WE GET ORDERS TO LEAVE FOR THE SUNNY SOUTH AND OBEY THEM.
All of the time during our stay in camp speculation was rife as to when
we were going to the front and how; also under what designation were
we going. It had been circulated that we were to be known as the 63d
United States Volunteers, and other rumors, all of which turned out to
be just as near the truth as that one were put into commission. These
marked the origin of the "Jo Jo" bureau of misinformation which later
became an important feature of the campaign.
[Illustration: COMMISSIONED AND NON-COMMISSIONED OFFICERS OF G
COMPANY]
On the night of Wednesday, May 11th at 9.30, orders were flashed over
the wires from Washington to Lieut. Weaver to send the Second at once
to Tampa, Fla., where the army of invasion of Cuba was gathering.
Almost everyone except the guard and a few officers and attaches at
regimental headquarters, was asleep when the orders came but within a
very few moments after their purport had been announced, there was the
wildest scene of excitement in the camp that had ever been witnessed
in South Framingham. From Lieut. Weaver the orders were quickly
transmitted to regimental headquarters and from there to the officers
of the regiment. Inside of ten minutes from their receipt by Lieut.
Weaver, every man of the Second was awake and in his company street
and exultant shouts that went up, quickly aroused the other regiments.
The Second was to be the first command from the old Bay State to be
ordered outside her boundaries for active service and the men were so
proud of it that they could not refrain from reminding the men of the
other three regiments of the fact. To the credit of the latter it must
be said that although at first they were a bit inclined to sulk because
their regiment was not the first to be called upon, yet they soon
realized that the honor was in a sense as much Massachusetts' as it was
the Second's, and their cheers joined in with ours.
Meanwhile, the regimental and company officers were doing some lively
work. Col. Clark had gone to Springfield that morning, and a number
of officers and men were away on leave, no one expecting that the
orders would come for a day or two. The regiment was ordered to move
the next day and before the orders had been known of but a very few
minutes, telegraph and telephone messages were sent to the absent ones
informing them of what had happened. This done, the work of completing
the equipment of the regiment was taken up and pushed in lively
fashion. There were many little details to be attended to and there
was little sleep for headquarters that night. How well the work was
done is attested by the fact that at an early hour the next morning the
regiment had its tents struck and packed, and long before the hour at
which many of the folks at home were eating their breakfasts, was in
readiness to move. Reveille was sounded at 4 o'clock that morning and
by 6 there was but little remaining to be done.
Although anxious for active service there was one thing about the
orders which was not at all relished by the regiment and that was the
route to be followed. It had been expected and understood that when
the Second would go south its route would be through Worcester and
Springfield, thus giving us a chance for a genuine _au revoir_ to home
and friends. We all of us knew that the "farewell" accorded us on
leaving Springfield for the camp at South Framingham would be tame
indeed to the reception we might expect when we passed through there as
United States Volunteers, with a large V, and bound for the front. Some
of the boys, to be sure, dreaded the thought of having to say "good
bye" to the accompaniment of tears and sobs again but the majority were
anxious for one more look at what part of Springfield to be seen from
the union station and were consequently much disappointed when it was
announced that instead of going via Springfield, the route was to be by
way of Newport, R. I.
There was much disappointment, too, in Springfield when the route was
announced. But not to be beaten, a party of citizens headed by Major H.
S. Dickinson, arranged for a special train to South Framingham, the day
we were to leave and so we were not allowed to go without some sort of
a farewell demonstration from the people of our own city.
On the day previous to our receiving the "rush" orders to the south,
a number of visitors including ex-Lieut. Gov. W. H. Haile, Col. A. H.
Goetting and James D. Gill of Springfield were in camp, and it came to
their attention that the Second was not provided with a band or even
field music. No regimental bands were included in the organization of
the volunteer regiments nor even field music, the sole musical property
being the bugles of which there were two to each company. It was looked
upon as a proper and desirable thing that the Second should at least
have field music, or in civilian parlance, a drum corps, and these
three gentlemen constituted themselves a committee on ways and means to
that end. It was known that there were enough musicians in the regiment
to form a drum corps if there were instruments provided for them and
before the next day through the generosity of the three gentlemen
named, the Second was provided with fifes, drums, etc., and the members
of the corps selected.
Thursday, May 12th, we bade good-bye to South Framingham. There was
difficulty in getting transportation for our baggage and it was not
until a late hour in the afternoon that everybody was in readiness.
