GENERAL GEORGE A. CUSTER.



last campaign, Custer and Devin, also Merritt who had been
their nominal chief, were made lieutenant-colonels, and brevetted
brigadier and major generals in the regular army, all at the
same time, on the recommendation of their chief. It marked
the estimate which he placed on them all, apart from popular
praise or censure. Modest, hard working old Devin, coming
from the militia, with little political influence, and nothing but
his own perseverance and faithful work to recommend him, was
placed on the same plane as Custer and Merritt, who had started
with all the advantages of a West Point education in their fa-
vor. The only difference between them was that of seniority.
Merritt had been an officer a year before Custer, and Custer's
army commission ranked him over Devin, otherwise all were
equal. With Merritt and Devin we have finished in this his-
tory. Their paths no longer run near Custer's. The latter
was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel of the new Seventh Cavalry,
and henceftrward will appear identified with that regiment, of
which it would appear that a short sketch is here proper.
   The Seventh U. S. Cavalry was called into existence as a
regiment and its first officers commissioned July 28th, 1866. On
that day, the skeleton of the regiment was as follows: Colonel
A. J. Smith, Lieutenant-Colonel George A. Custer, Major
Alfred Gibbs, all three West Pointers, and Brevet Major Gen-
erals U. S. A.
   Smith was quite an old soldier, having entered the service
in 1838, and Gibbs dated from before the Mexican war. Du-
ring the rebellion, Gibbs had latterly commanded the Regular
Cavalry brigade in the First division of the Cavalry Corps.
   Eight captains were appointed at the same date, of whom
not one was from the academy. All came from the volunteers,
or had risen from the ranks in the regular army during the war.
Their names were William Thompson, Frederick W. Benteen,
Myles W. Keogh, Edward Myers, Robert M. West, Louis M.
Hamilton, Albert Barnitz, and Michael V. Sheridan. Of these,
Thompson and West had been brigade commanders, Benteen a



338