The Colored Regulars in the United States Army

July 4. Flag of truce all day; national and regimental colors placed on parapets. At noon the regiment paraded, and all hearts cheered by the patriotic telegram of the Commander-in-Chief—His Excellency, President McKinley. Refugees, in droves, could be seen leaving for several days, notice of bombardment having been served on the city.

July 5. There was much excitement when Lieutenant Hobson and party crossed our lines.

During truce, the monotony was broken occasionally by the presence of Spanish soldiers in quest of something to eat or desiring to surrender.

Truce was off July 10 at 4 P.M. Bombardment of the city commenced by the army and navy combined, which continued un til 2 P.M. 11th. Gatling, dynamite, rapid-firing and Hotchkiss guns were so well trained that the Dons scarcely dared to raise their heads, and their firing was soon silenced. During the attack our part of the line suffered no loss. While occupying these works, it was discovered that the gun of the enemy that annoyed us most was quite near a large building covered with Red Cross flags.

During the truce all of our dead were located and buried. It was sad, indeed, to see the vultures swarming like flies, when we knew so well their prey.

Though prepared to, several times, no shots were exchanged after July 11, and all was quiet until date of capitulation. The hardest rain ever witnessed, accompanied by terrific thunder and lightning, was on the last day of the engagement. Trenches were flooded and everything appeared as a sea.

July 17, at 9 A.M., the regiment, with the remainder of the army, was assembled over the trenches to witness the formal surrender of General Toral, with the Spanish forces. Owing to the dense tropical growth, and its similarity in color to their clothing, little or nothing could be seen, beyond the straw hats of the Dons, as they marched through the jungles. At 12 M., we were again placed in the same position, to salute "Old Glory" as she ascended over the Governor's palace in the city, which was told by Capron's battery U.S. Artillery. At the first shot, every individual tested his lungs to their fullest capacity, bands of music playing national airs.

Spanish soldiers were soon over our lines, trading off swords, wine, cigarettes and trinkets for hard tack and bacon. This soon ended, as there were positive orders against our fraternizing. The Spaniards were a fine looking lot of young men; though generally small in stature, and were very neat a nd clean, considering. The officers were an intelligent and dignified looking set. The Dons were away ahead on ammunition, and away behind on eatables. A few musty, hard tack, thrown in our trenches, were devoured like so much fresh beef, by so many hungry wolves.

Campaigning in the tropics entails many hardships, though unavoidable and only to be expected, in war. War is horrible in any aspect in which it may be viewed. Even those features of it intended to be merciful, are full of harshness and rigor; and after all, fighting is the easiest part.

As the capitulation was complete, and Santiago was our's, we were ordered to change camp to a more healthful locality, with a view to allowing the men to recuperate. While en route many refugees were met returning to the city, men and women, with the scantiest clothing imaginable; large children even worse—in a nude state—all were making signs for something to eat.

In passing through El Caney, filth of all descriptions was piled up in the streets; stock was seen standing inside dwellings with occupants; young and old were emaciated—walking skeletons; children with stomachs bloated to thrice their natural size—due to the unsanitary condition of the huts, so I was informed.

The bare facts are, that "half has never been told" regarding the true condition of the Cubans, and it is truly a Godsend that "Uncle Sam" was not delayed another day in letting the Don's breathe a little of nature's sweetest fragrance of the nineteenth century—Civilization.

The portion of the island I saw appears to be a beautiful park deserted and laid waste by the lavish application of the torch for many years. Magnificent m ansions, or dwellings, in ruins; habitation scant, except near towns.

There were no domestic animals, except a few for saddle purposes, nor were there crops to be seen. No use whatever appears to be made of the luxuriant pasturage and rich fields. Sugar houses and sheds on plantations are in a state of decay, and the huge kettles for boiling deeply coated with rust.

The climate of Cuba offers all the essentials, heat, moisture and organic matter, for the development of germ life in its most active form.

The great heat and moisture, so excellent for the development of infected wounds, and for the rapid decomposing of the heavy undergrowth cannot, I believe, be exceeded anywhere.

The frequent tropical showers, invariably followed by a hot steam, along with which germs seem to float; the consequent exposure of the men to that glaring heat and moisture, lowered the general tone of the system so that they were especially liable to attacks of miasmatic diseases (malarial and typhoid fevers and dysentery.)

Owing to the dense humidity, clothing does not dry so long as it remains on the person, but must be removed, a condition that was absolutely impossible for many days on the field before Santiago. To this alone, much of our sickness may be attributed.

Our new camp, pitched on the eminence of El Caney, about one and one-half miles from the village, overlooking the city and bay of Santiago, with its excellent water, shade, grass, and increased comforts, which were daily shipped from our transports, presented a scene far more conciliatory than had been witnessed about the Tenth Horse for many days.

MEDALS OF HONOR AND CERTIFICATES OF MERIT GRANTED TO COLORED SOLDIERS FOR DISTINGUISHED SERVICES IN THE CUBAN CAMPAIGN.

OFFICIAL.

Besides the Certificates of Merit and Medals of Honor, mentioned above, and the promotions to commissions i n the volunteer services, there were some instances of promotion to non-commissioned officers' positions of men in the ranks or junior grade for conspicuous gallantry. Notably among such were Benjamin F. Sayre, of the Twenty-fourth, promoted to Sergeant-Major for gallantry at San Juan, and Private James W. Peniston, of the Tenth Cavalry, promoted to Squadron Sergeant-Major for conspicuous bravery at Las Guasimas. Others there may be whose names are not available at this time.

CHAPTER XI.

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The return of the army and the repatriation of the Spanish army from Cuba, brought before the country for immediate solution the problem of garrisoning that island; and in a very short time the question of similar nature regarding Porto Rico. Ten regiments of immunes had been organized in the volunteer service partly in anticipation of such a situation. Four of these regiments were composed of colored enlisted men. The regiments were classed as United States Volunteer Infantry, and were numbered from one to ten, the Seventh, Eighth, Ninth and Tenth being colored.

