Chapter IX: At Bayou Gentilly--May

After hot weather fairly set in not much time was occupied in drill at Gentilly Camp. When the many details for regular camp and extra duty had been provided, there were few men left to go on drill. Most of the drills were by company, after Companies A and F had been detached. Previous to that time a battalion drill was in order every morning, after guard-mounting, either in command of the lieutenant-colonel or the major.

On the seventh General Sherman inspected the regiment in camp and the detachments at Batteries Gentilly and St. John. The number of men under inspection was not large, but they looked well and in good condition. The next day, eighth, to relieve the dull routine of camp life, Companies B and E, then remaining in camp, were marched along the Ponchartrain Railroad to Lakeport, there joined by men from Companies A and F, and an exhibition dress parade gone through with. After lying in the close camp at the bayou, this change, even for a short time, to the cool breezes of the lake shore, was very agreeable.

Orders were received at 9.15 A.M., May 9th, from division headquarters, for all men that could be mustered of the detached portions of the second division to immediately report, in heavy marching order, on Canal Street, in New Orleans, for review. The men were at once got under arms and marched into the city, arriving fifteen minutes too late to take part. One brigade (the Third) was absent on a reconnoissance; only the First and Second Brigades were in line. They made a handsome appearance. The One Hundred and Sixty-Fifth New York Infantry (Second Duryea Zouaves), Lieutenant-Colonel Smith in command, carried off the honors for best condition in everything.

Various rumors were in circulation in the city about this review, some people insisting upon it that the army under General Banks had fallen back from the Teche campaign, and the troops under review were a part of that army. Others said that General Banks had met with a bad defeat, and the troops were under orders to reënforce him. Numerous citizens industriously asked questions of the men at every opportunity; but, to give credit where it is due, the news they received must have puzzled if it did not mislead them. The men got the hang very quickly of what they were after, and acted accordingly. If instructions had been issued to cover such an attempt of the enemy’s spies to obtain information, they could not have been obeyed any better than was the case.

The true cause of such a hurried review of this division was soon apparent. General Sherman had received orders to report at Baton Rouge with two brigades. His three brigades, assigned to the Defences of New Orleans, were scattered along the various forts and entrances to the city, while the brigade not on review was distant some thirty miles on a reconnoissance; yet, in thirty-six hours after receipt of his orders, General Sherman had been rejoined by his Third Brigade, transferred some regiments of the Second to the First and Third, leaving the Second Brigade in the Defences, and was on his way, _via_ the river, to Baton Rouge with two brigades to join General Augur in a demonstration against Port Hudson.

During the entire month men at Gentilly Camp and picket-stations on the lake were kept in a condition to move in twenty-four hours’ notice, in obedience to an order issued by the division commander. This was supplemented on the twenty-eighth by a confidential circular issued, to keep a careful watch and supervision at each camp and post, in such a manner as not to attract attention or excite alarm. All officers and men were obliged to remain in camp ready for any duty. Nothing of importance transpired during this time to furnish a key to these instructions. Perfect order and quiet reigned within the limits of the Defences of New Orleans.

Some changes in the commanding officers took place: Colonel Cahill, Ninth Connecticut Infantry, assumed command of the brigade on the ninth, and General Emory assumed command of the Defences New Orleans on the nineteenth.

No changes took place in the stations occupied by the Forty-Second. Companies A and F remained on picket at the lake. By Department General Orders, No. 35, issued April 27th, registered enemies of the United States were ordered, peremptorily, to leave the Department on or before May 15th. Many of them were sent by the provost-marshal-general _via_ the lake. This placed extra duty on the men of the Forty-Second stationed there, as all of their baggage had to be overhauled and inspected upon the wharf before leaving, and guards furnished to steamers transporting them to points across the lake and on the Gulf shore. Large numbers were taken to Madisonville, Manderville, Pass Christian, Biloxi, Mississippi City, Pascagoula, and to Mobile.

Many captures were made of small boats endeavoring to get across the lake with supplies for the enemy. The occupants in every case escaped, for Department General Orders, No. 37, issued April 29th, announced that any person convicted before the commanding general of furnishing supplies to the enemy would suffer the penalty of death. In spite of this order attempts were constantly made, but the parties engaged in such acts lost no time in taking to the swamps when discovered at it.

The routine of guard and picket duty at this time is explained by the following letter to General Sherman:

“HEADQUARTERS 42D REGIMENT, MASS. VOLS., “CAMP FARR, BAYOU GENTILLY, LA., May 5th, 1863.

