Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1896-06-05

OiCCNtiy OnC vi tllt vi illS
are perhaps the sole remains of his CORE
spondence.)
WEST PoirT, Aug. II, 1850.
My Dear Blair-Iour letter Of the 9i
inst. has been received, and assure yoii
that it e with Il great deal of pleasure thai
l read it, showing us it did that, although
absent, am not forgotten by my old
friend. 1 only regret tlirt have not more
such friends. And although everything
with me has taken complete revolution,
yet l will look back upon those days, for
example, when we were pulling flax, aus
the happest ofmy life.
suppose you would like to know what
SIC are doing ut West Point that shotld
keep me here so long. l have been here
now II little over three yeats and have yet
almost two to stay. But the hardest is
over now. When | entered in '57, rs II
Plebe, for the first year lad very hard
time Of it, hot only having to study very
hard, but also having to pass through n
Plcbeship, which is the most debasing
thing you could imiagine. Being in camp
ut that time, we had three drills day,
which is harder work tliln pulling flax. or
course at night we would he very tireI
and feel like sleeping very soundly but
no. the older cadets would steal out 81
their tents and Catch hold of d,ir blankets,
and before we would get awake; we woti!d
be lying about forty feet from our tent-, in
the con pany grounds. Well it was hard,
but we could not help it; for wien we had
rubbed our eyes AMI looked around, there
w;,s no one 10 be seen, and more than
likely the same thing would lie performed
Il h.df dozen liunes II night, more especially
if the rlebe was !, little flst.
Then the next year we were tie cfd Ca
diets, and there was new PlcBe class of
course we did as old Cadets do, airl with
our second encnimpncnt we commenced
enjoying West Point life. At the end oi
the second year We had our furloUgh for
nearly three months ,';ind Of course we hail
Il very pleasant time visiting our friends
after lcng absent 80 long. But our third
year we had our hard sttIdyin. to do, Bart;
let's Mechanics being one of the principal
stu lies and IL considered the hardest book
in the course.
{ At tliu end of that ycar..we came to the
present encanIpncnt, which have enjoy
cd very much. We came into camp on
the 10Th dag Of June, and we 20 out again
ON the 18th of August Ia commence study
my ng,un.
During the crca,npncli, it j. something
like II watering place. There are great
many visitors here every year, regular
summer resort. Besides our drills and
military performances, We have to enter
tain visitors; three hors week; We dance
ell sorts of dances square, round, straight
and fancy, and in fact enjoy ourselves
amazingly.
To-day there was party of about twen-
ty or thirty persoi.s who came up from
Brooklyn, near New York, on Il pleasure
excursion, and in walking about looking mt
the public buildings, sorne dozen or so of
them came INTO our Dancing Hall, where
there WAS small class practicing, of which
| was one. We invited them in and
found them inclined to shake the light
fantastic toe. We put them through
danced four fancy dances and one qua
drille with them, and you may believe
was wei with Precipitation when we stop
ped, but the dinner drum beat and we
had to leave them quite abruptly, in order
to attend the roll call | iii int inquire
the names of any OF the Young ladies with
whom I.dAnce,l,. nor did they know mine.
Our hop room is crowded every night
with some very beautiful ladies. but they
have not the feeling and goodness of our
back girls.
And for all of this we get $50 per mo.
and have to live upon 1t. The regulations
are such that we have to wear exactly the
same clothes, live nj tine same. table, etc,
and for that reason the cadets are all on
an equality They are not allowed to re-
ceive money from home if they could, and
you could not teltone from another unless
you were intimately acquainted with him.
These little details may not interest you,
but then youremcmber that there is no
one here that YOU know or care about. 1t
is raining like blazes now, and having no
convenience for writing in my tent, Shall
have to stop. Give my kind regards to
your family. FELL me in your next every
thing that is going on, and especially where
your post ofIice * situated.
Your friend ever,
Cadet w. II. BROWNE.
WEST PoINT, Feb. 10, 1861.
Dear Blair received your third letter
a few days since, and this is only my Sec
ond. You will say that l have at least n
slight cause for my seeming neglect when
explain that your second letter was received
| just before my Jan. examination came on,