Meanwhile we hung around our former quarters and killed time as best
we could. A short time after dinner, our last meal on the "old camp
ground," the "assembly" and "adjutant's call" were sounded and the
regiment was formed to pass in review before Gov. Wolcott. The march
past over, hollow square was formed and the governor presented the
officers their commissions and made a brief speech telling us to uphold
the honor of the old commonwealth.
While this was going on we heard the strains of a band and soon in
marched a delegation from Springfield, headed by the Second regiment
band and led by Mayor Dickinson, members of Wilcox post of the Grand
Army and Peabody Guard Veterans, while relatives and friends of the
boys made up the rest of the 500 in the party. Soon after their arrival
we were dismissed and then followed one of the interesting scenes
of our war experience. Hardly had we broken ranks before we were
surrounded by the visitors and there was falling upon each other's
necks, handshaking, good wishes, smiles and tears all commingled in one
scene of such excitement as we had never been through before. Every
male visitor brought cigars or refreshments for the boys and for an
hour or so nothing was too good for us.
But all things have an end and finally the bugles blew and after a
last hurried kiss or handshake we fell in again and marched out to the
parade ground for the last time. The colors dipped once more to the
governor and then through a double line of cheering soldiers from the
other regiments and our own friends we marched out of the camp and
down the dusty road to the railroad station, escorted by two troops
of cavalry and amid the cheers and good wishes of the thousands who
thronged the walks. We passed under the handsome arch erected by the
people of South Framingham in honor of the soldiers and after one last
opportunity to say farewell went on board the special trains waiting
for us. So we left good old Massachusetts.
On our way to Newport we were shown how the people of other places
regarded us. At every station our train passed through there were
cheering crowds and enthusiasm seemed to be in evidence everywhere. We
reached Newport about 9.30 and were transferred to the palatial steamer
"Pilgrim" of the Fall River line.
"This isn't so bad for army travelling," was the common remark as soon
as the boys found what accommodations had been made for them. There
were nearly enough staterooms to provide every man with a bunk and
those who failed to get a room found nice, thick mattresses spread
for them on the saloon floors. It brought the "Trip to New York" and
Valiquet back to the memories of many of us because the accommodations
were so different.
But it was a tired lot of boys that boarded the Pilgrim that night and
it was not long before all of them were testing the mattresses and
bunks, after indulging by the way for the first time in the "travel
ration." This was our first encounter with the canned beef department
but somehow it tasted better then than it ever did afterwards. Also
we allowed our teeth to play with the ligneous hardtack and finally
fatigued with our exertions we slept soundly.
The next morning when we woke up we were in the East river and at the
sight of her blue coated cargo every steam craft that met the Pilgrim
saluted with steam whistles while their crews or passengers as well as
those of the sailing craft cheered and waved handkerchiefs or anything
else waveable. From every factory along the shore came the shrieks of
the steam whistles and the shouts of their occupants and our progress
down the river to the Fall River line pier was a triumphal progress.
When we reached the pier it was not long before we were transferred to
the transports Saratoga and Vigilancia, the Springfield companies being
on board the latter. Then it was that we began to realize what war was.
Down in the dirty, dark and ill smelling hold we could see men at work
building rough wooden bunks for us and the language used concerning
these bunks and their location was copious and picturesque to a high
degree. No "Pilgrim" accommodations were these. No mattresses 12
inches thick to rest our weary bones upon but the soft and splintered
pine boards were to form our couch. Also the travel ration with its
components of canned roast beef(?), canned corn beef, canned beans and
hardtack was beginning to pall upon our palates. We were not used to
such Epicurean fare and began to fear gout and other incidentals of too
luxurious living. So we gathered together and said things but all the
time the carpenters went on constructing the bunks and no dinners were
brought on for us from the Waldorf-Astoria.
Our first cruise on the Vigilancia was further up the North river where
we waited until late in the afternoon and while waiting many of the
boys managed to get ashore. Some of them were nearly left behind as
we pulled out of the dock and a few did get left on shore, but they
chartered a tug and soon caught us. That night our transports sailed
down the harbor as far as Bedloe's Island where we anchored opposite
the Bartholdi statue and where we stayed anchored until the next
afternoon. That night the much discussed wooden troughs officially
named bunks were used and were the cause of much profane language
for which the recording angel ought to be able to find a good excuse
if he has any love for volunteer soldiers in his composition. Late
that afternoon we were taken over to Jersey City and transferred to a
special train of three sections of 14 cars each on which we were to
make the trip to Tampa. And thus ended our first sea voyage.