The Portland daily press., 1899-01-06

flnQ MHAuf ms ntN6I t1tttitU VI ntT
devotion and loyalty TO the Union. and
her people never will. The infantry regi
ment was ordered into camp at Chicka-
mauga- All OF its men and officers were
anxious and clamoring to be sent to the
frontvN here they coSd participate In
the struggle. and they were about to go
to Porto Rico when the protocol. which
put an end to hostilities. was signed.
An alarming amount OF sickness, espe-
cially typhoid fever. prevailed in the
Chickamauga camp. 1t was almost cpl
demic, and compelled the government TO
abandon IT, This caused the regiment TO
return to Maine. II has since its return
been mustered out OF the service AFTER
It's return to Maine. as well as before,
II suffered a good deal from the fever
with which II had been infected before II
returned home.
What causes may have induced so
much sickness. who Is responsible for ii,
and whether or not II could have been
avoided by proper foresight, and care. l
leave to others TO determine. Yet IT does
seem to me that without some strong
compelling cause IL was not good judy
ment to concentrate In one camp so large
a body OF troops as rendezvoused at
ChickamauFa, and to keep them there
for a long period Of time in the heat of
summer and under a southern sun.
The number of commissioned officers
that served in the First regiment OF in
fantry volunteers while in the United
States service was 40. The number OF
commissioned officers and privates
furnished under the first call when the
regiment left Augusta was $50. There
fore, the whole strength of the regiment
at that time was 1927. as two OF the
commissioned officers named were not
commissioned to fill vacancies until the
regiment returned to Maine. as there
was no official notice OF the vacancies
prior to that time.
The battery of heavy artillery. mean
ing battery A, had a total strength of
four commissioned officers. and LAG en-
listed men when II left Augusta to gar
rison Fort Popham. The total number
of officers and men furnished under the
first call was f177.
Under the presidents second call the
number of non commissioned officers
and privates in the infantry companies
was increased to log. and battery A OF
the heavy artillery increased to 200. This
makes a grand total that served in both
Of these organizations under both calls
of 1346 officers and men
There was also organised, largely from
the Second regiment of the National
Guard Of the state of Maine, in response
to the second call, three batteries of ar
tillary, having IL commissioned officers.
and 319 non-oommissoned officers and
privates. a total of $50
Maine also furnished under special in
structions from the war department, a
signal corps. consisting OF two commits
stoned officers and 40 enlisted men. max
ing a total Of the Land forces volunteer
ing in these organizations in the war
with Spain of I'LL officers and men. A
large number OF soldiers. seamen and
marines also volunteered and enlisted
in the regular army of the United States.
and in the naval service. of which we
have at present no account or record.
In response to a request Of the secre-
tary OF the navy the Volunteer Naval
Reserve associations of Portland and
Bath organized for service, and enlisted
for one year. There were six commits
stoned officers and 70 privates in the
Portland organization: three commits
stoned officers and 90 privates in the
Bath organization. Both the signal corps
and the naval reserves were in excess of
the quota assigned to Maine. The signal
corps was ordered TO the front. and did
excellent service in the several battles
on the Island OF Cuba near Santiago.
which led to the surrender OF that city
and the Spanish forces occupying it. The
volunteer naval reserves have also been
mustered out Of the service. The four
battereies Of heavy artillery are all of
the Maine troops now in the service of
the United States. They are at present
encamped at Savannah. in the state of
Georgia, and will form a part of the
army of Cuban occupation. as they have
already received orders to prepare to go
to Havana
The health OF these four batteries at
the present time Is excellent. All of these
soldiers and volunteer naval reserves,
both officers and men, We're and are as
gallant and brave troops as ever mus
tered in any land to do battle for the
right, and If they were not permitted to
participate more extensively in actual
warfare IL was no fault OF theirs. as they
were ever ready and solicttouS to be sent
to the front They have represented their
state with honor and deserve its thanks,
The number of deaths In the regiment
while In the service was two commits
stoned officers and II non commissioned
officers and men. In the four batteries
up to the present time seven enlisted
men. In the signal corps three enlisted
men; making total OF So officers and
men. This includes one man who died
after his company was mustered out,
and is not quite per cent of the men
enlisted. So low a death rate. when con-
sidering the large amount of sickness,
especially in the First regiment of Maine
infantry volunteers, speaks well for the
care and attention which was bestowed
by officers, surgeons, nurses and all
others having charge of the sick.
The secretary OF war. when the first
call for volunteers was issued assigned
as the quota " the state Of Maine a regi-
ment of infantry and one battery OF
heavy artillery. and he expressly re-
ouested that this call be filed so far as
possible, from the National Guard of
the state, as the government desired men
that were somewhat familiar with mill
tary drill and tactics, Before the call
was issued, Adjutant General John T.
Richards and myself had consulted to-
gether, and had foreseen that the guard
would probably be the first troops asked
for, and had already taken some effective
measures to prepare IL to respond. An
order had been issued directing all COM
manding officers OF companies to report
for honorable discharge all soldiers in
their several commands having any
physical disability which might prevent
them from being mustered Into the
United States service; and another order
requesting and directing that every com
pany be recruited. by new enlistments,
to the miximum number allowed under