USA > Pennsylvania > History of the First regiment infantry, National guard of Pennsylvania (Grey Reserves) 1861-1911, pt 2 > Part 15
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The parade was the climax, interest weakened, incidents les- sened, except that the November election conducted in the field under the supervision of a state commissioner awakened its
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HISTORY OF THE FIRST REGIMENT, N. G. P.
1902
attendant enthusiasm. The Summary Court had held some busy sessions with. as a rule, but trivial delinquencies to dispose of. with occasional intervention of offences demanding exemplary punishment.
On October 24. 1902, it was announced in General Orders from the headquarters of the National Guard, Adjutant General's Office. that the purpose for which the division had been placed on duty in the several counties in the State having been accom- plished, and it being evident that the local authorities could pre- serve the peace and give the necessary and proper protection to life and property, the major-general commanding was directed to relieve the troops and return them to their home rendezvous as promptly as conditions would permit.
The movement did not touch the First Regiment until Novem- ber 8, when General Order No. 25 from Division Headquarters in pursuance of the order of October 24 from National Guard Headquarters relieved Companies 1. B. G and M of the First Infantry from duty in the field and directed that they be returned to their home rendezvous. Maj. William S. Allen had meanwhile. on November 7, been detached from his First Battalion and named as Provost Marshal of Hazleton, and at the same time Battalion Adjutant First Lieutenant G. Rushton Howell was de- tailed to assist him.
General Order No. 26 from Division Headquarters followed on the 10th and pursuant thereto, republished as it was through Brigado Headquarters, Regimental General Order No. 47 of November 11, relieved Companies C. D, E, F, Il. I. K and I. from further duty in the field, and with specific directions as to details and transportation, returned them to their home rendezvous. .
Two paragraphs of congratulatory reference in a General Order of Colonel Bowman fittingly conelude the narrative. and the Hazleton campaign of 1902 passes into the gallery of " his- torie shadowgraphs."
The colonel commanding congratulates the officers and men of this regi- ment and likewise those of the detail of Battery A upon their vigilance and soldierly conduct in the performance of the trying and onerous duties a-signed to them at the several posts.
No soldiers of any service could do better and. with the same vigilance and discipline maintained without relaxation, the commands will retain the respect of all law-abiding citizens and will add additional honors to their records as soldiers.
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1902
RESIGNATIONS AND AAPPOINTMENTS
First Lieutenant Harry J. Mehard, Regimental Inspector of Rifle Practice, his commission having expired. was in Regimental General Order No. 49 of December 15, 1902, announced as re- appointed. Ilis captainey followed March 27. 1903, the date of the approval of an amendatory act to the Act of April 28, 1899, which among other modifications and betterments increased the rank of the rifle practice inspector of a regiment of infantry from first lieutenant to captain. On the same date Captain Frank L. Mueller, the regimental commissary, was so commissioned, his rank being likewise so increased. First Lieutenant Walter M. Hotz resigned his battalion adjutancy on July 8, 1903, and on July 11, 1903. William F. Eidell, advanced from his second lieutenancy in Company B. with other promotions vet to follow, was appointed first lieutenant and battalion adjutant in his stead and assigned to the Second Battalion.
Captain John A. Osborn, private June 15, 1890, corporal, sergeant, captain from January 27, 1899. first sergeant through Spanish War, resigned his captaincy of Company D May 19, 1903, and on June 5, 1903, First Lieutenant William S. Sloan, a soldier in Company D from March 27. 1596, sergeant, first sergeant, filling both lieutenancies, with a record at the target of exceptional merit. a corporal in the Spanish-American War, was elected to succeed him. On February 25, 1903, Captain Wright I. F. Haggard, enlisted man and officer since July 15, 1887, captain since April 17. 1599. first sergeant through the Spanish- American War, resigned his captainey of Company F. The resignation of First Lieutenant William A. Wurst, with a Spanish- American War record. on December 25, 1902. left a vacancy, and on April 6. 1903. Second Lieutenant William H. Hey, a soldier in the company from August 19. 1889. quartermaster sergeant through its war service, was elected captain. vice Haggard, re- signed. On April 14. 1903, by Regimental Order, First Lieuten- ant John H. Maurer, of Company C. was assigned to the command of Company T. Captain Thomas HI. P. Todd's commission was vacated June 22. 1903, his first lieutenant, John P. Bord, having resigned on December 26, 1902, and his second lieutenant. Angus- the Wagner, on May 16, 1908. These vacancies continued until February 4. 1904. when the second lieutenancy was filled by the election of Cornelius Moore, who had been connected with the com- pany as private, corporal, and sergeant from December 22, 1592.
