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Military Order of the Loyal Legion of United States Headquarters of the Commandery of the State of Indiana 64 When building Indianapolis, Dec. 5, 1901 Companions John W. Headington, Orval T. Chamberlain, Robert S. Chamberlain and James D. Braden, the committee appointe d to prepare a testimonial to the memory of Col. Ruel and. Jason, 100th Indiana Volunteers, insignia No. 5192, have sub mitted the following. Memorial Col. Ruel Emma. Johnson was born in Erie County, Pennsylvania, June 5, 1836, and died at Goshen, Indiana, Nov. 12, 1901 . At an early age he came to Indiana and settled in Elkhart County. He graduated from University of Michigan in 1858. H e studied law with Judge Robert Lowery Malo Fort Wayne, Indiana, and at once commenced the practice of his profession a t Goshen. He was affluent speaker, and being well versed in the law he soon stood in the front rank at the bar. When th e flag of his country was fired upon the patriotic spirit within him was aroused in all of his energies were exerted o n the side of the government. While he was not affiliated with a political party in power at the time of the outbreak o f the rebellion, he had no sympathy whenever with those in rebellion and he was willing, if necessary, to sacrifice hi s life in defense of the flag. In August, 1862, he recruited a company and was elected its captain, which, on the organ ization of the 100th regiment Indiana volunteers became company D. ofthat regiment. On the 18th of August, 1863, he wa s promoted to major, on the ninth of January, 1864 to Lt. Col. And on the second of May, 1865, was commissioned Col. O f the regiment. Col. Johnson was a model soldier and efficient officer. With his regiment he participated in all the great battles of t he Southwest, including the battles of Vicksburg, Jackson, missionary Ridge, the Atlanta campaign, the march to see, an d to theCarolinasas a part of the 15th Army Corps. Col. Johnson entered the Army from a sense of duty and not for pleasure, and he was always write to perform any servic e assigned to him, without regard to what hardships or dangers involved. At the battle Atlanta on the 22nd of July, 186 4, he wascapturedby the enemy and taken prisoner. While on his way to prison he made his escape but was recaptured th e 40 reached our lines, taken to Macon and thence to Charleston where, after a short service in the rebel prison, he wa s exchanged. At the close of the warCol. Johnson returned Elkhart County, Indiana, and for the law partnership with Cap t. A. S. Blake. In 1878 he went abroad and spent three years in Germany to learn the language. In 1888 he went to Sant a Fe, New Mexico, to serveas clerk of the Supreme Court and clerk of U.S. District Court, having received his appointme nt from the Chief Justice of that territory. He resigned in his clerkship at Santa Fe after a short service and open th e law office at Las Vegas, New Mexico and engaged the practice and mining until 1890 when he returned to Elkhart County , when he continued to reside in practice law until the time of his death. Col. Johnson was elected a member of the military Order on the Loyal Legion in the Ohio Commandry, Feb. 10, 1886, and w as transferred to Indiana Commandry Dec. 8, 1894. He was married Feb. 26, 1891, to Miss Jeanetta Gortner, who survives , to mourn with us, his departure. His remains were tenderly born to their last resting place in all Ridge Cemetery, ne ar the city of Goshen, by his comrades and companions, on the 16th of November, 1901. In his death this Commandry has lost one of its most highly esteemed companions and estate animation a loyal, patrioti c citizen. We bid are companions farewell, but it is for a day. His place in the calm is a little in advance of ours, and when th e weary march with us is ended, we, with him, shall be addressed. Respectfully submitted, John W. Headington Orval T. Chamberlain Robert S. Chamberlain James D. Braden Committee

COL. RUEL M. JOHNSON. The story of the life of the worthy citizen should be given to the public. It should be read by a ll our people, that they may profit by the example. Its lessons should be studied, and the good they inculcate impresse d upon the mindsof the youth of our land. All may glean from them kernels of wisdom for present use and store up knowle dge and information which will be of benefit in after life. It is of such a citizen that we write. It is to such a ma n that we here point the public mind and direct the people's thought. The story of the life of the subject of this sket ch is no ordinary one; for few men in the State have a more brilliant record as a soldier, or a more upright and distin guished one as a civilian, than Co1. Ruel M. Johnson, of Elkhart, Ind. Of none can it well be said that his record ca n be more