CHAPTER XLV.

Matters at Home. - General Assembly of 1865. The Governor's Message. — Legislation. - Number of Soldiers sent from the State. — Our Regiments after the Close of the War. Two Pictures from Richmond. - Terry and Hawley in Virginia. - Presentations. Muster-out of Connecticut Regiments. - The Fourteenth. - Twentieth -First, Second, and Third Light Batteries. Twenty-first. - Eighteenth. Six teenth. Fifteenth. Fifth. - Seventeenth. - First Cavalry. Sixth.-Seventh. — Twelfth. Second Artillery. - Ninth. — Tenth. — First Artillery. — Twenty-ninth and Thirtieth. Eighth and Eleventh. Thirteenth. Thanks of the Legislature.

HE foreshadowing of peace was as cordially hailed by the patriotic citizens at home as by the soldiers in the field; and neither inclined to ignore the fact that the hope was borne upon the point of victorious bayonets.

On the first Monday of April, 1865, the troops of the nation entered Richmond; and before noon the telegraph had conveyed the glad tidings to almost every voting district of Connecticut. Gov. Buckingham was re-elected that day by eleven thousand and thirty-five majority over O. S. Seymour. The four members of Congress and every State Senator were Republicans; and that party had chosen nearly three-fourths of the members of the House.

When the General Assembly met, on the first Wednesday of May, every rebel army was crushed; and nothing remained of the Confederacy but a band of traitors, fleeing for their lives through the forests of Georgia.

The House elected E. K. Foster of New Haven, speaker, and John R. Buck and John M. Morris, clerks. The Senate clerk was William T. Elmer. The payments during the year from the State Treasury had amounted to $4,705,685. The total indebtedness of the State was $10,523,000.

In his Annual Message, Gov. Buckingham said, after

RATIFICATION OF AMENDMENT TO CONSTITUTION. 799

expressing gratitude to God for the promise of and a government preserved,

"It is gratifying that our volunteers, from the gallant major-general, who distinguished himself by storming and capturing Fort Fisher, down through the various grades of heroic officers, to the less conspicuous but equally meritorious privates, have not been surpassed by any soldiers in the service of any government, in patient endurance on the field and in the hospital, in fortitude under imprisonment and starvation, and in valor and intrepidity in battle. Their record furnishes strong evidence that they entered the service under a deep conviction that it was a duty they owed to their country, to humanity, and to God."

In the following language, he urged the immediate ratification of the constitutional amendment abolishing slavery:

“As slavery has been the cause of our woes and our burdens, it is our duty to labor for its abolition. An institution antagonistic to liberty, and opposed to the first elements of Christianity; an institution, which, in its barbarous tendency, planned and perpetrated a cowardly, brutal, and murderous assault upon freedom of speech, and upon fidelity to truth, in the person of a scholarly and accomplished statesman in the American Senate; an institution which instigated the Rebellion, which seized and imprisoned our sons, and sent them by tens of thousands to the grave by starvation, and which, to crown its work of infamy, assassinated the President, has forfeited all right to protection and life, and merits our vigorous and undying opposition. . . . If, during this struggle, we shall sustain the General Government in the performance of its proper functions, abolish the inhuman system of slavery, punish traitors, and adhere perpetually to the demands of truth, righteousness, and justice, we may hope that throughout an undivided nation our prosperity will be increased, our peace be uninterrupted, and our liberties be eternal."

On the 4th of May, H. K. W. Welch of Hartford introduced into the House a resolution adopting and ratifying the 13th amendment to the Constitution of the United States, abolishing and prohibiting slavery.

The Democratic leaders promised that no opposition should be made to the passage of the resolution, provided the yeas and nays were not called. Under this agreement, the resolution was passed nem. con.; the Republicans voting "aye," and the Democracy maintaining the stipulated silence. In the Senate, the roll was called; and the twenty-one Republican senators voted "yes." So Connecticut cast her voice for the abolition of slavery without a dissentient vote.

A day was set apart by each House early in May for speeches and eulogies upon the death of President Lincoln;

and by invitation of the Assembly, Col. Henry C. Deming, on the eighth day of June, delivered an eloquent and impressive oration upon the same subject at Allyn Hall.

But little legislation was needed on war-matters; and the time of the Assembly was almost wholly occupied by meas ures of local interest. Provision was made for funding the floating indebtedness of the State by authorizing the issue of three millions of twenty-year six-per-cent bonds, which should be free from all State and municipal taxation.

Laws were passed validating and confirming all votes, acts, and proceedings of towns, or their agents, for the purpose of aiding volunteers or drafted men, or for the purpose of filling the quota of the several towns.