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1903
HISTORY OF THE FIRST REGIMENT, N. G. P.
Lieutenant Moore's election to the captainey of Company I fol- lowed on February 25, 1904, and Edward Ridgeway Smyth, first made the second, was on November 17, 1904, advanced to the first lieutenancy.
Captain Nuss's promotion sent Lieutenant Maurer back to his company December 29, 1903, First Lieutenant Charles P. Smith, of Company E. relieving him; Lieutenant Smith remained until he in turn was relieved through Captain Moore's election.
Captain W. Baner Gray resigned his captaincy of Company M June 9, 1903. The two lieutenants remained for a time, but the personnel of the old Company M passed out and a new Com- pany M came in. It brought with it much of its own esprit de corps and local pride of organization, which it promptly trans- ferred to its new affiliations. 1 military enthusiasm centering about Tacony and its vicinity, fostered and encouraged under the leadership of Dr. Elmer E. Keiser, of that place, ultimately assumed the more substantial shape of an independent military company known in its beginning as the Roosevelt Infantry. After some two years of a successful existence, in the late winter of 1902, negotiations were opened with a view to its permanent attachment to the First Regiment Infantry. Its personnel had been well and wisely chosen. After a close physical examination by the regimental surgeon and a rigid inspection by the brigade inspector the entire total of forty-five, with but one or two ro- jections, was accepted. The resignation of Captain Gray had opened the way for a succession and on June 23, 1903, Captain Elmer E. Keiser was duly elected and commissioned as captain of Company M. First Regiment Infantry.
Major William S. Allen, first elected major January 3, 1598. was unanimously re-elected. On the expiration of his term at an election called for January 3, 1903. Major Engene J. Kensil was detailed to conduct the election.
The First Regiment. Col. Wendell P. Bowman commanding, was granted permission as one of the three regiments, First. Eighth. Eighteenth and Governor's Troop, to parade at Harrisburg on Tuesday, January 20. 1903. on the occasion of the inauguration of Governor Samuel W. Pennypacker. These three regiments, four companies from the Fourth attached to the Eighth, were with the Governor's Troop, by virtue of General Order No. 2. Head- quarters of the National Guard, January 8, 1903, organized into
521
SPRING INSPECTIONS
1903
a provisional brigade. under the command of Brig. Gen. John 1. Wiley, of the Second Brigade. The First Regiment. entraining on the Reading Railroad at the subway on Callowhill Street on the morning of the 20th at 6.45 o'clock, reached Harrisburg in due course, participated in the inaugural ceremonies and returned by the same route during the night.
A proclamation of Governor Stone's announced the death at his late home in Bellefonte, after a short illness, of former Gov- ernor Daniel Hartman Hastings at 10 o'clock A.M. on the ninth day of January, 1903. Governor Hastings had been colonel of the Fifth Regiment of the National Guard and adjutant-general of the State, to which the proclamation, among its other eulogistic allusions, made this reference: "He was always an earnest advocate of the National Guard of the State and while adjatant- general rendered efficient services at the time of the Johnstown flood."
The spring inspections, with a night to each company through the months of February and March, were personally made by Maj. Charles H. Worman, the brigade inspector. rigid and thor- ough. Company I was the one company of the regiment specif- ically reported on adversely as having " been advised in writing through regimental headquarters of the principal errors noted at this inspection." Speaking generally, Major Worman in his report said :
I am pleased to report that the companies in the brigade are found to be with few exceptions in an exceedingly creditable condition. I was led to believe that the companies would be found in a semi-demoralized condition owing to the long tour of duty performed during the industrial disturbances. In a general way I can report the brigade in good physical condition and the esprit apparently of the highest order.
