January 14, 1862
C.H. Sargent, Colonel, 52nd Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Headquarters, Camp Dennison, Hamilton County, Ohio. To Adjutant General C.P. Buckingham. Letter stating that his letter would be handed to Buckingham by Captain R.C. Bocking, lately connected with the service in Missouri, that Bocking desired authority to recruit and organize a battery of light artillery to be attached to Sargent's command, that referring to like authority granted the 74th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry and other regiments, he inferred attaching a battery of light artillery to his command would be consistent, that he had known Bocking in connection with military matters for a number of years and found him competent, worthy, and most energetic, that he understood Bocking had over one hundred men enrolled and, with authority and transportation furnished, could have these men in camp within a very short time, and that should Buckingham grant Bocking's application, it would no doubt materially aid and assist in the more rapid recruiting for the infantry arm of his regiment and be to the advantage and benefit of the service.
1 p. [Series 147-23: 127]
January 14, 1862
N[ewton] Schleich, Colonel, 61st Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Camp Medill. To Colonel McVeigh. Letter stating that Messrs. Brown, Terry, and Hedges were expected to raise a company together, that the company was raised, but when they came to organize, difficulty was found to exist among the enlisted men as to who should be Captain, that after careful consideration, it had been determined by himself and the officers that the men ought to be divided, especially as Terry believed he could fill up in a few days, and that they had decided to divide and therefore wanted Terry commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant at once; and requesting that the men recruited by Terry be transferred to him.
1 p. [Series 147-23: 93]
January 14, 1862
N[ewton] Schleich, Colonel, 61st Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Headquarters. To the Adjutant General of Ohio. Letter requesting that Edward R. Black be commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the 61st Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and assigned to recruit in Pickaway County and adjoining counties; stating that he was assured Black could raise a full company in 30 days; and requesting that Black be given that amount of time. Bears the endorsement of George W. Gregg, Chairman, Pickaway County Military Committee.
1 p. [Series 147-23: 125]
January 14, 1862
William H. Trimble, Hillsboro, Highland County, Ohio. To Adjutant General C.P. Buckingham. Letter stating that he wished Buckingham to renew the authority of William S. Irvin of South Salem, Ross County, Ohio, that Irvin reported 26 men enrolled on January 13, and one of his assistant recruiting officers was understood to have 25, that he would speak for them in Ross County on January 15, and would know more of their prospects on his return, that even now he was satisfied they would make a company, that he spent the previous week in Clark County making speeches, and moved men in townships heretofore opposed to the war, that he did the same the week before in the "bootleg" of Brown County, that he feared he would break down under such work, and that he was not well now and his work would not let him rest.
2 pp. [Series 147-23: 110]
January 14, 1862
C[arr] B. White, Colonel, 12th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Camp Warren, Virginia. To Adjutant General C.P. Buckingham. Letter stating that when in Columbus in December, he learned that the vacancies which occurred in the 12th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry would be filled by his nominations and that commissions would be issued on the receipt of said nominations at Buckingham's office; requesting that 2nd Lieutenant Horatio G. Tibbals be commissioned in place of Ashley Brown, 1st Lieutenant, Company I, 12th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry who was taken prisoner at the Battle of Scarey Creek and released on his parole of honor; stating that he understood Brown was to be transferred to a skeleton regiment of officers who had taken the parole; requesting that Henry W. Orvis, Orderly Sergeant, Company I, 12th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry be promoted to 2nd Lieutenant in place of Tibbals; and stating that Orvis had been acting as 2nd Lieutenant since July 21, 1861 by order of Colonel [John W.] Lowe, that if commissions had not already been issued to Frederick B. Sneibly in place of 2nd Lieutenant Steader who was cashiered, to 2nd Lieutenant Ezra Stevens in place of Captain James Sloan who had resigned, to John V. O'Conner, Sergeant, Company K, 12th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry in place of 2nd Lieutenant Stevens who was promoted, to William Sine, Sergeant in place of 2nd Lieutenant A[aron] N. Channel who was promoted, and to Andrew Miller in place of 1st Lieutenant J[onathan] C. Wallace, Regimental Quartermaster, Buckingham would oblige these gentlemen and subserve the interest of the regiment by so doing, that these individuals had all been assigned to duty in the offices for which commissions were requested and some of them for several months, that Tibbals was the only commissioned officer in Company I, and that the Captain was on detached service as ordnance officer at Gauley Bridge, Virginia and, given the dislike he had for his company and the company for him, would most probably remain so during the service.
