former officer of the State militia from Rehoboth, Mass., was born at Seekonk, Mass., Feb. 10, 1839. In 1859 he attended the Westfield Normal School, from which he graduated in 1860, and was residing in Westfield when the war broke out. He received a sergeant's warrant, but by conspicuous and gallant service won commissions as first lieutenant and brevet captain. Lieut. Peck was engaged in every battle and nearly every skirmish in which the regiment participated. With a great love for adventure, he was ready for any service; and with courage and coolness was equal to any emergency. He was not only a man of culture and of social parts, but in turn a Nasby and a Delmonico. He was in command of Company F during the last year of its service. He escaped capture at Drewry's Bluff, and was constantly at the front at Cold Harbor and Petersburg, but was captured at South-West Creek March 8, 1865. He now resides at Westfield, Mass.

LIEUT. JOHN H. JUDD was a plumber at Easthampton, and received a warrant as second sergeant upon entering Company A. He was promoted to second lieutenant Jan. 2, 1863, and to first lieutenant May 17, 1864. By the order detailing Capt. Dwight to other service, he was left in command of the Northampton company before Drewry's Bluff, and suffered capture, with imprisonment for ten months. While being moved from point to point in advance of Sherman's victorious army, he eluded his guard and remained concealed until "Sherman's bummers" arrived, when he joined the victorious column and reached Goldsboro, N. C., the middle of March, 1865. Lieut. Judd now resides at Easthampton, Mass.

We have spoken freely of the officers of our regiment, and the many prominent places held by them. It would be gross injustice to neglect to say of our enlisted men, that, as a whole, they were men of sterling worth, many of whom in

due time were advanced to commissioned officers in our own and other regiments, or held responsible positions in the departments with which they were connected. Among those prominent in responsible service were: Ashiel B. Norcross, of Company C, who was the military superintendent and master mechanic of the railroad from New Berne to Beaufort; and William P. Derby, of Company A, military postmaster, in charge of the mail service in the Department of North Carolina. Solon M. Allis was prominent in the engineer department; George O. Spooner in the commissary department; Albert M. Macomber in the ordnance department; Charles H. Rust in the provost marshal's office, and Luther W. Fisher, with a score of others, in the quartermaster's department. Many of the bravest and best of those serving in our regiment will unfortunately find no special personal mention herein, because of our lack of the needed information. So varied were the attainments and the previous callings of our rank and file, that from them any position could be filled, or any demand be satisfied, with competent men. We were able to furnish lawyers, teachers, clerks and musicians; to supply dentists, jewellers, artists, printers, tailors and barbers; and we had architects, builders, masons, machinists and engineers, with millers, bakers and farmers, to meet any possible requisition.

It was through noble emulation and courage along the line that success in battle was most often attained; and the deeds recorded in this work were those of men who were moved by an intelligent and consecrated patriotism. No bounty tempted them to enlist in 1861, but enthused by an intense love for their country, they rushed to arms at its first call, and held no service too arduous, and no risk too great, to rescue the land of their love. It was with such patriotism that the nations of the world were struck with wonder and awe; it was to such men that our Union looked with confidence for its redemption.

SURGEON GEORGE A. OTIS.

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CHAPTER XXV.

MEDICAL.

BY SURGEON FISH AND STEWARD FULLER.

"It may be said there was no branch of the service in the whole army, unless it be that of the chaplains, which understood and performed its duties so well as the regimental surgeons all physicians by profession."--COUNT OF PARIS in "Civil

War in America."

WHATEVER praise is due the medical department of the Twenty-Seventh for faithful and intelligent discharge of duty, should be credited largely to the example and teachings of the first surgeon of the regiment - Dr. Otis.

