Iodine;

YOur last name wouldn't start with an "H.", would it? If so, I think we may have corresponded in the past. She were an Irish lass as well, y'know.

As to Regimental "Songs"; as a Civil - War Reenactor, I can't speak with any authority regarding Army customs in the 1870's, other than the weaponry they carried. I have my Great-Uncle's M-1873 Springfield single-shot breech-loading "Trapdoor" .45-70 carbine which he aquired while in training for the Spanish-American War down in So. Carolina. These were standard issue through the Indian Wars up until about 1896 when the repeating bolt-action "Krag" .30 caliber carbine replaced them in federal service.

During the American Civil War, it was not formally "required", to my knowledge, that each Regiment have it's distinctive "song". It was, however, customary as a matter of "Military tradition" that the Regimental Bandmaster, Principal Musician, or Drum Major (after 1862 when Regimental Bands were disbanded by edict of the War Office) would compose a unique march or martial air specifically for that Regiment.

We know by surviving correspondance in the Maine Historical Society that "our" Unit, the 3rd Maine volunteer Infantry (A State Regiment, not U.S. "Regulars") had more than one when the "Third Maine Association" of surviving Veterans in the 1880's thanked the Bath City Band for playing "The old Third Maine Pieces" at one of their reunions. Alas, we have been unable to track down any surviving scores!

If this tradition still held into the 1870's as I rather suspect it well might have, Military Tradition being as it is, then the "3rd US Cavalry Quickstep" or whatever it was called may have, unless it was a really hot number and got published somewhere, fallen into obscurity around the turn of the Century or about the time of the Pancho Villia thing in 1915 when many of these outfits were reorganized or disbanded. More likely than not it existed only in the handwritten score-books of whatever Bandsmen or Field Musicians were assigned to the Regiment at the time... and good luck finding any surviving specimins of these!

If you are anywhere near Carlisle Barracks (in MD, I think)repository and Archives of most of the US Army's historical records, your best bet would be to take a week off and camp out in their research facility digging up whatever they might have on the 3rd U.S.C. for that period. It's a long shot, but there might just be some mention of this piece in correspondance, or perchance (real long shot) a surviving score. since most of these were instrumental marches or "Quicksteps", it is unlikely that there were ever any official lyrics per se. Having said that, be aware that Soldiers had a penchant for spontaniously composing their own "ditties" or sarcastic lyrics for such tunes, or even bugle calls to help them remember them. Unfortunately for the Historian, these were generally not written down, since they were usually of a rather bawdy, licenscous nature... Soldiers pretty much being as they were, and probably still are. Likely as not they involved Women, liquor, animals, Non-commisioned Officers, and lewd & unnatural acts which, if you are a Lady, you don't want to know about. Trust me.

Them dangfool Yaller-legs had a certain reputation, y'know...

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