Colonel Sweeney, the inspector-general. in his report of the spring inspections for 1903 said: " The work was performed in a thorough and conscientions manner, reflecting credit upon the officers engaged therein," adding for himself, however, "The inspectors report the Guard in good condition, but a radical change in the method of instruction is necessary before a high standard of efficiency can be obtained." Neglect of the carly preliminaries for years, so frequently dwelt upon both by our own and army inspectors. is again made a subject for severe com- ment. Colonel Sweeney said, " Recruits are placed in the com-
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1903
HISTORY OF THE FIRST REGIMENT, N. G. P.
pany with little or no knowledge of the primary drill, with the result that the work of the individual soldier is slovenly per- formed. and the movements of the company slighted and in- properly executed." Major Worman, always rigid. thorough, and painstaking, among his other recommendations, concludes as fol- lows: " That for the betterment of the company the recruit be placed in charge of a thoroughly capable and qualified non-com- missioned officer for primary instruction and that captains be required to see that the recruit is well set up and well drilled before he is allowed to drill with the company."
On the evening of April 3, 1903, at 8.30 o'clock, the regiment was assembled in full dress uniform at the regimental armory for parade, review, inspection and presentation of the medals and trophies won at the several competitions during the rifle practice season of 1902. A series of semi-monthly battalion drills fol- lowed, each battalion in charge of its own major, that continued through the spring and early summer.
The forty-second anniversary parade of April 19. 1903, had no feature of special significance. The regiment. Colonel Bowman commanding, paraded in full strength. as did the Veteran Corps with Colonel Wiedersheim in command. Lieutenant-Colonel Good was in his place and Majors Williams, Allen, and Kensil with their respective battalions. The good weather added to the crowds. encouraged enthusiasm, inspirited the troops. Newspaper com- ment reflected the buoyancy of the occasion. The following. a clipping. typical of others, speaks for itself: " A more perfect day for a showy military pageant could hardly be desired. From a spectacular viewpoint the parade was the best the First Regi- ment has ever made." Among the men of distinction and prom- inence who viewed the parade and participated with the Veteran Corps in its evening entertainment were Rear-Admiral Charles E. Clark. United States Navy, who speeded the Oregon through the Magellan Straits to help demolish Cervera's ships; Lieut .- Col. Lyttleton W. T. Waller. United States Marine Corps. his valorous performances in the Philippines still a rich remem- brance: Gen. E. O. Lefevre, United States Marine Corps: Gen. J. P. S. Gobin: Adj .- Gen. Thomas J. Stewart. National Guard of Pennsylvania: Mr. Charles C. Harrison, Provost, University of Pennsylvania; Mr. John IT. Converse: ex-Mayors Charles F.
523
1903
MILITIA EFFICENCY ACT
Warwick and Edwin S. Stuart: Hon. John B. MePherson, United States Girenit Court, and Peter Boyd, Esq.
On the 21st of January, 1903. the Congress of the United States passed an act which was approved by the President, known as an " Act to promote the efficiency of the militia and for other purposes." This act, voluminous in detail and exact in its requirements, brought the militia of the country in closer touch and more directly within the control and under the supervision of the general government than it had ever been before. Strength- ened by amendment and enlarged by supplement. its provisions have now brought the militiaman and permanent establishment so close to each other that, as a general officer of the Regular Army recently quaintly described it, all the President needs to do is to raise his hand, beckon with gesture and command with phrase, " This way, my man." and the State soldier has no other recourse but to respond with alacrity. With a view of obtaining the necessary information precedent to the execution of certain provisions of this act. Army Headquarters at Washington ordered an inspection of the organized militia of all the States and Ter- ritories, and Captain C. W. Kennedy, Adjutant Eighth United States Infantry. was designated by the commanding officer of the Department of the East from his Governor's Island Headquarters as the inspecting officer for the First Brigade of the division, National Guard of Pennsylvania. With every conceivable article of equipment and uniform that fits the soldier for the field. clothing and ordnance, the companies of the First Regiment were directed by General Order No. 13. Regimental Head- quarters, April 25. 1903, to assemble at the armory, two on some of the evenings and one on others from April 30 to May S. 1903, inclusive, when the thorough and rigid inspection his instructions comprehended was made by Captain Kennedy. Battalion com- manders and battalion adjutants were on duty when each of the several companies of their respective battalions was inspected.
