1st Regiment Veteran Cavalry, NY Volunteers
Civil War Newspaper Clippings

Recruiting in the City.
During the progress of the draft, the great demand for substitutes brought recruiting operations to a comparative cessation, and for several weeks very little was accomplished, but of late they have considerably revived, and nearly all the skeleton organizations represented here are enjoying the legitimate fruits of persevering effort. The Cavalry was always a favorite branch of the service, and we are pleased to note that the "1st Regiment of Veterans," under the auspices of Col. Taylor, late of the 83d, is now rapidly filling up. Capt. Frank White and Lieut. Clague are the only representives of this regiment in Rochester, and have already secured forty-five men. Their recruiting quarters are on Buffalo street, in front of Arcade entrance.
The rendezvous is Camp Sherrill, Geneva, where the men find comfortable quarters, little to do, plenty to eat, showy uniforms, glittering sabres, and good treatment.
Capt. Graham, of the Griswold Cavalry, which has already taken one full company from Rochester and vicinity, has an office in the Arcade, and is drawing about him an excellent class of men. They will have the advantage of serving under an old campaigner—one who enlisted as a private in the first company of volunteers raised in Western New York at the outbreak of the Rebellion, and who has participated in almost every fight on the Potomac from Bull Run No. 1 to Fredericksburg No. 2. The headquarters of this Regiment is at Troy, and only a few more men are required to bring it to the maximum standard.
The 14th Heavy Artillery is rapidly filling up. On Friday the first battalion was organized and mustered into the service under the following officers:
Major—W. H. Reynolds, Utica.
Company A—Capt. Trowbridge, 1st Lieut. Wood.
Company B—Capt. H. R. Randall, 1st Lieut. Judson Knickerbocker, 2d Lieut. Charles A. Vedder.
Company C--Capt. Green, 1st Lieut. Fauct.
Company D--Capt. Jones, 1st Lieut. Foote.

FIRST VETERAN CAVALRY.
Lt. E. H. BRADY, late of the 27th N. Y. V. has opened a Recruiting office in this village for the 1st Veteran Cavalry, Col. Taylor. Lt. Brady has seen two years service, and was in all the battles on the Potomac from the first Bull Run to that of Chancellorville, and has testimonials from Gens. Slocum and Bartlett, in whose commands he served, of his efficiency and bravery. He has already enlisted many of his old companions in arms, and is offering the highest bounties—$552 to veterans and $175 to new recruits. This is an excellent opportunity to those who are martially inclined, to enter the service. His headquarters are at the Tent on the Public Square.

