New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1885-12-09
MAKING AN ARMY.

ovfCiviliansfB seanesYeSsr Rob
q Ratriots Early s1listakes and How
I1ey Wore Rocttnsd.
n. II. Tribune. 1t required hard
and persistent work toscreate the
great land well disciplined army that
saved the Union. "a recollection Of
mistakes that We're made may prevent
their being repeated in a future con-
tingency. At:the beginning of the war
the sun1ysof the Union was practically
nothing but;a crowd Of excited, patri-
otie citizens. 1T was an army ignor-
ant not tof war only but of the COM
monest and most needful knowledge
of military life. The officers, as rule
knew no more than the men over
which they were to ,exercise command,
and in most cases, they were elected
to their s0ffiee'hy these very men. It
often seemed as ifcorpulence was The
sign of fitness for a commits
sion. The portly fellows who had
been familiar loungers about the
doors of the,best hotels were unani-
mously .ohosen'tobe a Colonel, Lieu
tenant Golonel'o Major, according to
their degrees OF good-living, while the
less polished specimens and the less
rotund, who ,patronized the ordinary
saloons, eor were ward politicians or
foremen of volunteer fire companies,
were made Captains and Lieutenants.
A few, but comparatively a very few,
OF these elected officers remained in
the army after a YEARS. service. The
greater number suecumbed to disease
or were allowed to resign, or were dis
charged. remember an instancesofa
fat fellow, formerly railroad contract
or, who had secured his election as
Captain Dy "setting up the drinks for
the boys" He struggled and,waddled
manfully Oh the first march, over fif-
teen miles of stony mountain roads,
but gave way to the terrible fatigue
before the day was done and was sent
to hospital to die within month,
from the effects of that march.
Except where "a militia regiment
offered the nucleus of a regiment for
the field, the battalions of infantry
were usually formed by bringing to-
gether indiscriminately ten of the indie
pendent companies of volunteers just
recruited. Then began wire-pu]ling for
the choice OF the regimental field and
staff. There was considerable in,feel-
ing, too, and jealousy as to the posi-
lions occupied by accompanies in the
newly formed regiment. Every COM
pany wished to be Fright" if possible,
and if not then cleft" or at least
Center" and the seven companies
that had to be disappointed were a
long time in getting over resentment.
Those regiments which were so fortu-
nate as to get an officer of the regular
army for it's Colonel were, usually,
we'll organized from the beginning, but
in most of the others the trickery
learned in political primary meetings
counted for more than army regula-
tions.
Generally speaking it required from
one to two years in the field, under
the real test ofexperience, to weed out
the more shrewd of the incompetents
who had been elected or appointed for
all sorts of qualities and those essen
tial to good military officers. The
first years service tested the qualities
,of the rank and file. A few months
exposure and hardship sent the ply
sically incapable to hospital, to die or
to be discharged for disability, while
in that time those who had the ply
sique but not the spirit of soldiers
found means OF being detached from
their commands, and though still car
ried on the muster rolls, to be detail
ed as clerks in bureaus or headquar-
ters, hospital nurses, or in some 9TH
er non-combatant capacity. Those
soldiers who after years active SER
vice We're still in the field with their
commands were really the ''army"
that fought the war. They were, ply
sically at least. the flower of the Ameri-
can people.
But who can describe the appear
;ancesof the camps of instruction dur
ing May, lune and July, 1861, where
thousands of men we're encamped
without arms or uniforms. Think of
"a regiment maneuvering almost like
clock-work and yet having no two
men dressed:alike! Form many regiments
acquired considerable skillin company
and battalion tactics before arms, &C
oounterments or clothing were issued
them. Though not soldiers, they
actually played soldier" and played
it'seriously. Ut was common to see a
sentinel walking his beat with a corn
stalk at the support" and when the
officer OF the guard, with a wooden
sw@rd-ingenietlsly whitfield for him
by one OF his Gaen. perhaps-would
appN0ach, the sentinel would bring his
cornstalk to the shoulder arms, ''and
the officer would return the salute
with alfourish of the wooden sword,
neither sentinel nor % fficer so much as
smilingfor neither saw anything ridic-
ulous Rn the SITUATION. Most of the
first tnQsps were ENLISTED for three
months, and the Government was
naturally SLOW to equip regiments that
might newer take thief at q, time