The Old First Massachusetts Coast Artillery in War and Peace

When Chaplain Minot J. Savage first listened to the "March of the First," inspiration fired his soul; the music was repeating a message to him. Was there something in the brazen voice of the horns, a magical harmony of sound with sense; or was it merely the loyal Chaplain's imagination? At any rate this is what he heard:

"We're brothers of all noble men,

Who wear our country's blue,

We brothers find in any race,

Where men are brave and true.

But we've a pride in our own band,

And we are all agreed,

Whatever grand deeds others do,

The 'Old First' still shall lead.

So while our feet keep music time,

Our hearts are proudly beating

An echo to Man's forward hope

That never knows retreating."

And now, whenever "Adjutant's call" sounds and the companies move into line with the precision and rhythmic swing characteristic of well-trained troops, they also hear the message which was written down for them by the Chaplain many years ago, "The Old First still shall lead." They hear and believe.

Today it becomes the privilege of another Chaplain to set forth in this little book the reasons why the Old First believes in itself. We shall see how the present grows out of a long and noble past. Back in Civil War times observers noted that the regiment was one to be proud of; there was a large proportion of sensible, solid men who enlisted because it seemed duty, whose patriotism was not silly or vulgar, but strong and serious. Today likewise the Inspector General reports that the personnel is unexcelled; only men of good character are enlisted; standards are very high. And for the largest part the men are not in the service for any personal profit to themselves-there is too little pay to make money the attraction. They are soldiers at the sacrifice of their own leisure, and often of their comfort. A modern National Guardsman is averse to boasting or heroics-he is the most matter-of-fact citizen of all. But surely the Chaplain will be pardoned for saying, what the Guardsman would be most reluctant to claim, that in the old regiment patriotism is not a matter of words, it is made up of deeds.

Massachusetts looks in large degree to the command for the coast defence of Boston. America's center of wealth and manufacturing, the Commonwealth holds the key to the whole country. Within a radius of two hundred miles from Boston is manufactured practically every kind of supply and equipment; while New York, the world's center of wealth and finance, is only slightly more than two hundred miles away. To possess Massachusetts would afford hostile invaders the best possible base; the Coast Artillery is an essential factor in the defence of Massachusetts.

Coast artillery affords the most magnificent team-sport in the world. Three officers and sixty-seven men work together in firing the twelve-inch rifle, and each contributes something essential to the success of the shot. Twelve inches is the bore of the rifled gun; forty-two or more feet the length; $45,000 is the cost, and the carriage represents an investment of $40,000 more. It is loaded with three hundred twenty-five pounds of powder, and a projectile weighing more than half a ton, costing upwards of $150, and sufficient in itself to destroy a hostile warship. The target, the moving target, at which the shot is fired, floats on the water at a distance of eight to sixteen miles; and without the use of powerful glasses is all but invisible. Range and direction (azimuth) are determined by a combination of most delicate scientific observing instruments. Now the great gun swings majestically into place. "Fire!" A concussion follows as if many railroad trains were coupling-mighty, stunning. Then ensue seconds of eager watching from the battery, but not many such; for the projectile travels twice as fast as sound itself. Up spouts a column of sea water beside the target. A hit. And this will be repeated once per minute until the enemy is put out of action.

Camping, shooting, gymnastics, hiking, fencing, horseback-riding, and even boating and aviation all enter into the training of the Coast Artilleryman. Opportunity is given to learn much of mechanical, electrical and engineering science.

On its lighter side military life includes balls, parades, dinners, theater-parties, smokers, and the annual January athletic games. Once in four years there is a trip to the inauguration at Washington; lesser excursions occupy some of the intervening time. Most valuable of all are the life-long friendships formed by men who stand side by side in the service of the country. These endure and keep warm after all else is forgotten.

The better soldier a man learns to be, the better citizen he makes himself. Such training in team-work is of priceless value; this service has become a passport to business success, and today there is no better recommendation for employment. Civil Service commissioners recognize the enhanced usefulness of the trained soldier by according him preference in government appointments.

Six of the companies come from stations outside of Boston,-Brockton, Cambridge, Chelsea, Fall River, New Bedford and Taunton being represented. Even more truly than the Boston companies these organizations offer advantages of the greatest value; each is the pride of its own home city; each ranks amongst the leading social bodies in its community; and the armories, all fine structures, are popular club houses.

Altho it may be hard to "live up" to the responsibilities of a noble ancestry and one is ever open to the unkind suggestion that his best is like the potatoes, "under ground," still it is not the fault of a man, nor of an organization, if the record of the past contains worthy, and even heroic, passages. Not only is the Coast Artillery the surviving heir to most of Boston's finest militia traditions and honors, but by the consolidation of 1878 it also inherits the proud record of the Third Regiment, the militia force of Pilgrim-land and the Cape. Even a more modest organization than this would be excused for feeling thrills when it remembers "auld lang syne"; and the gentle reader will peruse these pages in vain if he fails to see why.

Some day the command will establish a military museum of its own, in which to display its trophies and relics. Its battle-flags have mostly passed out of its reach and are irrevocably in the possession of the Commonwealth. When one visits the Hall of Flags and gazes reverently upon the tattered silk banners of the 1st Infantry, five in number, the 3d Infantry, two of them, the 24th Infantry, two, the 42d Infantry and the 43d and the 44th, two each, and in the Spanish War case the two colors of the 1st Heavy Artillery, seventeen flags in all, one may possibly remember that a Massachusetts Coast Artilleryman would be whispering to himself, "Those are our battle-flags." And there are many other colors in the cases, under which members of the command fought during the Civil War-those of the 4th, 5th, 6th, 13th, 29th Infantry Regiments, and the 4th Heavy Artillery.

Indeed the sole battle-flag remaining from the Mexican War, that of the 1st Mass. Volunteer Infantry, may be claimed as a Coast Artillery trophy, since it was given by those who had borne it into the custody of the veterans who made up the National Guards, the 9th Co. of Coast Artillery. The National Guards eventually surrendered this color to the Commonwealth. No less a personage than Gen. Winfield Scott had been the original donor of the flag.

In some unexplained manner, three colors carried by the 1st Infantry during the Civil War escaped the State collector, and are preserved with religious care at the South Armory. They are the American flag presented by former Boston men who had "gone west" and there organized the National Guard of San Francisco, a blue infantry color presented in 1863 by the City of Boston, and a white State flag retained to replace a lost Commonwealth color presented by the people of Chelsea. As often as May 25 rolls around, veterans of the regiment bear these flags, together with the present National colors of the command, to the hall where the anniversary dinner is held; and under the sacred silken folds the white-haired warriors renew the memories of Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, of Gettysburg and Spotsylvania, while they smack their lips over something more savory than the hard-tack and muddy coffee of bygone days. Last winter these same veterans reviewed the Corps in the South Armory. As they came marching on the floor under their tattered battle-flags amid deafening cheers from hundreds of onlookers, strong men could hardly choke back their tears.

Post 23, G. A. R., of Boston, and Post 35 of Chelsea possess some 1st Regiment relics.

Headquarters will contribute to the regimental museum the sleeve of Drum Major James F. Clark's coat, with its wonderful collection of service-stripes indicative of forty-one years' service. Sergeant Clark died in office in 1910. There is also an old commission in a frame on the Headquarters' wall, that of George S. Newell as Colonel of the 1st Reg., 1st Bri., 1st Div., dated May 11, 1839, signed by John P. Bigelow, Secretary of the Commonwealth; and the warrant of Daniel Horatio Belknap as Quartermaster Sergeant of the 1st Reg., 3d Bri., 1st Div., issued July 20, 1824, by Col. Louis Lerow. Between 1831 and 1834 the Roxbury Artillery had been temporarily attached to the 1st Reg., 1st Bri., but in Colonel Newell's day we had no connection at all with that organization; the Fusiliers were a part of the 1st Reg., 3d Bri., in 1824, when Sergt. Belknap was in office.

