Lebanon          1^th of August.1862.

 

My dear friend Alexander Roeser.

 

Time & circumstances did not allow it that I could write to you, otherwise I would have done so, at the same time it affords me much pleasure of beeing able to send you a few lines.

 

Mrs. Kindler arrived here yesterday after noon & that quiet unexspected too. well she found her husband & the whole crowd at large in splendid health & good humor. None of us has got killed yet as you see but still we are never sure wethe we will be killed today or to morrow, such is soldiers fate, & is it not exactly like a lottery? one draws a winner the other is the looser one is hit by a bullet or canon ball the other leaves the battle ground unmolested Never fear for fear is good for nothing & who can stop you or me from hoping that we will see each other again?/

 

Since I wrote you last we marched a good deal over rough hills to steep mountains through town & villages, & up to this time I only slept twice under a roof. The hard ground is my matrass the india rubber spread the sheet & the woolen planket the cover, the napsack for a pillow, all very handy things to lay down with on any place & dream about the folks at home of bloody battles, or of a good [German word] wich are very hard to get now a days.

 

If you take the map of the state of Kentuky I shall lead you the same way we have made. you need not to bee scared you would not see a single rebell for we have not seen any one of them thought our colonell has at a certain time been nearly scared to death that he left Albany in forced marches.—

 

            Now to the point. We left Indianapolis the 21^st of June camped in Louisville, left Louisville the 22^d on the Nashville railroad/arrived in cave city the same day camped here till the 29^th. I left two days later then the regiment, from this place we marched to glascow, left glascow the 2^d of July went over the cumberland hills, passed the cumberland river near Burksville on the 5^th of July. the day previous, on the glorious 4^th we had to march 17 miles hardly got anything to eat & no beer to drink. we thought of all these good things & our mouths watered like Falchli’s when she looks after a corncob. We arrived at Albany on the 7^th. On the 8^th I left Albany with the wagon train of 10 teams drawn by 50 mules [?]0 horses, on the way back to Glascow, on wich place our provisions, tents, kitchen furniture clothing ect ect. had been stored up. we never reached that place but were forced to retreat when in about 4 miles in reach of the cumberland river. a few days afterward the rebells took possesion of our store at the above named place. On the 10^th we drove into Albany again about 3 o clock in the morning took breakfast & followed the regiment wich in the mean time/had left Albany; we overtook the regiment the very same day on the other side of the cumberland river wich later was not deeper then about 1-1/2 foot on the place where we crossed it. on the 12^th at 1 o clock at night we marched throgh Columbia passed the green river near this place crossed afterward once more as also the salt river & arrived at Lebanon on the 14^th. three days previus the rebells had burned the U.S. Store houses near the railroad depot as also the hospital & during the time the rebells had done all this mischief we had been condemned to march day & night through the roughest country I ever seen in my life, brock down with sore feet & hungered out stomachs we were glad to settle down for some days, get enough & better to eat. We recover our self almighty quik & enjoy life as well as possible & every afternoon we turn out for patallion drill accompanied by artillery & cavallery. I suppose Mrs Kindler will give you a full account of all what she has seen.

            I remain in the meantime your true & affectionate friend

                                                                                    George Oboussier

 

write to me often & good long lettres in german & english language everything shall be of interest to me.

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