Major Quinby, with "K" Battery, under command of Captain Howes, reached his station at Stage Fort, Gloucester, on the 7th of June. This post, though admirable as a camping site, hardly could be considered desirable from an artillery point of view. The old fort itself, an earthen battery commanding the inner harbor and its approaches, had lain abandoned since the close of the Civil War, and this long period of neglect had brought the inevitable results. Under the action of wind and weather its parapets gradually had worn away, and its magazine was in a ruinous condition. For armament there were rapid-fire guns, supplemented by 3-inch, muzzle-loading field guns turned over by the departing militia garrison. Fortunately for the peace of mind of the people of Gloucester, the fort was not the sole defence of the harbor; for the historic old monitor _Catskill_, manned by volunteer seamen recruited from the ranks of the Massachusetts Naval Brigade, lay there at anchor during the greater part of the summer. With the two 15-inch Dahlgren guns in its battered turret, this relic of 1862 might still have been a factor in any dispute with privateers or unarmored cruisers of the enemy. It was the intention of Colonel Pfaff to secure for this post two 8-inch converted rifles, but his request for the guns was not complied with. There were no barracks at Stage Fort, and the garrison went into camp under canvas. After settling the matter of quarters, work was begun without delay, and the ravages of time on the old fort were repaired as thoroughly as possible. When everything had been put into condition for action, the command quietly took up the customary post routine. Lieutenant Packard was detailed as post adjutant, performing the duties of the position until July 18th, when he was ordered to Fort Columbus, New York Harbor, where he remained on detached service until relieved on September 12th. After his departure from the post, the adjutant's duties fell to Lieutenant Gleason, who already had been acting as post quartermaster and commissary. On September 15th, at the request of the city whose name she bore, the famous little auxiliary cruiser _Gloucester_, with laurels fresh from her victorious fight with the Spanish torpedo-gunboats _Pluton_ and _Furor_, made a visit to the harbor. As she came to her anchorage, the garrison at Stage Fort fired a salute in her honor; and on the following day, at the reception given by the city, the battery paraded as escort to Captain Wainwright and the men of his crew. [Illustration: MAJOR GEORGE F. QUINBY, U.S.V. Commanding Second Battalion. ]