No Whare Suposed to be in Virginia

July 23^d 1861

                       

Dear Mother   It is with pleasure that I take my pen to inform you that I am uninjured. I supose you have heard of our sad disaster, our troops are scattered in all directions and it is all owing to incompitant field officers. I should like to give you a description of the battle but I shall not have time now.

 

the 3^d Reg^t was in action for about 3 hours they broke their line twice but formed again immediately and sent in a terrible sheet of fire upon them.

 

about the middle of the action we saw a large body of the enemy on a hill to our left we had the order to charge them and drive them from their position so at that we went and they run for they cannot stand cold steel. they run 40 or 50 rods into some bushes and then showed the stars and stripes then Gen Tyler thought they were our friends and ordered our colors out so as they could see them by this time our men had come to a halt right in front of them about 12 rods. when they opened a Masqued battery of 8 pieces upon us it made terrible havock they throwed shells round shot and grape at the first fire the men all dropped on the ground so as to avoid their raking fire their first fire shot off both / legs of the man that stood next to me on my left and the one on my right had two balls put through his wrist and arm it was David Case the son of Decon Case that lives on Bean Hill that had his legs shot off by a cannon ball he lived about an hour. the one on my right was John Breed his wounds were not dangerous. I had a riffle ball pass betweene my left arm and side so nigh that it grazed the skin on my side slightly but did me no injury.

 

After we made the charge we were ordered to retreat we retreated down the hill in good order then we formed again and marched up a deep ravine so as to get abrest of the Battery again and make a rush for it but they had a wach upon our movements for they run a couple of six pounders down to the head of the ravine and kept behind the bushes until we got within a few rods of them then they let drive at us. they did terrible execution it was a dredful sight to see my comrades fall all around me some with their arms shot off some with the loss of a leg some with their heads shot of or terribly mutilated we retreated from their in good order then the retreat was sounded and the rout was completed we retreated without any regard to order every man for himself. then it / seemed as if every clump of bushes was a masked Battery for they had reserved their fire untill this moment they certainly opened upon us from 30 or 40 and perhaps more cannon the shells burst over our heads under our feet and in our midst. how in the world we ever got off alive so many of us is more than I can comprehend our movements was all done in double quick time or upon a trot all day and it was an exceedingly hot day and we could get no watter but what was verry muddy and we suffered exceedingly my tung was swelled badly.

 

July 26^th

            You will think this is quite a pause but you must not blame me for I will make a statement that you will hardly believe. We started from Centerville Sunday morning at 2 o clock and marched to Bulls Run a distance of 4 miles and manuvered untill about noon when we got into our position and made the charge after fighting and manuvering for 4 hours without water except what little we could scoop up in our caps out of stagnant puddles where the water was worse than a muddy goose pond, we were ordered to retreat we came verry nearly being cut off. they found out they could not do that so they sent shells and some little round pieces of iron about the size of a water pail. they was verry careless where they let them drop. I saw one of them drop upon / gun an carriage and it did not leave so much as a greace spot.

 

We retreated about a mile when we were attacked by the enemy's Cavalry in the rear there was a cross road which they came up and got in our rear. at the time I was in one of the wagons driveing, and I jumped off and left the team in the charge of the a boy and run out to the road just as they were retreateing and lay down behind a large oak tree and took a good steady aim and fired at one of them. he fell from his horse and hung by one foot in the stirup for about 20 rods the horse was going like a streek of lightning and if my ball did not hurt him I think the ground must for his head did not appear to strike verry softly and he did not stir after he was clear from the horse. he droped his rifle and I went out and got it and am agoing to send it home by express so keep a lookout for them. I have got off of my story. we were harrassed in the rear by the enemy all the way to Centerville we halted there to pick up our things and then were ordered to march for Falls Church Village where we arived at 7 in the morning without a rest of five minutes. there we were ordered to pack our tents for the enemies Cavelry were a comeing upon us. it commenced to rain in the morning and it rained hard all day and our wagons had not arived and we waited all day till 5 o clock and then loaded the wagons and started for the Ohio camps. their tents some of them were standing and others we put up to keep the rain off of us and slept on the wet ground we did not get ready / to turn in until after 11 o clock and this was the first sleep we had since Saturday night at 2 oclock. there was 44 hours that we did not shut our eyes and marched in that time over 50 miles besides fighting and when we did sleep we had been in a hard rain storm for 12 hours and was drenched through to the skin and at last marched two miles in the mud more than ankle deep to the Ohio camp there to put up tents in the woods and sleep on the wet ground till morning. then we were ordered to pack their things and carry them to the Rail Road so we went and did it. the two Ohio Reg^ts left $75 000 worth of tents Hospital Stores. their General ordered their guard to burn them as they retreated but Gen Tyler stopped them the Ohio troops acted shamefully for they was not in action but ½ hour and then the troops scattered and left for Washington they were picked up by our picket and sent into Washington and the Conn troops picked up their camp equipage and brought it into camp. /

 

We got some Norwich Bullitens and the Conn 1^st Regt got all the praise for our charge and there was little or nothing said about us the 1^st was not under fire at all and did not fire but once and the Second Regt fired once or twice and they have had a great deal said about their bravery on the field our Officers are verry indignant to think that Gen Tyler should let his prejudice run so far as to give a fals statement in regard to our behaviour on the field. if I ever go on to the field of battle again I will shoot him the first time I fire as shure as I am writing this for he has abused us shamefully he told us after we made the charge that we had done nobly he said we had done better than the U S Regulars and indeade we had for they broke and run the first fire from a battery and after this soft soap then to say nothing about us and blow up the first & 2^ond Reg^ts his pets and they had done nothing as one might say. it does not gow down. But anough of this I must close. while we were in Virginia we had a 3 days mail sent to us and when we retreated it fell into the enemies hands there was 2 letters for me in it they probably are in Richmond by this time

                                                           

Write Soon                  From I N Leonard

 

[margins]

 

there is some talk of gowing home this week I hope it will be so. I am agoing to send a box of stuff in P W Moseley's care by Adams Express I do not want / the box opened until I get home for it is not all my property tell W^m to take care of it until I get home, he will have to pay the expresage on it for I have no money with me it will probably be 3 or 4 dollars but I will make it all right

 

write as soon as you get this and Direct to Washington 3^d Reg^t Conn Voll Com D. /

Give my respects to all enquiring friends       Good Bye        I N L

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