profitably perused by the living, or with greater propriety be transmitted to the future for the benefit of t hose who will come after us. The month of August, 1862, was one of the darkest for our country of all the gloomy periods of our late Civil war. Man y and terrible disasters had befallen our brave armies at the front, and cast their darkest gloom over the homes of th e loyal North. Thedemand for reinforcements to fill up the depleted ranks among the brave soldiers in the field was ver y great, and notwithstanding the most energetic efforts of loyal men everywhere, and their eloquent appeals to the patr iotism of the people, many localities failed to respond with their proper quotas, and the minds of men desponded and th eir hearts shuddered lest the cause of the union should fail, and the Government be overthrown. In this dark hour of our country's history, Ruel M. Johnson, then a mere youth, studying law at Goshen, this State, thr ew aside his law books, and, announcing his determination to join the armies of the union and fight for the old flag an d the grand causeit represented, went out among the citizens of his county, and asked them to accompany him to the sea t of war, and aid in the defense of the Government. So fervent were his appeals to their patriotism, and so effective h is eloquent requests to come withhim, that in the short space of five days more than one hundred of the brave sons of E lkhart county's yeomanry enrolled themselves under his leadership, and, promptly electing him as their captain, tendere d their service to theGovernment, were accepted and later became Company D of the now renowned One Hundredth Regiment o f Indiana Infantry Volunteers. On reporting his company to the adjutant general of the State, as ready to march, Capt . Johnson was directed to proceedby wagon to Warsaw, and there he would be furnished with transportation by the command ant of the district to Fort Wayne, the rendezvous for the regiment of which his company was to form a part. To obtain the necessary number of wagons to take a hundred men to Warsaw was no easy matter; but the young officer wa s equal to the emergency. The day his company was to proceed to Warsaw was also the day the Non-Combatants of the count y had beenordered to appear before the county board to be relieved from liability for military duty, and hundreds of th em with their wagons and teams, lined the streets of Goshen, coming as they did from all parts of the county to be excu sed from taking uparms in defense ofthe Government extending them protection. Capt. Johnson, rightly deemed these peopl e proper subjects for "tribute," and as they were there to secure exemption from military duty, while his men were goin g to the" front " to bear the burden of these "Non-Combatants " as well as that of themselves, he at once pressed them , their wagons and teams into service, and thus compelled them to contribute toward the defense of their country, by tr ansporting, free of charge the men of Company D to Warsaw, on their way to the seat of war. It is probable that this i s the first instance during the war, of enforcing the "Sherman bummer" policy in any loyal State. Arriving with his command at Warsaw, this young officer found a still greater difficulty to surmount. The Government ha d failed to provide transportation for his men to Fort Wayne, and the Pennsylvania railroad officials refused to carr y them tothat pointunless they paid their fare. The Captain and his friends offered to guarantee the fare, knowing tha t the commandant of the district, who was then at Fort Wayne superintending the sending of other troops to the "front, " would furnish theproper transportation as soon as they reached there, but this would not satisfy the railroad conduct or, and the latter refused to move his train unless the men were taken off the cars, or their fare paid in money. Capt . Johnson had courage, butno money, and, having explained the circumstances and offered to guarantee the fare, withou t avail, taking out his watch and looking the conductor in the eye, made the following forcible little speech: "Mr. Con ductor - My men are here on theirway to the seat of war; they have been ordered to Fort Wayne, and they are going ther e tonight and on this train; I have offered everything that is fair. Now, I will give you just five minutes' time in wh ich to make up your mind to take them therewithout further parley. If you do not conclude todo so in that time, I wil l put my own men on the engine, take possession of the train, and run it through to Fort Wayne myself." Before the tim e expired the conductor capitulated, the gallant captain and his men were taken into camp, and this is also thefirst ca pture of a railroad train, probably, that took place during the war. The determination, decision of character