans. The parade was formed in the following order: General Charles C. Frye, chief marshal, and staff; Lynn Brass Band; General Lander Post, No. 5, G. A. R.; Lieutenant-Colonel Mudge Camp, Sons of Veterans; Lynn Light Infantry Veteran Association; Wooldredge Cadet Veterans; Lynn Cadet Band; English High School Battalion; Classical High School Battalion; carriages containing Mayor Shepard, and members of the city government; Eighth Massachusetts Infantry; U. S. V. Band; Company I, Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V.; Company D, Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V.; Veterans of Company E, Massachusetts Naval Brigade; Veterans of the Spanish War. A banquet at the State Armory followed, at which time 800 plates were laid and Mayor Shepard acted as toastmaster, and speeches were made by many prominent people, both in military and civil life.

Mayor Benjamin D. Webber, of Beverly, went to Boston as soon as he heard that the Transport Meade was in, and together with other prominent citizens went down the harbor to welcome the members of Company E. A specially chartered tug was used. Learning that the company was to come home that night, he telephoned to Beverly the fact, and upon the arrival of Company E at the station, a large gathering of people was on hand and welcomed the command with three rousing cheers. A parade was formed, consisting of a Drum Corps, Post 89, G. A. R., and John Low Camp, Sons of Veterans, and the line of march taken up for the armory, where there were short speeches, followed by a collation.

[163]

The official celebration in honor of the return of the volunteers took place on April 11th, when a parade was formed in the following order: Captain W. E. Perry, chief marshal, and staff; Beverly Cadet Band; John H. Chipman Post, 89, G. A. R.; John Low Camp, Sons of Veterans; Preston Post, 188, G. A. R; Charles Haddock Camp, Sons of Veterans; barouches containing disabled Civil War veterans and Mayor Webber and members of the city government; Lynn Brass Band; Company E, Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V.; Beverly fire department, apparatus and men; Bass River Lodge, I. O. O. F.; letter carriers; Excelsior Drum Corps; Golden Star Council, O. U. A. M.; Young Men's Catholic Temperance Society; Ancient Order of Hibernians; Bass River Court of Forresters; carriages containing members of Roger Conant Council, Royal Arcanum, and Beverly Lodge, Knights of Pythias; four-horse drag with members of Jubilee Yacht Club; carriages containing citizens.

After the parade, the members of the company enjoyed a New England boiled dinner at the armory, and in the evening attended exercises at the City Hall. Mayor Webber presided, speeches were made by representative citizens, and the school children sang patriotic songs.

On the evening of April 28th, the members of the company were tendered a banquet at City Hall, Mayor Webber making a speech of welcome and presiding the remainder of the evening, during which various prominent citizens responded to toasts. The galleries were filled with people, they having been thrown open to the public.

Company F, of Haverhill, arrived home rather unexpectedly at 8.15 P. M., but Mayor Chase was awake and the city was not caught napping. There was a good-sized crowd present at the depot, and it enlarged every[164] minute, so that by the time the parade moved, the streets were filled with a shouting, cheering people. The parade formed as follows: Haverhill City Band; Major How Post, 47, G. A. R.; General Burnside Command, Veterans' Union; Provisional Company, State Militia; Eighth Regiment Drum Corps; Company F, Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V.; carriages containing Mayor Chase and members of the city government.

It was 11.15 P. M. before the members of Company G returned once more to Gloucester. For several hours a crowd had awaited their coming at the depot, the military call on the fire alarm having notified the citizens that the company was on its way home. Although the hour was late, there was plenty of enthusiasm, and salutes were fired and red fire burned. A parade was formed, made up in the following order: Gloucester Band; Massachusetts Naval Brigade, mounted detachment of citizens; Colonel Allen Post 45, G. A. R.; Company G, Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V.; delegations from the various fire companies; Wingaersheek Band; Wingaersheek Tribe of Red Men; Gloucester Council Knights of Columbus; Portuguese Acoriana Society; carriages containing prominent citizens.

