My Story of the War: a woman's narrative of four years' personal experience as Nurse in the Union Army ... Illustrated, etc

Front matter

ENGRAVED TI IGRAFH EXPRESSLY FOR THIS A.rj.TVQRTHlNGTON & CO . PUBLISHERS HARTFORD, CONN. MY STORY OF THE WAR: 2V. ttl Oman's ;Narratu>e OF FOUR YEARS PERSONAL EXPERIENCE AS NURSE LN THE UNION ARMY, AND IN RELIEF AVORK AT HOME, LN HOSPITALS, CAMPS, AND AT THE FRONT, DURLNG THE WAR OF THE REBELLION. WITH $atfjettc Enctoents, anU Œtjrtllmg Eemtntscnxces PORTRAYING THE LIGHTS AND SHADOWS OF HOSPITAL LIFE AND THE SANITARY SERVICE OF THE WAR. BY MARY A. LIVERMORE. %UjxstmU& WITH PORTRAITS AND NUMEROUS FULL-PAGE ENGRAVINGS ON STEEL, AND FINE CHROMO-LITHOGRAPH PLATES. HARTFORD, CONN.: A. D. WORTHINGTON AND COMPANY. 1888. Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1887, BY A. D. WORTHINGTON AND COMPANY, In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D. C TO THE VICTORIOUS SOLDIERS OF THE UNION ARMY, HOWEVER CIRCUMSTANCED AND WHEREVER LIVING; TO STfje pfonorcti fflcmorg of ttje DcaTj, WHO MADE THE SOIL OF THE SOUTH BILLOWY WITH THEIR GRAVES; AND TO MY SURVIVING CO-WORKERS IN THAT NOBLE ORGANIZATION, THE UNITED STATES SANITARY COMMISSION, THIS WORK IS DEDICATED.

A T the close of the war, I was importuned to publish my experiences and reminiscences in connection with the hospitals and the relief work of the Sanitary Commission. But I declined to do so. A horror of the war still en wrapped the country. The salvation of the nation had been purchased with the blood of her sons, and she was still in the throes of anguish because of her bereavement. The people had turned with relief to the employments of peace ful life, eager to forget the fearful years of battle and car nage. I put away all mementoes of the exceptional life I had led, and re-entered with gladness upon the duties con nected with my home and family, giving my leisure, as before the war, to charitable work and literary pursuits. I expected this quiet and happy order of things would con tinue to the end.

It h*e been otherwise ordered. The twenty-odd years that have passed since the bells rang in the long prayer for peace have been unlike any of which I had ever dreamed. They have been packed with work, have brought me in con tact with people and events of national importance, have afforded me extended opportunities of travel in my own country and Europe, and have given me a largeness and

Preface

. variety of experience not often gained by a woman. The sun of my life is now sloping swiftly to the west, the years that I have travelled lie stretching in long array behind me, and I am approaching the time when one lives much in memory. I have again been asked to write for publication my story of the war and its relief work, and this time the request has found me favorably disposed to the undertaking. The public ear has listened eagerly to the stories of the great battles of the war of the rebellion, told by the master spirits who conducted them, and who led the hosts of freedom to victory. The plan of the campaigns, the division of the forces, and the parts assigned to the various officers in command, the topography of the battle-fields, the personal prowess and heroism developed in the hotly contested struggle, and the jubilant victory which resulted, whose pæans of joy drowned the cries of the wounded and the wails of bereavement — of these histories the people have not grown weary.

Every detail of Fort Donelson and Vicks burg, Antietam and Gettysburg, and the surrender of Appomattox is eagerly sought and devoured with zest. Millions of readers bend over the thrilling autobiographies of Grant, Sherman, Logan, and other great captains of the memorable war, when, on the top wave of a nation's right eous wrath with slavery, four million of slaves were lifted to the level of freemen. But there is a paucity of histories of the private soldier, of sketches of the rank and file. These have n^t been written, partly because of the modesty of the men whose experiences were worth narrating, and partly because they were not favorably circumstanced for extensive observation. There is a whole world of thrilling and heroic deed and endeavor, of lofty patience, silent endurance and sacrifice, connected with the soldiers of the army, of which the world

PREFACE.