and coura ge thus early evinced by the young officer characterizedhiswhole subsequent conduct during the war, and many times save d his men from various hardships and privations. From Fort Wayne this company was soon moved to Camp Morton, Indianapol is, where the One Hundredth Regiment, of which it formed a part, was duly organized and ordered to Memphis, Tenn., ther e becoming a part of thegrand "Old Fifteenth Army Corps," commanded by Gen. Sherman, and constituting a part of the arm y of Gen. Grant, then beginning the movement on Vicksburg. Col. Johnson and his command bore a conspicuous part in al l the actions and movements leading up to the capitulation of Vicksburg and the capture of Jackson, the capital of Miss issippi. His regiment was ever afterward continued a part of the Fifteenth Army Corps which was originally organized by Gen. She rman, and with that great commander took part in the campaign to relieve the garrison at Chattanooga, and also accompan ied himin his grand march from Atlanta to the sea. At the battle of Missionary Ridge, his regiment, of which he had pre viously been made major for gallant conduct in the field, gained the distinction of being the first to reach the summi t when the ridgewas stormed. In this brilliant engagement, which was purely a voluntary movement of the whole army of G rant, Maj. Johnson, who had just come into command of his regiment through the disability of his superior, greatly dist inguished himself, being in the thickest of the fight, having his horse shot from under him, receiving four bullets thr ough his coat, and being slightly wounded by a piece of shell in the right cheek. After pursuing Bragg to Braysville, t he regiment with other troopswas detached to relieve Burnside at Knoxville, which having been successfully accomplishe d they returned, suffering sorely for food and raiment, and took up winter quarters at Scotsboro, Ala.; but were soon o rdered to garrison Bellefonte, Ala. Here Maj. Johnson thoroughly drilled his regiment, and placed them on an excellent war footing. It had the reputation o f being one of the best drilled regiments of the Fifteenth Army Corps, being able to execute "on the double quick" an y movementlaid downin the tactics. When the spring of 1864 arrived, the whole Federal army prepared for an active and a ggressive campaign. The rebels were defiant; Grant seemed almost the only Federal commander who could win battles; enli stments in the North, owing to theefforts of treasonable organizations and other causes, were slow, and the gloomiest p eriod of the war approached and cast its darkness on the land. But the resolute soldiers in the field girded on their a rmor and prepared to carry the struggles, as the South itself said, "to the last ditch." The One Hundredth Regiment, st ill a part of the Fifteenth Army Corps, was attached to Gen. McPherson's army of the Tennessee, and with it moved towar d Atlanta. It fought at Snake Creek Gap, Resaca, Dallas, New Hope Church, Big Shanty, Kennesaw Mountain, Nickajack Cree k, Chattahoocee River, Decatur, Cedar Bluffs, Jonesboro, Lovejoy and Atlanta. At the battle of Resaca, Maj. Johnson, wi th a heavy skirmish line, flanked a rebel brigade, which, with a battery, was holdingOsterhaus' Division in check, an d drove it from its works, receiving great praise from Gen. McPherson, who was present on the field and observed the mo vement. Gen. Harrow, commanding the division, inhis official report of this battle, says: "On the morning of the 13th o f May, when near the Calhoun road, the command was formed in order of battle. The First Brigade, Col. Reuben Williams , Twelfth Indiana Volunteers, on the left of the first division; the Second Brigade, then Col. Charles C. Wolcott, Fort y-sixth Ohio, and the Third Brigade, Co1. John M. Oliver, Fifteenth Michigan, in the reserve, and in this order moved u pon the enemy, meeting but little opposition until the open roadonthe left of the Resacca road was reached. Here the sk irmishers under Maj.Johnson, One Hundredth Indiana Volunteers, were pushed rapidly forward and drove the enemy into hi s works on the ridge west of Resaca. At this time, Capt. Griffith's FirstIowa Battery placed two guns in position, an d under cover from the fire of these guns the skirmishers were again advanced by Maj. Johnson, and drove the enemy fro m his rifle pits on the road." Col. Albert Heath, commanding the One Hundredth Indiana Volunteers, in his report of th e part taken by his regiment in this battle, says: "My officers and men conducted themselves gallantly, but I shall d o injustice did I not make special mention of Maj. R. M. Johnson, of my regiment, who was in command of the skirmish li ne of your brigade, for his coolness, prudence and gallantry, and I most earnestly hope he may be properly rewarded fo r the great