On April 14th, the official celebration took place, when a big parade passed through the principal streets of the city, in the following order: Fitz E. Oaks, chief marshal, and staff; Gloucester Band; Company M, Massachusetts Naval Brigade; High School Cadet Battalion; Colonel Allen Post 45, G. A. R.; Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V. Band; Company G, Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V.; members of the fire department; J. Franklin Dyer Camp, Sons of Veterans; Hutchinson's Military Band; Ocean Lodge, I. O. O. F.; Wingaersheek Tribe,[165] Red Men; Fernwood Lodge, A. O. U. W.; Gloucester Council, Knights of Columbus; St. Angelo Council, Knights of Malta; Acoriana Beneficiary Society; carriages containing distinguished citizens; mounted men.

In the evening there was a big banquet, at which time Judge Taft presided and there were speeches by men in the public life of Gloucester, and men in military circles.

When Company H, of Salem, reached home, it found thousands of people awaiting its return. The churches had dismissed their congregations that the members might unite with the other citizens in a royal welcoming of the soldier boys. Red fire was burned freely and there were salutes. At the station, a big parade awaited the volunteers, and taking the company under escort, marched to the Armory, where the men were dismissed. The parade was as follows: Salem Cadet Band; Second Corps Cadets, M. V. M.; Phil H. Sheridan Post 34, G. A. R.; postal clerks and carriers; Salem Light Infantry Veteran Association; Mayor James H. Turner and members of the city government; Army and Navy League; Company H, Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V. The fire alarm had sounded an agreed upon signal, which gave those intending to parade time enough to gather at the various headquarters. Mayor Turner had met the company in Boston and made the arrangements for the affair.

Tuesday, April 11th, was the day set aside for the official celebration, and the streets were lined with thousands, who cheered and shouted, but it was not the spontaneous outburst that had been given the company when it first arrived home.

The parade passed through the principal streets of the city, and was made up as follows: Colonel Samuel A. Johnson, chief marshal, and staff; Salem Cadet Band;[166] Second Corps Cadets, M. V. M.; Phil H. Sheridan Post 34, G. A. R.; Army and Navy League; Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Merritt Camp, Sons of Veterans; carriages containing disabled members of the G. A. R., and Mayor Turner and members of the city government; National Guards Band; Salem Light Infantry Veteran Association; Company H, Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V.; Salem Brass Band; Salem Letter Carriers and Postal clerks; Salem Fire Department; Salem Veteran Firemen's Association; Salem Drum Corps; Father Mathews Total Abstinence Society; St. Joseph's Benefit Society; street department drivers, mounted.

In the evening the Salem Light Infantry Veteran Association tendered a banquet to the volunteers in the armory at the Franklin building. Captain John P. Reynolds acted as toastmaster, and a number of distinguished citizens and military guests responded to the toasts.

The West Peabody Brass Band, Ward Post 90, G. A. R. and ex-members of Company K, were found waiting at the depot by the members of Company K of Danvers, when they stepped from the train. Line was immediately formed and through a lane of red fire and cheering citizens, the company marched to the armory, partook of a lunch and then separated for their homes.

On April 11 the town officially received her sons back from the Spanish war with a parade, reception and banquet. The parade formed in the following order: Chief Marshal F. U. French and staff; cavalcade of citizens; West Peabody Brass Band; Ward Post 90, G. A. R.; carriages containing the selectmen and guests; Company K, Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V.; ex-members of Company K and citizens; school children.

After the parade a reception was in progress at the[167] Town Hall for two hours, after which the line was re-formed and the party proceeded to the armory, where a fine banquet was served, followed by speeches from prominent townspeople and guests, M. C. Pettengill acting as presiding officer.

Mayor Eaton went to Boston, met the members of Company L, and telephoned word back to Lawrence that the company was coming home. The fire alarm was immediately blown and as at the other places, the company was met by a big crowd at the depot, and a procession to escort it to its armory. Battery C, M. V. M. fired a salute as the train rolled into the station. The parade formed in the following order: Colonel Donovan, chief marshal; band; Battery C, M. V. M.; Company F, Ninth Infantry, M. V. M.; Colonel Sargeant camp, Sons of Veterans; band; Needham Post 39, G. A. R.; drum corps; seven fire companies; Gratton Guards; citizens committee; Company L, Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V.; city government and citizens in carriages. The parade marched directly to the armory, where the volunteers were dismissed.

