Pomeroy weekly telegraph. [volume] (Pomeroy, Meigs County, Ohio) 1860-1866, 1862-04-04
Far the Pomsrey Weekly Telegraph.
Pencilings by the Way.
Sra ANGLO SAXON, TENN. RIVER,
March 9th. 1862

J b.
Mr.. EIitor:-I head this letter as
above because the opportunity to shed
ink has passed away, and seribblers have
no resource bat the pencil.
The SD left padueah yesterday,
March 7th, 1862, on the steamers Anglo
Saxon and Poland, venerable beats Of
the stern-wheel order, bouad for Sayan-,
nah, Tennessee, or some other seaport
of Dixie. Befors giving any notes of
our present onward" l will say little
about our ten days Paducah life. To
say that We snioyed Paducah, would be
cantrary to the truth. When We came
there We supposed that we were to en-
Joy a warmer climate than at home, but
our stay was continual freeze, snow on
the ground large portion of the time.
While there we were armed with old u.
S. Muskets, most of them flint locks,
and without bayonets. They were cap
tured at Ft. Donelson, and many of
them loaded, some two or three times
over. This shows that our secesh friends
preferred loading to shooting, the rea-
son being, l suppose, that the former
could be done at safe distance. But
yesterday We got rihed muskets, and the
boys are in much better humor than
when toating flint lock.
Paducah itself, improves with ac-
quaintance. If the troops and other
appertenances of war were removed, it
would be a delig ghtful place to live in, with
its many beautiful groves and handsome
residences But now war is making its
mark, and it will take years of peace
and prosperity to efface it. The
churches, the splendid court house, and
many fine private palaces, age used as
hospitals, and are full Oh! too full of
poor, crippled, diseased, suffering SOL
diers. The general hospital is in the
courthouse. I passed it the other day,
and took look, and one look was en- ough;
a rough wooden building close by was
the dead house, containing some ten or
a dozen corpses; outside Of this shanty
was pile of plain black collins, rather
muddy from careless handling, land drawn
up in front was wagon loading with
corpses to be conveyed to the burial
place. No military honors, no mourn
ing friends or comrades to attend them.
Nothing but soldiers detailed to perform
the disagreeable task. And SO it goes.
Steamboats, are continually arriving with
the sick and wounded of advanced reg
iments, and it seems as if all creation
had come to Paducah to die Yet,
suppose, that this is but "drop in the
bucket in the present great carnival of
death. From what l have seen, have
made up my mind, that it is hard work
for man to recover from wounds or
disease, according to the 'regula-
tions." But, thank fortune, our physi-
clans practice in accordance with feel
ings of humanity, as far as "red tape"
will allow them.
Your fellow -townsman, DR.. Bing, will
long be remembered with gratitude by
many poor soldier. But let US dis
miss Paducah, with it's soldiers, its Ft.
Anderson, (Which don't know how to
describe, and SC 1 shall not try) its hospi-
tails and its mean weather, and come to
our present where's bouts.
This morning, about 8 o'clock A NJ,
found US at Fl. Henry, and not only us,
but many other regiments. Right be-
side our boat is the John J Roe, with
the 9Th Missouri and 18th Indiana
aboard, veteran soldiers, who made their
mark at Fl. Donelson. Out in the river