2 pp. [Series 147-23: 212]
January 14, 1862
H. B[lair] Wilson, Lieutenant Colonel, 44th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Springfield, Clark County, Ohio. To Governor David Tod. Letter stating that Samuel A. Todd, 1st Sergeant in Company F, 44th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry now at Camp Piatt, western Virginia, informed him that he desired the appointment of a Lieutenancy in some regiment now being recruited in Ohio, that they would regret to have Todd transferred from the 44th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, but it was due to him, that Todd was a most valuable and efficient officer, that Todd was well versed in the light infantry and rifle tactics, and that Todd would make an excellent Lieutenant. Bears an endorsement dated January 15, 1862, of Representative R.D. Harrison.
1 p. [Series 147-23: 66]
January 14, 1862
W[illiam] C. Wilson, et. al., Patterson's Creek Station, Virginia, on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. To Governor William Dennison. Letter signed by sixty-three members of Company G, 5th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry; requesting that Dennison reconsider the appointments of Fred[erick] Moore and C[olin] F. McKensie as Captain and 1st Lieutenant of Company G; and stating that Moore, who was the 1st Lieutenant of the company, had resigned said position and gone home and McKensie never had been with the company, that they did not wish Dennison to commission Moore and McKensie, and that it was the wish of the signers, who had been members of Company G since April 19, 1861, that Dennison should commission F.W. Hefferman as Captain of Company G and P[atrick] H. McCann as 1st Lieutenant of Company G.
2 pp. [Series 147-23: 178]
January 14, 1862
Lewis Zahm, Colonel Commanding, 3rd Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Cavalry, Headquarters, Camp Worcester, Monroeville, Huron County, Ohio. To Governor David Tod. Letter stating that some time since, Governor William Dennison appointed and commissioned Captain James Brisbin of the 6th U.S. Cavalry as Major of the 3rd Battalion in his command, that he had just been notified that the Secretary of War would not detach Brisbin from the 6th U.S. Cavalry to join his command, that this consequently left a vacancy of Major in his regiment, that they were in the act of moving to Camp Dennison and would have the whole command in camp on January 20, and that as they needed another Major very much, they would be pleased if one was appointed for them immediately; recommending Captain Charles Seidell of Company E, 3rd Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Cavalry for promotion to Major of the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Cavalry; stating that Seidell was a very fine man, had large military experience, and would fill the position in a proper manner; recommending other promotions if Seidell was promoted; and requesting that the appointments be sent to Camp Dennison.
1 p. [Series 147-23: 79]
January 14, 1862
Lewis Zahm, Colonel Commanding, 3rd Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Cavalry, Headquarters, Camp Worcester, Monroeville, Huron County, Ohio. To Adjutant General C.P. Buckingham. Letter reporting the departure of the 2nd Squadron of his command, consisting of Company L and Company M, for Camp Dennison via Shelby per orders from Buckingham.
1 p. [Series 147-23: 87]
January 15, 1862
George Baxter, 67th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Camp Chase, Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio. To Governor David Tod. Letter stating that there was at present the utmost disaffection in Captain Lewis Butler's company of the 67th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry because Colonel O[tto] Burstenbinder had refused to let the company designate by vote the persons whom they wished to have for their officers, that regardless of their feeling and contrary to the military laws of Ohio, Burstenbinder had appointed officers over them who were not commissioned by the Governor and who spoke a language which the soldiers could not understand, that they appealed to Tod to allow them to elect the persons whom they wished to have for their officers and to prevent Burstenbinder from exercising a foreign despotism over them to which, as Americans, they would not submit, that they claimed protection from Tod because, as citizen soldiers, they were entitled to it and because it had heretofore been denied to them, that several commissioned officers had, by the proceeding of the Colonel, been shut out from the regiment, that Dutchmen, who could not speak english and who were not commissioned to recruit, were appointed by Burstenbinder, that the Lieutenants who Burstenbinder had dismissed could not by law be turned out of the regiment until they were regularly mustered out of service and neither could other officers be appointed while the former held their commissions, and that they hoped Tod would give the matter his earliest attention.
