entertainment in the parlor of the inn.

Pipes, cold ham, a keg of beer, and a demijohn of whiskey comprised the
attractions of the night. The guests were three Captains, two Adjutants,
two Majors, a Colonel, four Correspondents, several Lieutenants, and a
signal officer. There was some jesting, and much laughing, considerable
story-telling, and (toward the small hours) a great deal of singing.
Much heroism was evolved; all the guests were devoted to death and their
country; and there was one person who took off his coat to fight an
imaginary something, but changed his mind, and dropped asleep directly.
At length, a gallant Captain, to demonstrate his warlike propensities,
fired a pistol through the front window; and somebody blowing out the
candles, the whole party retired to rest upon the floor. In this
delightful way my third campaign commenced, and next evening I set off
for the advance.

CHAPTER XXII.

ARMY MORALS.

Some of General McDowell's aides had invited me to pass a night with
them at Warrenton Springs. Fully equipped, I joined Captain Ball, of
Cincinnati, and we rode southward, over a hard, picturesque turnpike,
under a clear moonlight. The distance was seven miles, and a part of
this route was enlivened by the fires, halloos, and the music of camps.
Volunteers are fond of serenading their officers; and this particular
evening was the occasion of much merry-making, since a majority of the
brass bands were to be mustered out of the service to-morrow. We could
hear the roll of drums from imperceptible localities, and the sharp
winding of bugles broke upon the silence like the trumpet of the
Archangel. Stalwart shapes of horsemen galloped past us, and their hoofs
made monotone behind, till the cadence died so gradually away that we
did not know when the sound ceased and when the silence began. The
streams had a talk to themselves, as they strolled away into the meadow,
and an owl or two challenged us, calling up a corporal hawk. This latter
fellow bantered and blustered, and finally we fell into an ambush of
wild pigs, which charged across the road and plunged into the woods.
There were despatch stations at intervals, where horses stood saddled,
and the couriers waited for hoof-beats, to be ready to ride fleetly
toward head-quarters. Anon, we saw wizard lights, as of Arctic skies,
where remote camps built conflagration; and trudging wearily down the
stony road, poor ragged, flying negroes, with th