“_Sir_,--I have the honor to acknowledge the reception of your communication of the fourth instant. I would respectfully report the following facts concerning the guard duties at the mouth of Bayou St. John. Captain H. S. Coburn, of Company A, has under his command at that place: one sergeant, four corporals and thirty privates. He furnishes three sentinel-posts: one, a picket of three men at the extreme end of the bayou, who are relieved every twenty-four hours, one man being on duty all the time; the second post is at the quarters of the captain, and the third on the drawbridge across the bayou. These two posts are relieved every two hours by rotation of the men in the command. This manner of relieving the men at the last two posts is resorted to on account of the small command and to allow the men good rest between each tour of duty, for it often happens that six or ten men are called out in the night on extra duty, either to arrest some suspicious character or to watch for smugglers of contraband goods. One non-commissioned officer is detailed each day and has charge of the guard for the twenty-four hours, and his whole duty is to carefully observe all that is going on and to relieve the sentinels at proper hours. The reason of only five men appearing to be on duty at the time of the inspection was because the balance of the command was in line.

“In reference to the absence of the commanding officer at Bayou St. John, I have ascertained that he was away on Saturday afternoon at the lake-end of the bayou.

“Captain Coburn has frequently occasion to visit the office of the provost-marshal-general, and he had been away that day. It is found necessary to keep one commissioned officer at the mouth of the bayou all the time, for the purpose of examining passes, vessels, etc., going into and out of the bayou. Lieutenant Burrell has been in the habit of aiding Captain Coburn at times when he was in the city, and he was absent that day for this purpose, Captain Coburn having returned from General Bowen’s office a short time previous to your visit.

“Lieutenant Burrell has at Battery St. John thirty men. In reference to the absence of ten of his men, he reports as follows: two were away at Camp Farr for rations; three were at the lake-end of the bayou for a few days on account of sickness, and the surgeon considered a change good for them; two were in the city for a few hours on a pass; the remaining three were absent for a short time preparing a boat for use, in duty at the bayou.

“In regard to the strength of the guards within my command and the posts, I would respectfully report as follows:

“I have in this camp two companies for duty, viz., B and E. The number of effective enlisted men by this day’s report is one hundred and eighteen; commissioned officers, five. At this camp and from these companies I mount a daily guard, consisting of one commissioned officer, five non-commissioned officers and twenty-seven privates. This guard furnishes nine sentinel-posts. Five of these posts are a camp-guard, one at headquarters, one over the quartermaster’s stores, one at the crossing of the Ponchartrain Railroad and the Gentilly road, and one picket-station on the railroad in the direction of the city.

“At Battery Gentilly, near this camp, I have a detachment of Company A, consisting of one commissioned officer, two sergeants, three corporals and twenty privates. This detachment mans the guns, and for a guard mounts each day one non-commissioned officer and six men, furnishing two sentinel-posts: one on the parapet over the guns, and one as a picket-guard on the railroad and to prevent people from passing within the lines of the fort.

“At Lakeport Company F is stationed, under command of Captain J. D. Cogswell. He has at the present time eighty effective men, including non-commissioned officers. For a guard he mounts daily twelve men, having four sentinel-posts: two of these posts are on the wharf, for the purpose of observing all that transpires within sight on the lake and to detain all boats and persons from leaving the wharf without a proper pass; the second is at the entrance to the wharf, to keep order in the day-time, and to keep all persons from the wharf after nine p.m.; the third post is a picket-post and is rather more than a mile from the village, on the shore of the lake, at the “White House,” so called, for the purpose of observing all that transpires within sight of the lake, and to stop smugglers, etc.

“Besides these he sends a picket of six men and one sergeant to Bayou Cashon (eight miles distant), and these are relieved weekly. This picket is supplied with a small boat and sail, and can thus have communication with the commanding officer at any time.

“The schooner _Hortense_ is sent to this picket-station every other day with fresh water and rations. In addition to the above sentinels and pickets, one corporal and four men are kept on the schooner _Hortense_ at all times, ready for duty; also, two picket-boats have each a picked crew of one non-commissioned officer and two men, ready for duty at any time; at night they cruise back and forth (one on each side), from a point off the end of the wharf to points two miles from the wharf, for the purpose of intercepting smugglers of contraband goods.

“I believe the number of sentinels and location of all the posts in my command have now been stated, and I respectfully submit this report.

“I have neglected to state the number of sentinels at Battery St. John. At that place a daily guard of two privates and one non-commissioned officer is detailed. This guard is increased by one man every night. The first post is upon the bridge on the west side, the second upon the bridge on the east side of the fort; the extra man at night is placed on the parapet over the guns.

“I have the honor to remain,

“Respectfully, your obedient servant,
“J. STEDMAN, _Lieutenant-Colonel_,
“_commanding 42d Regt., Mass. Vols._

“TO CAPTAIN WICKHAM HOFFMAN, _A. A. General_,
“_Second Division, 19th Army Corps, New Orleans_.”