By the exertions of Gens. W. II. Russell and Stephen W. Kellogg, and Cols. Francis Wayland, F. St. John Lockwood, and others, the militia law of the State was further amended, so that the quartermaster-general was authorized to furnish uniforms to all members of the militia force except commissioned officers. The time for the annual encampment was extended to six days; and thus the legislature finally ingrafted upon the statute-book the proposed law of 1863. The militia force was rapidly organized after the adoption of this law, which passed into successful operation; and, unless altered by some ignorant legislature, it will probably secure to the State for many years to come a sufficiently large, well-disciplined force of men, who will at all times be in condition to take the field for active service upon twenty-four hours' notice.

The legislature adjourned sine die on Friday the twentyfirst day of July.

When the war ceased, and it was ordered that no more men be enlisted, it was found that Connecticut had furnished a large excess over all the calls of government, and had sent into the field more men, in proportion to her population, than any other State except Iowa and Illinois.

The whole number of soldiers enlisted was 54,882; and these, reduced to the standard of three years, left the account of the State as follows:

In giving this result, Adjutant-Gen. Morse says,1

"It will be noticed, that in the above statement are given eighteen hundred and four men, term of service not known. This is the credit allowed by the Naval Commission; and the term of service is to be determined by the Navy Department. In the statement, these men are counted as threeyears' men. Should the average term of service prove to be for a less period than this, the credit to the State will be reduced in proper proportion.

Thus the State has furnished equal to 48,181 three-years' men, from which deduct the total quota, also reduced to the three-years' standard, viz., 41,483,—and the State has a surplus of 6,698 in three-years' men, without reference to its quota under the call of December, 1864. Under this last call, no troops were required to be furnished from this State. fact, no quota was assigned. Your Excellency was informed that the surplus under former calls more than filled the demand under this, and the State was exempt."

In

If Connecticut was eminently blessed in having her affairs directed throughout the whole period of the war by an officer so able, skillful, conciliatory, patriotic, and energetic as Gov. Buckingham, His Excellency was also fortunate in his official associates. His personal staff was filled as follows: Adjutant-General, HORACE J. MORSE of Hartford; Quartermaster-General, WILLIAM A. AIKEN of Norwich; CommissaryGeneral, THOMAS FITCH of New London; Surgeon-General, HENRY A. GRANT of Enfield; Paymaster-General, WILLIAM FITCH of New Haven.

Roger Averill of Danbury was lieutenant-governor from 1862 to 1865 inclusive; and he brought to the chair of the Senate an old-school urbanity, and a rare combination of impartiality, dignity, and decision. He engaged in constant and unwearied service of the State far beyond the technical duties of his office; and his heart and purse were always open to the calls of patriotism.

J. Hammond Trumbull as Secretary of State gave through

1 Report of 1866.

the entire war the aid of his ripe culture, varied scholarship, and zeal in the cause for which his brothers were struggling at the front.

When the main Confederate armies had surrendered, and the war was deemed substantially ended, the troops were stationed for a time in prominent cities and at strategic points to maintain the authority of government; while a consid erable force was dispatched to Texas and Mississippi to overthrow Kirby Smith and Dick Taylor, who still maintained a warlike attitude in those States. The 25th Corps (colored) embarked for Texas on June 10, and included the Twentyninth Connecticut under Col. Wooster, and the Thirtieth under Col. II. C. Ward. They landed at Brazos de Santiago, July 3, and marched to Brownsville on the Rio Grande.

The Ninth, under Lieut.-Col. John G. Healy, embarked at Savannah in April, and proceeded to Dawfuskie Island, and drove off some guerrillas who were oppressing and mur. dering the blacks. On May 2, the battalion returned to Savannah, and on the 24th was ordered to Hilton Head, where there was a large mustering of regiments "homeward bound."

The Thirteenth, about Jan. 1, was reduced from a regi ment to a battalion of five companies; and, Col. C. D. Blinn being among the supernumerary officers mustered out after long and gallant service, Capt. William E. Bradley assumed command. Early in January, the battalion was transferred from the bleak hills of Northern Virginia to warmer quarters in Savannah, Ga. Here Capt. Bradley enforced the discipline and exhibited the admirable traits of a commander. On March 12, troops were transferred to North Carolina to co-operate with Sherman; and the Thirteenth was included. They arrived at Newberne on March 14, and steamed up the river to Kinston. Next day, the Thirteenth returned to Newberne, and went into camp. Here they had a brief experience in guarding rebel prisoners, and in provost-duty. Gen. Henry W. Birge, the first colonel of the Thirteenth, here commanded a division. He had received a