service he rendered that day, riding along the whole line of skirmishers, inspiring themenby his heroic exa mple and personally directing every movement. Before the capture of Marietta, Ga., Maj. Johnsonwas temporarily detache d from his regiment and made chief skirmish officer of his division of the Fifteenth Army Corps, and as suchopened th e battle of Kennesaw Mountain, capturing the outer line of the enemy before daybreak, which made it possible for him an d his skirmishers to, and they did, reach the summit of the mountain, the first of any of Sherman's army. At Dallas adu ty was performed by Maj. Johnson which deserves special mention. The Fifteenth Army Corps under Gen. Logan occupied th e right flankof Sherman's army and was in position with its battle line in the form of an "L," with its outer side towa rdtheenemy. The skirmish line covering its front was some three miles long. The enemy was holding Altoona pass with hi s lines well secured on eitherside of the same. To drive him from his position by a direct assault was next to impossib le. Shermanconcluded to force him out of this impregnable position by a flank movement to the left. This required the F ifteenth Corps to be withdrawn from his rightand moved toward and to extend his left flank. It was a movement not easil y accomplishedwithout loss, because it must be done in the face of the enemy. By command of Gen. Logan, Maj. Johnson wa s placed in charge of this long line of skirmishers covering the front of the Fifteenth Corps, with instructions to s o manage it if possibleas to conceal the movement of the troops in changing from the right to the left flank of the arm y, and then withdraw them and rejoin his command. The space between the contending forces was covered with a thick grow th of underbrush which contributedto the success of the movement. At midnight Maj. Johnson passed along his line and ga ve instructions to the various officers on duty, and soon thereafter fire was opened all along hisline, indicating to t he enemy that an attack was imminent, while the infantry at the same time began its movement from its works to the rea r and left flank of our army. By daybreak our forces were all at a safe distance to the rear and some three miles fro m their former works and in new works, preparedto resist any attack the enemy might make upon them. Seeing this, Maj. J ohnson commenced to withdraw his skirmishes from the enemy's front and so skillfully did he do this duty and so well ha d he managed the line during the movement of the mainbody of the troops, that not only did the enemy fail to discover t heir withdrawal during the time the movement was being made, but even his skirmishers were utterly ignorant of the with drawal of their support until they had been brought off their lineand assembled in the rear at the angle of the "L," wh en the gravity and danger of the situation flashed upon them, as they saw that in order to reach their command and joi n our forces they must march at least three milesparallel with andnot more than a hundred rods distant from the enemy' s lines, with nothing between them and to screen them from the enemy's observation and consequently certain capture tha n a mere strip of woods happily grown up with underbrush and densely covered withforest trees. At first, as was natural , they were disposed to seek safety in flight. That feeling prevailed but for a moment. There they stood, three hundre d men and officers, looking each other in the eyes, and those eyes flashing back to eachthe intelligence that safety wa s to be found only in remaining calm and cool and trusting all to the skill and courage of the officer who had brough t them thus far out of their dilemma. All eyes were turned to the Major. Coolly dismountingfrom his horse and fastenin g him to a tree near by, as though no enemy were in miles of them, he commanded them to fill their haversacks with hard tack found in boxes left behind by the troops when they moved out of their works. This restored their courage and dispe rsed their fears. They filled their haversacks with the "soldier's comforter," and prepared themselves to join their co mmands as if it were but an ordinary march, when in truth it was the most dangerous and hazardous one madeby themdurin g the war. To keep upthe appearance of security of the situation, the Major, mounting his horse, with a loud ringing vo ice gave the command to "fall in," "forward, march," as if no enemy were within an hundred miles of that locality, an d all along that "parallel line of march" he insisted that as much noise should be made by his men as if they were wit h the entire army. Upon approaching the new works where our troops were drawn up in readiness to resist an expected att ackfrom theenemy, the Major and his command struck up therefrain, "We'll Hang Jeff