Cincinnati daily press. [volume] (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1860-1862, 1862-02-03

CAMP W1CKLIFFE, Jan. 26, 1862.
Dear FTiend-As this is Sunday morning
and the last Sunday in the month, il ia the
Gay for reginental inspection. All the bows
are out on inspection, and as | am on de-
tached service, and excused on that account
l take the opportunity of writing to Won
when there is plenty of room in the tent.
We have had beautiful weather for the
last few days, and we have had no rain for
ak days, which is a good thing for the sol.
dier, as we had about three weeks rainy
weather previous to this last week, and it is
very disagreeable thing to be travelling
around in the mud continually.
we have changed arms since / wrote to
you last. Our regiment is now furnished
with rifles throughout our flank. Comma
nies A and B have had the Enfield rides
since we left Camp Dennison. Companies r
ID, ard q exchanged arms with the flank
companies in the Fifteenth and Seventeen N
Indiana Regiments, and got Enfield. Com.
panits U, ID, Il and X exchanged with four
companies OF the Fiftieth Indiana, and got
good article of rifles made in A Liepe
They are shorter than the Eofeld, and
heavy; they are of the same caliber, and our
company think them superior to the En-.
field. There is one thing about these rifles
which will he the means OF preventing a
good deel of wrangliog-they are all num-
be1ed, and the Orderly Sergeant takes the
number OF each mans gun, so that he can't
take his comrades gun, as they have been in
the habit of doing with the old ones. I
have known of many cases where a
man has lost his gun by carelessness
and found another one belonging to
another company, and it is O daily
occurrence for meu who have dirty guns to
take their comrades clean one. Such tbinps
mar the happiness of US all, aud a little
trouble on the part of a manufacturer pre.
vents all the little snnoyances in changing
guns.
We are now quartered in the Sibley tent
much superior tent to the old "beli'' tent
and ! am under the impression that if we
bad been under General Nelson for the sevon
months previous to our entering Kentuckv
we would have Jared better. He has habit
of finding out things, and he does not Law in
his tent TO have complaints brought to him.
| but be rides around to every regiment and
| through company quarters, and he has an
order issued at once to correct any evil he
may see or hear Of In the last two or three
weeks he has issued several orders which
pertain to the good of the cause and the well
fare of the men.
A few DAYS ago he issued an order that, az
there had been meat issued to the men that
was unit for use, he appointed Commissarv
Sergeant from three of our regiments in
this brigade to examine all meat before it is
issued, and see that it is all good, and that
the necks and shanks are taken off clean. If
we had been so well cared for all the time
| the men in our regiment would have had
many hundred pounds of meat, instead of
having necks and shanks given to us with
the rest of our meat.
The General last night issued orders tn at
no army wagons are to carry goods for sut
lers or others. Hereafter all wagons will be
examined, and | would not like to be the
driver who offends knowingly. This is an
excellent order, as there have been great
many articleBfcr suffers carried to camp in
army wagons, and, believe, at the expense
of our Uncle.
All soldiers in camp here who are unable
10 do duty are TO be sent to barracks. |
believe if we were ordered to 90 and meet
BuCkner tomorrow the number of sick in
our regiment would be very small. have
good reason to believe there are still good
many in our neighboring regiments who have
not entirely recovered from the effects of the
measles and fever they have had among
them.
often sit and think of the many blessings
we have received as a regiment at the hands
of God, for believe there is no regiment in
the service having less sick that has seen SO
much hard service.
A few days ago, as the Brigade Surgeon
was vaccinating the men in the Fifteenth
Indiana Regiment, he cut great many of
them in the arm, and as the blood would not
flow to suit him he wanted to know if they
were all dried up. think they drink too
much strong coffee, which thickens their
blood, and it may have tendency to make
them sick.
If you had been here on Tuesday, when
We were called out to hear the news OF Zolli-
Golfers defeat, 1t would have done your heart
good to hear the three hearty cheers given
for the Union and General Thomas, and il
our boys do as we'll at groaning Cf they are
ever ordered to charge bayonets) as they did
when they gave tiger at the close / think
the rebels will flee from their grosns and
steel nearly as quick as they left when the
gallant Ninth charged at Mill Spring.
i went down to the division wagon. yard
the other morning, and | saw about four
b!acksmiths at work fixing shoes, and
about half-a- dozen more at work mailing
the shoes upon the horses and mules beIon ?
| ing to the division teams, aud there is some
| fun and little danger attending the shoe.
| ing of the mules who are now being shOd for
the first time. AT one place saw mule
| tied to tree, and four men had a rope fast
ened to one of its hind feet to hold it ia Do.
sition till the sboe was put on. thought
that was surely sufficient to keep him still,
but | found he would kick occasionally Y.
Another mule was lying on his side with all
his feet tied, to keep him still; one man had
a guy-rope on the foot they were shoeing 10
steady it, and two men held his head down.
| The drivers say they have to throw them
every time they clean them, which / sup
pose is not very often, as it is quite Job to
throw them on one side and then the other,
30 that they may clean both sides
have not received paper from you for
| five days, and am afraid the postmasters
are cOnfiscntng my papers somewhere II
| were at home now think | would put my
! daily papers to a good use. A morning
| paper is read very often before ten o'clock.
| By putting wrapper upon it and one cent
stamp, and address it 10 mess in some COM
| pany, say Company e, Mess No. l, or Com
pauy b, Mess No 2, or any other company;
| give the letter of the company, and any mess
from one to FIVE. | AN satisfied if some OF
our liberal citizens we're aware of the amount
! of good that is done by the daily papers,
they would adopt some plan to let their
friends have the news occasionally. In our
mess, when the paper is opened, all is layed
aside TO hear the news and know il is
much better for a lot of men to be listening
to news that will interest and instruct hem,
than IL is for them TO be uLoccupied for
they will not lay silent long, they will in all
| probability tnd pack of cards TO play with,
or else they will get to cursing and swearing,
or telling stories that are not always of the
choicest kind, and l think if you can not
bring man TO see the sin of blaspheminp
Gods name, if you can keep him from wear
ing you will do him good.
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