USA > New York > The Ninth regiment, New York volunteers (Hawkins' zouaves); being a history of the regiment and veteran association from 1860 to 1900 > Part 22
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While the reserves were stationed in the streets, the vicious minority among the strag- glers were kept in check by a wholesome fear of consequences which would follow should any of them be detected in the perpetration of nefarious acts. When such acts were discov- ered, good soldiers (by which is meant an over- whelming majority of all those in the service, both commissioned and enlisted) would not, and did not hesitate to take the law into their own hands and put a stop to them in a sum- mary manner. But when the troops were being withdrawn and the different sections of the city left entirely unprotected, the vicious and criminal had full sway.
385
SERGEANT SEARING'S OPPORTUNE ARRIVAL ..
During the last night in Fredricksburg, - when the men of the Ninth were given per- mission to seek shelter from the cold in the houses, a number of Company D's men occu- pied one in which the female members of the family still remained, having faith in the chivalry of the Yankee soldiers and nerved by the natural desire to protect their homes and
property. Their confidence was not misplaced as, during their stay of about twenty hours the men treated them with the utmost considera- tion and courtesy, and made their own occu- pation of the premises as inoffensive as pos- sible.
After the regiment had crossed the river on the night it evacuated the city, Sergeant Searing, who had been one of the occupants of the house above mentioned, discovered that he had forgotten some papers, diaries, etc., which he had left at the house in the hurry of departure. Recrossing the river and proceeding there to recover them, he arrived just in time to protect the women of the house from abuse, as three stragglers had entered but a few moments before, and, finding the in- mates unprotected and helpless, were about to assault them when Searing entered. The Sergeant's unexpected appearance, and his authoritative and peremptory demeanor as he
386 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
ordered the ruffians out of the place and to their regiments, probably conveyed the im- pression that he had a guard outside, as the assaulting party slunk away at once and disap- peared in the darkness. Sergeant Searing's only guard just then was a firm belief in the everlasting right, backed up by a stout heart and a good Springfield musket.
After quieting the frightened women by assurances that there would be no further cause for alarm, that their own friends-the Johnnies -- would soon come in and occupy the town, together with other reassuring state- ments, he secured his lost papers, and recrossed the river, being probably the last man of the Ninth in the city, and reached the regiment in safety.
Colonel Hawkins did what he could to check lawlessness in that part of the city occupied by him. He called the attention of General Howard to the acts of men who be- longed to his (Howard's) command, with a view of having the latter take measures to maintain order. Howard's answer was: "Sol- diers are not expected to be angels." Haw- kins afterward established a guard along a brook, which was a kind of general dividing line between the corps, and would not allow any of Howard's men to come into that part of the city occupied by his brigade.
387
COLONEL KIMBALL'S REPORT.
The following is Colonel Kimball's official - report of the part taken by the 9th New York Volunteers in the battle of Fredericks- burg:
CAMP OPPOSITE FREDERICKSBURG, VA.
December 16, 1862.
COLONEL : - I herewith have the honor to report that, in compliance with your orders, I left this camp on the evening of the 11th instant, crossed the Rappahannock to Fredericksburg, and bivouacked, occupy- ing the main street for about one block and a half north of the rail- road, throwing Company D forward to the enemy's front as picket. Immediately upon taking position I established a strong guard upon the sidewalks and both flanks of my command, with instructions to allow no one to enter a house or destroy or take away a single article from that portion of the street in which we were stationed, which order, I am happy to say, was literally obeyed during our entire occu- pancy of that position.
At seven o'clock of the evening of the 12th, the entire regiment was ordered to the front on picket duty, and did not again return to that portion of the town.
At daylight on the morning of the 13th, I was relieved from picket, and returned to town near the lower pontoon bridge, where I re- mained until about 6 p.M., when in obedience to your orders, I ad- vanced my command, under a heavy fire of artillery, to the brow of the hill in front of the enemy, to the support of the Fifth Massachu- setts Battery. I here received your orders to halt, which I did, and remained in support of the above battery, as directed, till it was dis- abled and retired past us from the field. At this point the fire of shell and shrapnel was tremendous, totally disabling the battery, and killing one and wounding eight men of my command. I then received your orders to return to the lower part of the city and bivouac, which I did, remaining in that position during the night.
