Fairfax Court House, Va.

June 21. 1863.

 

Dear Sister.

                I received your letter and envelopes Friday morning. I have now about a dozen and as many sheets of paper and stamps nearly enough to go with them.

 

            You see we have moved from where we now live, as the Irishman said and are on the old Bull Run road we travelled over two years ago. Three Divisions of the Sixth Corps, as you say (which includes the whole Corps) are lying in the open fields around the Court House It is a very pleasant place to what we have been in/ Only water is hard to be got. there is no rivers any where within ten miles of here as I know of and springs are very scarce and small at that. I have drank water since last Sunday that I had to bite off with my teeth when I had got enough it is rather a tough story and you must allow something.

 

            It is getting to be tough times for Sutlers in this army. It is not hardly safe for one to show himself where there is any soldiers unless he has got a pretty strong guard. Last Sunday afternoon we halted at Stafford Court House within about half a mile of where a brigade had been all winter. they had just moved away. their sutler had not had time to get away. before we had been there many minutes some of the men discovered him one big fellow in the 36 N.Y. marched up to the door with a big crowd at his heels and went in and took possession. the poor sutler took to his heels and left. He had almost every thing you could think of, butter, cheese, fish, sardines, oranges, sausages, clothing, officers suits throughout. swords cutlery meerschaum pipes worth twenty five dollars apiece and every thing you can mention. Men would take away a hundred dollars worth of tobacco on their backs at one load. His money in the drawers was taken. A man in this regiment brought away a load and among the rest of the stuff was what he thought was a box of cigars. come to open it, it was postage currency nearly forty dollars. There must have been ten or twenty thousand dollars worth in his tent / which he lost. there was more than could be brought away scattered along the road or in the road. Since then the boys are trying it on almost every sutler that comes along. If one comes in night you will hear a cheer and away the men will go. the sutler will put the whips to his horses, but he dont always manage to get away. This morning the men tackled two and relieved them of about half their loads before they got away. they would not got off then if some officers hadnt interfered. the Lieut Col of the 7^th Mass. mixed in with the crowd and gave some of the boys sore heads which they will not soon forget. a man in Co B got a slash across the face with a sabre that looks rather ugly. It has been very hot weather until two or three days ago since it has been cloudy and rainy. Our cavalry brings in prisoners once in a while about fifty came in yesterday in one squad. Lowell C Cook.

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