FEBRUARY 26th.—Congress, in secret session, has authorized the declaration of martial law in this city, and at some few other places. This might be well under other circumstances; but it will not be well if the old general in command should be clothed with powers which he has no qualifications to wield advantageously. The facile [...]
Commerce, Mo., February 25, 1862. We start to-morrow morning for ______ with from 25,000 to 40,000 men, who are all piled up here in all kinds of shifts. Our regiment takes the advance. At a venture I’ll bet we get whaled, by vastly superior forces. Goodnight.
FEBRUARY 25th.—And Nashville must fall—although no one seems to anticipate such calamity. We must run the career of disasters allotted us, and await the turning of the tide.
February 25th. Had quite a scare through the bursting of one of our boilers, which made a loud report and a large amount of confusion, but did slight damage.
February 25th.—They have taken at Nashville ¹ more men than we had at Manassas; there was bad handling of troops, we poor women think, or this would not be. Mr. Venable added bitterly, “Giving up our soldiers to the enemy means giving up the cause. We can not replace them.” The up-country men were Union [...]
February 24th.—Gen. Sydney Johnston has evacuated Bowling Green with his ten or twelve thousand men! Where is his mighty army now? It never did exist!
February 24th.– Congress and the newspapers render one desperate, ready to cut one’s own throat. They represent everything in our country as deplorable. Then comes some one back from our gay and gallant army at the front. The spirit of our army keeps us up after all. Letters from the army revive one. They come [...]
FEBRUARY 23d.—At last we have the astounding tidings that Donelson has fallen, and Buckner, and 9000 men, arms, stores, everything are in possession of the enemy! Did the President know it yesterday? Or did the Secretary keep it back till the new government (permanent) was launched into existence? Wherefore? The Southern people cannot be daunted [...]
February 23d.–While Mr. Chesnut was in town I was at the Prestons. John Cochran and some other prisoners had asked to walk over the grounds, visit the Hampton Gardens, and some friends in Columbia. After the dreadful state of the public mind at the escape of one of the prisoners, General Preston was obliged to [...]
FEBRUARY 22d.—Such a day! The heavens weep incessantly. Capitol Square is black with umbrellas; and a shelter has been erected for the President to stand under. I walked up to the monument and heard the Inaugural read by the President. He read it well, and seemed self-poised in the midst of disasters, which he acknowledged [...]
January 28 to February 22, 1862 On the 28th of January, we sailed for Fortress Monroe, and proceeded down the Delaware, amid a quantity of ice, which was daily increasing. The weather had been stormy for several days, and the men working in the cold rains had in many instances contracted severe lung diseases, so [...]
MANASSAS JUNCTION, February 22, 1862. Dear Mother: I did not intend to write before the Captain came back, but as one of our men is going home on a sick furlough I though I would write a few lines to let you know how we are. I expect the Captain is at Richmond at the [...]
February 22d.–What a beautiful day for our Confederate President to be inaugurated! God speed him; God keep him; God save him! John Chesnut’s letter was quite what we needed. In spirit it is all that one could ask. He says, “Our late reverses are acting finely with the army of the Potomac. A few more [...]
FEBRUARY 21st.—All our garrison in Fort Henry, with Gen. Tilghman, surrendered. I think we had only 1500 men there. Guns, ammunition, and stores, all gone. No news from Donelson—and that is bad news. Benjamin says he has no definite information. But prisoners taken say the enemy have been reinforced, and are hurling 80,000 against our [...]
February 21st.–A crowd collected here last night and there was a serenade. I am like Mrs. Nickleby, who never saw a horse coming full speed but she thought the Cheerybles had sent post-haste to take Nicholas into co-partnership. So I got up and dressed, late as it was. I felt sure England had sought our [...]
FEBRUARY 8th to 20th.—Such astounding events have occurred since the 8th instant, such an excitement has prevailed, and so incessant have been my duties, that I have not kept a regular journal. I give a running account of them. Roanoke has fallen before superior numbers, although we had 15,000 idle troops at Norfolk within hearing [...]
COLUMBIA, S. C, February 20, 1862.–Had an appetite for my dainty breakfast. Always breakfast in bed now. But then, my Mercury contained such bad news. That is an appetizing style of matutinal newspaper. Fort Donelson ¹ has fallen, but no men fell with it. It is prisoners for them that we can not spare, or [...]
Headquarters 7th Illinois Cavalry, Cape Girardeau, Mo., February 19, 1862. Aren’t things working right now? Do you notice the accounts of the old 8th, and will you say again that I got out of her ranks at the right time? I knew that the 8th would never make her colonel (God bless him!) to blush, [...]
Cape Girardeau, Mo., February 14, 1862. Sam arrived here to-night and brought me everything I could wish for except my watch. Jem Harper from Company K is home on furlough and we expect him now shortly, also Benton Spencer. If you could manage to send the watch by one of them I would be much [...]
Cape Girardeau, February 9, 1862. I, like a good boy, wrote you a long letter yesterday, and, like a careless fellow, lost it. I told you in it how we “300” of us, left here in the p.m. of last Monday, rode all night and at daylight made a desperate charge into Bloomfield where we [...]
FEBRUARY 7th.—We have vague rumors of fighting at Roanoke. Nothing reliable.
FEBRUARY 6th.—The President is preparing his Inaugural Message for the 22d, when he is to begin his new administration of six years. He is to read it from the Washington Monument in Capitol Square.
FEBRUARY 5th.—I am sorry to hear that Gen. Wise is quite ill. But, on his back, as on his feet, he will direct operations, and the enemy will be punished whenever he comes in reach of him.
FEBRUARY 4th.—Burnside has entered the Sound at Hatteras with his fleet of gun-boats and transports. The work will soon begin.
Headquarters, 3d Battalion, 7th Illinois Cavalry, February 3, 1862. I am pretty sure that we will start on a scout to-morrow that will give us a ride of 150 miles. From the knowledge I have of it believe that we are going to raise the devil before we get back or get raised ourselves. There [...]