Partly because it is the oldest company, and partly because it has always been made up of men who "do things," the 1st Company possesses by far the finest collection of historical valuables of all the regiment. Indeed fully one-half of the regimental museum is already collected, and belongs to Capt. Joseph H. Hurney's organization. In their room one sees Capt. J. J. Spooner's original commission signed in 1784 by Gov. John Hancock, the first flag carried by the company-a flag with fourteen stars, the complete parchment roll of members from the very beginning, a drum which helped to keep up the company's courage at Blackburn's Ford and Bull Run, specimen uniforms and arms showing the development of military skill and taste during each period of the company's history, and a small cannon captured by Washington from the British at Yorktown in 1781, and at Williamsburg in 1862 taken from the Confederates by a company of ours.

Shooting, military and athletic trophies almost without number adorn the walls of Headquarters and of each company room; but these can hardly be included in a regimental museum. The 6th and 7th Companies hold Knox trophies as proof of their preeminent excellence in artillery work, and will doubtless resent any suggestion of contributing them to anyone else; certainly other companies have been trying hard enough to get this, and have not succeeded even for a single year. But the museum will have the 2d Company's original drum, dated 1798, and with it the first flag. Their most valuable possession is a Stuart oil portrait of their "patron saint," George Washington. The same company also display a set of ancient by-laws inherited from their predecessor, the Independent Light Infantry, and perhaps also a set of their ancient breast-plates. If more is demanded, members of the company will fill their lungs and emit the old "tiger" yell or growl; and this is certain to prove sufficient so far as the 2d Company is concerned. The 3d Company room does not contain much of historical interest. Their proudest possession is an entry on the records of the Governor's Council dated May 11, 1787, wherein it appears that a petition presented by Thomas Adams and fifty-three others was granted, and that a military company, the Independent Boston Fusiliers, was formally established in the eyes of the law. On the following Fourth of July the Fusiliers received their charter from Gov. James Bowdoin, while formed on the slope of Bunker Hill, and forthwith regaled themselves as guests at the hospitable table of Gov. (to be) John Hancock. Maj. James W. H. Myrick, Commander of the Fusilier Veteran Association, is custodian of the original 3d Company records.

We shall see that the Coast Artilleryman has reason for singing "The Old First still shall lead"; but the historian faces a difficulty when he essays to explain who the Coast Artillery are, anyway. Three different regiments are consolidated in the present body-which was the original? But see, what's here! The regimental museum will solve even this vexed problem of genealogy. A resolve by the General Court of Massachusetts, duly engrossed and framed, together with an order of the Council approved by Gov. John L. Bates on April 6, 1903, not only certifies that the First Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Militia responded to the call of the President of the United States in April, 1861, for troops to suppress the rebellion, but also, and more importantly as concerning our present difficulty, that the First Massachusetts Heavy Artillery are the "successors" of the regiment of 1861. Blessings upon the head of the man whose influence secured this legislative action! The historian may tread fearlessly in full assurance that the Coast Artillery is the First Infantry of Civil War fame, and that other ancestry is, if not collateral, at least not in the principal line. A complete genealogy of the command will be found elsewhere in this book.

One explanation is in order before proceeding. On April 25, 1842, the companies were designated by letter; on Nov. 1, 1905, they ceased to be designated by letter, and were numbered in order of charter-seniority. Altho all company and regimental history between 1842 and 1905 was recorded in terms of company letters, since 1905 the letters have rapidly passed into oblivion; and today have become almost entirely forgotten. For the purpose of interpreting the past in terms intelligible to the present, it seems best to translate letters into numerals-to speak, in other words, of the 1st Company rather than Company or Battery D. And now, the prelude being finished and the audience all having visited the museum, let the performance go forward.

* * *

A group of men were assembled in the living room of a prosperous looking Roxbury farmhouse on March 22, 1784. Altho they had met several times previously during the winter, they showed by both word and bearing that they were actually engaged in transacting their most important business on the present occasion. General William Heath, owner of the house, presided. As everyone in Roxbury well knew, the General had lately returned from war, where he had enjoyed the privilege of close companionship and friendship with no less a person than the commander, Gen. George Washington, himself.

Another of the company was a wealthy young merchant of Roxbury, an ex-Cadet, John Jones Spooner, who stood in the relationship of son-in-law to Gen. Heath. Amongst others were Jonathan Warner and several more Revolutionary veterans; also two prominent members of Roxbury society, Joseph Pierpont and John Swift. Well might these men look important for they were engaged in presiding over a birth-the birth of a National Guard company-today the oldest National Guard company with continuous history in America.

As soon as the company had been born, and was reported to be "doing well," it was christened. "The Roxbury Train of Artillery" was inscribed with due form and ceremony upon the first page of its record book. Who was then sufficiently far-sighted to foresee that on June 30, 1916, the same company would take the Federal oath as the "1st Company, Coast Artillery Corps, National Guard of Massachusetts"? A company in those days was commanded by a captain with the rank of Major; and this office was promptly conferred upon John Jones Spooner. Jonathan Warner became the "Captain-lieutenant," and Joseph Pierpont and John Swift were elected the other two lieutenants, as at that time authorized. Warrants were issued to four sergeants; four musicians were appointed, twenty-four men were detailed as cannoneers, eight as pioneers, three as drivers-and when two brass four-pounder cannon had been issued to them, the Roxbury Artillery were ready for any kind of a fight or frolic. It was not to be until Aug. 30, 1849, that Gen. H. A. S. Dearborn would suggest the famous motto now borne by the Company, "In time of peace prepare for war." No one can question however but that the sentiment of the motto has always controlled 1st Company activities.

Major Spooner subsequently resigned his command, was succeeded by Capt. Warner; and himself became a minister of the gospel.

Those were the days immediately following the Revolutionary war; and in America during such seasons the commanding military official is sure to be "general apathy." Owing partly to the absence of other organized companies, and partly to the skill and enthusiasm of the Roxbury men, the Artillery were in frequent demand. On October 15, 1784, they turned out to fire a salute in honor of a distinguished visitor, Gen. Lafayette. The Boston Train of Artillery, afterwards the 8th Company, came into existence May 7, 1785; and these two organizations shared the honor of escorting the Governor and members of the General Court on July 4, 1785, and again the year following. The fact is, these were the only two active military companies in or around Boston at the time. On one of these occasions Gen. Heath noted concerning his protégés that they "made a good appearance and performed their exercises well." An army travels upon its stomach, and a good soldier attends carefully to the subsistence part of his work. The 1st Company displayed true soldierly instincts by including, from the very beginning, commissary exercises amongst their other activities,-in other words, at the conclusion of the parade "they dined together." Music was furnished for these military displays by the only band then in Boston, one consisting of Hessians who remained behind from Burgoyne's army, under the leadership of Frederick Granger.

Let the narrative pause a minute while we paint in a background for the picture. Do we understand who the militia are? Citizen-soldiers, citizens who serve as soldiers when necessary, without relinquishing their civil occupations, part-time fighting men-such have always been the chief reliance of free peoples when it becomes necessary to defend their territory or to enforce their sovereign will. In British dominions this military force received the name of "train-band" about 1600, and began to be called "militia" in 1660. Moreover their service was both compulsory and universal-at least it was so in theory. Each citizen was required by law to provide himself with a "good musket or firelock, a sufficient bayonet, and belt, two spare flints, and a knapsack." Thus armed and equipped, he was expected to present himself four times a year for a day's training.

