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PERSONAL NARRATIVES

OF EVENTS IN THE

WAR OF THE REBELLION, BEING PAPERS READ BEFORE THE

RHODE ISLAND SOLDIERS AND SAILORS

HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 

NO. 7. . . . SECOND SERIES. 

[Illustration]

PROVIDENCE:N. BANGS WILLIAMS & CO. 1880. 

Copyrighted byN. BANGS WILLIAMS. 1880. 

REMINISCENCES

OF

TWO YEARS WITH THE COLORED TROOPS. 

BY

J. M. ADDEMAN, [LATE CAPTAIN FOURTEENTH R. I. HEAVY ARTILLERY, COLORED. ]

PROVIDENCE:N. BANGS WILLIAMS & CO. 1880. 

Copyrighted byN. BANGS WILLIAMS. 1880. 

PRINTED BY E. L. FREEMAN & CO. 

REMINISCENCES OF TWO YEARS

WITH THE

COLORED TROOPS. 

The circumstances attending the organizing of a colored regiment inthis State are well remembered. In the summer of 1863, white men wereno longer eager to enlist for a war the end of which none couldforesee; but nevertheless the war must be prosecuted with vigor;another draft was impending and the State's quota must be filled. Withdifficulty Governor Smith obtained permission to organize a company, and, as this rapidly filled, then a battalion, and finally a fullregiment of twelve companies of colored men for heavy artillery duty. In common with many others I did not at the outset look withparticular favor upon the scheme. But with some hesitation I acceptedan appointment from the State as a second lieutenant and reported forduty at Camp Smith, on the Dexter Training Ground, in this city. Afterserving here for some weeks in the fall of 1863, in the organizing ofcompanies and forwarding them to Dutch Island, where the regiment wasin camp, I successfully passed an examination before what was known as"Casey's Board, " and after some preliminary service with a company ofthe third battalion, was assigned to the command of Company H of thesecond battalion, with whose fortunes my lot was cast till the closeof our term of service. On the turtle-backed crown of Dutch Island weremained amid fierce storms and the howling winds that swept with keenedge over the waters of the Narragansett, until the 20th of January, 1864, when, as I was about to make a visit home, the transport, DanielWebster, appeared in the harbor and orders were issued to prepare forembarking on the following day. At the time appointed, we were onboard, but the sutler's arrangements were not completed until earlythe next morning, when we got up steam and were soon out of sight ofour familiar camp. 

The incidents of the voyage it is not necessary to recite to anycomrade whose chance it was to make a trip in an army transport, whichhad long since seen its better days, and which had been practicallycondemned before Uncle Sam found for it such profitable use. The menpacked like sheep in the hold, the officers, though far better off asto quarters, yet crowded too much for convenience and comfort, theinevitable sea-sickness, the scanty rations, and what was worse, theextreme scarcity of water, were annoyances but the counterpart ofthose endured by many brave men who preceded and followed us to thescene of duty. But in the main the weather favored us, and on thehurricane deck we spent the hours off duty, gazing far across theillimitable waste of waters, as day after day we approached a warmerclime with its glowing sunshine and glittering waves and the deep bluesky bending down in unbroken circle around us. The rebel cruisers werethen in the midst of their destructive work and it was natural, as wecaught sight of a distant vessel, to speculate whether it was afriendly or a hostile craft. When we were in the latitude ofCharleston, a steamer appeared in the far distance, then a flash, apuff of smoke and a loud report notified us that it was sending us itscompliments. It approached nearer, a boat put out and officers fromthe gunboat Connecticut came on board, examined our papers and soonallowed us to proceed. The weather rapidly grew warmer and our winterclothing proved very uncomfortable. The steamer's supply of water wasexhausted and we had to depend on sea-water, distilled by the vessel'sboilers, for all uses. The allowance of an officer was, I think, apint a day. Warm and insipid, its only use, as I remember, was for ourmorning ablutions, which were more a matter of form than of substance. In rounding the coast of Florida we bumped one evening on a sand baror coral reef. I was very unceremoniously tumbled over, and the gameof back-gammon, in which I was engaged with a brother officer, was ofcourse, ended at once. Rushing on deck we found ourselves clear of theobstruction and again on our way. But the breakers, in plain sight, gave us assurance of the peril we had so narrowly escaped. 

