No 11

Front of Petersburg

Late July 16^th 1864

 

Dear Sister

                        This morning at one O. Clock our whole Division were ordered out to throw up intrenchments and Breastworks, we are now one mile North East of our old camp, one Div of colored troops are helping us. they do more work in four hours than we do in a day.

 

Sunday July 17. 1864

We are still at work on the intrenchments. it is too hot for us in the day time, so we let the negros work in the day, and we at night. This evening we were relieved, and are now in camp again. Monday July 18. 1864

To day J. Bange and J. Hagle were here to see us, Jake dont look as if he was very sick. W^m Diller is Major of the Regiment and has command of it for the present. I am very busy at the present making out muster rolls for the Regiment. it will be a very long job, and will take a long time to finish them. I think I have a little more on my hands than I can well attend too about this time. To attend to the mail is anough for one man. A letter from home gets here in four or five days, for one to go from here home takes at least ten days. You can expect to hear some exciting news in a short time. the Ninth Corps are undermining a large reble fort and will have it finished in a short time. it will take twenty tons of powder

 

Tuesd July 19^th 1864

To day I am busy at the rolls. it is raining now, and mud is about as deep as the dust was a short time ago.

 

Wednesd July 20^th 1864

Raining all day, we are all wet. I think the best thing I did was to enlist. the President has called for 500 000 more men. you will find that all will go before this war is over. we all think here that the rebs have not left the North for good.

 

Thursday July 21. 1864

This morning Maj Diller was here to see us. He looks and says feels well, the first words were that I was a fool for enlisting. I told him I thought not for all would have a chance to go yet before this war was over. he sayed that he thought/ so too, but thought I could keep myself out of service by paying. you will find that before long substitutes cannot be got for 2000 dollars. He told me that the Ninth Corps have undermined for more than 150 yds and that the men were now packing the powder. This morning our Division are out at work on the works again. every now and then the rebs throw rifle balls in our camp. Our men dont like it that the Rebs were not captured before they left Mayeland. I think you will have another chance before long. Gen. Smith has in his command guns that carry over two hundred pound balls, 124 pounders are plenty. I was over to see the place where the men are underminding. they have it undermined to a large fort and then branch off to a few smaller ones. the men that are working look as if they were lumps of mud. they are to have ten days furlough as soone as they are done. the greater portion of the men are the same that were at work at Vicksburg.

 

Friday July 22^nd 1864

This morning we left our camp and are now in a fort numbering forty guns, the largest sixty four pounders. The firing is very heavy on our right, the rebs made a charge on the Ninth Corps, but were driven back with great loss. they dont make any thing by charging on the darkeys. We are laying only a few rods from one of their old camps. they destroyed every thing that they come across. they tore down and destroyed houses that must have cost a large amount of money, none of the kind can be found in York County. I dont believe you get one half the letters I write. I write one a week, and sometimes two. we are in the first Brigade since the 24^th of June, and see that Father directs every thing to the seccond Brigade yet. every thing that is sent from home I know I get.

 

Sat July 23. 1864

To day we were moving from one point to another all day. we are/ building forts. it dont take very long to cut down ten or twenty acres of woods. I am kept very busey on the rools.

 

Sunday July 24^th 1864

To day we are all at work on the forts. I am at the rools.

 

Mond July 25. 1864

Last night we all had a good soaking

 

Tusd. July 26^th 1864

This afternoone we received orders to draw five days rations. at three O. Clock we left camp and marched all night. we crossed the Appomatick River twice on pontoons.

 

Weds July 27. 1864

This morning we reached the James River which we crossed at Jones Landing one mile from Mavelin Hill. The first Division of our Corps had a small fight, capturing four twenty pound guns, and twenty rebs. There is sevin or eight Gun Boats here on the James. one of the shells from the boats killed and wounded twenty nine of the rebs.

 

Thursday July 28. 1864

Last night our Regiment was out on the skermish line. We have here over 200 pcs of Artillery and about 24000 Cavelry. our army at Petersburg and here have over 700 pcs of Artillery, besides the siege guns. I received your letter, watch &c a few day ago. Yesterday I received a letter from Louck Michael &c. As I am writing this the Gun Boats are throwing 15 in. shells among the rebs. we are moving all the time. do not stay at one place one hour at a time. One O. Clock P. M. we just had a short march of about three miles on a double quick. we went it in just thirty two minuets, a pretty short time for the loads we carry. we went so fast to prevent a flank movement/ of the enemy. we expect a charge every moment. I seene a good many graves of men killed in M^cClellans campaign. we are busey throwing up breastworks. Three O Clock P.M. we are now passing through a woods that the Gun Boats had shelled. trees three feet across the stump are splintered and knocked to pieces as if they were nothing. I saw three trees that was knocked down by one shell. the last one was over one foot in diameter. We are now laying in an open piece of ground over five miles square. it is full of troops. we were at a good many places to day and expect to work all night.