It is customary to heap ridicule upon the militia. Cowper described "John Gilpin" as a "train-band captain," and taught us to laugh at him. Yankee Doodle, with its "men and boys as thick as hasty puddin'," is a parody on the American militia. In truth appearances were against them in the olden times. Their history began away back in the days when military costume consisted of an iron hat and a steel vest. When, about 1700, armor passed out of use, the militiamen, to prove that they were true conservatives, refused to substitute any other uniform clothing. Consequently they did not look soldierly. But the Yankee Doodle militia under Johnson at Lake George administered a stinging defeat to the French regulars. We have been abundantly taught of late how American military history fairly bristles with evidence that the militia system is faulty. So be it. Now it is time to point out another lesson from the same history, namely, that when American militia have fought under favorable conditions, with some shelter, and with an auspicious beginning to the action, they have often manifested a valor that makes the world marvel, a valor unequalled except in the annals of legendary warfare.

This militia existed, in 1784, thruout Massachusetts (and Maine) as nine divisions of approximately five thousand men each. The first division was stationed in Boston. And, alas! all divisions were temporarily inactive.

The oldest volunteer militia company in England, as well as its "ancient" daughter in America, have as part of their title the word "Honorable." Militia rendered such military service as the law demanded. Volunteer militia went beyond this, and in addition uniformed themselves at their own expense, drilled frequently, and held themselves in readiness for parades and ceremonies, and, in sterner vein, for disturbance of the peace and for war. As the basis of every volunteer army our country raised was found the organized, volunteer militia. No wonder that esteem and distinction have attached to this service. Since 1908 the force has borne the title, "National Guard," a name going back to the citizen soldiery who defended Paris in 1789 and who were commanded by Lafayette, a name brought to this country in 1824 by Lafayette himself and then first adopted by the N. Y. 7th Reg., and in 1862 taken by all the organized militia of that state, in 1903 extended thruout the United States, and in 1916 officially substituted for all other titles in Massachusetts.

Why was it necessary for the Roxbury men to organize their company? Could not the U. S. regular army afford America sufficient protection in 1784? Regular army! So far as Congress could control the matter, there was no regular army in 1784. A determined effort had been made the year previous to wipe the force entirely out of existence, to muster out every Continental remaining over from the Revolutionary war. Thru some oversight one single company, that formerly commanded by Alexander Hamilton and now "Battery F of the 3d Field Artillery," had escaped. Perhaps because they were standing guard over valuable stores at West Point and elsewhere, perhaps because the mustering-out officer ran short of blank forms-for some unexplained reason one company survived. This single company constituted the entire U. S. army in 1784. This one company is the only military organization in America having continuous existence, which antedates the Massachusetts Coast Artillery. Moreover the situation was only slightly better later. In 1787 there were only 1,200 regulars, in 1798, 2,100, and at the opening of the Civil War, with a national area almost equal to the present, less than 10,000. Were not Gen. Heath and the Roxbury men justified in taking steps to strengthen the forces of government?

If we may now resume the narrative, we note that the Dorchester Artillery, the 4th Company, was organized in 1786. Material was preparing out of which the future regiment might be built.

1786 and 1787 were years of threatening and storm in Massachusetts. In consequence of the war, people found themselves burdened with debts and taxes. They complained that the Governor's salary was too high, the senate aristocratic, the lawyers extortionate, and that the courts were instruments of oppression, especially in the collection of debts. By way of remedy they demanded the removal of the General Court from Boston, the relief of debtors, and the issue of a large amount of paper money. Daniel Shays, an ex-captain of the Continental army, placed himself at the head of a movement to secure these ends by force, and his effort has come down thru history as "Shays' rebellion."

In December, 1786, he appeared at Springfield with one thousand insurgents, resolved to break up the session of the supreme court. After forcing the adjournment of the session, the insurgents directed an attack against the arsenal in Springfield. Meanwhile the State government had sent Gen. Benjamin Lincoln, at the head of four thousand militia, amongst whom were included our artillery companies, to suppress the disorder; and on Jan. 25, 1787,-six days after leaving Boston,-the troops arrived in season to beat off the insurgent attack. Shays and his followers were pursued as far as Petersham, where on Feb. 9 all armed resistance was crushed out and the insurgents captured or dispersed. Since there was such abundant ground for this discontent, it is pleasing to know that the "rebels" were all pardoned, and Shays himself finally awarded a pension for his Revolutionary services. Improved economic conditions due to the new Federal constitution soon removed all danger of such disorder in the future. Please note, however, that winter campaigning in western Massachusetts is by no means an attractive holiday experience, and that the members of the command who engaged in this, the first, active service, manifested the same plucky devotion to duty as has characterized them ever since.

When in 1788 the new United States constitution was ratified, Boston felt moved to celebrate the event. Gen. Benjamin Lincoln, who commanded the train-band division in the city, investigated and found that he had eight uniformed companies amongst his militia organizations. So the eight were directed to parade. The Dorchester Artillery were not present; but the Roxbury and Boston companies had prominent places in the procession. There were three other companies present, infantry companies, which would have interested anyone gifted with prophetic foresight. For just ninety years from that time, the three infantry companies were destined to unite with the two artillery in forming the 1st Regiment of today. Meanwhile, unconscious of the future, they are all parading in honor of the new Federal government; watch them. Grave, dignified men they are. And no wonder; for they are the social and political leaders of Boston-town. No one could hope for election to office in those days unless he had "done his bit" in the militia. They wore the Continental uniform, with cocked hats, blue coats having ample skirts, and white knickerbockers. In their movements they were majestic, slow, deliberate; seventy-five steps per minute were considered amply sufficient. It was not until 1891 that their hustling offspring completed the process of raising the military cadence to one hundred twenty per minute, with a pace thirty inches long. For weapons they carried smooth-bore flint-locks, which the dictionary tells us, were known as snaphaunces or "fusils," whence we have the term, "fusiliers." The musket was furnished by the State, and was the only part of the equipment so provided. Never mind if they were not very deadly,-they at least looked formidable. Our artillery companies drew their cannon from the "gun-house" on the common; contrast this rough shed with the South Armory of today! After the martial exhibition was concluded, our forefathers betook themselves to the "Green Dragon," or the "Bunch of Grapes," or the "Exchange Coffee House" where coffee was by no means the limit, or some other popular tavern, for the military exercises which constituted the climax of the entire day.

A clear distinction existed between militia and volunteers in the foot branch of the service, the volunteers being designated fusiliers or grenadiers or light infantry or rifles or cadets, and the militia being known as infantry. But the distinction was obscured in the "train of artillery." So much of technical qualification was required of the artilleryman and cavalryman that all companies of such troops had to meet the higher military standards of volunteers and were so classified. In such rosters as existed, it was customary to print the names of company officers of artillery and cavalry, while such lists included only field officers in foot commands.

First mention of a battalion of artillery appears in the roster of the 1st division for 1790, when the four companies in Boston, Dorchester, Middlesex and Roxbury are so designated. No field officer had yet been commissioned. This is the beginning of the Coast Artillery, the battalion and regimental organization having continued in unbroken existence from 1789 to the present time. While under every militia law ever adopted by Congress, not only the 1st Company but also the command as a larger unit might claim "ancient privileges" on the ground of continuous organization thruout these decades, it is just and right to state that the pride of the "Old First" has always been not to claim any privilege at all, except that of serving wherever and however it could be of the most use. At this date no battalion organization existed amongst the volunteer foot companies, each being an "independent" divisionary corps of infantry.