From the main camp at the bayou various details of men were made for all sorts of duty:

On the seventeenth--Company E proceeded to New Orleans and acted as a funeral escort to the remains of Captain Albert Coan, Company A, Twelfth Maine, who was buried from the St. James Hospital.

On the nineteenth--Sergeant Turner, Corporals Lowey and Turner, and seven privates of Company B, Corporal Lovly and five privates of Company E, in heavy marching order, relieved a guard of the One Hundred and Sixty-Fifth New York at the University Hospital, on Baronne Street, New Orleans; relieved in turn, on the twenty-seventh, by Sergeant Emerson, Corporal Southworth and six privates of Company E, and Corporals Fales, Wales, and six privates of Company B.

On the twenty-second--Two corporals and two privates from Company E, with four privates from Company B, were detailed for guard duty at the headquarters of General Emory, in the city.

The extra-duty detailed men were few:

May 13th--Corporal Henry Mellen, Company E, was made orderly at brigade headquarters, serving until relieved in July.

May 24th--Private Frank A. Smith, Company F, was made orderly at brigade headquarters, serving until relieved in July.

April 28th--Private Chauncey K. Bullock, Company D, was placed on duty as hostler at brigade headquarters until relieved May 19th.

Some men of the paroled camp, to vary the tedium of their life, began to trespass upon private property in the neighborhood. It was trivial in its nature, but, on complaint being made, orders were issued, April 1st, to stop such trespassing. This order not having the desired effect, a Board of Inquiry was held May 10th, at the paroled camp, to ascertain the basis of complaints that were made of destruction of fences and depredations upon property. The result was to locate the breach of orders on a few unprincipled paroled men, and to clearly establish that the greater number were behaving in a most praiseworthy manner.

On the seventeenth of June Privates Thomas F. Igo, Thomas P. Contillon and Thomas Dellanty, paroled men of Company I, were placed in arrest on a charge of disturbing persons and property near the camp; the only cases where discipline had to be enforced to stop it.

The bad feeling displayed by the Ninth Connecticut men at Lakeport towards Company F was renewed by men of that regiment detailed for provost-guard in New Orleans, towards men from the Forty-Second who were in the city on furlough. It culminated in a cowardly attack on Sergeant Waterman, Company D, and was the cause of another complaint being made on the twelfth of May, this time to the provost-marshal. The facts are set forth in the following letter:

“HEADQUARTERS FORTY-SECOND MASS. VOLS., “CAMP FARR, BAYOU GENTILLY, LA., May 12th, 1863.

“_Sir_,--I would respectfully bring to your notice and attention the manner in which one of the members of the provost-guard treated several enlisted men of this command after having demanded their passes, seen them, and pronounced them correct. The circumstances are as follows:

“Orderly-Sergeant Waterman, Sergeants Hewins and Sawyer, Corporal Merrill, and two privates of this regiment, paroled but unexchanged prisoners of war, were in New Orleans on Saturday, the ninth inst., for the purpose of witnessing the brigade review on that day, and, when coming down St. Charles Street, a soldier with a musket stopped them and demanded their passes; they were shown and pronounced correct. This man, representing himself as a member of the patrol, made some insulting remarks to Orderly-Sergeant Waterman and then seized him by the throat, whereupon the sergeant shook him off. The patrol then fixed his bayonet and charged upon Sergeant Waterman, striking him in the breast and inflicting a slight flesh wound, at the same time calling the sergeant ’a d--n son of a b--h’; at this point an officer came across the street and sent the whole party away. Up to the time of the officer making his appearance no other members of the patrol had been seen by any of the party alluded to, and the man who stopped them had no stripes or insignia of office on his clothing. The name of this patrol has since been ascertained to be Corporal James Gibbens, Company I, Ninth Connecticut Volunteers.

“The same day of the above occurrence Sergeant Waterman went up to the square to learn the name of the man who had assaulted him, and the lieutenant who commanded the guard that day refused to give it to him. After his interview with the lieutenant, this man, Gibbens, came along, and seizing Sergeant Waterman by the collar pushed him out of the square, at the same time calling him ‘a nine-months’ conscript son of a b--h,’ also using much profane language. Other members of Gibbens’ company stood looking on, advising him to kick the sergeant, break his head, etc. All this time Sergeant Waterman did not resist in any manner, or make any retaliatory reply.