Correspondence of the Geneva Gazette.
Letter from the 1st Veteran Cavalry.
CAMP STONEMAN, Nov. 6, 1863.
FRIEND PARKER—Yesterday, Nov. 5th, will long be remembered as an eventful day in the history of our regiment,—the occasion being sword presentations by Companys E and D, commanded by Captains CHARLES RINGER and JOHN J. CARTER. Company D made their presentation first. The company was formed in line and the Captain being called from his tent, Serg't Wm. STODDARD stepped to the front of the company with the articles to be presented, and spoke as follows:
CAPTAIN CARTER:
In behalf of Company D, I have the honor of presenting you with a sword, sash, belt and spurs, all of which you will receive as a token of the confidence which the company repose in your ability as their Captain and commander, hoping that whenever you unsheath this blade and view its glittering point, you may remember the confidence reposed in you by each and every man composing your command.
Captain CARTER, on receiving the sword, &c, replied as follows:
Soldiers of Company D:
Need I say that this token of your friendship and esteem for me, who but a short time since was a stranger to a majority of you, has wholly taken me by surprise. And well it might, for in looking over the history of our short acquaintance, I can find nothing on its bright pages that would even commend me to your notice, much more to present me with a sword, sash, belt and spurs—each and all of which are worthy of the men presenting them. My men, in taking these articles, I find that the language of which I am now master is insufficient in its flow to half express the thanks that I feel, and I might say that thanks are insufficient of themselves to express anything of what I feel; but knowing that deeds are greater than words, and that but a short time can pass before those deeds must be tried, I forbear any expression that any other occasion might call forth, and bid you wait the issue of events which will better prove to your satisfaction whether your confidence was well placed or whether your money was spent in vain. In the event of the former, I shall be proud to look on the glittering steel and say that "I have fought a good fight, and am proud to have been associated as the commander of men so worthy the name of soldiers." But in the event of the latter, I should thank any member of Company D to take this gift and place it in the archives of our State, and inscribe upon it in characters unmistakeable in themselves,—"Here is a trophy of misplaced confidence: all who look at the glittering blade of this sword must beware and not follow in the footsteps of its recipient." I now flatter myself, however, that the former shall be the inscription that we shall have on this, your gift of friendship; and as I pass down the journey of life, I shall be proud to remember you; and when I shall have passed away, there are those of my friends who will look upon this with no little degree of interest, and remember that it was the expression of Company D towards their commander,—better known at home as "Johnny." In conclusion, let me once more thank you, with the assurance that whether on the field of battle or in the quiet of camp life, it shall ever be my duty, as well as my privilege, to look after the welfare of Company D; knowing as I do, that each and every one of you are with me, heart and hand, in the performance of all the soldierly duties which may from time to time be allotted to us as our part in crushing out this wicked rebellion and restoring peace to our once happy country.
As Captain CARTER concluded, three hearty cheers were given by the company, which showed that every man of them had confidence in their commander.
After the excitement of the presentation had subsided, Company E, commanded by Capt. Charles Ringer, was formed in line and the officers called to the front. Orderly Serg't SEYMOUR B. SEELY, in presenting the swords in behalf of Co. E, spoke as follows:
We, the non-commissioned officers and privates of Company E, 1st Veteran Cavalry, wishing to show our regards for you, our commanders, know of no better way of so doing than by presenting each of you with a sabre, believing that they will be wielded by strong arms and willing hearts, and also believing that they will never be disgraced while you are spared to use them in the defense of your country. Accept this, then, Capt. CHARLES RINGER, and you, Lieut. EDWARD H. BRADY, accept this, and wear them for the sake of those who now stand before you.
Captain RINGER then replied in the following words:
Members of Company E:
Words cannot express my heartfelt thanks to you, on this occasion—you have placed this confidence, this token of honor, for which I have done nothing, as yet, to entitle me to receive it from you who now stand before me. But I trust that when were are called upon to enter the more active duties of a soldier's life, you will not find me wanting, nor your confidence in me misplaced. To some of you I am well known—having fought side by side with you, as you are aware. I am not much of a speaker, and on such an occasion as this, my heart is to full for utterance. Mine are deeds, not words. I cannot make you a fine speech, but I can fight. In conclusion let me thank you again for the confidence you have placed in me; and this sword, a token of your friendship and esteem, which will always be cherished by me as a gift from the noble men I have the honor to command; and let me assure you that as long as life remains it shall never be disgraced nor stained with dishonor. Then let us wait the event of our more active duties, and you shall see whether your confidence in me is misplaced or not.
As Captain Ringer concluded, Lieutenant E. H. Brady stepped to the front and, holding up the gifts he had received, spoke in the following manner:
Comrades:
I hardly know what to say to you on this occasion—not that I wish to censure or reprove you in the action you have taken, yet I cannot help thinking that a word of counsel or reproof might not be out of place. You all must know that the sword has always been considered the embodiment of honor, the emblem of power and true manhood; and the idea sent forth when a sword is presented to a person, carries with it the strongest assurance of confidence, trust and friendship. To most of you, as yet, I am untried; and you know not whether this beautiful sword which you have placed in my hands to be used in defence of our country will or will not be disgraced. My reproof to you is this: never again place the emblem of power, of confidence, of esteem and of true manhood, in the hands of a man until you know he has been well and faithfully tried.
Members of Company E, in receiving this beautiful testimonial of your unmerited confidence in me, I can but extend to you my heartfelt thanks. I shall ever bear in mind the motive which I think prompted your action; and I shall leave it to your judgment and my course in the future to decide whether or not your confidence has been misplaced.
Comrades, this, to me, is a joyful and yet a sad and melancholy time—joyful, to think that I have the confidence and respect of the men over whom I am an officer, and sad and painful to think that many of us have parted with friends and loved ones, to whom it may never again be our privilege to extend the right hand of friendship. But let us not falter. Let us remember that we are engaged in a great and a glorious cause; that it is not the thirty millions of to-day we are fighting for, but that it is the one hundred or perhaps five hundred millions who are in some future time to occupy this land, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and from the Gulf to Hudson's Bay. Let us rise far above party lines and distinctions; let us stand by the emblem of the free, borne in triumph by our forefathers upon so many battle-fields, and stained by the blood of so many thousands of our own day; let us never permit one star to be blotted from its azure field of blue, nor one stripe to be taken from its time-honored folds. Let us nobly stand by our country in this her darkest hour; and when the tornado of revolution shall have passed away, and our ship of State shall once more be safely anchored in the harbor of peace; when union, prosperity and happiness shall come to our mourning country, we can look back on the part we have acted in this great drama with credit to ourselves and honor to our friends.
Fellow-soldiers, in conclusion I will again extend to you my heartfelt thanks, hoping that our intercourse with each other in the future may be happy and agreeable, as it has been in the past.
As he ceased speaking three rousing cheers and a tiger were given for the officers of Company E. A. BRANCROFT, 2d Lieutenant of Company E, although an entire stranger to most of the men when he came to the company, has won the confidence and esteem of every man in it. The general health of the Regiment is good. The few that are sick are nearly, if not all, new recruits. We are in good comfortable tents now, and get plenty to eat; and that is about as much as the majority care for. We have had one pay day and expect another soon. Company E sent about $4,000 to friends at home. As there is nothing more of interest to write, I will close.
Yours, truly,
GEORGE E. BARKER,
Q. M. Serg't.

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