October, 1789, our companies were again in line, this time to receive and escort the President of the United States, George Washington. In October, 1793, a sadder duty summoned them forth. John Hancock, patriot, signer of the declaration of independence, Governor of Massachusetts, and President of the Continental Congress, had finished his long and noble career and gone to his rest. Boston loved and honored its chief citizen; the funeral parade, in which our companies participated, was an expression of heart-felt grief. The companies were again called out on July 4th, 1795, to help lay the corner-stone of the new State-house, the famous "Bulfinch front."

War clouds began to darken the political sky in 1794, war clouds generated by the titanic struggle between the French and their enemies thruout Europe. Controversies had been going on between us and both parties to the great European conflict; now this particular danger threatened from the French side. Altho most Americans had sympathized with the French in their revolutionary struggle, had worn tri-colored cockades and clamored for a French alliance, now French colors disappeared from view, men wore black, and "Hail Columbia," with "independence" for its "boast," became the popular song. As soon as America found itself involved in the threatened storm, Congress began to take measures for defence and turned its attention to the militia. It is only in war-time that Congress can be induced to notice the citizen-soldiers. A law was passed May 9, 1794, directing the states to organize active regiments of militia and to prepare for eventualities. No action seems to have resulted from this first legislation; and as the foreign danger intensified, a second act was passed in 1797, aiming to render the former law effective. Following the classical preferences of the times, the U. S. army had been rechristened, in 1792, the "legion." Each state must now organize a "legion" of its own. 80,000 was the figure set for the total strength of this force; and it is significant of Massachusetts' relative standing that the Commonwealth was directed to furnish 11,885 of the total-more than any other state.

Massachusetts, on June 6, 1794, directed commanders of train-band divisions to draft men from their brigades who should hold themselves in instant readiness for service, as the "minute-men" of 1775 had been selected and organized. The great prestige of George Washington, for he had consented to waive his seniority and to serve as Lieut.-General under Pres. Adams, helped to render this revival of the minute-men popular, and the fashionable designation of "legion" did not detract from its popularity.

On August 22, 1797, a supplementary order was issued, directing that a special regiment of such "legionaries" should be formed from the militia of each division. The number of divisions having increased to ten, this called for ten regiments of active troops in Massachusetts and Maine.

While the order ostensibly affected the entire Commonwealth, in point of fact the only legionaries ever organized were in Boston. Brig.-Gen. John Winslow, a soldier of energy and ability, in civil life a hardware dealer, was commissioned to command the "legionary brigade" of Boston, and during the ten years of his incumbency the legion was so vital a factor in the city's military life that it became a fixture. Winslow's legionary brigade was organized in 1799, just as the war scare subsided. It consisted of legionary cavalry (one troop), a sub-legion of light infantry made up of two independent companies (the Fusiliers and the Boston Light Infantry), and a sub-legion of artillery made up of the Boston and Columbian companies, now fully organized as a battalion under Maj. Daniel Wild. The Roxbury and Dorchester companies did not join the legion, and now completed a battalion organization under Maj. James Robinson and were designated the "Battalion of Artillery, 1st Brigade, 1st Division." These two battalions, one within and the other without the legion, represent a splitting up of the 1789 battalion. On June 4, 1844, these two battalions, numbered 1st (the legionary) and 2d (the old 1st Brigade battalion) were to consolidate in the 5th Regiment of Artillery.

The legionary brigade lasted as long as Gen. Winslow continued in command. Its cavalry, light infantry and artillery sections continued to thrive; and in 1802, under the energetic leadership of Lt. Col. Robert Gardner, succeeded in 1804 by Thomas Badger, a regiment, consisting of three sub-legions of infantry, each commanded by a major, came into existence. In the artillery sub-legion, Maj. Wild was succeeded by Maj. John Bray in 1803, and by Maj. O. Johonnot in 1805. Meanwhile the 1st Brigade battalion of artillery was commanded by Maj. Robinson. In 1808 Gen. Winslow retired; and in 1809 the legionary brigade was redesignated "3d Brigade, 1st Division." Its three sub-legions of infantry became three infantry regiments, and these, as we shall see, contained companies destined later to form part of the Coast Artillery. The sub-legion of artillery became known as the "Battalion of Artillery, 3d Brigade," commanded by Maj. Johonnot, in 1812 by Maj. Nathan Parker, and in 1813 by Maj. William Harris. Maj. James Robinson was succeeded as commander of the 1st Brigade battalion by Maj. John Robinson in 1812, and the latter in 1814 by Maj. Isaac Gale, formerly Captain of the Roxbury Artillery. The 3d Brigade rendered one distinguished service to the city of Boston-it brought out and maintained Asa Fillebrown as leader of the brigade band. The 3d Brigade continued to be the most prominent element in Boston's militia until the reorganization of 1840.

No doubt the French war-scare and the formation of the legionary brigade stimulated militia development in Massachusetts. The Columbian Artillery, the 6th Company, was organized June 17, 1798; and the Washington Artillery, the 7th Company, on May 29, 1810. Happily the war clouds dissolved without doing serious damage to America. Meanwhile the two battalions of artillery turned out to greet and receive President John Adams on the occasion of his visit to Boston.

Between the years of 1810 and 1819 and intermittently until 1855, Massachusetts state rosters contain a curious entry, "The Soul of the Soldiery." While one could scarcely guess the fact, this was a predecessor of the modern "training school" for officers, and was maintained by the non-commissioned officers of all companies connected with the Legionary or 3d Brigade. No wonder that the Massachusetts militia excelled the corresponding force in other states, with such a spirit stirring the breasts of the enlisted men.

By 1812 America did find itself involved in actual war. Statesmen had been laboring, and laboring successfully, for nearly a score of years to keep us at peace with France. Meanwhile circumstances conspired to stir up hostilities with France's great enemy; and almost before men could realize the possibility of such a thing, we were engaged in the second war with England.

This is no place to discuss the cause of the struggle; Boston's artillery companies shared the sentiment of their section and regretted the condition of affairs. The war was unpopular in New England. But the members of the artillery companies, being soldiers, did "not reason why" and did put themselves into an attitude of preparedness.

Weeks ensued which men would be glad to forget. Regiments of regulars were enlisted in Boston and transported to the Canadian frontier as part of the successive invading forces. After the lapse of months word came back of American defeat, of the incompetence displayed by untrained American officers, of hundreds of British putting to flight thousands of Americans. Boston itself lay open to hostile attack, with fortifications mostly in ruins, and such as there were, ungarrisoned. Then came the naval victories won by our gallant frigates, and Massachusetts breathed more freely. The enthusiasm which was craving an opportunity for expression found vent in ovations to victorious sailors. During the first two years of hostilities no attack was made against the New England coast, and we now know that England deliberately refrained because of the friendly sentiments of the New England people.

The year 1814 brought a great change in the situation. England had downed Napoleon, and was at liberty to employ her mammoth resources in dealing with enemies elsewhere. Massachusetts, because it was part of America, and more particularly because its harbors served as a base of operations for the American navy, was to feel the consequences of war. Invasion commenced in Maine and threatened to roll southward down the coast; immunity was at an end; and an attack was actually made on Gloucester. Gov. Caleb Strong waited as long as he dared, expecting the Federal Government to take the steps necessary for defending our coast. When it finally became evident that Washington had its hands full elsewhere and could do nothing for Boston, Gov. Strong acted.

