Baton Rouge

Sunday March 15.63

 

Dear Sister

 

I received your letter dated the 21 last Thursday mothers 8^th letter also one from Sarah Harriett & Ellen & two papers.

 

Last Sunday wrote a letter to Ellen and Mary Gridley. Monday the Brigade received orders to be ready for a march after supper we were ordered to strike tents took 2 days rations in our haversacks. we slept on our tent floors during the night. it rained considerable had a rubber blanket & 2 wollen over us so we did not get very wet. at half past 3 in the morning we were woke up, got / our breakfast & then fell into line about 5 oclock. this regt only (though all the other regts in the division were ordered to be ready for a march) marched out to the picket line. it was just beginning to grow light. as soon as we passed the pickets on the port Hudson road Co A deployed as skirmishers both sides of the road into the woods to see if there was any danger the woods were full of underbrush and cane breaks these breaks were from 4 to 20 feet high & grew very thick. it having rained but a little while before they were very wet. we advanced through the woods some 2 miles. it was very hard to get along. we were then relieved by Co D & we came out into the road, wet through & very warm. we marched 4 miles and stoped. there was a siction seckison secksion of artillery with us ( 2 guns) Co A then marched a mile & a half to the east, on the Clinton road. the rest of the regt staid on the Port Hudson road / to build a bridge. We staid on the Clinton road over 3 days did not have any tents with us nor any clothes but what we had on. before we started we took all the clothes we did not have on tied them in a bundle and packed them in a box. The first night we had pickets on the road some up the road & a few down the road, or south of us. about half past three in the morning our picket south of us, towards Baton Rouge, saw some cavalry coming he halted them. at the same instant the cavalry fired some 8 or 10 shots then went away we were considerably surprised at being attacked in that direction the next day we found out that they our own troops did not know of our being there. the Rhode Island cavalry was ordered to go up the road that night to the place where we were not knowing that any union troops were there / so when they heard our picket halt them they thought it was the rebels & fired, but no one was hurt. only one gun on our side was fired if all 6 of our picket had fired some one would been hurt. Friday There was a large number of pigs and cattle running around the woods we had all the fresh beef & pork we could eat. We lay on the ground nights a rubber blanket under me and one wollen over. I could not sleep very warm having no one to sleep with. Friday I was troubled with the ear ache on the left side it was very sore around it, could not hear. I asked Lieut W. what I should do. he told me to go to the doctors and get some medicine if he had any and stay there. the doctor was up with the regt. I went up there & staid in an old negro house with several others of the reg

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