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Dr. George Alexander Otis, surgeon of the TwentySeventh Mass. Regt. was born at Boston, Nov. 12, 1830. He was educated in letters at Princeton, N. J., and in medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. At the latter place, he received the degree of Doctor of Medicine; but continued his medical studies at London and Paris. Upon returning to this country in 1856, he became editor of the Richmond (Va.) " Medical Journal," continuing as such until 1859. He then located at Springfield, Mass., entered into the general practice of medicine, and soon became distinguished for his skill and success in the practice of surgery. When Col. Lee received authority to raise the TwentySeventh Mass. Regt., he knew to whom to look for a surgeon. Results amply proved the wisdom of the choice, for Dr. Otis not only became the surgeon of this regiment, but the surgeon of the war.

Surgeon Otis nominally served the

Twenty-Seventh Regiment until July 20, 1864, but his distinguished fitness caused him to be frequently absent on special duty as medical director or purveyor of North Carolina, surgeon of the steamer "Cosmopolitan" in South Carolina, or medical director at Yorktown, Va., in 1863 and 1864. In the spring of 1864, Surgeon Otis was ordered to Washington, D. C., for examination for the corps of volunteer surgeons. His examination was so brilliant that the surgeon-general assigned him at once to the charge of the "Bureau of Surgical Records" and to the curatorship of the " Army Medical Museum." These positions were held by him until his death, Feb. 23, 1881.

While connected with the Bureau of Surgical Records, Dr. Otis published several important monographs on surgical subjects, the two most important being on “Excision of the Head of the Femur" and "Amputation at the Hip Joint." The work, however, of highest lustre to his name, and which has made him the most celebrated writer on military surgery in all lands is "The Surgical History of the War of the Rebellion," in three royal quarto volumes, of about one thousand pages each. Two volumes had been published, and the third was ready for the printers at the time of his death. Surgeon Otis was fitted by education and talents to take the foremost place in the surgical department of the army. Wherever he was, his genius and animating spirit was felt and acknowledged. Not only did he excel as a surgical writer, but so skilful were all of his operations, that he was appointed by Medical Director Church, of the Department of North Carolina, as one of an advisory board of three, to pass upon all cases requiring superior surgery. His education was thorough, his will indomitable, his courage unquestioned, his industry what would be called "the two o'clock of the night kind." He knew the works of Ferguson and Baron Larrey almost by heart. He was accurate in prognosis, definite and per

OUR HOSPITAL BEGINNINGS.

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spicuous in details; and he despised mediocrity and incompetency.

With subordinates, Surgeon Otis encouraged self-respect, never countermanding their orders, yet seeing to it that any infraction of instructions was corrected by the one responsible. Surgeon Otis was generous to a fault, royal in his likes and dislikes, yet willing to acknowledge an error and to make the honorable amend. Impulsive and intuitive in his perceptions, still he was clear in his directions. He allowed no excuse for mistakes, but if a blunder was not repeated it was never referred to afterward. He remembered only that the end and aim of his profession was the relief of human sufferings.

Dr. George A. Otis was commissioned by Gov. John A. Andrew as surgeon of the Twenty-Seventh Mass. Regt., Sept. 14, 1861.

Subsequently, he held the following commissions: Assistant surgeon U. S. Vols., June 30, 1864; surgeon U. S. Vols., Aug. 30, 1864; assistant-surgeon and captain U. S. A., Feb. 28, 1866; surgeon and major U. S. A., March 17, 1880. He was also brevetted lieutenant-colonel of U. S. Vols., and later, lieutenant-colonel of the United States Army.

The story of our hospital beginnings is best told by the following letter from Surgeon Otis to the Surgeon-General of Massachusetts:

"SPRINGFIELD, MASS., Oct. 5, 1861.

Camp Reed was established on Saturday, September 21st. The following night was cold and rainy; but on Monday, the 23d, the weather was again fair, and, except for a shower on the afternoon of the 26th ult., there has been no interruption of the fine weather until to-day, when we are again annoyed by an easterly wind and occasional rain. Lieut. Col. Lyman has been in command, and has been constantly on the ground, sharing the rations and occupying similar quarters to those of the men. He has shown an intelligent interest in everything concerning the hygienic welfare of the regiment, and has lent a willing ear to all my suggestions on this point. For the first week the force on the ground averaged about