2 pp. [Series 147-23: 119]
January 15, 1862
E.B. Bell, Alexandria, Licking County, Ohio. To Governor David Tod. Letter stating that he would like to get a permit to raise a company for the war, and that he was in the three months' service and held the office of Sergeant.
1 p. [Series 147-23: 122]
January 15, 1862
M.A. Bronson, Camp Dennison, Post Hospital, Hamilton County, Ohio. To Governor David Tod. Letter stating that he was writing on behalf of himself and others in like circumstances, that the Surgeon of his regiment ordered his discharge to be made out with the date of November 1, 1861, that it was made out accordingly and his Captain kept it from him until now, that it was not out of ignorance that his Captain had done this, but through designing motives, that his wagonmaster and comrades in the company could attest that he had served faithfully in his occupation up to his confinement in the hospital, that his Captain was a man who knew how to do the work right and therefore could not feign ignorance, that he lost one month in Camp Taylor and other expenses during the three months' operation, and now found that his pay stopped three months ago, that another month would go by before he went to his family, that he was a poor man and needed all of his time, that five months were gone for which he would receive nothing, that he had a wife and two children dependent on him for a living, that it made his heart sick when he looked the future in the face, that he had done his best to serve his country, that he entered the service rugged and hearty, that except for accidentally getting his back hurt and subsequently getting wet and taking cold in his back, he would still be serving in his company, that he never was troubled with rheumatism until now, that his Captain had charged him with $10.00 for overdrawn clothing, but did not mention what the articles were, that his Captain discharged men who drew the same amount and charged them nothing, that the whole thing bore indications of malice, that he was told he had no chance of redress, that he did not blame the Government for his faults, but wondered if the Government could do something to make such officers as his Captain individually responsible for gross neglect, that he knew Tod was a friend to the soldiers as well as commissioned officers, that he thought it would do no harm and might, through Tod's influence, do a great deal of good to hundreds in their vast army situated as he was, and that he knew a soldier should not complain, but when he had to go home in poor health in such circumstances, his courage failed him.
4 pp. [Series 147-23: 151]
January 15, 1862
Otto Burstenbinder, Colonel, 67th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Headquarters, Camp Chase, Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio. To Sir. Letter reporting the results of an election for Chaplain of the 67th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry.
1 p. [Series 147-23: 78]
January 15, 1862
James Cantwell, Colonel, and J[ames] S. Robinson, Major, 82nd Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Headquarters, Camp Simon Kenton, Kenton, Hardin County, Ohio. To Adjutant General C.P. Buckingham. Letter asking if a probate judge had the power to discharge regularly enlisted men on habeas corpus; stating that probate judges were discharging men on the most frivolous pretenses, that they had about come to the conclusion not to answer in the future nor to let the probate judges take the men, that some of the men discharged had been in camp for the past month, that men now claimed in some instances that they were under age at the time they were enrolled and, in other instances, that they were intoxicated, and that upon these pretenses, writs were issued and the men were discharged in almost every instance; and asking what their duty was in such cases. Bears a pencilled note reading "I know of no way to avoid obedience to the decision of a civil court."
2 pp. [Series 147-23: 111]
[January 15?, 1862]
S.F. Cary, et. al. To Governor David Tod. Letter signed by thirty-two individuals; recommending the appointment of Corporal John R. Taylor of Company B, 6th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry to the position of Lieutenant in one of the regiments now forming in Ohio; and stating that Taylor had seen seven months active service in western Virginia at Laurel Hill, Carrick's Ford, Cheat Mountain, and Elkwater, and that Taylor was peculiarly qualified for the position of Lieutenant.
