Chapter IV: By J. M. Martin

Camp Life at Harrison's Landing--Major Birney Assigned to the
Command of the Regiment--Transferred to General Birney's
Brigade--Evacuation of Harrison's Landing and the Peninsula--The
Army of the Potomac is Sent to Reenforce General Pope.

The regiment, upon its arrival at Harrison's Landing, presented a most pitiable spectacle. But three months before it numbered almost nine hundred; now but little over half a hundred responded for duty at first roll-call, and there was not a field officer present. Says Surgeon Lyman: "All were exhausted and disheartened, scarcely a well man in the regiment, with two hundred and thirty, for the first few days, on the sick list." For a time Captain Ralph Maxwell was in command of the regiment, but was succeeded later by Captain Strohecker. Funerals were of such frequent occurrence that the solemn notes of the dead march were almost continually to be heard, until, for the benefit of the living, burials with military honors were suppressed by general order. To the great annoyance of brigade commanders they could muster no more men for brigade drill than would compose an ordinary battalion; the regiments presenting no better appearance as to numbers than a company, and a company than a corporal's guard. As a consequence there were frequent charges of "shirking duty" preferred, and the officers of the line watched and counted with greatest care their rolls for available men. An amusing anecdote of this watchful regard of the superior officers is told by Colonel Strohecker. He says:

"For a few days our regiment was attached to the 63d, and under the command of Colonel Alexander Hayes. On one occasion he had the two regiments 'fall in,' and passing along the line counted the men in each company with great care, comparing their number with the adjutant's report which he held in his hand. When he counted my company I lacked three men to fill the report, and then the colonel commenced cursing me for reporting more men than I turned out. I replied that I did not report more men than I had in line. At this he exhibited to me the adjutant's report and said he would see me later. True enough, there were three more men reported for duty on the adjutant's report than I had turned out. The figures were against me. He dismissed me and I went to my quarters crestfallen. I took up my morning report book, and discovered there was a mistake somewhere. My morning report and the number of men I had in line tallied exactly. I immediately called upon the colonel and armed with my morning report proved that I was right. He called his adjutant and asked him to explain. That officer replied that in consolidating the company reports he could not make them agree, so he just put three more men to my account! 'What!' exclaimed the colonel. 'You falsify the morning report of a captain and his orderly? I'll let you know' and then the very air seemed blue! To me he only said, 'Captain won't you have a drink?'"

General Kearny was no admirer of a rifle-pit campaign. "An open field and a fair fight," was more to the pleasing of the military taste of this intrepid commander; he was, therefore, loth to have his troops exhausted with the labor of their construction, and as occasion offered was not slow to so express himself. One quiet Sabbath morning, while in camp at this place, a detail from the 57th was on its way, armed with pick and spade, to this duty. As they trudged along their way Kearny met them, and, returning the salute of the lieutenant commanding the squad, inquired:

"Lieutenant, where are these men going?"

"To work on the breastworks, general," replied the officer.

"About face your men, and return to your quarters," sharply replied the general. "Six days in the week are enough to work on fortifications. These men need their Sunday rest!"

It is needless to say the order was promptly obeyed and regard for their commander rose several degrees in the estimation of these weary veterans.

The camp of the regiment was near a fine stream of water on which was erected a dam that afforded the men most excellent bathing opportunities, which doubtless contributed much to their general health besides personal cleanliness. Ovens were also built and for a time they enjoyed the luxury of "soft bread." There was, however, a dearth of vegetables, and aside from an occasional ration of onions, and that conglomeration of pumpkin, squash, etc., compounded under the euphonious name of "dessicated vegetables," but which the boys derisively dubbed "desecrated vegetables," green truck was unknown in their daily bill of fare, in consequence of which diarrhoea and kindred complaints were prevalent, and many disqualified for active duty.

During the encampment at Harrison's Landing Major William Birney, of the 4th New Jersey regiment, a brother of General David B. Birney, was assigned to the command of the 57th regiment. Major Birney was an officer of rare ability, a strict disciplinarian, an indefatigable drill-master, and withal a gentleman, winning and courteous to the humblest when off duty, and abhorring the petty tyrannies in which some officers of brief authority seemed to delight. He also enjoyed to the highest degree the confidence of his superiors, and very soon won the respect and esteem, as well, of the rank and file. A story told about the camp fires, whether true or false, well illustrates the characteristics of the man and deserves recording. At the breaking out of the war Major Birney was commissioned an officer in one of the New Jersey regiments composing the New Jersey brigade, commanded by General Kearny, but possessed of little knowledge of his duties as such, or ability to drill his men. On one occasion while attempting to put his regiment through its evolutions General Kearny chanced to pass, and halting, watched the major in his attempts with evident disgust. The general was never noted for his patience, especially with inefficiency of an officer in his line of duty, and riding up to the major, reprimanded him sharply, bidding him to go to his quarters and never attempt to drill his men again until he had mastered the tactics. It is said, the major, stung with reproof, went to his quarters, not to sulk over this and possibly resign his commission, but to study, and when he next appeared on drill he was the best informed and most efficient drill master in the brigade, receiving the compliments of the general, who ever after held him in highest esteem. Of the major's persistency, if not his efficiency, as a drill master, every member of the 57th regiment would willingly certify.

Major Birney's discipline was not confined to camp life, and the drill ground. It extended as well to the march. Every morning on the march the regular detail for guard duty was made, and this detail, under command of the officer of the day, marched at the rear of the column, and proved an efficient preventive to "straggling," a habit exceedingly demoralizing to an army on the march. If any fell sick or gave out by the way they were taken charge of, and if possible, were placed in an ambulance, or in the absence of such, in one of the regimental or brigade wagons. If canteens needed replenishing a detail was made from each company to perform that duty. If foraging was to be engaged in it was done in the same methodical manner, and this was not infrequent, for the major was a strong believer in the doctrine of the rights of the army to live off the products of the enemy's country, but it had to be done "decently and in order."

