The pungy "Trifle" (one of the captures)—Colonel McPhail—Major Blumenburg and his corrupted office—"Boney" Lee, Bob Miller, and other thugs.
Office of Provost Marshal General
for Maryland.
Baltimore, Jany. 19, 1865.
Capt. Smith,
Asst. Provost Marshal.
Sir.—The pungy "Trifle" now stands in the name of Conrad Prince. She changed owners on the 10th of June, last.
She had not cleared by permit since then, but may have done so by manifest.
Yours, &c.,
McPhail.
Colonel McPhail was the Civil Provost Marshal of Maryland, having exclusively to do with enrollments and drafts; the office was entirely separated from the military service. He was a very clean, upright, honorable man. There was, however, a district under him, having at its head a Major Blumenburg, that was very corrupt.
Soldiers were fleeced out of bounty money. Substitutes, quite frequently colored men, were paid large sums as bounties, more money than they had ever seen before. By collusion between officers and clerks in Blumenburg's office, and the substitute brokers, the substitutes were induced to invest in valueless gewgaws, sometimes paying for a two-dollar Oride watch as much as one hundred dollars.
One of the largest substitute brokerage concerns tried to reach me with an offer of five hundred dollars a week, for a period as long as I would let them alone. The offer was not "dangerously near my price." I cleaned up the whole business very soon.
Blumenburg appointed a lot of cut throats with authority to arrest deserters, paying them ten dollars for each deserter brought in. Their operations were conducted this way: One of these fellows would hail a soldier who was out on pass take it away from him, pronouncing it fraudulent, but would allow him to proceed on his way; shortly he would be hailed again, by a "pal," and having, of course, no pass to exhibit, he would be arrested charged with desertion.