As the service was to be guard duty and the erecting of fortifications, and was likely to continue thru an indefinite number of months, larger units of the militia were not called out as such. No regiment went as a whole. It seemed better to draft companies, platoons, and even squads. A guard was maintained at Chelsea bridge to keep off raiding parties. After Sept. 8, 1814, all militia organizations were held in readiness; and between that date and November, when the British fleet finally sailed away, every member of the five artillery companies gave some weeks to active service. Fort Independence on Castle Island and Fort Warren on Governor's Island, small works of brick and earth, constituted Boston's principal defences; these were garrisoned, and put in repair. How tremendously modern ordnance out-ranges that of a century ago! The present Fort Warren, on Georges Island, erected in 1850, is today not nearly far enough from the city it defends, not far enough out at sea; neither is its armament as long-ranged as it should be. Yet contrasted with the earlier Fort Warren, it is very remote from Boston, and is armed with guns able to do execution at almost infinite distance. The Commonwealth added to the defences of the harbor; land was purchased on Jeffries Point, East Boston, and another fort erected to support Independence and Warren. The legislature, out of compliment to the Governor, named the new work Fort Strong. Here too one must be careful not to confuse the old fort with that of the same name today on Long Island.

Historians agree in pronouncing the militia a failure in the second war with England. It must be confessed that there is much ground for such a verdict; in fact, the regular army was also, for the most part, a sad failure in the same war. But in all fairness an exception should be made of the Massachusetts militia which manned the coast defences of Boston and kept the British fleet outside the harbors of the state. The Roxbury Artillerymen and their comrades in sister companies were prompt in responding, efficient in "digging" and other military labor, and entirely vigilant in guard duty. Their service in 1814 goes far to render the name of militia honorable.

One moment of relaxation came during the war when the battalions paraded in Boston as escort to President James Madison.

The year 1815 marked a turning point in American military history, and the artillery companies of Boston felt its influence. Danger from foreign foes was at an end; the Indians were then so far to the westward as no longer to be a serious menace. America felt free to enter upon a career of peaceful conquest-and to get rich. It is fair to note that England also began a similar stage at the same time; perhaps there was some reflex influence exerted by the mother country. The first symptom of the change was the decay of the train-band. Whereas militia service had hitherto been regarded seriously, as the most important duty of citizenship, now men laughed at it. We begin to find reference to the "corn-stalk" militia.

The Train-Band, 1832. Why it was Abolished

Decay was gnawing at the vitals of the train-band system. Ridiculous cartoons may be seen in the museum of the A. & H. Art. Co. (Matthews' "Militia Folk" and others) showing what a farce the institution had become. Men attended muster in outrageously improper clothing, armed with sticks, pitchforks, or nothing at all, and obviously treated this aspect of their patriotic duty as a gigantic bit of buffoonery. Quarterly training or muster-day became an occasion more noted for the rum then consumed than for the drilling done. Early temperance societies recognized this state of affairs by including in their abstinence pledges an exception in favor of muster-day; it was not "intemperate" to be drunk then. In our forefathers' opinion this gradual abandonment of compulsory universal military service was regarded as a mark of social progress. Will such be the ultimate verdict of history?

Increased importance attached to the Roxbury Artillery and other volunteer companies as the train-band became increasingly inactive. Let us inspect them, bearing in mind that they are now the chief military reliance of the Commonwealth. Discipline, judged by modern standards, may not have been strict. Men came and went pretty much at will. But they had some discipline, while their fellow-citizens did not know what the word meant. No "basic course for officers" as yet existed, and it is a fact that the higher officers were apt to be chosen more for political than military reasons. As the rank increased, the military attainments were apt to diminish; but amongst the company officers were found many brave and skilful soldiers. Uniform fashions had been modified by the recent war-now companies wore the shako on the head, at first of leather and later of bearskin, the high buttoned swallow-tail coat, white webbing cross-belts with brass breast-plates, and long trousers. Each company had a distinctive uniform of its own, as different as possible from all others; and this diversity persisted even down until after the Civil War. It was a column of companies, and judging from appearances, of extremely "separate" companies, that paraded to escort and welcome Lafayette in April and again on August 30, 1824; and to lay the corner-stone of Bunker Hill monument in 1825; and to inter President John Adams in July, 1826; and for the funeral of Gov. William Eustis. An enthusiastic reception was accorded by these companies to President Andrew Jackson, June 24, 1833. These soldiers may not have been as efficient as modern troops must be; but they made a splendid appearance on parade; and beyond question were a powerful military asset when judged by the standard of their own times.

An attempt was made to increase efficiency by issuing books of drill regulations available for all, instead of depending upon oral instruction. In the earliest days drill was regulated by Prussian and French systems of tactics. The first book of tactics ever prepared in English for general popular issue was written and published in 1813 by Gen. Isaac Maltby of the Massachusetts militia, for the use of Massachusetts troops. The necessity for conciseness and speed was not then recognized. For a battalion to pass from line to close column, the drill regulations of 1911 indicate commands as follows: "Close on first company, March, Second company, Squads right, column half right, March." Under Maltby's system this was heard: "Battalions will form close column of platoons on the right, in rear of the first platoon, Shoulder arms, Battalion, Form close column of platoons in rear of the right, Right face, March." Scott's famous tactics were adopted in 1834.

Maj. Joseph E. Smith succeeded to the command of the 3d Brigade battalion of artillery in 1817, Maj. Thomas J. Lobnell in 1823, Maj. Samuel Lynes in 1826, Maj. Aaron Andrews in 1830, and Maj. Horace Bacon of Cambridge in 1832. By June 29, 1834, the battalion had grown to four companies, and was for a year elevated to the dignity of a regiment. John L. White, the popular proprietor of the Union House (29 Union St.), was made Colonel, and thus became the first man ever to hold that rank in the Coast Artillery. Col. White's military career had been meteoric; in 1831 he was elected Cornet (2d Lt.) of Light Dragoons in the 3d Brigade; 1832 saw him Major of the 1st Infantry in the same brigade; in 1834 he became Colonel of that regiment; and ten weeks later, on the date given above, he transferred and was commissioned Colonel of the new artillery regiment. However the time was not yet ripe for regimental dignity. When a few months later Col. White removed from Boston and resigned his command, the organization was allowed to slip back and again become a battalion. Maj. John Hoppen commanded in 1836. On April 24, 1840, the battalion was awarded the number "1st." In 1841 William B. Perkins was elected Major, the last man to command it as a separate organization.

Meanwhile the 1st Brigade battalion was commanded by the following Majors: 1818 Joseph Hastings of Roxbury, 1822 Robert Stetson of Dorchester (an ex-Captain of the 1st Company), 1825 John Parks of Dorchester, and 1829 Jonathan White, Jr., of Weymouth. In 1831 the strength of the battalion was reduced from three to two companies, and these were temporarily attached to an infantry regiment (the 1st of the 1st Brigade). On June 26, 1834, the battalion organization was restored, a new company having been formed, with John Webber, an ex-Captain of the 1st Company as Major. Maj. John W. Loud of Weymouth was elected to command in 1836, and Maj. Webber again in 1839. On April 24, 1840, the battalion was numbered "2d." In 1841 Samuel F. Train of Roxbury was elected Major, the last man to command the battalion as a separate organization. Capt. John Webber was succeeded as commander of the 1st Company by Andrew Chase, Jr., a man destined to become first Colonel of the new regiment. That year the battalions paraded in celebration of the completion of Boston's new railroad.

All the companies were called out June 11, 1837, to maintain public order at the time of the Broad Street riot. The outbreak arose from a clash between a funeral procession and a fire-engine company. Which ought to have the right of way? Unfortunately racial jealousy was present to embitter the rivalry, so that blows were exchanged and a general fire-alarm "rung in" and disorder became wide-spread. First honors on this occasion belong to the newly organized National Lancers, whose horses terrified the rioters; infantry and artillery companies acted as reserve, and subsequently policed the district.

