Vicksburg July 24^th 1864

 

Dear Brother & Sister

                                    I presume you have been wondering why I have been silent so long, so now I will give you a short history of what I have been doing since I last wrote to you. Immediately after the surrender of Vicksburg we got marching orders and within 24 hours we were after Johnson without any thing with us but our guns and 40 rounds of cartridges we followed him to Jackson expecting he would give us battle there but his men had not the heart to stand he did make a show of resistance but it was slight on the third morning after we got within sight of the enemys works we expected to get up and hear the boom of / cannon and the rattle of musketry but great was our surprize to find the place evacuated Johnson was gone he had not the courage to defend the capitol of the state but left it to be sacked by northern vandals and well we done the work near the whole army was engaged for three days in destroying rail roads and if they wont have to get a new supply of iron before they can rebuild them I am no judge. After our work of destruction was completed we started back to this place where we arrived last night and I must say that it was the hardest march that I have ever made we traveled a distance of sixty miles in three days in the hottest weather that I ever experienced I walked all the way through barefooted and when I got into camp the blood was oozing from the bottoms of my feet in several places. I wish / the Southern sympathisers of the North could see how the soldiers suffer at times and if they have any manly principles about them it would make their cheeks tingle with shame at the course they are pursuing.

 

I am in hopes now we will get some rest of which the men need very much for the the past three months there has hardly been a day but what we have been under the enemys fire. it is not only the body that becomes worn out but the mind suffers laboring as we do under so much mental excitement I have not been into Vicksburg yet so I can not tell you any thing how the city looks all I seen was on the morning of the surrender from our rifle pits I seen the hated rag of Southern traitors torn down and the glorious old stars and stripes hoisted in its place, and the shout of joy that went up told plainer than / words could speak it to those who heard it that we was amply repaid for all the trials and hardships that we had endured

 

I received two letters from you while I was at Jackson I have forgotten the dates I was glad to hear that Lee's raid into Penn was a failure another such a through and he will be about used up. But I must close for this time as I want to write home to day I will write again in a few days

 

write soon and believe me as Ever

                                               

Your Brother George

 

 

 

Answered

            Aug 8/63

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