USA > Massachusetts > Wearing the blue in the Twenty-fifth Mass. volunteer infantry, with Burnside's coast division, 18th army corps, and Army of the James > Part 4
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The next day [ November 4th] the regiment left its temporary quarters and marched a mile and one-half from the landing, where, upon an elevated field, dry and comfortable, the tents were pitched in the usual order. The men were glad to find themselves once more in their canvas homes. The Fifty-first New York Volunteers, was in camp upon an adjoining field previous to the arrival of the Twenty-fifth, while the Massa- chusetts Twenty-third, Twenty-fourth, Twenty-seventh, and the Tenth Connecticut were in close proximity.
The encampment of the Twenth-fifth was named " Camp Hicks," by regimental order, No. 3,-" In honor of the man whose efforts have been successful in the cause of the Union in Maryland."
The orders from General Burnside's head-quarters required a drill of eight hours per day. The drilling was by company
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WEARING THE BLUE.
and battalion with occasionally a brigade drill, [after the troops were brigaded].
On Sunday [November 17th] services being suspended, the Twenty-third, Twenty-fifth and Twenty-seventh Massachusetts Regiments, forming a brigade, were reviewed by General Cameron, Secretary of War. Among the military and civic gentlemen present to witness the review, were Secretary Seward, Governor Hicks and staff, Governor Andrew, General Van Vliet of Mcclellan's staff, and Colonel Derens of the Massachusetts Fifteenth.
THE ARMY RATION.
While in camp at Worcester, very few of the regiment subsisted upon the army ration. The friends of the soldiers were constantly coming to camp. loaded with the good things from home. Barrels of vegetables, boxes of soft fresh bread, beautiful yellow butter, rich cheeses, cakes and pics, formed a variety that satisfied the soldiers' appetite, and better, assured him he was not forgotten at home. At Annapolis, except occasionally a box of eatables received by express, the soldiers were generally confined to the army ration, which was one pound of biscuit or twenty-two ounces of bread or flour, one pound and a quarter of fresh or salt beef or three-quarters of a pound of bacon. Added to this, for each one hundred men, the commissary supplied eight gallons of beans, two pounds of rice or hominy, ten pounds of coffee, fifteen pounds of sugar, four gallons of vinegar, two pounds of salt, one and a quarter pounds of candles, four pounds of soap, pepper, potatoes when practicable, and molasses. It was very seldom that all this ration was consumed, hence a surplus accumulated, and this was sold or the difference in the amount allowed and that actually required for consumption, was credited to the company, so that in time, by this saving, which could be increased by the exercise of economy in cooking, a considerable amount accumu- lated, which went into what was known as the company fund,
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TWENTY-FIFTH MASSACHUSETTS.
used for the purchase of such articles as the army regulations did not allow as part of the ration. It was an unfortunate fact that in some instances large amounts due some of the com- panies of the Twenty-fifth Massachusetts were appropriated by , a commissary of the post at New Berne, who was changed to a distant field, and who never found it convenient to settle his accounts with companies in North Carolina. Company K of the Twenty-fifth, which had been able to accumulate a con- siderable sum -- found itself nearly one hundred dollars short by the transfer of that officer, and every effort to obtain a settlement resulted in failure. Other companies of the regi- ment found their funds misappropriated in the same manner, Company HI among others, though in most cases not in so large a sum as was lost by Company K. The officer alluded to was Captain Goodrich, who was transferred to Cincinnati. We used to think shoddy contractors, who would deliberately cheat a soldier, were about as low in the scale of humanity as men could be brought; but, far below them in the schedule of decency, was the man who wore the United States uniform with the bars or an eagle on his shoulders, and who system- atically robbed the soldier of his just dues. The officer named is fully entitled to this " brief mention."
THANKSGIVING DAY.
Thanksgiving day, November 21st, was observed in camp as a holiday, all military drills being suspended. Every company and many individual members of them received boxes filled with substantial evidence of the love of home.