. 9 will always remain ignorant. It cannot be told. Neither can the deeds of nobleness performed by the people who remained at home, and who stood loyally by the government in its every hour of extremity. They measured their ready aid by the nation's need, and, in their consecration to the cause of national unity and freedom, outran all outward demands made upon them. The patriotism of men, the solemn joyfulness with which they gave of their possessions and of themselves, the unfal tering faith which no disaster could shake and no treachery enfeeble, who has told us of these, in detail? Who has fully narrated the consecrated and organized work of women, who strengthened the sinews of the nation with their unflagging enthusiasm, and bridged over the chasm between civil and military life, by infusing homogeneousness of feeling into the army and the people, " keeping the men in the field civilians, and making the people at home, of both sexes, half soldiers " ?

It can never be understood save by those who lived through that period, when one year counted more in the history of noble development than a half-score of ordinary years of buying and selling, building and furnishing, visiting and feasting. If this book shall in any way help to supply the deficiency I have indicated, my purpose will be accomplished. I am largely indebted to my husband and friends for the materials from which this book has been made. My own tendency is to destroy the records of my past, as soon as an event or experience has ended. I have had little taste for preserving records, journals, memoranda, and letters, and am never hampered with this sort of impedimenta. "Let the dead past bury its dead!" has been one of my cherished mottoes. The duty of the hour, the work of the "living present," has enthralled me, rather than contemplation of

PREFACE.

. the past. But, in this instance, what I have been careless of preserving, my kindred and friends have held in trust for me. For more than a dozen years, covering the entire period of the war, I was associated with my husband in the editor ship of his paper, published in Chicago. For its columns I wrote sketches of all events, that were interesting or inspir ing, in connection with the Sanitary Commission. Its readers were informed of every phase of its relief work, as soon as it was undertaken, and of its special calls for aid. And when I went to the hospitals on errands connected with the sick, wounded and dying, or made trips into the army in charge of sanitary stores, for whose disbursement I was held responsible, I always corresponded for the press. And no issue of my husband's paper appeared, when I was thus engaged, that did not contain long letters from the front, packed with narrations of facts and events, for which I knew its readers were eagerly looking.

I sent similar letters to other periodicals in the North west, wrote war sketches for magazines struggling for exist ence, edited the monthly bulletins of the Chicago Branch of the Commission, which were its means of communication with its four thousand Aid Societies, wrote its circular letters appealing for specific and immediate aid, wrote for its contributors a detailed history of the first great Sanitary Fair, which proved the inspiration and model of those which followed it, dictated and penned letters by the thousand from the rooms of the Commission, which were inspired by the emergencies of the time, and which have been largely preserved by the individuals and societies to whom they were addressed, answered every soldier's letter that I received, whether I had ever heard of him or not, wrote letters by the hundred to their friends at home, by the bed-

PREFACE.

. side of sick, wounded and dying soldiers, and in behalf of those who had died — in short, notwithstanding the herculean work imposed on me, as on all women at the head of the Branch Commissions, I accomplished more with my pen during the four years of the war than during any similar period of time before or since. Whatever of mine was published, or whatever related to my work during the war, my husband preserved in chrono logical order, as he did all memoranda or diaries made by me. And whatever letters came to me from the army, or from civilians working in the interest of the country, he saved from destruction. When to these were added my personal letters to friends, which after twenty years were returned, in response to an appeal for them, copies of circulars, bulletins, reports, crude magazine sketches, synopses of addresses, all inspired by the one absorbing topic of the time — the war for the Union, and its brave soldiers, with their anxious and suffering families, — I was embarrassed by the enormous bulk of the collection.

It was no small task to collate and arrange the appalling mass of documents, and to decide what would be of present interest, and what had been made valueless by the lapse of years. At last the book is completed, and is now presented to the public. In no sense does it purport to be a history. It is a collection of experiences and reminiscences, more interest ing to me in the retrospect than at the time of their occurrence. For then all who loved their native land, and strove to save it from disintegration, carried its woes on their hearts like a personal bereavement, and only lived through the awful anguish by the help of the mighty panacea of absorbing work for others. No one is more keenly alive than I to the defects of this volume. But any farther attempt at improvement would result, I fear, in its entire

PREFACE.

