The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1882-03-09
The Twentieth Maine Regiment.

uuiUH W us lltlu Ill August. $780, anu tllc
in August, 1881. Among those present on the
latter date We're the following from Waldo
county: f. =. Rowel and Charles n. Allen. of
Montvie. and A. +. Fernad. of Winterport-
the first two of Company B, and the latter of
| Company F. An address read on this occa-
| sion by s. l.. Miller, the historian of the Twen-
tieth, which gives in brief the history of the
| regiment and states correctly the date of every
march, encampment, and battle. The regiment
took part in no less than eighteen engagements.
| including some of the most important battles of
the war. 1t fought at -tntietam. Gettysburg
| Wilderness. North Anna, Weldon Railroad
Gravelly Run. Fredericksburg. Rappahannock
Station. Laurel Hill. Bethesda Church, Preble's
Farm. Five Forks. Charlottesville, Mine Rum
| Spottsylvania, Petersburg. IIatchcr'S Run and
AppomattoX.
| The series of interesting sketches the Rev. T.
Gerrsh, private in this gallant regiment. is
| now contributing to the Journal. suggest the
mention here of some of the salient facts in its
| history. Lieut.. Miller says: The Twentieth
| Maine Infantry was the last of the three years
regiments raised in pursuance Of the requ>iton
| and authority of the President of the United
States, dated July ID. 1862. The regiment ap-
| pears to have been formed from dctachments Of
men enlisted for the Sixteenth. Seventeenth
| Eighteenth, and Nineteenth, and afterwards
! found TO have been unnecessary to complete
| those organizations. 4 large proportion of the
| men We're enlisted before the order for the for
nation of the Twentieth Regiment was promul-
| no f,,,+
! General Order No. %, issued at Augusta under
date Aug. It'll, 1862. In pursuance Of this order
squads of recruits began to arrive in camp. at-
| forwards known as Camp Mason. near Port
| land. on the llth of August land in Il few days
the ranks of the Twentieth Regiment Were full.
Adelbert Ames, of Rockland. graduate of
West Point, who had already acquired a rrpu-
tation for military skill and bravery. was COM
missiOnc,' Colonel: Joshua l.. Chamberlain. Of
Brew.r. Professor Of Modern Languages in
BcNdoin College, Lieut. K olonel: and Cha> d.
Gilmore, Of Bangor, Captain of Company G.,
seventh Maine, Major"
An Old Private" has told the readers of the
journal of the cmbarkation at Boston for the
seat Of war, of the landing upon the sacred
| sui VI III VI SUBSEQUENT
down to the important battle of Gettysburg, of
| which some highly interesting details are given
| in this weeks paper In describing the moon
| light march from Washington to Fort Craig on
the Sth of Sept. 1862. he has omitted to tell Us.
! however. of the remark made by Colonel AmcS
| concerning the conduct of his command on that
occasion. If You can't do amy better than you
| have iobt an ,,,,l -,
| home. said the indignant officer. But not
! many weeks elapsed before these green troops
Were 50 thoroughly drilled and disciplined. un-
der the supervision Of Colonel Amn>. as to give
| the regiment a conspicuous place for its soldier
| ly bearing and attention to duty and TO win for
| itself an important part i'll the nations history.
| The achievements Of the Twentieth at the
| battle of Gettysburg are alone enough to cover
this regiment with glory. Their historian SAYS ::
The splendid fighting qualities developed ny
| the Twentieth Maine on the ID Of July (l>63l
gave il brilliant reputation throughout the
army and gained for colonel Joshua l.. Cham
berlain the we'll deserved title of Hero Of Round
| Top" General Chamberlain, in Il brief address
| At the second reunion thus referred 10 4 he con-
duct Of his regiment 'ln jeff Davis history lie
told one true thing when he said. in speaking Of
the battle of Gettysburg, that il was those fe-
| lows up there on Round Top that spoiled his
| plans. The manly Vigor shown by the TW cnti-
eth Maine had gone into history" Gen Abncr
Doubleday in his history of the battle, of Chan
| cellor>yille and gettysburg (No. VI Of Charles
Scribner'> sons series, ''Canpaigns of the Civil
| War; says
| The enemy having been fuilrd at the centre
| and right. stole around through the woods and
| turned the left of the line. but Chamberlain'e
| rcgimcnt-the Twentieth Mainc-Was folded
| back by him, around the rear Of the mountain
| TO resist The attack. The rebels came on like
wolves. with deafening wells. and forced Cham
| berlalns men OVER the crest, bun they rallied
| and drove their ASSISTANTS back in turn. This
was twice repeated and then brigade of the
| pennsylvania reserves and one of the Fifth
Corps dashed over the hill. The Twentieth
Maine made grand final charge and chased
the rebels from the valley between the Round
Tops. capturing large number of prisoners.
Not moment TOO soon. for Chamberlain had
lost "A third Of his command and was entirely
| OUT OF ammunition. Nincent'S men in this af
fair took two colonies. fifteen officers, and five
! hundred men prisoners. and thousand stand
of arms. Hill in his official report. saws
Hoods right was held As in wise.
This book of Gen. Doubleday'> has attracted
more attention and provoked more criticism
than any of the preceding volumes of the series.
The \. Y Tribune closes long and friendly
review by saying: The book is valuable con
tribution to the history of the Rebellion" The
friends of Generals Howard and Meade are
however up in arms at what is said Of Those. Off
GERS. AS An Old Private" will have something
TO say concerning the leaders in this battle. we
quote the Tribune'> review of the part of Gen.
Doubledav'S book devoted to the Gettysburg
| campaign
Here again General Howard is one of his fit
yorite subjects. bur his attractvrncss ceases at
| the point where Meade sent General Hancock
| to supersede him on the battlefield. In regard
to the veXed questions of that famous cam
paign. General Doubleday speaks with rather
mWonted conservation and moderation. HAY
ing been i'll the battle from the first moment to
the last, having taken the place Of the amentcd
Reynolds when he fell in the first days fighting
and having held the centre Of the line when
Pickett and Wilcox made their final desperate
charge TO the crest of Cemetery HILL he saw
| perhaps as much of the battle with his own ewes
As anyone i'll the army, and his account of it has
that professional accuracy and that soberness of
colOrlng peculiar to the men who have taken
part in great transactions, and have looked death
steadily in the face for hours and DAYS. He does
not approve General Sckle's line of battle at
Peach Orchard. and yet he does not dcnounce
it, as many have seen fit to do. He gives I'M
grudging credit to most of his colleagues in the
| Mountaineering always General Howard,
whom he reserves for the qualification of the
drop of human nature which is in every histori-
ans composition-and while Withholding no
| proper consideration from General Meade he
| says distinctly that Meade did not choose the
battle field, did not entirely approve it, wished
to retreat on the night of the I'd of july and that
| after the disastrous route of the enemy. in their
| final charge of the Sd, that he was guilty of ii
| deplorable error in not following up the Union
| victory by an immediate advance, which in the
| opinion of generals of both armies, would have
inflicted incalculable damage upon the Confed-
crates, and greatly shortened the war
| Fosters Democrat, of Dover. n. H.. is very
much exercised over the vote in the L. S. SEN
ate on the bill to place Gen. Grant on the retr-
ed list. 1t captions an article ''Back Thurs
day, Feb. 23d, 1892" and between inverted rules
publishes the following black list of the five
Democrats who voted for the bill
joseph e. brown of Georgia