This period of Corps history came to its conclusion when on March 24, 1840, the legislature voted a general reorganization of the militia, and in particular disbanded the ancient train-band. In theory, the members of the artillery battalions had been excused from the compulsory drill done by every able-bodied man in their districts on the ground that they were rendering more than the prescribed military service in their volunteer organizations. In fact, the district companies and regiments of the train-band had long since ceased to do any true drilling and were little more than a mere name. Courage is required to abate a long-standing abuse. New York continued to endure the train-band system until 1862, well into the Civil War. Massachusetts faced the condition with greater determination, and abolished the system in 1840. On March 24 the law was enacted, and on April 17 the necessary orders issued. Thereafter the volunteer companies were the only military force existing in the Commonwealth.

* * *

Gen. William Henry Harrison had been elected President in 1840 at the conclusion of one of the most exciting political contests ever known in America. A month after assuming office, in April, 1841, he suddenly died. Public feeling which had been so stirred over the election, now reacted; and men everywhere vied with one another in expressing heart-felt sorrow. Amidst circumstances of deep gloom, intensified by bad weather, the battalions, in the very midst of the confusion attendant upon their reorganization, made a funeral parade notable for its sadness.

It was not until July, 1862, that the regiment again came in touch with Harrison; then they were stationed at his birthplace, Harrison's Landing on the James River, Virginia. And greatly did they enjoy their days of rest after the torture of the Chickahominy swamp, and the opportunity to use plenty of clean, fresh water for bathing; possibly some of the older soldiers remembered the obsequies of April 22, 1841.

June, 1843, was a red-letter period in Boston history. Bunker Hill monument was at last completed after eighteen years building, and a vast concourse of people assembled for its dedication. The New York 7th Regiment, then known as the "National Guard Battalion," arrived on the 16th, and was received and entertained by the Fusiliers. Indeed troops were present from four outside states-Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and New York. That same day the artillery battalions met President John Tyler at Roxbury Crossing, and escorted him to the Tremont House, the parade taking place amidst a drenching rain-storm. The morning of the 17th was clear, cool, and delightful. At an early hour, the military part of the procession, which consisted of four grand divisions, was formed on Boston Common. As the procession moved toward Bunker Hill, the enthusiasm which was produced by the admirable appearance of the troops was only equalled by that which greeted the distinguished Webster, the gifted orator of the day; while President Tyler, in melancholy contrast, was received with ominous silence and coolness. Arriving at Bunker Hill, the orator of the day and the guests and officials passed into the already crowded square. While Webster was speaking, the soldiers were necessarily far beyond the sound of his voice, and were entertained by "a bountiful collation," which the hospitable authorities of Boston had prepared. After the ceremonies, oratorical and gustatory, the procession returned to Boston, and the troops were reviewed by the President at the State House. At a dinner the same evening in Faneuil Hall, President Tyler gave the following toast:-"The Union,-a union of purpose, a union of feeling, the Union established by our fathers." A few years later, he was an active enemy of that Union, which he had complimented in the most solemn manner within the sacred walls of the Cradle of Liberty.

Boston's division of the force, thereafter to be known as the Massachusetts Volunteer Militia, paraded in two brigades, with a total strength of 2,500 men. Incidentally we might note that there were two other such divisions in the state. Under the circumstances the 1st and 2d Battalions of Artillery added to their already creditable reputation and presented a fine appearance. There were five companies in the two battalions, each consisting of a captain, two lieutenants, four sergeants, four corporals, six gunners, six bombardiers, one drummer, one fifer, and sixty-four privates or "matrosses." Part of each company was armed, equipped and drilled as infantry; but each company proudly exhibited two bronze six-pounder cannon with limbers, and a single caisson. The ordnance had increased in caliber since 1784, the change being made in 1840. The state prescribed by law what manner of uniform the artillery companies should wear. Inasmuch however as the members had to purchase their own clothing without state assistance, and since they were mostly interested in the glory of their own companies, they were pardonable for regarding the regulation state uniform as merely a point of departure from which fancy might soar in devising distinctive costumes for the company units. Caps, short jackets, and frock coats, soon to become popularized as a result of the Mexican War, were beginning to be in vogue.

The year 1844 marked a still more important step in the development of the artillery battalions. Train-band companies of each district had always been organized into regiments, and the regiment was conceded to be the fundamental unit in importance. It was the tactical unit, that is, the troops maneuvered as regiments when in the presence of an enemy. It was also the administrative unit, in the sense that all records and reports centered at regimental headquarters. In drill regulations, the regiment was called a battalion; but no battalion could claim to be a regiment unless it had approximately ten companies, and was commanded by a colonel; one thousand was the membership standard. In other words the regiment was the only complete battalion. When the train-band ceased to be, the battalions of artillery began to aspire after regimental dignity in the Volunteer Militia. The 1st Battalion had actually been a regiment for a few months, ten years previously. Nor was it forgotten that the two battalions were originally one, that the regimental consolidation to be was really a reunion of those who, forty-six years before, had been a single body. On June 4, 1844, their wish was gratified; and the 5th Regiment of Artillery came into being. With the promotion on June 24 of Andrew Chase, Jr., to the colonelcy the new organization was completed.

Economy reigned in the Adjutant General's office of that day, and the state did not feel that it could afford much expenditure for printing. Our earliest rosters come from 1858, and we are unable to name many of the distinguished men who made up the 5th Regiment at its inception. It contained five companies: 1st, the Roxbury Artillery; 4th, the Dorchester Artillery; 6th, the Columbian Artillery; 7th, the Washington Artillery; and 8th, the Boston Artillery. Since all excepting the Dorchester company were strong organizations with established reputations, the regiment, from the very beginning, became the most distinguished military body in the city and state. In recognition of this fact Col. Chase was promoted to the brigadier-generalship Aug. 28, 1847.

Military affairs were stimulated by the Mexican war in 1846. While no militia organization went from Massachusetts, individuals from all regiments enlisted in the 1st Massachusetts Volunteers, the single regiment sent out by the state; and tales of American valor in the southwest served to arouse all to do better work. Mexican veterans afterward organized a company in our command; and became the recognized custodians of the 1st Volunteers' Mexican battle-flag.

Artillery in 1917

Copyright by Continental Ins. Co.

Artillery in 1784

Regimental responsibility was too much for the Dorchester Artillery, and it was disbanded in 1845. Only four companies remained in the 5th Regiment. In fact there was too much disbanding for the good of the militia. The state authorities seemed to think that it was cheaper to disband a company which had fallen into "hard luck" than it was to cure the difficulty by paying a little money for the restoration and support of the sufferer. This was a false economy. Of the one hundred forty-two companies which existed in 1840 in the new Volunteer Militia, seventy-eight were disbanded within the first seven years, and one hundred two passed out of existence within twenty-five years. With so many surgical operations it is marvelous that any militia survived at all.

Altho few in number, the four companies of the 5th Regiment who paraded as an escort to President Polk June 29, 1847, and who welcomed Daniel Webster upon his return to Boston, gave evidence of increased efficiency. The legislature was making more liberal appropriations-was indeed spending each year (1844-1852) all of $6 per man on the militia; even this moderate expenditure was far better than nothing. The state authorities were very well satisfied with themselves and with their handiwork, reporting to inquirers that the Massachusetts system "met every need." A fairly liberal allowance of ammunition was made to each artillery company-forty round shot, forty canister, and one hundred pounds of powder every year.