The next day, 14th, we were ordered into quarters, where we re- mained till the evening of the 15th, when we were ordered to recross the river and return to our old camp at this place, where we arrived about eleven o'clock at night.
I would beg leave to call attention to the following officers, which list embraces all of those engaged with the regiment during the action of the 13th ; Captain Barnett, acting major ; Adjutant Bartholomew, Captains LeBaire, Graham, Rodriquez, and Klingsochr ; Lieutenants Harrison, Webster, Fleming, Powell, Donaldson, Jacobsohn, Vogt and Jackson.
388 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
I can say no more than that all behaved in the most admirable manner, and are entitled to great credit for gallantry and coolness under fire. The men obeyed every order with alacrity and prompt- ness, and are entitled to the commendation of their officers and the thanks of their countrymen for their courage and coolness on this as well as other occasions.
Below is a list of killed, wounded and missing.
* *
* *
* *
I have the honor to be, very respectfully, Your obedient servant,
E. A. KIMBALL,
Lieutenant-Colonel, Commanding Ninth New York Volunteers.
COLONEL R. C. HAWKINS,
Commanding First Brigade.
After regaining their own side of the river and re-establishing the old camp and devo- ting a few days to recuperative rest, the or- dinary routine of camp life was resumed- drills and reviews being the order of the day. Camp life under tents in a Virginia winter is, or was, decidedly unpleasant. The changes in weather conditions were very marked, the extremes of cold and heat, of snow and rain, following each other in rapid succession. Such protection as the troops were able to provide for themselves had to be improvised out of their shelter tents, sup- plemented with such other material as could be procured about camp or in the near vicinity. During this period Uncle Sam was not very prodigal in providing for the comfort of the soldiers. He was busily engaged in more im- portant matters. The men were alive, and
389
AN OCCASIONAL " GROWL."
should have been satisfied. They received pay occasionally, and sometimes, but not often, got full rations. Notwithstanding their de- privations, there were practically no expres- sions of serious discontent. The army was composed of citizens of the average class, but with more than the average intelligence, and they understood and appreciated the difficul- ties under which the Government labored. Nearly, if not all, the soldiers realized that the officials at Washington and elsewhere were doing the best they could under the circum- stances. The men growled occasionally about the pay not coming and about the scarcity of "grub," as all kinds of food was classified, but it was only a soldier's growl, and in many instances the man who growled the loudest would march farthest, fight the hardest, and go without food the longest.
The field encampment of an army in active service, in the winter, is very far from being a neatly and systematically arranged place, clean, fresh, and pleasant to the eye. It is not such as one sees in the usual summer camp, where there is an ample supply of roomy tents arranged symetrically in column with the tents of the officers in their proper position and everything about it bright, fresh and orderly. In the presence of the enemy the
390 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
location of the camp is rarely an ideal one and seldom a matter of choice. Tents must be pitched and camps located with a view to the exigency of the situation. Hillsides and ra- vines must be utilized as well as the more level ground. As a consequence many of the regimental camps were by reason of surface conditions, very irregular in their formation. It was not always practicable to conform to the strict rules and plans of camp enjoined by the regulations. The irregularity in appear- ance was heightened by the fact that at this period of the war there was little or no uniformity in the tents issued to the troops. Occasionally part of a regiment or possibly a company here and there was supplied with wall, Sibley or A tents, while others, and by far the greater number, had to be contented with the regular shelter, or dog tent, which was originally intended only for shelter while the soldier was actually on the march. The ingenuity displayed by the men in constructing comparatively comfortable quarters out of the material at hand was really remarkable. One method was to excavate a celler three or four feet deep, over which the tent (if of the wall or A pattern) was set up. This arrangement was warmer and furnished greater head room than if the tent had been simply pitched on
391
WINTER QUARTERS ARCHITECTURE.