In the early morning of February second we crossed the bar and notedwell that line stretching far to the right and left of us, drawn withalmost mathematical exactness, which marked the demarcation betweenthe clear waters of the Gulf and the turbid waters of the Mississippi. In going up the river the buckets were constantly dropped into themuddy stream, and their contents, when allowed to stand for a fewminutes, would soon furnish an abundance of that luxury we all cravedso much, --clear water, cooled by the ice and snows of the far north. Reaching the inhabited portions of the river, we saw the planters busywith their spring work, and though the air was chilled with the icybreath of northern climes, the orange trees in blossom and the greenshrubbery on the shores, gave indication of the semi-tropical climatewe had reached. Arriving at New Orleans in due season, our seniorcaptain reported for orders. I must not pause to speak of the strangescenes which greeted our eyes in this, the most cosmopolitan city ofour land. A delay here of two or three days proved almost asdemoralizing as a campaign, and I, for one, was glad when the orderscame to move. For reasons that afterwards transpired, we dropped downthe stream some fifteen miles to a point called English Turn. Itderived its name, as I remember the tradition, from the fact that asthe commander of some English vessel was slowly making his way up whatwas then an unknown and perhaps unexplored body of water, he was metby some French explorer, coming from the opposite direction, who gavehim to understand that all the country he had seen in coming up theriver, was, by prior discovery, the rightful possession of the Frenchmonarch. Though no Frenchman had perhaps seen it, yet with his faciletongue he worked persuasion in the mind of the bluff Englishman, whoat this point, turned about and put out to sea--hence its name, English Turn. We found here relics of very early times in the form ofan old earthwork, and an angle of a brick wall, built, when, andwhether by French or Spaniard, none could tell. Here we soon selecteda site and laid out our camp. The time rapidly passed in the busyoccupations which each day brought, in little excursions into thesurrounding country, in conversations with the colored people whosesad memories of the old slavery days recalled so vividly theexperiences of Uncle Tom and his associates in Mrs. Stowe's famoustale. Nor were the days unvaried by plenty of fun. Music, vocal andinstrumental, we had in abundance. The mimic talents of our men, ledto the performance of a variety of entertainments, and in theirhappy-go-easy dispositions, their troubles set very lightly on them. Their extravagancies of expression were by no means an unremarkablefeature. When I at first heard their threats to each other, couchedsometimes in the most diabolical language, I had deemed it my duty atonce to rush into the company street and prevent what, among whitemen, I would suppose to be the prelude to a bloody fight. "Oh, Captain, " would be the explanation, "we'se only a foolin'. "

While here, we had a little flurry of snow, which reminded us of whatwe had left in abundance behind, but which was a startling novelty tothe natives, few, if any, of whom, had ever seen anything like itbefore. Their explanation was that the Yankees had brought it withthem. In the course of a week or two, an assistant Inspector-Generalput in an appearance and gave us a pretty thorough over-hauling; butwhat astonished him the most, was to find us in so healthy acondition; for it appeared that because of a few cases of measles onboard ship, we had been represented as being in very bad shape, and itwas for sanitary reasons that we were sent to English Turn. 

We now began to hope for some change. The place was decidedlyunhealthy. Our men were dropping off rapidly from a species of putridsore throat which was very prevalent. The soil was so full of moisturethat we had to use the levee for a burial ground. Elsewhere a gravedug two feet deep would rapidly fill with water, and to cover a coffindecently, it was necessary that two men should stand on it, while theextemporized sextons completed their task. 

Washington's birthday was duly celebrated, and foot-ball, wheel-barrowand sack races, among other sports, furnished fun for the whole camp. Even the inevitable greased pig was provided, but he was so greasythat he got over the lines into the swamps and--freedom. 

