The weekly Lancaster gazette. (Lancaster, Ohio) 1860-1863, 1862-01-16
Army Correspondence.
CAMP NEAR SoMERsET. KY.,
January 4, 1862.
SOMERSET AND VICINITY.

hoiorlety, on account OF the Union and
Rebel armies encamped near il in me.
Dacing attitude for the last three or four
weeks, general description Of the nature
Of the county, may prove interesting to
many Of your readers.
Somerset is situate in q kind of basin,
the bills rising gradually from i, 10 every
description, excsp! the east, which is
level.
We are excamped on hill seven,y-6ve
feet above the town; on the north and
west of US, and part Of the east, is deep
ravine or hollow, making the hill very
difhcult 10 ascend from either of those di.
rections. II ZoIlicoffer should attack US
from either Of those points. long before he
could get to US. he will wish he had not
tried it, as one regiment, situate as ours
is upon this hill, could whip four thou
sand men advancing in either Of the di.
rections above stated. From Somerset
which is on the souther!y eide of our
camp The road ascends gradually about q
half mile, and should Zo!licoffer advance
iiom that direction, we will warm him
good, as be must pass the 18th KY, 3eth
and 35th Ohio, before he could get to us.
If he should advance from an eastsrly
direction he would have to pass our pick.
cts two miles out, march at least eight
miles further and then the two Tennessee
Regiments meet him. and one battery eau
play on him for u miles in all directions
except east, in fact it can play on him fol
three miles in some directions, and tbsr
there is Capt. Hewis's battery hall mil'
south of US. 1 only wish ts would com.
here and make an attack. He will gel
away feeling worse and be worse whip
ped than lie was at "Wild Cat" il he 20,
away a! all. l predict he will no. fighl
US here at all. but il we get force enough
in his rear 10 attack him. he will try te
make his escape through this way some
where. but he will no. dare stop 10 bgh
US in that case. and then if we don't max
him get up aud howl I don't know any
thing about the temper and wish O
Schoeff's command.
We are pretty we'll fortified here, as
also the 39th Ohio and Col. Hoskins, an
since our other two smooth bore oanno
have come up. we do not fear "old Zolly
if we can get half chance at him. H
is evidently afraid Of us as y negro cam
into our camp, from his. yesterday, VII,
says the day We went 10 make recon
noiSance in force, they rushed into III
ferry boat go fast, expecting US on hir
every minute, that they drowned mum
Der of his men-the niger thinks thre
hundren-but l don't believe his story
yet l have no doubt that they browne
some, as other niggers tell the same stsry
and we were moving on toward him wiz
three Regiments and FIVE cannon on eac
road, besides two companies of cavalry
| have always thought if we had made
bold dask at him before he fortified o
this sidc Of the river. he would have fe
back or re crossed the river. but as hi
position then would have been muc
stronger than ours, we would have gair
ed nothing, unless we could have had
force on the other side to drive him ther
This appears to be Gen. Thomas idea,
otherwise we would have attacked him.
Some OF our officers do not like Gener
Thomas, but I have shn implicit eonl
dencs 10 him, as also Gen. Schoetf an
;; his staff, and do not attach TO either
them blame for not making the attack III
til we have force enough to whip Zollieo
fer and capture his whole command. Fa
! or quick fighting sometimes wins, and
with many others frequently get restls
4, at the "s'and stil' way of doing thing
but when l remember that our own forc
. and the enemy are about equal-while Il
/, latter has the advantage of position,
! think it the better policy to pursue. n
: to advance until we have force enough
secure success! 1always feel like yiel
= ing my own opinions in dsference to tho
i oi men who have made military matters
= study for life, which Generals Thom
. and Schoeff have done; and now prsdi
o that if Gen. Thomas gets an oppOrtuni
d during this war to display his militia
8 talent, that he will prove himself a &c
, eral. ....
"But to return to my subject" 7
;. hill, or narrow ridges with hills on tn
If tops, atiutervals, shaped like large noun
10 rise from two to four hundred feet abe
T. he valleys.
"a 'FISHING 6REEx"
IT Is very crooked stream, meanderi
s through a narrow valley between hi
5 rocky HILLS or bluffs on either side psrpt
y !. dicular for some ten to Fifty feet, wh