Davis on a Sour Apple Tree," and thi s was taken up by the "boys" within the trenches and ran along the whole line of the Fifteenth Corps and no song was ev er morelustily sung by any body of troops or more enjoyed by those thus safely arriving within our lines. On reaching t he works, General Logan, who with his staff had come out to receive this Spartan band of soldier skirmishers, warmly gr eeted them andcomplimented the Major very highly on his skill and success in saving himself and command from capture, a nd also for having by his management of the skirmish line, during the movement of the troops, possibly prevented a batt le in which heavy loss must havebeen sustained. The enemy did not discover the absence of our troops from their front o r that our skirmishers had been withdrawn from the field until about three o'clock in the afternoon, and only then afte r having made a gallant charge on our breastworks to find them empty and abandoned by our forces. This was one of the m ost difficult movements made by any portion of Sherman's army during the war, and its success, especially its accomplis hment without bloodshed, was largelydue to theskill of the officer placed in charge of the skirmish line of the Fifteen th Army Corps on thatoccasion. After the capture of Marietta, Ga., the One Hundredth Regiment, under Lieut. Col. Heath, was detached to garrison tha t village, and there remained while the main army of Sherman continued to advance upon Atlanta. But Maj. Johnson was to o active and valuable a soldier to be allowed to remain idle and in the rear, and was, therefore, ordered to the fron t to serve as chief skirmish officer of Gen. Harrow's Division of the Fifteenth Army Corps in front of Atlanta and appr oaching that city from the direction of Decatur. On the morning of the 22d of July (the day Gen. McPherson was killed ) when the enemy had withdrawn his main line from in front of Atlanta in order to concentrate his forces upon the feder al left flank, though leavingastrong skirmish line to keep up appearances Maj. Johnson was ordered to throw forward hi s skirmishers covering the entire division front, which he skillfully and gallantly did, sweeping back the line of th e enemy three miles through the woodsuntil almost upon the fortifications around the city, observing which, and knowin g the gravity of the situation, they opened upon him hotly with shell, grape and canister to check his advance. To sav e his command, he concentrated his skirmishersin hastily constructed rifle pits, and sent couriers to inform Gen. Harro w of his success and situation. But in the mean time the whole army swept forward and were soon in possession of the en emy's breastworks around the city of Atlanta. The couriersof Maj. Johnson failed to find Gen. Harrow, whereupon he repo rted for orders toÔøΩ Capt. Wheeler, of Logan's staff, and was directed to assist the commanders of the brigades of th e division in repelling the enemy who had thrown heavy forces uponthe Fifteenth Corps. Three times the enemy in his fro nt was repulsed with great loss. On the right of the Fifteenth Corps was the division of Morgan L. Smith, and next, o n the left, Harrow's division. Through an oversight of Gen. Smith's, a large body of rebels managed, in their fourth ch arge upon his lines, by passingthrough an unprotected cut on the railroad, to reach the rear of Smith's division, whic h resulted in throwing his troops into great confusion. Maj. Johnson, observingthis, and not knowing the cause, rode ra pidly forward to ascertain the difficulty, and aid in rallying Smith's troops. Suddenly, ere he was aware, he found him self covered by the gun of the enemy who peremptorily demanded him to dismount and surrender. Seeing at a glance the folly of disobeying, he laughingly said, "Well, boys, I guess you have got me," and he did as h e was ordered. His coolness saved his life, for had he endeavored to gallop off, he would have shared the fate of Gen . McPherson, who waskilled on that same day, in another part of the field, under very similar circumstances. In speaking of the battle of Atlanta, July 22, 1864, Gen. Harrow, in his official report says: "I regret to add that, d uring this engagement, the gallant Maj. Johnson, One Hundredth Indiana Volunteers, my picket officer, was captured by t he enemyin the gorge to the rear and right of my lines while encouraging the troops to hold their position. He possesse d in a high degree all those qualities which make the accomplished soldier, and his loss is severely felt." Gen. Reube n Williams, thencommanding the First Brigade, Fourth Division, Fifteenth Army Corps, in his official report of this bat tle, says: "I deeply regret the loss from the service, at the present time, of Maj. John B. Hams, Twenty-sixth Illinoi s Volunteer Infantry, wounded, and