Our battalion commander, Major Shaw, arrived on the third of March, and on the following day, it was my good fortune to witness, in NewOrleans, the inauguration of Gov. Hahn, who, by some form of election, had been chosen the chief executive. The unclouded sky, the richfoliage and the beautiful atmosphere, combined to make a glorious day, and the spectacular arrangements were in keeping. The place wasLafayette Square. Flags of all nations waved in the breeze. In seats, arranged tier above tier, were five thousand school children of thecity, dressed in white with ribbons and sashes of the national colors, while many thousands of the citizens were gathered as spectators. Patriotic songs were sung by the little folks; five hundred musiciansfilled the air with sweet sounds, and in the anvil chorus which wassung, fifty sons of Vulcan kept time on as many veritable anvils;while some half dozen batteries of artillery came in heavy on thechoruses. These were fired simultaneously by an electricalarrangement; and the whole was under charge of P. S. Gilmore, a namenot now unknown to fame in grand musical combinations. An elaborateaddress by General Banks, then commanding the department, was aninteresting feature of the occasion. 

Our life at English Turn, was varied by little of special interest. Ofcourse there was no enemy at hand except those foes which a hotclimate breeds so rapidly. A mysterious order came one day, to detailone hundred men "to join the expedition, " and we were notified that asteamer would call for them on the morrow. Details of picked men wereselected from each company. Five days' rations and forty rounds ofammunition, were dealt out to each, and in light marching order theywaited several days for the steamer to appear. It was in vain, however, and we reluctantly gave up the prospect of some littleexcitement. We came to the conclusion that somebody at headquartershad forgotten to countermand the order, or, like Mr. Toots, had deemedit of no consequence. 

We discussed the varying prospects of change, sometimes coming as arumor that we should be ordered to Texas, where was the firstbattalion of our regiment; sometimes that we should join the Red Riverexpedition, which was then forming, or the expedition against Mobilewhich was in contemplation. But after six weeks delay at English Turn, we received orders to move up the river to Plaquemine, a point someone hundred and twenty miles above New Orleans, a few miles below andon the opposite bank from Baton Rouge. This town was at the entranceof the Bayou Plaquemine, of which Longfellow makes mention in thestory of Evangeline's search for her lover; a description which givesso good an idea of the bayous by which Louisiana is intersected, thatI quote it in this connection. 

 "They * * * entering the Bayou of Plaquemine, Soon were lost in a maze of sluggish and devious waters, Which, like a network of steel, extended in every direction. Over their heads the towering and tenebrous boughs of the cypress Waved like banners that hang on the walls of ancient cathedrals. Deathlike the silence seemed, and unbroken save by the herons Home to their roosts in the cedar trees returning at sunset, Or by the owl, as he greeted the moon with demoniac laughter. "

Here we relieved the Forty-Second Ohio, and went into camp. As wemarched through the streets of the village to the site of our camp, the scowling looks of the white spectators, sufficiently indicatedtheir sentiments and especially their wrath at being guarded by"niggers. "

We found the state of affairs very different from the tranquilneighborhood we had just left. The surrounding country was infestedwith guerilla bands, and in the jail were a number of rebel prisonerswho had been captured in recent raids. The latter received from thetown's people very gratifying evidences of sympathy, and in theircomparatively comfortable quarters and abundant supplies, afforded avivid contrast to the treatment received by our boys at Libby andAndersonville. Intimations were quite freely expressed by theprisoners, that it would soon be their turn to guard us, and we werecautioned by friends and from headquarters, to be on the alert againsta sudden attack. 