Of these four colored regiments the officers above first lieutenants were white men, except the chaplains, and in some cases the surgeons. Very little care had been taken in enlisting the men, as it was important to get the regiments in the field as soon as possible; yet of them as a whole General Breckinridge, Inspector-General, speaks as follows: "The colored regiments of immunes, so called, raised for this war, have turned out, so far as can be judged from their camp life (as none of them have been in any actual campaign), very satisfactory. The regular colored regiments won golden opinions in battle. The experiment of having so many colored officers has not yet shown its full results. Certainly we should have the best obtainable officers for our volunteers, and therefore some such men as Colonel Young, who is a graduate of the Military Academy at West Point, whether white or black, must be sought for."

Besides these four colored regiments of immunes, so-called, there were other State organizations composed entirely of colored men, mustered into the United States service, as for example the Ninth Battalion of the Ohio National Guard. This organization was composed of four companies, with colored captains and lieutenants, the staff officers also being colored, the commanding officer of the battalion being Major Young, who was a first lieutenant in the Regular Army, a graduate from the Military Academy, and an officer of experience. He is the person referred to as Colonel Young by General Breckinridge, cited just above. This battalion, although not permitted to do any active campaigning, maintained itself well in that most trying of all duties for raw troops—camp duty—winning a good record in the South as well as in the North, having been stationed in Virginia, Pennsylvania and lastly in South Carolina; from which latter place it was mustered out, and the men proceeded to their homes in an orderly manner, reflecting credit upon themselves and the officers under whom they had served. This organization is mentioned first, because it was the only one of its kind commanded by a Regular Army officer, and a man who had received scientific military training.[25]

Two of these volunteer regiments, the Eighth Illinois and the Twenty-third Kansas, reached Cuba and made history there, in garrison service, coming in direct contact with the Ninth Immunes, and in no sense suffering in comparison thereto. The Eighth Illinois being the first to go to the front, in a sense deserves to be noticed here first. This remarkable regiment was developed out of the Ninth Battalion, Illinois National Guard, and owes its origin to the persistent efforts of Messrs. John R. Marshall, Robert R. Jackson, Franklin Dennison, E.H. Wright, Rev. R.C. Ransom, Rev. J.W. Thomas, S.B. Turner and doubtless many others whose names do not appear. These gentlemen named called upon the Governor of their State the next day after the President had issued his call for 175,000 volunteers, and received from that official the assurance that if another call should be made they should have the opportunity to recruit their battalion to a regiment, and that he would "call that regiment first into the service," and "that every officer in that regiment will be a colored man."

After receiving this encouragement, the leaders began at once the work of organizing and recruiting, and when the second call came, May 25th, the regiment was well under way, and soon ready to go into camp to prepare for service. On June 30th it assembled in Springfield from the following places: Seven hundred men from Chicago; one hundred and twenty from Cairo; a full company from Quincy, and smaller numbers from Mound City, Metropolis and Litchfield, and nearly a company from Springfield. The regiment was sworn in during the latter half of July, the muster roll showing 1,195 men and 46 officers, every one of whom was of African descent except one private in a Chicago company.

Of these forty-six officers, ten had received college education, six were lawyers, and the others were educated in the public schools, or had served in the Regular Army as non-commissioned officers. Many of them were directly fro m Illinois, that is in the sense of having been born and reared in the State, and were fully accustomed to the full exercise of their rights as men and citizens. In character and intelligence the official element of the Eighth was about up to the standard of the volunteer army, as events subsequently proved.

Going into camp with the Ninth, white, this latter regiment, early in August, received an order to move to a Southern camp en route for Cuba, leaving the Eighth behind, greatly to the chagrin of both officers and men. Governor Tanner was evidently disturbed by this move, and expressed himself in the following language: "Even from the very doors of the White House have I received letters asking and advising me not to officer this regiment with colored men, but I promised to do so, and I have done it. I shall never rest until I see this regiment—my regiment—on the soil of Cuba, battling for the right and for its kinsmen."

Later the misfortunes of the First Illinois proved the opportunity of the Eighth. This regiment was in Cuba, suffering terribly with the fever, the men going down under its effects so rapidly that the Colonel in command implored Governor Tanner "to use all influence at Washington to secure the immediate recall of the First Illinois." When the Governor received this message he sent for Colonel Marshall, of the Eighth, and asked him to ascertain the sentiments of the officers and men of his regiment in regard to being sent to relieve the First. On the 4th day of August Colonel Marshall was able to send to Washington the following dispatch:

"H. C. Corbin, Adjutant-General:—

"I called the officers of the Eighth Illinois, colored, in conference and they are unanimously and enthusiastically in favor of being sent to relieve the First Illinois at Santiago."

To this hearty dispatch came the following reply:

"The Secretary of War appreciates very much the offer of the Eighth Illinois Volunteer Infantry for duty in Santiago, and has directed that the regiment be sent there by steamer Yale, leaving New York next Tuesday. The main trouble with our troops now in Cuba is that they are suffering from exhaustion and exposure incident to one of the most trying campaigns to which soldiers have ever been subjected."

"H.C. Corbin,
"Adjutant-General."

This action on the part of the regiment is said to have so pleased the President that on hearing it he declared it was the proudest moment of his life.

On the 9th of August the regiment left Springfield, and in passing through Illinois and Ohio was greeted with the most generous enthusiasm, the people supplying the men with free lunches at every station. This was the period when the sympathy of the whole country was turned toward the colored soldier in consequence of the reports of valor and heroism that had been circulated concerning the black regulars. On the afternoon of the 11th the Yale cast off her lines, and with the first American Negro regiment that the world has ever seen, steamed out of New York harbor amid the ringing of bells and shrieks of steam whistles, and four days later, August 15, landed in Cuba. The regiment remained in Cuba until March 10, performing garrison duty so well that General Breckenridge said it was "as fine a volunteer regiment as was ever mustered into the service," and that it was "a shame to muster out of service such an excellent regiment."

The Twenty-third Kansas, made up in that State and officered as was the Eighth Illinois, by men of the same race, with the enlisted men, arrived in Cuba August 30, and in company with the Eighth Illinois Regiment, was stationed in the country about San Luis, with headquarters at that place, Colonel Marshall, of the Illinois Regiment, serving as comm ander of the post, and also as Governor of the Province of San Luis. A detachment of the Illinois Regiment, under command of Major Jackson, was sent to Palma Soriana, and did excellent work there in the preservation of order between the Cubans and Spaniards, who were living together in that place in outward peace but in secret resentful hostility. Major Jackson managed affairs so well that both parties came to admire him, and when he was called away expressed their regret. Captain Roots, who commanded the post after the departure of Major Jackson, was equally fortunate, especially with the Cubans, and when it was thought his command was to be removed, the citizens generally united in a petition to the General commanding, asking that both the Captain and his command might remain in the city. The fact is also noted by the chroniclers of the regiment that several marriages took place in Palma Soriana between soldiers of the Eighth Illinois and Cuban maidens.