William B. Perkins became Colonel Sept. 10, 1847. Altho he did not enjoy good physical health, and died in office November 16, 1849, his administration was signalized by several important events. On March 10, 1848, occurred the funeral of Ex-President John Quincy Adams. The regiment, or part of it, paraded on Oct. 25 of the same year in celebration of the completion of the Cochituate water system. On Aug. 8 and 9, 1849, the regiment participated in its first state camp, at Neponset, continuing two and one-half days. A curious old print of this encampment has come down to us showing how the 1st Brigade of the 1st Division looked at the time. The 5th Artillery was present, four companies strong, clad conspicuously in bearskin and other towering shakos; the balance of the brigade consisted of the National Lancers in their uhlan costumes, as at present, which had been adopted four years before, and the 1st Light Infantry, wearing distinctive company uniforms. The Lancers were at that time attached to the 1st Light Infantry, and were the only cavalry command in the state. Was any prophet present in Neponset on those August days gifted with ability to read the future? Did anyone even guess that twenty-nine years later the 5th Artillery and the remnant of the 1st Light Infantry were to consolidate in a new 1st Regiment? While a two and one-half day camp must necessarily be chiefly occupied with pitching tents, escorting visitors, engaging in those social festivities which are "absolutely essential" on all military occasions, and then taking down the tents, there is no doubt that the men acquired much real military knowledge in between-times, and that the new custom registered a long step forward.

Col. Asa Law commanded the regiment from Jan. 4 to July 10, 1850.

July 26, 1850, witnessed another change in the colonelcy, Robert Cowdin assuming command of the regiment. Col. Cowdin, in his peaceful moments, was a Boston lumber-dealer; but members of the regiment will always remember him as a soldier, except when they recall some more intimate contact with the man whom they loved; then they speak of him as "father." It makes a great deal of difference that he commanded them during the year of fearful hardship and sanguinary strife on the Virginia Peninsula; but even before that he had endeared himself to his men, while he was merely a militia commander. He had been Captain of Co. K, in the 1st Inf. during 1848 and 1849; and came into the artillery as Major. It is hardly over-stating it, to say that Col. Cowdin is the man who made the regiment great.

What he assumed command over was actually four splendid artillery companies, loosely yoked together in the 5th Regiment. The conception was nine-tenths "company" and only one-tenth "regiment." Inter-company rivalry had prevented the development of real regimental spirit. The new colonel was determined to command a true regiment; and since he was a man of masterly force and boundless enthusiasm, he speedily had his way. Distinctive company costumes yielded place to a regimental uniform, and thereafter the company was a subordinate unit. The obsequies of Ex-President Taylor were the last occasion on which inter-company diversity appeared; and that was in the very month of Col. Cowdin's accession. In all his reforms he was ably seconded by Capt. Moses H. Webber of Roxbury, commanding the 1st Company. In 1851 percussion muskets displaced the flint-locks. The same year a new 4th Company, the Cowdin Artillery, was organized, followed in 1852 by the 9th Company, the Webster Artillery, and in 1853 by the 3d Company or Bay State Artillery and the 5th Company or Shields Artillery. The regiment thus had eight companies. That year Isaac S. Burrell became Captain of the 1st Company.

Col. Cowdin's first camp was held at Medford, and drew warm compliments from the Adjutant General. Neponset was occupied as a camp-ground for the second time in 1851; Boston Common in 1852; and the regiment participated in divisional camp at North Abington in 1853. In 1854 the division was at Quincy. How conditions have changed with the increase of Massachusetts population! Who would think of these places as suitable camp-sites today, least of all, Boston Common?

Col. Cowdin's regiment paraded as escort to President Fillmore Sept. 17, 1851; they helped welcome the Hungarian patriot, Louis Kossuth, April 27, 1852; and they participated in the funeral parade for Daniel Webster in Marshfield, Nov. 30, 1852. It came to be a custom at this time for Boston military critics and newspaper reporters to accord chief praise, after a parade, to the 5th Regiment.

Anthony Burns' name is associated with the next important event in the regiment's history, the most unpleasant event with which it ever had anything to do. No more painful duty can confront the militiaman than the task of maintaining public order, for no American likes to have part in coercing his fellow citizens. And on June 2, 1854, the regiment was called upon to enforce the most unpopular statute ever enacted by Congress, the "Fugitive Slave" law. Burns had escaped from his owner in Virginia, and found employment with a Boston clothing-dealer. Massachusetts was called upon to render him up under the terms of the new statute, and the U. S. Marshal arrested him on May 25. Public sympathy was strongly with the colored man, funeral draperies appeared upon the fronts of private residences, many threatened mob violence, and a great popular meeting was held in Faneuil Hall, May 27, addressed by Wendell Phillips and other prominent anti-slavery men, to protest against this humiliation to which Massachusetts was about to submit. The speakers even counseled a rescue by force. Under the U. S. law, a man "held to service" in another state, could be extradited and transported to that state for trial. The trouble was, that in the case of a fugitive slave, extradition involved the entire question-if Burns should be carried back to Virginia, his chance of liberty would be gone; and Boston believed in liberty. An attempt was made to take him from jail, but this proved unsuccessful.

Col. Cowdin's 5th Regiment, Col. Holbrook's 1st Regiment, the 3d Battalion, the Cadets and the Lancers were ordered out to assist the police in enforcing the law. Guards were posted along the streets leading from the court-house to the "T Wharf," where a steamer lay in readiness; and the Lancers, with a strong detachment of police, and U. S. artillery, surrounded the prisoner. It was on June 2 that the U. S. Commissioner rendered his decision; and the grim procession started at once. Red pepper and acid were thrown at the troops, clubs and stones were used, a Lancer's horse was stabbed; but the display of force proved too strong for the rioters.

Both Col. Cowdin and Col. Holbrook later proved the genuineness of their devotion to freedom's cause by commanding regiments in the Civil War. What they and their commands did on June 2, 1854, was entirely distasteful to them; but the call came to them as soldiers. Like true soldiers they performed their duty; and Burns went back to the south. His fidelity to duty was eight years later to be instrumental in preventing the confirmation of Col. Cowdin's appointment as Brigadier General.

Happily, with the modern increase in police efficiency occasions for such service grow less and less frequent. Our professional police officers are now capable of handling all but the most severe crises without military assistance.

Another state-wide reorganization of the militia was engineered by the legislature on Feb. 26, 1855; and in some ways this was the most unfortunate of them all. It was primarily caused by racial and sectarian jealousy, a spirit which has no rightful place whatever in American life. The principles of the "Know Nothing" party were regnant that year. No less a man than Thomas Cass was forced to resign his military commission-today his statue stands in honor in the Public Gardens. It almost seemed that the dominant faction were determined to prove themselves in the military and other diverse fields, as well as in the field of partizan politics, to be "know nothings." The 5th Regiment, Boston's best, was ordered disbanded; but the State House authorities did not really mean this. They only reorganized the command, with the intention that the resultant "2d Regiment of Infantry" should continue its service record. The 6th Company, the old Columbian Artillery commanded by Cass, together with the Webster Artillery and Shields Artillery of the 5th, were actually disbanded. Worst of all, Col. Cowdin found his commission vacated, apparently for political reasons. Capt. Cass's company continued its existence as the "Columbian Association," and in 1861 developed into the 9th Infantry.