In the evening of the day after our arrival, we were startled by asteamer approaching the landing, all ablaze from stem to stern. Theentire heavens seemed illuminated, and it was light enough to readwith perfect distinctness. The vessel was loaded with some threethousand bales of cotton, and in landing at a point above us, thesparks from the torch--a wire basket filled with pine knots, and usedafter dark to light the loading and unloading of the steamer, --had setthe cotton afire. The motion of the boat and the perfect draft fromher construction, peculiar to nearly all the river craft, of coursespread the fire with great rapidity, and only time sufficient torescue the passengers was permitted. The vessel had a large freight oflive stock, some of which escaped to the shore, but most of themperished in the flames, filling the air with their piteous cries. Ourparticular attention was devoted to our magazine, which was anordinary store-house and exposed to some danger. Its contents we couldill afford to lose, and their explosion would have made a sensationmuch more lively than even the destruction of the steamer. 

At Plaquemine an earth work had been begun by our predecessors. It hadfour bastions, one of which was assigned to each of our companies. Thework was in a very incomplete condition, and except for the protectionits parapets afforded, would have been of little service. In thethreatening aspect of affairs, it became necessary at once tostrengthen our defences, and under the direction of an engineer, details of men were set to work, and rapid progress was made. 

In April parties of guerillas and rebel cavalry began to operateactively in our neighborhood. At Indian village, a few miles distant, they burned a large quantity of cotton which had been sent in byplanters or collected by speculators and was awaiting transportation. About the same time mysterious signals attracted our attention, andsoon afterwards, we learned that a body of two hundred cavalry hadcrossed the Grand River for the purpose of attacking us. The men slepton their arms, but no attack was made. A week or two afterwards, I hadoccasion to visit New Orleans on business, and while there, heard areport that Plaquemine was "gobbled up" by the rebs. I was very muchrelieved on my return to find everything in _statu quo_. A raidshortly afterwards on Bayou Goula, a trading station a few miles belowus, resulted in the destruction of considerable property, but nocaptures of prisoners. 

On the twenty-fifth of May the gunboat 54 was sent to cruise on theriver in our neighborhood, and it was a welcome reinforcement to ourmeagre numbers. On the twenty-eighth of May the cavalry of GeneralBanks' army, on their retreat from the Red River campaign, passedthrough our post, remaining a short time in our vicinity. Among themwas a portion of our Third Rhode Island cavalry, and no hospitalityever gave greater mutual pleasure than that which it happened to be inour power then to grant. The record of that expedition has been madeup, but there was a refreshing vigor of opinion expressed by ourcomrades on the conduct of the campaign. It seemed very lonesome whenthey left us with their commander, --a true Rhode Island son, GeneralRichard Arnold. 

Orders came within a day or two from Baton Rouge, announcing a changeof commanders of the district, and exhorting us to get everything intofighting trim. It will be remembered that flushed with victory therebels followed close on the heels of our retreating army, and wereonly stopped by the lack of transportation to cross the swift and deepAtchafalaya. Of course we presumed that they would make one of theirraids down the coast and attack our post, and that of Donaldsonville, some twenty-five miles below us, which constituted the principaldefences on the river above New Orleans. With the exception, however, of capturing some of our cavalry pickets, we had no trouble, thoughfrequent alarms kept us on the qui vive. The beating of the long rollwas almost a nightly occurrence; but this I should not mention tosoldiers, except to refer to an instance that now occurs to me inillustration of the rapidity of the mind's movements, at times. Aboutthe time of the raids on our northern frontier, I was dreaming onenight, that we were ordered home to proceed at once to some point onthe border. All the movements incident to our departure and to ourarrival at Providence, were before me. As we were halting in ExchangePlace, with arms stacked and men at ease, I obtained permission to gohome for a few minutes to see my family, to whom our arrival wasunknown, when the roll sounded and we were ordered to fall in at onceto take the train. Of course my momentary disappointment was great, but awaking at once, I heard the drums beating in reality, andjumping into my outer clothing and equipments in a hurry, was shortlyat the head of my company. The first beat of the drum had probablystarted the long train of the incidents of my dream. 

