Dec 1^st 1861

                                                                        Read Sulpher Springs

                                                                                                Va

                                                                       

                                                                                                            Dear

Father it is with pleasure that I seat myself to rite you a few lines to inform you that I am well at this time and hope that theis lines may find you all enjoying the same blessing. I will give you a slight sketch of our campagn after the yankes left Jewel Mountan. Floyd orderd his brigade to Cotton hill, about fifty miles from the mountan we remined on cotto hill for tow weeks we wer in plain vew of the enemy’s camp we had verry heavey canonadeing for ten days but it don no damage at all we was on picket dewty for three days and nights in the rain and had nothing to eat but beef and bread once a day and some of us was bairfooted and raged at that time Mr. Cutright came up at that time with our Clothes and in a few days after he left us we had a fight in evening between three and fore oclock. we lost one man and tow wounded one of them belonged to our regiment. our company neaver figherd a single shot on the account of their guns reaching so mutch farther than ours. we was on the extreem left of the regemet, so we had to conceal our selves in the woods while the woud balls woud fly like/hail over heads frr an hour I was little frighten at first when we first opened figher on them I thought that we was in about fifty yard of the enemy we was commanded to halt and put on our beyonets and lay down on the ground, so we expected that the firs thing woud be a charge but we soon found out that it was our men at the foot of the hill when if we had have figherd on them we woud have towern them all to peacies for we was in about fifty yards of them and had the ad advantage of the hill. so when we found out that it was our men that we was about to figher on we fell back behind the hill to conceive our selves from the yankeys, so as to wait for them to advance on us, and then we woud have given them a deperrat blow for we was in about fifty yards of the road, but we was in a very dngerous position if our force had have retreated without notifying us, we was wheir we cudent woud have ben completely surrounded. for we was wheir we coudent see, what was going on at all, but in sed of advancing, they retreated at the rates of tow forty in about half an hour after their  retreat we was orderd back to camp and when we got their we heard that the yankes/was coming in behind us to cut off our supplyes and attact us in frunt and behind, so the orderrs was then to packup evry thing and retreat back to Roughly about twenty five miles from cotton hill. we hardly had time to get our suppers before we had to strike tents, and then we had no transpotation for tents nor cooking utensials so we had to wait untill tow oclock for transpoptation and had non so we was compelled to burn our tents, provissions and cooing utesials and a great menny Cloothes. we marched from the untill the next evening without enny thing to eat and the mud was from shoo mouth to nee deep and when ever we got enny thing to eat we had to cok it in the ashes, but it was verry seldom that we ever got enny thing at all. The yankeys persued for fifteen miles it was reported that their was seaven thousan in our camp. the secent morning after we left cotton hill we had left camp about three hours before they come up our calvary figherd on them for half an hour they they killed severral of them and and lost one Colonal by the name of Crones/and had tow or three privates wounded. they folowed us some six or seaven miles we woud have stoped and fought them but we had onely tow thousan men and I believe that Floyd was the most skeered worst than enny other man in the regimet; arr our fair was verry hard when we got to roughly we remained their for nerly a week and the ground was coverd with snow and we had now tents and but one ax to the company our company is stationed at the springs as guards for the sick the regiment [?] them hear to take up winter quarters but I now not wheir they will stop, our company will leave hear as soon as the sick is aighble to travel we are now in good houses and we plenty to eat you rite me to let you know wether I got the Clothes that was sent by frank Cartright. I received one blanket one pair of socks one over coat tow towels, and one pair of boots and some salt and coffey and tow towels and some paper by [?]. I have plenty of Clothes for the present this leaves me and John and peatr Leslie well I am coming home on furlow if I can get it Nothing mor at present Your son          H H Hodnett

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