APPENDIX G. OBITUARY CIRCULARS. 1. LIEUT. COL. JOHN D. MILEY, INSPECTOR-GENERAL, U. S. V. WAR DEPARTMENT, INSPECTOR-GENERAL'S OFFICE, Washington, September 20, 1899. It is with deep regret the Inspector-General announces to the officers of the InspectorGeneral's Department the death on September 19, at Manila, P. I., of Lieut. Col. John D. Miley, inspector-general, U. S. Volunteers (first lieutenant, Second U. S. Artillery.) Colonel Miley was born at Belleville, Ill., August 19, 1862, and entered the military service July 1, 1883, when he was appointed a cadet at the Military Academy. He was promoted additional second lieutenant, Fifth Artillery, June 12, 1887; second lieutenant, Fourth Artillery, October 15, 1887; transferred to Fifth Artillery, November 12, 1887; promoted first lieutenant, February 5, 1894; transferred to Second Artillery May 4, 1898; appointed major, assistant adjutant-general, U. S. Volunteers, July 12, 1898, and lieutenant-colonel, inspector-general, U. S. Volunteers, September 8, 1898. For ten years after his graduation Colonel Miley was on duty with his regiment in various parts of the country, and his record was that of a hard-working, painstaking man of more than usual ability, doing his whole duty and studying to fit himself for the work which might come. Being one of the brightest young officers of his arm of the service, he was selected as aid-de-camp by Brigadier-General Shafter, U. S. A., whom he accompanied to the Spanish war, and in front of Santiago won the admira tion of the Army for his ability, energy, gallantry, and soldierly resolution, displaying upon the field of battle the qualifications of a brilliant staff officer. In October, 1898, Colonel Miley was appointed acting inspector-general, Department of the East, and continued on this duty until January, 1899, when he was ordered to Manila as inspector-general, Department of the Pacific. Reaching Manila in April, in May he was appointed collector of customs at Manila in addition to his regular duties, and was on this duty when he died; and he had been recommended by the chief of his corps to be transferred with at least equal rank to one of the new volunteer regiments. He was also recommended by General Shafter to be made brigadier-general of volunteers. Colonel Miley's life was marked with conspicuous soldierly ability, and his death obs the service of one of its ablest and most promising young officers. J. C. BRECKINRIDGE, 2. MAJ. GEN. HENRY W. LAWTON, U. S. V. WAR DEPARTMENT, INSPECTOR-GENERAL'S OFFICE, With profound sorrow the Inspector-General announces to the Department that Maj. Gen. Henry W. Lawton, U. S. Volunteers, colonel, inspector-general, was killed in battle at San Mateo, near Manila, P. I., on December 19, 1899, while leading his command. Of commanding stature and conspicuously uniformed, he became the special target of the enemy's fire, to which he was habitually exposed. Amid circumstances calling for high skill and courage as well as great energy, promptitude, and endurance to insure the military success which had become familiar to him, he was struck in the heart by a bullet at the moment of victory and died almost immediately. As far as a soldier can, even to this last act of devotion, he had in the Spanish war, as in all other wars since his childhood, served his country well and as only a thorough soldier could; and, as he fell, the country has taken his name and fame to heart to cherish. His military virtues and career deserve to be an example of faithful and devoted service. His family motto is Droit et loyale, and his career exemplified its spirit. General Lawton was born March 17, 1843, in Manhattan, Lucas County, Ohio. In youth he spent a year in Missouri and Iowa. At the opening of the civil war he was residing in Fort Wayne, Ind., where, on April 16, 1861, among the earliest there to respond to President Lincoln's call for three months' volunteers, at the age of 18 years, he enlisted and was mustered in as sergeant of Company E, Ninth Indiana Volunteers. While in this service he participated in the engagements at Philippi, Laurel Hill, and Carricks Ford, W. Va. He was mustered out at the expiration of the term of service, July 21, 1861, and assisted in organizing Company A, Thirtieth Indiana Volunteers, which was mustered into service on August 20, 1861, with him the first lieutenant; and he served in the Department of the Ohio under General Buell, and was promoted captain in front of Corinth, Miss., on May 7, 1862, being then 19 years old. He served