Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1911-08-04
THE OLD VERMONT BRIGADE.
Called It the Best Brigade In the Army
Of the Potomac.

tribute to the old First Vermont brig |
ade. 1t was first printed soon after the |
close of the Civil war, and was entitled
THE First Vermont Brlgade-by one
VINO dlu not belong to it, and who was
never in Vermont" Its authorship was
not known for some time, but finally
was discovered and acknowledged by its
author. This was General Martin r. Nc
Mahon, who was chief of staff of the
sixth army corps, under Uncle John"
Sedgwick, and had ample opportunity
to see the Vermonters in camp on the
march and in battle He has been
United States marshal in New York.
United States minister to Paraguay, and
held other important Offices He is now
judge of the court of general sessions in
New York city, and he takes back moth
ing of his old high opinion of the Yer
mont troops.
They were honest farmers turned vag-
abonds. They were simple countrymen
changed into heroes. They were quiet
townsmen that had become rovers They
stole ancient horses and bony cows on
the march. They pillaged moderately in
other things. They swept the diaries and
stripped the orchards for miles where
they Travelled. They chased rabbits
when they went into camp after long
marches, and they yelled like wild In
dams when neighboring camps were ST.
lent through fatigue. They were ILL
disciplined and familiar with their
officers. They staggered in a cool, i'm
pudent way, and looked down with a
patronizing Yankee GOODNESS upon all
regiments that were better drilled and
upon that part of the army generally.
that did not belong to the Vermont
brigade. They were strangely proud, not
of themselves individually, but of the
brigade collectively, for they knew per-
fectly well they were the best fighters
in, ha lone 90
limb and could outmarch the army.
They were individually self-reliant and
skilful in the use of arms, and they
honestly believed that the Vermont brig
AIDE could not be beaten by the combined
armies of the rebellion.
They were veterans in fighting quail
tiles almost from their first slkirmish.
This was at Lees Mills They crossed
narrow dam under a hot fire, babe the
attack they were instructed to make and
came back, wading deep in the water
with steadiness that surprised the ar
my. They were an incorrigble, irreg
| ular, noisy set of rascals. They were
much sworn at during their four years
of service yet they were at all times
| pet brigade. There were but two things
| they could do-march and fight; and
| these they did in a manner peculiarly
their own. They had a long, slow,
| swinging stride on the march, which dis
| They had quiet, attentive, earnest, in
| dividual way of fighting that made them
| terrific in battle. Each man knew that
| his neighbor in the ranks was not going
| to run away, and he knew also, that he
| himself intended to remain where he
was. Accordingly none of the attention
| of the line was directed from the i'm
| portant duty of loading or firing rapidly
| and carefully. When moving into ac-
ton and while hotly engaged, they made
| queer quaint jokes and enjoyed them
| greatly They crowed like cocks, they
ba-ed like sheep, they neighed like
| horses, they beloved like bulls, they
| parked like dogs, and they counterfeited
| with excellent effect the indescribable
music of the mule. When perchance,
| they held a picket line in a forest, it
seemed as if Noah's ark had gone to
| pieces there.
| In every engagement in which this
| brigade took part it was complimented
| for gallant conduct. One of the most re-
| markable of its performances, however,
| has never appeared in print, nor has 1t
| been noticed in it's reports. After the
| battle of Gettysburg, when Lees army
| was in the vicinity of Hagarstown and
| the Antietam, the Vermont brigade was
| deployed as a skirmish line covering a
| front of nearly three miles. The enemy
| were in force in front near Beaver
creek. The sixth crops was held in
| readiness in rear of the skirmsh line,
| anticipating a general engagement. The
| enemy had evidently determined to at
| tack. At last his line of battle came
| forward. The batteries opened at once
| and the skirmishers delivered their fires.
| Our troops were on the alert and stood
watching for the skrmishers to come in,
| and waiting to receive the coming as
| sault. But the skrmishers would not
| come in and when the fire died away it
| appeared that the Vermonters thus de-
ployed as a skirmish line had actually
| repulsed a full line of battle attacks.
| Twice afterward the enemy advanced to
carry the position and were each time
| driven back by this perverse skirmish
| line. The Vermonters, it is true, were
| strongly posted in the woods, and each
man fired from behind tree. But then,
| everybody knows that etiquette in such
matters is for the skrmish line to come
| in soon as they are satisfied the
enemy means business These simple
minded patriots from the Green Noun
tains, however, adopted a rule of their
own on this occasion, and the enemy,
| disguised with this stupidity, retired
| across Beaver creek.
When the Vermonters led the column
on march their quick movements had
| to be regulated from corps or division
headquarters to avoid gaps in the col
umn as it followed them. If a rapid
forced march We're required 1t was a
common thing for Sedgwick to say with
| a quiet smile, Put the Vermonters at
the head of the column today and KEEP
everything well closed up"
After the riots in New York, when II
was found necessary to send troops &c
the city to prevent recurrence of the out
break, the Vermont brigade was espe-
cially named by the war department
for this duty Within two hours from
receiving the despatch the command was
en- route to the city. They occupied the
public squares here for sometime anC
enjoyed themselves not wisely nor ye
virtuously and returned to the army
of the Potomac sadly demoralzed in al
but the two great essential qualities Of
| fighting and marching. 1t was a fortu-
nate thing for the New York mob tha
it avoided conflict with New England
| troops at this time.
Upon the return of the brigade to tn,
field they quietly held on their own rou'
tine of life and maintained to the close
of the war the splendid reputation they
had won at the very outset.
There were many regiments equal tc
the Vermont regiments in actual bat
tie, and some that, like the 9Th New
York volunteers, not only equalled then
in fighting qualities but surpassed then
in drill. discipline and appearance on pa
rade, As a brigade, however they were
4