Negro soldiers on the Sea islands have long since ceased to be objects
of wonder or curiosity, and may be seen to-day in camp, on picket, or on
detached service, everywhere doing their work in a quiet, soldierly
manner, and attracting no more attention than the white troops about
them. Through many difficulties, and against great opposition, they have
conquered their present honorable position in the Department of the
South. The untimely draft of the freedmen made by General Hunter in May,
1862, the violence and deception with which the order was enforced, as
well as the refusal of the Government to receive these regiments into
the service, causing the dispersion of the troops without pay and
without honor, was enough to discourage all further enlistment. But
when, last winter, General Saxton called for volunteers, an entire
regiment was soon raised, and early in the present year, the 1st South
Carolina Volunteers were ready to take the field. Fortunately for the
regiment and for the country, the services of Thomas Wentworth
Higginson, of Worcester, Mass., were secured as commander of this first
regiment of Union soldiers raised in South Carolina. 'The right man in
the right place' has not become so common a sight in our army, as to
prevent our being thankful that so fit an appointment was made and
accepted. Surely we are but just beginning to learn what heroes we have,
when we see a man of high literary attainments, whose eloquent words,
both spoken and written, have contributed so largely to the physical,
mental, and moral culture of his countrymen, laying down the pen for the
sword at the call of duty, and winning at once by his wisdom and skill
the two highest objects of an officer's ambition, the devotion of his
men, and the commendation of his superiors.
Soon after arriving at Port Royal, I paid a visit to Colonel Higginson's
regiment, then encamped about four miles from Beaufort. Setting out on
horseback in company with one of the superintendents, our ride took us
along the banks of the Beaufort river, past cotton plantations, and
through pleasant woods bright with the golden blossoms of the pines.
Although it was early in February, we saw the negroes at work in the
fields, 'listing' the ground--a process of breaking up the soil with
hoes--while here and there a solitary palmetto stood, like a scarecrow,
as if to warn away all invaders. We soon reached 'Camp Saxton,' which we
found pleasantly situated near a large and magnificent grove of live
oaks, just at the bend of the river, where a fine view is given of the
winding stream, the harbor of Port Royal, and the low-lying islands in
the distance. The grove, which is the handsomest on the islands, was
formerly part of a plantation belonging to a master well known by his
cruelty toward his slaves, and the tree which served as the whipping
post is still pointed out. A short distance from the camp, by the river
side, may be seen the remains of an old Spanish fort, built of oyster
shells, and said to have been erected in the year 1637.
To one accustomed to notice the sanitary appearance of camps, the
neatness observable both in the streets and tents of 'Camp Saxton' was
an agreeable surprise. Few camps in any department of the army are
better policed, or present to the visitor such a general air of order
and cleanliness as this first encampment of Colonel Higginson's
regiment. As we enter one of the streets a company inspection of arms is
going on, which displays to good advantage the proficiency of the
colored soldier in the minutiae of his work. Soon after, we are summoned
to witness a battalion drill, and my companion, who has been both an
army officer and a 'Democrat,' is extravagant in his praise of the
movements and evolutions of the troops. Before leaving the camp we visit
the snug and comfortable hospital into which Yankee ingenuity has
metamorphosed the upper story of an old ginhouse. The surgeon informs us
that the most common disease in the regiment is _pneumonia_, and that,
in order to guard as far as possible against this, he has the middle
board of the tent floor taken up just at night, and a fire built on the
ground, to remove the dampness.
We are careful to make our exit at the proper place, as negro soldiers
on guard observe unwonted strictness, and we hear of their having
threatened to shoot the commanding general himself for attempting to
pass out at some other than the regular passage way.
I have seen the soldiers of Colonel Higginson's regiment on several
other occasions than the one above described, and have always found them
displaying the same soldierly qualities. Their picketing of Port Royal
island has not been surpassed by any white regiment for the rigor and
watchfulness with which it was enforced. 'Will they fight?' is a
question which the events of the war are fast answering in the
affirmative. The South Carolina volunteers have not as yet met the
rebels in close conflict; but, in holding captured places against large
numbers of the enemy, in passing rebel batteries on the Florida rivers,
and in hazardous excursions into the heart of the enemy's country, where
they have been constantly exposed to the fire of sharp-shooters and
guerillas, they have behaved as bravely as any other regiments in the
service; while they have united to their ready obedience and prompt
execution of orders, a dash and fierceness such as might have been
expected from their excitable nature when under the stimulus of actual
warfare. In view, therefore, of the admirable manner in which these
freedmen have performed all the duties of a soldier's life which have
thus far been required of them, it is fair to presume that in the fierce
shock of open battle, they will acquit themselves like men. A striking
illustration of the wide difference between the theories of those who
oppose the use of the negro as a soldier, and the facts which the war is
constantly revealing, was furnished on our passage from North Carolina
to Port Royal. 'Will the negro troops be clean?' was asked of an officer
of the regular army, and his reply was a highly wrought and imaginary
description of the horrible condition of the garrisons, and the fearful
epidemics, which would be occasioned by placing black soldiers in the
forts on our Southern coast. The facts of the case in reference to the
comparative cleanliness of white and black troops showed that, while the
companies of regulars under this officer's care habitually neglected on
ship-board the simplest sanitary regulations, such as sweeping and
washing the decks, the negro soldiers who had been taken on our
Government transports to various points on the Florida coast, daily
observed these important rules, gaining thereby the commendation of the
ship's officers, and promoting at the same time their own health and
comfort. The explanation of this fact is found in the prompt and
unquestioning obedience of the black soldier, the peculiar
characteristic of those who have been accustomed in a state of servitude
to execute the commands of those who were over them.
The tide of public opinion is setting so strongly in favor of the use of
negroes as soldiers, that the present danger seems to lie in the
direction of our indulging in too extravagant expectations of their
efficiency. We must not overlook the fact that, in the case of the
former slaves, as much depends upon the character of their officers as
upon the valor of the men. Nor should it be forgotten that among the
freedmen who come within our lines, there is only a small proportion of
able-bodied men capable of enduring the hardships of the service. In too
many instances slavery has sapped the vigor of their lives, and the
examinations of our surgeons have revealed an extent of physical
weakness which is truly surprising. There can, however, no longer be any
doubt in the minds of candid and loyal men, that the freedmen who are
able to bear arms will prove themselves valiant soldiers, jealous
defenders of their own and their country's liberties, and a terror to
their enemies, who have so madly attempted to destroy both 'Liberty and
Union.'