in command of this company in all the operations of the Army of the Cumberland until July, 1864, when he was assigned as inspector on the staff of General Grose, commanding the Third Brigade, First Division, Fourth Army Corps (Army of the Cumberland), in which capacity he served until November, 1864, when he was relieved to take command of his regiment. When it veteranized, he was promoted to lieutenant-colonel November 15, 1864, and commanded it; and was commissioned a colonel on February 10, 1865, being then not quite 22 years old. Muster on the colonel's commission was withheld under the then existing laws, because the regiment did not have the required strength. He was brevetted colonel of volunteers on March 13, 1865. After the surrender of the Confederate armies he was ordered to Texas, where, on account of the good condition and discipline of his regiment, he was assigned to an independent command by the division commander, taking part in every march, campaign, battle, and skirmish in which it was engaged until mustered out in December, 1865. He was under fire in the following engagements, viz: Shiloh, Miss.; siege of Corinth, Miss.; Floyds Fork, Ky.; Lawrenceburg, Ky.; Lavergne, Tenn.; Triune, Tenn.; Stones River, Tenn.; Liberty Gap, Tenn.; Chickamauga, Tenn.; siege of Chattanooga, Tenn.; battle of Chattanooga, Tenn.; Tunnel Hill, Ga.; Rocky Face, Ga.; Dalton, Ga.; Resaca, Ga.; Adairsville, Ga.; Cassville, Ga.; New Hope Church, Ga.; Kennesaw Mountain, Ga.; Smyrna Camp Ground, Ga.; Chattahoochee River, Ga.; Peach Tree Creek, Ga.; siege of Atlanta, Ga.; Jonesboro, Ga.; Lovejoy Station, Ga.; Columbia, Tenn.; Franklin, Tenn., and Nashville, Tenn. It is well to remember that in such campaigns as this to Atlanta the soldiers were daily under fire. He was awarded a medal of honor for distinguished gallantry in leading a charge of skirmishers against the enemy's rifle pits, taking them, with their occupants, and stubbornly and successfully resisting two determined attacks of the enemy to retake the works in front of Atlanta, Ga., on August 3, 1864. After the close of the civil war he studied law and attended the law department of Harvard University, and while there, after the reorganization of the Army, July 28, 1866, he received an appointment as second lieutenant in the Forty-first Regular Infantry, which was declined, but on April 4, 1867, the appointment was again tendered and was accepted. He then joined his regiment at Baton Rouge, La., and soon afterwards was recommended by Col. R. S. Mackenzie for promotion to a higher grade. The regiment being ordered to Texas, he served as its regimental quartermaster until its consolidation with the Thirty-eighth Infantry, the two making the Twenty-fourth Infantry, with which he served until the reduction of the Army in 1870. At the request of Col. R. S. Mackenzie he was, on January 1, 1871, transferred to the Fourth Cavalry, then in Texas, with which he served in the expedition in 1871 against the Comanche Indians in Indian Territory and the Staked Plains of Texas, in a similar expedition in 1872, in the operations against the Indian and Mexican marauders on the Rio Grande in 1873-74, in the campaigns against the Cheyennes, Kiowas, and Comanches in 1874, and in the intervals he performed the duty of post quartermaster, in which, as in all military duties that he undertook, he excelled. In 1876 he participated in the severe winter campaign against the Indians in Wyoming, and in the battle with the Cheyennes, November 26, 1876, which resulted in their surrender, and he was assigned the arduous duty of conveying them to the South. In 1877, stationed at Fort Clark, Tex., he engaged in the numerous expeditions from that point against Mexican and Indian marauders, including General Mackenzie's raid into Mexico, when the Kiowas were brought back as prisoners, and he was in the expedition in the mountains of Colorado in 1879 and 1880, and soon afterwards was assigned as inspector of the Department of Arkansas, serving as such until May, 1881, when he was in the campaign in the Ute country of Colorado. January 1, 1882, he was assigned as inspector and engineer officer in the District of New Mexico, serving as such until October 23, 1883, and commanding in the meantime an expedition into the Guadalupe Mountains, New Mexico. After Geronimo's outbreak in May, 1885, he organized, in May, 1886, and led a command in that campaign into the Sierra Madre Mountains, Sonora, beyond our borders, which, as one feature of the campaign, ultimately