Through a misunderstanding on the part of somebody, there was no one to welcome home the members of Company M, at Somerville, and when they arrived at the armory they found the place locked and deserted. Finally the police were secured and the doors forced open and the command marched inside. After giving three cheers for the city and the company, the men were dismissed.

Somerville citizens more than made up for the lack of cordiality on the night of the return home, by the enthusiastic reception they gave the company and other Somerville volunteers at the official welcome home which took[168] place on April 19. The principal part of the day's programme was a big parade, which moved through the principal streets, packed with cheering people, in the following order: Chief Marshal, F. DeWitt Lapham and staff; platoon of 20 members of the National Lancers, M. V. M.; First Regiment Band; company of letter carriers; Bunker Hill Cadet Band; Bunker Hill Guards, Division 37, A. O. H.; Davitt Guards, Division 40, A. O. H.; Knights of Sacred Heart Drum Corps; Knights of Sacred Heart; Somerville Veteran Firemen's Association; T. F. Meagher Drum Corps; W. C. Kingsley Post 139, G. A. R.; Company M, Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, U. S. V.; unattached soldiers and sailors; carriages containing city officials and guests.

Following the parade, the company and invited guests were given light refreshments at Bow Street hall, after which many speeches were made, Alderman Wilson acting as presiding officer.

In the evening, at 6 o'clock, the company was banquetted in Beacon hall, where plates were spread for a large gathering. After the banquet had been enjoyed, Alderman Wilson, who again acted as chairman, rapped for order and speeches followed by prominent city officials and guests.

[169]

The Roll of Honor

[170]
[171]

In every war the percentage of deaths from disease is greater than of deaths on the battlefield, and the Spanish war was no exception. Of the hundreds of Massachusetts young men who volunteered and answered the call of President McKinley for troops, 292 were called upon to sacrifice their lives for their country.

Of this number, but nine were killed or died of wounds on the battlefield, the remaining 283 dying of disease or meeting death in an accidental manner.

The First Massachusetts Heavy Artillery lost one man during its term of service; the Second Massachusetts Infantry had nine killed or died of wounds received in battle and 89 died of disease; the Fifth Massachusetts Infantry lost nine men during its term of service; the Sixth Massachusetts Infantry lost 26 men during its term of service; the Eighth Massachusetts Infantry lost 31 men, and the Ninth Massachusetts Infantry 125 men. The Naval Brigade, during its term of service, lost two men, making the total number of men who were killed, died of wounds or disease, 292.

Of this number, as the foregoing list will show, the Eighth Massachusetts Infantry contributed the lives of one officer and 30 enlisted men, to which might be added the name of Private Charles A. Currier of Company B, who died soon after being transferred to the Hospital Corps, U. S. A.

The great majority of these men died in the hospitals in the south, far from home and friends. They gave up their lives willingly to their country's cause, and who is[172] there to say that theirs was not as much a hero's death as that of the men who fell while bravely charging through the Cuban jungles or up the steep slope of San Juan Hill.

The roll of honor of the Eighth is as follows:

May 28, 1898.—Private Herbert O. Burnham of Company D of Lynn, of pneumonia, at regimental hospital, Chickamauga Park, Georgia.

May 29—Private Clarence L. Bartol of Company C of Marblehead, of heart disease, at regimental hospital, Chickamauga Park, Georgia.

June 11—Corporal Clarence R. Stewart of Company M of Somerville, of pneumonia, at regimental hospital, Chickamauga Park, Georgia.

June 13—Private Timothy O. Lamprey of Company B of Amesbury, of appendicitis, at Third Division Hospital, Chickamauga Park, Georgia.

July 18—Private Harvey Dunn of Company L of Lawrence, of typhoid fever, at Third Division Hospital, Chickamauga Park, Georgia.

August 2—Private Frank A. Hinckley of Company I of Lynn, of typhoid fever, at Third Division Hospital, Chickamauga Park, Georgia.

August 4—Corporal John M. Doran of Company G of Gloucester, of typhoid fever, at Third Division Hospital, Chickamauga Park, Georgia.

