Globules of Adipose Pomposity: Top 11 Worst Buckeye Colonels of the Civil War

Ohio Colonels in the Civil War

"They weren't all heroes." 

    It stands to reason that somewhere in the over 200 regimental-sized organizations that Ohio fielded during the war, a bad apple or two would end up in command. Today's article tackles this admittedly sensitive subject with a top 11 list of Buckeye colonels who exited the service under less than honorable circumstances during the Civil War. It's a list of cowards, drunks, incompetents, and outright scoundrels whose record adds color (or rather off color) to Ohio's history in the Civil War and is "history that deserves to be remembered." 

    They are presented in the rough chronological order of their exit from the service. 

Wearing the colonel's eagles during the Civil War was a tremendous responsibility, and not all the men who wore the straps came up to the scratch. 

Colonel Jesse Josiah Appler of the 53rd Ohio Infantry

"Retreat and save yourselves!"

    At 47 years old, Colonel Jesse Josiah Appler was one of the oldest commanding officers of Ohio regiments during the war. Commissioned as colonel of the 53rd Ohio in September 1861, he led the regiment into the field the following spring but Shiloh proved his undoing. His adjutant Ephraim Dawes recalled that Appler "was a man about 50 years of age but of fine presence. In early life, he has served on the sloop of war Hornet. He had little education but much general intelligence, good ideas of discipline but no knowledge of drill nor of the army regulations." To be sure, these characteristics didn't mark Appler as much out of the norm for many early war commanding officers- few of them understood tactics or drill; they were citizens in uniform learning the art of war. 

    Colonel Appler, possessing a nervous disposition, raised General William T. Sherman's ire by repeatedly warning his commander of Confederate activity in his front throughout the afternoon of Saturday April 5, 1862. Forming his regiment into line to combat what he perceived to be an imminent threat from the enemy, he sent one of his lieutenants back to Sherman to report what he was doing. The lieutenant said, upon returning, "Colonel Appler, General Sherman says to take your damned regiment back to Ohio. There is no enemy nearer than Corinth!" Dawes remembered that "there was a laugh at the colonel's expense and the regiment broke ranks" but the fact was, Appler was right. His actions the following morning, however, ruined his reputation. 

    As reported in Ohio at Shiloh, "the 53rd has been much criticized about their conduct on the first day's battle at Shiloh. They were unfortunate in having an arrant coward for a colonel who, at the first sight of the enemy basely deserted his men, crying to them to 'Save yourselves" and he was seen no more until the battle was over." This overstates the case, but Ephraim Dawes provided damning testimony that Appler lost his nerve during the battle. Running up to where Appler was hiding behind a tree, Dawes suggested that Appler form the regiment to assist one of its brigade mates, the 57th Ohio, who was in a hot fight. "He looked up, his face as white as ashes, the awful fear of death upon it and squeaked in a trembling voice, "No, form the men back there." Our miserable situation flashed upon me. We were on the front of a great battle. Our regiment had never had a battalion drill. Some of the men had never fired a gun; our lieutenant colonel had become lost in the confusion of the first retreat, the major was in the hospital, and our colonel was a coward!" Shortly thereafter, Appler bolted from the field reportedly yelling out those infamous words, "Retreat and save yourselves!" 

    When he rejoined the regiment a few days later, the enlisted men showed their contempt for his actions. "When he did appear, the boys hissed and hooted at him and cried out 'Shoot him! Shoot him!' David Neal of Co. I stated. Mortified, Appler wished to resign but Sherman, incensed at Appler's conduct, refused to accept it, and had Appler cashiered on April 18, 1862, and sent home in disgrace to Ohio. Neal stated that this suited the regiment just fine: "Served him right will be the verdict of the whole people."

To learn more, click here to read "The 53rd Ohio and the Disgrace of Shiloh." 

Colonel Charles A. de Villiers of the 11th Ohio Infantry

"You have more shit in your breeches than in your guts."

