USA > Maryland > Fifth regiment, I., M.N.G. : a history of the regiment from its first organization to the present time > Part 10
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event of the ten days' sojourn was the bathing suit parade by the men on Thursday morning, July 19. The command was headed by the regimental fife and drum corps and a Kalamazoo band. The line was formed at about 9.30 o'clock. The boys thoroughly enjoyed themselves, and the Atlantic City people were convulsed with laughter at the amusing scene. The encampment, despite consider- able rainy weather, was a pleasant holiday as well as a season of training. Several months previous Major Frank Markoe had been elected from Captain of Company B to be the junior field officer.
The Fifth took the most prominent part in the dedication exer- cises of the fine monuments erected on the Gettysburg battlefield to the Maryland commands. The dedication was on October 25, and Colonel Gaither was one of the commissioners of the Monument Association.
On Wednesday evening, December 19, Colonel Wm. P. Zollinger was elected captain of Company E, and he returned to the regiment which he had once commanded, as its junior captain, a great tribute to any organization.
On Thursday evening, December 27th, the Fifth closed its festivi- ties for 1888 with a fitting dress parade, battalion drill, full dress hop and a supper. Hardly had the doors been thrown open before the guests began to arrive at the armory, and the galleries were well filled long before the "first call," and by the time the "assembly " had sounded, every seat was taken. Baltimore's beauties turned out in full force to do honor to the occasion. It was a pretty sight-the ladies in handsome toilets, escorts in full dress, and the five hundred soldiers in glittering and showy uniforms mingled in one immense throng. The line formed at 8.30 o'clock. Company after company was admired as it took the pose of "parade rest" and its captain faced to the front. Captain W. Kennon Whiting, the adjutant, moved to his post on the prolongation of the front rank. Colonel Charles D. Gaither settled back into the conventional attitude of the command- ing officer, and Lieutenant-Colonel William A. Boykin and Major Frank Markoe occupied their usual positions. The band " sounded off," and the boom and crash of drums and cymbals and the blare of brazen instruments made a thrilling sound. The band went thundering down the line, countermarching and returning to its post on the right, making the armory ring with its strains. Adjutant Whiting stalked his three yards to the front, faced to the left, and shouted his resonant orders down the line, and the burnished arms came to the " carry "
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with a simultaneous crash, and ranks were opened with the old-time precision. The parade presented to Colonel Gaither with all due formality, the manual was executed with grace, sergeants reported, orders were published, parade formally dismissed, the line of officers marched solidly to the front, halted and made its simultaneous salute to Colonel Gaither, who raised his white-gloved hand in recognition, and then the last dress parade of the Fifth for 1888 was over.
Companies C, Captain Robert P. Brown; G, Captain Lawrason Riggs; A, Captain Wm. D. Robinson; F, Captain J. Frank Supplee, and I, Captain N. Lee Goldsborough, were detained for battalion drill. Colonel Gaither commanded. The drill was one of the best and most spirited given during the season. After the drill came the hop, and also the complimentary supper given by the officers of the regiment to their friends.
CHAPTER XXI. CONCLUSION.
THE PLACES THE REGIMENT HAS VISITED .- ITS PECULIAR MARCH- ING STEP .- THE NEW MILITARY LAW .- THE ENLISTMENTS THE SAME AS IN THE UNITED STATES ARMY .- FINES .- ANNUAL INSPEC- TION .- PAY FOR CAMP SERVICE .- A USEFUL AND EFFICIENT MEASURE .- THE FUTURE OF THE REGIMENT.
The Fifth has always been fond of traveling. The idea of remain- ing in their own city and vegetating there never found any favor with the regiment. Always desiring, as representatives of one State, to shake hands with those of other States, the regiment has rarely turned its back upon a project to visit any locality. The men believe thoroughly in seeing other soldiers besides those of their own organization. During a large part of the year the regiment is either somewhere on a visit, or getting ready to go somewhere. Only twice since 1869 has the regiment failed to hold a summer encampment- in 1878 and in 1883. In 1869, as previously stated, the Fifth encamped at Camp Chesapeake, Catonsville; in 1870, at Camp Trenton, Cape May ; in 1871, Camp Bowie, Hagerstown; in 1872, Camp Blue Ridge, Frederick; in 1873, Camp Princeton, Cape May ; in 1874, Camp Monmouth, Long Branch ; in 1875, Camp Lexington, Boston ; in 1876, Camp Jenkins, Cape May ; in 1877, Camp Riverside, Balti- more ; in 1879, Camp Carroll, Ocean City ; in 1880, Camp Hamilton, Cape May ; in 1881, Yorktown, Va .; in 1882, Camp Patterson, Cape May ; in 1884, New Orleans; in 1885, Camp Herbert, Atlantic City ; in 1886, Camp McClellan, Atlantic City ; in 1887, Camp Lloyd, Hagerstown; in 1888, Camp Anderson, Atlantic City.
