What was the difference between a volunteer soldier and regular army soldier during the Mexican War?

Question

I have read a book entitled, "A Short, Offhand, Killing Affair" by Paul Foos for a college class. The book examines the differences between the volunteer soldier and regular army soldiers during the Mexican War in 1846-48. It discusses the treatment of the U.S. soldiers by their officers and the treatment of the Mexican soldiers/civilians by the U.S. soldiers.

I'm just a little stuck on something for which I seek guidance, as I am not very familiar with military history. Why distinguish between volunteers and regular army soldiers? Weren't all soldiers at the time "volunteers?" I understand that those in the regular army were soldiers for a living and received pay for their services, whereas the volunteers came from various lines of work (e.g., farming, law, etc.) But, I didn't receive any indication that the regular army soldiers were drafted. Weren't they in the military by choice, or am I wrong about this? In essence, weren't all the soldiers "volunteers?"

Thank you.

Answer 1

Yes, in a sense; however, guards and soldiers (regular army) are hired to do a job. Draft soldiers are like volunteer soldiers (but they're not). The regular army/guards has much more experience than volunteers.

You can think of today's minutemen as volunteer border patrol.