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Regiment: 2nd Michigan Infantry
Battles Mentioned: Yorktown, Virginia
Historical Figures: George B. McClellan
Camp Scott near Yorktown
19 April 1862
Dear Brother Add
It has been such
a long time since I wrote to you that you
supposed the mail was stopped
but it has not been I am wholly
to blame. I suppose I might
make an excuse if I wanted to
tell a lie but I could not with
out for I have had plenty of
opportunities but have let them
all pass thinking I would write
the next day and so it has run
along until now I thought that
if I waited any longer you
might think that I was sick
or something of that kind
and that I suppose would worry
Mother but she must not be worried
on my account I am all right so far
and will try and keep so. This after-
noon the rebels sent a sixty four (64)
pound shell over at us which struck
about thirty (30) rods from our
camp and exploded in under ground
it tore a hole four feet wide
and twelve feet long and three
feet deep where it struck I think
if a ball that size should hit
a person in the eye it would put
it out or at least make it sore.
A sixty four (64) pounder shell
is eighteen inches long and eight
inches through. Gen McClellan
says that is their best gun they
threw one the same
size at the reserve picket the
other day which did not burst
and Gen. McClellan got off of his
horse and lifted it and advised
us boys to dodge all such balls
he talked with us for quite a while
he dont put on much style around here
Well we are here in front of York
Town not knowing what day or night
we will have to fight but there is
one thing sure when it does come
it will be a tough one. The other night
we were called up three time on
account of the rebels who charged
on one of our batteries which had
been firing shell into one of
their forts all day they charged
twice but were repulsed each time
with out much of a loss on our
side but a heavy loss on theirs I
guess they will not try it over again
right off for they did not catch us
naping as they expected to. There is
hardly a night but what we are
called up once or twice and I intend
to pay them up for it if I ever
get a chance The other afternoon they
had quite a fight we were on picket
at the time and there was a continued
roar of musketry and cannon for
about two hours which resulted
in our men driving the rebels out
out of two pickets for to which
are unoccupied now neither our men
nor the rebels daring to take
posession. It is a raining hard
to night and it sounds so plain
on my little tent that I can hardly
write. Our regiment are to go
on picket tomorrow night
at one place the picket line
is so close that we can
hear the rebel pickets talk
but can not see each other
for the underbrush which
is so thick and there is a big
swamp between the two lines
of pickets so they cant get at
each other but once in a
while we get sight at them
and then we pop them them
over of course and they do the
same when they see us. Good night
