detailed to drag the pontoons and guns to the
river. All day long, working and tugging with the mud above their knees;
here a hundred men pulling at a pontoon boat, there a party prying a
cannon out of the mire with long levers, and still other parties laying
strips of corduroy road. The Vermonters passed a disagreeable day.

General Burnside was not idle all this while. Riding from one point to
another, now personally superintending the placing of a battery in
position on the bank of the river, now encouraging the men who lugged at
the boats and guns, and now selecting places to cut new roads, he passed
the night and the day in fatiguing and anxious labor. As he rode through
the camp of our division in the afternoon, with only two staff officers,
himself and his horse completely covered with mud, the rim of his hat
turned down to shed the rain, his face careworn with this unexpected
disarrangement of his plans, we could but think that the soldier on
foot, arm oppressed with the weight of knapsack, haversack and gun, bore
an easy load compared with that of the commander of the army, who now
saw departing his hopes of redeeming the prestige he had lost at
Fredericksburgh.

Men were detailed from each of the regiments of the corps to return to
Falmouth, a distance of five miles, to bring on their backs two days'
rations; those brought by the men being nearly exhausted. But during the
night it was determined to abandon the attempt to cross the river. The
enemy, by this time fully aware of our intention, was prepared for us,
and a crossing could only be made at great sacrifice, perhaps with
defeat. So at sunrise in the morning we were on the road back to our old
camp; this time for permanent winter quarters. All along the road lay a
multitude of dead horses and mules, which had fallen in the tremendous
but unavailing efforts of the day before. Artillery and wagons still
stuck fast in the mud, and cannoniers and teamsters lifted and tugged
with rails and with poles to raise the piece or the wagon from the mire.

The mud was deep, the day was gloomy and the men were discouraged. They
straggled badly. Regiments were not to be distinguished. The whole
column became an unorganized crowd, pressing toward the old camps. Tired
and discouraged as were the men, they kept up their lively sallies and
jokes, as though all was smooth work. Toward evening the troops of our
corps arrived on their old ground, now to be our home until the