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fault is not with our generals, but those who call themselves our friends, at home.
I have the honor, General, to be, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
headquarters Thirty-Fourth Regt. U. S. C. T., Jacksonville, Fla., March 30, 1864.
General: I wish to state that I fully and heartily concur with the sentiments contained in the letters of Colonel Tilghman.
Please bear with you my hearty acknowledgments of the just and considerate treatment we have received at your hands, and my best wishes for your future success.
I have the honor to be, General, very respectfully, your obedient servant, W. W. Marple, Lieutenant-Colonel Commanding Thirty-fourth U. S.C. T. Brigadier-General T. Seymour, U. S. A. Copy: W. H. Bradshaw, Lieutenant and A. D.C.
headquarters twenty-First U. S. C. T., Jacksonville, Fla., March 29, 1864.
Lieutenant R. M. Hall, A. A.A. G.:
sir: It having come to the knowledge of the undersigned that certain imputations are afloat concerning General Seymour's treatment of colored troops, we deem it but justice to that distinguished officer, in view of his departure from this post, to state that, so far as our own observation has extended, his conduct toward that class of troops has been all that the sincerest friends of the colored race could desire; and it affords us great pleasure to testify to the uniform kindness, courtesy, and liberality with which he has treated the officers and men of this command.
We have the honor to be, sir, your obedient servants, Lieutenant R. M. Hall, A. A.A. G.:
A. G. Bennett, Lieutenant-Colonel Commanding Regiment. R. H. Willoughby, Captain Commanding Company B. E. R. Fowler, Captain Commanding Company E. Henry sharp, Captain Commanding Company C. Edgar Abeal, Captain Commanding Company D. C. A. Dow, Lieutenant Commanding Company A. Copy: W. H. Bradshaw, Lieutenant and A. D.C.
But fourth. As you may possibly consider the case of Robert Small, a brave fellow, whose conduct deserves more consideration than it has yet received — as an exception — I submit his statement, to which you will probably attach more credit than to any assertion of mine:
With this evidence of my treatment of such colored troops as have been placed under me, even you cannot find great fault. Finally, as a soldier of the Republic, I claim some trifling respect from you, and some fairness. Therefore I call upon you to give to this letter, entire, the same publicity with which you have heretofore assailed me. Respectfully, your obedient servant,United States steamer Planter, land's end, South-Carolina, April 4, 1864.Please allow me, through your columns, to correct an error which I find by perusing your paper of the — ultimo, under the heading of “General Seymour and the battle of Olustee,” in which you say: “His contemptuous treatment of Robert Small, the gallant colored pilot who brought the steamer Planter out of the harbor of Charleston, and who is one of the heroes of our war, has already been recorded in this paper.” Through all courtesy to your paper and justice where justice is due, I must say that from the first day of my arrival within the Union lines, General Seymour has always shown me the greatest regard, whenever in public or private, inquiring how I was or if I was in need. Shortly after turning the Planter over to the United States Government, General Seymour sent for me, and after several interrogations, ordered me to have my name entered in Colonel Elwell's Pilot list, a position for which I am much indebted to him, and which I occupied until taking command of this steamer. Never was there a time, when with General Seymour, or any.of his aids, that I was treated contemptuously or unkindly. Trusting you will correct this error, which I fear some reporter has unintentionally made, I am, yours most respectfully,
To the Editors of the Evening Post:Captain Robert small.
T. Seymour, Brigadier-General U. S. Volunteers.
Action of the colored troops.
on picket, six miles West of Jacksonville, Florida, February 23, 1864.
sir: I deem it but proper that you and the balance of the Supervisory Committee should know all about the operations of the regiment brought into existence under your supervision, and will therefore give you a short history of the part the Eighth regiment had in the slaughter at Olustee, Florida, on the twentieth instant, and will then allow you and the committee to judge whether colored men are the poltroons which their enemies tried to make us believe them to be.
The expedition with which we were identified had all the prospects in the world to prove successful, and would have been, if we had come prepared to advance immediately; but as it was, we gave them time to prepare for us when we did advance.
We left Baldwin, at the junction of the Jacksonville and Tallahassee, and Fernandina and Cedar Keys railroads, about twenty miles west of Jacksonville, on Friday, the twentieth; marched westward eleven miles, and bivouacked for the night at Barber's Ford, on the St. Mary's River.
The bugle sounded the reveille before daylight, and, after taking breakfast, we took up the line of march westward.
Our march for ten miles to 