From the time of its organization, the Fifth has been distinguished by its peculiar marching step, which is characterized by a long swinging stride, and creates a pace not attempted by the majority of militia organizations of the country. In 1874, in New York City, when escorted by the Seventh Regiment, the difference in gait was very noticeable. The step came from the Confederate army, and was the pace of the Second Maryland Infantry, C. S. A., in the field.
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It had its origin with "Stonewall " Jackson's " foot cavalry," and in actual service it sometimes supplied the place of numbers.
The Maryland Legislature of 1886 passed a militia bill which put the National Guard of the State on a more efficient footing, and defined the duties of the citizen soldier in such a manner as insured good material in all the military organizations of that State. With- out increasing the number of men in the service, it weeded out the men in the companies throughout the State whose ideas of militia service were limited to dancing parties and pleasure excursions. The new law provides for a State military force of not more than thirty- two companies, consisting of not more than two thousand two hundred and eighty men, the entire force to be organized into one brigade. In addition to the Fifth Regiment, the brigade consists at present of the First Regiment, the Baltimore Light Infantry, the Second Bat- talion, the Third Battalion, three detached companies of Leonard- town, Upper Marlboro and Prince Frederick, South Maryland, and the three following colored companies : Monumental City Guards, and Baltimore Rifles, of Baltimore, and the Alleghany County Guards, of Cumberland.
By far the most important part of the bill is that which provides that the men composing the brigade shall be regularly enlisted as in the United States army, and shall serve for a period of three years from the date of enlistment. All officers and men who were mem- bers of the various State military organizations at the time when the bill was passed were declared to constitute a part of the force under the new law, "in all respects as if already duly enlisted at the time when they so respectively became members," and subject to the same law. But it was expressly provided that no person already a mem- ber of any of the organizations, who had served three years before the law was passed, should be compelled to re-enlist. Each of the members was declared entitled to a discharge three years after the time he joined his company. All time served under the general law was to be considered, the new law prescribed, as so much time served of the three years required by the later bill. Exception is made in the case of a member under arrest or undergoing punishment for some offense. Any commanding officer of a regiment, independent company or battalion, however, may grant, in his discretion, an honorable discharge at any time. After serving three years, any ex-member may re-enlist for any definite length of time, not less than one year. Such offenses as disobedience of orders, non-attendance
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at drills, assemblies, parades, reviews, or encampments, and neglect of duty otherwise, are punishable by fine or imprisonment, and also by reprimand or dishonorable discharge. The fine for neglect or refusal to attend an assembly of his battalion or company, ordered by the commandant thereof, by any member is fifty cents for each offense; for neglect to attend a law parade, ordered by the comman- der-in-chief, two dollars ; for every day of non-attendance at encamp- ments, fifty cents. The penalty in the case of an officer for any of the offenses mentioned is double that prescribed for privates. The only excuses acceptable are bona fide absence from the city where the assembly was held, personal sickness, and sickness or recent domestic affliction in absentee's family. Fines can be collected ten days after being imposed, before a justice of the peace. In default of the payment of the fine and the additional costs, the delinquent may be committed to jail for as many days as the amount of the fine and costs. An annual inspection by some officer designated by the com- mander-in-chief and a public or law parade are required. At least once in every two years all of the organizations must hold an encampment, at such a place and for such a length of time as the com- mander-in-chief determines upon. All of the battalions or inde- pendent companies are to adopt a service uniform as much like that of the United States troops as possible, with such modifications as the commander-in-chief may think advisable. The changes in uniform, however, are to be brought about gradually, for the sake of economy, the law requiring that uniform suits in use when the law was passed to be used until worn out. During the encampments the privates are paid one dollar and thirty-three cents per day, and officers the same pay that United States officers receive, provided the general appropriations for the militia are sufficient for that purpose. A cer- tificate of three years of service makes the holder exempt from military duty for three years after its date.