August 7—Private Walter D. Thompson of Company I of Lynn, of malarial fever, at Third Division Hospital, Chickamauga Park, Georgia.

[173]

August 19—Musician Spencer S. Hobbs of Company K of Danvers, of typhoid fever, at Third Division Hospital, Chickamauga Park, Georgia.

August 26—Private Joseph Pocket of Company I of Lynn, of typhoid fever, at Third Division Hospital, Chickamauga Park, Georgia.

September 2—Sergeant Frank E. Draper of Company M of Somerville, of typhoid fever, at Third Division Hospital, Chickamauga Park, Georgia.

September 3—Private Kenneth G. Constine of Company B of Amesbury, of typhoid fever, at Third Division Hospital, Chickamauga Park, Georgia.

September 6—Private John F. Dottridge of Company D of Lynn, of typhoid fever, at John Blair Gibbs General Hospital, Lexington, Kentucky.

September 6—Sergeant Fred Thomas of Company F of Haverhill, of typhoid fever, at Sternberg General Hospital, Chickamauga Park, Georgia.

September 6—Corporal George Patten of Company B of Amesbury, of typhoid fever, while on furlough at Amesbury, Massachusetts.

September 7—Sergeant John F. Balch of Company A of Newburyport, of typhoid fever, at Third Division Hospital, Chickamauga Park, Georgia.

September 13—Private Henry A. Deasy of Company H of Salem, of typhoid fever, while on furlough at Kingston, New Hampshire.

September 15—Private Michael J. Hayes of Company I of Lynn, of dysentery, at Third Division Hospital, Chickamauga Park, Georgia.

[174]

September 17—Corporal John H. Nichols of Company H of Salem, of typhoid fever, at John Blair Gibbs General Hospital, Lexington, Kentucky.

September 18—Private Rolvin G. Coombs of Company B of Amesbury, of typhoid fever, at John Blair Gibbs General Hospital, Lexington, Kentucky.

September 19—Private George F. Walen of Company G of Gloucester, of typhoid fever, at John Blair Gibbs General Hospital, Lexington, Kentucky.

September 22—Private John F. Hanson of Company L of Lawrence, of typhoid fever, at John Blair Gibbs General Hospital, Lexington, Kentucky.

September 22—Private George O. Cook of Company D of Lynn, while on furlough at Dorchester, Massachusetts.

September 24—Corporal Henry Higgins of Company B of Amesbury, of typhoid fever, at John Blair Gibbs General Hospital, Lexington, Kentucky.

September 30—Private William B. Cahoon of Company G of Gloucester, of peritonitis, at John Blair Gibbs General Hospital, Lexington, Kentucky.

October 8—Private William H. Florence of Company C of Marblehead, of bright's disease, at John Blair Gibbs General Hospital, Lexington, Kentucky.

October 10—Private William D. Curley of Company G of Gloucester, of typhoid fever, at John Blair Gibbs General Hospital, Lexington, Kentucky.

October 20—Private Thomas Sweeney of Company B of Amesbury, of malarial fever, at John Blair Gibbs General Hospital, Lexington, Kentucky.

[175]

October 24—First Lieutenant Francis H. Downey of Company I of Lynn, of pneumonia and fever, at St. Joseph's Hospital, Lexington, Kentucky.

March 3, 1899.—Private Lewis F. Channell of Company F of Haverhill, of typhoid fever, on board the U. S. Hospital Ship "Missouri," off Cuba.

March 15—Private Charles W. Benson of Company C of Marblehead, of malarial fever, on board U. S. Hospital Ship "Missouri," off Cuba.

August 9—Private Charles A. Currier, U. S. Hospital Corps, formerly member of Company B of Amesbury, of exhaustion following typhoid fever, on board U. S. Hospital Ship "Relief" off Ponce, Porto Rico.

[176]
[177]

Some Statistics

[178]
[179]

During the year of service in the volunteers 1465 names were borne upon the rolls of the Eighth Massachusetts Regiment. This does not necessarily mean that 1465 different men were connected with the regiment, for that was not so, for some of the men's names appear upon the rolls twice, such as when an enlisted man was promoted to be an officer, or when an officer was transferred from one company to another, or an enlisted man transferred from a company to the regimental band.

