the part of a very good Christian. The men were tired, but
they were marched and countermarched, and halted and started, and placed
and unplaced, until it was fair to conclude that someone was drunk. At
last the person directing the column got his bearings and we proceeded.
We were plodding along a road in which there was on the right hand side
a ditch about two feet deep. Having been up and awake all of the night
before, I was fearfully sleepy and hardly able to drag myself along. All
at once I went into this ditch, and struck full length. In its bottom
there was about two inches of mud, thick enough to encase me. By the
time I had pawed out, I could not, if laid out, have been distinguished
from a mud sill; but I was too near gone to speak bad words, and so went
on in silence, weighing five pounds more than before my descent. Before
long we halted and bivouaced for the night. The next morning, the 27th,
our regiment started about 10 o'clock, and was thrown out as an advance
guard to our baggage train. Along the line of this march there were
numerous wild black cherry trees. They were loaded with ripe fruit, and
we ate our fill. I think we covered 25 miles this day, and went into
camp near Frederick City. We were over this same ground less than a year
before, and everything looked as it then did.

Sunday, the 28th, we moved up, and camped just before crossing the
Monocacy. We spent the day very comfortably, and went to bed by rolling
up in our blankets, when an order came to "fall in." This we did of
course, but wished it had been otherwise. We marched about two miles,
and were posted to guard a ford of the Monocacy. We had with us a
section of artillery.

Monday, the 29th, we made a march of over thirty-two miles. We halted
for the night some miles beyond Uniontown, at about 10 p. m. I know I
was so completely tired out, that, as soon as arms were stacked, I
stretched out without unrolling my blankets, and I knew nothing till the
next morning, when I was awakened by the sun shining into my eyes. I
was so stiff that it took some time to get on to my legs, but, after
moving about for a while, I was all right.

Tuesday, the 30th, we remained in camp, many straggled in the march of
the day before, and during this day most of them came up. Wednesday,
July 1st, we started out, none of us knowing for where. We heard no
sound of battle that day. No doubt the lay of the land shut off the
thunder of the guns. A rumor soon bec