Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 14.djvu/48

 42 Southern Historical Society Papers.

sticks, bayonets, and the ends of ramrods, the Twenty-fifth regiment marched back to the I'ailroad station in the afternoon, not having had the opportunity to fire a shot.

October 24ih. — The regiment took the train about 3 o'clock this morning, and after a quicker trip than we had made coming, were disembarked and marched back to Camp Stono, reaching our camp in the afternoon. Colonel Simonton resumed his place on the Board of Examiners, and I am again in command of the regiment.

November 5, 1862. — We commenced moving our camp to-day to a field just opposite Hayward's house, on the road leading from Mc- Leod's up to Lawton's, near Camp Stono.

November 6th. — Finished moving our camp, and called it " Camp Glover," after the gallant Colonel T. G. Glover, colonel of the First regiment South Carolina volunteers, who fell at the second battle of Manassas. He was held in high esteem by all who knew him, and by none was he more esteemed than by the men of the Wee Nee. Volunteers and two Orangeburg companies which had been organ- ized in the old (Hagood's) First Regiment. He was the first captain of the Edisto Rifles. Colonel Glover was an unselfish, noble, gener- ous spirit.

November jth to 2yth. — While we occupied " Camp Glover" Col- onel Simonton, after being relieved from further duty on the Board of Examiners, was detached from the regiment and given the impor- tant and responsible command of the Eastern Division of the James Island fortifications. The command of the regiment devolved on me. I objected to this arrangement at first. Men never submit as readily to authority when exercised by one whom they regard as temporarily in position, or as exercising a command above that which his rank gives him. I foresaw the trouble that I was about to have. We had so much sickness in the regiment during the summer, and so many of the men had been absent from camp on sick leave that the discipline was not in the state that the good of the service re- quired. The otate of the regiment and the natural disposition of men to try the temper of a new administration, together with the expecta- tion that whatever unaccustomed restraints were put upon them would only la.st while the command was temporarily in my hands, made my position for a while anything but desirable. I believe, how- ever, that'.'every man in the regiment after a time came to see that it was best " to hold a tight rein."

[The Colonel returned to the regiment but three times to command it from this time till after I was disabled in Virginia. Two of these