resulted in the surrender and overthrow of Geronimo and his band-one of the most persistent and brilliant feats in the annals of Indian warfare-and these prisoners he conveyed to Florida. The adventurous spirit which marked these years, the sleepless march, the thirst amidst arid heat, and again the untold cold, and the dexterous management of men and means to the end to be accomplished, enlivened by fierce fighting, belong now to the work and epoch of the generations which redeemed an empire on the plains from savagery and bequeathed it to civilization, where cities and citizens now rule with law, and trade, agriculture, mining, and manufactures flourish abundantly. It is a book that is closed but not forgotten. On September 17, 1888, he was appointed major and inspector-general, was promoted lieutenant-colonel and inspector-general on February 12, 1889, and colonel and inspector-general on July 7, 1898, being then a brigadier-general of volunteers in the field, in Cuba. He served as assistant in the Inspector-General's Office in Washington from September, 1888, until December, 1893, his accurate judgment and large military experience being of invaluable aid in the performance of the many delicate and important duties of administration, investigation, and inspection. Nor was his activity confined merely to office duties, but was widely extended, and occasionally led effectively toward important improvements and reforms relating to such fundamental questions as the recruiting and remount establishment. One tour of special inspections embraced visits to most of the posts in the West, as far north as Fort Canby, and down the Pacific coast to Los Angeles, Cal., and thence to Washington again. Another embraced inspections on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts and Mississippi River, from Wilmington, N. C., via St. Augustine, Fla., to Montgomery, New Orleans, Vicksburg, Memphis, Little Rock, and intermediate points, to Duluth, Minn., specially considering engineer inspections. A third great tour included the inspection of the post-exchange system. His influence in consolidating the various printing offices of the War Department into one, or while periodically inspecting the supply department, illustrated his practical methods. In December, 1893, his health requiring a change from confining office duties, he assumed station at Los Angeles, Cal., and on September 28, 1894, was assigned as inspector-general of the Department of the Colorado, and on April 29, 1895, was assigned as inspector-general of the southern inspection district, with headquarters at Santa Fe, but afterwards at Los Angeles (as near there a home and prolonged life seemed assured), having the troops along our entire Mexican border in his inspection. He was assigned to the Department of California April 16, 1898, but joined General Shafter in the East and not in San Francisco. The traditions of this corps affecting field service in war, perhaps, may be exemplified by an extract from Inspector-General Schriver's letter of September 14, 1864, dated Headquarters, Army of the Potomac: * * * * * * * "I beg to refer the Department to my report of casualties (three in number, on file in the Adjutant-General's Office), in which it will be seen that there have been in the inspector-general's department of the Army of the Potomac alone, during the period embraced between 1st of May, 1863, and September, 1864, 59 casualties in battle, viz: Killed, 9; wounded, 38; prisoners, 12; a greater number, perhaps, than in any other department in the Army in proportion to its numbers." * * * And the death of General Mansfield at Antietam and of General Buford after Gettysburg may be recalled by General Lawton's well-won glory in the Philippines. When the war with Spain began, he was serving as inspector-general of the southern district and at once asked to be given service in the field, and on May 4, 1898, was appointed brigadier-general of volunteers and assigned to the command of a division in the Fifth Army Corps, again under General Shafter, which was largely The duty assigned to his command was to lead in the landing composed of regulars. and during the first strategic march in Cuba, and in July, 1898, his command was the point d'appui of the operations against the Spanish forces, which he illustrated so brilliantly in the gallant capture of El Caney. His able and dauntless work gained for him the approval of his superiors and the plaudits both of his fellow-citizens and comrades. On July 8, 1898, he