Maj. R. M. Johnson, One Hundredth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, captured on the 22d, f ormerly of the brigade, but more recently of your staff. Their places can hardly be filled and their loss will be deepl y felt in their respective regiments." The captors of Maj. Johnson took him to Atlanta, whence he was sent to East Poin t, thence toward Griffin, on the way to Macon, Ga., the place where federal officers captured from the Western army wer e imprisoned. On the third day's march toward Macon, by watching his chance, he fell back toward the rear of the column , and finally, unseen by his guards, plunged into a thicket near the roadside. Here he remained concealed until the who le column of prisoners, seventy-five officers and1,700 men, had passed, and then as fast as he could foot it put severa l miles between himself and his former guards. He made good his escape, and by traveling nights, and receiving food an d guidance from a friendly negro, finally reached LittleRiver, where, unfortunately, he was recaptured by a small squa d ofrebels placed there to guard the bridge he attempted at night to cross. He was taken back, and in due time arrive d at Macon, where he found his fellow prisoners. Soon after this,ina limited exchange of officers, he was specially cho sen for exchange by Gen. Sherman, who by this selection testified to his value as an officer and soldier. Before his ex change, however, he had been conveyed to Charleston, where, with Maj. General Stoneman and other prominent federal offi cers, he was placed in the line of fireof federal artillery, then bombarding that city, the object being to divert th e fire and save the city, by the knowledge of the peril, to the federal officers. Fortunately no one was killed. Upon being exchanged, he returned to Atlanta and resumed command of his regiment, and, after aiding in driving Hood acr oss the Tennessee, returned with Sherman to Atlanta, and thence with him marched to the sea. Gov. Morton, at its recept ion at Indianapolis, at the close of the war, thus spoke of this regiment and its gallant commander, Col. Johnson: "A t Griswoldville, Ga., his regiment took part in one of the most notable engagements of the war, when 1,300 Federals whi pped 12,000 rebelsin a square fightwithout works; 300 of the noble 1,300 were of the One Hundredth Indiana, and nobly d id they sustain the credit of their State by their gallant conduct on that bloody field." "From Savannah they proceeded through the Carolinas, fighting bravely at Branchville, Congaree Creek, Columbia and Bent onville, and, in fact, capturing the whole State of South Carolina, and all of North Carolina they wanted, and arrivin g at Goldsboro, N.C., March 24, 1865, thus marching some 1,300 miles and fighting some seventeen heavy battles; while f rom Dalton to Atlanta they were continual1y under fire for one hundred days. The maneuvering of this regiment, under fi re, by Col. Johnson, at Bentonville, N. C., elicited the highest praise from Gens. Logan and Howard, who were upon th e field. They assisted in forcing the surrender of Johnston at Raleigh, and thence made the great 'quickstep march' o f Sherman's army, by way ofPetersburg and Richmond, toWashington, where they mustered out of service June 9, 1865, havi ng 219 men and twenty-four officers." The One Hundredth Regiment, under Col. Johnson, was the first to enter Columbia , S. C. where they witnessed the spread of the fire started by the rebelsto destroy the cotton, and thus prevent it fro m falling into the hands of the rebels. They knew that the statement of the Confederates that Columbia was fired by th e federals was untrue. Col. Johnson, upon entering the city, saw the cotton bales lying inthe streets on fire, and sa w the flames spread and envelop the city as soon as the wind arose. He says: "It was the insane attempt of the Confeder ates to destroy their cotton, and prevent its fallinginto Sherman's hands, as was done at Savannah, that resulted in th e burning of the city of Columbia, and Sherman and the Federal troops did all it was possible to do to avert and preven t that disaster." At Bentonville, Col. Johnson, commanding his own regiment of 350 men, and the Sixth Iowa of 150 men, was directed to dr ive back a large cavalry division on the outposts of the enemy's front, so that Sherman's infantry could attack the mai n line.This he promptly and skillfully did, forcing them back to the distance of six miles. While thus engaged, a porti on of the enemy's cavalry succeeded in flanking Col. Johnson's command, and in throwing a strong body of men between hi s advance lineand his reserve. Atthis point, Gens. Logan, Howard and Woods and their staffs came up to observe the prog ress made by Col. Johnson, seeing which the rebel cavalry detachment determined to capture those general