ments for transportation and telegraphing required in organizing and moving the troops.

The companies in the western counties were ordered to march into the camps of instruction at Pittsburg, and those in the central portion of the State to Camp Curtin, at Harrisburg. These camps had been established under previous calls for volunteers. Colonel John McLean commanded at Pittsburg, and Colonel G. A. C. Seiler at Harrisburg; to these officers, company commanders arriving at the camp were ordered to report.

When it had been determined by General McCall to organize a regiment of rifle skirmishers, the following companies were selected to compose the regiment, on account of the superior skill of the men in the use of the rifle: The "Anderson Life Guards," company A, of Tioga county, commanded by Captain Philip Holland; the Morgan Rifles," company B, of Perry county, Captain Langhorn Wistar; the "Cameron County Rifles," company C, of Cameron county, Captain John A. Eldred; the "Raftsmen's Guards," company D, of Warren county, Captain Roy Stone; the "Tioga Rifles," company E, of Tioga county, Captain Alanson E. Niles; the "Irish Infantry," company F, of Carbon county, Captain Dennis McGee; the "Elk Rifles," company G, of Elk county, Captain Hugh McDonald; the "Wayne Independent Rifles," company H, of Chester county, Captain Charles F. Taylor; the "McKean Rifles," company I, of McKean county, Captain William T. Blanchard; the "Raftsmen's Rangers," company K, of Clearfield county, Captain Edward A. Irvin. All of these companies, in obedience to orders, had rendezvoused in Camp Curtin at Harrisburg, and on the 12th of June held a meeting for the purpose of organizing the regiment, by the election of field officers. Thomas L. Kane, of McKean county, was elected colonel, but feeling that a regiment organized for a special service of so much importance to the corps, and, indeed, to the whole army, should be commanded by an officer of experience, he subsequently resigned. The com

pany officers convened on the following day and elected Charles J. Biddle, Esq., of Philadelphia, colonel; Thomas L. Kane, lieutenant-colonel; Roy Stone, of the "Raftsmen's Guards," major. John T. A. Jewett, of Warren county, was appointed adjutant of the regiment; Lieutenant W. H. Patton, of Clearfield county quartermaster; S. D. Freeman, surgeon; W. T. Humphrey, assistant-surgeon, and Rev. W. H. D. Hatton, chaplain.

The character and experience of Colonel Biddle made it eminently proper that the Rifle regiment of picked men, organized as a regiment of skirmishers, should be placed in his command.

Charles John Biddle was born in Philadelphia in 1819; was educated at Princeton College; and was admitted to the bar in his native city in 1810. At the beginning of the war with Mexico, he raised a company for service under the Act of Congress adding ten regiments to the regular army. Captain Biddle's company was in the regiment of Voltigeurs, of which the colonel was the present PaymasterGeneral T. P. Andrews, and the lieutenant-colonel was Joseph E. Johnston, now a general in the Confederate army. This regiment rendered distinguished service in all the battles in the valley of Mexico, in the campaign of General Scott. Honorable mention of Captain Biddle's name appears in the official reports of Generals Scott, Worth, Pillow, and Cadwalader, as published by Congress in 1847. In his report of the storming of Chapultepec, General Scott names Captain Biddle as "one of the first in the assault," and his regimental commander, Colonel Andrews, in his report of the same action further says of Captain Biddle, "he joined us in the morning from a sick bed, against my wish and order." He received the brevet of major for "gallant and meritorious services," and was selected by General S. W. Kearny, as his aid-de-camp. At the end of the war, he resumed the practice of the law in Philadelphia.

On the breaking out of the rebellion, he was chosen a

member of the "Committee of Safety," organized for the defence of Philadelphia, and gave much time and attention to raising and drilling troops for that purpose. On the 13th of June, 1861, he accepted the command of the Thirteenth Reserve regiment, afterwards more widely known as the "Bucktails;" at the same time he was placed in command of Camp Curtin.

He left Harrisburg on the 21st of June, 1861, in command of a detachment of the Reserve Corps, consisting of his own regiment, the Fifth, Colonel Seneca G. Simmons, and a battery of the First Pennsylvania Artillery. General McClellan, in that portion of his report which treats of his campaign in Western Virginia, commends the "great activity and intelligence displayed by Colonel Charles J. Biddle," while commanding a brigade.

