on the whole, promotion in a new regiment was more
apt to be rapid since there would be a good many changes during the
first campaign, and, "in any event," he remarked, "if your regiment
comes anywhere near where I am I will have you detailed on my staff."
Thanking the General and bidding him and my friends good-bye, I left his
headquarters for my new field of duty.

[Footnote 3: See Appendix B.]

[Illustration: BREVET BRIGADIER GENERAL L. G. ESTES]

CHAPTER XIII

I returned to New York, procured my uniform, and immediately reported at
Auburn, where the Twenty-fourth cavalry was rendezvoused. To my
surprise, I found that they were under orders to proceed at once to
Washington. When I reported to Colonel Raulston, commanding, he told me
that he proposed to assign me to Company D, as this company had no
captain, and he did not think the first lieutenant, who had recruited
most of the men, was likely to remain long in the service and was unable
to enforce the necessary discipline. Though I was a second lieutenant,
he expected to hold me responsible for the safe conduct of the men to
Washington and the drilling and care of the company. It seems that the
first lieutenant, who was a well-meaning man, was not suited for
military life; he did not realize what was required and expected of him,
was incapable of securing the confidence of the men, and totally
ignorant of the duties of a company commander; and consequently with his
concurrence and with perfect good feeling between us, I took charge of
the company, drilled them, and had practically charge of them until
compelled to leave them by reason of wounds, as will be explained
later.

The regiment left Auburn for Washington via Elmira and Baltimore. It
rode in passenger-cars from Auburn to Elmira, and at Elmira,
notwithstanding the season of the year, February, the regiment was
placed in freight-cars and was thus transported to Baltimore. As the men
had received large bounties I was, I assume, in common with the other
company commanders, told that I would be held responsible should any of
my men desert while en route to Washington. The train made frequent
stops and was held at stations to allow other traffic to pass, and I
think we were something like forty-eight hours en route. It seemed to me
hard to keep the men cramped up in these cars in which they simply had
planks to sit on, so I told them that at each station we stopped at I
would allow a certain number