The Hocking sentinel. [volume] (Logan, Ohio) 1871-1906, 1906-02-01
THE FIELD OF BATTLE
INCIDENTS AND ANECDOTES OF
THE WAR.
The Veterans Of the Rebellion Tell of
whistiing Bullets, Bright Bayonets,
BurstinR Bombs, Bloody Battles,
Camp Fire, Festive Bugs, ETC., Etc.

Camp Fire, Festive Bugs, ETC., Etc.
| II have often wondered" said the
Major, what became Of the unrea-
sonable and wantonly brutal officers
of the old volunteer army. l do not
mean the petulant, noisy, or swearing
officers who were good fighters, but
the martinets and coarse-grained men
who were gratuitously abusive, and
uniformly severe or merciless in the
administration Of punishment The
volunteers admired rather than dislik-
ed good dlscipllnarian, and they did
not resent the explosive language Of a
hard fighter, but they swore vengeance
on the officers who took advantage of
shoulder straps to treat men in the
ranks contemptuously or brutally.
There were not many officers of
this kind, but nearly every regiment
had one or more. Some were light
headed martlnets, some were born
ruffians, and some were Influenced by
inordinate vanity or petty resentment
to persecution of their own men. They
aped the regular officers in cultivating
aloofness, but they had nothing Of
the regular officers soldierly quality or
his disposition to care for his men.
The regular punished severely in the
interest Of discipline, whereas the
rufflan or the incompetent in shoulder
straps punished in the spirit Of ven
geance or resentment, and failed ut
terly in discipline and in care of his
men. A few of these officers probably
were shot by their own men during the
war, and most Of them Mt the close
Of the war, II repeated declarations
Of their own men meant anything,
were under sentence of death.
"But l never heard OF one of them
being shot after the close of the war
by man who served under him.
Scores Of them were beaten in fist
fights by mon they had abused and
several in my field Of observation
found it advisable to leave their old
home neighborhoods and settle in dis
tant States, but not in n single case
was the oath Of n private to kill his
captain or lieutenant carried out
Those seeking revenge for humiia-
ton or injury found other means of
satisfying that revenge. In one case
an unpopular officer sought admission
to the regular army some years after
the war. BY that time one of his old
noncommssioned officers had been
elected to Congress.
"He told his story to Garfield, But.
Ter and others, and the applicant was
ruled out. In another case an officer
who had been brutal toward the more
intelligent men in his company sought
nomination for sheriff and made an
active canvass. The president Of the
convention was one of his old ser
geants. Several Of his old prlvates
were delegates. He was showed un
der in the interest Of Private Jack, and
he knew why. In still another case
an officer given to abuse Of his mel
sought an appointment at the hands OF
the governor. He met with rebuff
that took him out of the State"
THE average volunteer officer" said
the Sergeant, captain, colonel, or gen
eral, had too much rather than toe
little Of the milk of human kindness
Bluff and gruff and n rigid disciplinar
ian he might be and yet win the re
spect, IL not the affection, of his
soldiers. And in all such cases the
men In the ranks won at least the
respect of their officers. The relations
Of such officers and soldiers after the
war were worth study. We had In
our regiment from the first preemp
tory sort of Captain of military
training. His ambition was to beat
the raw material Of his company into
shape, to drill the regiment into form
and, sternly persistent, he succeeded
"In the last year of the war he was
promoted to colonel of one of the new
regiments and we lost sight of him
Two years after the war / was visit
ing a Western penltentiary with O
legislative committee. When the guard
was formed for our inspection I saw
in the ranks the old drill master OF
our regiment, the Captain of our crack
company. looked for some sign OF
recognition, but there was none, and
/ made no advances. But l went that
night to our old division General and
told him of my discovery. He thought
must be mistaken, but he would in
vestigate.
"In two days the General sent fol
the warden of the prison and asked
him If he didn't need captain fol
his guards. The warden paid he did
but added that he could not find O
trustworthy man to take charge. The
General replied that he had among his
guards one Of the most capable and
most Trustworthy officers in the old
volunteer army. Why not appoint hin
to the captaincy without explanation
He warned the warden that the Col
onel was a proud and sensitive man
and no questions should be asked as
to bow he came to be prison guard
Meantime our committee paid 8
visit to the warden and made prac