The Eighth Regiment was finally settled in San Luis, occupying the old Spanish barracks and arsenal, and under Colonel Marshall's supervision the city was put in fine sanitary condition, streets and yards being carefully policed; meanwhile under the reign of order and peace which the Colonel's just methods established, confidence prevailed, business revived and the stagnation which had so long hung like a fog over the little city, departed, and in its stead came an era of bustling activity.

All was peaceful and prosperous, both with the citizens and the garrison, until the Ninth United States Volunteers came in the vicinity. Then a difficulty sprang up in which both regiments became involved, although it was in no sense serious, but it afforded a pretext for the removal of the Eighth I llinois from the city. The event turned out all the better for the Eighth, as it enabled them to establish Camp Marshall, about three miles from the city, in a healthy neighborhood, where they remained until ordered home to be mustered out. The regiment came back to Chicago in fine condition and was tendered an enthusiastic welcome by that great city. Thus two entire regiments represented the country abroad in this, its first, foreign war with a European power.

It should also be recorded that although the Ninth United States Volunteers was composed of persons who were classed as immune, and had come chiefly from Louisiana, and notwithstanding that the officers of the regiment above lieutenants were white men, and the colonel an officer of the Regular Army of long experience, and was specially praised by so good a sanitarian as General Wood for having been, constant and untiring in his efforts to look after the welfare of his men, and that the surgeons of the regiment were white men, that deaths among the colored men numbered one officer and seventy-three enlisted men. In striking contrast with this record of the immune regiment is that of the Eighth Illinois, which was made up entirely of residents of that State and officered throughout by colored men. Its medical officers were men of high character, and its losses by death were just twenty, or but little over one-fourth the number that occurred in the immune regiment. An efficient auxiliary society to this regiment was formed of colored ladies of Chicago who forwarded to the sick in Cuba more than six hundred dollars worth of well chosen supplies, which did much for the comfort of those in the hospital; but this would not account for the great difference in the death rate of the two regiments. Though not immune, the Eighth Illinois fa red very much better than the so-called immune regiment, although the latter had the benefit of white officers. The experience of the Twenty-third Kansas did not differ in any important respect from that of the Eighth Illinois. Both regiments returned to their homes in March, 1899, and were mustered out of the service, leaving behind them good records for efficiency.

The Sixth Virginia Regiment consisted of eight companies and was under command of Lieutenant-Colonel Richard C. Croxton, of the Regular Army, white, with Majors J.B. Johnson and W.H. Johnson, colored. It was mustered into service during the latter part of the summer and went into camp near Knoxville, Tennessee. Here an order came from Corps Headquarters, at Lexington, Kentucky, directing that nine of the officers, including one major, should appear before a board of examiners in order to give evidence of their fitness to command. The officers named, regarding this as uncalled for, immediately tendered their resignations. The vacancies thus created were filled by the Governor of the State, the appointees being white men. These white officers on arriving at the camp and finding themselves unwelcome, immediately followed in the wake of their colored predecessors, and tendered their resignations.

The difficulties arising from this friction were somehow adjusted, but in what manner the reports available at this time do not show. Moving to Macon, Georgia, the regiment remained in the service until some time in the winter, when it was mustered out. Much was said by the local papers to the detriment of the men composing this regiment, but viewing their action from the standpoint of the civilian and citizen, it does not appear reprehensible. They had volunteered with the understanding that their own officers, officers wit h whom they were well acquainted, and in whose friendship they held a place, should command them, and when they saw these officers displaced and white strangers put in their stead, they felt a pardonable indignation, and took their own way of expressing it. As soldiers, their conduct in resisting authority, cannot be commended.

The Third North Carolina Volunteer Infantry was organized as were the regiments of Illinois and Kansas, above described. The officers of the North Carolina Regiment were all colored men of that State and were men of character and note. Its commanding officer, Colonel Young, had held responsible positions under both State and National Governments, had been editor of a paper and member of the State Legislature and Major in the State militia. In character, he was above reproach, being a strict teetotaler and not even using tobacco. The regiment made a good record, but did not see any active service.

A peculiar regiment was organized in Alabama, known as the Third Alabama Volunteer Infantry, in which the enlisted men were all colored and the officers all white. The regiment saw no service and attracted no attention outside of its immediate locality.

Two companies of colored men with colored captains were also mustered into the United States service from Indiana, and finally attached to Colonel Huggins' command, although not becoming a part of his regiment, the Eighth Immunes. They were stationed at Fort Thomas, Ky., and at Chickamauga, and were mustered out early. Their officers were men of intelligence who had acquired experience by several years' service in the militia, and the companies were exceptionally well drilled. They were designated Companies A and B and were commanded by Captains Porter and Buckner, with Lieutenant Thomas as Quartermaster.

The organization of the four immune regiments, already mentioned, gave opportunity for ninety-six colored men to obtain commissions as lieutenants. A few of these positions were seized upon by influential young white men, who held them, but with no intention of ever serving in the regiments, as they found staff positions much more congenial to their tastes. The colored men who were appointed lieutenants in these regiments were generally either young men of ability and influence who had assisted in getting up their companies, and who in many cases had received some elementary military instruction as cadets, in school, or men who had distinguished themselves by efficiency or gallantry in the Regular Army. Some exceptions there were, of course, and a few received commissions in consequence of personal friendship and political considerations. Before these regiments were mustered out of the service about one-half of the lieutenants were men from the Regular Army.