In the midst of these rumors of attack, in the early morning of Augustsixth we were visited by a body of mounted men. They dashed upon ourpickets who made a bold stand for a short time, and then scattered forshelter. The rebels had caught sight of the officer, LieutenantAldrich, who was in command, and while a part of them made diligentsearch for him, the remainder dashed into the town, and breaking upinto parties raided through the various streets, firing somewhatindiscriminately, but more particularly at what contrabands they saw. The companies gathered in their respective bastions in the fort and weexpected a lively brush. As I stood on the parapet and got a glimpseof a portion of the enemy, I ached to let fly a shell, but the dangerto innocent parties was too great to warrant it just then. I rememberhow amused I was at the appearance of the gallant commander of ourpost, as with his coat and equipments in one hand, and holding up hisnether garments in the other, he was "double-quicking" from hisquarters in the town, to a place of security in the fort. After thathe selected quarters nearer us. The prospect of being "gobbled up" wasnot particularly gratifying, especially to a "nigger" officer, who hadFort Pillow memories in mind. As the rebels did not appear to becoming to us, a strong detachment under command of Adjutant Barney, was sent out to exchange compliments with them. They gave us noopportunity for this but soon retired, taking with them three of ourpickets and one cavalry vidette, whom they had captured. Weunderstood, the next day, that our men were shot in cold blood. Lieutenant Aldrich and the men with him, escaped through the friendlyprotection of an osage orange grove. Others swam the bayou and thusescaped certain death if captured. I think our casualties were, besides those taken prisoners, one man killed and a few wounded. Several of the rebels were said to be killed or wounded. One of thelatter, as I remember, fell into our hands and was taken into ourhospital where he received the same treatment as our own men. Subsequently we learned that the raiders were Texans who boastfullydeclared that they asked no quarter and gave none. In consequence ofthe barbarous treatment of our men who were captured, somecorrespondence passed between General Banks and the rebel commander, but I am not aware that it amounted to anything. 

On the eighteenth a scouting party of our cavalry was captured atGrand River and others in our nearer vicinity. We had two companies ofthe Thirty-first Massachusetts mounted infantry, who were used forvidette duty. Being more exposed than our own pickets they sufferedoccasionally from guerilla raids. One party of them, were surprised, probably in consequence of a little carelessness, and were takenprisoners with the exception of one man who was killed. He had been aprisoner once before and fought to the last, rather than again becaptured. On some of these occasions the attacking parties weredressed in our own uniform. 

All through the country back of us, a constant and mercilessconscription was going on, sweeping in all able-bodied men betweenfifteen and sixty years of age. Of course many refugees andoccasional deserters came within our lines. 

During the fall of 1864 we received from time to time re-inforcementsof several companies of colored engineer troops, who continued thework on the fort which we had begun. Though not comparing with thearduousness of field service, our duties were by no means slight. Itmust be remembered that we were in a semi-tropical country, where toan unacclimated person the climate was itself almost a deadly foe. Theextreme heat produced a lethargy that was depressing in the extreme. In a few days of dry weather, the surface of the ground would be bakedlike a brick. Then would come most violent storms, converting the soilinto a quagmire and covering it with water like a lake. At this time, there was no small danger of falling into the deep ditches with whichthe fields were intersected, for drainage. In this way I lost one manof my company. Of course it will be understood how productive ofdisease would be the malaria from the soil and the adjacent swamps. Our men with all their buoyancy of disposition, had not the resolutewill of white men, when attacked by sickness, and would succumb withfatal rapidity. As captain of a company, my most arduous duty, whennot on special duty or detached service, was as field officer of theday. This necessitated the visiting occasionally during the day andnight, our videttes and picket posts which were stationed on the roadsinto the country, and at intersecting points in the fields; and alsocrossing in a skiff the Mississippi river, to visit the troopsstationed to guard a telegraph station on the other side. This stationwas in the vicinity of a famous duelling ground, --a path not far fromthe river bank, --to which in former days the young bloods of the townand vicinity would resort to repair their wounded honor, according tothe rules of the code. As we were too short of horses always tofurnish a mounted orderly, the officer of the day would at night, haveto make his rounds alone. There was a picturesqueness in those ridesin the solemn hours of the night, a portion of the way over desertedplantations where the weeds would be as high as one's head onhorseback, the path at times fringing the borders of swamps where themoss hung in festoons from the stately cypress trees, past lonelynegro cabins, where sometimes I heard the inmates in the midnighthours, singing some plaintive melody in tones the most subdued. 