The following figures will no doubt be of interest to the men who served in the regiment.

Of the officers of the regiment 46 were mustered out with the regiment, 12 resigned and were discharged, one died, one was discharged by reason of promotion outside the regiment, and four were discharged for promotion in the regiment.

Of the enlisted men, 1161 were mustered out, 53 were discharged for disability, 5 were discharged because they were minors, 2 were discharged (no reason given), 51 were discharged by order, (the majority for physical unfitness), 11 were discharged for promotion; 6 were dishonorably discharged; 71 were discharged by reason of transfer, 30 died, and 11 deserted.

The record by companies is as follows:

Field and staff—Ten mustered out and three resigned. Total 13.

[180]

Non-Commissioned staff—Nine mustered out with the regiment and three were discharged by order. Total 12.

Band—Twenty were mustered out with the regiment. Total 20.

Company A, Newburyport—Three officers and 96 men were mustered out with the regiment, one man was discharged for disability; one man was discharged by reason of being a minor; two men were discharged by order; one man was dishonorably discharged; five men were transferred; one man died and two men deserted. Total 112.

Company B, Amesbury—Three officers and 96 men were mustered out with the regiment; one officer was discharged for promotion; ten men were discharged for disability; three men were discharged by order; eight men were transferred and six men died. Total 127.

Company C, Marblehead—Three officers and 97 men were mustered out with the regiment; two officers resigned; seven men were discharged for disability; one man was discharged by order; two men were transferred; three men died and two men deserted. Total 117.

Company D, Lynn—Three officers and 94 men were mustered out with the regiment; one officer was discharged for promotion; three men were discharged for disability; three men were discharged by order; two men were dishonorably discharged; ten men were transferred; three died and two deserted. Total 121.

Company E, Beverly—Three officers and 96 men were mustered out with the regiment; one officer and one enlisted man were discharged for promotion; one man was discharged; two men were discharged for disability; two[181] men were discharged by order; one man was dishonorably discharged and eight men were transferred. Total 115.

Company F, Haverhill—Three officers and 96 men were mustered out with the regiment; one officer and two enlisted men were discharged for promotion; four men were discharged for disability; five men were transferred and two died. Total 113.

Company G, Gloucester—Three officers and 92 men were mustered out with the regiment; one officer resigned; four men were discharged for disability; one was discharged by reason of being a minor; ten men were discharged by order; one man was discharged for promotion; one man was dishonorably discharged; four men were transferred and four died. Total 121.

Company H, Salem—Three officers and 91 men were mustered out with the regiment; two officers resigned; one officer was discharged for promotion outside the regiment; six men were discharged for disability; ten men were discharged by order; two men were discharged for promotion; six men were transferred and two died. Total 123.

Company I, Lynn—Three officers and 94 men were mustered out with the regiment; one officer died; one man was discharged for disability; one man was discharged; five men were discharged by order; two men were discharged for promotion; four men were transferred; four died and two deserted. Total 117.

Company K, Danvers—Three officers and 93 men were mustered out with the regiment; two officers resigned; five men were discharged for disability; six men were discharged by order; one man was discharged for promotion;[182] one man was dishonorably discharged; four men were transferred, one died and one deserted. Total 117.

Company L, Lawrence—Three officers and 98 men were mustered out with the regiment; two officers resigned; two men were discharged for disability; two men were discharged by reason of being minors; one man was discharged by order; one man was discharged for promotion; five men were transferred, two died and one deserted. Total 117.

Company M, Somerville—Three officers and 89 men were mustered out with the regiment; eight men were discharged for disability; one man was discharged by reason of being a minor; five men were discharged by order; one man was discharged by promotion; ten men were transferred; two died and one deserted. Total 120.

By the foregoing it will be seen that Company B of Amesbury had the largest number of entries upon its rolls during the year, 127, while Company F of Haverhill had the smallest, 113. Company E of Beverly was the only company which did not have a death among its members during the term of service.

