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ithin each ship." (Mullen 31) After the Civil War, the army was reorganized in 1886. Six Black regiments were for formed by law to be a part of the regular army for their valor during the Civil War. In 1866, Congress passed an act creating four regiments: the Twenty fourth and Twenty-fifth Infantry and the Ninth and Tenth Cavalry. These regiments were to be permanent army regiments. Of these four regiments, the Ninth and Tenth Cavalry distinguished themselves during the Indian Wars in the West between 1870 and 1900. The Ninth and Tenth Cavalry were nicknamed "Buffalo Soldiers" by the Cheyenne and Comanche, and these soldiers were widely feared by the Indians. The Buffalo Soldiers constituted about 20 percent of the armed forces in the West. The 9th and 10th Cavalries' service in subduing Mexican revolutionaries, hostile Native Americans, outlaws, comancheros, and rustlers was as invaluable as it was unrecognized. It was also accomplished over some of the most rugged and inhospitable country in North America. A list of their adversaries - Geronimo, Sitting Bull, Victorio, Lone Wolf, Billy the Kid, and Pancho Villa - reads like a quote of 'Who's Who' of the American West. (Academic Assistance Center) The Buffalo Soldiers also explored and mapped large areas of the southwest and strung thousands of miles of telegraph lines. The Black Soldiers built and fixed frontier outposts where towns and even cities would begin. "Without the protection provided by the 9th and 10th Cavalries, crews building the ever expanding railroads were at the mercy of outlaws and hostile Indians." (Utley 62) The Buffalo Soldiers, despite extreme prejudices and the worst assignments, did their duties to the best of their abilities. Thus, they continued to receive more citations for valor than any other group in the United States military. The Spanish-American War gave them but another chance to prove their abilities. African-American soldiers were involved in the war from the beginning. At least thirty Blacks were stationed on the battleship Maine when it exploded in Havana harbor on February 15, 1898. Of these men, twenty-two of them were killed. Thousands of African-Americans volunteered to join the United States' deficient army. In the beginning, the newly formed Black regiments had no Black officers. "But a widespread campaign around the slogan 'No officers, no fight" succeeded in winning some concessions. In all about one-hundred officers were commissioned i the volunteer units in the course of the war." (Crane 52) "In fact, Black troops played a conspicuous part in all three of the major Cuban campaigns. Their performance was to be a source of pride to Afro-Americans for years afterward." (Mullen 36) Most of the Buffalo soldiers fighting in Cuba won the commendation of their "white officers." The distinguished Black Ninth and Tenth Cavalry saved Roosevelt and his Rough Riders from being completely slaughtered. Theodore Roosevelt bestowed great praise of the Afro-American soldiers at that time. The widespread heroism displayed by the African-American soldiers ended up with six Buffalo soldiers receiving the Congressional Medal of Honor.