No 27

Bivoucked in field. Southeast

of Decherd. July 5 1863

 

My Dear Friends

                        As I had a chance to borrow a sheet of paper & an envelop I thought that I would write you a few lines before we march on.

 

I shall not try to give you an account of what we have been doing since we left Murfreesboro but I will tell you where we have been & what we have been doing in places. You know by my last that we marched on the 24 ult. well we went out on what is called the Manchester pike. we went out to Hoovers Gap there we found the Rebs were bound not to let us thro but we flanked them & they had to go out of our brigade / we lost 4 or 5 killed & 8 or 10 wounded we had two wounded one out of our company hit in the head but did not fracture the scull. the other was out of Co 'F' he was hit in the head, cutting the scalp from over the left eye & back of his ear. he is back now the one that was hit in our company is with us now. from Hoovers G. we marched in line of battle & skirmishing with the rebels untill we got to Wartrace our division did not go in the place. we went to Fairfield a little town 3½ miles from Wartrace, then we marched back to Manchester the place we started for. at Manchester we thought we would rest a while, it being Sunday, but no rest for us, at night we started for Tullahoma we went about 5 miles when / we run into the rebel pickets so we drove them about 3 miles & bivoucked. we stayed here two or three days the other divisions out of our Corps keeping the front Gen Rousseau being the Ranking Generall under Thomas his division has to be the reserve for that Corps. Tuesday I was detailed to go back after our knapsacks when I got there I found out that every thing had been sent back to Murfreesboro & packed away we had all of our clothing on the wagons. so that left us without anything except our oil blankets they then brot up our dog tents which we were glad to get.

 

We took 12 days rations to day is the 12^th & we have orders to live on half rations out of the 12 days it has rained 11 & then it fairly pored. we never had any chance to build any kind of a shelter and some of the boys / did not even undo their oil blankets as we could not fight with them on. you see we were in line of battle all of the time & when it would stop raining we would lay do our blankets up & then go on & so we kept stoping every little while just as the rebs felt if they run fast, just so fast would we follow them if they stoped we would stop & then pitch into them & set them agoing again mud has been knee deep & riseing every day. yesterday we got news of the defeat of the rebels by Hooker just as we got into camp the courier came up. I tell you we made these old mountains ring with cheers & old Lumis fired a nationall salute.

 

I have received two letters from you since we have started one I got on the 25 & the other today. write soon & often when you write put in the letter an extra sheet of paper & an envelop as all of my things are back in my knapsack I am well & doing first rate in the mud.

 

write soon                                                      

Frank.

 

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Give my best respects to all that enquire for me love to all at home you must not worry for me write soon & often dont forget paper envelops & stamps         Frank

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