I am sure the reader will be pleased to learn that Sergeants Foster, Buck and Givens, whose deeds in Cuba have already been related, were rewarded with commissions, and that the gallant Thomas C. Butler, who rushed forward from his company's line and seized the Spanish standard at El Caney, was afterward permitted to serve in Cuba with the rank of a commissioned officer. Besides those named above, there were others also of marked ability and very respectable attainments who received commissions on general merit, as well as for gallantry. Chief among the class promoted for efficiency was First Lieutenant James R. Gillespie, formerly Post Quartermaster-Sergeant. Gillespie had served several years in the Tenth Cavalry and had proved himself an excellent soldier. Both in horsemanship and as marksman he was up to the standard, while his character and business qualifications were such as to secure for him a staff position of responsibility. As Quartermaster-Sergeant he held positions of important posts and filled them with great satisfaction. Because of his efficiency as a soldier he was given a commission as First Lieutenant and executed the duties of his office with the same ability that had marked his career as an enlisted man. From the Tenth Cavalry also came First Lieutenant Baker, whose commission was a tribute to his fidelity and efficiency. A soldier of high type he bore his commission and its honors as worthily as any son of our Republic. In the same category must be placed First Lieutenant Wm. McBryer, formerly Sergeant in the Twenty-fifth Infantry. McBryer had served in the Tenth Cavalry and had won a Medal of Honor in conflict with the Indians. He was a soldier distinguished by strength of character, prompt executiveness, quick decision and courage. He was also possessed of considerable literary skill, was a good speaker and attractive writer, and a man of fine parts. He was a valuable acquisition to the volunteer service and would have made a fine captain.

Of the colored sergeants from the Regular Army who were given commissions in the volunteer service it would not be extravagant to say that all were men of worth, well-tried in the service, and there was scarcely one of them but could have successfully commanded a company. Lieutenant A.J. Smith, formerly First Sergeant in the Twenty-fifth Infantry, was so well informed in the paper work of the army and in company administration particularly that he was regarded as an authority, and he was so well experienced in the whole life of a soldier, in camp, field, garrison and in battle, that it would have been difficult to find his superior in the army. To the credit of all of the enlisted men of the Regular Army referred to, who received commissions in the volunteer service, all served honorably and were mustered out without bringing any scandal of any sort upon the service.

The colored volunteers in the service acquitted themselves as well as the average volunteer, and when mustered out proceeded to their homes about as others did. The treatment accorded them in some of the Southern cities, especially in Nashville, Tennessee, did not speak well for the loyalty of that section, nor was it such as might reasonably be expected from a people who had fared so well in the offices and honors of the short war. From the best sources available, it seems incumbent to say that the many charges alleged against the colored volunteers for excessive rioting and disorder were without proper foundation, and the assaults made upon them unjustifiable and cruel. The spirit of the assailants is best seen from a description of the attack made upon the unarmed discharged soldiers of the Eighth Immuners in Nashville, already alluded to. This description was made by the sheriff who participated in the brutality. An officer who was on the train, and who was asleep at the time, when aroused went into the car where the men were and found that they had been beaten and robbed, and in some instances their discharges taken from them and torn up, and their weapons and money taken from them by citizens. It was about one o'clock A.M. and the men were generally asleep when attacked. The sheriff gloats over it in language which ought not be allowed to disappear:

"It was the best piece of work I ever witnessed. The police went to the depot, not armed with the regulation 'billy,' but carrying stout hickory clubs about two and one-half feet long.

Their idea was that a mahogany or lignum vitae billy was too costly a weapon to be broken over a Negro's head. The police were on board the train before it stopped even, and the way they went for the Negroes was inspiring. The police tolerated no impudence, much less rowdyism, from the Negroes, and if a darky even looked mad, it was enough for some policeman to bend his club double over his head. In fact after the police finished with them they were the meekest, mildest, most polite set of colored men I ever saw." This language is respectfully dedicated to the memory of the proud city of Nashville, and presents to the readers the portrait of her police.

Despite this vile treatment, the colored soldier went on to his home, ready again to respond to his country's call, and to rally to the defence of his country's flag, and, incidentally, to the preservation of the lives and homes of the misguided, heartless beings who can delight in his sufferings. The hickory club belongs to one sort of warrior; the rifle to quite another. The club and rifle represent different grades of civilization. The Negro has left the club; the language from Nashville does honor to the club. Billy and bully are the theme of this officer of the law, and for a "darkey even to look mad" is ample justification for "some policeman to bend his club double over his head." Were these policemen rioters? Or were they conservaters of the peace? Judge ye!

OUTLINE HISTORY OF THE NINTH (SEPARATE) BATTALION, OHIO VOLUNTEER INFANTRY.

By the Battalion Adjutant, Lieutenant Wilson Ballard.

The Ninth Battalion, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, the only colored organization from Ohio in the Volunteer Army during the war with Spain, was, previous to the date of its muster into the United States service, known as the Ninth Battalion, Ohio National Guard. April 25th, 1898, the battalion, consisting of three companies, A from Springfield, under Captain R.R. Rudd; B from Columbus, under Captain James Hopkins, and C from Xenia, under Captain Harry H. Robinson, was ordered into camp at Columbus, Ohio. The battalion was under the command of Major Charles Fillmore.

May 14, 1898, the battalion was mustered into the volunteer service by Captain Rockefeller, U.S.A. Lieutenant Charles Young, U.S.A., then on duty at Wilberforce University, Wilberforce, Ohio, as professor of military science and tactics, was commissioned by Governor Bushnell as Major commanding the Ninth Battalion, O.V.I., relieving Major Fillmore. In order to enable Lieutenant Young to accept his volunteer commission, he was granted an indefinite leave of absence by the War Department.

May 19, 1898, the command having been ordered to join the Second Army Corps at Camp Russell A. Alger, near Falls Church, Va., left Camp Bushnell and arrived at Camp Alger May 21, 1898.

When Major-General Graham assumed command of the Second Army Corps and organized it into divisions, the battalion was placed in the provisional division. In June (exact date not remembered) the battalion was placed in the Second Brigade, Second Division, being brigaded with the Twelfth Pennsylvania and Seventh Illinois Regiments. The battalion was relieved from the Second Brigade, Second Division and placed in the Second Brigade, First Division, being brigaded with the Eighth Ohio and Sixth Massachusetts.

A New Jersey regiment was relieved from duty as corps headquarters' guard late in June and the Ninth Battalion assigned to that duty. The battalion performed this duty until it was ordered South from Camp Meade, Penn., when it became separated from corps headquarters. Important outposts, such as the entrance to Falls Church and the guarding of the citizens' gardens and property, were under the charge of the command.

