The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1861-11-08
A Suggestion to Military Men.

Without expressing an opinion rs to the
merits or demerits of the innovations upon
military affairs alluded to in the following
extract from Virginia letter to the Mobile
Tribune, we insert it for the inspection of thess
having charge of matters:
But beg your leave now TO attract atten.
ton to the Colonel of a cavalry regiment who
turns them All down / allude to Uol. St.
George Croghan, who commands cavalry
regiment under Gen. Floyd in Northwestern
Virginia. lie Is 35 years of age, has the eve
ot ~ Aagle and the Wellington nose lis about
six feet high, faultless in form, graceful in
carriage, and the best rider in America. He is
the son OF the celebrated Col. Croghan OF San =
dusky memory, was born a soldier, educated a
soldier and 10 in very hair on his I'd and drop
of blood in his body a thorough, com plete ana
perfect soldier. He has no thoughts that are
not military, ne ambition that is not the am
bitiou ola soldier. Withal, he is endowe
with a pre-eminently practical and powerful
intellect. He has introduced innovations
upon the established usages of camp life, the
result OF which must, If properly embraced,
save the Confederate States millions of dol
dollars and thousands of lives and insure
comfort where suffering else might have to be
endured
The innov to which allude is n the
size and character of the camp tent. He has
reduced it to Il size which will accommodate
but four men. One end of it he leaves Ell.
tirely open. Before the OPEN end he builds a
com Portable in the coldest winter than the
large tents are in autumn or spring One
mule can carry thirty of these tents, tenou2h
for two computes Baggage wagons in his
regiment are therefore an obsolete idea or,
to use his nervous expression, an exploded
humbug." This insures expedition without
a sacrifice Ct comfort, and such has heen the
force with which the utility of this style Of
tent has impressed the military minds that
have investigated its merits that Gen. Floyd
among others has thrown aside his huge am
phitheatre and adopted the modest and COM
Portable little tabernacle, for which the army
are indebted to Col. Croghan In order,
therefore, to enable any regi,n ent in the Con-
tederate service that may feel an inclination
to render themselves as comfortable as posi-
5lr, by adopting the Croghan tent, / Will de-
scribe 1t:
IL the first place, it is triangular shaped,
four feet high, eight feet ca Sc, and seven feel
deep. The tent poles are two feet long. At
ting into each other, fitted together, having a
nail in the top, is passed through an eye-let
hole At the top of each end of the ten t, and a
cord fastened IN the ground ut the r-ar Of the
tent is passed through the back of the tent at
the top. Th"re 1t is twist d around the nail
on the rear pole, and then it is passed to the
front pole and twisted around the nail on this
pole, from whence IL is passed to the ground
ana fastened TO = peg THIS cord is the ridge
pole. Col. Ransom has attached to his reei-
ment forty baggage wagon, alta he'd to each
one of which are four horses, making one
hundred and sixtv horses in hi. trtnsperta-
er sufficient tor the transportation of Gro
CHAN tents enough for the ame regiment; and
The soldiers are sound TO enjoy more comfort
and sutte~ lass in the Crognan tent than they do
III the tent now in use IN our army, ard the
transpor tatlOn OF which is SO very expensive
Col. Croghan has also, by an alteration of the
ordinary 'rt saddle into Il pack saddle made
ltfeas bic for one II ule to trans port $40 pou
of provisions. Thus you perceive this regi-
ment is costing the Goyernmeu less than De
maps any one company in any other cavalry
regiment in the service, and are for forced
marches and surprise expeditions the most
When they move, their baggage mules can
move. They do not have To wait, as other
cavalry regiments do, for baggage wagons
They do not have to tLke, as other cavalry
regiments often do, the pitiiess pelting of the
midnight storm, for they can always have
their tents with them.
Col. Croghan has attached to his regiment
two rided cannon, each weighing about two
hundred pounds. -Four mules transport the
guns and their carriages. l have been thus
minute In my details, because conceive that
there is vital interes6 in the sim pie facts
which l have related. They involve uues-
tiOns OF life and death, of com fort and su fer
ing 10 our beloved army. Millions OF people
do not know man in Col Croghan's regi
ment. He has one company who went iat
TIE service only about half equipped and
armed. Now they are superbly equipped and
armed, and they have not an arm in their
ranks that they did not take from the enemy.
Strangers though they are. it il with pride
l record such facts, facts so individually
bouno TO draw upon them the admiration and
the praised Of grateful country.