T. W. Wellington, Esquire, of Worcester, a large hearted patriot, sent to Company II, a box containing over a hundred pairs of woolen mittens, and Captain Moulton mittened his com- pany with many complimentary words for the donor. During the day, Company A, of the Twenty-first Massachusetts, marched to camp Hicks, and spent the day with their comrades of Com- pany I, both companies being raised in Templeton. When
AARON B. METCALF.
ALBERT S. HURD.
Corp'l GEO. A. BIXBY.
W. S. CLEMMENCE.
EDWARD R. LAWRENCE.
COMPANY H.
Heliotyps Printing Co., Boston.
WEARING THE BLUE. 35
the pleasures of the day were over, Company I escorted the visiting company from the camp, and gave them many hearty cheers as a parting salute.
Company D, under Captain Foster, occupied a portion of the day in target practice, while Companies A and H had a match game of ball, which, though not a military drill, is worthy to be recorded as a pleasant Thanksgiving pastime. The names of the contestants and tallies made by each were: -
Company H.
Tallies.
Company A.
Tallies.
G. W. Stone
5
Edwin Morse ..
0
Henry Fitch
2
George Curtis
2
II. H Ware.
3
W. D. Knox
1
M. S. Forbes.
4
W. R. Keefe.
0
C. D. Robinson
1
Joseph Eaton
Thomas Finchan
2
Chas. Mayers
L
Braman Grout
1
John Hartshorn 3
Frank L. Smith.
1
James McLane 3
E S. Parkes
1
Reuben De Luce
4
Willard Cheney
1
Daniel Merrill
3
J. G. Warren.
1
N. Brooks
2
C. S. Seagrave
3
Frank Coes
1
-
31
1 1 55051 22
The game was said to have been hard-fought, and was engaged in by the best players of both companies.
All the companies found entertainment, some in one direc- tion, and some in another, according to tastes. All enjoyed a pleasant New England Thanksgiving.
J
FIRST SUNDAY AT CAMP HICKS.
An account of the first Sunday at Camp Hicks may not be out of place, as showing how the Sabbath was observed, when military duties did not interfere. As a rule, company inspection always occurred on Sunday morning, usually at eight o'clock, and there was generally a dress-parade late in the afternoon. Guard-mounting occupied the time of
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TWENTY-FIFTH MASSACHUSETTS.
some of the troops, in the morning, and the guard-details were of course on duty as upon any other day.
We are now to speak of the first Sunday at Camp Hicks, but would not be understood, that all the future Sabbaths in camp were observed in the same manner, even when other. duties did not interfere.
On this Sabbath, the Chaplain visited the hospital and company tents after breakfast, the soldiers receiving from his hands, tracts and books, the latter from a library comprising one hundred and twenty-five volumes, selected as appropriate for soldiers in camp. Several tent prayer meetings were held during the forenoon, and at two o'clock, P. M., the general service of the regiment was held --- the "call" to church being sounded one-quarter of an hour previously -a call to church, one vast as the heavens, with a dome more glorious than St. Peter's, and frescoed with a skill exceeding any mediaeval art. The pulpit was a small box on which the Chaplain stood, with a pocket bible in his hand, but no written sermon ; before him in solid column the men of the regiment, on his left, the band, at his right, a regimental choir with Dadmun's Army Melodies, and behind him, the field, staff and line officers of the battalion. Thus arranged, and gathered in one grand old church, with no slamming pew-doors, and no gaudily attired fair ones to attract or distract attention from true worship, the sun shining clearly in the sky, the mild air breathing gently over the worshippers, the opening hymn ccheed o'er the camp-
" Come, Thou Almighty King, Help us Thy name to sing, Help us to praise !"
The Chaplain read the Ten Commandments (not near as well understood as the Articles of War,) and also a passage from Ephesians, and offered prayer, returning thanks for God's mercy and goodness to us, confessing sins, and supplicating Divine favor-mentioning the many loved ones at home, and
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WEARING THE BLUE.
rejoicing in the thought, that God is as near to us as to them, entreating a blessing on our arms and upon our country in this time of greatest need. Following this, came,
" When I can read my title clear,"
to the tune of "Auld Lang Syne," the band accompanying the voices. The sermon, upon profanity, was listened to attentively, and the service closed with the favorite melody, " Marching Along."
