, 1864-12-23
Life Before Petersburg.


Yesterday was the Sabbath-A very quiet day
along our lines Hardly shot was fired from
battery or picket post. In the morning the Pc
tersburg bells were heard sounding the call to
church Their solemn peals brought memories
from home and of pleasant hours in the house
of God to more than one New England soldier
lad in the hot and dusty trenches here. The re-
pose of the hallowed day was refreshing and
precious to all Even those denied all other
privilege of worship could lift up their hearts to
God in the praise of silence and give Him thanks
for rest.
When evening came, we who might sleep took
to our blankets early. Quietly we rested on
our cayey beds until the dead of night. Then,
suddenly along our entire line, the artillery
belched forth in fame and roar, and as we
sprang startled to our feet, we saw the air ablaze
with flying missiles of death, and heard their
rushing sound and loud explosion. There was
flashing of light in the batteries at our left,
flashing in those Of our right, flashing in those
at our rear and flashing in those far off in the
edge Of the woods. Musketry flashed along our
parapet. Musketry flashed from the vidette posts
and from the main line of the enemy. Artillery
flashed from rebel batteries near and far Nor
tar shells howled along their enormous fiery
course, and burst with red glare that lighted
the heavens, and with loud crash that shook
the ground Rife gun projectiles hissed on
all in its majestic sweep, the petersburg Ex-
press" sped on its way from the far rear to the
devoted city in the far front. Curve crossed
curve of FIRE. Blazing ball passed blazing ball.
Hiss, and howl and crash, and cracke mingled
in the burdened air. Ragged fragments of iron
fell about us Bits Of singing lead flew by or
dropped near us. All combined, the sights and
sounds were somewhat bewildering to men half
awake and wholly unaware of any particular
cau of nfi md oob o4lo.
in wonderment, What does all this mean.
AS we looked and listened, we heard in the
brief intervals of firing, strains of martial music
coming up from the rear, and close attention to
this new sound showed that our various bands
were playing national and patriotic airs, if in
rejoicing over some event of gladness. Later,
we learned that all the firing and all the music
were in celebration Of Sherman's victories and
the fall of Atlanta BY special order a salute
of thirty-sx shotted guns from each battery at
midnight, directly into the city or into the enc
my's works, while the bands at the rear played
Hail Columbia, Star Spangled Banner, and Red
White and Blue Pleasant way of celebrating,
was it not :? OF course, the shrieks of the dying
or the manned and mangled sufferers beyond
the lines, formed no part of the chorus as
heard by us; but even what did greet our ears
was sufficiently novel and Warike, as an ex-
preston of grateful jubilance.
When the salute was finished, there was some
cross-fring of words between the aroused pick
cts along our vdette line. Show you At
lanta 2" called out one of our boys. "You'd
better try to take Petersburg, now" was the
rebel response. "Sherman is after you fellows,
sharp" said Yank. "Won't you send some
more of your coored brudders into another
mine 2" asked Johnny. "Don't you want some
coffee and sugar p inquired our men, taunting-
ly. 'GWouldn't you like to exchange your wormy
hard tack for our johnny cake p replied the foe
This last hit was hard one, and unexpected
Our soldiers have shockingly poor bread just
now. The worms in it are very large and very
lively We did not know before that they had
been seen from the enemy works. There was
more of this verbal sharp-shooting. tbs much
practiced nowadays. While the two lines are
in such proximity sno orders will prevent inter-
course, even among those who are true and 10y
al to their respective SIDES
There is cornfeld between our lines at one
point, a little to the left of Cemetry Hill. The
opposing piokts will creep into that for an oc-