    Charles A. De Villiers, a Frenchman with some military experience, became colonel of the 11th Ohio in an unusual way. Serving as major of the 8th Ohio, De Villiers served as the de-factor "inspector general" of Camp Dennison in those early war days of June 1861. "Sleepless and untiring as he was, it cannot be denied that his vigilance exerted a good influence over those officers and men who were disposed to be careless and negligent while on guard duty," Horton and Teverbaugh of the 11th Ohio recalled. De Villiers was an expert in bayonet drill and "took especial pains to show off before the men." Each night, he drilled the 8th Ohio in this bayonet exercise as the 11th Ohio looked enviously on. "So taken were the many members of the 11th Ohio with this fancy drill that when it was announced that the election for officers of the regiment would shortly take place, Major De Villiers was nominated as a candidate for colonel," and subsequently elected. 

    De Villiers led the regiment into west Virginia that summer but managed to get captured on July 17, 1861 during the Battle of Scarey Creek and imprisoned at Harwood Prison in Richmond, Virginia. As Dr. Thomas Lowry reported in his book "Tarnished Eagles," De Villiers impressed his fellow Union prisoners "with astonishing feats of soldiers' drill and pantomimes of musket and broad-sword exercises" before escaping from prison and making his way to Norfolk. By October 1861, he was back with the regiment in western Virginia but his troubles had only just begun as by February, De Villers was under court martial charged with 13 counts of conduct unbecoming an officer. 

    The litany of charges included seizing civilian property then selling it to the quartermaster for his own profit, arresting civilians  and forcing them to pay a ransom before release (also going into De Villiers' pocket), insulting his subordinates, and outright sacking of Henry J. Fisher's home in Point Pleasant. De Villiers' emptied the safe then decided to make his headquarters in Fisher's library (all the books subsequently disappeared) and generally made a nuisance of himself. 

    De Villiers' interactions with his subordinates was equally colorful. He insulted one lieutenant by telling him he was a coward. "You have more shit in your breeches than you have in your guts. You had better resign and go home." In front of a meeting of officers and enlisted men, De Villiers lambasted Captain (later Colonel) Philander P. Lane, calling him a coward "and every man in your company is a coward. I ought to tear the captain's shoulder straps off your uniform." Lane circulated a petition labeling De Villiers a scoundrel; when De Villiers caught wind of it, he tried to strong arm the men of Lane's company into giving him incriminating information so he could charge Lane, but by that time, General William S. Rosecrans had dropped the hammer and had De Villiers arrested. The court martial took place in late February and he was convicted of 6 of 13 counts. 

    But the wheels of military justice ground slowly, and by late March, his brigade commander General Jacob D. Cox commented to Rosecrans that "De Villiers is still under arrest, His relations to his regiment are most lamentable and his return to his regiment would undoubtedly destroy its efficiency. His general reputation is that his statements are not to be relied upon owing to a vivid imagination." The proceedings of the court martial were approved on April 4, 1862, and De Villiers was dishonorably dismissed from the service on April 23, 1862. 

Colonel Otto Burstenbinder of the 67th Ohio Infantry

"Imbecile imposter and knave"

    Colonel Burstenbinder's origins are murky- he arrived in the U.S. from one of the German states and claimed extensive experience in a European army. How he was appointed colonel of the 67th Ohio is a mystery, but his tenure proved short. The regiment had hardly been in service a month before the chorus of complaints about him rose to a crescendo. His loudest detractor was his lieutenant colonel Alvin C. Voris who complained to his wife that Burstenbinder was "utterly devoid of thorough business capacity. He possesses a sort of cunning but it is of such a sort that he leaves no confidence on the mind either of his ability or integrity, The first impressions of the man are agreeable, but bring him to the standard of the man who should command a regiment and he so utterly fails that you are led to wonder how an unfledged foreigner of his abilities could get such as place." Voris later termed him an "imbecile imposter and a knave." 

    Burstenbinder's superiors were quick to agree with Voris and by February 2, 1862, he was under arrest and charged with a series of infractions. "Colonel Burstenbinder has been in this country but about five months and he is necessarily ignorant of the customs and disposition of American soldiers," the February 6, 1862, issue of the Holmes County Farmer reported. "He is charged with being both tyrannical and ignorant." Colonel Burstenbinder was dismissed from the service for gross incompetence on July 29, 1862. 