. withdrawal. And as I have something to say in behalf of the common soldiers, most of them veritable Philip Sidneys in their heroism and unselfishness, and of that noble army of women who worked untiringly for the right, while the war lasted, "exerting a greater moral force on the nation than the army that carried loaded muskets," I hasten to save my worl# from destruction, by placing it beyond my reach, in the hands of the publisher. May it receive a warm welcome from the " Boys in Blue," whose thinning ranks can never know an increase, and from my surviving co-workers in the Sanitary Commission, whose beloved comradeship is one of the priceless possessions of which the covetous years have not wholly bereft me. Jitielg (ffngraoeb on Steel JFrom Photograpfjs, ano from ©riginal Œtsigns Stairm riprcsslo sot this faorft bg Mr- S. ®. €. fflarlcn ano fstr. ffiSSm. it.

Shepparti. PORTRAITS. 1. PORTRAIT OF THE AUTHOR Frontispiece From a photograph taken expressly for this work. Engraved on steel in pure line, by Mr. Charles Schlecht. 2. MRS. JANE C. HOGE 3. MRS. MARY A. BICKERDTKE . ("MOTHER BICKERDYKE") 4. MISS MART J. SAFFORD . . . . 5. MRS. CORDELIA A. P. HARVEY, PAGE Women of the War. — Famous Nurses of Union Soldiers . To face 160 Engraved from photographs expressly for this work by Mr. S. Hollyer. FIGURE ILLUSTRATIONS. Engraved on steel in pure line and stipple, by Mr. John J. CADE. 1. A WOMAN IN BATTLE.— "MICHIGAN BRIDGET" CARRY- ING THE FLAG. Designed by F. O. C. Darley . . To face 116 " Sometimes when a soldier fell she took his place, fighting in his stead with unouailing courage — always fearless and daring, always doing good service as a soldier."

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 2. THE DYING SOLDIER. — THE LAST LETTER FROM HOME. Designed by F. O. C. Dakley To face 210 "He drew from an inside pocket a letter inclosing a photograph of a most lovely woman, and feebly whispered, ' My wife.' I spoke to him, but he seemed not to hear, and there was a far-away look in the gaze, as if his vision reached beyond my ken. The wardmaster approached, and laid his finger on the wrist. 'He is dead!' he whispered." 3. PRATER-MEETING IN A CONTRABAND CAMP. — WASH- INGTON, 1862. Designed by Wm. L. Sheppard . . To face 262 "Oh, I'm gwine home to glory — won't yer go along wid me, Whar de blessed angels beckon, an' de Lor' my Savior be ? " 4. FLEEING FROM THE LAND OF BONDAGE. — ON THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER IN 1863. Designed by F. O. C. Dakley To face 342 " Mothers carried their babes on one arm, and led little woolly-headed toddlers by the other.

Old men and women, gray, nearly blind, some of them bent almost double, bore on their heads and backs the small 'plun der' they had 'toted' from their homes. They were all going forth, like the Israelites, 'from the land of bondage to a land they knew not.'" 5. "OUR BATTERY" AT THE FRONT. —REVEILLE AFTER AN ANXIOUS NIGHT. Designed by Wm. L. Sheppard. To face 380 " They stood ready to aid in an immediate attack for three days and nights." 6, DEATH OF SERGEANT DYER WHILE SPIKING HIS GUN. Designed by F. O. C. Darley To face 394 "Our boys tried to save their guns, but, finding that impossible, they endeavored to spike them. Sergeant Dyer, whom I have before mentioned as a rare nurse in sickness, was shot through the lungs, and mortally wounded, while in the act of spiking his gun. Of one hundred and ten horses, they took off the field but forty-five." 7.

