The following are the general orders from Colonel A. S. Frost, commanding the 1st South Dakota Volunteer Infantry, officially thanking to the men of his command. This copy was found in the personal papers of William C. Schmoker, corporal in the regiment's Company L.
The Orders:
Copy of General Orders No. 29
Headquarters,
First South Dakota Infantry
U.S. Volunteers
Presidio of San Francisco, Cal.
General Orders
No.
29
October 4, 1899
Officers and Men of the first South Dakota Infantry
We are about to sever our relations as officers and men, commander and commanded, and I desire to thank you for the discipline valor, loyalty and endurance which won so many victories and withstood so many trials.
You have written a page in the history of your Country and State which
will shine as long as soldierly qualities appeal to the hearts of
men. Your deeds, linked with the names of our heroic dead, can
never be forgotten. You
have been tried by the supreme test of manhood, and can face the future
without fear. Go to your homes, apply the same discipline and
constancy, and win the victories of peace.
Signed A.S. Frost
Colonel First South Dakota Infantry
U.S. Volunteers.