Colonel Rodney Mason of the 71st Ohio Infantry 

"A Globule of Adipose Pomposity"

    Colonel Rodney Mason was cashiered by order of the President August 22, 1862 for repeated acts of cowardice before the enemy at Shiloh and Clarksville, yet he was allowed to resign in 1866 after President Andrew Johnson revoked the general order dismissing Mason. 

    Colonel Mason of Springfield, who had served in the 2nd Ohio Volunteer Militia during its 90-days service in the summer of 1861, took over command of the 71st Ohio in the fall of 1861. Mason was "supposed to possess something of military education" and great things were expected of him, but his actions at Shiloh ruined his reputation. "At the first appearance of the enemy, Colonel Mason put the spurs to his horse, basely deserting his men," Ohio at Shiloh reported. Mason's conduct the authors averred was deserving of 'the severest condemnation." The regimental historian of the 55th Illinois which served in the same brigade with the 71st Ohio, simply labeled Mason "a globule of adipose pomposity." 

Colonel Rodney Mason
71st O.V.I.

    In May 1862, the Cleveland Morning Leader reported the following which gives some insights into how unpopular Mason was in the aftermath of Shiloh. "There is no doubt that Col. Rodney Mason of the 71st proved himself to be a most despicable coward at Pittsburg Landing," it stated. "He commenced his race at Bull Run and is running still." The Urbana Free Press lampooned Mason, stating that "Mason & Dixon's line is well drawn, but Rodney Mason's line is not the line of battle. Rodney Mason has been pronounced a graceful speaker; all now know him to be a disgraceful officer. Rodney Mason should be nominated to Congress; we know of no many who could make a better race. Wonder if Rod Mason didn't hear there was a vacancy in Congress about the time the battle of Pittsburg Landing was fought? Rod Mason told a citizen of Urbana that he'd "be damned if he'd ever set his foot on Ohio soil again." We sincerely hope he will keep his word and the soil of the noble Buckeye state will not be polluted." 

    Colonel Mason's official report of the Clarksville debacle stated that Mason "had repeatedly given notice to General Buell's staff at Nashville that forces were being brought together to attack him in overwhelming numbers. He had no artillery entrenchments or other defenses except a brick college about which he was encamped with some rifle pits thrown up to cover the doors. He had only 152 men in line, the others being absent on guard and fatigue duty at the river and these had been taken prisoners. He was attacked by over 800 men with a battery of 6-lb and 12-lb guns placed in position so as to bear on the college. Large numbers of citizens also turned out under arms and more were coming. The attack was made at 9 a.m. The officers present unanimously advised a surrender which was not final made until sundown. Pending the negotiations, Colonel Mason was allowed to send an officer to count the number of the attacking force. His garrison marched out with the regimental colors and the garrison flag flying and were allowed to bring away all the private property of the officers and men," the August 29, 1862 Cincinnati Enquirer stated.

    Regardless, news of the surrender hit the state with a resounding thud and the outpouring of official and public sanction came quick and fast. Governor David Tod messaged Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton on August 25, 1862, that "the gallant people of Ohio are mortified to death over the rumored cowardice of Colonel Rodney Mason and in their behalf, I demand that he have a fair but speedy trial and should he be convicted of cowardice, that the extreme penalty of the law be inflicted upon him, for in that event we cannot endure even his foul carcass upon our soil." 

    The August 28, 1862 issue of the Urbana Citizen-Gazette stated that "Colonel Rodney Mason of the 71st Ohio has again disgraced himself by showing thew white feather. After the battle of Shiloh where he was accused of cowardice, he, with his command, was placed in charge of Clarksville, Tennessee and the other day with 300 men and two cannons in strong entrenchments basely surrendered to an inferior force of guerillas without firing a gun. It is regarded as the most disgraceful affair of the war and no matter what may be the palliating circumstances attending the case, it will forever disgrace Colonel Mason. Better would it have been for him had he resisted the foe and fallen in the conflict." 