When General Garretson's brigade (Second Brigade, First Division, consisting of the Eighth Ohio, Ninth Battalion and Sixth Massachusetts) was ordered to Cuba, General Graham, thinking that his entire Army Corps would soon be ordered to active service, requested the War Department, as the battalion was his headquarters guard, to let the battalion remain with him. (See telegrams Gen. Graham's report to the Secretary of War.) General Graham's request being honored by the department, the battalion was deprived of this chance of seeing active service in foreign fields. The battalion was then attached to the Second Brigade, Second Division, under Brigadier-General Plummer, being brigaded with the First New Jersey, Sixty-fifth New York and Seventh Ohio.

In July the battalion was relieved from this brigade and attached directly to corps headquarters. When the Second Army Corps was ordered to Camp Meade, Penna., the battalion was one of the first to break camp, going with corps headquarters. The battalion left Camp R.A. Alger August 15, 1898, and arrived in camp at Camp George G. Meade, near Middletown, Penna., August 16, 1898. In camp the battalion occupied a position with the signal and engineer corps and hospital, near corps headquarters.

When the Peace Jubilee was held in Philadelphia, the battalion was one of the representative commands from the Second Army Corps, being given the place of honor in the corps in the parade, following immediately General Graham and staff. When the corps was ordered South the battalion was assigned to the Second Brigade under Brigadier-General Ames. The battalion left Camp Meade November 17. Up to this time it had done the guard duty of corps head quarters and was complimented for its efficient work by the commanding general. The battalion arrived in Summerville, S.C., November 21, 1898. It was brigaded with the Fourteenth Pennsylvania and Third Connecticut.

When the battalion arrived in the South the white citizens were not at all favorably disposed toward colored soldiers, and it must be said that the reception was not cordial. But by their orderly conduct and soldierly behavior the men soon won the respect of all, and the battalion was well treated before it left. November 28-29 Major Philip Reade, Inspector General First Division, Second Army Corps, inspected the Ninth Battalion, beginning his duties in that brigade with this inspection. He complimented the battalion for its work both from a practical and theoretical standpoint. Coming to the Fourteenth Pennsylvania he required them to go through certain movements in the extended order drill which not being done entirely to his satisfaction, he sent his orderly to the commanding officer of the Ninth Battalion, requesting him to have his command on the drill ground at once. The battalion fell in and marched to the ground and when presented to the Inspector orders were given for it to go through with certain movements in the extended order drill in the presence of the Pennsylvania regiment. This done, the Inspector dismissed the battalion, highly complimenting Major Young on the efficiency of his command. Just after the visit of the Inspector General, General S.B.M. Young, commanding the Second Army Corps, visited Camp Marion. Orders were sent to Major Young one morning to have his battalion fall in at once, as the General desired to have them drill. By his command the battalion went through the setting-up exercises and battalion drill in close and extended order. The General was so well pleased with the drill that the battalion was exempted from all work during the remainder of the day.

The battalion was ordered to be mustered out January 29, 1899. Lieutenant Geo. W. Van Deusen, First Artillery, who was detailed to muster out the command, hardly spent fifteen minutes in the camp. Major Young had been detai led Assistant Commissary of Musters and signed all discharges for the Ninth Battalion, except for the field and staff, which were signed by Lieutenant Van Deusen. The companies left for their respective cities the same night they were paid. Major Bullis was the paymaster.

CHAPTER XII.

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Of all the avenues open to American citizenship the commissioned ranks of the army and navy have been the stubbornest to yield to the newly enfranchised. Colored men have filled almost every kind of public office or trust save the Chief Magistracy. They have been members of both Houses of Congress, and are employed in all the executive branches of the Government, but no Negro has as yet succeeded in invading the commissioned force of the navy, and his advance in the army has been exceedingly slight. Since the war, as has been related, but three Negroes have been graduated from the National Military Academy at West Point; of these one was speedily crowded out of the service; another reached the grade of First Lieutenant and died untimely; the third, First Lieutenant Charles Young, late Major of the 9th Ohio Battalion, U.S. Volunteers, together with four colored Chaplains, constitute the sole colored commissioned force of our Regular Army.

Although Negroes fought in large numbers in both the Revolution and the War of 1812, there is no instance of any Negro attaining or exercising the rank of commissioned officer. It is a curious bit of history, however, that in the Civil War those who were fighting to keep colored men enslav ed were the first to commission colored officers. In Louisiana but a few days after the outbreak of the war, the free colored population of New Orleans organized a military organization, called the "Native Guard," which was accepted into the service of the State and its officers were duly commissioned by the Governor.[26]

These Negro soldiers were the first to welcome General Butler when he entered New Orleans, and the fact of the organization of the "Native Guard" by the Confederates was used by General Butler as the basis for the organization of three colored regiments of "Native Guards," all the line officers of which were colored men. Governor Pinchback, who was a captain in one of these regiments, tells the fate of these early colored officers.

"There were," he writes, "in New Orleans some colored soldiers known as 'Native Guards' before the arrival of the Federal soldiers, but I do not know much about them. It was a knowledge of this fact that induced General Butler, then in command of the Department of the Gulf, to organize three regiments of colored soldiers, viz: The First, Second and Third Regiments of Native Guards.

"The First Regiment of Louisiana Native Guards, Colonel Stafford commanding, with all the field officers white, and a full complement of line officers (30) colored, was mustered into service at New Orleans September 27, 1862, for three years. Soon after General Banks took command of the department and changed the designation of the regiment to First Infantry, Corps d'Afrique. April 4th, 1864, it was changed again to Seventy-third United States Colored Infantry.

[Transcriber's Note: This footnote appeared in the text without a footnote anchor:

"On the 23d of November, 1861, there was a grand review of the Confederate troops stationed at New Orleans. An Associated Press despatch announced that the line was seven miles long. The feature of the review, however, was one regiment of fourteen hundred free colored men. Another grand review followed the next spring, and on the appearance of rebel negroes a local paper made the following comment:

"'We must also pay a deserved compliment to the companies of free colored men, all very well drilled and comfortably uniformed. Most of these companies, quite unaided by the administration, have supplied themselves with arms without regard to cost or trouble. On the same day one of these negro companies was presented with a flag, and every evidence of public approbation was manifest.'"

