#76 Carrying the Log and Other Punishments



"Too Fond of Whiskey." Source: Library of Congress

 The Civil War, like all wars, consisted of long stretches with nothing to do broken up by short periods of marching and fighting. During the slow times, Union soldiers in Virginia passed the time by stealing food from nearby southern farmers, getting drunk, gambling, fighting among themselves, or all of the above. The creativity of the offenses were often met with equally creative punishments.

1) Carrying the Log: For minor offenses, soldiers had to substitute his rifle for a thick log, that he had to carry with him wherever he went. Often, he would be called to guard the tent of the officer responsible for making him carry it.

2) Fit to be Tied: For moderate offenses, a soldier might have to sit with a stick placed behind his knees with his hands tied together in front of his ankles, and a bayonet in his teeth.

3) Barrel Balance: Also for moderate offenses, this punishment consists of removing the lid from a barrel and forcing the soldier to stand, and balance, on the rim. Soldiers were also made to wear the barrel, and only the barrel.

4) Branding and Flogging: For major offenses, such as attempted disertion, soldiers might have been branded, flogged, or hung up by their thumbs.

5) Death: The worst offenders were shot, sometimes sitting on their own coffins, or hanged.

Sources:

Gone for a Soldier: The Civil War Memoirs of Private Alfred Bellard