Camp of the 2^nd U.S.S.S

Near Petersburg Va.

July 25^th /64

                       

Dear Brother

                                                I will now endeavor to pen you a few lines. I wrote to Mother four days ago & I suppose she has received it ere this. I received three papers night before last but the Democrat was of no use to me & by the way you need not send me any more of the Democrats at present for R Carter has subscribed for it & receives them right from the office & I read them nearly a week before you send / them to me he has subscribed for them untill after election & the journals I care nothing about now. there is nothing in them interesting for we get all the news they contain on the Washington & Baltimore papers so you need not send any of them. But if you can get a chance to buy a True Flag American Union & some such paper you will oblige me by doing so & forwarding to me.

 

            Yesterday (Sunday) we were digging in the trenches all day went out early in the morning & worked untill dark at about three / oclock yesterday afternoon one of our 32 pounders opened & sent a shell right in to the enemys fort in our front & in plane site of where we were at work. I saw it burst & saw the Johnys hustle around and get out of site & then I made up my mind that I had better be getting down in the trench. I jumped down & in a few minutes Bang went one of there guns & the shell went whistling over us. they kept firing up a while & then stoped we then left our retreat & went to work shells are flying backward & forward most of the time in the front line / But the 2^nd Corps are not troubled with them being so far to the rear. The Petersburg express goes over every night & morning. What we call the express is a large 32 pounder cannon which sends one of those large shells into the city every 15 minutes for four hours a day. A Battery of 32 lb'rs called the 7 sisters gives then one of there puffing shells occasionally Mortar Batterys are at work in the 9^th & 18^th Corps all the time I was there the other night & in plane site of the guns on both sides & I assure you it was a splendid site to see the mortar shells in the air going to & coming from the enemy. these shells are round & go far in to the air & drop strate down & while in the air a stream of fire can be seen while the fuse is burning & in the night they look very much like fire works but few men are injured on our side by them most of the trenches having bum profes for the men to run under /

 

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Oh I almost forgot to tell you that I had got a nice modest lady correspondent in Ohio & have received quite a number of letters from her. her name is not Nettie Nattie Bellmont.

                                                                                                                       

Will

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