the ground in the usual way, while it also - admitted of having a fire, which was not practicable in a tent erected on the surface. In the latter case there was no outlet for the smoke unless the tent itself was left open. With the cellar attachment a horizontal hole was made in the earth in the side of the cellar wall, generally opposite the entrance, of sufficient size to serve as a fire-place. From the fire-place a perpendicular opening was carried to the surface for a flue, over which a chimney, either of empty barrels or of clay and sticks was built, high enough to safely conduct the smoke and heated air from the fire above the ridge-pole of the tent, thereby lessening the chances of fire. If the builders of the habitation had only shelter tents as a founda- tion for their work they built a log structure high enough to give, with the cellar included, sufficient height ; gable ends were carried up, light pole rafter laid on these and the shelter tents buttoned together, stretched over for a roof.
If the ground was not suitable for a cellar, by reason of being too wet, or so stony as to be too difficult to excavate, the log structure was put up on the surface. If the builders possessed a tent, the log pen need be only three or four feet high; then with the tent
392 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
pitched securely on top of the low wall they had a house high enough to enable them to move around in comfortably. If they had only their individual shelter tents to help out with, the walls had to be carried up to the height of a man and roofed with the buttoned tents as in the first example.
Making provisions for a fire was much more difficult when the above-ground style of archi- tecture was adopted. It was necessary to leave an opening in one side of the log structure about two or three feet square for a fire-place. The hearth was outside of the wall, after the plan almost universally followed in the South, the fire-place being an oven-shaped structure of earth, or of earth and stones, with a chimney of the usual kind erected over it.
When one of these houses was well banked with earth, the openings between the logs well chinked with clay, and a good fire burning on the hearth, there was a surprising degree of solid comfort in it. To a man coming off guard where he had been exposed to the rain or snow for twenty-four hours it certainly seemed like homely luxury.
The general appearance of camp could not be said to be inviting to one unaccustomed to it. The stranger viewing it, or even the con- valescent returning after an absence more or
393
HOW' IT LOOKED.
less protracted, saw that there had been no" attempt at architectural uniformity. Indeed, this would have been impossible with the materials at hand.
As he gazed at the various structures throughout the camps, with their canvas roofs discolored by various kinds of dirt stains, and with their gaping rents caused by storms or black margined holes burned by sparks from their own chimneys, in some cases patched with stray bits of old rubber blankets or odd pieces of discarded tent cloth of almost every hue, he would not have been inclined to wor- ship it as at a shrine of beauty. A nearer view disclosed mud everywhere, banked up against the houses and plastered between the logs to keep out the cold; piles of earth which had been removed in making the ditches which surrounded every house to deflect the water during storms were visible everywhere. The company streets were oftentimes little better than quagmires, and tramping about through it all, were disconsolate looking soldiers, the blue of their uniforms turned to a dark brown by the pine smoke of the guard fires around which they had huddled all winter. The stranger within its gates would conclude that the two words in the English language which best described the camp were "squalor " and "wretchedness."
394 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
There were exceptions here, however, as there are in almost everything.
Many of the soldiers who were encamped on the " Brick house hill" that winter will remem- ber a camp which was just the opposite in general appearance to those which have been described here. It was the camp of a Maine regiment, the number of which cannot now be recalled. It was located on fairly level ground, at a considerable distance northwest of the "Philips House," where General Sumner had his headquarters, and on a spot from which all the trees had not yet been removed. This gave it a sheltered appearance and invested it with an air of comfort. Each company street was formed of two rows of neatly built, com- fortable looking log houses, roofed with shelter tents. Everything about them and throughout the camp presented an appearance of extreme neatness and regularity, one might almost say of thrift. Everything had been done in a sub- stantial and workmanlike manner by men who had been accustomed to the woods and were past masters in the art of chopping.
Upon suddenly coming into this camp, without having any previous knowledge of its existence, the visitor might well imagine that he was entering a well regulated and conducted New England village.
393
THE " MUD MARCH."