officers if i t could be done. ButCo1.Johnson saw the dilemma atonce, and promptly shouted the order to his regiment, "Forward on th e right by file into line, double quick, march, fire." The promptness with which his command was executed, no doubt sav ed the federal officers from capture, and they were empathic in their praises of the readiness, coolness and military s kill of Col. Johnson. It is believed this was the only time such a movement was ever made by any body of troops of any army, in any war on th e field, and in battle and in the face of an enemy charging them. It was the resistance of a cavalry charge by what amo unted toa bold and intrepid countercharge of infantry, and proved as unexpected to the cavalry as it was original in co nception and successful in execution, and resulted in throwing the rebel cavalry into utter confusion and disorder, an d in completelyrouting them, whileit saved Col. Johnson's command, and Gens. Howard, Logan and Woods and their staffs f rom capture, or possibly a worse fate. The capture of these generals at that time would have been a severe blow to Sher man, the entire armyandthe union cause. This ended the hard fighting for the One Hundredth Regiment, although they were present at Goldsboro and Raleigh, and m arched proudly with drums and flaunting though tattered banners, at the head of Sherman's splendid army in the final gr and review at Washington. Throughout his military career, Col. Johnson had shown the highest military skill and capacit y. His promotions came as just and merited reward for faithful, conscientious and brilliant service. He was commissione d captain, August 22, 1862; major,August 18, 1863; lieutenant colonel January 9, 1864, and colonel May 2, 1865. After t he fall of Savannah. Gen. Logan, commanding the Fifteenth Army Corps, requested Col. Johnson to become his chief of sta ff and promised him animmediate commission from the War Department, which would most likely have advanced him to brigad ier generalship. But Col. Johnson loved his noble regiment; he had led them through all those long bloody years; had mu ltiplied their joys and dividedtheir sorrows, and had, at the outset, when the regiment went forth in 1862 so valiant , patriotic and full of hope, promised them that come what might, he would always remain with them. So he told Gen. Log an that he could not accept his temptingoffer, and the reason therefor, and was warmlycongratulated by the General fo r his fidelity to the magnificent old One Hundredth Regiment. After the war, upon returning to Elkhart county, Col. Johnson soon formed a law partnership with Capt. A. S. Blake, an d continued in the practice at Goshen, this State, until 1886, when he went to Santa Fe, N. M., to serve as clerk of th e SupremeCourt andclerk of the U. S. District Court, having been thus appointed by the chief justice of that territory . Prior to this, in 1878, he went abroad and was there some three years, traveling in Germany, studying the German lang uage, which he mastered, and takinglectures on law and history in the famous university at Leipsic. In 1888 he resigne d his position as clerk at Santa Fe, and was thus complimented by Chief Justice E. V. Long: "Your duties as clerk hav e been ably and faithfullyperformed, and to my entiresatisfaction, and better in my judgment than ever before in the te rritory." While clerk of the Supreme Court of New Mexico, the legislature, though Republican, appointed Col. Johnson re porter of the Supreme Court, andunder that appointment he edited and published the third and fourth volumes of the Supr eme Court Reports of that territory. Succeeding this, he opened a law office in Las Vegas, N. M., and also engaged in m ining, but in May, 1890, he returned toElkhart county, and here has since resided. Butlet us go back and see somethin g of the youth and early training of Col. Johnson, before investigating the results of his public spirit and enterpris e in Elkhart county in recent years. His birth occurred in Erie county, Penn., and he was one of six children born to t he marriage of Salmon A. Johnson and Miss Minerva Powell, both of whom were natives of Chittenden county, Vt. At an ear ly age he was brought by his parents to Indiana, and washerereared and educated. The country was new and wild then, an d noone who did not pass through the experience can have an idea of the self denial, sufferings and hardships of the fi rst settlers. Ruel M., by the death of his father, was thrownupon his own efforts at the age of twelve years, but he wa s adventuresome, energetic, honest and persistent, and he pushed forward. He worked on a farm summers, and attended school winters, continuing thus until he was fitted for college, whereupon h e attended the University of Michigan, at Ann Arbor, and in 1858 graduated with high honors