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scmircE. 



LVoL. IX., No. 318 



years in frontier service, more especially against 

 the Indians in California, Oregon, and Texas, in 

 which service he displayed an energy and bravery 

 that have been characteristic of his life. His record 

 during these years embraces constant fights and 

 pursuits. He was twice severely wounded, and by 

 virtue of his wounds, he was, in January, 1860, 

 by the surgeon's order, granted a leave of absence 

 as being unfit for duty. In consequence of this, 

 he was at the north, while his regiment was in 

 Texas, at the breaking out of the rebellion. The 

 regiment having been captured, and its officers 

 released on parole, he alone was unembarrassed by 

 the parole, and was able to offer his -services to 

 the Union army. He was at once assigned as 

 temporary instructor at West Point. In May, 

 1861, he became captain in the 8th infantry of 

 the regular army, and in October was made colo- 

 nel of the 41st regiment of Ohio infantry, in the 

 volunteer army. During the war, he distinguished 

 himseK on many occasions, and his commission as 

 major-general was granted him Dec. 13, 1864, for 

 ' specific distinguished services;' i.e., "for long 

 and continued services of the highest character, 

 and for special gallantry and service at Fort 

 McAllister." This placed him fifth in a list of 

 twenty -four ofiflcers who had received commissions 

 for distinguished services. 



He continued serving on the frontier territo- 

 ries, north and west, and was especially active in 

 Indian affairs, until 1870, in which year he was 

 allowed leave of absence to visit the seat of war 

 in Europe. The results of his observations and 

 studies during his six-months' absence are em- 

 braced in a volume entitled ' The school and the 

 army in Germany and France, with a diary of 

 siege life at Versailles ' (New York, 1872). This 

 volunae contains an interesting sketch of Bismarck, 

 and Bismarck's own account of the state of affairs 

 in Europe. It contains especially a fair criticism of 

 the relative excellences of the German and French 

 systems, both civil and military. In a special 

 chapter on that subject, he incidentally brought 

 out more prominently some weak points in our 

 own military organization. It would seem that 

 the courage displayed so brilliantly on the battle- 

 field frequently nerved him to utter not only these 

 but other fearless criticisms of things that were 

 palpably wrong, and some of which have since 

 been corrected. 



He was married Feb. 15, 1871, to Millie, 

 daughter of the Hon. Washington McLean of 

 Cincinnati, who, with one son, survives him. 



On his return from Europe in 1871, he returned 

 to duty in the Indian Territory, and was with his 

 regiment in Kansas and Dakota, except for a 

 short absence, until Dec. 15, 1880, when he was 



by President Hayes appointed brigadier-general 

 and chief signal officer, and has since then been 

 stationed at Washington. The absence just re- 

 ferred to was occasioned by his again visiting 

 Europe as military attach^ to the U. S. legation 

 at Vienna, for the purpose of studying the opera- 

 tions of European armies during the Turco-Rus- 

 sian war. He was absent on this service from 

 December, 1876, to June, 1877, and the results of 

 his observations were published subsequently in a 

 highly interesting popular volume. 



The general account of his activity during the 

 war of the rebellion was published by him in his 

 ' Narrative of military service ' (Boston, 1885). 



His letters and pamphlets on the ' Bad Lands ' 

 show that for many years General Hazen had 

 been studying the relations of meteorology and 

 agriculture. Upon his appointment as chief sig- 

 nal officer, he became indefatigable in his efforts 

 to improve the military and departmental rela- 

 tions of the signal service, its scientific character, 

 its practical usefulness to farmers and herders, and 

 its popular influence. His labors in Washington 

 stirred up most virulent opponents, — first, when 

 it became necessary for him to expose and prose- 

 cute the corruption of Captain Howgate ; again, 

 when it became necessary, in self-defence, to ex- 

 j)0se the true reasons of the failure of the war de- 

 partment to properly support and succor the sig- 

 nal-service expedition to Fort Conger; and again, 

 when he had occasion to defend the advantages of 

 the military character of the combined signal- 

 service and weather-bureau organization against 

 those who would take it from the army without 

 making a proper provision for its work in any 

 other department. The records of his successful 

 defence against attacks prompted by implacable 

 hate, official stubbornness, and personal ignorance, 

 are to be found in the Proceedings of courts-mar- 

 tial, courts of inquiry, committee of congress on 

 expenditure, and especially in the ' Testimony be- 

 fore the joint commission to consider the present 

 organization of the signal service,' etc., which last 

 voluminous report, with testimony, was printed 

 in June, 1886. 



General Hazen's interest in meteorology, as be- 

 fore said, properly dates back earlier than 1873, 

 at which time he prepared a letter on ' Our barren 

 lands, or the interior of the United States west of 

 the 100th meridian and east of the Sierra Neva das.' 

 This was published in the New York Tribune, Feb. 

 27, 1874, and led to a discussion in that paper, 

 and in the Minneapolis Tribune, between himself 

 and Gen. A. A. Custer, which is summarized in a 

 pamphlet of the above title published by Robert 

 Clarke & Co. of Cincinnati, in 1875. The motive 

 of General Hazen evidently was the protection of 