The history of the Fifth Maryland is a splendid one, as every one who reads this record will testify. It was never more efficient than it is now, and the coming year will add to its vigor, its character, and its spirit. . It will always hold its high place as the crack military organization of the South.
OFFICERS QUARTERS.
A PORTRAIT AND A BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF EACH COMMISSIONED OFFICER.
OLONEL CHARLES D. GAITHER, whose portrait will be found as the frontispiece, is the second ranking commandant in the Maryland National Guard. He is only about twenty-nine years old, and has a figure that nobly fills a uniform. He was born in Howard County, and is a son of Colonel George R. Gaither. All old officers pay him a deserved compliment in saying of him that he is thor- oughly posted in military matters, and well competent to handle a regiment under all circumstances. Colonel Gaither has a military bearing, and he is favorably known among his brother officers for his strict attention to duty, as well as for his jolly good nature when not under military restraint.
He enlisted in the Fifth as a private, in Company H, during the July riots at Camden Station in 1877, and immediately fell into mili- tary life like a veteran. He was slightly wounded in the riots by being hit on the head with a brick, but this did not affect his enthusiasm for soldier life in the least. He did praiseworthy duty while the regiment was encamped at Riverside Park. In the follow- ing spring he was made a corporal, in 1879 sergeant, and in March, 1882, was elected to be second lieutenant of his company. In Sep- tember of the same year he was elected captain of Company G. On April 6, 1885, he was elected lieutenant-colonel, and on August 6, 1887, during the Brigade encampment at Hagerstown, he was elected colonel, to succeed Colonel Stewart Brown, who had become briga- dier-general. Colonel Gaither, in his eleven years service in the regiment, has never missed an encampment of the command, and only one parade. His absence on this occasion was caused by a severe attack of pneumonia. While in command of Company G he had the largest and best drilled company in the regiment, and on all occasions turned out full ranks. Since assuming command of the regiment he has brought the Fifth up to a higher standard of efficiency, and it to-day is in a better condition than ever before. He inaugurated the movement to go to New Orleans, and with the late Captain W. S. Anderson preceded the regiment and made all necessary arrangements. While lieutenant-colonel he was often put in command of drills and parades. He took the regiment to Camp Lloyd, to Philadelphia in September, 1887, to Atlantic City last summer, and to Gettysburg in October last. Colonel Gaither is a stock broker, and of the firm of Whiteley & Gaither.
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· LIEUTENANT-COLONEL WM. A. BOYKIN.
Lieutenant-Colonel Wm. A. Boykin joined the Fifth Regiment in April, 1882, as first lieutenant of Company I, and went into camp with the command at Cape May the following summer. While at camp, Company K unanimously elected him captain. The company, though quite small when he took command, soon grew to be one of the largest and best drilled in the regiment. He served as captain of Company K three years, then he was elected major of the regiment by the unanimous vote of his brother officers. While at Camp Lloyd, in August, 1887, he was made lieutenant-colonel, which position he now fills with great credit. Lieutenant-Colonel Boykin is a Virginian by birth, and is a son of the late General F. M. Boykin, of Smithfield, Isle of Wight County, though he claims Norfolk as his old home, having lived there about fifteen years. He is thirty-eight years old, and has been closely associated with Baltimore in a business way for the past nineteen years. Nine years ago he moved with his family to Baltimore, where he says he expects to remain. He was an active member of the Norfolk Light Artillery Blues for eight years, one of the oldest military companies in exist- ence, and which has always been composed of Norfolk's most influential young men. He went to Boston with the Blues in 1875, at the Bunker Hill Centen- nial. There he saw the Fifth Maryland in all its glory marching against the Seventh New York, and little did he think then that he would ever be the Fifth's second ranking officer. He also went to the Centennial at Philadelphia with the Blues, and in passing through Baltimore, en route to Philadelphia, the company was escorted and handsomely entertained by the Fifth Regiment. The Blues and a large company from the Fifth, commanded by Colonel H. D. Loney, marched together in the Centennial Legion, which was composed of one company from each of the thirteen original States.
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MAJOR FRANK MARKOE.
