Back to the regiment. Off for St. Augustine. The duties of
provost-marshal. The quaint old city. Its pleasant people. Two months
of rest. Lieutenant Ingraham. Back to Hilton Head. The regiment
reunited. Visit to Morris Island. Captain Eaton. Fort Wagner and its
reminders. Lieutenant-Colonel Green.
July 30, at my own request, I was relieved from the command of the
Billinghurst and Regua battery, and returned to the regiment. While
an independent position, it was one in which there was no promise of
important service, and I have never heard that the batteries were ever
successfully used. They lacked the strength of the ordinary battery,
and the mobility of columns of troops. I joined the regiment at Hilton
Head just in season to superintend its embarkation for St. Augustine,
Major Strickland and Captain Coan being ill.
Arrived at St. Augustine August 2, and remained until October 3. Our
duties were light, and opportunity was afforded for recovery from the
effects of the Morris Island campaign. As provost-marshal, I had the
complete supervision of the city, the receiving of flags of truce,
and the regulation and examination of the correspondence between
the inhabitants and their friends within the Confederate lines. All
fire-arms had been taken from the citizens by my predecessor; but the
owners were permitted to use them occasionally for hunting, under
certain restrictions. People were allowed to come in and go out of the
city, when it was apparent that no harm could result, and the planters
outside were encouraged to bring in produce and other supplies under
the scrutiny of men detailed for the purpose. The materials of the
theatre were brought from Fort Pulaski, and the performances afforded
much amusement, and helped to make the regiment popular during our
stay. We found many pleasant people, some of whom had never sympathized
with the rebellion, and were glad of the protection of United States
troops. Others, while bitter and hostile, were incapable of any harm.
The quaint old town was in itself a never-ending fund of enjoyment and
interest. The men were comfortably quartered, and the officers indulged
in unusual luxuries. Among those whom I recall of the good people
who resided there were Mrs. Anderson and her son, the doctor, whose
delightful home in the suburbs, in its surroundings and furnishing, but
more especially in its charming atmosphere of culture and refinement,
so often helped us to throw off the hardening and brutalizing effects
of army life and associations. The Misses Mather and Perritt, with whom
a number of our officers boarded, natives of the North, driven to this
softer climate by delicate health, were in the fullest sympathy and
accord with us, and were not only exceedingly kind, but afforded much
assistance, by reason of their familiar acquaintance with the city, its
affairs, and its people.
The two months spent in St. Augustine passed quickly and pleasantly.
Occasionally, the pickets were fired upon, but no regular attack was
made. Communication was undoubtedly kept up between the citizens and
the enemy, outside the city, in spite of the great precautions taken
to prevent it. Applicants for admission to the city were reported
waiting at the picket stations almost daily, some of whom were received
and others turned away. Visitors came to the city by almost every
steamer, and the abundant leisure of most of the officers allowed
of their generous entertainment. From my office I looked across the
square, past the old building with open front, formerly used as a slave
mart but now converted into a general market, to the office of the
commissary--Lieutenant Ingraham; and frequently, when the duties of the
forenoon were well over, we signalled to each other to drop work, and
engaged in some form of recreation together. During our stay at St.
Augustine we were thrown much together, and the pleasant feelings which
I had always entertained towards him ripened into a strong attachment.