    "Colonel Rodney Mason commanded the 71st Ohio at Pittsburg Landing and was afterwards for a time disgraced for cowardly conduct," the Cleveland Plain Dealer of August 26, 1862 noted. "He was accused of hiding himself on the battlefield to save his body from the enemy's bullets. Lieutenant Colonel Barton Kyle of the 71st proved himself a hero on that bloody field and was killed. The body was taken to Miami County where his family resided and there buried. The bereaved wife of the slain officer remarked at the funeral "I would prefer to have him dead than alive with Rodney Mason's reputation." Rodney Mason deserves all the wrath and censure that has lately been heaped upon his head by an indignant people." 

    On March 22, 1866, President Andrew Johnson revoked the order that dismissed Colonel Mason from the service and allowed him to be regularly mustered out of service, essentially rehabilitating him. However, Mason's reputation was permanently scarred. The March 28, 1866 edition of the Urbana Union described how the deed was done. One year after his dismissal, Colonel Mason "procured certificates and documents which he laid before President Lincoln asking for a trial. Mr. Lincoln gave him a letter asking that a trial should be granted. Secretary Stanton refused it and rumor said that he did it so fiercely as to threaten to resign if the trial was allowed. Now when the spirit of war was waning and the power of external pressure waxing, he remands the case and Colonel Mason is discharged honorably. The public will please remember the dismissal was without a trial. Yes, it was without a trial, and why was it without a trial? Why?" 

    Indeed, the answer may lie in the June 5, 1866 blurb in the Cincinnati Enquirer stating that "the Secretary of the Treasury has approved the appointment of Rodney J. Mason as the Collector of New York." Basically, Mason's dismissal had to be scrubbed from the records so that he could be given a public appointment as Collector of Revenues at the port of New York, a plumb office under the spoils system that then existed regarding Federal jobs. 

Colonel Albert Langworthy of the 99th Ohio Infantry

"As brave a heart as ever beat" 

    Colonel Albert Langworthy's dismissal can be regarded as singularly unfortunate. A resident of Findlay, Ohio,  Langworthy had ably led Co. A of the 49th Ohio for eight months at the beginning of the war including at Shiloh before resigning due to "ill health" on June 22, 1862. The Hancock Courier, however, reported that Langworthy resigned due to some personal difficulty with Lieutenant Colonel Albert Blackman "who is represented as being of an overbearing and tyrannical disposition." Shortly thereafter, however, Langworthy was offered a commission of the 99th Ohio which he accepted. Langworthy "although small in stature, bears within him as brave a heart as ever beat" and has "made military tactics his study and having seen considerable service, is well qualified to fill the position." But Langworthy's time at the helm of the 99th Ohio would be very short.

    The regiment entered Kentucky on August 30th and by the following day had moved south to Paris. However, the Union army had just suffered defeat at the Battle of Richmond  and rumors of Kirby Smith's army advancing north towards the Ohio River placed Langworthy's command in a ticklish spot. A single untrained regiment stood no change against an army of veteran Confederates; to be sure, a panic seemed to grip the local Union command in the wake of the defeat at Richmond. Consequently, the 99th was ordered to retreat to Cynthiana on September 2nd. One private soldier grumped that the officers "acted like a set of damned fools. It was the greatest panic I ever saw." 

    At Cynthiana, the regiment met up with the 45th Ohio under Colonel Benjamin Runkle who, ranking Langworthy, had overall command. Runkle directed a retreat via the Kentucky Central Railroad to Covington, Kentucky across the river from Cincinnati. A torch was placed to the quartermaster and hospital stores in town as the regiment departed and Langworthy (wrongly) was blamed for this action. In the heated atmosphere of fear and foreboding produced by Kirby Smith's move into Kentucky, punishment was the order of the day. "It seems than on hearing rumors of the approach of the enemy, he destroyed much valuable property and abandoned the place," the September 18, 1862, edition of the Urbana Citizen-Gazette reported. "When we get all such cowards out of the army, something will be done." 

    Governor David Tod, provided with this misinformation, had Langworthy dishonorably dismissed effective September 4, 1862 and placed Captain Peter T. Swaine from the Regular Army in command of the 99th Ohio. Langworthy learned of his dismissal on September 7th through the Cincinnati papers; he was shocked. His superiors had expressed no dissatisfaction with his conduct and it was in fact Runkle who ordered the destruction of stores at Cynthiana. Members of the 99th charged that either Runkle lied about this to save his own skin, or Colonel James Armstrong of the 95th Ohio, under a cloud for his own actions at Richmond, blamed Langworthy to cover his own hide. Either way, Langworthy took the fall. He appealed to Governor Tod on September 12th, begging for a trial but it would be two years before the matter was cleared up, and Langworthy was honorably discharged on September 4, 1864. 

