J. William Jones, Christ in the camp, or religion in Lee's army

‘There is a good degree of religious interest felt in Beckham's Battalion of Artillery, of which I am a member. We have no chaplain, but the brethren of the different denominations keep up a prayer-meeting and Sabbath-school. There have been some twenty-five who have professed conversion in the battalion this fall.’

The revival in Hays's Brigade was one of very great power and happiest results, and originated under circumstances of peculiar interest.

A youth of the Ninth Louisiana Regiment named Bledsoe professed conversion in hospital at Charlottesville, under the instructions of Post Chaplain J. C. Hiden, and returned to his brigade; with the burning zeal of the young convert determined to do something for the spiritual good of his comrades.

It is no harm to say that Hays' Brigade, though as gallant fellows as ever kept step to the music of ‘Dixie,’ were noted for their irreligion. They had had no chaplains except two Romish priests, who, no doubt, did their duty as they understood it, but were, of course, entirely out of sympathy with evangelical religion as we understand it, and up to this period there had been few, if any, efforts made for the conversion of these brave fellows to the simple faith of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Bledsoe hunted diligently through the camp for men who would unite with him in a prayer-meeting, and at last found five others who would agree to do so.

These six young soldiers, afraid to begin their meeting in the camp lest they should be interrupted by the jibes and jeers of wicked comrades, went out into a clover field beyond the hearing of their comrades, and began to pray for God's blessing upon themselves and the brigade. The meeting grew nightly in numbers and interest until in about a week Bledsoe came to tell me that a number of men had professed conversion, and they wanted me to go up and take charge of the meeting. I found some 100 in attendance, fifteen professing conversion, and a number of inquirers