1 p. [Series 147-23: 197]
January 15, 1862
Henry H. Dodge, Perrysburg, Wood County, Ohio. To Adjutant General C.P. Buckingham. Letter stating that Dr. J.J. Dahlen, lately discharged by Buckingham from service under his enlistment in the 69th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, had made some statements since his return which required attention, that Dahlen accused him of inducing several recruits (enlisted, but not sworn in) to refuse to go when summoned to camp by Lieutenant Rudolph of the 69th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, telling these recruits that they were not bound and might defy the officer, refusing to go himself although he had enlisted, and other things equally false, that Dahlen also claimed to have Buckingham's assurance that a Marshal would be dispatched to arrest Dodge, that he never signed any enlistment roll, but did by way of jest write a fictitious name upon the roll of Captain J.B. Spafford with whom he was intimately acquainted, that he had often assured Spafford and other recruiting officers that he would enter the service, if it were not for the loss of the use of his left hand by an accident, that his enlistment would bring a useless expense upon the government, that a short time before, Rudolph had notified him to appear in camp, that he at once declared himself ready to go, but remarked that he had never enlisted and should apply for a discharge at Columbus, that Rudolph spoke of Dodge's disability and expressed himself willing and authorized to discharge Dodge on the production of a physician's certificate of disability, that he obtained the certificate and was discharged, that he was then approached by Dahlen who desired a discharge and wanted his help in obtaining one, that Dahlen swore revenge when he refused to assist him, that if it was necessary and proper for him to report at Columbus he would do so at once, but he did not wish to be subjected to the unmerited disgrace of going in custody of an officer, that as a member of the county military committee, he had labored faithfully and diligently in the cause and would most assuredly have raised a company had he not been disabled, that Rudolph, if consulted, would testify as to the truth of his statements, and that if his attendance was desired at camp, he begged to be notified and not taken there as a deserter or criminal.
3 pp. [Series 147-23: 148]
January 15, 1862
G. Volney Dorsey, M.D., et. al., Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio. To Governor David Tod. Letter signed by fifteen doctors, etc.; requesting the appointment of Thomas W. Gordon, M.D. of Georgetown, Brown County, Ohio to any position in the line of his profession which he may desire and which may be in Tod's power to give; and stating that they did this because they knew Gordon to possess in an eminent degree the confidence of the medical profession throughout the State. Bears the endorsement of C.P. Buckingham, Adjutant General of Ohio.
1 p. [Series 147-23: 171]
January 15, 1862
L[emuel] F. Drake, Chaplain, 31st Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Camp Somerset, Kentucky. To Governor David Tod. Letter stating that he had been solicited by the friends of Captain Samuel R. Mott, 31st Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, to say a few things in regard to the propriety of his being promoted to some field office in the army, that he had been acquainted with Mott since the early part of September 1861, that from his acquaintance with Mott as a military man, he had no hesitancy in saying that Mott was in every respect qualified to occupy the position of a field officer, that in the early part of his life, Mott exhibited his patriotism by being in Texas and the Mexican War, that when the President called for three months' men to aid in putting down the rebellion, Mott raised and commanded one of the first companies and made himself considerable reputation as a military commander, that as soon as Mott returned from the three months' service, he organized a company for three years or during the war, that Mott was now in command of one of the best disciplined and well drilled companies in the service, that Mott was a man of much influence and popularity at home, that Mott had practiced law in St. Mary's, Auglaize County, Ohio for about twenty years, that Mott was elected Prosecuting Attorney for several terms and had represented the people of his district in the Ohio Legislature for two or three terms, and that a man who had seen the service which Mott had, and who was so eminently qualified in military matters, should be promoted.
3 pp. [Series 147-23: 196]
January 15, 1862
M[anning] F. Force, Lieutenant Colonel Commanding, 20th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Headquarters, City Barracks, Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio. To Adjutant General C.P. Buckingham. Letter requesting an order to procure transportation for Sergeant C.W. McCracken of Company A, 20th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry and recruits, and to recruit in Knox County and Morrow County for ten days.
1 p. [Series 147-23: 108]
January 15, 1862
M[anning] F. Force, Lieutenant Colonel Commanding, 20th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Headquarters, City Barracks, Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio. To Adjutant General C.P. Buckingham. Letter stating that Lieutenant [Francis M.] Shaklee, transferred to his command, had reported with twenty-six men, and that Shaklee had nine others enlisted who were yet to report; requesting that Harrison Wilson, authorized to recruit for the 79th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry and whose time had expired, have his time extended and be allowed to recruit for the 20th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry; and stating that Wilson had four men enlisted.