In the evening, a religious conference meeting was held around the camp-fire of Company I, nearly two hundred being present. The Chaplain conducted the service, and a large number participated in brief exhortations, prayer and song. Tattoo, at half-past eight. brought the meeting to a close, and, at half-past nine, "taps" darkened the camp and the hearts of many officers and men alike, who wanted an hour longer for study or writing. " "Taps," however, is unrelenting, and, after that melancholy sound, no glimmering light pierces the dark- ness, except at head-quarters, and in the guard and hospital tents.
CAMP AND OTHER DUTY.
The time at Camp Hicks was employed in perfecting the battalion in the school of the soldier. Besides this duty, some of the officers served upon courts-martial and commissions of various kinds.
The writer finds in his diary, under date of December 14th, this record :--
"I am serving upon a general court-martial, of which Colonel Harland, of the Eighth Connecticut, is president. Among the members are Lieutenant-Colonel Potter, of the Fifty-first New York Volunteers, [afterwards General Potter, of the Ninth Corps] and Lieutenant Geo. W. Bartlett, of the Twenty-seventh Massa- chusetts, who is Judge Advocate. We have examined some very interesting cases ; some for disobedience of orders, for sleeping on post, disorderly conduct, and one for murder.
-
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TWENTY-FIFTH MASSACHUSETTS.
"One captain was on trial for offences, which can be best described under the term of 'general looseness.' I am glad he does not belong to a New England regiment, though a finer looking young fellow is not seen about our camps. He cannot be much more than twenty years of age. He is a sky-larker-has a habit of taking a squad of his company, congenial spirits undoubtedly, and peramibu- lating the territory hereabouts, and, under the guise of a provost- marshal, breaks into houses, makes unwarranted searches, and in many dark ways disturbs the peace of quiet people. He went into one of the Annapolis churches on a recent Sunday evening, introduced himself to the pastor as a chaplain, accepted a seat in the pulpit. took part in the service, and it is said acquitted himself so well that the minister and many of the people considered the regiment very fortunate that had such a gifted chaplain ! He is a fast young man, and yet, if he can only dispense with his wild oats and too much whiskey, he has the stuff in him for a future brave officer."
DEATHS AT ANNAPOLIS.
On the 2 nd of November, occurred the death of private John A. Sheppard, Company B, of Milford. He was but eighteen years of age, and was the first of the Massachusetts Twenty-fifth to cross the river. He was the pioneer of the large number who answered the call of death.
The other deaths at Annapolis were private Charles H. May- nard, aged eighteen, of Princeton. He belonged to Company F, and died January 2nd, 1862. Private William Perkins, of Worcester, aged thirty, belonging to Company HI, died December 24th; he was highly esteemed both in Worcester and among his comrades of Company H, the latter raising a sum of money sufficient to pay the expense of sending home the body, etc. At. Worcester he was buried with military honors by the Worcester Light Infantry, under Captain Geo. W. Prouty.
Private Sumner Frost, of Hubbardston, aged forty-two, a member of Company 1, died December 28th, and on the Sth of January, 1862, as we were ready to sail from the
WEARING THE BLUE. 39
harbor of Annapolis, private Charles A. Harrington, of Company K, died at the Academy Hospital. He was eighteen years of age, and belonged in Paxton. His father arrived upon the morning of his death, and returned to Massachusetts with his remains. On the evening of that day, Company K, desiring to mark the first death from its ranks in some appropriate manner, invited the service of the chaplain, and very interest- ing memorial exercises were conducted by him in the main cabin of the steamer New York, attended by all of the company and most of the officers of the regiment.
THE TROOPS BRIGADED.
Early in December, the Twenty-third, Twenty-fourth, Twenty- fifth and Twenty-seventh Massachusetts Regiments and the Tenth Connecticut Volunteers were formed into a Brigade, under Gen- eral Orders No. 13, and the Twenty-fifth Regiment was assigned to the right. The brigade thus formed was known as the
FIRST BRIGADE,
under Brigadier-General John G. Foster. This brigade was numbered from right to left in the following order :-
Ist. Twenty-fifth Massachusetts Volunteers ... . Colonel Edwin Upton.
