sh fire built under your head; of black darkness, in which you
fall down, down, down, down--faster, faster, faster!--till crash! you
bump against something, and split wide open with a thundering roar,
which gradually expands into the sound of a bugle as you awake to
renewed misery, and are, as Mr. Sawin says, 'once more routed out of bed
by that derned reveille.'

Presently there comes an order for us to march to Billsburg, and there
join the army of the Musconetcong, commanded by that dauntless hero,
Major-General Robert Balkinsop. Of course we march in a hurry, as much
as possible by night, 'without baggage,' as the orders say--meaning with
only _two_ wagons to a company. The other battalions of D.C. Vols. stay
behind and loaf back to Washington, there to be mislaid by Major-General
Blankhed, who is so preoccupied with issuing and affixing his sign
manual to passes for milk, eggs, and secessionists, to cross and recross
Long Bridge, that the war must wait for him or go ahead without him. We
go on to glory, as we suppose (deluded _three_-months!), and march
excitedly, with all our legs, fearing we shall be too late. As we near
Billsburg, we can hear the since familiar _tick--tack_, _pip--pop--pop_
of a rattling skirmish, and the _vroom--vroom_ of volley firing.
Anxiously, eagerly--no need for the colonel to cry 'Step out
lively!'--we press forward, with all the ardor of recruits. Recruits!
Hadn't we been a month in service, and been through one great invasion
already? There they are! See the smoke? Where? On top of that hill!
Halt! Our battalion deploys as skirmishers with a useless cheer. We
close up. We load with ball cartridge, and most of us, on our individual
responsibility, fix bayonets; it looks so determined--nothing like the
cold steel, we think. Slowly, resolutely, we advance. An aid comes
galloping back. We crowd round him. The colonel looks disgustedly
handsome. What does he say? Pshaw! It's only the 284th Pennsylvania,
part of General Balkinsop's body guard, discharging muskets after rain.
Only three soldiers, a negro, a couple of mules, and an old woman, have
been hurt so far, and 'the boys' will be through in an hour or so more!

Well, as we were sent for in a hurry, of course we waited a week. How
General Balkinsop man[oe]uvred the great army of the Musconetcong; what
fatherly, nay, grandmotherly care he took to keep us out of danger; how
cautiously he spread, his nets for the enemy, and how rapidly he