The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1898-11-08
Two BattaHOlS Of the First Ten
nGiSGG Regiment.
COL. SMITH AND HIS BOYS
Men Declare They Have Been
Slandered-Thei Side of Several
Incidents Told.

The First Tennessee Regiment ar
rived on the Zealandia yesterday
morning and as yet no natives have
been hanged or any other depredations
which this maligned regiment is cred
tied with doing, have taken place.
\ representative OF the Advertiser
called upon Col. Smith yesterday and
in an interview the Colonel explained
many of the disagreeable things that
the San Francisco papers have credit
ed to the Tennesseeans
When asked regarding the conduct
of his regiment while stationed in
San Francisco, he replied: You can
say that the First Tennessee has as
many good men and no more bad
ones than any other regiment in the
service, that the exaggerated reports
as promulgated by the papers have
been taken advantage of by other
troops and when caught in any devil
ishness they claimed that they be-
longed to the First Tennessee"
The Colonel says that it is just as
absurd to hold whole regiment re-
sponsible for the misbehavior OF
few men as it would be to hold the
community Of San Francisco respons-
ible for the crimes of a Durant, or the
alleged crimes of a Bodkin.
On the night of the deplorable af-
fair between Rosser and Hilderbrand
the Colonel sent a patrol into the city
with instructions to send all Tennes-
see soldiers back into camp and di-
rected them to return by way of the
Tennessee men as may have been ar
rested during the night The officer
in charge of the patrol found that 76
soldiers had been arrested during the
night and that out of that number
only eleven were from the Tennessee
regiment. At another time Gen. Mil
Ter, commander of the Eighth Army
Corps, directed one of the captains OF
the First Tennessee to go to the city
and bring to camp all soldiers who
might have been arrested during the
night. The officer found over forty
men locked up at the station, but not
one of the number was from the Ten
nessee regiment.
Regarding the negro episode at San
Francisco the Colonel said: "One
morning couple OF our men got into
little difficulty with a negro. 4
Kansas man and one from my regi-
ment came running into camp and said
that negro had killed one OF our
men. Immediately a rush was made
for the place to capture the negro. AS
many men from the Iowa and Kansas
regiments were in the crowd as Ten
neSseeans and the man that mounted
the roof with an axe and chopped a
mole IN 1t was a member of the First
New Ork. The house was DESTROYED.
but the Iennesseeans were no more to
OIame than the other regiments. Rltt
lhaSmuch as the regiment was conspic-
uouS IN the matter the officers of our
regiment paid all damages awarded
Dy the board, which amounted to
$221.4O"
shortly after the trouble occurred
the negro, Zero Thomas. visited the
tennessee camp and was seen by Gen.
Miller, who said: Thomas. what on
earth are you doing down here in this
tennessee camp, are you not afraid TO
be over here among the Tennessee
ans?' Thomas replied: mo General.
l haint 'frafd Of these Southern gen
tlemsn, l was bawn in the South my
SELF
All the officers of the regiment are
OF distinguished Southern families
Col. Smith is strong and vigorous for
a man of 90 years. He was an en-
sign in the Twelfth Virginia. in Gen.
VIM. Mahon's Old brigade. serving
through the entire war for the Con
federacy and was at Appomattox when
| Robert z. Lee surrendered TO Gen. I.
! s. Grant.
Two Of the officers are sons of two
| very distinguished Confederate gem
! erals. Maj. B. F. Cheacham is the son
OF Gen. b. f. Cheatham. of the late
| war. Another is q son Of Gen. E. Kir-
! by Smith. Capt. \. c. Gillen is a son
OF Gen. Alvin f. Gillen. an officer in
the Federal army during the late war,