Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1898-05-27
LIFE IN THE ARMY.
THINGS THE VOLUNTEER LEARNED
SOON IN THE CIVIL WAR.

One Was the Difference Between an OHlcer
and "A Private-ouIck Submission of the
Volunteers to the Hard Conditions of
Army Life.
One of the first and also one Of the
hardest lessons an enlisted man in
volunteer army has to learn is that
there is an aristocracy of shoulder
straps which is contrary to all his
democratic experiences and principles.
In the last war, as soon as Sumter was
fred on, patriotic men got together in
companies and elected their own COM
mssoned officers without realizing all
that a commission means. The men,
in many cases. had lived together on
the same social plane, often as init
mate friends In choosing their Off
GERS they were influenced by the same
amiable considerations that deter
mine elections in civil life. A good
fellow or a shrewd politician could
easily obtain the support of majority
of the company, whether he was adapt
ed to the Office or not In time the
private soldier learned there was be-
tween them and the commissioned Of
fcer a gulf which no good will on his
part could bridge. lie was compelled
to assume an air OF superiority that
only the utmost tact could save from
offensiveness. He was not allowed by
the army regulations or traditions to
continue the intimate personal rela-
lions that existed in private life.
1t was sometimes CALLING TO the en-
listed man that. besides being better
paid, better clothed, fed. and housed,
the commissioned officer enjoyed
many privileges that were Of great i'm
portance to men used to the free life OF
republic. Besides his larger pay. the
officer had an allowance OF rations be-
yond that of the private. which he
committed when in camp. That Is, he
drew a money equivalent instead OF
the rations, and was able to buy pro-
visions of a superior quality and OF
larger variety. The company officers
formed a mess, had an expert cook and
general servant, complete outfit OF
dishes, which were carried in a camp
chest, and so on; the private had his
tin plate tin cup tin spoon, his cof-
fee being made in a huge sheet-iron
camp kettle. The officers had wall
tent that was carried in a wagon; the
private a dog tent that was carried by
himself As a rule, in active service
the private had the benefit only of
what he could carry, except the few
cooking utensils in charge of the COM
pany cook In ordinary times the
commissioned officers could leave
camp virtually at will His duties
were comparatively light, while the
private, in addition to sentry duty. had
sometimes to serve with pick, shovel
and axe in the construction of fortif-
cations, the digging of rifle pits. the
making of corduroy roads, and the
like. The officer might occasionally
obtain leave of absence to visit his
home, while a furlough was rare
thing for the homesick private. In the
last extremity, the officer could leave
the army by resignation, but only eX-
piration of his term of service incur
able wounds, or disease or death offer
ed release to the soldier The latter
envied not only the commissioned Of
ficer, but also the negro servant, who
could come and go almost at will.
The submission of the American
volunteer to the hard conditions OF
army life is one of the marvels and
glories of American patriotism. The
pay was not enough to be alluring. At
first it was 81 and later $13 a month
The Government provided the cloth
ing, food, tobacco, &C., but the pay was
small enough where there was a fam
lily dependent on the earnings of the
soldier.