MIDNIGHT ON THE BATTLE-FIELD. Designed by F. O. C. Darley To face 484 " It was Mother Bickerdyke, with a lantern, still groping among the dead. Stooping down and turning their cold faces towards her, she scru tinized them searchingly, uneasy lest some might be left to die uncared for. She could not rest while she thought any were overlooked who were yet living." 8. A REBEL SHELL BURSTING IN A UNION HOSPITAL. Designed by F. O. C. Darley To face 494 "On the second day of the fight (Corinth), to her horror, her hospital came within range of the enemy's artillery, and the fearful missiles of death fell with fatal precision among her he.lplej»s men." ARRANGED BY STATES. MAINE. PLATE PAGE 1st Maine Heavy Artillery ii. . . 239 NEW HAMPSHIRE. 5th Regiment Infantry vi. . . 597 VERMONT. Headquarters Guidon of the Old Vermont Brigade, i. . . 93 1st Vermont Cavalry vi. . . 597 MASSACHUSETTS. 20th Regiment Infantry vi. . . 597 21st Regiment Infantry ii. . . 239 24th Regiment Infantry ii. . . 239 54th Regiment Infantry vi. . . 597 RHODE ISLAND. 1st Rhode Island Cavalry vi. . . 597 CONNECTICUT. 1st Connecticut Heavy Artillery ii. . . 239 11th Regiment Infantry i. . . 93 14th Regiment Infantry ii. . . 239 16th Regiment Infantry vi. . . 597 NEW YORK. 7th New York Heavy Artillery iii. . . 329 18th New York Cavalry viii. . . 657 40th Regiment Infantry ii. . . 239 48th Regiment Infantry v. . . 443 105th Regiment Infantry , . . v. . . 443 NEW JERSEY. 1st New Jersey Cavalry v. . . 443 9th Regiment Infantry v. . . 443 PENNSYLVANIA. 78th Regiment Infantry viii. . . 657 8.3d Regiment Infantry v. . . 443 150th Regiment Infantry v. . . 443 BATTLE-FLAGS, ARRANGED BY STATES.

OHIO. PLATE PAGE McMullen's 1st Independent Ohio Battery .... vii. . . 625 78th Regiment Infantry viii. . . 657 INDIANA. 32d Regiment Infantry viii. . . 657 KENTUCKY. 9th Regiment Infantry viii. . . 657 ILLINOIS. 13th Regiment Infantry iii. . . 329 129th Regiment Infantry viii. . . 657 MICHIGAN. 2d Regiment Infantry iii. . . 329 24th Regiment Infantry iii. . . 329 WISCONSIN. "Old Abe," Wisconsin's War Eagle vii. . . 625 2d Regiment Infantry vii. . . 625 MINNESOTA. 1st Minnesota Artillery iii. . . 329 IOWA. 9th Regiment Infantry vii. . . 625 MISSOURI. 7th Regiment Infantry vii. . . 625 8th Regiment Infantry iii. . . 329 KANSAS. 2d Regiment Infantry vii. . . 625 2d Kansas Battery vii. . . 625 Headquarters Guidon of the 6th Army Corps . . i. . . 93 CONFEDERATE BATTLE-FLAGS. Battle-Flag captured from General Bragg . . . iv. . . 421 Battle-Flag of the 42d Mississippi Regiment . . . iv. . . 421 Battle-Flag of the 12th Mississippi Cavalry . . . iv. . . 421 Blood-Stained Silk Flag of the 9th Texas Regiment, iv. . . 421 Battle-Flag of Austin's Battery iv. . . 421 Battle-Flag of a South Carolina Regiment . . . iv. . . 421 Battle-Flag, black (no quarter), supposed to have belonged to a Texas Regimjsnz iv. . . 421 Silk Battle-Flag . . . ./o3>. .'^w iv. . . n^HE Publishers deem a few words of explanation necessary respecting the colored battle-flag plates which occupy so prominent a place in this volume.

No patriot eye can look upon these battle-stained mementos of the war without mingled feelings of admiration, pride, and sadness. They have been wafted by the sighs and prayers of a struggling people, and hallowed by the blood of patriot sons. They have a peculiar fitness and place in this record of a woman's work for and among private soldiers, for they were the men who proudly and bravely carried them. Private soldiers were the true heroes of the war. Their bravery was as great, their judgment often as good, and their capacity for commanding often equal to those under whom they were content to fight without distinction or reward. It was no part of the original plan to introduce in this volume so many of these flags. It was at first thought that a single frontispiece page, composed of two or three flags in facsimile, would be a novel and appropriate feature, and lend additional interest to the work.

But it proved a difficult and delicate matter to select only two or three from many thousand flags entitled to representation ; for the Publishers wished to act with strict impartiality and without rendering themselves open to the criticism of exalting one flag, regiment,or state over others entitled to equal praise. In this dilemma it became apparent that if flags were introduced as illustrations at all, the North ought to be generally represented. To this end an artist and a photographer were sent to the capital of each northern state, to make photographs and color sketches of the flags. Serious and unexpected obstacles met them at the very outset, for nearly every state had provided a permanent place for its tattered banners, and rightfully guarded them with tender care. In several states legislative enactments made it seemingly impossible to obtain permission to disturb the flags in the least, — no hand was even permitted to touch them — much less to remove them from their glass cases for any purpose whatever.

