Hilton Head, S.C. Jan. 10. 1863.

 

Yours of the 30^th ult. I rec^d yesterday together with two "Travellers" and a "Harpers Weekly" all of which were very acceptable as we have had no mail for ten days and not many papers in that; you seem somewhat surprised that soldiers should like to see pictures of battles, but in the first place they are apt to think they are the best judges of such pictures, and then they like to see something besides the newspaper accounts of a battle and a picture is apt to give the lay of the land, so they can judge which side did the best fighting. I should think from what I have seen that the picture "A Battle as seen by the Reserve" was a good picture.

 

I suppose you have by this time rec^d my letter acknowledging the receipt of the box so I will say nothing more about it only that all except some eatables were in good condition. I believe I have wrote you that I had got the second pair of shoestrings 

 

I knew the Caldwells by sight but and was not personally acquainted with them. they had the name of being good honest industrious men and I was glad to hear that Leonard's wound was not mortal, though sorry to hear that he was wounded at all. The same for Rich^d Nealy.

 

You will probably see by the time this reaches you if not before that part of our Reg^t has been on another expedition, together with part of the Conn. 6^th; they went after some lumber but the gunboat that convoyed them got aground and the Rebs. suspecting the object of our men set the lumber on fire, and when our men got to the saw mill it (the lumber) was all destroyed, and the owner was on top of the mill waving a white flag. he professed to be a strong Union man, and was very sorry that the Rebs had burnt his lumber as he should like to have sold it to them. Our folks like fools left him and the mill there. On the way down the river a Company of Rebs / fired into our men wounding three, but though their guns were down below our men gave them as good as they sent, and the gunboats shelled over them them and fired "grape and canister" into them for about an hour, so they must have got pretty well cut up. The expedition went in the neighborhood of Fernandina, Florida. There was about one million feet of lumber destroyed. I think if they ever intend to do anything in this Department they will have to send Gen. Sherman back here as he never undertook to do anything but what he could do. But every other General that we have had has done nothing but kill off men. I am glad that Gen. Sherman is doing so well in the south west, and hope he will continue to keep doing so.

 

I guess there is not much danger of the Rebs getting hold of Gen. Butler any more than there is of our getting Jeff. Davis whom we were going to hang to an apple tree when caught 

 

What do you suppose we had for amusements last night? We went to hear the 3^d R.I. Minstrels who had a free show for our Reg^t between 300 and 400 of us went to see them. They gave a better entertainment than most of the travelling minstrels do. Though of course it wasn't quite as good as Morris Bros' give. The dancing was the best part of it. Though the singing and playing wasn't bad. Some of their jokes were original. One of them was asked "what a soldiers fare was", said "split peas, fleas, guard duty and no sleep", which is more truth than poetry.

 

The Exeter boys are all well and send respects to friends. Tell George Eaton that Ward Leavitt got his letter yesterday.

 

As I am out of postage stamps I shall have to let you pay the postage at your end.

                                                                       

Yours in haste

John W Clement

 

To Mr. John Clement

Exeter N.H.

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