 

Friday July 29^th 1864

Work all night as I expected. We can see the Rebble camp from here.

 

Sat July 30^th 1864

Last evening at eight O. Clock we left our camp here, and marched all night at allmost a double quick.when we reached the ninth Corps and stacked arms, we had five men in the Regiment to stack arms. You can judge by that how we were marched. Our movement down the James was to draw some of the rebs from Petersburg. we succeeded in drawing two Corps of them away. At five this morning at five the ball opened by the blowing up of the fort. shells are flying in every direction. the firing of artillery sounds like an Infantry charge. we are here to support the Ninth Corps. shells are bursting all around us. Six P. M. at the lowest calculation we lost in killed and wounded 3000 men besides those missing. the wounded are a coming in fast, it is reported that the officers of the coloured troops ran. I myself saw a good many of them around long before the fight was over. Judging by the number of negros wounded they must have fought well. We captured two of the enemy works, / but they turned the joke and recaptured them. they lost a good many more men than we. they dont know how to handle the Artillery as well as our men. The report of the explosion was not very loud. we were not two miles off at the time. it sounded like a long roll of thunder. men that were in say it looked exactly like a funnel. the rebs suspected something and had holes dug down at severl places, but deep anough. At eight we were ordered to march and are now in our old camp again.

 

Sunday July 31^st 1864

To day we are laying in camp resting. the men are all worn out. At dark we are were ordered to be in rediness to move at any moment.

 

Mond Augt 1^st 1864

                                                                                                            Still laying at the old place, expect to move every moment. At nine we started and marched three miles to our right and are laying at the same spot that I commenced this letter. This evening I received letter No 6. but dont think that George looks well with a pipe in his mouth. dont forget to send the rest. To day it was 113 Deg. in the shade. it is very hot and wish it was winter. This morning I found two Scorpions in a rotten stump. they say there is no cure if one is bitten by one of them. some are found every day.

 

Aug^t 2. 3. 4 & 5

                                                                                    Am at work on the Company books. it is a very troublesome job. I must make out a Discription list of all men killed and in Hospital, the clothing account is the worst. I have the books of two Companys to attend to./

 

                                                                                                            Augt 6^th

To day some of the setlers had Watermealons. small ones sell at one dollar, large ones 150 to 200 dollars, Cantelopes from fifty cents to one dollar, small apples three for five cents, cheese fifty cents a pound. Blackberrys per quart in cans 150. In your next letter let me know if David Sprenkle is at home yet. We dont expect to fight any this Month. it is too hot to do any thing. Tell Mother to send my shirt by mail it will not cost a great deal. the one I have on is pretty well used up. I could draw some from the Quartermaster but they are of no account. Last night the Rebs had a Yankey trick played on them in front of the Ninth Corps our men had a large fort. the other day they found out that the Rebs were at work under them with the intention of blowing them up. at night all the guns were moved out of the fort and Quaker guns put in there place. our men built another fort a short distance behind the old one so that the rebbles could not see them. last evening the fort was blown up with a loud report. not long after the rebs charged, but few of them escaped. they did not know anything of the new fort and were mowed down with grape and canister like grass. we lost twenty five hundred in killed and wounded. the rebs lost four to our one. I think it was a hard blow on the rebs. In the fight the other day J. Bange was badly wounded, dont think he will live by what some of the men say.                        Before the battle of the wilderness our Corps numbered 45,000 men and our Division 15,000 men. now the Corps wont muster 12000 men and the second Division not three. our Brigade has thirteen Regiments in it and/ numbers about 1200 men officers and all. Last evening I received Marys letter it was sent on the third. I wish you was here to see the number of Flys we have, you know nothing about them at home. if it would not be for them half of the army would die, but they are a great pester, one can hardly do any thing for them. Part of our army was paid off up to the thirtyeth of June. do not think our Regiment will be paid off this time. As soone as we can send by express, I will send some of my money home. I am tired of carrying it along, but do not like to send it by mail. There is a good deal of talk about us going north but think it is all talk.

 

I have not received a letter from Father or Danl Albright yet. I dont think I can write for some time now, for I can hardly get time to do anything. as soone as I am done with the Companys books I will have time again.

 

                                                                        I wish we had William Welsh, and a few more from Hanover in our Regiment, they would be the first I would shoot at in a battle. we have a young man in our Company a namesake of Samel Shirks, the biggest coward in the Regiment. If you look over the advertisements in the Waverly, you will find one by Capt A. Henry Wendall 184^th P. V. it was put in by our Major. a large and not very good looking man, one evening he received forty one letters. every evening he gets a good many. Give my love to all and write soone. the flys are too troublesome to write long at a time./

We are in the First Brigade seccond Division and seccond Corps. To day it is 116 Deg. in the shade.

 

            Dont forget the shirt, and write soone, dont wate on me to write. In you next let me know how Uncle George and Grandmother are a getting along.

                                                                                    From your Brother

                                                                                                Henry C. Metzger

SOURCES