Charles City intelligencer. [volume] (Charles City, Floyd County, Iowa) 1864-1866, 1865-09-21

AGTrAToR.
Correspondence OF the Charles City Inteligencer
Letter From Rev. ]. G. Witted.
CAMP 58rH U. S. CoL'D INrry., NEAR
brookhaven, Miss, Sept. ID, 1865.
FRIEND HILpRErH A few days af
ter writing my letter of July 3Oth, six
companies of our regiment received or
ders to march to Brookhaven without
delay, and the next morning at three
o'clock the order was obeyed. The
other four companies were to remain
in Washington, Miss, until farther or
ders. Two of the six companies, after
a short rest at Brookhaven, were to
proceed to Monticello, twenty-five
miles farther. On learning that the
above order had been received by Lieu
tenant Colonel Gelson, l called at
Headquarters and asked him whether
| should stay at Washington, or 60
with him and the six companies to
Brookhaven He told me to act my
own pleasure, but thought l had bet
ter go with him. So l determined to
march, or ride rather, (for keep a
horse) to Brookhaven, seventy miles
from Washington.
For about four weeks no rain of any
consequence had fallen but on FRI
day night-two nights before leaving
we had few heavy showers, which
we hoped had extended some distance
toward the place of our destination
and laid the dust on the road we were
to travel but in this we were griev-
ously disappointed. After marching
about ten or twelve miles we came to
the dust which became deeper and
deeper the farther we went till it near
ly reached the ankles of the men before
we reached Brookhaven.
Most of the streams and brooks along
the road were dried up and the cis-
terms on the few plantations we pass
ed were so low that we could get no
water from the white planters-indeed
we never asked them for any, deem
ing it useless to do so. Though our
march was only seventy miles, and oc-
cupied less than three days and half,
it was anything but pleasant or agree
able. Twenty miles day on a good
road, in cool and pleasant weather
with plenty of water, is little more
than clild's play to healthy man
but twenty miles a day-though you
halt, as we did, two hours before and
rest till two hours after the sun has
crossed the meridian-under cloudless
sky, the thermometer at 95o, nearly
ankle deep in dust, and raised into a
dense cloud by three or four hundred
bare feet, three or four hundred feet
in shoes and couple of hundred boots,
besides the hoofs of twenty-five or thir-
ty horses and mules, with but little wa
ter to wash the dust down the throat,
is no joke take my word for that.
Ibelieve l every man kept his place
in the ranks on the first day, but on
the second and third day some of the
poor fellows began to fall out and
were picked up and placed in the two
ambulances. All the officers, except
the Lieut.. Colonel, Adjutant, Quarter
Master, Surgeon and myself had to
foot it," but, white men though they
be, they bore the fatigue, heat, dust,
&c. better than the privates who are
all colored men. On the second day
Adjutant Steven and l offered to "ride
and tie +" with the officers, and some of
them accepted the offer and rode few
miles.
The only village worth naming be-
tween Washington and this place is
Fayette. This village is twenty
miles from Washington. When we
came within half q mile of it, we un-
furled our banners and the the band
struck up aoith aoiU," and the dam
sells of the village, in their gayest
dresses, with fe,c of the male sex !"
and great number of children of both
sexes, and of every shade of color ex-
cept pure white, came forth to meet
us. Many of our boys had been their
fellow servants, few were brothers,
and two or three were husbands to
these women q. E., had lived with
them as husbands) and fathers to
these children, but preferred being SOL
diers in the U. S. army to living slaves
on the plantations and, at the risk of
being shot down by their pursuing
masters, or torn to pieces by the
catch dog" and hounds which were
frequently put on their track, fled to
Natchez, after our troops took posses
sion of that city, and became soldiers
of the United States. Now, after an alb
sence of from one to two years, as they
approach their former homes. with the
Freeman's firm and steady step, under
floating banners and the inspiring
strains of martial music, they are met
by wives, children and fathers, moth
ers and friends, at various points on
the road to Brookhaven, but more es.
pecially at Fayette. Col. Gelson, Ad'
jutant Steven and myself rode few
| rods ahead Of the regiment, followed