Concurrent with this inspection the issuance of the following General Order from Regimental Headquarters indicated the ever increasing appreciative recognition of how close akin was the army of the nation with the National Guard of the States:
Upon the receipt of this order and once in every six months hereafter. the articles of war shall be read and published by the company commanders
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HISTORY OF THE FIRST REGIMENT, N. G. P.
190 .:
to the officers and men of their several companies and they shall be duly observed and obeyed by all officers and soldiers of this regiment.
The First Regiment's reverential commemoration of the na- tion's Memorial Day was again made significant by its participa- tion in full dress uniform, officers with side arms, on the after- noon of Sunday, May 24, 1903, in Divine service at Holy Trinity Church under the auspices of Rev. Floyd W. Tomkins, D.D., the regimental chaplain and rector of the parish. The command was accompanied by the Veteran Corps and George G. Meade Post No. 1, Grand Army of the Republic. The conclusion of the regimental order directing the movement was as follows :
This will be a patriotie and saered duty in commemoration of the heroic services of the officers and men of the Army and Navy in defence of our country, and every officer and man will participate unless relieved or excused by proper authority.
The necessary number of United States magazine rifles and carbines, calibre .30, had been received at Harrisburg from the General Government to justify an issue on a basis of fifty-five to each company organization, and on May 19, 1903, pursuant to instructions received from the adjutant-general's office, the ser- eral companies of the regiment were directed to turn in the old .45 calibre and receive the new issue. The order was complete on specific directions and Captain Harry J. Mchard's detail of general supervision included instructions to see that the require- ments prescribed for collection of the old rifle and issue of the new were faithfully carried out.
The unfortunate and destructive fire which occurred at the armory at 6 o'clock on the morning of May 20, 1903, was not permitted to interfere with the regular routine of duty. Captain Charles P. Hunt, of Company E. upon the first alarm detailed as Officer of the Day until 6 o'clock in the evening, was then relieved by First Lieutenant Charles P. Smith of the same com- pany. Sentries were posted, guards mounted. no one was ad- mitted to the armory without authority, and with every precau- tion promptly taken for the protection and security of government. regimental, and company property, no other losses followed save those directly incident to the fire. Schedules itemizing damage. adjustment, appraisements were promptly made and the loss placed in course of insurance settlement, repairs. improvements. reconstruction, replacement, went along with all possible ex-
525
REDUCTIONS AND OTHER CHANGES
1903
pedition and except for the loss of some irreplaceable records the regiment was after a time back to where it was before, with the contemplated improvements, an additional story on the main building completed and in use before the winter.
Kindly expressions of sympathy and tenders of assistance caine from various sources, notably from the commanding officers of the Second and Third Regiments. Battalion of State Fencibles. and Troop A, which the Board of Officers at their June meeting recognized by appropriate acknowledgments.
The aet approved March 27. 1903, which has already been referred to, made some reductions in the number of non-com- missioned officers to a company of infantry and, again, elsewhere there was a slight increase. The eight corporals were reduced to six, the four duty sergeants were continued, and a quarter- master-sergeant was added : not more than two cooks and one artificor were also recognized. The regimental staff, commissioned and non-commissioned, was unaffected. The privates were con- tinued at thirty-five for minimum and forty-five for maximum. A regimental band was also provided for, to consist of one chief musician, one principal musician, and one drum major, each with the rank of sergeant of the non-commissioned staff, four sergeants, eight corporals, one cook and twelve privates. The chief musician was to rank with and receive the pay of a first lieutenant of in- fantry. A hospital corps was organized on a most comprehensive scale and workable system. One of its minor details was, besides the hospital steward, a provision for one acting hospital steward in a regiment of eight companies, and two in a regiment of more than eight.
The movement to place these requirements in course of opera- tion was initiated by a General Order from the adjutant-general. No. 19, of May 1, 1903. In compliance therewith a General Order from Headquarters of the First Regiment. of May 22. 1903, which, reciting such of its provisions as required attention, dirveted that company commanders should proceed to conform to its terms, at the same time providing that
Reductions in the number of non-commissioned officers will be accom- plished by expiration of enlistment of men of the re-pective grades. Where men now in the service in grades in which reduction is necessary desire to re-enlist. such re-enlistment will be permitted, provided the reduction ro. quired be accomplished prior to January, 1904.