During the period of his military service, an election for Congress was held in Philadelphia, to fill a vacancy in the representation of the second district.

Colonel Biddle was elected, but believing his service in the field more valuable to his country he did not attend the first session of the Congress. He declined a brigadier-general's commission which was tendered to him soon after his election, replying that the acceptance of it was "incompatible with the civil trust which he had just accepted from the people of the second district of Pennsylvania." At the time of the second session of Congress, in December, 1861, Colonel Biddle was with his regiment on the Potomac, near Washington City, and as it was known that the army was to pass the winter in that position, his constituents desired him to take his seat in the House of Representatives. He obtained leave of absence to visit Philadelphia, where he was received by his fellow-citizens with becoming honors. In a written address they referred in complimentary language to his military services, and urging him to take his seat in Congress, the committee said:

"The circumstances attending your recent election to this body, the strong declaration of the wishes and expectations

of your constituents, in conferring upon you, during your absence with the army and without solicitation on your part, a position attended at this time with peculiar responsibility, are, we trust, such as may induce you to relinquish, at least for the present, that military life in which, through more than one campaign, you have already earned a just distinction." To this Colonel Biddle replied:

"It has been my earnest desire, at this great juncture in our National affairs, to give my humble services where they may be most useful to my country. With this purpose I took the field; and holding, during the period of the extra session, a separate and important command, I did not feel at liberty to quit it to take the seat in Congress to which you had, in my absence, elected me.

"It is true that, according to high authorities, I might at once hold the two positions; but it is plain that I could not perform the duties of both, and, waiving the bare legal question, it seems to me to be incompatible with the character of a representative and a legislator to be a paid officer, subject to the orders of the Executive, and present in his place only by the revocable leave of a military superior. I have, therefore, reached the conclusion that your representative must not now be thus trammelled: yet, should the tide of war, indeed, roll around the National Capital, I hope that my brethren in arms will find room in their ranks for one soldier more."

The resignation of Colonel Biddle as colonel of the "Bucktails" was accepted by the Secretary of War December 12, 1861. While the enemy continued to threaten the Capital from Mannassas, he held the position of volunteer aid to General Andrew Porter, then commanding in Washington City.

Two days after receiving his commission Colonel Biddle reported for duty to General McCall. He was ordered to join his regiment at Camp Curtin and to assume command of the encampment. He repaired at once to the post of duty and commenced the work of organizing and disciplining the

companies that were daily arriving in camp. The rigid military discipline enforced by Col. Biddle, was new and, in a measure, distasteful to the volunteer soldiers, who had so recently been of the sovereign people. Though while in Camp Curtin some of the men murmured, after engaging in active service and through all their long and severe campaigns the companies and regiments attributed due credit to the lessons of military duty learned while in camp at Harrisburg.

The "Jersey Shore Rifles," company A, of Lycoming county, commanded by Captain II. C. Ulman; the "Taggart Guards," company B, of Northumberland county, Captain James Taggart; the "Washington Cadets," company C, of Clearfield county, Captain J. O. Loraine; the "Slifer Guards," company D, of Union county, Captain Thomas Chamberlain; the "Centre Guards," company E, of Centre county. Captain John I. Gregg; the "Bradford Union Guards," company F, of Bradford county, Captain A. J. Trout; the "Huntingdon Infantry," company G, of Huntingdon county, Captain A. S. Harrison; the "Pollock Guards," company II, of Northumberland county, Captain John McCleery; the "Scott Infantry," company I, of Huntingdon county, Captain George Dare, and the "Cookman Rangers," company K, of Lancaster county, Captain J. W. Fisher, were ordered to report to the commanding officer at Camp Curtin.

On the 20th of June these companies organized themselves into the Fifth regiment of the Reserve Corps, by electing Captain John Irving Gregg, of Centre County, colonel; Captain J. W. Fisher, of Columbia, lieutenantcolonel; and Captain George Dare, of Huntingdon county, major of the regiment.

The following day Colonel Gregg resigned the colonelcy of this regiment to accept an appointment in the regular army. Seneca G. Simmons, a captain in the regular army was elected and commissioned to fill the vacancy. Colonel Simmons was a man thoroughly educated in the science of military tactics, and was a soldier by profession