(Williams's Negro Troops in the Rebellion, pp. 83-4)]

"The Second Louisiana Native Guards, with Colonel N.W. Daniels and Lieutenant-Colonel Hall, white, and Major Francis E. Dumas, colored, and all the line officers colored except one Second Lieutenant, was mustered into service for three years, October 12, 1862. General Banks changed its designation to Second Infantry Corps d'Afrique, June 6, 1863, and April 6, 1864, it was changed to Second United States Colored Troops. Finally it was consolidated with the Ninety-first as the Seventy-fourth Colored Infantry, and mustered out October 11, 1865.

"The Third Regiment of Louisiana Native Guards, with Colonel Nelson and all field officers white, and all line officers (30) colored, was mustered into service at New Orleans for three years, November 24, 1862. Its designation went through the same changes as the others at the same dates, and it was mustered out November 25, 1865, as the Seventy-fifth Colored Infantry.

"Soon after the organization of the Third Regiment, trouble for the colored officers began, and the department began a systematic effort to get rid of them. A board of examiners was appointed and all COLORED officers of the Third Regiment were ordered before it. They refused to obey the order and tendered their resignations in a body. The resignations were accepted and that was the beginning of the end. Like action with the same results followed in the First and Second Regiments, and colored officers were soon seen no more. All were driven out of the service except three or four who were never ordered to appear before the examining board. Among these was your humble servant. I was then Captain of Compa ny A, Second Regiment, but I soon tired of my isolation and resigned."

Later on in the war, with the general enlistment of colored soldiers, a number of colored chaplains and some surgeons were commissioned. Towards the close of the war several colored line officers and a field officer or two were appointed. The State of Massachusetts was foremost in according this recognition to colored soldiers. But these later appointments came, in most cases, after the fighting was all over, and gave few opportunities to command. At the close of the war, with the muster out of troops the colored officers disappeared and upon the reorganization of the army, despite the brilliant record of the colored soldiers, no Negro was given a commission of any sort.

The outbreak of the Spanish War brought the question of colored officers prominently to the front. The colored people began at once to demand that officers of their own race be commissioned to command colored volunteers. They were not to be deluded by any extravagant praise of their past heroic services, which veiled a determination to ignore their just claims. So firmly did they adhere to their demands that but one volunteer regiment of colored troops, the Third Alabama, could be induced to enter the service with none of its officers colored. But the concessions obtained were always at the expense of continuous and persistent effort, and in the teeth of a very active and at times extremely violent opposition. We know already the kind of opposition the Eighth Illinois, the Twenty-third Kansas, and the Third North Carolina Regiments, officered entirely by colored men, encountered. It was this opposition, as we have seen, which confined colored officers to positions below the grade of captain in the four immune regiments. From a like cause, we know also, disti nguished non-commissioned officers of the four regular regiments of colored troops were allowed promotion only to Lieutenantcies in the immune regiments, and upon the muster out of those organizations, were compelled, if they desired to continue soldiering, to resume their places as enlisted men.

There is some explanation for this opposition in the nature of the distinction which military rank confers. Military rank and naval rank constitute the only real distinction among us. Our officers of the army and navy, and of the army more than of the navy, because the former officers are more constantly within the country, make up the sole separate class of our population. We have no established nobility. Wealth confers no privilege which men are bound to observe. The respect paid to men who attain eminence in science and learning goes only as far as they are known. The titles of the professions are matters of courtesy and customs only. Our judges and legislators, our governors and mayors, are still our "fellow citizens," and the dignity they enjoy is but an honorary one. The highest office within our gift offers no exception. At the close of his term, even an ex-President, "that melancholy product of our system," must resume his place among his fellow citizens, to sink, not infrequently, into obscurity. But fifty thousand soldiers must stand attention to the merest second lieutenant! His rank is a fact. The life tenure, the necessities of military discipline and administration, weld army officers into a distinct class and make our military system the sole but necessary relic of personal government. Any class with special privileges is necessarily conservative.

The intimate association of "officer" and "gentleman," a legacy of feudal days, is not without significance. An o fficer must also be a gentleman, and "conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman" is erected into an offence punishable by dismissal from the service. The word "gentleman" has got far away from the strict significance of its French parent. De Tocqueville has made us see the process of this development. Passing over to England, with the changing conditions, "gentleman" was used to describe persons lower and lower in the social scale, until, when it crossed to this country, its significance became lost in an indiscriminate application to all citizens[27]. A flavor of its caste significance still remains in the traditional "high sense of honor" characteristic of our military service. It was a distant step for a slave and freedman to become an officer and gentleman.

While the above reflections may be some explanations in fact for the opposition to the commissioning of Negroes, there was no one with hardihood enough to bring them forward. Such notions might form the groundwork of a prejudice, but they could not become the reason of a policy. It is an instinctive tribute to the good sense of the American people that the opponents of colored officers were compelled to find reasons of another kind for their antagonism.

The one formula heard always in the campaign against colored officers was: Negroes cannot command. This formula was sent forth with every kind of variation, from the fierce fulminations of the hostile Southern press, to the more apologetic and philosophical discussions of our Northern secular and religious journals. To be sure, every now and then, there were exhibitions of impatience against the doctrine. Not a few newspapers had little tolerance for the nonsense. Some former commanders of Negro soldiers in the C ivil War, notably, General T.J. Morgan, spoke out in their behalf. The brilliant career of the black regulars in Cuba broke the spell for a time, but the re-action speedily set in. In short it became fastened pretty completely in the popular mind as a bit of demonstrated truth that Negroes could not make officers; that colored soldiers would neither follow nor obey officers of their own race.

This formula had of course to ignore an entire epoch of history. It could take no account of that lurid program wrought in the Antilles a century ago—a rising mob of rebel slaves, transformed into an invincible army of tumultuous blacks, under the guidance of the immortal Toussaint, overcoming the trained armies of three Continental powers, Spain, England and France, and audaciously projecting a black republic into the family of nations, a program at once a marvel and a terror to the civilized world.

