Mary Hazel Snuff

“ It was easy for congress to determine the rations or for the commander-in-chief to issue orders about housing conditions and sanitation, but the opportunities for obeying those orders were not always the best. It is just that fact, not what was intended, but what happened, that is to be discussed.
The soldier in camp is an aspect of the Revolutionary War which has been taken up only in a very general way by writers of that period of history, except perhaps the conditions at Valley Forge, for at least their terrible side is quite generally known. ”

“ Thus in studying the life of the soldier at home before he went into the army camp, even the slightest traces of twentieth century recreation are found to have been lacking, but that does not mean that those people never forgot their work. ”

“ The conditions in the camp were somewhat different than those on the march for in camp what the rations were depended on the amount of supplies. If they were plentiful, full rations could be drawn by each soldier, but when they were scarce each soldier had to take less. The time and place of drawing supplies seemed to vary with circumstances, and no definite plan was followed.
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It is a mistake to think that the soldier of the American Revolution was always suffering for the want of food. The picture drawn for us most often is that of the distressing conditions. ”

“ Gentlemen,—According to his excellency General Washington's Orders, the General Hospital of the Army is removed to Bethlehem and you will do the greatest Act of humanity by immediately providing proper buildings for their reception the largest and most capacious will be the most convenient. ”

“ If the problem of housing was a serious one and one which caused a great amount of suffering the question of food was even more serious. The theory of getting the food for the soldiers was all very simple, but not so simple in practice. According to theory the various colonies were apportioned the amount they were to supply and were to deliver their portion to the camp which might be designated by the commander-in-chief. ”

“ From this study it would seem as if there were at least three classes of barracks, the tents used when practicable, the huts for winter quarters, the barroques for temporary housing, and if one wanted to mention a fourth, it would be just any place where ever a soldier might lie down. ”

“ Thacher said of the punishments ordered by the court martial "Death has been inflicted in a few instances of an atrocious nature, but in general, the punishment consists in a public whipping, and the number of stripes is proportioned to the degree of offense. The law of Moses prescribing forty stripes save one but that number has often been exceeded in our camp. In aggravated cases, and with old offenders in our camp the culprit is sentenced to receive one hundred lashes or more. ”

“ Hunting, too, was a means of cheering the dreary days, but this too was often "Killing two birds with one stone", for often the soldiers went hunting to provide the regular rations, but at other times it was done just for the sake of the sport to be found in it. ”

“ A study of conditions during the Revolutionary War in the light of the present day and especially in the light of the Great War with the care given the soldiers in the way of housing, medical aid, sanitation and recreation makes the soldier of 1776 more of a hero than he had been before. ”

“ When the housing situation is looked at from one angle the view is of the worst possible, but when on the other hand one realizes that each time the troops went into camp the whole process had to be gone through with from the cutting of the logs to the moving into the huts and beside that they had no tools, the whole thing seems wonderful. ”

“ When the army went into winter quarters the soldiers were a little more comfortable. Morristown and Valley Forge were the two representative winter quarters. The location of these permanent camps was usually chosen because of the ease with which building materials could be obtained or because there was easy access to food supplies.
As orders came to go into winter camp the men were divided into companies of twelve. ”

“ When a man was sentenced to death, but had been pardoned by those in charge, the force of going through the punishment was carried out.39 The condemned man was brought to the side of his newly dug grave, he was bound and blind-folded, the firing party got in position, the fire lock even snapped, and as might have been expected, the culprit sometimes died of the shock.117
The hanging of a man was a gala day in camp and the place of hanging was almost as popular as an amusement park of today; "Five soldiers were conducted to the gallows according to their sentences. ”

“ When the camps were situated in or near an agricultural community the farmers swarmed to camp with their produce charging exorbitant prices, but if the soldier had any money he was usually willing to buy. ”

“ The fact that the chaplain of a regiment might have members of a number of sects in his audience would tend to create a common interest, and also the fact that whenever the troops were near a church they were ordered to attend regardless of denomination. The incident is related of Washington who was Anglican that he and a number of his men, asked a Presbyterian minister to give them communion in his church, and it was gladly done.176 All of which were factors in bringing about democracy in the church. ”

“ The places of holding religious meetings varied with circumstances, services were held in a church163 in or near camp, on a college campus,164 in an opening in the woods,165 and in a log hut built for the purpose.166 When the army entered Cambridge, the next day was Sunday and a stage was erected on the campus by turning up a rum hogshead.167 On another occasion a pulpit was formed out of knapsacks piled together.168
The kind of sermons provided by the chaplains to the soldiers makes an interesting study, they were always of a practicable nature. ”

“ When there was plenty the soldiers feasted, when food was scarce they fasted, but it must be remembered that there was no dependable supply, no directing force, and no distributing agency, and beside those hindrances there were no ways of preserving food as there are today. ”

“ There were huts built for kitchens, one for each company and there the soldiers took turns cooking for their company61 or else each soldier cooked his own food over an open fire. At times the fuel became so scarce that the fences62 around the camp were torn down and burned, and after that the food had to be eaten raw because of the lack of fuel.63 If there was material to be used for fuel and other supplies some distance from the camp, it was no uncommon sight to see soldiers yoked together acting the part of horses64 in order to get the supplies to camp. ”