There were ten states and eighty-nine cities and towns represented in the regiment, according to the residences as given upon the muster out roll on file at the Adjutant-General's office, at the State House.

The ten states were Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Rhode Island, New York, Ohio, Minnesota, Pennsylvania and Georgia.

The cities and towns represented, and the number of men furnished the regiment by each, are as follows:

[183]

Lynn 214; Salem 168; Haverhill 145; Lawrence 114; Newburyport 101; Somerville 99; Amesbury 96; Gloucester 95; Marblehead 74; Beverly 72, and Danvers 45. These eleven places represent the home stations of the companies comprising the regiment; Lynn, of course, furnishing two companies to the command.

The other places represented in the regiment were as follows: Peabody 19; Boston 20; Lowell 19; Cambridge 15; Marlboro 14; Swampscott 6; Topsfield 8; Merrimac 2; Middleton 4; Ipswich 6; Hamilton 3; Manchester 2; Essex 3; North Andover 5; Andover 3; Saugus 2; Rockport 8; Melrose 2; Worcester 3; Milford 4; Wakefield 3; South Framingham 5; Greenwood 2; Fitchburg 5; Webster 2; Southbridge 5; Dorchester 7; Charlestown 6; Waltham 2; Chelsea 2; North Cambridge 2; West Somerville 2; Allston 3; South Lawrence 2; Medford 2; Americus, Georgia, 2; and South Boston; Everett; Quincy; Wellesley Hills; East Boston; Pawtucket, R. I.; West Chelmsford; Cambridgeport; Freedom, N. H.; Washington Court House, Ohio; Concord; Cambridge, Vermont; Lewiston, Penn.; Middleboro; Portland, Me.; Chatfield, Minn.; Revere; Seabrook, N. H.; Stoneham; Pittsfield; Newton; Staten Island, New York; Hingham; Winchester; Cleveland, Ohio; Milton; Keene, N. H.; Stowe; Roxbury; Madrid, N. H.,; South Hampton, N. H.; Saco, Me.; Reading; Hyde Park; Kingston, N. H.; Brockton; Dedham; Roslindale; Cliftondale; Wenham; Boxford and Salisbury, one each.

Of the original men who went to South Framingham with the regiment, the greater number were single, the muster rolls showing a large percentage of single men. The companies were then allowed 77 men, and the figures are as follows:

[184]

On the following pages will be found a complete roster of the regiment, containing the name of every man who served in the regiment during its year of service.

The record of each man is a copy of that contained in the muster out roll, now on file at the Adjutant General's office, State House, Boston, Mass.

The greatest possible care has been taken to avoid errors, and in only one case was a change made in a man's record. Upon the muster out roll the man was charged with being a deserter and also with having been discharged honorably. After consultation with the company commander, it was decided that the man should be given the benefit of an honorable discharge, especially as he was not classified as a deserter in the summary at the end of the company roll.

It will be noticed that two men, both of whom were former members of the First Massachusetts Heavy Artil[185]lery are credited as enlisting from Americus, Georgia. This is so stated upon the muster out roll, and consequently is so printed. They were probably mustered into the regiment in the Georgia town, hence the reason for being credited to it. In a few cases the date of transfer of a man from a company to the band does not agree, one date being recorded on the band roll and another on the company roll. This is sometimes true as to his place of residence, but the muster out rolls were followed in these cases.

The full record of the men transferred to the Reserve Ambulance company, U. S. A., or the Hospital Corps, U. S. A., has been added to the record. Their record on the muster out roll ends with the day of their transfer from the regiment, but it was thought best to publish their full service record, which was secured from the War Department, through the courtesy of Hon. A. P. Gardner, representative in Congress from the Sixth Massachusetts district.

[186]
[187]

Field and Staff

[188]
[189]

Assigned to command Second Brigade, Third Division, First Army Corps, May 20 to June 29. Commander of Second Brigade, First Army Corps, October 28 to October 31, also from November 1 to November 3, and December 17 to December 24.

In command of the regiment from May 19 to June 29.

On recruiting service June 11 to June 20. Commanded regiment by reason of seniority, October 24; October 29 to November 4; November 8, 17, 18, 27, 28; December 18 to 25, 1898; January 31, February 1, 22, 25, 26; March 23 to 25, 1899.

