“Sir,—I would respectfully bring to your notice and attention the manner in which one of the members of the provost-guard treated several enlisted men of this command after having demanded their passes, seen them, and pronounced them correct. The circumstances are as follows:
“Orderly-Sergeant Waterman, Sergeants Hewins and Sawyer, Corporal Merrill, and two privates of this regiment, paroled but unexchanged prisoners of war, were in New Orleans on Saturday, the ninth inst., for the purpose of witnessing the brigade review on that day, and, when coming down St. Charles Street, a soldier with a musket stopped them and demanded their passes; they were shown and pronounced correct. This man, representing himself as a member of the patrol, made some insulting remarks to Orderly-Sergeant Waterman and then seized him by the throat, whereupon the sergeant shook him off. The patrol then fixed his bayonet and charged upon Sergeant Waterman, striking him in the breast and inflicting a slight flesh wound, at the same time calling the sergeant ’a d—n son of a b—h’; at this point an officer came across the street and sent the whole party away. Up to the time of the officer making his appearance no other members of the patrol had been seen by any of the party alluded to, and the man who stopped them had no stripes or insignia of office on his clothing. The name of this patrol has since been ascertained to be Corporal James Gibbens, Company I, Ninth Connecticut Volunteers.
“The same day of the above occurrence Sergeant Waterman went up to the square to learn the name of the man who had assaulted him, and the lieutenant who commanded the guard that day refused to give it to him. After his interview with the lieutenant, this man, Gibbens, came along, and seizing Sergeant Waterman by the collar pushed him out of the square, at the same time calling him ‘a nine-months’ conscript son of a b—h,’ also using much profane language. Other members of Gibbens’ company stood looking on, advising him to kick the sergeant, break his head, etc. All this time Sergeant Waterman did not resist in any manner, or make any retaliatory reply.
“I believe that I can prove that said Gibbens has several times before this stopped soldiers in the street and demanded their passes, even when he had no arms and was entirely unaccompanied by any patrol or member of the provost-guard. Trusting that this matter may receive a rigid investigation,
“I have the honor to remain,
“Very respectfully, your obedient servant, “J. STEDMAN, Lieutenant-Colonel, “commanding 42d Regt., Mass. Vols.
“To Major Von Herman,
“commanding Provost-Guard, New Orleans.”
The provost-marshal promised to look into the affair and report what was done about it. Nothing further was heard about the matter.
With warm weather rapidly setting in, the unacclimated officers and men of the Forty-Second began to swell the sick list. Assistant-Surgeon Hitchcock, in charge of the regimental hospital, had been ordered to Berwick Bay on special duty April 19th, where a large number of sick and convalescent men from the army operating in the Teche district were in hospitals. On his departure, Assistant-Surgeon Heintzelman assumed charge of the regimental hospital at Bayou Gentilly, with the following organization: Private Charles H. Warren, Company F, acting hospital-steward; Private Thomas M. Lewis, Company D, ward-master; Private James Mitchell, Company B, nurse; Private William F. Lacount, Company F, nurse; Private Edwin Rycroft, Company K, nurse; Private John W. Robinson, Company K, nurse; Private Hiram B. Douglass, Company K, nurse; Private William Harris, Jr., Company I, cook; Private Archibald McDollen, Company E, cook. The arrangements of the hospital under Surgeon Heintzelman were excellent. He won the good opinion of all the men, with the exception of those who failed to play their points upon him by playing sick. His experience and knowledge promptly detected all such cases at surgeon’s call in the morning; the men being promptly returned back to their companies as fit for duty. These qualities in any officer never fails to command the good will, respect and confidence of the majority of men over whom he has control, for they feel that no shirks can cause extra duty to fall on other shoulders, because they cannot successfully evade it.
Lieutenant-Colonel Stedman and Major Stiles were on the sick list; the major in May and through June. Lieutenant Harding recovered and went to Port Hudson, May 25th, to join his company.