Colonel Newton W. Schleich of the 61st Ohio Infantry 

"A Tremendous Little Man" 

    Colonel Newton W. Schleich, an attorney and editor of the Lancaster-based Democratic newspaper the Ohio Eagle, used his connections with the militia and support for the Union war effort to persuade Governor William Dennison to appoint him a brigadier general in the Ohio Militia in April 1861. Schleich went off to war in western Virginia but garnered few plaudits. Lieutenant Colonel John Beatty acidly called Schleich "a tremendous little man, swears terribly, and imagines that he thereby shows his snap. Snap, in his opinion, is indispensable to a military man. If snap is the only thing a soldier needs and profanity is a snap, Schleich is a second Napoleon." 

Colonel Newton W. Schleich
61st O.V.I.

    General George B. McClellan, increasingly annoyed with Schleich's antics and worthlessness as an officer, sent him back to Ohio where Schleich resigned his brigadier's commission on July 30, 1861. But used his political connections to secure the colonelcy of the 61st Ohio, being commissioned in April 1862. Schleich believed in nepotism, and populated the officers ranks with family members of every stripe. Unfortunately, few of them had any military experience and over time, showed little disposition to learn the duties of a soldier. One enlisted man lamented that had he known that he would have been serving under Schleich, "I would have given this regiment wide berth. It is very unpleasant to be commanded by a lot of men who know nothing and will learn nothing but whose sole merit is that they are Colonel Schleich's brother-in-law or cousin." 

    Matters came to a head during the Battle of Freeman's Ford on August 22, 1862, the regiment's first serious fight. Prior to going into action, General Carl Schurz presented the divisional colors to the regiment to carry into the fight. Colonel Schleich gave the colors to Sergeant William Kirkwood and "then called on the boys to never disgrace him, their regiment, or their colors."  However, after leading his regiment across the Rappahannock into the fight, Schleich unaccountably disappeared, leaving the command in the hands of a real soldier, Lieutenant Colonel Stephen McGroarty. The 61st Ohio's brigade commander General Henry Bohlen was killed at Freeman's Ford; his replacement was General Alexander Schimmelpfennig who started making inquiries into why Schleich missed out on the fight at Freeman's Ford. By early September Schleich knew his days were numbered, especially now Schimmelpfennig was after him and his old nemesis McClellan now in command of the army. Schleich resigned his commission on September 23, 1862; most of his family members also resigned their commissions in the same timeframe and the Schleich era in the 61st Ohio was over. While not dishonorably discharged, I would offer that Schleich was permitted to resign to save the disgrace that would have surely followed had Schimmelpfennig brought charges against him. 

The sad tale of Colonel Newton Schleich's Civil war services is ably recounted by Jon-Erik Gilot in "A Tremendous Little Man" from the Emerging Civil War blog.

Colonel Thomas H. Ford of the 32nd Ohio Infantry

"Conducted the defense without ability" 

    Colonel Thomas H. Ford, formerly lieutenant governor of Ohio during Salmon P. Chase's administration in the 1850s, was discharged under cloud due to role in the surrender of Harper's Ferry. Ford had led the 32nd Ohio since its formation in August 1861 and while no professional soldier, there is nothing to indicate that his command of the regiment met with any dissatisfaction. All of that changed when the regiment found itself hemmed into Harper's Ferry in September 1862 as General Robert E. Lee's army marched in Maryland. 

Colonel Thomas H. Ford,
32nd O.V.I.

