Evening journal., 1896-10-05
PROFANE SOLDIERS.
THERE WAS VERY LITTLE sweARlNe
lN THE ARwY OF THE UNION.

Author Of "Cho led na0go Of Cour-
age -caaap Followers and Hangers ON
Farnis.aea tho profanity Of the War.
When the recruits OF the FIRST Maino
cavalry began to take on Soldier airs''
in their camp Oh the Penohscot, in
1861, somo OF them Assuming that
troopers should bo men full Of strange
oaths, +" Colonel Douty promulgated an
antinrofanity order. AZ first tho cdict
was received with considerable merri-
ment and expletives, Innocent in them
selves though meant to do duty as oaths,
were freely used. But ia d few days,
inspired By the precepts and examples
Of certain selfrespocting comrades tho
men took a roblor view Of it and the
needless vice, as the historian OF the
| regiment charactorizes it, was eilectunlly
| prescribed
Tho First Maine served four years
/ and earned o reputation for valor ia the
| field second to no other mounted COM
mand 1t brought home Gag upon
which We're inscribed by official author
| ity the names Of 80 battles. But the
veterans were not more proud Of their
martial honors than Of their good NOR
ais, for they had won the honors and
the victory to crown them, swearing
mot at all;" that, too, with regi-
mental temperance pledge held IN al
most universal respect
The general over a division Of 10, 900
men who nipped the profaning evil in
the buy by saying, Twill do the swear
4
moro tactful in his methods than the
Maine cavalry colonel, as he needed to
be, dealing with strange troops. but he
was not Jester, neither victim Of
/ overconfidence in himself If military
necessity warranted violation of the law
he would be the judge Under leader
so clever and farsighted tho crisis would
never arise. Only once during a long
service at the front-service rendered in
two different regiments, different bri-
gades, divisions aud army corps--did
hear an officer above the rank of cap
tain give way TO profanity. That once
was the case of brigade commander
invoking the curse Of Deity upon a ras-
cally quartnrmaster. The quartermastor
resigned on tho spot and went homo,
thus removing what might have boon a
stumbling block from the path of many
besides the general
/ should say that the rascally quar-
termaster and his close concomitants,
the stubborn army mule and the OBJ
streperous teamster, furnished the chief
proyocatives 20 swearing for soldiers of
the line and that in the precinct set
apart 70 their use--region remote from
battle and virtually outside Of the do
main Of army discipline-oaths were
quito as common as they arc in the
| pages Of the "Red Badge OF Courage. -
IN fact the manners rs well AS the Ian
! | guago Of the soldiers in that narrative
I suggest that the studies for it were
made from camp followers and the hang
I ers on Of the supply departments
! manned, as these were, by nOncombat
ants Into that safe asylum drifts. ac
6 cording to well known law, tho slun
r element of an army in tho field
Ny cars still retain echoes of volleys
Of oaths from the lips of two men Of
! that class whom / encountered on the
peninsula ia 1862. Both were enlisted
soldiers and wore tho blue One Of the
offenders acted as keeper Of the brigade
conlmigsary atorca With him tho swear
ing habit was an infrnity, causing his
associates TO overlook it through pity.
The other was "a teamstcr, who had fol-
lowed the sea until long past middle
life Swearing in his case was child
/ / ish way Of showing bravado. It is need
less 70 add that be was n hopeless cow
u 4. 4..sI
cd to stable duty.
BY referring to the roster Of tho com
G / pany in which | served in 1923 I now
recall the individuality Of SO comrades,
: and of that number recognize SO who
did not use profane language OH any 90.
I casion OF the remaining % only I ]
! can be indicted as possibly given to pro.
(; family at times, and that solely on the
? ground Of their general reputation foI
lightness Of morals. On the expiration
Of our term of enlistment. in 1868, tive
] sergeants Of the company recruited O
command for tho veteran cavalry serv-
Z ice They had the pick Of 500 appli-
! cants recently mustered out from the
two years regiments and chose their
9 | men strictly with regard TO their previ.
Gus records as gallant soldiers. When
tho men came together in camp, it APP
peared that there was not one among
, the 100 veterans 50 selected who used
i profane or vulgar language
A moments reflection must convince
every intelligent person that violent
! language is subversiye Of all true disci-
e pline, and q successful army without
discipline is on impossibility in this
age The article Of war prescribing
profanity, promulgated, as it was, 10
every new command and read on parade
! annually at least, was protection for
the soldier and moral weapon for the
officer The soldier could insist upon its
observance by his superiors On the
other hand, lac weakened his own cause
whenever he violated the law himself.
At first blush the article seemed To
many obsolete and ridiculous and was
! generally received as a relic of Puritan
days. But the more onerous and exact
inc "A rulo the moro it is studied and