“ The plan was then that the soldiers were to be cared for by the regimental surgeon as long as it was possible and then they were to be sent to the departmental hospital for further care.89 These two systems seemed to interfere with each others work and there was always jealousy existing between the director of the general hospital and the surgeons of the regiment. "There will be nothing but continued complaints of each other; the director of the hospital charging them with enormity in their drafts for the sick and they him with the same for denying such things as are necessary. ”

“ The troops as they were assembled at Boston did present a peculiar picture, each person wearing the costume best suited to his individual notion of a suitable uniform, with a tendency toward frill, ruffles, and feathers, each thinking that the gorgeousness added to the dignity and effectiveness of the whole. ”

“ The march was only started when the soldiers were put on short rations receiving three-fourths of a pound of meat and bread instead of a whole pound,42 and as they proceeded the conditions only grew worse until when they were not yet nearing their destination the last of the flour was divided. There were just seven pints for each man. That amount was to last seven days, thus each man had a pint a day to live on and that had to be divided into a gill for breakfast, half a pint for dinner and the remaining gill for supper. ”

“ The logs were notched on the ends and fitted together in a dovetailing fashion. The spaces between the logs being made airtight with clay and straw. The roof was a single sharp slope that would shed the snow and rain easily, made of timbers and covered with hewn slabs and straw. There might be boards for the floor, but often there was not even a board to use for that purpose and just dirt served instead. Each hut inhabited by privates had one window and one door, the officers quarters usually had two windows. ”

“ Those in authority made an attempt to prevent or at least to lessen the pain and suffering of those who were taken sick or were wounded in army service, but often the measures of prevention instituted, the methods of checking contagion and the means of allienating pain were of the crudest sort and to us of the twentieth century they seem almost inhuman. ”

“ When a given community was ready to send their supply some of the farmers would take the job of driving the cattle to the camp, receiving about a dollar a day and expenses while they were traveling.37
A Frenchman who traveled in America during the revolutionary period told of his experience when he tried to get a room in an inn, which was filled with farmers on their way to camp with16 a herd of cattle. In that particular group there were thirteen men and two hundred and fifty cattle. ”

“ It was decided that the hunting shirt should be used and also that the continental government should supply the clothing and then ten per cent of each man's wages should be withheld each month.69 The quartermaster general had charge of the clothing supply and at regular intervals he was supposed to distribute clothing to the soldier, but the supply varied to such an extent that no regular plan could be followed. ”

“ The women at home aided very materially in the clothing problem by their spinning, knitting and collecting of linen.76 When persons called on Mrs. Washington, whether she was at home or in camp, they usually found her knitting and she had sixteen spinning wheels running at one time.77 Other women all over the country followed her example. ”

“ The culprit being securely tied to a tree or post receives on his naked back the number of lashes assigned him by a whip formed of several small knotted cords which sometimes cut through the skin at every stroke.61 However, strange it may appear, a soldier will often receive the severest stripes without uttering a groan or once shrinking from the lash even while the blood flows freely from the lacerated wounds. ”

“ They are as different in their form as the owners are in their dress and every tent is a portraiture of the temper and taste of the persons who encamp in it. Some are made of boards, some of sail cloth, again others are made of stone and turf brick or brush. ”

“ One man describes the difficulty of finding a place to write and ends by saying that the railing in a near by church was the best place.35 The only light they had was furnished by candles which were a part of every man's rations and the tallow from the14 cattle killed for camp use was made into candles. ”

“ Often the camp was better situated for obtaining the necessary supplies and, too, after the soldiers had built one such town of huts the next would be better because of their experience. The camp at Morristown was better than the one at Valley Forge.28 The quarters were large and huts were built to be used for social affairs such as dances and lodge meetings. ”

“ The churches were turned into barracks and hospitals.153 Messages of the officers of the army describing the soldiers' conditions in camp were read from the pulpit on Sunday Morning; the afternoon congregation would be made up almost entirely of men, and the women were to be found at home knitting or spinning.154
When Washington assumed command of the army at Cambridge he found chaplains attached to different regiments sent from various colonies, especially from the New England colonies. ”

“ Even if one's imagination must be drawn upon in order to make the recreation of the private seem recreational, at least, there was a side of camp life which presented a more pleasant picture "If our forefathers bled and suffered they also danced and feasted."141 The letters and44 diaries of the young officers tell of the gaiety of the war. Even in midst of the gloom at Valley Forge there was drinking from cabin to cabin and dinners in honor of visiting foreigners. No sooner was the army in winter quarters than the ladies began to appear, for Mrs. Washington, Mrs. Greene, and Mrs. ”

“ When tents were used for shelter at Cambridge or at other places it was very seldom that any thing more than "Mother Earth" served as floors and sometimes that was so wet and miry that the soldiers during the rainy seasons were forced to raise the ground with "Rushes, Barks, and Flags in the dry"10 and at other times the tents were taken down during the day for the ground to dry and then put up again at night. ”

“ Congress had made several attempts to organize the hospitals and in July 1776, resolutions had been passed which defined more fully the duties of the various officials both of the departmental and the regimental hospitals.87 There was to be a director and under him the directors of the various departmental hospitals.88 But since29 there were only a few departmental hospitals and those few often a long distance from the scene of battle it became necessary to have branch hospitals or regimental hospitals. ”