The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1862-12-13
Correspondence.
Letter from =. Big Elk -
TTENTTIT w IEN -TU TItT. OTS. I
FALMourn, Virginia, Dtc. Sth, SIS! {

FALMOUTH, Virginia, Dec. 9Th, 1862 {
DEAR Ewing Il am now commencing to
write you letter, and am sitting in :. our :,
Sihey tent, with the door closely tied up
and the stove just about as warm as burning
wood will make it. Snow fell all day on Fri
day, and the ground is now covered 1t is
very cold this morning and the wind is ia irlv
h"wng OVER the hills that bind the old Rap
,ahannock. The men are still chartered in
their little shelter tents; but they have built
mp little log huts from three to five feet high
plastcrcd up the cracks with mud and covered
them with their little tents, max ing them
mnch more comfortable, and giving them
selves much more room. A number OF tho.
men have fitted in their tents a sind of under.
ground stove, made by digging Il trench from
the inside To the outside of the tent cover
ing the trrnch with fiat stone, and making Il
chimney ont Of an old barrel! The cuntinu-
ancu makes au excellent substitute for Il
stove.
The oil GERS are qulrterei in tents also,
some in SiOlry, some in Wall tcns and some
in co,illnon tents. lost Of the officers have
stoves in their tents, and manage to keep
themselves quite comfortable
You know the men are allowed a certain
quantity OF provision Tor each day but dur
ing our last naarch it was impossible for The.
tluartcrnastcr to furnish them with the full
supply. owing TO the want of transportation
Well, the Regiment is entitled to the full
allowance of rltiuuS; and will b. paid the
value of the raions not drawn in cash
which amount is placed in the hands Of the
commissioned officers. and is Ca he'd :. The
Company Fund.- This fund is uscd in such
Il manner as the men of the COMPANY together
with the officers. think best
Potatoes and onions have been ordered to
be distributed to the soldiers; which is an
excellent arrangement, as the men urcd all
the vegetables they can get.
number Of mca who have been away from
the Regiment, at the different hospitals, came
back last Friday, looking better as general
thing, than the men who have been it'll u.s.
The recruiting party who have been in vii
ninston since last July, came back also Z; and
strange to say. they brought back not a angie
recruit Why canDot tell; certainly 1t can.
not be on account OF the Reg imcnt needing
a reputation Tor discipline and bravery
May be the men who were sent on that ser, ice
did not bcsir themselves as much as they
might have done. / hear that tho pleasant
little city Of Wilmington is very good place
to be quartercd in. Pity they were disturb
ed, and ordered back to their Regiment,
where they may have chance to do duty Of
another kind.
Our mails come much more regularly than
they did, and | suppose our friends get let
ters from us regularly now, a the mail is sent
away from here every morning, by way of
Aqua creek and Washington.
AS Winter has come on now in real earnest,
and We have great deal of picket and fatigue
duty TO do, and as it is very cold handling
guns, axes, spades, &C., these cold mornings.
| wonder if some Of our kind and good Cecil
ladies could not send us down some warm
mlttcns, like those they sent MS last Winter
while we were at Drummondtown. There are
about seventy men in company G, and TO fur
niSh each man Of the company with par of
mittens would only take about haf q dozen
dozen. II our kind friends should hc suddenly
taken with such pious notion, tell them that
If they pack that many in as small II box as
they can, and direct the box with contents
markedly to Major Ben. Ricketts,. 2nd Del.
Vols Sd Brigade, llancock's Division. Sum
ner's Corps, that the Big Elk Rangers will
have their hands in it, in about five days after
the box leaves the Elkton depot.
Sergeant johnson, of Company &C c." has
been appointed Commissary Sergeant in place
Of Henry Nelson, who has been promoted to
tlnarterlnaster Sergeant. Both are fine,
steady young men. Big ELK