    The 32nd Ohio arrived at Harper's Ferry on August 30th and found itself under the command of the eccentric Colonel Dixon Miles; Miles ordered Ford (or didn't order Ford depending on who to believe) to conduct the defense of Maryland Heights. Ford saw fit to do so within the confines of a house in Harper's Ferry and when Confederate forces pushed towards Harper's Ferry on September 13, 1862, Ford was conspicuous by his absence. The miliary commission that later investigated the surrender of Harper's Ferry found that "the force upon the Heights was not well managed; that the point most pressed was weakly defended as to numbers and after the wounding of the colonel of the 126th New York was left without a competent officer in command, Colonel Ford himself not appearing, nor designating anyone who might have restored order and encouraged the men."

    "In so grave a case as this, with such disgraceful consequences, the Court cannot permit an officer to shield himself behind the fact that he did as well as he could, if in so doing he exhibits a lack of military capacity. It is clear to the commission that Colonel Ford should not have been placed in command on Maryland Heights; that he conducted the defense without ability, and abandoned his position without sufficient cause, and that he has shown throughout such a lack of military capacity as to disqualify him for a command in the service." The court dismissed him from the army effective November 8, 1862, but Ford's political connections (he was close to Salmon P. Chase) allowed him the privilege of resigning his commission effective the same date. 

Colonel John G. Marshall of the 89th Ohio Infantry 

"Drunk for business two-thirds of the time"

    Colonel John G. Marshall, a prominent attorney from Brown County, Ohio, held command of the 89th Ohio (my ancestor's regiment) for scarcely a month before his affinity with the bottle washed him out of the army. 

    It's no secret that alcohol was the drink of choice for many men who held regimental commands, but Marshall's two week bender in mid-September 1862 quickly convinced his superiors that he was the wrong man for the place. One enlisted man complained on September 28th that "Marshall is getting worse and worse. He has been drunk for business two-thirds of his time during the last two weeks and it is a settled fact that the regiment will never do any good under him unless he reforms," he wrote. "The hatred has become too great and universal to be overcome. The company and regimental officers held an indignation meeting last week and discussed the propriety of serving under him: 31 of 33 present were in favor of getting rid of him." A telegram to Governor David Tod seeking relief was promptly dispatched; Tod contacted the War Department and by October 2, 1862, Special Orders No. 273 arrived dismissing Marshall from the service post haste for conduct unbecoming an officer. 

    As is becoming a familiar theme, on January 25, 1869, the Secretary of War John M. Schofield revoked the special order and granted Marshall an honorable discharge. 

Colonel Jonah R. Taylor of the 50th Ohio Infantry

"Lying on his face crouching behind a stump"

    During the Civil War, "Jonah" was a slang term for a soldier who always brought misfortune upon themselves. A rather apt term for Colonel Jonah Taylor of the 50th Ohio. Commissioned to lead the 50th Ohio on August 23, 1862, less than two months later he was out of the army under a cloud of disgrace for his actions at the Battle of Perryville on October 8, 1862. Colonel Albert S. Hall, commanding the remnants of the 10th Division after the battle (the division commander James S. Jackson and both of his brigadiers had been killed in action), called out Taylor's cowardice in his official report of Perryville. "He, although on the field and in sight of his men, was of no service to them. The first position I saw him in was lying on his face crouching behind a stump and twice, subsequently, I saw him far to the rear of his regiment while his men were in line of battle, apparently trying to rally some half dozen stragglers." 

    Rather than face court martial, Colonel Taylor was allowed to resign his commission on October 16, 1862. 

Colonel William B. Cassilly of the 69th Ohio Infantry

"Stupidly, beastly drunk"

    Colonel William B. Cassilly of Cincinnati went of war in the spring of 1861 as the regimental quartermaster of the 10th Ohio Volunteer Militia, serving 90 days. The following spring, he was commissioned lieutenant colonel of the newly formed 69th Ohio and went into the western theater under the command of Colonel Lewis D. Campbell. Campbell didn't last long, and by August 1862, Cassilly was in command. 

    Much was expected of Cassilly- he has served several terms on Cincinnati City Council and his work as an insurance agent gave promise that he could conduct the business affairs of the regiment with skill. But Cassilly's affinity for the bottle ended his army career during the Battle of Stones River. The regiment had marched into the cedars on December 31, 1862, and was about to go into action when his brigade commander Colonel Timothy Stanley spied Cassilly's reeling in his saddle. "I discovered Colonel William B. Cassilly of the 69th Ohio was so drunk as to be unfitted for command," Stanley wrote. "I ordered him to the rear under arrest." Cassilly's condition was noted throughout the regiment, the men mortified that Cassilly appeared on the field "stupidly, beastly drunk."