was made major-general of volunteers. After serving for a time as military governor of Santiago de Cuba, he returned to Washington and was assigned to the command of the Fourth Corps; subsequently was relieved from it and sailed for the Philippine Islands, through the Suez Canal in the transport Grant, in January, 1899, initiating such a movement of American troops, and on his arrival was assigned to the command of the First Division, Eighth Army Corps. On April 10 he captured Santa Cruz, a Filipino stronghold. Soon afterwards he led the attack on San Rafael, one of the hottest fights of the insurrection. For his capture of San Isidro the President cabled him, as follows: To OTIS, Manila: Convey to General Lawton and the gallant men of his command my congratulations upon the successful operations during the past month, resulting in the capture this morning of San Isidro. WILLIAM MCKINLEY. On June 1, 1899, General Lawton was placed in command of the defenses of Manila. In October, after having succeeded in clearing the country of the insurgents, he followed the retreating army northward, capturing many towns and everywhere driving the foe before him. On December 1 he captured Tayug and large quantities of stores, and soon afterwards returned to Manila, whence he started, on December 18, to San Mateo to attack a force of insurgents under a leader named Geronemo; and, whilst talking to his wounded aid, at the very moment of victory, this peerless officer, this kind-hearted, loyal, and modest gentleman, this soldier of three wars and of innumerable Indian forays and civilized combats upon two continents, in temperate zone and in Tropics, was stricken by the fatal bullet which ended his strenuous life, leaving family and friends to mourn his loss just as the ripe rewards of long, arduous, faithful, and admirable services were to be enjoyed to the full. His life and death can not be easily forgotten. His appointment as brigadiergeneral in the Army had been ordered before his death to mark the appreciation of his services in presence of his country's latest enemy. When his death was announced, the President sent the following message: Major-General OTIS, Manila: EXECUTIVE MANSION, December 20, 1899. I have learned with inexpressible sorrow of the death of Major-General Lawton, and ask to share with the officers and men of the Eighth Corps in their grief. One of the most gallant officers of the Army has fallen. At the time the sad news came to us his nomination as brigadier-general of the Regular Army was already made for transmission to the Senate, but no rank can enhance his fame. He rose from the ranks of the Ninth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, filling every grade in the service to that of major-general of volunteers, and in these years was conspicuous for bravery and devotion to duty. The country mourns the death of this intrepid leader. Give to Mrs. Lawton my heartfelt sympathy in her overshadowing affliction. WILLIAM MCKINLEY, President of the United States. In General Orders, No. 209, December 21, 1899, the honorable Secretary of War gave official expression of his appreciation of General Lawton's service, and directed at every post due military recognition and mourning by every officer for his death, and he cabled as follows: OTIS, Manila: WAR DEPARTMENT, December 20, 1899. I join with the officers and men of the Eighth Army Corps in the deepest regret over the death of their heroic comrade, General Lawton. I beg you to convey to Mrs. Lawton expression of my sincere sympathy. It was the ideal death of a soldier, as his splendid courage and devotion to duty have met the ideal of a soldier's life. The sad news will be announced to the Army, and due ceremonies of respect for his memory will be directed in general orders. ELIHU ROOT, Secretary of War. The estimation in which General Lawton is held was abundantly evidenced in the expressions of sympathy, sorrow, and admiration when his death was announced. The President, Cabinet officers, statesmen, and military and naval officers, the public press and private citizens, all bore witness in strong terms to his high qualities as a man and public servant, and to the greatness and absolute devotion of his public services. General Lawton possessed in an unusual degree the magnetic faculty of binding to himself the hearts of those with whom he came in contact, whether great or humble, so they all loved and esteemed him. How such of the enemy as met him became his friends is reported by cable from Manila as