2nd. Twenty-third Massachusetts Volunteers .. . . Colonel John Kurtz. .
Brd. Twenty-seventh Massachusetts Volunteers. Colonel Horace C. Lee.
4th. Tenth Connecticut Volunteers Colonel Charles L Russell.
5th. Twenty-fourth Massachusetts Volunteers. .. Colonel Thomas G. Stevenson.
SECOND BRIGADE.
The second brigade was commanded by Brigadier-General Jesse L. Reno, and was made up as follows: -
Fifty-first Pennsylvania Volunteers Colonel John F. Hartranft.
Fifty-first New York Volunteers . Colonel Edward Ferrero.
Ninth New Jersey Volunteers Colonel Joseph W. Allen.
Sixth New Hampshire Volunteers . Colonel Nelson Converse.
Twenty-first Massachusetts Volunteers Lieutenant-Colonel A. C. Maggi.
*
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TWENTY-FIFTH MASSACHUSETTS.
THIRD BRIGADE.
The Third brigade was commanded by Brigadier-General John G. Parke, and was made up as follows :-
Eighth Connecticut Volunteers Colonel Edward Harland.
Eleventh Connecticut Volunteers. Colonel T. H. C. Kingsbury.
Eighty-ninth New York Volunteers. Colonel H. S. Fairchild.
Fifty-third New York Volunteers. Colonel d' Epineuil.
Fourth Rhode Island Volunteers
Colonel J. P Rodman.
Fifth Rhode Island Volunteers ( 1st Battalion) . . Major John Wright.
DIVISION STAFF.
Assistant Adjutant-General .Captain Lewis Richmond.
Quartermaster. . Captain Herman Briggs.
Assistant Quartermaster
Captain William Cutting.
Assistant Commissary
. Captain E. R. Goodrich.
Medical Director
. Major W. H. Church, M. D.
Aides-de-Camp . Lieutenants D. C. Pell and G. R. Fearing.
Ordnance Officer Lieutenant D. W. Flagler.
Naval Officer. . Commander S. F. Hazard, U. S. N.
FIRST BRIGADE STAFF.
Assistant Adjutant-General. . . Captain Southard Hoffman.
Brigade Quartermaster. .Captain Daniel Messenger.
Brigade Surgeon.
Major J. H. Thompson, M. D.
Brigade Commissary. . Captain E. Potter.
Aides-de-Camp . Captains P. W. Hudson and J. F. Anderson.
Volunteer Aides Lieutenants E. N. Strong and J. N. Pendleton.
SECOND BRIGADE STAFF.
Assistant Adjutant-General. . . Captain Edward M. Neill.
Quartermaster . Captain Chas. G. Loring.
Aides-de-Camp. Lieutenants B. F. Reno and John A. Morris. THIRD BRIGADE STAFF.
Assistant Adjutant-General. . . Captain Chas. T. Gardner.
Aides-de-Camp Lieutenants M. A. Hill and Philip M. Lydig.
THE LEADERS.
A brief notice of some of the leaders in the expedition formed at Annapolis, will be appreciated, at least by those who helped make its history.
BRIGADIER-GENERAL AMBROSE E. BURNSIDE, was born in Indiana, May 23rd, 1824. At the age of eighteen, he entered West Point, graduating in 1847. He was brevetted Second
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WEARING THE BLUE.
Lieutenant in the Second Artillery, and the next year trans- ferred to the Third Artillery, and served with it in Mexico, marching in General Patterson's column to the city of Mexico. Upon declaration of peace, he was stationed at Fort Adams in Newport harbor. In 1849 he was attached to the battery of Captain Bragg [General in the Confederate Army] and served with him three or four years on the frontiers of New Mexico. In consequence of gallantry displayed in a fight with the Apache Indians in 1849, Burnside was promoted, and after- wards served as Quartermaster. In 1851, with only three men, he crossed the plains from Gila river through the Indian Territory, travelling twelve hundred miles in seventeen days. Burnside was again stationed at Fort Adams, and while there resigned his commission and removed to Bristol, R. I., that he might give his attention to the manufacture of a breech-loading rifle of his own invention. The business not proving fortunate, he went to Chicago, and entered the service of the Illinois Central Railroad Company as cashier, Geo. B. McClellan being its general superintendent. Two years afterwards, Burnside was clected treasurer of the company and removed to New York. While thus engaged at the breaking out of the rebellion, Governor Sprague of Rhode Island offered him the Coloneley of the First Rhode Island Regiment, which he accepted. With this regiment he participated in the fight at Stone Bridge, and, in the succeeding battle of Bull Run, Burnside acted as Brigadier-General, to which position he was commissioned on the 6th of August, 1861. His early association in business with General MeClellan is probably one reason why he was assigned the command of the Coast Division.