with his class. To pay hi s way he did anything honorable, no matter how humble, sawing wood, sweeping the recitation rooms of the university, an d during the first two years, as he himself says, faring upon "pudding and salt for breakfast; salt and pudding for din ner, and a mixtureof both for supper." The third year he secured a position with the professor of astronomy in the Detr oit Observatory, and thereafter fared better. While in college, the question of "co-education of the sexes" came up fo r settlement. He took activeground in its favor, corresponding with many college presidents and other leading educator s and placing their views before the regents of the university, and it was largely due to these efforts that the measur e was finally adopted by that body.The women of America are greatly indebted to this man, in having opened to them th e doors of the university of Michigan, a step which gained them admission to other colleges and universities and has le d the way to other and equally great advantages for them in many walks of life, and the benefits of which are immeasura bly great and far-reaching. Before graduating, and while yet under age, he was nominated by the Democracy of Elkhart co unty for county treasurer, but, though running several hundred ahead of his ticket, he was defeated at the polls. Afte r graduating, he studied law under Hon. Robert Lowery, of Goshen, and upon admission to the bar became his preceptor' s partner. Soon after this he went out to fight his country'sbattles. Col. Johnson has done a great work for the home-s eekers ofElkhart. In this connection, the following compliment is paid him by the Elkhart Review: "Satisfying himself, from the location of this beautiful and enterprising city, that it had a future second to no cit y of its population in the Northwest, he purchased several valuable business fronts, and being the owner of other busin ess locations, he started a line of improvements which has led to the investment of a large amount of capital which, un til then, had remained comparatively idle, and as a result he and other local capitalists have since that time added t o the business portion of the city the following stately and lovely blocks: "The Dodge block at a probable cost of $30,000; the Rialto, $20,000; the Elkhart block, $15,000; Truth office, $15,000 ; Kauffman and Crane block. 810,000; the Every block, $30,000; the Jarrett block, $20,000; the Review office, $20,000 ; the Shawblock, $15,000; the Jones block, $10,000; total, $185,000. Besides these really grand improvements, he has in augurated and is pushing forward with his well-known enterprise a scheme for the building and furnishing of cheap home s to the workingmenof Elkhart, which,if taken advantage of by this class of people, will enable all of them, for abou t the sum they are and have been paying as rent to house themselves and their families in homes of their own. As a par t of this excellent plan hehas laid out his Riverside addition to the city in such sized lots that all can there be acc ommodated, the poor as well as the rich, and all there find homes within their reach and means and upon such terms of p ayment that the poorest man may nolonger hesitate to purchase for fear that he cannot pay for his home, and yet the ric h may also there find residence property to suit his taste and meet the strength of his purse. Many have availed themse lves of this excellent chance to obtain ahome upon their own terms." On February 26,1891, Col. Johnson wedded Miss Jean ette, daughter of Elias and Rachel (Felkner) Gortner. He is a Democrat, was so before, during, and has been since the w ar, and was the supporter of the Little Giant inhismemorable race for the presidency against Lincoln in 1860. He is a K night Templar and thirty-second degree Mason, a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, and military order of the Loy al Legion of the Union officers of the United States.As amember of the Loyal Legion, he belongs to the Commandery of th e State of Ohio, at Cincinnati, and the Grand Commandery of the United States, at Philadelphia, receiving his commissio n for the latter from Gen. Sheridan. Col. Johnson is yet ayoungman, and much of his future is before him. He is one o f the most enterprising,public-spirited, honorable and conspicuous citizens of the State. When to his magnificent milit ary history is added his clean, able record as a civilian and hisacknowledged worth as a man, there is presented to th e world a good representative of model American citizenship. ÔøΩPictorial and Biographical Memoirs of Elkhart and St. Joseph Counties, Indiana Together with Biographies of Many Prominent Men of Northern Indiana and the Whole State, Both Living and DeadÔøΩ Goodspeed Brothers Publishers, Chicago 1893 John Morris Co. Printers and Binders