In addition to our routine work, our officers were largely detailedfor staff, court-martial and other duties. The frequent attempts atsmuggling contraband goods through our lines, also necessitatedmilitary commissions for the trial of these as well as various othercivil offences, --on which duty some of us were always engaged. As aconsequence, we were always short-handed, and tours of duty came asoften as was agreeable. The fall months of 1864 were marked byoccasional raids in our vicinity, with orders, at times, to sleep onour arms. The capture of a large supply of revolvers, which weresurreptitiously landed near us, indicated the necessity of strictlyguarding the lines, and at the same time, furnish those of us whoneeded them, an ample supply of that weapon. 

During this period, we organized schools for the instruction of ourmen. While some of them were comparatively well educated and were veryserviceable in various kinds of clerical work, a large proportion ofthem were destitute of the most rudimentary knowledge. Through theChristian Commission, of which Ex-Mayor J. V. C. Smith, of Boston, wasin our department the efficient agent, we were amply supplied withvarious kinds of books and utensils, embracing primers, arithmetics, slates and pencils, besides a liberal allowance of reading matter. Ourmen were eager recipients of these and made good use of them. We triedto stimulate their pride in every way possible, and the great majorityof them learned to sign their names to our rolls instead of makingtheir mark. I had some pride in having my rolls signed by the menthemselves, but I remember one of my men, however, whom Iineffectually ordered to do this. He admitted to me that he couldwrite, but in consequence of some trouble he had in former years, gotinto by the use of the pen, he had made a vow never to write again, orsomething to that effect. My impression is that it was some kind offorgery he was engaged in. It is possible he may have been anunfortunate indorser; if so, his determination would not seem sostrange. 

At the same time, we were trying to make a permanent improvement inthe way above indicated, we were troubled by difficulties, which wereincident to army life at all times. Liquor, of course, would maketrouble for us, and I think I never knew of any stimulant moredemoralizing, in its way, than Louisiana rum. This fiery fluid wouldarouse all the furies in a man when it had him under its control. Gambling was another vice against which we labored with more or lesssuccess. Sometimes, after taps, I would make a raid on some of the menwho were having a quiet little game. When winter came, we had replacedour worn out tents with shanties built from the materials ofconfiscated houses. These would be darkened, and in voices hushed tothe lowest whisper, the men would indulge in their favorite pastime. On one occasion, I remember that suddenly forcing the door open, Idropped, most unexpectedly to them, on a small party of gamblers. As Iscooped in the cards and the stakes, one of them remarked that it wasno use to play against the Captain, for he got high, low, jack and thegame. 

In the preparations that were making against Mobile in the winter of1864-5, we anticipated an opportunity to change our comparativelyinactive life. But General Sherman (T. W. ) said he could not spare usfrom the important post where we were stationed, and it was withregret that we were deprived of a share in that brilliant affair whichhas been so well described in a former paper. During this winter, therebel forces in Western Louisiana, under command of General KirbySmith, were comparatively inactive, though raiding parties gave usoccasional trouble. Towards spring they began to move, and attacks onparties of Union cavalry were not infrequent. Unpleasant rumors of thecapture of the Third Rhode Island Cavalry reached us, but proved to beunfounded, except that several couriers were taken. Some rebelprisoners were captured by the scouts, who were encamped near us, butour freedom from attack, was probably largely due to the inundatedcondition of the country. Owing to the neglect of the levees, theriver at its high stage in the spring following broke through theembankment above and overflowed a large tract of country west of us. Araid contemplated by the rebels, which would have given us sharp work, and a force which would have been large enough to annihilate us, unless in the meanwhile reinforced, were prevented by the condition ofthe intervening country, from giving us trouble. 