Special duty on General Court Martial, October 26 to November 23 and on detached service, General Court Martial, November 23 to December 21.

[190]

Special duty as Inspector Rifle Practice, Third Division, First Army Corps, June 30 to July 24. Inspector Rifle Practice, Second Brigade, Third Division, First Army Corps, December 13 until departure for Cuba. Inspector Rifle Practice, District of Matanzas, January 12, 1899. Special duty as Provost Marshal, District of Matanzas, February 27 to April 3.

Special duty with Ambulance Corps, First Army Corps, June 20 to July 9. Special duty as Brigade Surgeon, September 22 to December 16. Division Inspector at Lexington, Kentucky, September 27 to November 6.

Special duty as Acting Assistant Adjutant-General, Second Brigade, Third Division, First Army Corps, May 20 to June 19.

Special duty as Acting Commissary Subsistence, and Acting Assistant Quartermaster, Second Brigade, Third Division, First Army Corps, May 20 to July 7. Acting Assistant Quartermaster, Second Brigade hospital, November 7 to December 17, 1898. Special duty as Depot Quartermaster at Americus, Georgia, December 25 to January 8, 1899.

[191]

Special duty at Division Hospital, Third Division, First Army Corps, June 10 to December 20.

Acting Regimental Surgeon September 22 to December 16, 1898. Special duty as Assistant Inspector of Sanitary Conditions, District of Matanzas, January 30 to April 3, 1899.

Special duty as chairman of the Commission of Charities and Corrections, District of Matanzas, January 28, 1899, until muster out.

[192]
[193]

Non-Commissioned Staff

[194]
[195]

[197]

The Band

[198]
[199]

[202]
[203]

Company A, Newburyport

[204]
[205]

Commanded the Second Battalion by reason of seniority, October 27 to November 8 and November 19 to December 22, 1898.

Detailed Battalion Adjutant, May 11 to 19; Acting Regimental Adjutant, May 20 to June 19. Battalion Adjutant, June 20 to 31; Regimental Inspector Rifle Practice, July 1 to 29; Inspector Rifle Practice Second Brigade, Third Division, First Army Corps, July 30 to August 19; Battalion Adjutant, September 20 to October 14, Inspector Small Arms Practice, First Army Corps, October 15, 1898 to January 5, 1899.

Commanded the company by reason of seniority October 12 to 21 and October 29 to November 8. Provost Marshal, Americus, Georgia, November 12, 1898 to January 8, 1899.

[216]
[217]

Company B, Amesbury

[218]
[219]

Commanded First Battalion by reason of seniority, June 10 to July 21; December 20, 1898 to January 19, 1899. Detached service, distributing rations, Matanzas, Cuba, January 19 to April 3, 1899.

Assigned as Commanding Officer, Company C, December 21, 1898.

Acting Regimental Adjutant, October 1 to 22. Detached service as Aide-de-camp to General Waites, October 26 to November 4. Regimental commissary, November 4, 1898 to April 28, 1899.

[232]
[233]

Company C, Marblehead

[234]
[235]

Detached service as Aide-de-camp Second Brigade, Third Division, First Army Corps, May 27 to June 10. Commanding Company I, October 2 to 5. Commanding Company C, by reason of seniority, October 6 to December 20. Battalion Adjutant December 20, 1898 to April 28, 1899.

Battalion Adjutant May 11 to November 4. Aide-de-camp Second Brigade, Third Division, First Army Corps, November 5 to 21.

[246]
[247]

Company D, Lynn

[248]
[249]

Detached service, General Court Martial, November 19 to 25, and November 28 to December 6, and December 14 to 22.

Battalion Adjutant July 6 to August 29. Commanding Company B, November 15 to November 24. Battalion Adjutant November 25 to December 21.

Commanding Company B, December 21 to 27. Special duty Quartermaster's department, December 28, 1898 to February 2, 1899. Provost Guard, Matanzas, Cuba, February 14 to April 3, 1899.

