The boys learned the words and used to sing them at night for Roach’s benefit, which made him furious.
One day when Roach was drilling the men in one of the forts he got hurt on a heavy gun carriage. The major’s tent was just outside the fort and a short cut was made for his benefit by running a plank from the top of the parapet across the ditch, and the injured officer was carried across the plank by two of the men.
A soldier by the name of Pitcher saw them carrying the major across the ditch and sang out, “Dump him, boys, dump the old sinner in the ditch.”
Roach recognized the voice and called back, “I know you, Pitcher, and I’ll break your pitcher for you,” and true to his word he caused the offender to suffer by making a “spread eagle” of him on the wheel of a gun.
Roach’s performances on dress parade and battalion drills made him and us the laughing stock of Phil Kearney’s Jersey brigade and other of McClellan’s troops who were encamped about us.
The major used to prowl around nights and try to find out if any of the sentries were shirking their duties. One night he approached the post of one of our own Co. H. boys whose name was Patrick Devereaux. Pat was a typical son of Erin and withal a good soldier, and as he expressed it did not fear “shoulder straps nor the divil.” He halted old “Quicker-nor-that” and demanded the countersign. This was given and then the major thought he would see if the man knew his duties, and he said, “It’s a pleasant evening, sentry; let me see your gun a minute.” Instantly the point of the bayonet on Pat’s musket was pressed against the officer’s breast, and he was told to “mark time.” Roach thought the man fooling, but Patsy says to him, “Oi’m a bigger man on me post than yersilf, and Oi’l learn ye betther than to be playin’ tricks on a gintleman who is doin’ his duty. Mark time, Oi say, and ye betther step off ‘quicker nor that’ or Oi’l be proddin’ ye wid me bay’net.”
The major swore and threatened, but Pat could not be intimidated and he kept Roach marking time until the officer of the guard relieved him.
Strange to say the major took the matter as a good joke and Devereaux escaped punishment.
A QUIET GAME AFTER TAPS.
I recall another instance when the major got the worst of it. The boys had been forbidden to play cards in their tents after “taps,” when all lights had to be extinguished in the company streets. The cooking shanties were quite a little back of the camp and just over the crest of a deep ravine; so when the boys wanted a quiet game of “5-cent ante” with sutler tickets—for money was pretty scarce then—they would betake themselves to the cook houses where a light could not be seen from the officers’ quarters.