id
by way of incouragement that at the same time I'd be sarving God and my
adopted country. And here I am, under another safe Commander. Four
months and no fight,--nearly up to the ould First, that sarved three
months without sight of a Rebel, barrin' he was a prisoner, or in
citizen dress, like some we have left behind us."

"Boys, Terence tells the truth about Patterson's movements," said the
tall Lieutenant. "The day before we left we were ordered to be ready to
move in the morning, with three days' cooked rations. We were told that
our Regiment was assigned a place in the advance, and it was
semi-officially rumored that a flank attack would be made upon
Winchester. At this day the whole affair appears ridiculous, as Johnston
had at that very time left Winchester, leaving only a trifling show of
force, and he never, at his best, had a force equal to Patterson's. Half
of his troops were the raw country militia. But we under-officers were
none the wiser. It was rumored that Bill McMullen's Rangers had found
charts that informed the General of the extent and strength of the Rebel
works and muster-rolls, that showed his force to be over 50,000. That
those works had no existence to the extent alleged, and that the
muster-rolls were false, are now well known. But that night it was all
dead earnest with us. Rations were cooked and the most thorough
preparations made for the expected work of the morrow. Sunrise saw the
old First in line, ready for the move. Eight o'clock came; no move,
Nine--Ten, and yet no move. Arms had been stacked, and the men lounged
lazily about the stacks. Eagle eyes scanned the surrounding country to
ascertain what other Brigades were doing. At length troops were seen in
motion, but the head of the column was turned towards the Ferry. 'What
does this mean?' was the inquiry that hastily ran from man to man; and
still they marched towards the Ferry. By and by an aide-de-camp directed
our Brigade to fall into the column, and we then discovered that the
whole army was in line of march for the Ferry, with a formidable
rear-guard to protect it from an enemy then triumphing at Bull Run.

"Well, Patterson's inertness, to speak of it tenderly, cost the country
much blood, millions of money, and a record of disgrace; but it gave a
Regiment of Massachusetts Yankees opportunity to whittle up for their
home cabinets of curiosities a large pile of walnut timber which had
formed John Brown's scaffold, and to make