Southern Historical Society Papers, Volume 10.
Reverend J. William Jones, Ed.

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[507] clouds, and dried the wet clothes, but still our situation was deplorable. Not a mouthful did we have, some few had a ration left which they would swallow secretly; the haversacks were all turned wrong side out, and the very dust of the crackers were scraped out and devoured.

That day some thieving Reb stole my oil cloth that I left drying on the bushes, and though I hunted clean through the brigade, I could not find it; I had no blanket, and that night I was in a woeful fix, for the ground was still damp, the nights cool; as a makeshift, I begged a newspaper — a copy of the New York World--and laid on that, and as it kept the moistened earth from my person it answered quite well, and for two weeks I had nothing to lie on but this newspaper; I would fold it up with great care every morning, but one night it rained, and there was nothing left of it. Anyway I have always had a tender feeling for the New York World ever since.

On the morning of the 3rd we took up the line of march with the head of the column striking northward, passing by Frying Pan Church — which name is suggestive of some hot gospels, and a place where doubtless the doctrine of total damnation of man was preached.

Still no signs of our commissary wagons, and not a mouthful of food did we have all day.

The 4th found our column halted and green corn served out.

The 5th and 6th we marched towards Leesburg, passing through on the 7th, and crossed the Potomac near Shepherdstown.

On the 8th we struck up the refrain of “Maryland, my Maryland!” and camped in an apple orchard. We were hungry, for six days not a morsel of bread or meat had gone in our stomachs — and our menu consisted of apples and corn. We toasted, we burned, we stewed, we boiled, we roasted these two together, and singly, until there was not a man whose form had not caved in, and who had not a bad attack of diarrhea. Our under-clothes were foul and hanging in strips, our socks worn out, and half of the men were bare-footed, many were lame and were sent to the rear; others, of sterner stuff, hobbled along and managed to keep up, while gangs from every company went off in the surrounding country looking for food, and did not rejoin their commands until weeks after. Many became ill from exposure and starvation, and were left on the road. The ambulances were full, and the whole route was marked with a sick, lame, limping lot, that straggled to the farm-houses that lined the way, and who, in all cases, succored and cared for them.

But we fared better in the rich fields of Maryland.

In an hour after the passage of the Potomac the command continued