follows: "Many Filipinos who say they knew General Lawton was their good friend express great grief at his death. Officials of the several governments which General Lawton established, even as far north as Tayug, are sending messages of sympathy and say they wish to come to Manila and attend the funeral." He was repeatedly commended in general orders "for vigilance and zeal, rapidity and persistence of pursuit;" "for great skill, perseverance, and gallantry" in services on the frontier against hostile Indians. It was not only easy for him to accomplish difficult and daring feats-he inspired those around him, so that he could get from each the utmost of which he was capable and accomplished what seemed impossible; and his duties were habitually so strenuously performed that it seemed to him the fortitude and endurance aroused by his own characteristic qualities belonged of right to those his example inspired. When congratulated by a friend upon his many successes, he replied, almost apologetically, "I owe it all to the good fortune of having exceptionally good men with me in all my undertakings.' How in his last days his personality impressed his fellow-countrymen may be indicated by one extract from the daily press: "The man of El Caney is the man of the Mogollons, and the man of the Mogollons is the reincarnation of some shining, helmeted warrior who fell upon the sands of Palestine in the first crusade, with the red blood welling over his corselet and his two-handed battle sword shivered to the hilt. The race type persists unchanged in eye, in profile, in figure. It is the race which in all the centuries the Valkyrs have wafted from the war decks, have hailed from the holmgangs or helmet-strewn moorlands-the white-skinned race which, drunk with the liquor of battle, reeled around the dragon standard at Senlac, which fought with Richard Grenville, which broke the Old Guard at Waterloo, which rode up the slope at Balaklava, which went down with the Cumberland at Hampton Roads, which charged with Pickett at Gettysburg, the race of the trader, the financier, the statesman, the inventor, the colonizer, the creator, but, before all, the fighter." J. C. BRECKINRIDGE, 3. MAJ. FRANK H. EDMUNDS, FIRST U. S. INFANTRY, ACTING INSPECTOR-GENERAL. WAR DEPARTMENT, INSPECTOR-GENERAL'S OFFICE, It is with great regret that the Inspector-General announces to the officers of the Inspector-General's Department the death by yellow fever of Maj. Frank H. Edmunds, First U. S. Infantry, acting inspector-general of the Department of Havana and Pinar del Rio, who died on the 18th of June, 1900, at Quemados de Mariano, Cuba. Major Edmunds was born at Ypsilanti, Mich., December 30, 1849, and appointed a cadet from Dakota to the United States Military Academy on July 1, 1866. He was promoted second lieutenant First U. S. Infantry, June 12, 1871; first lieutenant, May 6, 1879; captain, January 24, 1889; major, Fifteenth Infantry, March 2, 1899; and was transferred to the First Infantry on May 18, 1899. He was appointed major and chief ordnance officer of volunteers July 18, 1898, and served as such until May 12, 1899. He joined his regiment (First Infantry) on September 30, 1871, and served with it in various parts of the country until the breaking out of the war with Spain, with the exception of brief details at the Military Academy, and as professor of military science and tactics at St. John's College, Fordham, N. Y. He served as mustering officer in Louisiana from April to July, 1898, and as chief ordnance officer and adjutant-general of the Seventh Corps at Havana, Cuba; and was appointed acting inspector-general of the department of the province of Havana on July 25, 1899, and served in that capacity until his death. Major Edmunds's record during all his service in the Army was that of an officer of marked ability, who was industrious, zealous, and painstaking. His work as an inspector-general was excellent, his reports and recommendations showing careful study and fine judgment. His death deprives the service of an able and promising officer. This is the third officer whose loss the corps has been compelled to deplore during the present fiscal year: General Lawton, December 19, 1899, at San Mateo, P. I.; Lieutenant-Colonel Miley, September 19, 1899, at Manila, P. I., and now Major Edmunds, June 18, 1900, at Quemados, Cuba. Their names are sufficient attestation to the Army and the corps of the character and quality of the men whom we have thus lost. J. C. BRECKINRIDGE, Inspector-General. |