[261]

Company E, Beverly

[262]
[263]

Provost Guard, Matanzas, Cuba, March 16 to April 3, 1899.

Special duty with engineering party, making camp at Lexington, Kentucky, August 16 to September 17. Command of engineering party at Americus, Georgia, October 26 to November 26. Regimental pioneer officer, December 4.

In command of reconnoitering party locating rifle ranges and camps, October 4 to 14.

[274]
[275]

Company F, Haverhill

[276]
[277]

Commanding the Third Battalion, by reason of seniority, October 8 to 29 and December 23, 1898 to March 23, 1899.

Commanding the company by reason of seniority, October 8 to 29 and December 27, 1898 to March 25, 1899.

Battalion Adjutant, September 19 to October 2.

[288]
[289]

Company G, Gloucester

[290]
[291]

Acting Regimental Quartermaster, October 3 to 14. Battalion Adjutant, November 21. Assistant Quartermaster, December 26 to January 23, 1899. Battalion Adjutant, January 23. Acting Regimental Adjutant, January 30 and March 11 and 12.

[303]

Company H, Salem

[304]
[305]

Regimental commissary, May 20. Detached service to Third Division, First Army Corps Hospital, as Acting Assistant Quartermaster and Acting Commissary Subsistence, July 12 to August 11. Commanding Company K, September 10 to 17. Detached service as Acting Assistant Quartermaster and Acting Commissary Subsistence, Third Division, First Army Corps Hospital, September 17 to December 23. Special duty construction of hospitals, First Army Corps, November 4, 1898. Special duty in charge of repairs of Santa Ysabil Hospital, Matanzas, Cuba, February 28 to April 4. Commanded the company by reason of seniority, December 23, 1898 to February 28, 1899 and from April 4 to 11.

Detached service as Aide-de-camp, General Ludlow's staff, October 15, 1898 to April 11, 1899.

In command of company by reason of seniority, September 27 to December 22, 1898 and March 1 to April 3, 1899.

[318]
[319]

Company I, Lynn

[320]
[321]

Special duty as Regimental Commissary, July 15, 1898.

Special duty with Company B, January 15 to February 9. Special duty as Quartermaster, Division Hospital, Matanzas, Cuba, March 13 to April 3, 1899.

[333]

Company K, Danvers

[334]
[335]

Detailed General Court Martial June 8 to July 11; December 11 to 21, 1898; January 7 to —. Detailed as Judge Advocate, March 8. Summary Court Officer. December 7 to 17; 18 to 26.

On recruiting service, June 11 to July 20, 1898.

Acting Regimental Adjutant, December 16 to 18. Battalion Adjutant, December 22. Acting Regimental Adjutant, February 25 and 26. General Court Martial, January 17.

General Court Martial, March 8, 1899.

[347]

Company L, Lawrence

[348]
[349]

Commanding company by reason of seniority October 15 to December 3. Regimental Inspector Rifle Practice, December 21, 1898, to March 31, 1899. Provost Guard, Fort San Severino, Matanzas, Cuba, January 15 to February 1.

Aide-de-camp, Second Brigade, Third Division, First Army Corps, June 10 to August 18.

[361]

Company M, Somerville

[362]
[363]

On recruiting duty June 11 to July 20. Commanded Second Battalion by reason of seniority September 17 to October 17. Assistant Provost Marshal, District of Matanzas, Cuba, January 24. Summary court, District of Matanzas, Cuba, February 1, 1899.

Acting Quartermaster of regiment May 20, to August 22. Provost guard at Santa Christina barracks, January 24 to April 3, 1899.

Regimental Inspector Rifle Practice, November 27 to December 27. Provost guard duty, January 24 to April 3. On General Court Martial, February 4 to April 1, 1899.

[376]
[377]

Chronology

[378]
[379]

February, 1898.

March.

April.

May.

June.

July.

August.

September.

October.

November.

December.

[385]

January.

February.

March.

[386]

April.

[387]

Appendix

[388]
[389]

The following letters will be of interest to the members of the regiment, showing, as they do, the standing the regiment and its commander had with officers higher in authority in '98, and the fact that the good opinion is retained 10 years later.

[391]

[392]