The monotony of camp life was soon unex- pectedly broken by an attempt to resume offen- sive operations against Lee. This is what is known among soldiers generally as the "Mud March." Evidently there was to be an attempt made to turn Lee's left by a rapid move up and across the Rappahannock by the upper fords. It proved to be a lamentable failure, however, but not through any fault or error on the part of the general commanding. The movement had no sooner been decided upon and its execution begun than the weather suddenly became mild. The frozen ground was transformed into mud, " the rains descended and the floods came," and the army, or such part of it as had already started on the march, found itself literally stuck in the mud, unable to move the field artillery, and the attempt had to be abandoned.
The movement had not progressed far enough to involve the division to which the Ninth be- longed in it, and consequently it did not break camp and, therefore, were saved from a most unpleasant experience.
On the 26th of January, 1863, the whole regi- ment was brought together for the first time in nearly eight months. On that day Company "F" (Captain Hammill) returned from duty at Plymouth, N. C., and Company "G" (Captain Childs) from duty as body guard to General Burnside, both reporting to the regiment.
396 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
February 5th, the Ninth Corps received orders to proceed to Fortress Monroe, and on the 7th at sunrise, the Ninth New York struck tents, marched to the railroad station, took the cars for Aquia Creek, boarded the transport " Robert Morris," and at about two o'clock P. M. started down the Potomac on the way to Old Point Comfort.
CHAPTER XIII.
ESTABLISHMENT OF CAMP AT NEWPORT NEWS - THE NINTH ASSIGNED AS PROVOST GUARD - CONCEN- TRATING TROOPS - SUTLERS' TRIALS - RUM AS A DISTURBER OF MARTIAL DISCIPLINE - REVIEW OF THE NINTH CORPS - HORSE RACING AND BASEBALL - ENROUTE TO FORTRESS MONROE AND PORTS- MOUTH -TELEGRAMS- BORROWED TENTS IN SUF- FOLK - AN UNWARRANTED TRAGEDY -THE USE - OF COUNTERSIGNS - DEATH OF BRIGADIER-GEN- ERAL CORCORAN - OMINOUS THUNDERS OF MUTINY CALMED BY GENERAL GETTY - REMOVAL TO FORT NANSEMOND - UNDER FIRE-FAKE BULLETS-CAP- TURING A BATTERY - A LOST YANKEE IN REBEL LINES-THE LAST DAY-GENERAL ORDERS NO. 27- DISAPPOINTMENT OF RECRUITS-MUSTERED OUT.
A BOUT noon on the 8th of February, the transport, with the Ninth on board, , arrived at Fortress Monroe. Here it remained at anchor until about ten o'clock the next morn- ing, when orders were received to proceed to Newport News. Arriving at that place the regiment landed and was assigned to quarters in some very dilapidated buildings which had previously been used as stables. They were in an extremely filthy condition, as well as
398 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
sadly out of repair. In obedience to orders the men at once began the task of converting these tumbledown, filthy hovels into habitable bar- racks. Their success was simply marvelous.
It is doubtful if during the entire term of the regiment's service a better example of the result of intelligent, well directed labor could be shown. Nearly all the mechanical trades were well represented in the regiment, plenty of skill and ability, supplemented with an abundance of energy-the latter a native pos- session of these young soldiers. The work progressed rapidly and the old stables were very soon transformed into respectable looking and comfortable quarters.
On the next day after its arrival the regiment was designated as provost guard of the post, with Major Jardine as Provost Marshal.
This line of duty being entirely new to the men of the regiment was rather an agree- able variation from the usual unbroken mo- notony of ordinary camp life with its unvary- ing round of drills, parade and guard, and it was so accepted by them. Officers and men entered on the performance of their new duties with great satisfaction, and with a determina- tion for thoroughness in the performance of them.
After a few days' experience in the new
.
CONCENTRATING TROOPS AT NEWPORT NEWS. 399
camp, it appeared evident, judging from the . activity prevailing at the post, and from the continuous arrival of regiments, that the mil- itary authorities intended to concentrate a large number of troops here, and to make it a base for operations of some kind in the near future. The detailing of the Ninth as provost guard was, in the minds of the men, confirma- tion that such was the intention. They reas- oned that under ordinary conditions any regi- ment would have served for a provost guard, but the detailing of the Ninth denoted that extraordinary conditions were about to de- velop.