Burnside's military record is so well known that it scarcely needs repeating. He commanded the Ninth Corps and also the Army of the Potomac.
Since the war, having the warmest confidence of his fellow citizens, he has been repeatedly elected Governor of Rhode Island, and is now a Senator in Congress from that State.
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TWENTY-FIFTH MASSACHUSETTS.
BRIGADIER-GENERAL JOHN G. FOSTER is a native of New Hampshire, and was born in 1824. He entered West Point in 1842, graduating in 1846 as Brevet Second Lieutenant of Engineers. He was brevetted First Lieutenant September 8th, 1847, and Captain in February, 1860. In the Mexican War, he served with MeClellan in the Engineer Corps, and was severely wounded at the battle of Molino del Rey, his leg being shattered by a musket ball. After recovering from this wound, he had charge of fortifications on the Atlantic coast, and at the breaking out of the rebellion was in charge of fortifications in Charleston and Savannah harbors. He was one of the officers serving with Major Anderson in Fort Sumter when it was under bombardment, in April, 1861. General Foster, after the war, was stationed as an engineer officer at Boston. He died greatly respected, at the residence of his mother, in Nashua, N. H., September 1st, 1874.
BRIGADIER-GENERAL JESSE L. RENO was born in Virginia, in 1825, but entered the service of the Coast Division from Pennsylvania. He entered West Point in 1842, graduating in 1816 in the class with MeClellan and Foster. He was brevetted Second Lieutenant of Ordnance, and served in Mexico at Vera Cruz, and the siege before the city of Mexico. He was severely wounded at Chepultepec. He was brevetted Captain, September 17th, 1847, and, after the war, served as Professor of Mathematics at West Point, afterwards on the Artillery Board for the inspection of Ordnance, next, in command of the Arsenal at Frankfort, Ky. In the Utah expedition under General Johnston, he commanded the Ordnance. November 12th, 1861, he was commissioned Brigadier-General. He was killed at the battle of South Mountain, on the 14th day of September, 1862.
BRIGADIER-GENERAL JOHN G. PARKE was born in Pennsyl- vauia in 1827, graduated at West Point in 1849, when he was
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WEARING THE BLUE.
brevetted Second Lieutenant of Topographical Engineers, and in that capacity has crossed the plains three times in making territorial surveys. In 1857, he was appointed to West Point as Instructor in Astronomy and Surveying. Subsequently he commanded an expedition to survey our Northwestern boundary, after which he was made Brevet Captain in the Thirteenth Infantry.
COLONEL JOHN KURTZ of Boston, was born in 1819, and entered the service, first, as Captain in the Massachusetts Thirteenth. He was charged with the duty of arresting the secession members of the Maryland Legislature at Frederick, and, while stationed at Frederick Junction, received the appointment of Colonel of the Twenty-third Massachusetts Volunteers. Colonel Kurtz served as Provost-Marshal at New Berne, N. C., and since the war has been Chief of Police of Boston, and is now in the Boston Custom House. In the war he had a high reputation as a drill officer and disciplin- arian, and was an efficient regimental commander.
COLONEL THOMAS G. STEVENSON, of the Twenty-fourth Massachusetts Volunteers, was born in Boston in 1836, and at the time of his appointment as Colonel, was cashier of the Boston and Lowell Railroad Company. He was very much respected by the officers and men of his regiment. On the 26th of December, 1862, he was commissioned a Brigadier- General, and served with distinction, until May 10th, 1864, when he was killed at the battle of Spottsylvania Court House, while gallantly leading his troops.