And yet it was absolutely necessary to take them out of the cases and arrange them properly before they could be photographed and color sketches made. One by one all obstacles were surmounted, and the Publishers are at last enabled to show the flags with exact fidelity to the originals, both in appearance and color. In selecting the flags the Publishers endeavored to exercise a wise and careful discrimination. Their artists photo graphed a number of flags in each state capital, selecting those that were represented as possessing the most interest ing history. From these the Publishers made a final choice, and they were guided in this by first obtaining from reliable sources a history of each flag, finally selecting those that appeared to have the greatest interest attached to them. They cannot hope that they have been completely successful in making this selection, but they acted wholly from the best information they could obtain, and carefully weighed every fact and incident, and the authority for them, before making their decision.

If one color-bearer or regiment performed more conspicuous service than another, it was only because of better opportunity. All were brave men, and the Publishers regret that every Union battle-flag could not find a place in this book. If all the heroic deeds of those who died under their folds, and of those who took their places and kept the colors flying, could be gathered, they would fill a volume. The most difficult task of all was to obtain the story of each flag and establish its truth. Many of the men who so proudly carried them in battle sleep in unknown graves on southern battle-fields, far away from their northern homes. " Southern dews will weep above them as gently as though they lay in their northern village church-yards ; grass and grain will cover them ; winter will decorate their resting places as with monumental marble, and summer will spread over them its flowers of red, white and blue ; the labors of the husbandmen may obliterate these hillocks of the dead, but the power of their sacrifice will forever circulate in the life of the nation." * Of the survivors many have died since the close of the war, and twenty-five years have made the memory of those who are left much less reliable than they think.

Conflicting statements have arisen even from those who were eye-witnesses of some of the scenes de scribed, but these differences were generally respecting minor details. Even official statements do not always agree. In one state capitol is exhibited a flag on which is pinned a piece of paper purporting to give its history. The story is very thrilling, but only a small part of it is true. The writer of it (unknown) simply got the story of two flags mixed and attached his " history " to a single flag, which is daily gazed upon by visitors, who naturally regard this par- * Rev. Dr.E. H. Chapin on presentation of New York battle-flags, at Albany, N. Y. ticular flag as the most interesting of them all. To get at the truth under such circumstances was by no means easy. A vast amount of correspondence, too, was necessary.

Vet erans of the war are widely scattered. One comrade would refer to another, and he to another, often in a distant state, and frequently after long and patient search information was returned that the man sought for died many years ago. Sometimes the most meagre data came in response to repeated appeals, and where the most was expected the least was obtained. Many letters were returned marked "un known " or " uncalled for." It is much to be regretted that a full history could not be obtained of all the flags. Earnest and patient effort was made in every case. It will be seen from the above statement that the labor and care involved in producing these illustrations have neces sarily made this part of the work both difficult and slow, and in consequence the publication of the volume has been delayed nearly two years.

One page is devoted to a few of the many hundred Con federate battle-flags captured by Union soldiers. With two exceptions these are from photographs and color sketches made from the original flags, in the keeping of the War Department at Washington. The statements pertaining to these flags are taken from Government Record and presuma bly are correct. The Publishers invite further information from any source respecting the flags shown in this volume, so that in future editions of the Work a still fuller history of each one may be given. Despite the greatest care, inaccuracies may have crept into the narratives, and the Publishers will gladly correct any misstatements. Finally, the Publishers return their sincere thanks to all — and their name is Legion — who have in any way helped them in this undertaking.

The uniform courtesy of gover nors and state officials made it possible to obtain photographs . and color sketches of the flags ; and veterans of the war, and others, have imparted valuable information, without which the story of these flags could not have been written. THE FLAG OF OUR UNION. Flag of Ihe brave ! thy folds shall fly. The sign of hope and triumph high! When speaks the signal-trumpiel tone, And the long line conies glistening on (Ere yet Ihe life-Mood, warm and wet, Bath dimmed Ihe glistening bayonet), Each soldier's eye shall brightly turn To where thy sky-born glories burn; And as his springing step>s advance. Catch war and vengeance from the glance. And when the cannon mouthinys loud Heave in wild wreaths the battle-shroud, And gory sabi'es rise and fall Like shoots of flame on midnight's pall — There shall thy meteor-glances glow, And cowering foes shall sink beneath Each gallant arm thai strikes below That lovely messenger of death.