Maj. Poore Pays His Bet

Page 99

Moses H. Webber was commissioned Colonel of the new 2d Infantry on April 18, 1855, and continued in office until Dec. 19 of that year. It consequently fell to his lot to adapt the regiment to its new conditions. Since the regiment had been drilling more and more as infantry and less and less as artillery, the change from one branch of the service to the other was less abrupt than it appeared to be. And be it noted that the regiment never lost interest in its native artillery-until in 1897 it re-entered the artillery branch. Col. Webber had four companies from the 5th, three of them old and strong ones. Two companies were transferred from the 1st Regiment, the 6th and 9th, of which both were already distinguished under their names, the "Union Guards" and the "National Guards." The artillery companies signalized their transition to infantry by changing their names, the Roxbury Artillery becoming the Roxbury City Guard, the Washington Artillery the Washington Light Guard, and the Boston Artillery the Boston Phalanx. The regiment, so reorganized, was paraded by Col. Webber as escort to President Franklin Pierce, when the latter visited Boston.

As the Civil War approached, Massachusetts grew more liberal in providing for her soldiers. In 1852 the expenditure per man was increased to $6.50 a year, in 1857 to $9.00, and in 1858 the expenditure was fixed at $7.50 and remained there until 1869.

The New York 7th Regiment visited Boston and participated in the Bunker Hill celebration of June 17, 1857. Their ease and precision of movement, their evident regimental spirit, their large numbers, and their serviceable yet dressy gray uniform, worn uninterruptedly since 1824,-all made a deep impression upon Boston military men. As the 7th had stopped to suppress an incipient riot on its way to the boat in New York the night before, its practical efficiency added force to the impression. The Lancers and the 2d, who acted as special escort to the visiting troops, came most strongly under this spell. An impulse was given to the movement for improving the 2d. In 1859 the regiment adopted a gray uniform closely patterned after the dress of the 7th, and continued the new bill of dress until July, 1861. Again after the war the same gray uniform was in use between 1869 and 1880.

Col. William W. Bullock commanded the regiment from Jan. 11, 1856, until April 14, 1858, when he was promoted to be Brigadier General. Camp was held at Quincy in 1856; at Chelsea in 1857; and the latter occasion was notable because Robert Cowdin then rejoined his old command, accepting the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.

In 1858 (May 11) Col. Cowdin was again in command; and continued in office until the second year of the war, when on Sept. 26, 1862, he was advanced to the rank of Brigadier General. In connection with the regimental camp at North Bridgewater, 1858, the regiment received its long-desired rifled muskets.

So many companies had been transferred from the old 1st Regiment, that it finally seemed best to disband that organization altogether. By contrast with the 5th-2d, its regimental spirit had grown weaker and weaker with each passing year until Boston's oldest regiment was nothing but a loosely connected group of separate companies. So on March 1, 1859, four of its companies, the Washington Guards, the Independent Boston Fusiliers, the Pulaski Guards and the Mechanic Rifles, were transferred to Col. Cowdin's regiment, where they took place as the 2d, 3d, 4th and 5th Companies respectively. As separate companies these already possessed proud records; and in their new regimental connection the 3d and 4th immediately found a vigorous new life. The Mechanic Rifles soon disbanded, and most of the members joined the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company. Later on, we shall follow the adventures of the three remaining companies of the old 1st.

Meanwhile Massachusetts was getting ready for the approaching war and putting her military forces in condition for active service. Sept. 7 to 9, 1859, Col. Cowdin led his reinforced command to camp at Concord, winning highest praise for the numbers and skill of his men. This was a notable occasion in Massachusetts military history, and as it later proved, in U. S. history. Had not the Bay State been more ready for war than her sisters, there would have been no "minute-men of '61" available to rush southward, and save the National capital. The Concord encampment for the entire Volunteer Militia, three divisions with a total membership of 7,500 men, was the pet project of Gov. Nathaniel Banks. While other executives of the state had regarded their office of commander-in-chief as a somewhat perfunctory affair, Gov. Banks took it exceedingly seriously; and even went so far as to uniform himself in clothing appropriate to his military office. Surely he "came to the kingdom for such a time as this." While the pacifist governors of many northern states were ridiculing the very idea of war, Gov. Banks put his state in an attitude of preparedness-and was largely instrumental in saving the Union.

As the encampment continued only three days, it was mainly occupied with making and breaking camp, and escorting distinguished official visitors. But some little time was squeezed out for studying the new Hardee's tactics, which were just supplanting Scott's. Great enthusiasm was aroused by the presence of Gen. John E. Wool, the "hero of Buena Vista," who reviewed the troops. But the great day of all came when Gov. Banks and the members of the legislature reviewed the campers. A famous lithograph of this scene exists; and does more than anything else to make the regiment of those days seem real to us. Numbers were small, as we reckon numbers today; but the finest spirit of determined patriotism was manifest.

A slight change in organization took place under Hardee's tactics; instead of four lieutenants to a company, there were only two. Consequently few new men were elected to fill vacancies until the regiment had adjusted itself to the new régime. The officers of the regiment at the great Concord encampment, besides Col. Cowdin, were: Lieutenant Colonel, Isaac S. Burrell (postmaster of Roxbury, and later City Marshal); Major, Isaac F. Shephard. The captains commanding companies were: 1st, Thomas L. D. Perkins (proprietor of a smoke-house); 3d, Henry A. Snow (treasurer of a bleachery); 6th, Edward Pearl; 7th, Walter S. Sampson (a mason and builder); 8th, Clark B. Baldwin (a merchant); 9th, Arthur Dexter; and 10th, Joshua Jenkins. With the Civil War less than two years off, it is well to look ahead and see how many of these militiamen rendered service in the hour of their country's need. Of the Colonel we have already spoken. The Lieutenant Colonel commanded the 42d Regiment in 1862, and again in 1864, as we shall see. The Major presently removed to Missouri for business reasons, where he served with Nathaniel Lyon, and ultimately commanded the 51st U. S. Colored Infantry, and was promoted to be Brigadier General. Four of the seven captains went to war. Capts. Snow and Pearl served three months each at the beginning of the regiment's three years of service, and then received their discharges. Capt. Sampson took his company into the 6th Regiment, and led them thru Baltimore on April 19, 1862, under deadly fire from the rioters. Later he served as Captain in the 22d Infantry during the Peninsular campaign, commanding that regiment at Gaines Mill. Capt. Baldwin remained in Col. Cowdin's regiment when his company transferred themselves to the new 4th Battalion of Rifles and ultimately to the 13th Regiment; and became commander of a new 4th Company, and from 1862 to 1864 was Lieutenant Colonel of the regiment. Baldwin was a most profane man, and during the ensuing campaign stragglers could identify their regiment from a distance by the sound of his swearing. When Baldwin was made prisoner at the Wilderness, his captors marvelled at his vocabulary; and came up to his tent in successive reliefs to listen. Once a youthful fifer who had been caught by the then Lieutenant Colonel straggling, was punished by having a log loaded on his shoulder as he marched. This lad has put on record, that regulations provided for "a field officer at the head of a regiment and a mule at the rear"; and that Col. Baldwin was deemed well-qualified for either end of the column. But the testimony is confessedly biassed.

Boston Common was the site of the 1860 camp, the last camp before the war. Military interest was then at fever heat, and the very air seemed electric with the coming struggle. In the midst of the warlike preparation occurred a peaceful ceremony which gained in interest from its very contrast with its surroundings; the youthful Prince of Wales, afterward Edward VII of Great Britain, visited Boston and was accorded military honors. A member of the regiment has recorded of him that he was "a really handsome youth with a pleasant blue eye, plump cheeks, and skin of great fairness."

On January 24, 1861, the 2d Regiment was redesignated, receiving the number, "1st," which had been taken away from the old 1st in 1859. Since six companies of the old 1st (as well as Col. Cowdin himself) had previously been added to what now became the "Civil War" 1st, there was an obvious fitness in allowing the number to be transferred also. Moreover the future held in store that all remaining of the old 1st personnel should, in 1878, be consolidated with their quondam comrades in a new 1st Regiment.

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