'Cedars'

Nov 17            1907

 

Dear Luther

                        Your letter of the 1^st recd duly I will try to get you a outline of my army experiance in brief, you may remember I was clerking in Alex^a Va at the beginning of hostilities my firm Baily & Triplett closed business & I came south with "no paint on my left ear" looking for a company to join the most advanced organization I could find was the "Peakes Mountain Grays" of M^cGaheysville. that organization immediately absorbed me as Private in Co "E" and on 17^th of april 1861 we started for Harpers Ferry being the first troops in field. The Yankeys fired / the place & left we managed to save some of the buildings & arms, cant say wheather it is clearly settled, that they left because we were coming, or we went there be-cause they had left, but we held the place for several months raided into M^d & threatened to take Washington DC until we were organized in 10^th Va Infantry Col S. B Gibbons Elzeys Brig Elzey was a Marylander when spring warmed up we left there under Gen T. J. Jackson for Romney West Va—had some skirmishes there, returned to Winchester when Pattison threatened the valley & suddenly on 19^th July by forced marches left & reached Manassas on eve 21^st July & took significant / part in the renouned victory at at that place. about Sept 1861 I got my commission as 2^d Lieutenant in my company we had no big fighting that year our company were inlisted for 1 y^r so the move was to get into Cavelry—a lawyer of Harrisonburg Patterson & Mr Weaver & myself enlisted and in part mounted a company which became part of CT O'Ferrall (after Gov of Va) Battalion then we were thrown with Imbodens Brig^e we saw lots of service came here & there & every where Sometimes camping hundreds of miles apart were in battle of Monocacy in M^d, Gettysburg—Cumberland Williamsport New Market—New Hope & almost every day some / sort of scrimage or false alarm that would run us up or down the valley or back into West Va or down to Lynchburg scarcely ever camping two nights in same place—at Cumberland Williamsport a exploding shell knocked about a pound of flesh from my horses rump & nearly unhorsed me by concussion. Our Company became so reduced in number (though full set of Officers) & as I was anxious to participate in the reputation Mosby was making in my old home section I got leave to join him & so about Nov 1864 I became a private in Montjoys Co "D" and on 23^d Dec / 1864 was captured near Aldie I had been in several chases whilst with Mosby was hand cuffed and threatened with annihilation for being a Gorilla—after being in Washington at Old Capitol prison for a month was sent to Fort Warren Mass.—The burning in Loudon was done whilst I was with Mosby. I think the valley burning was near the same time—whilst I was in the Imbodens army I was Officer of the Guard on one occasion when a union man from West Va was tryed by Military Court for waylaying furlowed Confederates & shooting them from ambush—I had charge of the Guard that shot him / it would not have been healthy for me if the Yanks who captured me had known it. you may know I did not tell them of it. When I look back over it all it is as a dreadful night-mare the great mistery is how people could become so relentless & inhumane and now in good fellowship

 

I feel I have not written anything you can get much of.

 

I know there was burning on both sides of Mountain up to Lexington the cavelry did not do much of the big fighting they were constantly on the go—Marys address is Mrs Harry A. Hunt, Churchland V^a I will ship you a Thanksgiving Turkey Monday Nov 25^th using your letter address love to all                    John /

 

            I have a bad pen & worse paper I passed the side of paper but will use it in order of pages to say one word about prison fare it was scarce enough but by the help of outside friends we made out not to starve. but the cruelty of the guards was inexcusable for instance in Washington within hearing of the Capitol, a shot was fired into a group of singers from an office room below shot up the cealing of course it was done by orders, for no arms were kept in this office two or three prisoners 'Mosby Men' from Baltimore were enjoying that agreeable entertainment & they sang splendidly nothing offensive to autorities. Plantation melodies the same occurred at F Warren a little taping with an improvised hammer brought a gun-shot amongst prisoners

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