I think of him now with feelings of peculiar sadness. Some time before
the battle of Cold Harbor, his promotion rendered it necessary that
he should take his place as an officer of the company to which he
was attached. Previous to this he had always been detailed in the
quartermaster's or commissary departments. At that battle, while we
occupied the Confederate line of works which we had just captured, we
were subjected to a merciless enfilading fire, which we could neither
avoid nor return effectively. Lieutenant Ingraham, in command of his
company, had pressed to the very front, and, while encouraging his men
by word and example, he suddenly dropped from my side, and I never saw
him more. With a great rush, the enemy was upon us both in front and
flank, and we were pushed through the woods, and our wounded and dead
were left to their care. Ingraham was a good soldier, a good friend,
and a good man. October 3, a steamer, containing the 24th Massachusetts
regiment arrived at the dock, and we were ordered to prepare for our
departure. October 6, we bade good-by to the old city, to the many good
people who had done so much to make our stay among them contented and
restful, and to the peculiar comforts and pleasures, which, to so many,
were the only suggestion of home that came into their lives during
their long term of service. On the 7th we reached Beaufort, S.C.,
and reported to General Saxton. The next day the writer was ordered
by the colonel to proceed with four companies to Seabrook Landing,
to guard the shipping. This point was rather an important one at the
time, being used as a coaling station and for naval repairs. November
9, one hundred and fifty-six conscripts arrived from New York and were
distributed to the various companies of the regiment. November 13,
companies G and I, so long detached as garrison of Fort Pulaski, joined
us at Hilton Head, where regimental headquarters were then established.
November 20, the subject of re-enlistment as veterans began to be
agitated, and the promise of thirty days furlough and a bounty were
strong inducements. November 25, having business at Morris Island, I
took occasion to visit Fort Wagner, which had been rebuilt under the
supervision of Captain Eaton of the New York Engineer regiment, a most
excellent officer, who seemed almost to belong to us, having had charge
of the repairing of Fort Pulaski while we were there as garrison. With
him I wandered about the fort, and around the localities marked by
special events connected with the siege and assault. But memory was
too busy with painful scenes to permit of much satisfaction. As we
talked together of old times, and recalled the names of those with
whom we had been intimate at Pulaski, it seemed impossible to realize
that the clean white sand on which we were then treading had drank in
the life-blood of so many, and the clear, bright, sparkling water,
that idly played upon the beach, had reached out its eager tongue to
lick up the cruel stains. The air was mild, not a cloud obscured the
sun's rays, and the silence that reigned about us was profound, almost
oppressive, but, as we recalled the past, the din of battle rang in our
ears; the flash of musketry pierced through the darkness of night and
lighted up a scene of carnage; the groans and cries of the wounded and
dying mingled with the shouts and yells and fierce oaths of combatants.
The spirit of peace rested upon the landscape which lay spread out
before us, and upon the face of the quiet waters which, with gentle
embrace, pressed lightly against the shore; but the past came back to
us like a mighty surging torrent; a tempest raged; darkness and horror
enveloped us, and we turned away. We could not endure it, and were glad
to get back to camp, to lose the thought of the past in the performance
of present duty.
During this visit, as we talked together of the friends who had fallen,
one name more than any other occupied our thoughts and conversation.
It was that of Lieutenant-Colonel Green, whom Captain Eaton had known
quite intimately when he was quartered with us at Fort Pulaski. Like
those of us who had known him longer, he had not only formed a strong
personal attachment for him, but, from the peculiar and somewhat
opposite traits of character which he exhibited, had become specially
interested in watching his career. It was not singular, for no one
could be associated with him, for any length of time, without being
attracted towards him and becoming interested in him. Possessed of a
frank and generous disposition, he was not only beloved by those under
him, because of his thoughtful consideration of them, but equally by
his fellow-officers, because of his sprightly, sunny temperament. He
was welcome everywhere, and, on all social occasions, his quick and
susceptible nature caught and communicated the spirit of humor that
prevailed, until no one could withstand its influence. He bubbled over
with mirth whenever the occasion or surroundings stirred the humorous
vein within him, and was the frequent instigator of the harmless
practical jokes with which the officers sometimes sought to enliven
the dulness of garrison life. I can see him now, as, after a period
of duty, he starts out from his quarters in search of recreation,
the very personification of mischief. He never needed to go far, for
every latch-string was out for him, and none but the hardest and most
obdurate could withstand the appeal of his merry eyes and bright,
cheery countenance. He was a good soldier, always ready for duty,
and in its discharge both earnest and exact. From "grave to gay" was
sometimes a rapid transition with him; but he saw every duty to its
ending, and, especially when hardship and danger were involved,
every fibre of his mental and physical nature was absorbed in its
performance. Few will be remembered longer by his comrades than he, and
none with more general warmth of affection.