Major Frank Markoe, the junior field officer of the Fifth, has seen active service, and his record in the Civil War is one to be proud of. He was born in Washington in 1840. He entered the Confederate service on June 16, 1861, as a private in Company H, First Maryland Regiment. Of companies H and A, in command of Captain W. H. Murray, of the First Infantry, fifty-nine were killed and fifty-three wounded out of the two hundred and twenty-five. He was commissioned first lieutenant and afterwards captain, and served on the staff of General Maxey Gregg, of South Carolina, with General Beauregard during the siege of Charleston, with Lieutenant-General Stephen D. Lee in Alabama and in Mississippi. During the last year of the war he was on the staff of General John B. Gordon, who commanded Jackson's old corps, and surrendered with him at Appomattox C. H. Major Markoe was in many of the battles of the late unpleasantness. Major Markoe lost the use of his left hand at Shepherdstown, and had a rib broken at Battery Wagner, on Morris Island, in the siege of Charleston He is a thorough soldier. General Gordon wrote of him : " The Confederacy had in its service no more faithful or devoted soldier." During the riots in 1877 he served twenty-five days as captain of Company E, Seventh Maryland Regiment, under Colonel James Howard, the present Adju- tant-General. This command was stationed along the canal, in Western Maryland. Major Markoe joined the Fifth Regiment as captain of Company B, on April 20, 1885. He built up the largest and best drilled company in the regiment, and was, and is still, the idol of the company. On April 19, 1888, he was unanimously elected major. He is also the efficient chairman of the Armory Committee.
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CAPTAIN WM. KENNON WHITING.
Captain Wm. Kennon Whiting, the popular Adjutant of the Fifth Regiment, was born in Baltimore on September 13, 1853. He is a son of Mr. Wm. P. Whiting. Captain Whiting entered commercial life soon after graduating at Pembroke College in 1870, and became a member of the firm of Wm. P. Whiting & Co., which was at one time one of the leading wholesale grocery houses in the city. Upon the house discontinuing business in 1886, he became the Baltimore agent of the old and celebrated Oriental Powder Mills and the Merchants' Shot Tower Company. In February, 1888, he was appointed one of the Justices of the Peace at large from the Third District by Governor Jackson. Captain Whiting is in his seventeenth year of continuous service in the regiment. He enlisted as a private of Company H, then under the command of Captain Zollinger, and served with the company until transferred to his
present position as Chief of Staff in 1SSo. He has always been one of the most attentive and enthusiastic members of the command, and has rarely missed a chance to don his uniform. He has had a practical experience in all grades, from corporal to commandant of a company. He was promoted to a second lieutenancy during the riots at Camden Station in 1877. He was the second person to know that the command was ordered out to suppress the riot. He was made Adjutant in 1880, with the rank of first lieutenant, and three years later he was given the rank of Captain, his commission reading for "long and faithful service." Captain Whiting has had quite a number of offers for promotion, but declined them all, being perfectly satisfied with his present position.
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MAJOR WILLIAM H. CRIM.
There are few men in Baltimore who are much better known or better liked than the surgeon of the Fifth, Dr. William H. Crim. His tall, athletic figure and genial, hearty countenance are familiar to all classes of the people of Baltimore. Dr. Crim was born in 1844. He is a native of Loudoun County, Virginia, where he spent his early life. He received his education at Penn- sylvania College, Gettysburg, and studied medicine at the University of Mary - land, of which he is a graduate. In June, 1872, he joined the Fifth as assistant surgeon to Dr. Alan P. Smith, and in 1877 was appointed to the position which he now holds. He is a member of the Charcoal Club of this city, and is also an honorary member of the Journalists' Club. Dr. Crim has confined himself closely to his profession, in which he holds a high rank, and to his duties as an officer of the Fifth. He has never taken any active part in politics or in any other business of a public nature, excepting those of a military character, his prominence in Baltimore being entirely due to his personal traits. During the riots of 1877, while the Fifth was at Camden Station, he was kept constantly busy at his associate work with Dr. Smith in giving surgical treatment to the soldiers who were injured in repressing violence. He has attended all the parades and encampments of the Fifth since he joined the regiment. Dr. Crim is an enthusiastic amateur antiquarian, and has collected in the course of years a large quantity of the relics of antiquity, of decided interest and historic value.
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CAPTAIN ROBERT J. MILLER.
