ntrated milk that I happened to have;
next toasted some bread and poured the whole over it; why it was a dish
fit for anybody. We were glad to be able to get some soft bread; at
first we couldn't get anything but hard tack and very little of that.
Fresh meat we hadn't tasted since we landed till one day, when out on
picket, one of our boys caught a pig and we forthwith skinned and
roasted it. You can imagine that that pig tasted pretty good after
going without meat for over a month. The next day when we were out on
picket, a contraband brought us some fresh eggs and sweet potatoes, but
such instances were not very common. Why I became a nine-days' wonder
on returning to camp and relating my experience. We managed to get some
fun out of camp life, and my health was good (about this time I was
flourishing like the owl of the desert and the pelican of the
wilderness). One thing we missed was books. The only books we had were
our Testaments which I enjoyed reading very much, for I meant to read
some of it every day. The Testament I had was presented to me, about
the time we left Hartford for the seat of war, by a Vernon lady, and I
have it in my possession yet. I prize it still as a great treasure.

February 22d, Sunday, Washington's Birthday. Had inspection in the
forenoon and in afternoon we had a sermon preached to us by our
chaplain, Mr. Oviate, whom some might remember when he preached in
Somers, Connecticut.

February 23rd. I was detailed to go on guard duty this morning for 24
hours. The day was celebrated as Washington's Birthday and the boys had
a ball game. At sunset we had a dress parade and brigade review. Most
of the boys were getting pretty short of money, and if we sent any
letters home we had to have them franked as soldiers' letters. This
means that soldiers' letters can be sent without a stamp.

February 24th. Came off guard this morning; had the forenoon to myself;
in the afternoon we had a brigade drill under General Birge in the
unpleasant duty of reversed arms and rest, a duty which we were called
upon to perform quite often those days.

February 25th. I went to the hospital with Sergeant Sam Harding of our
company. It was a sickening sight to go over the hospital and see the
thin and wasted sufferers, many of them stretched on the floor with
only a blanket and scarce a comfort, let alone a luxury of any kind;
many of them stricken down in their strength by swamp fever; and one by
one they dropped