ssession.

Six miles from Green river a young and very pretty girl stood in the
doorway of a handsome farm-house and waved the flag of the Union. Cheer
after cheer arose along the line; officers saluted, soldiers waved their
hats, and the bands played "Yankee Doodle" and "Dixie." That loyal girl
captured a thousand hearts, and I trust some gallant soldier who shall
win honorable scars in battle may return in good time to crown her his
Queen of Love and Beauty.

From this on for fifteen miles we found neither springs nor streams.
The country is cavernous, and the only water is that of the ponds. In
all of these we discovered dead and decaying horses, mules, and dogs.
The rebels in this way had sought to deprive us of water; but while
their action in this regard occasioned a vast deal of profanity among
the boys, it did not in the least retard the column. We were, however,
delayed somewhat by the felled trees with which they had obstructed
miles of the road. At sunset we halted and pitched our tents in a large
field, near what is known as Bell's Tavern, on the Louisville and
Nashville Railroad. We had marched eighteen miles.

The water used in the preparation of the evening meal was that of the
ponds. The thought of the rotting dogs, horses, and mules, could not be
banished, and when the Major sipped his coffee in a doubtful way and
remarked that it tasted soupy, my stomach quivered on the turning point,
and, hungry as I was, the supper gave me no further enjoyment.

14. Resumed the march at daylight. Snow fell last night. The day was
exceedingly cold, and the wind pierced through us like needles of ice. I
think I never experienced so sudden and extreme a change in the weather.
It was too cold to ride, and I dismounted and walked twelve miles. We
were certain of a fight, and so pushed on with rapid pace. A regiment of
cavalry and Loomis' battery were in advance. When within ten miles of
Bowling Green the guns opened in our front. Leaving the regiment in
charge of the Major, I rode ahead rapidly as I could, and reached the
river bank opposite Bowling Green in time to see a detachment of rebel
cavalry fire the buildings which contained their army stores. The town
was ablaze in twenty different places. They had destroyed the bridge
over Barren river in the morning, and now, having finished the work of
destruction, went galloping over the hills. When the regiment arrived,
it was quartered in a camp but recently evacuated b