Regiment after regiment continued to arrive, following each other in rapid succession until, in a comparatively short time the whole of the 9th Corps was encamped on the high bank of the James. The place which a short time before had been almost deserted was now occupied by nearly twenty thousand men.
The swarms of sutlers, who had been labor- ing under great difficulties during all the time the army was on the march through Virginia, far away from its base, became suddenly alert, and were keen to take whatever advantage the situation offered for catching the trade which they saw was sure to follow the arrival of such a large number of soldiers at the post.
400 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
For a long time these sutlers had been endur- ing conditions very unfavorable to them, but which always prevail during the progress of an active campaign. While following the army on the march their stock in trade had to be transported in wagons and their safety and convenience were not considered to any very great extent by either the commanding general or his principal subordinates. They, therefore, had to trust to Providence for getting from point to point, or from one camp or halting place to another, without being captured by the Johnnies. They were frequently treated with scant courtesy by those in command, especially when they happened to interfere in any way with the free movement of troops, as they some- . times did by obstructing the road, bridge or ford. The long haul was very expensive and the risk of capture was very great, not only by the scouting parties and moving bodies of the enemy but, under certain conditions, by their friends also.
Discipline is always more or less relaxed when an army is on the march, and the longer the march the greater the relaxation. In a per- manent camp, under ordinary conditions, the stock of the sutler would be just as safe as in a civil community, but when the army was on the march, if it should happen to be dis-
401
THE TROUBLES OF THE SUTLER.
covered at any place outside of the range of vision of such commissioned officers as might realize the importance of their responsibility, it would be considered by soldiers generally as legitimate spoil, and in all probability would be captured and appropriated.
From the above the reader must not con- clude that robbery was practiced generally by the soldiers during the war, or that men who would rob a sutler's wagon, would, under normal conditions, steal the property of another. Scattered all over the land are men holding high positions of honor and trust, who, when soldiers, assisted in robbing a sutler, and were glad of the opportunity. The doubter of this statement may ask the judge, congressman, clergyman, physician, merchant or lawyer who served in the ranks during the Rebellion, if he ever did such a thing. Watch the expression of his face and see how his eye will light up as his thoughts revert to those days when mis- chief was looked upon as a virtue, and all the wild pranks committed on the march or in the camp were considered as simply ebullitions of animal spirits.
It was but natural that the arrival of a large body of troops at Newport News, which was so easy of access by water from near-by Northern ports, should be looked upon by many army
402 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
traders as the sunshine in which their hay should be made, and they accordingly pro- ceeded immediately to take advantage of it. Almost as soon as the first bodies of troops were landed, vessels loaded with sutlers' stores began to arrive from Baltimore and other places at the north. A goodly proportion of many of the cargoes, and in some instances almost the whole cargo, consisted of rum.
The supplying of liquors to soldiers during the war caused more trouble and brought about more breaches of discipline and military law than all other causes combined. A single gallon of rum introduced into a regiment will, for the time being, destroy the discipline of years. Everybody in the army who was at all observant was aware of this, yet almost everyone, excepting such officers as realized the responsibility resting upon them, encour- aged, or at least did not discourage the traffic. It was principally to prevent this traffic or to break it up if established that the Ninth was appointed provost guard. Major Jardine was
just the man for the work. He was shrewd and energetic, and while it was practically impossible to at once entirely stop the intro- duction of liquor into camp, he and his assist- ants by their vigilance and the severe measures enforced against offenders, gradually put an end to it.
403
REVIEWS AND RECREATIONS.
By the latter part of February the whole of the Ninth Corps had arrived, and on the 25th of that month there was a grand review of all the troops at the post. The various com- mands were in excellent condition, both in regard to equipment and discipline and pre- sented a magnificent spectacle as they marched past the reviewing officer.
Experience had taught the veterans and the observant ones in the army that the review of large bodies of troops was always a preliminary to some important movement, consequently the strategists among the soldiers at once began planning their campaigns, and the camp was soon filled with rumors regarding the next move.
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