don't you want to hear old Abe's
message?' He then commenced reading, but had proceeded only a short way,
before 'ping, ping' came the rifle balls around the stump; down jumped
Indiana, convinced that reading even a President's message amidst a
shower of bullets isn't so agreeable, after all.

We staid at Laurel Hill about two weeks. The enemy had been completely
routed from that part of Virginia, and our term of enlistment having
expired, our thoughts began to turn homeward. That ninety days'
soldiering was the longest three months we ever experienced. It seemed
an age since we had tasted a good meal, and all were anxious to once
more cross the Ohio, and see a civilized country. The long looked-for
order came at last, ''Bout face!' and we were on our homeward march. A
more jovial, ragged, dirty, and hungry set of men, were never mustered
out of service. We reached Camp Chase at Columbus, Ohio, about the last
of July, and as each man delivered up his knapsack and etceteras, he
felt as if a 'great weight' had been taken from his shoulders. We were
once more free men; no one could order us about, tell us where we should
or where we should not go. There was no more touching of hats to upstart
lieutenants and half-witted captains or colonels. We could go where we
liked, and do as we pleased, and not be reported, or sent to the
guard-house. If my memory serves me aright, we _did_ do pretty much as
we pleased; in other words, for two days, 'we made Rome howl!'

What we saw of Western Virginia and its inhabitants left anything but a
favorable impression on our minds. The country is wild and romantic, but
good for little or nothing for farming purposes. The houses are mostly
built of logs, being little more than mere huts, and around each of
these 'mansions' may be seen at least a dozen young 'tow-heads,' who are
brought up in ignorance and filth. The inhabitants are lazy and
ignorant, raising hardly enough to keep starvation from their doors.
School houses are almost unknown; we did not see one in the whole course
of our march; the consequence is, not more than one in ten of the
population can read or write. And the few who 'can just make out to
spell' are worse off than their more ignorant brethren.

'A little learning is a dangerous thing.'

And these people know just enough to make them _dangerous_. They have
read in some of their county newspapers that Vice-President Hamlin is a
negro, and that Lincoln is waging this