The Indianapolis sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1880-1904, 1885-03-29
CAMP-LIfE.
The Sentinel Xxx" Brand Contributor
In Quaint Anecdote.
The POmp, Pride and Cfrcumstence OF q
Volunteer ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Rice
vEnfeld-Excuses for 6etefng
Out OF Camp-the SEN
tinels and the Cen-
teen-Contra-
bands.

AA~sC " NAS o1nacl III
You remember, old soldier, when the sum-
mons came to you to volunteer. They we're
raising g regiment at the county seat. Ths
country was sglow with patriotism. Those
colors of the sky had been fired on. You
stood at the garden gate and EXCHANGED do.
guerreotypes with your sweetheart. Before
you got back, the one you carried Was wet
with your blood. Did the girl keep the
other? l hope she did.
There were q thousand and forty of you In
camp. Lank, lean, ungrsceful. they were,
The officers, Is a general thing, were not "a
perior to the men. The backwoods furnished
the larger quota. The most OF the men
could wing" a squirrel with a rife. How
would they shoot the Enfeldp I tried them
once. selected sixty crack shots. each one
Of whom with the ordinary rife could have
hit a squirrel In the head in the highest tree
in Indiana. The mark was q huge regula.
ton target To see the effect OF theshoot-
ing, I sat on a fence fifty feet to the one side
Of the target. One ball struck the fence near
where l sat; then I changed my position.
We had everything to learn. It IL
the romance Of history how these gawky
|countrynen shortly afterward formed
square on the double quick. or. to the Gale OF
the bugle, spread out like q fan ia the Skin
mlsh drill, laid down, got up, advanced.
rallied, or retreated.
Before this result was obtained, an inspec-
tor came-s regular army officer. He re-
ported that one of our regiments was -
herd of wild animals" Possibly, the enemy
found that out shortly after he did.
How popular the sutler was at the begin
ningl The quantities of custara pie. bologna
sausage, sardines, that he disposed of on
credit were fabulous. Bat after the frst
payday, when these dsinties had to be paid
for, nobody was sorry that John Morgan had
captured his mules and wagons. There was
q singular fascination for carrying things.
Knspsacks protruded with pictures and
keepsakes, albums, and books. On the 6ut
march these things grew heavy.
At the beginning q regiment was like Q
circus. There was q wagon 10 each company,
two for headquarters, one for the band, four
for the Quartermaster. Happened shortly
after that We got down to no wagon at al.
Every six men carried a skillet and q coffee
pot.
II was rather curious that we got along
ao out as well in that condition as when
We were running q circus. The men had Q
passion for boots. The fret march cured
them of that prediction. The army shoe,
which does not initiate the ankle, SOON
proved It's superiority.
Every rider iancied that ne must have q
ine horse. A lew rides on q prsncy steed
which kept bis rider aud inns lf in Q isther.
demolished that theory. The horse that
would aud could walk as slo WY ss the men
vas soon at q premium. There were many
de victs to get out of camp. One man gravely
a assured me that bic mother-in- las had come
from Indiana TO visit him., and he wanted q
PASS pronounced that false on its face.
History has made no record of such fondness
on the part OF a mother-in-lsw.
In the camp, the IA pidity with which men
made themselves comfortable was marvellous.
The tent would have walls and q chimney
ia q few hours. The fragrant possum would
bake before The fire. and the chicken hang
dangling and turning on O string.
How little IL takes to aquse q body of
men deprived OF their natural
stroy the gravity and the discipline of q
regiment on dress parade.
Once | said TO q Captain, who had faced
his company the wrong way, aud was march
ing away from the balance, Ito report when
be got to New Orleans" This iske was 30
uproariously received that / repehted, and
never joked again. In a regiment that shall
be nameless, the sentinel in front of the
Coloneps tent was called in aad old by the
Colonel that he was 10 be called at four
o'clock and TO transmit that order TO bis sue
cessor. The sentinel noticed, that, hanging
on the hilt of the Coloners sword, was q can
teen, which looked to be tut. Soon, it was
apparent that the Colonel Was asleep. The
sentinel then went in and took q good pull.
When be was relieved, he communicated
the order and the information he had 40
quired. There were four sentinels during
the night. Toe la t one finished the canteen
and called the Colonel. Toe Colonel shook
the c~sHteen, and sadly laid it down, with the
remark that that banked Lieutenant
Colonel had been there and drank up his
whisky.
Down in Alabama there was usually q Court
Martial running. There we're no courts ex-
cept what the army furnished. Their trials
were very interesting. l remember that the
Court Martial was usually held over what
had been q grocery. soon found out why
that locality had been selected. Regularly
those of Us who had friends on the guard
we're mmon to testify IS witnesses. We
found, always, that we were to be examined
as ex perts only, and our stlmon related
to the particular brand of whisky tina vas
produced that morning. 1t Is needless to
say that We all voted in favor of Bourbon
and against the white article of that locality.
On the contraband question each fellow vas
his " judge. NOBODY knew what the gen.
eral policy of the Government xas-the
Government did not itself know-and no.
body cared. l very early adopted the rule
that / would not order q negro to be given
up unless his master could prove his loyalty.
On the other hand | would not keeo the no-
gro il he wanted to 90.
Bot singularly enough, neither of thsss
contingencies ever happened-no master
ever proved his loyalty, and no. negro ever
wanted TO 90. The result was that there va
no end of distinguished confederates waiting
} on the offers or men. Each darker - he
2 c anne was bapt zsd by . new nane. We had
BsauIegstd, Lee, Johnson, Polk aud num-
bers OF others. Orders would somstimss
= come TO send negroes to hesdQusrtern Bat
these were never construed 70 apply to Ne
= groes who we're ~employei. So Ihey driftod
q along with the army antil 6oally the Proc
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