The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1894-06-09

Not the least remarkable feature OF the
civil war was the large number of foreign
ers who enlisted in the Union army. At
the beginning of the contest the natives of
almost every foreign country resident here
organized companies and regiments and
offered their services to the government.
In this city, in 1861, regiments were
formed by the Irish, Germans, Italians,
Englishmen, Poles, Hungarians, High
landers, Spaniards, French, Austrians,
Scandinavians, &C. Many distinguished
European officers also entered the army
and rendered splendid service. Among
these may be mentioned General Franz
Sigel, General Louis Blenker, Colonel
Max Weber, Colonel Frederick Hecker,
Captain Gustav Struze, Colonel Eugene
A. CoElay, Colonel Adolph Won Steinwehr,
General Asboth, Major Baron Won Rad
owitz, Major Navoni, Captain de Vedichi,
Colonel Latour, Colonel Corcoran, Colonel
Richard Il. Enright, Colonel McLeayy,
Colonel Comfort, Colonel Rosa, Colonel
Mckenzie, Colonel d'Utassy, Colonel
Count Wratislaw, Colonel Benedix, Colonel
Tineli and hundreds of others equally as
distinguished who volunteered in the
service Of the government without expect
ing to be rewarded with either bounty or
pension.
There are as yet no complete published
statistics relating to the number of for
eigners who were in the Union army dur
ing the war, but for the year 1861 the
most comprehensive are those compiled for
the United States Sanitary Commission by
E. b Elliott These statistics were
gathered at the close of the year 1861.
At that time, out of the 200 volunteer
regiments, taken at random from each
division of the army in the field, which
were examined, 764 per cent. of them were
composed of only little more than half
of native born, 6s per cent. showed a
majority of Germans, and 81 per cent. a
majority of Irish, and 81 per cent. of the
native and foreign were about equal. The
report says that this was, at the time of the
inspection, fair representation of the
whole army.
A more complete portion of these sta
tistics was afterward published in Berlin.
This showed that there were 26,239
soldiers examined, and of that number
nearly one-third were of foreign birth.
The secretary of the United States Sanitary
Commission, in his report above mentioned
to the Secretary of War, says that "about
two-thirds of our volunteer soldiers are
American born"
The large sums paid in America for
soldiers to enlist as substitutes was well
known in Europe, and thousands came
here to secure the bounty money. In
this way the system of permanent bounty
kept up the army and proved great iu-
ducement to immigration. As soon as the
immigrants arrived here they were met by
the bounty agents and substitute brokers,
who by the promises of food, clothing,
enormous bounties, and big pay forced
them into the army, which was, in fact,
the only employment they could obtain at
that time. Upon entering the army, in
accordance with an act of Congress, all the
rights of citizenship were Immediately
granted them, and they were promised the
right and title to the unoccupied land Of
the reconquered South.
RECRUITING AGENTS IN GREAT, BRITAIN
The activity of the agents from the
United States in obtaining recruits abroad
caused Earl Russell, in May, 1868, to
open correspondence with Charles Francis
Adams, United States Minister, on the
subject. He drew Mr.. Adamss attention
to the fact that within fortnight 1878
emigrants had sailed from Queenstown for
New York, many of them young men; that
500 were booked for the next departure
for the same place; that additional steamers
had to be put on the line engaged in the
business of conveying emigrants, and that
the prospect of large bounties had been
held out to young men throughout the
country, the emigrants themselves admit
ting that they got $3.50 and $500 bounty,
their friends in New York also receiving
large commissions for inducing them to
emigrate.
Mr.. Adams, with an appearance of great
earnestness, denied positively all know
ledge of any such enlistments, but the
agents from the United States visited Ire
land and the British North American
provinces and enlisted many men fer the
Union army, and dispatched many recruits
to America, ostensibly as mechanics or
farm laborers. As the war progressed and
volunteering became thing of the past,
the emigrant ships which arrived at New
York, Philadelphia, and Boston, became
one of the chief sources of supply for re-
cruits At the same time the British
newspapers were filed with accounts of the
activity of the United States recruiting
agents in England, Ireland, and Germany.
The Dublin News Letter of April 8, 1863,
said: s'The Yankee agents are ransacking
every corner of ireland for troops.
The reasonable assembling and drilling of
large masses, which are nocturnally occur
ring in the outskirts Of this city and of the
country towns, are preparatory lessons in
military tactics to make them the most
ready to serve in the brigades of the
Meaghers, the Corcorans, the Houlihans,
and the other heroes of whom the history
of 1S4S records that they didn't fight, but
ran away The Yankee agents, now
prowling among us, have also directed their
attention to that half-made war material,
the Irish militia. 1t is asserted that num-
bers of the men of this force are subsidized
to enroll the youth Of the country in the
national clubs, and then teach them mill
tary drill Each draft of emigrants which