St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-12-15
TALKING ABOUT THE vvAR.
First Regiment OG VOlunteers--TI
Youngest Drummer BOY.

First Regiment OF VOlunteers--The
Youngest Drummer BOY.
To the Editor of the Globe:
SALTWATER, Mimi, Dec. IL, 1885.-In the
ssPen Pictures in last Sundays issue of the
GLOBE the "reminiscences of c. F. Hausdorf
appears, in which there are several glarlng
mistakes I would be poltroon, indeed, TO
detract one iota from the well-earned honors
or Comrade H., for no men stand higher in
their military record than the few who placed
the cap sheaf upon the already famous
record of the ''Old First by participating in
That memorable charge at Gettysburg. Inc
inaccuracy probably occurs in friend New
sons connecting the First Minnesota and the
Minnesota battalion as one regiment, whereas
| they were two distinct organizations. L
never heard the claim before Of being the
first in the three months service. In fact
think can name score of regiments that
ante-date us there; but we do stand as the
| first regiment of volunteers in the three
| years service, and [ think probably II. is
| entitled to the honor of being the first
| soldier enlisted on the Union side
| for the three years service. Again,
| the article leads one to believe that
| Comrade H. served nearly four and one-half
| years in the First and was in command of
| the regiment for ten months. The facts are
that the regiment served its full term of
| three years only and was mustered out on
| the 29th day of April, 1864. do not think
| ne was ever IN command or the regiment Tor
even one day.
| The error arises in this way: The Mime
sofa battalion was composed of the First,
| whose term of service did not expire on the
goth day of April, 1864 To these were added
new recruits, which made total in all of
something like ESQ men. These were Differed
| by men from the old First, of which III. was
one. With these corrections / believe the
article is correct. Now rs to your sixteen
| year-old drummer boy St. Paul must stand
aside for Saltwater. Muller post has a little
| drummer boy (siX feet one inch and still
growing) who served his full term of three
years and when mustered out was no older
| than Mr.. Bircher when he first entered the
| service. Eben Fosters thirteenth birthday
was on the 18th day of June, 1862 and on the
18th day of the following September he, with
| his father enlisted in the Ninety
| second Ohio regiment, skirmished back
| and forth through the KanaWa val
| ley during that fall and winter, finally bring
ing up at Fit. Donaldson, Murfreesborough,
| Chattanooga, and participated in an engage
ment at Hoover's Gap, Nashville Chickamau-
lanta, besides number of other engage
| ments. He was with Sherman on his march
to- the sea, and back to Washington, and was
| one of the smallest drummer boys that beat
| time for the grandest review probably ever
| seen. He was only four feet eleven inches
| high when mustered out. He served his term
OF three years, never had furlOugh never
was in the guard house, never received
| wound and never lost but one days duty by
reason Of sickness. He wears no blue ribbon
| as champion drummer, and we have no fears
| but that he would if he could be induced to
compete for it. ONE OF THE ''ONEsTERs.'