1 p. [Series 147-23: 137]
January 15, 1862
Homer Goodwin, Sandusky, Erie County, Ohio. To the Honorable John Kelley. Letter stating that Rush Drake desired to be promoted to either 1st Lieutenant or 2nd Lieutenant, that Drake was connected with the 6th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry and was now at Camp Wickliffe, Kentucky, that Drake was with the three months' men and re-enlisted for three years, that he understood Drake could procure the recommendation of all the officers of his regiment, that he wished Kelley would see Governor David Tod and learn if there were any vacancies, and if so, make an effort for Drake's advancement, and that if there was need of recommendations or certificates, etc., they would be forthcoming; regarding his choice for a Senator; and stating that the Honorable R.P. Spalding was one of the most reliable anti-slavery men of Ohio, if not the most reliable, that he was heartily sick of all compromises, in fact of everything except open war upon the institution of slavery until it was driven from the face of the earth, that he regarded slavery as the origin of all their troubles, and that they would never have anything but trouble respecting slavery so long as it maintained a foothold upon the continent.
2 pp. [Series 147-23: 204]
January 15, 1862
Julian Harmon, Warren, Trumbull County, Ohio. To Governor David Tod. Letter stating that he had learned that a Colonel was to be appointed for the 41st Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, that his cousin, E[merson] Opdycke, was Captain of Company A and had been acting Colonel for an Indiana regiment in camp in Kentucky, that very few men from civilian life would prove themselves more capable in the field than Opdycke, that Opdycke had been unremitting in attention to military study under Colonel [William B.] Hazen, that he thought Opdycke would be entirely acceptable to the 41st Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry as their Colonel, that his brother wrote that Opdycke was a very efficient officer and superior to most of those around him, that together with his brother-in-law, Opdycke had lost all his property because of the rebellion, having lost largely by non-payment from the South, that it was just, therefore, that Opdycke make something by the war while he incurred its perils, that Opdycke's friends in the West as well as locally would be glad to see him promoted, and that he did not doubt that Tod would be pleased personally to aid Opdycke.
3 pp. [Series 147-23: 179]
January 15, 1862
S[amuel] H. Hurst, Captain, Company A, 73rd Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Camp Logan, Chillicothe, Ross County, Ohio. To Adjutant General C.P. Buckingham. Letter stating that L[uther] M. Buchwalter and John J. Throckmorton, 1st Lieutenant and 2nd Lieutenant in Company A, 73rd Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, were elected on November 9, 1861 by the unanimous vote of the company, that they were appointed on November 19, 1861, 10 days after their election, that Colonel [Orland] Smith and himself were of the opinion that the appointments of Buchwalter and Throckmorton should date back to their election, and that they hoped it would be so arranged.
1 p. [Series 147-23: 83]
January 15, 1862
Lee Roy Kramer, Wheeling, Virginia. To Dear Sir. Letter stating that their legislature was now in session and they desired to get up an efficient volunteer system for their State at an early date, that they thought Ohio's system was such a one as would suit them, that as chairman of the Committee on Military Affairs, he was induced to request information regarding Ohio's volunteer system, and that they would adjourn about February 1, and were very desirous to effect a more efficient organization before they adjourned.
2 pp. [Series 147-23: 120]
[January 15?, 1862]
F.C. LeBlond, et. al. To ? Letter signed by nine individuals; recommending Captain Samuel R. Mott for promotion; and stating that Mott's experience in military affairs, coupled with his known pluck, befitted him for an advanced position, and that Mott's promotion would be gratifying to his numerous friends and beneficial to the cause.
1 p. [Series 147-23: 80]
January 15, 1862
Romain Lujeane, Adjutant, 58th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Headquarters, Camp Chase, Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio. To Adjutant General C.P. Buckingham. Letter stating that according to army regulations as well as articles of war, no officer serving in the U.S. Army had a right to induce soldiers already sworn in a regiment, troop, battery, or company to desert and join another, that this was a capital offence, and that an individual named Captain Rob of the 47th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, on recruiting service at Cincinnati, persuaded two enlisted men belonging to Company B, 58th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and on leave of absence in Columbus, to desert their regiment fully uniformed and depart with said Captain for Cincinnati; and requesting further instructions.