    But the battle wasn't over for Cassilly, as he managed to suffer an arm wound while wending his way back to the Nashville Pike. A few days later he made it back to Nashville where he received treatment for his wound. Stanley recommended that the army dismiss Cassilly. "A man who will come to the field of battle, having the lives of so many in his keeping in such a situation, no matter what his social position, is totally unfit for any command," he stated. 

    Cassilly appealed for a court of inquiry to examine the charge of drunkenness, but General William S. Rosecrans' wasn't in the mood to hear appeals and recommended his dismissal effective January 16, 1863. However, he experienced a quick change of mind and since Cassilly had been wounded and "had stood fair as an officer and gentleman in the army," he was allowed to resign his commission effective the same date as his dismissal. 

Colonel Joseph D. Hatfield of the 89th Ohio Infantry

"General Crook can kiss my ass." 

    Our second entry for the unfortunate 89th Ohio, Colonel Joseph D. Hatfield picked up the pieces after Colonel Marshall was dismissed for drunkenness on October 2, 1862. His command of the regiment lasted much longer but ended no less ignominiously. Hatfield's downfall stemmed from his politics and lack of prudence about stating his opinions in public. His mouth eventually wrote checks his body couldn't cash. A few examples...

    In January 1863, General William S. Rosecrans sent a letter of congratulations to the Legislature of Ohio in which he claimed that the war was being prosecuted "to sustain law, good, order, and our sacred rights." Hatfield called BS on Rosey's letter, stating "I will give Rosecrans the handsomest present ever he had in his life if he will make me believe such stuff." His opinion of the Emancipation Proclamation was decidedly negative, stating in the presence of his officers and men that "Abe Lincoln's Ni-er proclamation will damn him to eternity. This war is carried on for the benefit of the ni--er and nothing else and will never be stopped till the question is dropped." The court claimed these comments fell under the category of conduct prejudicial to good order and military discipline. He also griped to a visiting civilian on May 9, 1863 that "Clement Vallandigham's arrest was a political move. He was arrested because he was a Democrat. It is not treason for a man to express his sentiments by God. I'll express my sentiments every and anywhere." 

    Hatfield wasn't done, and soon directed his bile towards his superiors. When his brigade commander Colonel William Warner ordered Marshall to direct to his men to make wooden rails, Marshall grumped that "I propose to make no rails and will be arrested, court martialed, and dismissed from the service before I will give such an order to my regiment." When the order came a second time, Marshall kept the regimental officers after dress parade and told them about the second order and said they could do as the pleased about the rails, but that he would never give the order. The court said this was "conduct calculated to produce mutiny." 

    Hatfield apparently didn't appreciate General George Crook's efforts to help improve drill in the 89th Ohio. Crook sent one of his best subordinates from his old regiment, the 36th Ohio, as drillmaster. Marshall wasn't having it, griping to an enlisted man that "General Crook may kiss my ass. I am not going to be shit on and be snubbed in the bargain. If it was any other than a 36th Ohio officer, I wouldn't care. He'll never drill me." The court called this "speaking disrespectfully of his superior officer." 

    The final charge was that of incompetence: "Hatfield is wholly incompetent to command a regiment of men; he is tyrannical, abusive, and unjust and does not possess the necessary qualifications to enforce discipline and that the good of the service and the welfare of the 89th Ohio would be advanced by his being relieved from command." Colonel Hatfield pled innocence to all of the charges, but the court slammed him with the whole book, however, they deleted the phrase "tyrannical, abusive, and unjust." His was dismissed from the service June 6, 1863 although, yet again, he was allowed the privilege of resigning his commission effective June 26, 1863 by which point his regiment was marching south in the Tullahoma Campaign, and its eventual date with destiny on Snodgrass Hill at Chickamauga three months in the future. By then, Captain Caleb H. Carlton had regimental command, Rosecrans' recommended replacement for the overly opinionated Marshall.