The National tribune., 1891-10-22

Vermont Comrade TtIls what His Regiment Did
for the Country.

A Aof iAe AohhlfA.
EDITOR NATIONAL TRIBUNE: The editorial
In your issue al Sept. 10 giving the statistics Of
losses sustained aud the services rendered by
several regiments that went into the service
In the Spring OF 1864 was most timely and
just Having served in the 18th VT, one Of
| the regiments mentioned in said article, was
naturally interested In what you had TO say
regarding Its record aud service.
OF that regiment you say The 18th VT
! left the State April D., 1864, and two weeks
1 later charging the rebel breastwOTks at
| Spottsylyania, From that time il, fighting
was almost continuous until IL was in the front
line IN the final charge on Petersburg. Ii took
/ LIB men from the State, Of whom one ia every
4 IL was killed, and one in every four wounded.
4 lt lost la7 killed, 229 wounded, and % died in
rebel prisons and 80 OF disease, making a total
loss Of 493, or nearly every other man in the
regiment"
j have no doubt Of the correctness of your
statistics, but can state facts with relation 90
that regiment which will show that our loss
WAS much greater in proportion 10 the number
| oil men who were IN the regiment during its
fighting period than your article would indi-
/ cate And i'm the first plare let me correct
you as TO the per cent Of killed TO total MEM
berahip as shown by the figures you give.
You say lone IN IL, !" but La IL more than one
in eight of Ll3l.
Again. Of the l31 men shown by the records
| 20 have belonged 10 our regiment altogether
less than 900 left the State with us ia April,
| ls64. Our regiment was recruited in the
/ Winter OF 1869 aud Spring Of 1864 as a veteran
regiment being largely composed in its mem-
bership Of mon who had hitherto seen sery-
! ice The officers all had been out before.
4 The companies were organic with So men
each, the minimum number required, aud we
were hurried out of the State when but seven
companies had been organized Co. q, OF which
the writer was Captain, being the last one
4 70 organize before leaving the State. We Joined
the Ninth Corps (Gen. Burnsidesj. which had
just returned from Knoxville, Tenn, and were
ushered into tie battle Of the Wilderness May
/ g. never having had but two battalion drills.
Go. Ill came 10 as just after the battle Of SPOTS
I sylVania We were at Cold iarbnr and i'm
the first struggles before Petersburg on arriy-
/ ing there about the middle Of June MS well as
the minor battles aud slirmishes prior thereto
between the Wilderness aud Petersburg Aud
we were IN the terrible slaughter az the Mine"
/ on July 50. before Ca. j came 10 as. Co X did
not come until late in the Fail. when the cam
/ paign ior the season was virtually over.
Besides this, 300 men Of said i.l3l came TO
us AS recruits tie following Winter, aud they,
with Co k, s8w no fighting except the last
charge on Petersburg April . l-G5. Here,
then, are about 400 men who should not be
taken into account ia a comparative state
IDcnt OF losses sustained 10 the number in the
regiment DedUcting those killed aud wounded
/ la the last charge april 2, 1865 from the total
Casualties. aud NO have fully 450 lost while we
had total membership of not over 200, which
included musicians, teamsteTs, and many de-
tailed men who were not ia the engagements;
making loss OF about two out Of every three
up 10 that time belonging 10 the regiment.
Alter the hTst TWO or three battles We never
had more than $50 10 200 men to 90 into
engagement companies oftentines being in
command Of Sergeants and frequently game
out with only 90 70 20 men left. Particularly
WAS this true OF the Nine" July 30, and
Popular Grove Church, Sept 30.
OF the other nine regiments particularly
mentioned by you, the 3lst Me- was ia our
brigade Second Brigade, SecOnd Division,
! Ninth Corps, and was with as all through that
terrible campaign. The 56th. 57th and 5sth
Mass. aud lith ". v. III. A. were ia our diyis-
4 ion aud saw similar service. The 18th Va. was
a three years regiment. as think the others
were, and as ] have said, their mem bership was
largely made up Of men who bad been in the
service before. The war had lastcd long enough
and the slaughter been great enough, 90
that they realized that they were starting on
mo holiday excursion.
do not suppose that these regiments suffered
] worse than many other regimeuts or rendered
better service. ] speak Of them. MS I happened
30 have personal knowledge Of their service
aud very little has eyer 10 my knowledge
I been said lH their behalf in the public prints
/ while much has been said aud written from
time to time for The last 70 years OF the grand
old regiments that served from the fret Bull
/ Run 10 AppDmattox.
Let the cArpng critics who are declaiming
against pensions for these men look over their
record and consider what that last years cam
palRn OF the Army Of the Potomac, beginning
/ with tho Wilderness, real " was; what a strain
| on the physical system Tor those who survived
marching aud lighting day after day, with
very liitIo rest, Tor Six weeks until Petersburg
WAS reached aud the siege commenced. and
then IN the trenches ia the vicinity Of Fort
He'll, al the nearest point 10 Petersburg. under
lire constantly, night aud day, for weeks, an
through the hot Summer months Then let
them say, the Aforesaid carcTs, whether they
begrudRe pensions 10 the private soldiers who
went through such hardships for a monthly
1 pittance and returned home al The close Of tie
war mere wrecks Of what they formerly were.
believe IL is held ly ex purienced physicians
that service during The late war, where a large
share Of the soldiers were taken TO a very DIFF
icrcnt climate from what they bad been accus-
toned 10, reduced the lease Of life 10 the sur
vivors, on the average, eight or 10 years, and
who that Is O careful observer doubts IN
Nearly all our great Generals arc dead most
OF them dying when they were, 40 far as years
were concerned, IN the prime Of life. Grant.
Sheridan, Thomas, Hancock. Meade Burnside,
Logan, Mcclellan, Fitzpatrick, Blair. aud host
81 Others We might mention, all or nearly all
died under 90, and many Of them not over 80
years 81 age.
At The present time the Northern Comprehend
aud the fellows who were skulking during th {
war seem 10 bc abroad in the land and arc try.
ing 10 belittle the services Of the sold iers and
declaring that AL the good soldiers are dead
aud that only lot Of bounty jumpers aud
shOrt-seTyiee men remain.
They are Hidrd in their efforts 10 make the
pension laws odi0us by some Of the young men
who have grown mp since the war, who fan
somehow to fully realize what the seryiet
really WAS And, secondly, by the brutal
money power OF New York and other Eastern
cities-the same money power that IN the DARK
days IN the Winter Of 1860 aud '6l favored
compromise aud is ever ready 20 compronis,
away the cause Of human liberty aud human
rights when trade may be ga danger And
lastly, by the huEwumps. who as a rule, are .
cold-blooded set, and consider that they know
al that iE worth knowing in this little world
. Of ours.
However, there Is nothing 20 fear. Tn,
noble action OF the 5lst Congress on the pen
, sion question Is approved by the great mass O
, The American people, aud ina the future IA,
patriotic aud honest people Of the country
mindful Of the TACT that but for the services o
The soldiers they would not have this Goyern
. meHt and its tree institutions 10 enjoy. can b.
relied upon 10 see that the promises that weF,
made 10 the soldiers are faithfully kent a
those 20 the boDdholdcrs have been.-F. .
HARTsBORE, Captain, 90. "a, 18th VI, Wash
: ingtOn, ID. q.