Flag of Ihe free heart's hope and home — By angel hands to vedor given! Thy stars have lit the welkin dome. And all thy hues were bom in heaven. Forever fiord that standard sheet! Where breathes the foe that falls before us, With Freedom's soil beneath our feel. And Freedom's banner streaming o'er us! J. Rodman Drake. WITH ©ascriptions ana Explanations. Note by the Publishers. — No expense or pains have been spared to make these chromo-lithograph plates accurate in drawing and coloring. The flags were first photo graphed, thus insuring fulness of detail, and a color-sketch was then made of each flag, by a skilful artist, directly from the flag itself. The photographs were then transferred to stone, from which the plates herewith presented were printed. Each plate requires no less than sixteen printings to produce the various colors and tints necessary to a faithful representation of the flags, thus requiring one hundred and twenty-eight engraved stones to produce these eight plates.

The engraving and printing were done by Messrs. Wm. H. Dodd & Co., Hartford, Conn. Plate I. page 93. No. l — Flag of the Eleventh Regiment Connecticut VOLUNTEERS. This regiment saw over four }rears' service, and took an active part in many of the most noted battles of the war, including Newbern, South Mountain, Antietam, Fredericks burg, Drury's Bluff, Cold Harbor, Petersburg, etc. The national color carried by the regiment, and which is now deposited in the state capitol at Hartford, consists of the remnants of two flags. One of these flags was presented by the Sons of Connecticut residing in New York, when the regiment passed through that city en route for the war, in 1861. In time it became so badly worn and shot-riddled that it could hardly be unfurled, and a new flag was presented to the regiment March 1, 1863, by Miss Julia A. Beach of Wal lingford, Conn., through its colonel, Griffin A. Stedman, to whom she was engaged.* The new flag, and what remained of the old one, were tied to the original staff, and were in this manner carried by the regiment till the close of the war. * General Stedman was killed in front of Petersburg in 1804. ■»:', The first color-sergeant was George E. Bailey, Jr., of Deep River, Conn., a large, fine-looking man, who was killed at the storming of the stone bridge at Antietam.

The 11th led the charge, and lost one hundred and eighty-one men in this battle. The state flag was carried in this battle by Sergeant David Kittler, who refused to go forward in the charge because the color was not supported by a full color guard. Kittler was immediately wounded by an officer, who slashed him. across the arm with his sword for refusing to advance. At this moment Corporal Henry A. Eastman of Ashford stepped forth and said, " Give me the colors ! " and, taking them from Kittler, went forward amid the cheers of his comrades. Eastman carried the colors for some time, and was finally promoted captain. At the battle of Drury's Bluff the flag was carried by Sergeant Orrin Wilson. Four of the color-guard were wounded. At the battle of Cold Harbor one of the color guard was killed, and Color-Sergeant Metzger and two members of the color-guard were wounded.

In that short, terrible and unsuccessful charge, nearly one-half the regiment were killed or wounded in the short space of five minutes. In this battle the flag was struck by many bullets, and the flag-staff was shot completely in two. The staff was then bound together with pieces of a harness belonging to the horses of a battery near by. July 30, 1864, at the " Crater " in front of Petersburg, a rebel shell burst among the color-guard, killing one and wounding six. The one killed was literally blown to pieces, and his brains were spattered on the flag and staff. While in front of Petersburg the camp of the regiment was in a ravine, through which flowed a small stream of water. One day a violent storm quickly made the stream a roaring torrent, and the camp was suddenly under water. The men hardly had time to reach high ground before the camp was swept away.

Corporal Reisel of the color-guard tried to save the colors, but was borne down by the debris in the water and drowned. The colors were carried down the stream some distance before they were recovered. This flag was among the very first to enter Richmond, April 3, 1865. no. 2. - headquarters guidon of the old Vermont Brigade. This was the oldest brigade in the service from Vermont, and had mustered on its rolls, in all, almost ten thousand men. At one time hard fighting had reduced its numbers to eleven hundred. The Vermont Brigade was composed of the 2d, 3d, 4th, 5th, and 6th Vermont regiments, to which was subsequently added the 11th. It was a portion of the 6th Corps, and Gen eral Sedgwick proudly spoke of it as " the best brigade in the Army of the Potomac." Its history is written on every page of that of the Army of the Potomac, and no brigade in that gallant army performed more brilliant service or received greater honor.