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HISTORY OF THE FIRST REGIMENT, N. G. P.
1903
Reconstruction was also effected as otherwise comprehended ; and all accomplished within the prescribed time limit. The regi- ment, by the beginning of the year, had adjusted itself to a full conformity with the statute.
On Monday morning, June 15, 1903, at 6.50 o'clock, the regiment was assembled at the armory for another tour of escort duty with the old Liberty Bell, on this occasion to escort it from Independence Hall to the railway station on its way to Boston for service on the 17th of June in the ceremonies incident to the celebration of the 128th Anniversary of the Battle of Bunker Hill.
On July 9, 1903, Chief Musician William E. Chapin, trans- ferred from the field music and the regimental staff, was appointed chief musician of the First Regiment's Regimental Band, and on the same day Samuel H. Kendle was appointed to the position of principal musician, and Musician Herbert Geissinger of Com- pany F was named as drum-major. "The institution of regi- mental bands," said the Inspector-General, " in our service not only meets the requirements of the Drill Regulations, but it proved a marked success in many ways. The question of music in the Guard has been a serious one, but this problem appears now to have been solved. Commanding officers of regiments are to be congratulated upon the securing of such efficient musical organiza- tions and the organizations themselves commended for their soldierly condnet and military bearing."
General Orders from the Headquarters of the National Guard on April 4. 1903, announced the annual encampment as by brigades and fixed the time for the First Brigade from July 11 to July 15, inclusive, the brigade commander subsequently desig- nating the location as Perkasie, and the name Camp Hastings.
The construction detail of the First Regiment, under command of First Lieutenant Charles P. Smith, of Company E. left the Reading Terminal at 7 o'clock on the morning of Thursday, July 9, and the regiment with Colonel Bowman in command fol- lowed at $.15 p.M. on Friday, July 10. reaching its camp site at Perkasie before midnight. The published routine of duty did not vary materially from the usual course, with every hour and in some instances every half-hour filled from the first call at 5.25 A.M. to taps at 10 p.M., except three, omitted because the "evolutions
527
CAMP HASTINGS
1903
of regiment or brigade " called for two o'clock required two hours for their detailed execution. there was little margin for aught else but what the " routine " called for-" duty."
The annual muster and inspection by the adjutant-general and inspector-general was held on Tuesday, July 14, with the Gor- ernor and his staff and the brigade commander and his staff, in attendance, close observers of every detail. Inspection and muster followed a review, and as soon as the muster was over, there was the usual regimental drill and after that the drill in extended order.
Lieut .- Col. Walter Howe, of the Artillery Corps. assistant to Inspector-General, Department of the East, was the officer of the Regular AArmy detailed for the First and Second Brigades. In his voluminous, thorough and instructive report, among his many suggestions and frequent commendations of the First Brigade, among other things he said: "The men looked clean and neat; they dressed well and generally drilled well. The steadiness of the First Regiment in ranks was noticeable." and referring to the two brigades together, in another place he states : " The discipline throughout in both brigades was excellent. The camps were very orderly at night. Obedience to orders was prompt and universal and I only saw one drunken man in both brigades." And again, speaking generally of how closely he had followed all the inspections, attended all kinds of drills, parades, and re- views, visited all the guards, present at the guard mounting in every regiment. he adds that "he made many suggestions. all of which were received with courtesy and a kindly spirit."
The following paragraphs of Colonel Howe's. laudatory in most instances, reflective in but few, from an officer of the army, himself of the Inspector's Department, are so encouraging and helpful that the Pennsylvania Guardsmen practically indcel of the permanent establishment, who do so much with so little com- pensation. cannot but receive them with an appreciative greeting:
The National Guard of Pennsylvania comes nearer to the regular service in its method of clothing. camping, cooking and target practice than any other that I am familiar with, and all of their orders and regulations seem to be based upon the United States Army orders and regulations. It is therefore not deemed practicable to recommend any very radical changes in this organization. +
The National Guard of Pennsylvania, First and Second Brigades, is a
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ILSTORY OF THE FIRST REGIMENT, N. G. P.
1903
very efficient body of men. In its organization, clothing and equipment it resembles more nearly the United States Army than any other of which I have any knowledge.
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