As an illustration of the disastrous effect of this overflow, I amtempted to give a brief description of a trip I made through aportion of the country that suffered in this way. Before the watershad subsided, I was ordered by Brigadier-General R. A. Cameron, commanding the district of La Fourche, in which we were located, toreport at his headquarters in Brashear City, for duty on his staff. Taking a steamer to New Orleans and then the train at Algiers, whichis opposite New Orleans, I proceeded very comfortably to a placecalled Terrebonne, where steam travel came to a sudden stop. Ahand-car for a mile or two furnished transportation and then we foundthe railroad completely washed away by the flood above named. TheGeneral's quartermaster and myself secured a boat and with a crew ofcolored soldiers, we rowed some twelve miles to a place calledTigerville, on the Alligator bayou. Our route lay over the bed of therailroad, the track washed to one side of the cut, and a stream ofwater several feet deep on top of the bed. The road had been builtthrough what seemed, most of the way, a primeval wilderness. The rankgrowth which skirted both sides of the stream, with no sound to breakthe silence, save the measured stroke of the oars, for even the birdswhich occasionally flitted across our path, were songless, though ofbrilliant plumage; the sight of an occasional moccasin or copperheadsnake coiled on the stump of a tree, and not infrequently of analligator sunning himself on a log, were features of a situation thatmust be seen to be fully realized. The few small settlements throughwhich we passed, were drowned out. Some of the houses were nearlyunder water and large quantities of debris were afloat on the slowlymoving current. Through the long weary hours of our boat ride, thesun poured its rays upon us with unmitigated fervor. ReachingTigerville, we found an ugly little stern-wheeled boat tied up inwhat had been one of the thoroughfares of the village, and which thequartermaster at once ordered to take us to Brashear City. Thecaptain of the craft, incidentally remarked that his boiler was inbad shape and might blow up at any time. The quartermaster waswilling, however, to take the risk, and getting up steam, we weresoon on our way. But with the remark of the captain in my mind, as Ilooked at the stagnant bayou with its waters black as ink, and gazedoff upon the interminable swamps on either side, and thought of themonsters from which it took its name, I concluded that the extremebow would be a little the safest place, and taking passage on anempty water cask I found there, I lighted my pipe and tried to feelas tranquil as the circumstances above suggested would permit. Through the winding bayous, we pursued our way and sometime afterdark, we safely reached Brashear City, or that portion of it whichwas visible above the waste of waters. Speaking of the bayous, itwould be difficult to give a clear conception of their peculiarities. Equally strange are the people who inhabit those solitudes. Timewould not permit me to describe the "Cajans"--corruption of"Acadians, "--descendants of the exiles who early settled theterritory of Louisiana, but who have been driven from their firstplaces of settlement by those more ambitious and unscrupulous. Living in isolated communities, with their artless and unambitiouscharacteristics, their simplicity and exclusiveness, they wouldfurnish material enough for an elaborate paper. 

