The Burlington weekly hawk-eye., 1862-12-27
How ola Campaigners Manage.

How Old CampaIgners Manage.
The French soldiers have been distinguished
above those of other nations for their capacity
to care for themselves when campaigning, but It
is not improbable that the Yankees will hereaf-
ter take rank as the superiors even OF the French
ia the art of making themselves comfortable un-
der conditions that would seem to the unipitia-
ted those Of essential and complex hardship and
discomfort Indeed, it would have been singular
if the ingenuity of our people, so remarkable in
peace, had not appeared conspicuous in war !;
and that which We record is, therefore, not phe.
nominal.
The old regiments of the Army of the Potomac
must be hard pressed for time if, even in winter
campaigning, they do not contrive to mitigate
tne asperities Of the season very considerably
when the army was marched into the country
between the Potomac and Rappabannock, and
the cold winds and rains of December blew and
feii upon it, the new regiments as general rule,
selected their camping ground with little judg-
ment, and shivered and sickened and grew dis
consolate under their shelter tents, pitched in
tho mud.
but the old campaiguers had learned thing
or two. A regiment of them would 90 into
plne-thicket, and in q few hours build neat
pens with the slender and uniform pine sticks
which seem the staple pro luct of the coun-
try,) notching them down at the corner in the
true log-cabin STYLE so as to make tight fit.
The shelter tents answered an admirable pur-
pose for roofing, and the pine brush, of which
there would be the greatest abundance. is al
most equal to husks or feathers for bed>makipp.
or chimneys, there would be . curious variety
some pens Of sticks plsstered inside with
clay y-others Of old bsrrels-others sporting a
joint of stove pipe-others mere hole in the
ground, communicating with covered ditch
passing under the tent Near Fredericksburg
there was brick-kiln, and the bricks being
duly confscated served to construct . great
many fire places and chimneys, which were Of
the regular Virginia style of srchitecture-
that is to say, built outside the habitation and
growing small by degrees and beautifully less,
according to their altitude. The camps north
of the Rsppahannock, abandoned by our troops
when they made their ill-advised crossin gof
that river, were, many Of them, snug winter
quarters, and strikingly exhibited the industry
alert, intelligent, diligent soldiers will put
Virginia pine forest in half day, while an
equal number of slovenly clowns would suffer
extreme hardships in idleness and mud, until
carried to the hospital tents or to their graves
noticed many neat stables, that artillery
men had constructed for their horses, showing
pains taking disposition full of good promise
Some men took better care of their horses than
others of themselves.
The cookery of the army has been immensely
improved since our people have been driven to
learn war. The wholesale sickness that came
upon the regiments early in the service was, as
everybody helplessly knew, largely chargeable
to the imperfect preparation of food. There
seemed to be 10 means of educating the men to
do their cooking decently, except in the hard
school of experience. 1t was General Wool, l
think, who said that half cooked beans killed
more American soldiers in the Mexican War
than the bullets of the enemy. The remark was,
doubtless in its intent and purpose, true, and it
would probably apply to the first months of the
present war. But the boys who have seen SER
vice for year or year and half, know how
to cook beans, and make coffee, and fry pork and
boil beef. 1t is wonderful what nice supper
they will get in little while, under circumstan-
ces that would cause the novice to despair and
60 sup2erless to bed. In the first place they
have knsck of making fire that would excite
the envy of one of the original ''big injins." A
| q barrel, brush cut with hatchet, I've won't
imagine that luxurious fre.wood for soldiers,
fence rails) and, magically, in a few minutes
| there is rousing fre; and. out of bucket of
water, dipped with tin cup from the nearest
creek, and the usual stock of coffee, -four and
fat pork, With the aid of single frying pan and
| . camp kettle, there will be realized supper of
hot biscuit and coffee and fried pork, that, sea
soned with an appetite, is good thing. If it
| should happen that there is fresh beef or ham
at hand, there is feast. Then the boys light
their pipes and carry on the process of digesting
comfortably, unless they have been on the move
and have to fix up sleeping accommodations
There are thousand tricks known to the old
campaigners that new hands become expert in,
only under the pressure of necessity and the
force of example, There is fine art even in
carrying fire from one pipe to another, or from
pipe to cigar. One Of the guests OF the army
tried to light his cigar at the pipe of soldier,
and, failing to do it, nearly produced the catas-
trophe of putting out the fire in the pipe. The
soldier, giving bis pipe fewlpuffs to keep the
light steady, tore off the margin of a newspa
per, and rolling it up hard, making it solid as
possible, took the little roll between his thumb
and finger, put one end of it in his pipe, and,
after few puffs, handed the roll to the guest,
who was waiting, and one end was nearly solid
coal, from which the cigar was readily lgnited.
Determination to Defend Mobile:
Whenever Butler and Farragut get ready to
attempt the conquest of this city they will find
| it job of such magnitude as was never con-
| ceiyed by the most fertile Yankee brain.