Captain Robert J. Miller, the efficient Quartermaster of the regiment, is about 45 years of age, and a son of the late Wm. Miller, who was of the firm of Wells & Miller, machinists and founders. Captain Miller was educated in Baltimore, and upon leaving school entered the counting-room of the old firm of Rogers & Wetherall, iron merchants. In 1860 he traveled through Europe to recuperate his health, and on his return in 1862 he established a machinery and foundry business under the firm name of Miller & Bro., which he con- tinued until 1871, when he went into the insurance business. He joined the Fifth in the latter part of 1869 as a uniformed honorary member, and in a few months after became a private in Company C, then as now under the command of Captain Robert P. Brown. He was detailed as quartermaster-sergeant on several trips, and in 1874 was appointed to that position. In 1876 he suc- ceeded Quartermaster E. F. Pontier, with the rank of lieutenant. He was made brevet captain during the railroad riots by Adjutant-General Bond, and under the new law became a full-fledged captain. Captain Miller deserves the well-earned reputation of being the best quartermaster the Fifth ever had. Its trips for the past fifteen years owe their success largely to his indefatigable work. It is he who looks after all the details. He arranged the New Orleans trip, and in turn was prevented from going by the press of business. Captain Miller is a member of the order of the Knights of Honor.
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CAPTAIN EDWARD C. JOHNSON.
Captain Edward C. Johnson, the handsome commissary of the regiment, was born in Baltimore on the 25th of December, 1843. He is the youngest son of the late Hon. Reverdy Johnson, one of the ablest and most distinguished men Maryland ever produced. When Hon. Reverdy Johnson was appointed minister to England at the Court of St. James, Mr. Edward C. Johnson accompanied him as secretary of legation, which position he filled with entire credit and success. Mr. Johnson returned to Baltimore, and when the Fifth was organized in 1867, he joined Company D, then under the command of Captain Clapham Murray. He was soon made sergeant, which command he held but a few months ; General James R. Herbert, then in command of the regiment, having tendered him the position of commissary. He accepted the position, and he has retained it under all the succeeding commandants, thus rendering to the regiment a continuous service of twenty years. His active interest in the regiment and his prompt and efficient administration of all the duties of his responsible position have aided largely in the growth and comfort of the organization. Captain Johnson is military in bearing and popular with his fellow-officers. He and Captain Robert P. Brown are the senior commissioned officers of the regiment.
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CAPTAIN FRANK WEST.
Captain Frank West, the Assistant-Surgeon, and one of the wits and epicures of the regiment, is a native of Prince George's County, where he was born on March 20, 1852. He graduated in medicine at the University of Maryland on March 1, 1879, and immediately commenced the practice of medicine in this city. In February, 18So, he was elected resident physician to the University Hospital, which position he filled until April 1, 1885. Since that time he has been actively engaged in the practice of his profession. Upon the resignation of Dr. Lockwood he was appointed to the position of Assistant-Surgeon of the Fifth Regiment in 1882, with rank of First Lieutenant, and in November, 1886, he received the rank of Captain. Captain West is always welcome company on any of the trips the regiment takes, and he is very popular with all the members. He belongs to a large number of clubs and societies of the city.
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CAPTAIN ALEXANDER BROWN.
Captain Alexander Brown, the Paymaster of the regiment, was born in Baltimore on October 25th, 1858. He is a son of General George S. Brown. Captain Brown attended the principal private school of this city, and then entered Princeton College, from which he graduated in 1878. He took great interest in athletics, and in 1878 won the gymnasium medal against many con- testants. In his senior year he won the hurdle race, with the second best amateur record in the United States at that time. After leaving college he traveled in Europe for two years, and in 1S30 returned to Baltimore and became a member of the world-famed banking house of Alexander Brown & Sons. About five years ago he was appointed to his present position on the regimental staff by General Stewart Brown, who then commanded the regi- ment. Captain Brown very rarely goes away with the regiment, and the only trip taken by him was to the inauguration of President Cleveland in 1885. Captain Brown is one of the leaders in all social and athletic movements. He is a member of the Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland Jockey, Baltimore Athletic, and Elkridge Fox Hunting Clubs. He is a director of the National Mechanics' Bank, the Mercantile Library, a director and the treasurer of the Electric Automatic Transit Company, and an officer in other prominent enterprises.
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