Part 5

Think of it--an army wading rivers up to their breast in water at sundown in the months of December and January, and lying down in their wet clothes on the bare ground, with an allowance of one-quarter rations, already eaten up the day before! Think of the Battle of Chickamauga, when, hemmed in in the Valley of Chattanooga, for two months and four days with railroad and river communications cut off by rebel forces, men forced by hunger ate horses and mules that had actually died for the want of food. Think of the many good men and soldiers that lost their health in rebel prisons. And then ask yourself if it is right to post them up in printed form for the public gaze and the calumny of men who would rather sympathize with a rebel than to give a Union soldier a pension. Look at the generous pension bill passed some few years ago under a Democratic administration--a sweeping pension bill giving every soldier that served in the Mexican war a pension of twelve dollars a month--no proof required only proof of service; no examining board--just send in your discharge with proof that you are the man, and you got your pension without further trouble. But to please the calamity-howlers and the rebel cause sympathizers you must post your good men and true that saved your country for you. They must be posted up for public inspection. You say the pensions are paid by taxation. I pay a few dollars taxes. I never saw anything in my receipt for pension taxes. Your Washington correspondent says a pension is a badge of honor. It ain't much honor for a soldier to get a pension and have his name published to be unjustly criticised by men who have no knowledge of the fact of his being worthy to receive a pension or not. With my experience in getting a pension I don't see how there could be one single impostor on the pension rolls; and if there is it is the duty of the government to hunt them up and prosecute them for falsifying, forgery and perjury, as any citizen should be prosecuted for such a crime, and not be harassing and annoying your good old boys who wore the blue to save this country and protect our country's flag for you.

I heard Paul Vandervoort, ex-Commander-in-Chief of the G. A. R., say that the pension pay roll was the purest pay roll in the United States to-day, and I believe him, and I also believe that they got the least pay for the work done of any men that were ever or are now in the United States employment. And now they must be posted up because they get a few dollars pension.

Let Congress hunt up the deficiency in other branches of government business and employes and not be tantalizing the old warriors with publishing documents. Be more liberal with the pensions and if you want to economize cut off 10 per cent. of the big salaries of all our high officials, and if you do that you will come more in line with justice and honor than by publishing the pension list. Yours,

THOMAS J. FORD.

DEPARTURE OF THOMAS J. FORD.

The Well-Known Farmer and Politician will Make Milwaukee His Home.

From the Bloomington Bulletin, December 21st, 1891.

Mr. T. J. Ford, of Merna, has gone to Milwaukee to reside. This will be unwelcome news to his myriads of friends in McLean County, who admired him for his honorable principles and friendly bearing. Mr. Ford was born in Boston, Mass. When he was aged 12 he emigrated with his father to Milwaukee County, Wisconsin. When a very young man he enlisted in the army, and did such valiant service in the Union ranks that he was made sergeant. He carries to this day a ball in his left breast, which tells of his heroism more eloquently than sheepskin can portray. In 1866 he came to McLean County and located near Merna, where he owned a large tract of as fine a land as is in fertile Illinois.

Mr. Ford has one weakness, and it is a conspicuous fault, that of being a Republican. It is conspicuous because of his enthusiasm. He has taken so much interest in politics that he has frequently been called upon to make speeches, and on the stump he made a rousing impression by the wit and tone that he injected into his discourse. Though wayward enough to be a Republican, he had warm friends among all classes, who respected him for the staunch manner in which he spoke his convictions. Mr. Ford's wife died recently, and that broke the ties to his old home on the farm. Some days ago he had an immense sale, from which he realized large cash. This, it seems, was the preparatory step to his leaving. He bid farewell to the community in which he was such a prominent benefactor and left for the scenes of his boyhood. He has the best wishes of all who know him.

COMMENDED BY HIS SUPERIORS.

The Officers of the 24th Wisconsin Infantry Speak Highly of Thomas J. Ford.

Headquarters Company H, Twenty-fourth Regiment, Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry; Second Division, Fourth Army Corps.

Loudon, Tenn., Feb. 17th, 1864.

I certify on honor that Sergt. Thomas J. Ford, of Franklin, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, is a member of my company, and I do recommend said Sergt. Thomas J. Ford for his good conduct, sobriety and soldiery bearings. He has been engaged with the regiment in four battles and several skirmishes, and has proved himself a faithful and brave soldier. His soldierly conduct, both in camp and in the field, cannot be surpassed. I do believe him as brave and true as any man ever enlisted in defense of his country.

GEORGE COOTE,

First Lieutenant, Commanding Company H, Twenty-fourth Wisconsin Regiment.

WM. KENNEDY,

Captain Company G, Twenty-fourth Wisconsin Regiment.

I concur in the above.

T. S. WEST,

Colonel Twenty-fourth Wisconsin.

JOHN N. KIEFER,

Orderly Sergeant Company H, Twenty-fourth Wisconsin Volunteers.

TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE

Obvious typographical errors and punctuation errors have been corrected after careful comparison with other occurrences within the text and consultation of external sources.

Except for those changes noted below, all misspellings in the text, and inconsistent or archaic usage, have been retained. For example: tomorrow, to-morrow; School House, School-House; martyrized; calked.

Table of Contents created by the transcriber. Pg 11, 'goods boys' replaced by 'good boys'. Pg 18, 'like a mon' replaced by 'like a man'. Pg 30, 'he appared to' replaced by 'he appeared to'. Pg 55, 'I reacher Resaca' replaced by 'I reached Resaca'. Pg 71, 'Repubican party' replaced by 'Republican party'. Pg 91, 'harrassing' replaced by 'harassing'. Pg 95, 'Vounteers' replaced by 'Volunteers'.

End of Project Gutenberg's With the Rank and File, by Thomas J. Ford