“I believe that I can prove that said Gibbens has several times before this stopped soldiers in the street and demanded their passes, even when he had no arms and was entirely unaccompanied by any patrol or member of the provost-guard. Trusting that this matter may receive a rigid investigation,

“I have the honor to remain,

“Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
“J. STEDMAN, _Lieutenant-Colonel_,
“_commanding 42d Regt., Mass. Vols._

“TO MAJOR VON HERMAN,
“_commanding Provost-Guard, New Orleans_.”

The provost-marshal promised to look into the affair and report what was done about it. Nothing further was heard about the matter.

With warm weather rapidly setting in, the unacclimated officers and men of the Forty-Second began to swell the sick list. Assistant-Surgeon Hitchcock, in charge of the regimental hospital, had been ordered to Berwick Bay on special duty April 19th, where a large number of sick and convalescent men from the army operating in the Teche district were in hospitals. On his departure, Assistant-Surgeon Heintzelman assumed charge of the regimental hospital at Bayou Gentilly, with the following organization: Private Charles H. Warren, Company F, acting hospital-steward; Private Thomas M. Lewis, Company D, ward-master; Private James Mitchell, Company B, nurse; Private William F. Lacount, Company F, nurse; Private Edwin Rycroft, Company K, nurse; Private John W. Robinson, Company K, nurse; Private Hiram B. Douglass, Company K, nurse; Private William Harris, Jr., Company I, cook; Private Archibald McDollen, Company E, cook. The arrangements of the hospital under Surgeon Heintzelman were excellent. He won the good opinion of all the men, with the exception of those who failed to play their points upon him by playing sick. His experience and knowledge promptly detected all such cases at surgeon’s call in the morning; the men being promptly returned back to their companies as fit for duty. These qualities in any officer never fails to command the good will, respect and confidence of the majority of men over whom he has control, for they feel that no shirks can cause extra duty to fall on other shoulders, because they cannot successfully evade it.

Lieutenant-Colonel Stedman and Major Stiles were on the sick list; the major in May and through June. Lieutenant Harding recovered and went to Port Hudson, May 25th, to join his company.

At the close of May there was present for duty, under orders of the lieutenant-colonel, seventeen officers and three hundred and fifty-seven men. Sick in regimental hospital, twenty-five men; and in quarters, ten men. The average sick per day for the month had been: taken sick, four; returned to duty, four; sick in hospital, twenty-four; sick in quarters, thirteen. On the seventeenth there were fifteen men of Company K in hospital, and on the twenty-third seventeen men of that company; nine of them were returned to duty on the twenty-sixth. About all sickness this month was among the men on duty. The paroled prisoners were in good health. Only one man of Company D was in hospital May 31st. Companies G and I did not have a case.

One death occurred. Private John H. Cary, Company G, May 6th, from delirium tremens, and he was buried near the camp. The case of Private Cary was the result of hard drinking. His body was found, badly decomposed, in the swamp by the roadside, not far from camp, on the thirteenth of May. Cary had been a hard drinker ever since his return from Texas, and shown such symptoms of delirium as to cause a watch to be kept on him. On the evening of the sixth he managed to get out of his tent without attracting the attention of any one, and immediately, it would seem, took to the swamp in the place where found, and there died. He was missed soon after disappearing, and for a week diligent search was made to find him. An impure odor, caused by decomposition of the body, attracted the attention of some members of the regiment passing by upon the road; they searched the swamp and found him. He was sitting at the foot of a tree, grasping with both hands the roots, with his legs immersed in mud almost to the knees. Thick bushes bordering on the swamp edge, by the roadside, screened him from being seen and prevented an earlier discovery. Cary was put in a box by the help of an old colored man, called John, who chopped wood in the camp. No one else could be induced to touch the body; but old John said: “I not afraid of a ’Yankee’ soger, sah! No sah, dead or alive, sah!” The remains were buried the same day with appropriate ceremonies.

This negro, John, was a camp follower from the time the regiment went into camp at Gentilly until it embarked for the North. He was formerly a slave, and lived a long distance from camp, but was always on hand at reveille, remaining until Peas on a Trencher, doing all the hard work of camp, splitting wood, getting water, etc., etc., and would work steady in the hottest sun, with perspiration coming from the pores of his skin like water. He worked for small pay; for a small sum of money sang the old religious hymns the negroes in that locality sang at their prayer meetings, danced as plantation darkies can dance, and was the jolliest old negro there was in camp. Old John’s wife did a large amount of washing for the boys, which brought additional picayunes to his wallet, and, although he made a few bad debts--some of the unprincipled men taking advantage of his ignorance to cheat him--on the whole, John made a good living from his labor for the Forty-Second. His boy was also a hanger-on at camp, but could not be made to do much work. This boy was a great imitator, and would watch attentively the drummers at practice, and soon became able to handle a drum with skill.