Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1862-12-12
From the Eleventh Regiment.
FoRr SLoCUM, WAsu'Y, d. c., !
December 3. 1862. [

but to let you and those who love TO read
and porder over the Independent col,
umns of the Standard, know as 10 the
health and Whereabouts of those Orleans
boys who, when about the first Of July
large recruiting bills were scattered over
The county, the heading of which was
Stand Back Coward>," did not skedad
die back into some Canadian forest and
hide themselves under swil barrel, but
came Immediately forward and placed
their names upon the enlistment paper
and offered their services 10 the great
Uncle Sam, 10 aid him in putting down
treason and killing rebellion in the con-
founded States Of America. And to day
we are just as ready and anxious to meet
the Gery foe in open field fight, ard show
him that the hardy Green Mountaineer.
never falter. But TO tell you Of what We
,Oou'd do would not be so interesting as
10 tell you of what we hare been doing.
In my last letter, which was some two
months ago. when we were stationed AT
Fol-: Bunker Hill, ! stated that the Dutch
company which was there had had Or
ders 10 take up their bed and walk, and
that we should probably stay there all
winter. That order was coumermanded
and upon the l7ih of last month we pick
Cd up our bed and departed thence unto
another fort which is-allhou.h we did
not come very slOw--caled Siocum. We
were not the only company that moyed
that day. The regiment is now in only
three parts, and stationed: companies A
and X at Fort Tauton, +, +, G. and II
at Slocum, b, c, d and at Fl. Massa-
chusetts.
l also stated in my last that we had
been transferred from Infantry to heavy
Artillery. Although we drilled some
three weeks upon the heavy guns, and
we supposed at the time wrote that we
,cere changed, there seems 10 have been
an alteration in the calculation, and it Is
not certain that we shall be artillery after
all For my part do not care dead
mans grunt whether we are infantry,
artillery, or s2ldierS, which | am sure il
is safe TO say we shall be.
Since we have been here We have been
busily engaged getting out siockades and
building barracks, which we suppose we
are going to winter in. We got out our
Stockades by going into a slash and taking
logs from 10 to y inches through, and
from II to II feet long, pine or chestnut,
mostly pine, and splitting them through
the middle and hewing tue split side so as
to make them smooth, and straighlen the
edges. We then set them down into the
ground the bark side out, saving the tops
off so rs to lave them even, leaving them
eight feet above the ground. Tie cracks
will be pIastered up and hunks made to
sleep Ia which will be much warmer aud
better than TO lie upon the cold ground.
Yesterday some lumber was drawn TO US
furnished by the government, which is
to day rapidly being made into a roof
Each company has separate barracks 40
feet long and 90 wide. We shall get
into them the first Of next week. Then
we shall probably have to 60 TO work
upon the fort which il being made five
times as large as it now is. II will cover
five acres Of ground. The 1884 Penn.
sylvania regiment is TO work upon il
now.
Thanksgiving day here was week
ago to morrow. Company L was in
town; our noble captain, although he was
TOO sick to be with Us, looked out for his
men coed hearty supper, which was
fresh beef, chickens, potatoes, onions, &C.,
which was served up in good shape by
old Uncle Burroughs, our cook, and we
all did eat" about 100 in number, "to
our utmost lill," and took up of the frag,
ments" quite handful.
The captain las been quite sick with
the jaundice, so that he was absent from
his company from the 10Th of November
until the 30lh. Lieut.. Morse was the
only commissioned oilicer left, l.. Austin
being away sick with typhoid fever
But Lieut.. Morse and Orderly Sergeant
Matthews, both of which have the right
good will of the whole company, looked
after their men and kept them all straight
and comfortable as possible. 1t. Austin
has been promoted to first Lieutenant in
company i. Sergeant Major Wright
takes his place.
The health Of the company is pretty
good, although the jaundice are making
themselves pretty familiar. The follow
ing are the names of the sickest ones /:
Corporal Sergeant, corporal Whitney and
corporal Joslyn. private j. Allen, w. NJ.