Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1906-01-24
Wh:n Johnny Came Marching Home.

Clittl KS IL stewart III the century.
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Wh:n Johnny Came Marching Home.
How Milwaukee Welcomed the Sixth Wis
consin Forty-two Years Ago.
BY Lieut.-Col. J. a. Watrous, L. s ARMY.
Milwaukee gloriously welcomed and
splendidly entertained a convention OF
three or four hundred tourists forty two
years ago January Is.
The tourists were the survivors Of the
Sixth Wisconsin Volunteers.
They had spent the better part of
three years touring Virginia, Maryland
and Pennsylvania, and had held up right
hands and pledged to follow the calling
at the will of their Uncle Sam. whether
he desired their services one on ten years;
they had sworn in for three years more,
or during the war.
1t required more courage to make that
second promise, in 1864, than it did to
pledge for three years in 1861.
They had met in convention at many
points by that time; they had partici-
pated in noisy, boisterous discussions
with other American tourists; they had
discussed and stoutly contended at
Rappahannock River, Gainesville, Second
Bull Run, South Mountain, Antietam,
Fredericksburg, Fitzhugh Crossing, Chan
cellorsville, Gettysburg and Mine Fun,
and still there were other conventions to
come, other contentious, other discus
sions. and they knew it.
They knew that war was all and more
than Gen. Sherman said it was; they had
seen more than half of the thousand
young tourists who passed through Mil
waukee in 1861 lay down their lives or
compelled to quit from wounds or dis
ease.
But they answered President Lincoln's
invitation to make a longer stay-to
help him convince our American brothers
on the other side of Mason and Dixon's
line that the government that Washing
ton and his compatriots had bequeathed
was too good, too valuable a government
to be destroyed in headon collision
by accepting with a cheer and an oath
that no true man will violate
The first week in January. 1864, the
regiment broke camp at Culpepper, Va,
boarded a train of freight cars and start
ed for Wisconsin on a thirty day fur
Tough.
1t was nearly midnight, January IA,
when the regiment reached Milwaukee
and was comfortably cared for in vacant
stores on West Water street. That was
the coolest Of all the cold Januarys.
The next morning found a shivering
body of men hunting for a warm break
fast.
Good old Col. Lysander Cutler. the
first commander of the Sixth. had written
the president of the chamber of COM
merce that his boys would reach Milwau-
kee about the middle of the month; had
told him that they had been good boys
for three years and had promised to be-
have until the trouble ended; said that
he was prouder of having led such a body
of soldiers than of anything else in his
experimental he had since commanded
a brigade and a division of sixteen reg
iments; telling him that his old regiment
had greatly honored the state and served
the nation most Loyalty and faithfully
that all were heroes. After telling the
president these and other things he ex-
pressed the hope that the people of Mil
waukee would give the command gen
GfCuS welcome.
1t was only necessary for President
Jallmadge to let the public know that
the regiment had re-enlisted and was
coming home. to awaken interest that
quickly crystallized in an organization
charged with preparations for a welcome,
and a banquet that should
show the tourists that the people appre-
cated their efforts-were grateful for
their services.
What a welcome it was; what recep-
ton; what a banquet.
At about noon the Sixth, escorted by
q home company and portion of the
Thirtieth infantry marched through sew
eral streets-marched like regulars
The whole city seemed to have turned
out to take part in the welcome home of
the first Wisconsin regiment to re-enlist
after serving three years, and everybody
cheered. How welcome those cheers. the
cheers of friends-people who were back
ing the army with their money, faith
and prayers.
1t was the sweetest music the old
colonel's ''boys" had ever heard. It
warmed their hearts. 1t helped them
to keep step ON slippery paves. They
those cheers with the defiant
yells they had heard at Gettysburg and
Antietam- yells from those other tour
ing Americans under the stars and bars.
Old Glory had been thrown to the
breeze from public buildings, stores and
private residences, and those clean,
whole, beautiful flags seemed to SMILE
weep and throw kisses as we marched
llOng, proud of and loving our faded, tat
tered, blood stained battle flag Maybe
hose beautiful flags recalled the thousand
Youngsters they had smiled upon nearly
three years before; maybe they wept
over absent ones, but the smiles and the
kisses were for us, and we were glad that
tor the second time we had sworn to aid
N shielding the flag from dishonor-to
lelp IN keeping it in a position from
which to wave
At the end of the parade the Sixth
vas conducted to the NewhalPs ample
inlng room, arms having been stacked
1t the chamber of commerce.
lhat large room, with its tables laden