COLONEL EDWIN UPTON [see page 11].
COLONEL HORACE C. LEE, of the Twenty-seventh Massa- chusetts Volunteers, was born in 1820, and, at the time of his appointment, was clerk of the city of Springfield, Mass.
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TWENTY-FIFTH MASSACHUSETTS.
He had been connected with the State Militia for fifteen years previous to the war. He possessed a character above reproach, and energy sufficient to make a most excellent officer. He was Chief Provost-Marshal of the District of North Carolina in 1863, and afterwards held an important position at Norfolk, Va. Since the war, he has been in the United States Appraisers' Department of Boston, and is now Post-Master of Springfield. A generous-hearted, genial man, he was always a popular commander.
LIEUTENANT-COLONEL ALBERT C. MAGGI, commanding the Twenty-first Massachusetts Volunteers, is a native of Italy, and learned the art of war under that great Italian chieftain, the renowned Garibaldi. At the time of his appointment, as above stated, he was a resident of New Bedford. He resigned his commission on the 27th February, 1862, and was commissioned Colonel of the Thirty-third Massachusetts Volunteers. Since the war, he has been occupied as a teacher, in Boston.
Major Wm. S. Clark, of Amherst, succeeded Lieutenant- Colonel Maggi, and on the 16th of May, 1862, was commis- sioned colonel of the regiment. Colonel Clark is now at the head of the Agricultural College, at Amherst.
COLONEL CHARLES L. RUSSELL, of the Tenth Connecticut Volunteers, was thirty-three years of age, a manufacturer from Birmingham, Conn., a genial gentleman, much beloved by his officers and men. He was a captain in the Second Connecticut Volunteers, and participated in the battles of Stone Bridge and Bull Run, and was killed at the battle of Roanoke, while leading his regiment.
COLONEL JOHN F. HARTRANFT, of the Fifty-first Pennsylvania Volunteers, at the time of leaving Annapolis, was thirty-one years of age, a resident of Montgomery County, Penn. He.
------
Sery't J. C. SPAULDING.
Corp'l W. H. PARTRIDGE.
Ist Serg't CHARLES HALL.
ECGENE D. LACOUNT.
GEORGE C. NICHOLS.
COMPANY F.
Heliotype Printing Co., Boston.
WEARING THE BLUE. 45
graduated, in 1853. from Union College, and entered the legal profession. He was on the staff of General Franklin at Bull Run, and was commended for gallant conduct. He served with brilliancy during the war, being promoted to the rank of Major-General, was for several years Governor of the State of Pennsylvania, and as such, distinguished himself by his energy in defending the peace of the State against the rioters of 1877. Since leaving the executive office of Pennsylvania, he has been appointed Post-Master of Philadelphia.
EMBARKATION OF THE EXPEDITION.
On Saturday, January 4th. 1862, orders were received to move on Monday morning, and the next day was spent in preparation.
At six o'clock ou the morning of January 6th, the Twenty- fifth Massachusetts " struck tents," and saw the last of camp ". Hicks." While the snow was falling in dampening flakes and the chilly morning air pierced to the very bones of the blue- coated soldiers, the regimental line was formed. Having fired seven rounds of blank cartridges, the battalion marched to the wharf in Annapolis, and after much waiting and the usual amount of " growling" [always expected and entirely in order, among soldiers], seven companies, viz., A, B, C, E, F, G and K, embarked on board the steamer New York, compa- nies D and II on board the gunboat Zouave, and company I on board the schooner Skirmisher. Troops of the entire division were on the move, and Annapolis was, for once, a lively place. The Naval Academy grounds, where all the troops centred, were filled to repletion, leaving scarcely room for the marching and counter-marching of the battalions. Bands of music struck up the national airs-generals and their staff-officers hurried to and fro-orderlies, mounted on swift-footed but ill-looking steeds, galloped through and down the lines as eagerly and carelessly as firemen hasten to a fire, only, sometimes they did stand still, so utterly confused at the sight of such a multitude
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