Many reminiscences occur to me in connection with my service onGeneral Cameron's staff, but any attempt to detail them wouldtransgress the proper limits of a paper. In spite of the surrender ofLee and Johnston, a show of hostilities was kept up in thetrans-Mississippi department, it being supposed that Jeff Davis wasmaking his way in that direction to still retain a semblance of powerin a country which had not felt the severest ravages of the war. Uponhis capture, however, the rebel army in western Louisiana, rapidlycrumbled to pieces, and while the rank and file were seeking theirhomes, the officers were continually coming in to our headquarters, tomake their peace formally with Uncle Sam. Having occasion to removeour headquarters from Brashear City, to a place called Thibodaux, probably not more than fifty miles distant by rail, we were obliged, by reason of the overflow, to take a steamer and make a circuit ofsome four hundred and fifty miles, going up the swift flowing andextremely crooked, Atchafalaya, much of the way through a verydesolate country, then down the Red River and the Mississippi toAlgiers, and thence, by rail, to our place of destination. On ourjourney we had the company of several rebel officers, some of highrank, who availed themselves of the General's courtesy to reach theCresent City. In a few weeks the General was mustered out, and soonafterwards, I returned to my company, which, with the battalion, hadin the meanwhile, been ordered to Donaldsonville. Among the dutieshere assigned to me, was service as Provost Marshal of the Parish, anoffice which combined as varied a responsibility as can well beimagined. In certain civil cases I had, as judge, jury and executionerof my own decisions, plenty of employment. With an occasional call tojoin in matrimonial bonds sundry pairs of hearts that beat as one, Ihad much more frequent cause to settle disputes between planters andemployees, where neither party was disposed to meet the other halfway. Vexatious and varied as my employments were, and anxious as I mightbe to do justice, I was liable to be overhauled by headquarters frommisrepresentations made by angry and disappointed suitors. One eventin my administration of the office, caused quite a sensation for theday. In the presence of a crowd of whites and blacks, I heard a casein which a colored woman, who had till recently been a slave, wasplaintiff and principal witness, and a white man who was defendant, and gave judgment in favor of the former. This may seem to you a verysimple matter, but it was evidently no ordinary occurrence in thatplace, and I presume this was the first occasion in the experience ofmany of the spectators, in which the sworn testimony of a negro wasreceived as against that of a white person. I seem now to see theglaring eyes of one indignant southron as he scowled upon theproceedings with the intensest malignity. It was not difficult toguess at his opinion of the changed order of things, while to thecolored people, it was evident that the year of jubilee had come atlast. Thus with comparatively tranquil incidents, the summer of 1865passed away. Peace with all its attendant blessings, had come. Butdisease laid its hands heavily on some of us, and death was not aninfrequent visitor to officers as well as men. From one scourge ofthat climate, we were fortunately exempted. Thanks to the thoroughpolicing, on which our commanding officers insisted, "Yellow Jack, "who in former seasons had been master of the situation, gave us notrouble. But many of our number, particularly those of us who, duringthe summer, were on court-martial or other duty in New Orleans or itsvicinity, had some uncomfortable experiences with the "Break-bonefever, " a species of malarial disease, whose name is sufficientlyindicative. The services of our regiment were sufficiently appreciatedto delay our muster-out till the second of the following October. Thethree battalions were consolidated at Carrollton, and a few days afterwe embarked for home on the good steamer North Star. Some of ourofficers who took passage in the ill-fated Atlanta, lost their livesby the foundering of that vessel. In the fearful storm, the beginningof which we felt as we passed the Jersey shore, more than a hundredvessels were wrecked on the coast, and among the number was the'Daniel Webster, ' which took us from Dutch Island to New Orleans: InNew York we made a parade which was witnessed by crowds of people withapparently hearty demonstrations of favor. On our return home, wereceived a cordial greeting from the authorities, and in a few daysour regiment was disbanded at Portsmouth Grove and ceased to existexcept in history. 

It had endeavored to do its duty, and by those who knew it, I believeit had been fully appreciated. General Banks complimented it inorders, and so strict a disciplinarian as General T. W. Sherman, pronounced it a noble regiment, which, from that source, is no smallpraise. But though most of its officers had served in formerorganizations during the war, and our lieutenant-colonel was also aveteran of the Mexican war, and with many of his associates brought tothe discharge of their duties, the advantage of enlarged experience, areputation for courage and a high degree of skill, it was not given tothe regiment or its several battalions, to participate in any of thoseengagements or campaigns, some of which it has been the pride andpleasure of comrades here to describe. It was, however, from nohesitation or unwillingness of theirs. The call was hopefullyexpected but disappointedly unheard. Yet, may they not fairly claim toshare in the glory of the result, and to them may not the words of thepoet justly apply, --

 "They also serve who only stand and wait. "

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 +-----------------------------------------------------------+ | Archaic spelling not corrected in text: | | | | statu quo | | guerilla | | Atchafalaya | | | +-----------------------------------------------------------+

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