of the officers. But I
was told that these regiments had never done any marching before, having
hitherto been quartered in forts and transported by railroad.

The country is much covered with woods, and is sandy, with very little
water.

I did not consider that the troops were marched judiciously; they were
halted too long at a time, and not often enough. The baggage was carried
on country carts pressed into the service.

We bivouacked in the woods near a very pretty house, belonging to a
planter called Colonel Robinson. These immense woods make admirable
bivouacs.

General State Rights Gist is a South Carolinian, only thirty-two years
of age, and although not educated as a soldier, he seems easily to have
adapted himself to the military profession. He looks a determined man,
and he takes responsibility very coolly. In the early part of the day he
was very doubtful as to the exact whereabouts of General Johnston; but
about noon a courier arrived, from whom he received important and
satisfactory information, otherwise General Gist had made up his mind
for some "nasty work" before the junction could be effected. He told me
that the present expedition was rather inconvenient to him, as he had
only been married three days before he left Charleston. He lent me a
magnificent rug, and I slept very comfortably in the open air for the
first time since I was in Texas.

* * * * *

_20th May_ (Wednesday).--At 3 A.M. we were awoke by a great bombardment
going on at Vicksburg, which lasted about three hours.[26]

The assembly was beaten at 7 A.M. by an old nigger, performing on a
cracked drum, and its sound was hailed by the soldiers with loud yells.

General Gist, his Staff, and I, breakfasted with Mr Robinson, whose
house is charming, and beautifully furnished, and had not been visited
by the Yankees.

We had a crazy old planter, named ----, with us, who insisted upon
accompanying the column, mounted on a miserable animal which had been
left him by the enemy as not being worth carrying away. The small
remains of this poor old man's sense had been shattered by the Yankees a
few days ago; they cleaned him completely out, taking his horses, mules,
cows, and pigs, and stealing his clothes and anything they wanted,
destroying what they could not carry away. But what "riled" him most was
that he had been visited by a Federal officer, disguised in the
Confederate uniform. Poor old ----, full of r