The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-08-24
GEN. SMITHS GUERRILLAs.
"reminiscences of the Sixteenth
Army Corps Start.


"Reminiscences of the Sixteenth
Army Corps start.
Col. James J. Lyon, assistant inspec-
tor general on the staff of Gen. A. j.
Smith, commanding the Sixteenth
Army corps during the war. writes
from San Francisco, Cal, to Capt. G. ].
Stees that he will be present at the
national G. A. r. encampment. He
says:
l want TO greet and take by the hand
the surviving members of the gallant Fifth,
Sixth, Seventh, Ninth and Tenth regiments of
Minnesotians of whom Gen. Smith was so
justly proud, for Drawer set of men never
preston of his that those Minnesota boys
are all righti' After the fight at Sibley's
Mills, when the Sixth Minnesota-who had the
creek away from the main column, an aide
rode up to the general and reported that
a regiment had camped on the other side Of
the creek beyond supporting distance and
suggested that they be called in. What
regiment is it?" demanded the general. 1.-THE
Sixth Minnesota. was the reply. What!
Call in a Minnesota regiment? Not by q
id sight, sir, not by a id sight; we will
go to them, sir. we Will go to them!" and go
he did, that was old A. j. every time.
While press the hand of the gallant Hub
bard. of the Fifteenth, and Grant, of the
Sixth / shall drop tear to the memory Of
the brave and fearless Marshall, of the Sew
entn, ana the intrepid ana QaSnlng WllKln, OF
the Ninth and smile over old times on the
march. in the field and around the camp fire
with the jovial Jennison. of the Tenth.
1t seems to me that with the survivors OF
five Minnesota regiments in st. Paul, to say
nothing of regiments from other states that
Will be present, we should have reunion OF
the Sixteenth Army corps. suppose you men.
ton 1t to the Minnesota boys and see what
they think of it,
Did 1 ever tell you OF the telegram Gen.
A. ]. Smith sent to Secretary Stanton? We
1nroro lufrr nj al waiting
portation. 1t was Just after the Red river
expedition and had not as yet been designated
as an army CORPS smisn sent We
Tribes of Israel, Cairo, 1ll.-Have we not done
enough to earn name? If not, tell US what
to do and we will do it." The answer came:
''You have done nobiy; a name will await you
at New Orleans" And when we arrived
there we found we were designated the Six
teenth Army Corps" While en- route down
the Mississippi the question of corps badge
came up, and the general suggested to his
officers to draw up design to submit TO
him. This was done, and so many exceAent
to choose between them, so they were all
put in hat and shaken up and a bind
folded officer elected to do the drawing, the
first badge drawn out to be designated as the
badge of the Sixteenth Army corps, which
proved to be the design of Gen. Macarthur,
commanding the first division OF the corps,
which was four conical shells on disc point
ing to the center. The shells being cut out
left a cross somewhat similar to the Maltese
cross, except that the former was rouho anu
the latter square, and this is the page now
worn by the veterans of the Sixteenth Army
corps a corps that never was whipped nor
ever turned its back to the enemy.
Regards to all the boys until we press flesh
cereIv vours Lyon.
Can't. Stees says Col. Lyon is. a
nephew of Gen. Lyon, who was killed.
Speaking of the Sixteenth corps badge,
he says: By some unaccountable mis-
take the design placed upon the chart
of army corps badges issued from the
office Of the chief engineer at Washing
ton, D. c., was simply sign or circle
with two lines crossing at right angles,
and looked like cart wheel with four
spokes, without hub. When in Phila-
delphia, in 1884, Col. Lyon wrote to
Stees, saying: while you are East
have that abortion of the Sixteenth
corps badge erased from the army
corps chart and the proper badge sub
situated. at the same time inclosing
diagram Of the proper badge" Capt.
Stees Immediately wrote to Robert Lin
coin, then secretary of war, who re-
ferred his letter, to the engineer-in-
chief United States army, who wrote
to Stees, saying: What proof have
you for your statement; send US your
authority, etc. Stees Immediately
wrote to Gen. A. j. Smith, Gems. Nc
anu Nd11,
the First, Second and Third divisions
of the Sixteenth Army corps respect
lively, inclosing diagrams of the proper
badge, which they returned, with a let
ter. marked correct" These letters
were forwarded to the chief engineer,
United States army, who made the cor
rection and change on the United
States army chart of badges forthwith.
Any G. A. r. comrade who possesses
an old G. A. r. badge issued prior to
1880 and will compare 1t with one is
sued at the present time will
discover the "cart-wheel," as the Six
teenth corps boys termed it, upon the
former, and the proper badge as now
worn upon the latter
The letters written by the above
named distinguished generals were re-
turned to Capt. Stees, per his request,
from the engineers department, at
Washington, d. c., and were intrusted
to the care of the assistant adjutant
general of the department of Pennsyl-
vania, with the request that they be
brought before the national encamp-
ment, G.. A. r., then assembled at Bal
timore, Nd, with view of notifying
the G. A. r. of the change, to have
them adopt the same. The letters were
never returned-letters from such dis
tinguished generals were well worth
appropriating. Such is the history of
the badge Of the Sixteenth Army corps,
the corps that saved Banks on the Red
river expedition.