The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1880-10-14
Hancock's Cruel Treatment Of Vol.
unteers.
The Lancaster (Wis.) Herald has the
following to say of General Hancock as
a General and his domineering spirit
and cruel treatment of volunteers:

The Lancaster (wis.) Herald has the
following to say of General Hancock as
a General and his domineering spirit
and cruel treatment of volunteers:
Many have already read chapters from DIR.
al Hancock's haughtiness and profanity, and
his brutal treatment of volunteer soldiers un-
Fifth Wisconsin volunteers, of which regiment
Amasa Cobb, known to every citizen of this
paper, was Colonel He-the doctor-admits
that General Hancock was an officer of fine
dPess aad 1 at sbe soiSiers Ia
him General Strut.
Three weeks after General Hancock took
lone morning to brigadedrill perfectly so
ber. He wished to appear excited at some
oaths he Numbered down the line startled his
men. They thought he mistook the men for
maes and their oheen; & for an drIrers v,.,, 70
the hospital, where he said the men in hos
pital were "a brigade of d-d sight better
men" than were left him for duty; that such
beds and such comforts would invite every
man in the regiment into hospital before u
Another chapter notes the fact that on Han
cocks order an experienced druggist was
not know one medicine from another put in
his place. One man was in consequence pois-
oned 70 death and t%G & others h th nearly v so mon
hired and paid for the privilege of one draw
of a seine in the Pamunky River. The Gen
until the good haul was brought to shore,
when by his order every fish was carried away
for himself and friends, whose tables were al
ways laden with wines and the best viands.
Another relates how, after a long and tire
some march without water, the men were not
lent. and a regiment was punished severely be-
cause some of the men called for water;
Charles Lansridse % by % name. who 6elonsed ; to
the Fifth Wisconsin at the same time with DR..
Castleman. He has been frequently interro,
from the doctors published army journal, and
several citizens have urged him to publish his
facts, we invited Mr.. Langridge into the Office
the other day, and asked him what truth there
was in DIR. Castleman's diary.
80 far as 1 have seen," said he, every
thing related is substantially true. As we
mes se and mfSt little e
particulars, but our accounts would be as near
alike as Johns Gospel is to Matthew'S. Cen
eral Hancock rarely addressed n volunteer
soldier without profanity. He treated them
with extreme brutality. He appeared to have
to have for a beast: and the men universally,
US far as know, came to the conclusion that
he had only beastly instincts"
by DR.. Castlemany'
"Some of them did not come under my own
knowledge Of were so much talked Of that /
have no doubt of their truth"
do you recall incidents he has not related
derogatory to the character OF General Han
II could recall many of them by reference
what transpired that thought worth noting.
As expected you to ask such questions,
have brought it along"
swell, give an item from notes of your own
indicating the Generars character.
we made a six.miie lie march ii through a drench.
ing rain to the vicinity of the Chickahominy.
The roads were deep mud. Our brigade made
distinguished Lee family. Some members OF
the regiment not on duty went to fence, took
against the fence and the other on the ground.
Over these they spread and fastened their rub
rain. neh Tney as then S vent v, P''n to ' straw
stack, and carried from it armfuls of straw.
which they placed under the blankets to rest
cattle. This they had to do, and the waiting
and mud. Hancock regarded the value of a
little rebel straw as of more concern to him
than the comfort Of volunteer Union
"I could give you many other similar Incl
dents, but few suff1oe to show the nature of
1.-The account of Hancock's taking the boys
fish is familiar to me and all our regiment;
say, There's the fish-thiefr or There comes
the old fishmonger!
what about his not letting the soldiers
nave wafer wncn Iney were thirsty and
fatigued. and water convenient"
DIR. Castleman has not clothed that outrage
with more than half its real atrocity. 1t Is
what he refers to as happening August 19, 1862.
Possibly, however, this incident is only another
| OF similar kind that happened the same day
and in the line of march some distance from
me. The General resolved we should have no
| water-it looked as If he premeditated the
wickedness the night beforehand may have
kept riding along the brigade to see that the
resolve was enforced. Twin tell what know,
and what win be substantiated by any
18th 18th of August we marched over the the
old Williamsburg battle-ground, and
| at the base of which was a small mill-pond.
The day had been intensely hot and dusty,
for @ the mill miII-pond nd with soap and towels After After
taps tcall to retire. that evening, the boys
| were ordered to have their canteens filled
The only possible place for filling the can
teens was to get water out of this mill-pond,
thoasands a % Of % meS had 0 soaped SUap and ba.hed
| themselves in 1t. We took the early start,
ana m sbea pe~ S we
| to the left with canteens, evidently going for
water The men Of our regiment then asked
water. Permission was given, and, as usual,
| a few men were selected to take canteens for
| the whole company. The stream proved to be
q miil-race of tine, clear. running water, 1
| think from a saw-mill. The men got their
canteens filled, or nearly so, when, to their
behind the MILL and compelled them to empty
their canteens and go hack to their company
without water.
About noon was the next opportunity for a
| short halt, and peremptory orders were given
by Hancock that the men should have no OPP
reached Yorktown about two O'CLOCK. We W. had had
| started from below Williamsburg. and on a
had marched eighteen or twenty miles with
| only soapsuds drenched OF our bodies in our
canteens when we started, and without any
| water in them after we were required to
| empty them. Here near Yorktown we halted,
and Hancock and his staff on horseback made
sin. The men began calling Water, wateri'
Hancock rode up to the officer commanding
self. was lieutenant and was in comman
What is your name. sir, he demanded l
a %y to TO
| when the Commanding General rides round In
| review. demand the names of the parties,
eral. 1 answered, Occupying the position
| do, General in front of my men, 1t Is impos-
Wen TO the eSer s the E seeoed
| Division, Enoch Totten, and the same role was
repeated; Then said he, by cd. I'm
went to Lieutenant-Co Colonel Emery, of Portage,
| who was in command OF the regiment, and or
talton-drM on The doiblo-quick for one hour!
And this punishment-going on the run for
one hour.after our day OF fatigue and heat,
cock was nominated for President7'
| have heard me tell them from the time came
home from the army and since. And here is a
| letter from DIR. Ingersoll, of Waukesha, a
| brother of Bob Ingersoll. On my way home
| from the army stopped in Waukesha County
to recruit myself and there fell in with DR..
| Ingersoll, an old friend of mine. He writes
| me that then told him of Hancock's brutality
(Which fact 1 do not remember,. and he urges
| 1t upon me as a duty that 1 tell it all to the
| public. i shrink from the publicity, but to me
1t is simply horrible to reflect that a man Of
| such brutal nature and character as Winfield
Scott Hancock is likely to receive the sufrages
| of large portion of the people for the Office
| of President of the United States. That he is
| the choice of the keepers of Andersonville
| and Libby and their friends is not surprising;
but how can Northern man vote for himI"
We publish the foregoing knowing that Mr..
| Langridge has been pressed by many citizens
| to give IL to the public; and they urge it know
| ing he is reliable in every utterance he makes
| upon his own knowledge. He has been u citi-
zen here Of the highest character for the past
| twenty-seven years. He is not q man to whom
| any person in the world will ascribe vanity,
| and he is not in the least q yielder to senti-
| mentality. Though just the kind of n man