Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1863-04-10
From the Sixth Regiment.
CAMP OF THE 9TH VI. Vols, }
Near Bell Plain Landing, Va, :
March 81, 1868. \

Burnside, we have left the above men,
toned quarters and made the well known
raid of the Rappabannock under Gen.
Burnside. If am not mistaken, / saw
piece in Vermont paper entitled,
Change of Commander in which the
writer, let him be who he may, used ra-
Their hard language in speaking of Gen.
Mcclellan. In the course of his argu-
ments he said 'it is yet to be Sc n
whether the change will prove for the
better, but it certainly cannot prove for
the worse If he was certain that it
would not prove for the worse, ! am just
as certain that the change did not, as it
turned out, prove for the better. Any
General, in my opinion, in order 20 be
successful, must have the entire conf
dence Of the men under him, and that
Gen. Burnside did not have, as has been
seen.
Next came the mud raid, commencing
Jan. goth, and ending Jan. 23d and
never was an army moved under more
vexing circumstances. The morning we
started the signs of the weather plainly
indicated storm, and that soon. Well,
Franklin's grand division on the left
moved on to the extreme right of the ar
my as it then lay-marched all day thro'
woods and ravines, and went a round
about way SO as to keep out of sight of
the rebels, in order to take them alto
gether by surprise. 1t was going to be
the last crushing effort to put down the
rebellion. AT Lass we halted and camp
ed for the night, lame and sore. We
we're ordered to make small fires and no
noise. We awoke in the morning to
find the rain coming down Just as tho
there was not a single man out to be wet
by it--bnt there were fifty or seventy
thousand soldiers out, and of course each
had to take his ratons of the rain that
was dealt out to US not at all stingily.
About noon we had orders to fall in
and be ready TO move, and Of course we
did SO. We were marched about two
-halted-stacked our r m s-un-
slung our knapsacks and prepared for
business, which was not, by the way, We
ry agreeable, | assure you. We soon
ascertained that we were to helm the
pontoon train along that was stuck in the
mud for without the pontoon bridges
we could not cross the river and inAict
that great crushing blow that | before
mentioned.
We worked away in the mud, up to
our knees until after dark, and did not
get them half through at that. You un-
doubleday would have smiled a little to
have seen three or four thousand Yer
monters, all covered with mud from head
to foot, drawing at a rope 10 front of the
horses. At last the order came TO fall
in We were going somewhere, but
where, we did not know or care. Mind
you, some unseen band was all this time
dealing out the rain to us Just as though
they bad got stock on hand that they
had TO get rid of by a certain time not
specified, at least, to US. Well, we march
ed back 10 the ground we had left in the
morning. There everything was cold
and wet--no fire and no supper, and a
hard looking chance for either-and you
may imagine your humble servant in
smiling mood.
None hut volunteers use d to such |
times could make live out of it, but as
it was, we soon had coed fire, supper
clothes drying, and The shouts
and songs of the boys soon began to echo
through the woods. The night passed
pleasantly ; morning came, and with it
the snow began to fall, which was soon
turned to rain. We stopped there all
day, and the next morning we had orders
to pack up and march back to our old en-
where we now are. A yery
hard days work followed. Many hard
and useless words were said about Gen.
Burnside. Every movement of his an
peared to fail. think him true patriot
and a noble soldier, but not capable of
so large an army as that of the
Potomac. / expected before this tim.
TO have seen some of Gen. Hooker's ma
neuverng; but | think he is too bright
man to undertake to move an army in
his mud. When the time comes be will
move, aud the men are ready to follow
him in his first attempt.
have said, and still stick to the state
nent, that we never have had a Genaral {
hat had the entire confidence of the men {
As Mcclellan had-and l doubt whether t
we ever shall have. Still the army is
not IN the least demoralzed, as some
would be glad to make out. They are I
wiling to do anything in the defence of !,
he Stars and Stripes that have waved
'ver US in triumph for so long a period.
i there is another call for troops, as | v
rave no doubt there will be, l hone TO
ZEE general turn out throughout the
North, and fcck to the standard of our
onntry, and put down these miserable
raitors that are daily insulting US. We P
ay, Death to all traitors.
The health of the troops, at least as
ar as know, is good-never better. 1
peak more particularly of the Vermont G
'rigade, of whom, no doubt, your read +
rs are anxious to hear. Col. Grant. of !,
be 9th VT, is now in command of the Ii
rlgade' and is generally liked by the y