Not alone in Hayti, but throughout the States of Central and South America have Negroes exercised military command, both in the struggles of these states for independence, and in their national armies established after independence. At least one soldier of Negro blood, General Dumas, father of the great novelist, arose to the rank of General of Division in the French Army and served under Napoleon. In our day we have seen General Dodds, another soldier of Negro blood, returning from a successful campaign in Africa, acclaimed throughout France, his immense popularity threatening Paris with a renewal of the hysterical days of Boulanger. Finally, we need not be told that at the very head and front of the Cuban Rebellion were Negroes of every hue, exercising every kind of command up to the very highest. We need but recall the lamented Maceo, the Negro chieftain, whose t ragic end brought sorrow and dismay to all of Cuba. With an army thronging with blacks and mulattoes, these Cuban chieftains, black, mulatto and white, prolonged such an harassing warfare as to compel the intervention of the United States. At the end of this recital, which could well have been extended with greater particularity, if it were thought needful, we are bound to conclude that the arbitrary formula relied upon by the opponents of colored officers was never constructed to fit such an obstinate set of facts.

The prolonged struggle which culminated in permitting the Negro's general enlistment in our Civil War had only to be repeated to secure for him the full pay of a soldier, the right to be treated as a prisoner of war, and to relieve him of the monopoly of fatigue and garrison duty. He was too overjoyed with the boon of fighting for the liberation of his race to make much contention about who was to lead him. With meagre exception, his exclusive business in that war was to carry a gun. Yet repeatedly Negro soldiers evinced high capacity for command. Colonel Thomas Wentworth Higginson draws a glowing portrait of Sergeant Prince Rivers, Color-Sergeant of the First South Carolina Volunteers, a regiment of slaves, organized late in 1862. The Color-Sergeant was provost-Sergeant also, and had entire charge of the prisoners and of the daily policing of the camp.

"He is a man of distinguished appearance and in old times was the crack coachman of Beaufort. * * * They tell me that he was once allowed to present a petition to the Governor of South Carolina in behalf of slaves, for the redress of certain grievances, and that a placard, offering two thousand dollars for his re-capture is still to be seen by the wayside between here and Charleston. He was a sergean t in the old 'Hunter Regiment,' and was taken by General Hunter to New York last spring, where the chevrons on his arm brought a mob upon him in Broadway, whom he kept off till the police interfered. There is not a white officer in this regiment who has more administrative ability, or more absolute authority over the men; they do not love him, but his mere presence has controlling power over them. He writes well enough to prepare for me a daily report of his duties in the camp; if his education reached a higher point I see no reason why he should not command the Army of the Potomac. He is jet-black, or rather, I should say, wine-black, his complexion, like that of others of my darkest men, having a sort of rich, clear depth, without a trace of sootiness, and to my eye very handsome. His features are tolerably regular, and full of command, and his figure superior to that of any of our white officers, being six feet high, perfectly proportioned, and of apparently inexhaustable strength and activity. His gait is like a panther's; I never saw such a tread. No anti-slavery novel has described a man of such marked ability. He makes Toussaint perfectly intelligible, and if there should ever be a black monarchy in South Carolina he will be its king."[28]

Excepting the Louisiana Native Guards, the First South Carolina Volunteers was the first regiment of colored troops to be mustered into the service in the Civil War. The regiment was made up entirely of slaves, with scarcely a mulatto among them. The first day of freedom for these men was passed in uniform and with a gun. Among these Negroes, just wrested from slavery, their scholarly commander, Colonel Higginson, could find many whom he judged well fitted by nature to command.

"Afterwards I had excellent battalion drills," he writes, "without a single white officer, by way of experiment, putting each company under a sergeant, and going through the most difficult movements, such as division columns and oblique squares. And as to actual discipline, it is doing no injustice to the line-officers of the regiment to say that none of them received from the men more implicit obedience than Color-Sergeant Rivers. * * * It always seemed to me an insult to those brave men to have novices put over their heads, on the ground of color alone, and the men felt it the more keenly as they remained longer in the service. There were more than seven hundred enlisted men in the regiment, when mustered out after more than three years' service. The ranks had been kept full by enlistment, but there were only fourteen line-officers instead of the full thirty. The men who should have filled these vacancies were doing duty as sergeants in the ranks."[29]

Numerous expeditions were constantly on foot in the Department of the South, having for their object the liberation of slaves still held to service in neighborhoods remote from the Union camps, or to capture supplies and munitions of war. Frequently these expeditions came in conflict with armed bodies of rebels and hot engagements would ensue, resulting in considerable loss of life. Colored soldiers were particularly serviceable for this work because of their intimate knowledge of the country and their zeal for the rescue of their enslaved brethren.

One of these expeditions, composed of thirty colored soldiers and scouts, commanded by Sergeant-Major Henry James, Third United States Colored Troops, left Jackson ville, Florida, early in March, 1865, to penetrate into the interior through Marion county. They destroyed considerable property in the use of the rebel government, burned the bridge across the Oclawaha River, and started on their return with ninety-one Negroes whom they had rescued from slavery, four white prisoners, some wagons and a large number of horses and mules. They were attacked by a rebel band of more than fifty cavalry. The colored soldiers commanded by one of their own number, defeated and drove off the rebels, inflicting upon them the heavy loss of thirty men. After a long and rapid march they arrived at St. Augustine, Florida, with a loss of but two killed and four wounded, the expedition covering in all five days. These colored soldiers and their colored commander were thanked in orders by Major-General Q.A. Gilmore, commanding the department, who was moved to declare that "this expedition, planned and executed by colored men, under the command of a colored non-commissioned officer, reflects credit upon the brave participants and their leader," and "he holds up their conduct to their comrades in arms as an example worthy of emulation."[30]

It was no uncommon occurrence throughout the Civil War for colored non-commissioned officers to be thrown into command of their companies by the killing or wounding of their superior officers. On many a field of battle this happened and these colored non-commissioned officers showed the same ability to take the initiative and accept the responsibility, and conducted their commands just as bravely and unfalteringly as did their successors on the firing line at La Guasima and El Caney, or in the charge up San Juan Hill.

