The Xenia sentinel. [volume] (Xenia [Ohio]) 1863-186?, 1864-08-09
Ghe 3eaia Sentinel
SETH w. BROWN, Editor.
Tuesday. August 8, 1864.
Letter fF0m Chaplain Mcfarland,
Of the J4td.
In TIE WOODS THREE MILEs SOUTH
OF THE CHATTAHOoCHEE. GA,
July 20, 1864.

OF THE CHATTAHOocHEE, GA
July 20, 1864.
EDITOR SENTINEL:
Perhaps some one Of your readers may
think himsslfquite pattern OfPatisnee-
that, however much the petulaut spirits of
other people may be disturbed and rufHel
by the little anaoyanees and perplexities
Of this troublesome life, there is At least
one man whose soul is sufficiently large
and exalted to rise ab5ve them into ser
enc atmosphere, where in perfect quistude
it can look down with philOsOphic con-
tempt on the trifing plaques Of this life.
Well, Mr.. Patience, I guess you havn't
tried al the TRisaHces Of this life, or you
would change your name at least you
would not hold yourself uP.ror model
guess you haEu't tried the Georgia
'eNicksys," " (ehiquos) Come down here
aud tumble about for seventy days
aud nights in the Georgia sands aud mud,
and rain and melting sun, till you have
been for weeks covered with these little
red insects Calmost invisible to the naked
eye) that bury themselves in the skin and
produce such an uneasiness and scratch
ing as would make you pray hourly to
the clerk Of Paudemonium to send some
forty "seveu year Hch" in Its stsad;-get
some improved Jobs pOtsherd, such as a
long toothed eurry-comb, or rougb-edged
piece Of a broken bomb shell and serape
yourself with it till the polished covering
Of your flesh and bones has become like tho
soft and blistered surface of frost bltten
Pumpkin;-rub away At your sore surface
ill its iunumerablo little mountains of
hives become 6ery ooIcanoes Con small
scale;) rub away till your sore arms are
weary using the potsherd, till sleep shall
have for one month departed from your
eyes; then With your boly thus afflicted,
march more or less every day under your
gun and kuapsaek, in Georgia July sun
hot enough to melt grease out of the jaws
OF a brass monkey; theu,-but this is
enough to start with. By the time you
have hal this initiation to soldering you
will begin to think it is not quite certain
that either your body or your enlarged
soul is altogether proof against the petty
annoyauces of this vain life. By the time
you have Feasted on the pleasing variety,
salt, pork and bareback and coffee, exclu-
siveIy for two months, during which time
you had the consoliug reflection that you
we're liable at almost any moment to have
your sublime existence suddenly put a
stop 70 by an impudent shell Or minnie
ball,-in short by the time you have ex-
perienced what the soldier Of this army
has passed through On this campaign you
will feel quite certain that you are not any
more patient than tho soldier who just
this moment got up from under the tree
where I am sitting, where he had been
lying seraping himself from head to foot,
got up rubbing and muttering to himself |
swell this world and another one, and |
then the iron works !''-nr his chum who |
had been engaged in the same sublime
amusement and Immediately added "BuI- |
ly for the iron works neither chickers |
nor gray-backs Except two legged Opes) |
withstand any chance there"
Seriously it is amazing what men will
eudure without complaint. -Ia 2, gai q. |
I have referred to the chiquos; but these
are only one Of the many plaques and
of this wilderness. Lizsards,
green, blue, black, striped, red and gray, |
of all sizes from one to ten inches long |
some poisonous and some not; tarantu-
las, scorpions, vipers, serpents, frogs, and
all sorts of loathsome creeping things in-
fest this land. If the whole land were
burnt up and utterly consumed SO that
there would be left nothing but big hole
all things considered, the world would not
be much the poorer in any respect, .aaI
We crossed the ChqttahOocbee day be-
fore yesterday. Previously to that we had
one week rest in camp; rest highly ap-
preciatedindeed. The men got some new
clothes of which they were greatly in
need. The quartcrmaster could not sup
ply more than half who needed pantaloons
and shoes and shirts. The most needy |
only we're supplied, and the rest we're viii
ling to wait little longer.
In the last fight since We camo from
Kenesaw mountain VIC lost only two men,
Sergeant Stipes, Co. B, knee, and Sergeant
James, Co. E, leg, both pretty severe
wounds but neither Of them fatal. Col. |
Given commanded the Brigade. The last
day of the fighting on that side of the
river his Brigade lost seventy men, in
killed and wounded, but they inflicted at
least an equal amount of damage on the
robels, besides taking about thirty prison
ers. Owing to his own poor health and
sickness in his family, the Colonel went
home on thirty day furlough, Major
Fisher has since been in command of the
regiment. He ought to be good colonel
now, for he has had charge of the regi-
meut before aud since Col. MoOdy's resig-
nation, a very considerable portion Of the
time. Altogether his experience as a regi,
mental commander has been greater than
that of many actual COlOpOls Of a years
The Chattahoocbie is about Is yards
wide where we CROSSE It is very much
such stream as the RlprC n except that