Armies would regularly recruit young boys for service as drummers, well into the nineteenth century. This wasn't just to provide music, as the drums performed an important role in the battlefield communications system, with various rolls signaling different commands. Recruiting boys for the work freed men for combat duty, and as the boys got older they could be regularly enlisted in the ranks. Drummer boys were usually treated as something of a mascot by the troops, and often entrusted to the good offices of the regimental chaplain. Since they had few military duties to perform, the life of a drummer boy appeared rather glamorous, and so as would be expected, boys of all ages tried to enlist, often running away from home. Officially there were age restrictions, but these were often ignored, and boys as young as ten were occasionally found beating the "long roll" which called the men into action.
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