When on the march, if an obstruction was encountered, the head of the column was always halted until all had passed the obstruction and the ranks closed up. By this means the men in the rear were saved the necessity of moving at a "double quick" to overtake those in advance, a duty very exhausting, and as a consequence the command was always kept in compact order and could, with less fatigue, march twenty miles a day than ten by the old "go as you please" methods so common while on the march.

During our army's encampment at Harrison's Landing the Confederates were quiet and only deigned to make their presence known on one occasion and that was in the way of a night surprise, sending by way of a reminder that they were yet alive and alert, a number of shells across from the heights on the south side of the river. This piece of pleasantry was replied to promptly by our batteries, and the next day arrangements were made to prevent a repetition by sending a division of infantry under General Butterfield over to that side and taking possession of those hills for ourselves.

On August 12th the 57th was transferred from Jameson's old brigade (the 1st) to General D. B. Birney's (2d) brigade. General Jameson was injured by the falling of his horse at Fair Oaks and died from his injuries the following November. He was one of the finest looking officers in the army. General J. C. Robinson succeeded him in command, and led the brigade in the seven days' battles. General Birney was one of the original brigade commanders of Kearny's division. His brigade now comprised the following regiments, viz: the 57th and 99th Pennsylvania; 3d and 4th Maine; 38th, 40th and 101st New York. There were seven regiments, but numerically, they scarcely exceeded the strength of two full regiments.

On August 15th, the army broke camp and commenced the retrograde movement back through Williamsburg and Yorktown, our campaign ground of the earlier spring, its ultimate destination being to join Pope in his disastrous campaign with headquarters "in the saddle."

The breaking camp of a great army is always a stirring scene. The mounted aids and orderlies riding in hot haste; the mustering legions and forming squadrons with flying colors; the bonfires of camp debris; the popping of discarded cartridges with occasional deeper intonation of exploding bomb, altogether make a scene not soon to be forgotten.

The time of year was the "roasting ear" season of the Virginia cornfields, and great fears were entertained by the army medical staff as to the probable disastrous results to the men of a too free indulgence by them in that luxury. As a consequence they were strictly admonished to abstain from the toothsome viand, but all to no purpose. We had roasting ears boiled, roasting ears roasted, and roasting ears broiled in the husk. We had green corn on the cob and off the cob. Green corn for breakfast, green corn for dinner, and green corn for supper, with an occasional lunch of green corn between times. Yet, wonderful to relate, instead of any injury resulting, on the contrary the effect was decidedly beneficial, in that by the time we arrived at Yorktown there was scarcely a man to respond to sick call.

The evening of the first day's march the regiment camped near a large brick plantation house. The owner and family were absent, but the negro servants were very much "at home" with the "Yanks" and until late in the night were busily employed baking "hoe cake" for all who applied.

The following day the 57th with the 4th Maine were detached and served as "flankers" on the left of the army, marching by a road that intersected the road by which the regiment had advanced from Williamsburg toward Richmond at a point near Barhamsville, thence by the last named road to Williamsburg and Yorktown. At Williamsburg there still remained many evidences of the struggle of the preceding May, particularly the marks of shot and shell upon the standing timber, many of these marks being high up on the tree trunks and exhibiting a very unsteady aim.

At Yorktown the regiment embarked for Alexandria and from thence were speedily transferred by rail on the Orange and Alexandria road to a point near Warrenton Junction.

At Alexandria many of the men took the opportunity to imbibe a liberal quantity of liquid refreshments, the first chance they had to do so since the issuing of whiskey rations in the swamps in front of Richmond. To the credit of the 57th, but very few indulged beyond their capacity to carry their load steadily, but such could not be said of some of the other regiments in the division, notably one of New York, in which there were not a sufficient number of "sobers" to care for the "drunks." The cars on which we were shipped to the front were the ordinary "flats." By the time their "drunks" were safely deposited on these cars by the "sobers" fully one-half had rolled off into the side ditches, and so the process of reloading had to be repeated time and again with many intervening, and sometimes amusing, sparring matches to add to the confusion and delay. While these bacchanalian exhibitions were going on General Kearny and staff rode along the side of the railway track, doing what they could in the way of encouragement to the overworked "sobers" in their apparently endless task. As the general passed the 57th some member called out to a comrade near to the scene of drunken strife in progress on the adjoining cars, inquiring if any of the 57th were engaged in the fracas then going on. The general promptly turned in his saddle and shouted back, "No, thank God, there's none of the 57th!"

It was not the regiment's privilege to ride all the way from Alexandria to its destination at the front. Disembarking near Catlett Station it advanced by easy marches.

Somewhere on the Virginia Peninsula Captain Maxwell, of Company F, had secured the services of an old negro as his cook. At Malvern Hill this old fellow had not put sufficient space between himself and the enemy for safety, and found himself in rather close proximity for comfort to the shells of their batteries. While at Harrison's Landing it was the delight of the boys to get this old man to describe the battle and give his experience under fire. His inimitable imitation of the screaming shot and shell accompanied with grotesque pantomime was amusing in the extreme. We little thought, however, the deep impression these scenes and experiences had made upon his mind until again we came in sound of the enemy's guns. As the regiment advanced toward Bealeton the cannonading in our front became at times quite heavy. The old cook was trudging along by the side of the marching column, carrying a camp kettle, when suddenly the batteries opened fire. He stopped, looked and listened, with fear depicted in every lineament of his dusky face. "Dis chil' done gone fur 'nuf dis way!" he exclaimed. Then turning about took toward the rear as fast as his legs could carry him. It was the last seen of the captain's cook.