Summary:
Union Assistant Adjutant for the Department of the Susquehanna issues these May,
1864, orders from Chambersburg concerning conduct on the railroads. The orders
establish guards at all railroad depots to prevent destruction to property and
outrages against civilians, and asks that incidents of soldier misconduct on
trains be reported to department headquarters.
Chambersburg, Pa.,
May 4, 1864.
I. To prevent the destruction of railroad property or outrage upon the traveling public by troops belonging to or passing through this department, it is hereby ordered that commanding officers of troops at posts where there are railroad depots will have sufficient guards thereat for the purpose of preserving order and arresting any drunken or disorderly soldiers who may be passing over the said roads.
II. The officers in charge of soldiers passing through this department will be held strictly responsible for the behavior of their men on railroad trains. When they fail or refused to use their authority to enforce order and obedience among the troops the superintendent of the railroad is requested to report them to these headquarters with a statement of the facts.
III. If a disturbance occurs on any of the trains, the conductor of the same will, by telegraph or otherwise, notify the officer commanding troops at the most convenient point on the railroad, who will adopt such measures as may be, in his judgment, necessary to promote the interest of the service, protect the property of the road, and secure the safety of passengers.
By command of Maj.-Gen. Couch:
JNO. S. SCHULTZE,
Assistant Adjutant-Gen.
Bibliographic Information : Letter Reproduced from The War of The Rebellion: Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series 1, Volume 37, Serial No. 70, Pages 380-381, Broadfoot Publishing Company, Wilmington, NC, 1997.
