gn them.

All these assembled recruits and expectant officers presented when in
camp the general appearance of a town meeting. But one uniform was to
be seen; that was of the gentleman who had seen service in the
regiment of 1861; the uniform of the Mexican veteran evidently had
been worn out long since. However, soon the Major came who had seen
some service as a captain in an earlier regiment, and who had
succeeded in getting himself transferred with an increased rank; leave
of absence and promotion at the same stroke. He wore a uniform, but
looked lonesome. However, he had seen a camp and had been in a
regiment, and had some ideas of what ought to be done. He organized a
guard whose only weapons at first were those given by nature or
borrowed from the wood pile. His first officer of the day, in a brown
cutaway, striped trowsers, and a silk hat, bore as insignia of his
office a part of a military weapon, now discarded, but at that early
date in use, and known as a ramrod. If there were a sword in camp,
excepting those of the major commanding and the veteran of '61, its
owner must have concealed it, perhaps for fear of applications to
borrow. Imagine the guard mounting! the difficulties of getting into
line; no two hats alike; no uniforms and no two suits alike, and the
officer of the day in costume approximating that of a Quaker, and with
a ramrod for a sword! The orders were of a nature of explanation and
conference, and were the result of an agreement between the officers
and men. To the credit of all concerned it must be said that these
agreements were faithfully carried out, and if any fellow presumed to
disobey the officer of the guard after due remonstrance, he was liable
to be knocked down and perhaps kicked, according to the gravity of the
offence. But there were no accidents from fire-arms. Shot-guns had
been left at home and Springfield muskets had not arrived. Clothing
arrived in boxes in advance of the quartermaster, but lack of
quartermaster was a small matter. One of the captains (since a
distinguished lawyer), was detailed to attend to the business of
distributing the clothing, and the invoices and vouchers were long
afterwards, I believe, made up by counting noses and multiplying that
factor by the number of articles properly allowed each man. By good
luck or the favor of Providence rations soon became plenty. There was
no canned roast beef nor those other luxuries much advertised long
afterwards, as w