Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1911-07-28
No One First to Volunteer

Sixteen years after peace had come
and Just after General Hawley had
been elected United States senator. he
met his old friend, the late Colonel
George Bliss of New York. During the
war Colonel Bliss had served on the
military staff of New York's great war
governor, E. d. Morgan, who. that he
might the better carry out the wishes
OF the federal administration. was
made a major general in command of
the military district of New York
state. Under Governor Morgan's ad-
ministration more than 223, 900 volun-
teers were enlisted in the Union army
and as a member of Major General
Morgan's staff Colonel Bliss helped TO
see to it that the New York volunteers
were properly clothed, properly fed
and otherwise properly cared for until
they were mustered into the service
Of the United States.
From the day l began to have a
part In enlisting volunteers for the
war had a curious desire to know
who was the first man to respond to
Lincoln's first call for volunteers"
said Colonel Bliss, and knowing that
Senator Hawley had recruited the first
volunteer company In the state of Con-
necticut, asked II, by chance, he was
the first man In the north to respond
to Lincoln's call for volunteers after
1t had become known in Washington
that Fort Sumter had been fred upon.
Not until at least ten years after
the war was over was / able to an
swer the question you have just put
to me- was General Hawley's reply.
For time I prided myself upon hav-
ing gained the distinction of being the
first volunteer. / got up early on the
morning that the proclamation was
published, read 1t in the paper, slipped
out Of the house, and hurried away to
a convenient room and opened a re-
cruiting Office, putting my name at
the head of the enrolment list. And
so | came to believe that / was the
first man to volunteer
80 1t was In the second year OF the
war that / happened incidentally to
mention the incident to Gen. Alfred H. !
Terry, with whom had been long &C.
quainted, and who, like myself, had |
been before the war lawyer and
newspaper writer. What, therefore. |
was my surprise when the hero of |
Fort Fisher told me that he had vol |
unteered in much the same fashion at
about the same hour that was put |
ting my name at the head Of the list |
of recruits In Hartford.
Later learned that young dry
goods clerk named Chester, who lived |
in the eastern part OF Connecticut, as
soon as he had read Lincoln's procla-
mation-and he had got up early, too,
to go about his DISBURSEMENT out OF !
his store and opened up recruiting |
Office upon an upturned box before |
most of the town was sitting down to
breakfast.
80, from time to time, learned Of
this or that man who had put his
name, much after my fashion, to an |
enlistment roll bright and early on
the morning of the day of the ap-
pearance OF the proclamation. This
tHluS was uOhO OH OFCA INC AS' Sh' 40
my information made plain, and so at
last made up my mind and this is
my conviction today-that there
wasn't any one first volunteer-there
were hundreds of them. all over the
north, enlisting at practically the same
moment
Copyright. 1911. by F. ]. Edwards. All
Rights Reserved.l