Lt. Fletcher Abbott on Capt. Adin B. Underwood:
"a regular blockhead"
Lt. Robert Gould Shaw on Lt. Edwin R. Hill:
"a scalliwag"
Capt. Henry Bruce Scott on Maj. Charles Mudge:
"frivolous & undignified," "worse than either Quincy or Cogswell having the virtues of neither"
Lt. Francis Crowninshield on Lt. Tom Robeson:
"He is a perfect flunky."
Capt. Samuel Quincy on Lt. William Dwight Sedgwick:
"...as far as military qualities go he is about the poorest officer in the 2d..."
Capt. Richard Goodwin on Lt. Col. George L. Andrews:
"We are getting out of patience with the man & his cursed narrow-mindedness...
From what I have seen of him he judges of a man's moral character by the
steadiness with which he can stand at attention in the ranks,
& go through the manual of arms. I have heard him call men 'd--d rascals & infernal
villains' for moving in the ranks. I am tired to death of him."
Lt. Francis Crowninshield on Capt. Edward Abbott:
"Ned Abbot[t] is about the most unpopular officer in the regiment, he holds himself aloof from
everybody and makes himself very disagreeable."
Capt. Edward Abbott on Dr. Francis Leland:
"an ass"; "the poorest sort of stick we have yet had upon the ground"; "the poorest, weakest,
most contemptible of men. He is nothing but milk and water. He has no knowledge of surgery in
the slightest degree, or of medicine either...a wound would almost certainly be fatal."
Capt. Samuel Quincy on Capt. Greely Curtis:
"He is a brave & good officer, but there is a phase of his character which I never imagined to
exist & which has made him very unpopular. The family element seems to have suddenly cropped
out &...he shows himself a Curtis by discourtesy."
Capt. Edward Abbott on the departure of Lt. Charles Horton:
"good riddance"
Lt. Francis Crowninshield on Lt. Anson Sawyer:
"He is a rough man, but very kind and jolly. In case of a fight he would be the last man to give
in..."
And Capt. Richard Cary on...
Richard Cary wins the crown as "King of the Zingers." In his letters to his wife, Helen Shelton Cary, he proved himself a highly critical
observer of his comrades in arms. He was particularly harsh towards his new Lt. Francis Crowninshield, but was later forced to admit that he was wrong in his judgment.
...Col. George H. Gordon:
"I find a great deal to like in the man as well as in the Colonel, though he can certainly make
himself very unpleasant to those he don't like, & sometimes shows anything but the best of taste
in his manner of doing it..."
...Capt. Edward Abbott:
"He is not a strong person except in his weakness, which is obstinacy, a failing which is
frequently ludicrous. He does not understand the discipline of men but otherwise is a good officer,
though I think rather slow."
...Capt. Francis Tucker:
"[He] is a poor officer & a very infirm sort of man morally & his mistakes are frequently &
generally inexcusable."
...Capt. Greely Curtis:
"He is by no means popular with the officers, not with the men either, I think, outside of his
own company. He is exceedingly underbred in his manners as well as very conceited &
overbearing when he thinks he can bully."
...Lt. Stephen G. Perkins:
"[He] is lazy, does not try to do his duty, is impatient of correction & is on general terms a
nuisance to anybody who has anything to do with him."
...Capt. R. Morris Copeland:
"He is an unprincipled, intriguing, wire pulling fellow...He is acting at present as Acting
Adjutant-General to Gen'l Banks, a position for which he is about as fit as I am for a landscape
gardener, which he was formerly & has succeeded in making himself especially obnoxious to
every Brig. Gen'l in the division..."
...Lt. Charley Horton:
"[He is] of no particular account."
...Lt. Henry Sturgis Russell:
"He is a first rate officer & a good fellow, though a queer sort of card so d-----d matter of fact
sometimes (excuse my swearing but you know I don't like matter of fact people), very
touchy...No one could help liking him & really admiring his honest straightforwardness & ability,
but I could never live comfortably in the same tent with him, he so persistently misunderstands my
satire...I'm afraid he'll never learn to appreciate a joke unless it's as deep as a well or as wide as a
church door."
...Capt. Samuel Quincy:
"It is truly funny to see what a lady killer Quincy evidently considers himself & how much
interested he is in his association with the belles of Frederick. If it would only lead to his washing
himself occasionally it would be delightful to his comrades in arms, but I fear what constant
intercourse with the really refined ladies of Boston failed to accomlish, the less decorous ones in
the interior of Maryland can hardly be expected to bring to pass.
...Capt. James Savage:
"I'm afraid he is one of those who came out to whip the Rebels, free all the niggers & gain
great renown in a week or two, but when it comes down to the drag of daily duty, is rather
wanting. In short, he never, never was much of a soldier, good fellow as he is in all other
respects."
...Lt. Francis Welch Crowninshield:
"Crowninshield has got consumption written in every lineament & if a bullet does not cut the
thread of his life, I fear the other will do for him"; "Young Crowninshield is not dead yet but
looks, if anything, more like the last run of old shad then ever--poor boy, this is no place for him
and my only hope is that he gets so weak that he will be disabled & obliged to leave before he
gets passed cure."
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