1 p. [Series 147-23: 106]
January 15, 1862
P[atrick] H. McCann, Patterson's Creek Station, Virginia. To Governor William Dennison. Letter enclosing a petition from the non-commissioned officers and Privates of Company G, 5th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, asking Dennison to reconsider the appointments of Fred[erick] W. Moore and C[olin] F. McKensie, the former to the position of Captain and the latter to the position of 1st Lieutenant of Company G [see Series 147-23: 178]; and stating that Moore had resigned the position of 1st Lieutenant in order to tend to his private affairs, that McKensie had once run for the position of 2nd Lieutenant against their present 2nd Lieutenant, A[ugustus] Moonert, that the members of Company G had shown their respect for McKensie by asking him to stay at home, that the members of Company G thought that none but those who had been with the company since April 19, 1861 should hold office in said company, that McKensie was well known to several members of the company who heartily wished him at home, thinking that there were plenty of Privates in the company and regiment who were equally as well drilled and fit to command as McKensie, and that the petition was signed by every member of Company G present, with the balance of the company being absent on furlough, sick in hospital, and on extra duty.
2 pp. [Series 147-23: 177, and 179]
January 15, 1862
S.J. McGroarty, Colonel, 50th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Headquarters, Camp Beckett. To Adjutant General C.P. Buckingham. Letter reporting the men enlisted by John Carr at the time they were transferred to be ten in number and able bodied men; and stating that Carr had no muster roll nor company list of names, that Carr's men were neglected and demoralized, that he deemed it his duty to report Carr at Buckingham's headquarters as entirely unfit for any command, that from the Adjutant and Quartermaster he learned that the largest number Carr ever reported was nineteen, of whom four were unfit for service, that Carr was unfit in every particular to have a command, that Carr was badly ruptured, could neither read or write, knew nothing of discipline, and could never be taught, that on the other hand, Carr was sober, honest, and a good man, that in any position for which Carr was fit, he would prove not only reliable but valuable, and that he proposed to give Carr an appointment for which he was fit, but Carr indignantly refused. Bears notes from the Adjutant and Quartermaster of the regiment.
2 pp. [Series 147-23: 114]
January 15, 1862
N[athaniel] C. McLean, Colonel, 75th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Headquarters, Camp John McLean. To Adjutant General C.P. Buckingham. Letter stating that Captain [Benjamin] Morgan and Captain [James W.] Swope were sworn in by J.A. Lynch, Notary Public upon receipt of their recruiting appointments, rather than by a mustering officer of the U.S., that Morgan and Swope felt very much averse to the course proposed in order to correct their rolls, that they did not like having the credit of their labors given to an officer who did not perform it nor did they like to lose their pay which they had richly earned by their labor in the cause, and that he understood Buckingham had issued a special order in the case of Lieutenant Miner by which Miner was mustered in by an officer of the U.S. as of the date of his oath administered by Lynch; asking why the same course could not be adopted in regard to Morgan and Swope and their Lieutenants; stating that if this could be done, the men and officers would get their pay with no injustice rendered to the Government, that he hoped Buckingham would see to it that justice was done, and that in so doing, Buckingham might have to cut through a very small bunch of red tape; and requesting that Buckingham ask Governor David Tod if he would officially order the colors for the regiment or compel him to make a requisition upon Quartermaster General [Montgomery C.] Meigs.
2 pp. [Series 147-23: 81]
January 15, 1862
N[athan] D. Menken, Captain, 1st Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Cavalry, Patterson's Creek, Virginia. To Governor David Tod. Letter stating that he was addressing Tod with the hope of obtaining those rights from the present Governor to which he and his command were entitled and which were neglected by the former Governor, that his company was scarcely formed before they were hurried off to Virginia, half armed and equipped, that a company which started after they did had carbines, sabers, and revolvers, that in reply to a letter written to Governor William Dennison, the Quartermaster General told him to forward a requisition duly approved, but that he had probably better wait as they were expected soon to join their regiment in Kentucky, that men who offered their lives on the dictates of duty should not have to contend with red tape, that General [Frederick W.] Lander said he would likely move them in four or five days to another point on the railroad and so the case stood, that fighting in the mountains with bushwhackers, as they were doing, rendered a revolver an absolute necessity, that they would never waver at the call of duty, but their lives were so much more exposed without proper arms, and that cavalry from Pennsylvania and Maryland had revolvers, but his group of Ohioans did not; and asking if the Governor would protect them.
2 pp. [Series 147-23: 144]