In the battle of New Market Heights, fought on the 29th of September, 1864, as part of a comprehensive effort to turn Lee's left flank, the great heroism of the black soldiers, and the terrible slaughter among them, impressed their commander, the late Major-General Butler, to his dying day, and made him the stout champion of their rights for the rest of his life. In that battle, to quote from the orders putting on record the "gallant deeds of the officers and soldiers of the Army of the James":—

"Milton M. Holland, Sergeant-Major Fifth United States Colored Troops, commanding Company C; James H. Bronson, First Sergeant, commanding Company D; Robert Pinn, First Sergeant, commanding Company I, wounded; Powhatan Beaty, First Sergeant, commanding Company G, Fifth United States Colored Troops—all these gallant colored soldiers were left in command, all their company officers being killed or wounded, and led them gallantly and meritoriously through the day. For these services they have most honorable mention, and the commanding general will cause a special medal to be struck in honor of these gallant soldiers."

"First Sergeant Edward Ratcliff, Company C, Thirty-eighth United States Colored Troops, thrown into command of his company by the death of the officer commanding, was the first enlisted man in the enemy's works, leading his company with great gallantry for which he has a medal."

"Sergeant Samuel Gilchrist, Company K, Thirty-sixth United States Colored Troops, showed great bravery and gallantry in commanding his company after his officers were killed. He has a medal for gallantry."[31]

"Honorable mention" and "medals" were the sole reward open to the brave Negro soldiers of that day.

Not alone in camp and garrison, in charge of expeditions, or as non-commissioned officers thrown into command of their companies on the field of battle have Negro soldiers displayed unquestioned capacity for command, but as commissioned officers they commanded in camp and in battle, showing marked efficiency and conspicuous gallantry. The colored officers of the First and Second Regiments of Louisiana Native Guards, whose history has been detailed earlier in this chapter,[32] were retained in the service long enough to command their troops in bloody combat with the enemy. It will be remembered that of the Second Regiment of Louisiana Native Guards only the Colonel and Lieutenant-Colonel were white, the Major, F.E. Dumas, and all the line officers, as in the case of the First Regiment of Louisiana Native Guards, being colored. On April 9, 1863, Colonel N.U. Daniels, who commanded the Second Regiment of Louisiana Native Guards, with a detachment of two hundred men of his regiment, under their colored officers, engaged and repulsed a considerable body of rebel infantry and cavalry at Pascagoula, Mississippi. The engagement lasted from 10 A.M. until 2 P.M. and was remarkable for the steadiness, tenacity and bravery of these black troops in this, their first battle, where they succeeded in defeating and beating off an enemy five times their number. The official report by the Colonel commanding declared: "Great credit is due to the troops engaged for their unflinching bravery and steadiness under this, their first fire, exchanging volley after volley with the coolness of veterans, and for their determined tenacity in maintaining their position, and taking advantage of every success that their courage and valor gave them; and also to their officers, who were cool and determined throughout the action, fighting their commands against five times their number, and confident throughout of success. * * *

"I would particularly call the attention of the department to Major F.E. Dumas, Capt. Villeverd and Lieuts. Jones and Martin, who were constantly in the thickest of the fight, and by their unflinching bravery and admirable handling of their commands, contributed to the success of the attack, and reflected great honor upon the flag for which they so nobly struggled."[33]

The battle which settled for all time the bravery of black troops, and ought as well to silence all question about the capacity of colored officers, was the storming of Port Hudson, May 27, 1863. For months the Confederates had had uninterrupted opportunity to strengthen their works at Port Hudson at a time when an abundance of slave labor was at their disposal. They had constructed defenses of remarkable strength. On a bluff, eighty feet above the river, was a series of batteries mounting in all twenty siege guns. For land defenses they had a continuous line of parapet of strong profile, beginning at a point on the river a mile from Port Hudson and extending in a semi-circle for three or four miles over a country for the most part rough and broken, and ending again at the river, a half mile north of Port Hudson. At appropriate positions along this line four bastion works were constructed and thirty pieces of field artillery were posted. The average thickness of the parapet was twenty feet, and the depth of the ditch below the top of the parapet was fifteen feet. The ground beh ind the parapet was well adapted for the prompt movement of troops.[34]

On the 24th of May General Banks reached the immediate vicinity of Port Hudson, and proceeded at once to invest the place.

On the 27th the assault was ordered. Two colored regiments of Louisiana Native Guards, the First Regiment with all line officers colored, and the Third with white officers throughout, were put under command of Colonel John A. Nelson, of the Third Regiment, and assigned to position on the right of the line, where the assault was begun. The right began the assault in the morning; for some reason the left did not assault until late in the afternoon. Six companies of the First Louisiana and nine companies of the Third, in all 1080 men, were formed in column of attack. Even now, one cannot contemplate unmoved the desperate valor of these black troops and the terrible slaughter among them as they were sent to their impossible task that day in May. Moving forward in double quick time the column emerged from the woods, and passing over the plain strewn with felled trees and entangled brushwood, plunged into a fury of shot and shell as they charged for the batteries on the rebel left. Again and again that unsupported column of black troops held to their hopeless mission by the unrelenting order of the brigade commander, hurled itself literally into the jaws of death, many meeting horrible destruction actually at the cannon's mouth.

It was a day prodigal with deeds of fanatical bravery. The colors of the First Louisiana, torn and shivered in that fearful hail of fire, were still borne forward in front of the works by the color-sergeant, until a shell from the enemy cut the flag in two and gave the sergeant his mortal wound. He fell spattering the flag with blood and brains and hugged it to his bosom as he lay in the grasp of death. Two corporals sprang forward to seize the colors, contending in generous rivalry until a rebel sharpshooter felled one of them across the sergeant's lifeless body. The other dashed proudly forward with the flag. Sixteen men fell that day defending the colors.

Black officers and white officers commanded side by side, moving among the men to prompt their valor by word and example, revealing no difference in their equal contempt of death. Captain Quinn, of the Third Regiment, with forty reckless followers, bearing their rifles and cartridge boxes above their heads, swam the ditch and leaped among the guns, when they were ordered back to escape a regiment of rebels hastening for their rear. Six of them re-crossed alive, and of these only two were unhurt, the brave Quinn and a Lieutenant. The gallant Captain Andre Cailloux, who commanded the color company of the First Louisiana, a man black as night, but a leader by birth and education, moved in eager zeal among his men, cheering them on by words and his own noble example, with his left arm already shattered, proudly refusing to leave the field. In a last effort of heroism, he sprang to the front of his company, commanded his men to follow him, and in the face of that murderous fire, gallantly led them forward until a shell smote him to death but fifty yards from the works.