Wednesday, 4th—Came back to Ventress’s on Creek. Snowed to-night—awful time.
Monday, February 4, 2013
February 4, Wednesday. Governor E. D. Morgan was yesterday elected Senator in place of Preston King. If the latter was not to be returned, Morgan was probably the best of the competitors. He will make a useful Senator if he can persistently carry out his honest convictions, but I know of no one who can, just at this time, make good the place of King. He has been cheated and deceived. The country sustains a loss in his retirement. He is honest, faithful, unselfish, and earnestly patriotic.
We have the whole world agog with an account of an onset on our fleet before Charleston. The Mercedita is reported to have been surprised and sunk, and other vessels damaged. But the great hullabaloo is over a report that the whole blockading fleet ran away, — the foreign consuls at Charleston went out and could see none of the vessels, —and the blockade is by the Rebels declared raised. Seward called on me in great trepidation with these tidings. Told him most of the stuff was unworthy of a moment’s consideration. Not unlikely the Mercedita may have been surprised and sunk, as she is of light draft and was probably close in. If there had been other vessels captured or sunk, we should have had their names. It looked to me as if the budget was made up for the European market by the foreign consuls, who are in fact Rebel agents, and I asked why their exequaturs were not annulled.
The New York papers have sensation headings over the Charleston news, and the Tribune has a ridiculous article about blockade, more wild, if possible, than Seward.
February 4—This morning, at 4 o’clock, we were waked up by the pleasant sound of long roll. We were ordered to get ready to march. It is very cold, snow nine inches deep. We laid in Goldsboro until noon, expecting to get cars to take us away, but were then told we would have to march to Kinston. We took up our line of march at 3 in the evening and halted at dark. It is truly awful. The snow is very deep and as cold as thunder. We marched eight miles without resting. We then fixed our bed in the snow and stole fodder for a bed and rails to make fire. We took snow, put it in our kettles, and made coffee. When I say coffee, I mean Confederate coffee—parched corn—that is our coffee. Ate our corn bread and bacon and retired to our couches and slept as good if not better than Abe Lincoln.
Mrs. Lyon’s Diary
Fort Henry, Tenn., Feb. 4—A dispatch from Colonel Lowe yesterday called the Thirteenth to Fort Donelson. We had a night of great excitement. All the men went out of camp except the sick, and all that could stand up on their feet followed. We heard that the Thirteenth was fighting about six miles out. We could hear the cannon boom once in a while. After dark, and all night, the couriers were running. They brought news that some of the officers were killed. I had to bear this alone, for I could not tell the wives, and thought it might not be true; and if it was I did not want to be the one to tell them. We packed up everything, and were ready to start at a moment’s notice. We were to take the boat and go down the river a few miles. After midnight the ladies all got together in our tent and talked. They seemed to depend upon me. I felt myself a very weak stick—I knew of these reports, and felt so nervous.
Tuesday, 4th. Let Thede go to town on my mare. Read “Tom Brown.” Became quite interested. There seems so much reality in all the sports and tricks. In the evening went to tactic school at Co. K’s quarters. Like it well.
Wednesday, 4th—Rain all day, and the whole country is being flooded over. General Grant has sent five or six expeditions along the river to find some way to move the army on to higher ground in the rear of Vicksburg, and also to solve the problem of getting our fleet and gunboats past the rebels’ batteries with out running the risk of having them destroyed. I wrote a letter to John D. Moore, Inland, Iowa.
Washington Wednesday. Feb’y 4th 1863
It has been the coldest day of the Season with a sharp cutting wind. The “Grand Concert” came off this evening. I had tickets rather more than I sold but did not see or hear much of the Concert. I think the audience (which was a large one) were not very well satisfied and rather felt “sold.” I was spending most of the evening more pleasantly with Genl Havelock at his room on F Street by invitation. The Genl is an open hearted honest old Soldier. The President invited him over here from England to take charge of the Cavalry as it arrived from the country and fit it for Service. He thinks he has not been very handsomely treated by the Sec’y of War as his Views and plans have not met with much favor at the War office. He holds a Cols Commission, was Genl in the British Army. We sat and talked and drank sherry near two hours. He is a fine specimen of the English Gentleman and brother of the celebrated Genl Havelock of India fame. My Stove “goes off” tonight and the wood melts away in it like wax as it is a very cold night for this City. Mercury is 10 above zero. No war news of any importance, everything must be frozen up. The Potomac was frozen over this morning. There are indications in congress that Mr Chases Banking system will be adopted. Gold droped yesterday five per cent, but is up again today to 159 under the influence of some “Secesh” news to the effect that some of our Blockading Squadron at Charlston had been destroyed by two rebel “iron Clads.” We will wait and see.
Buntyn Station, Wednesday, Feb. 4. Cold and clear as a bell. Exercised our horses for two hours under Sergeant Runyan. A. Goodman with two others of the 2nd Wisconsin Cavalry made us a visit, they being encamped within the limits of the town. Turned warm in the afternoon, and turned into snow which fell heavy till dark.
Mr. Forbes says: “ I was strolling along the camp to-day in search of adventure, when I was attracted by a little knot of soldiers at a short distance, and a horse on the ground as though kicking for its life. The horse turned out to be a mule undergoing the process of shoeing. It was a large, strong, raw-boned animal, with a keen, intelligent eye, which would shame many human countenances. One of his fore legs was fastened up with a strap; he having been thus pushed on his side, a rope is then fastened to the remaining foreleg, which is stretched out and held by a crowd of assistants. The poor animal, finding itself powerless, keeps up a continual wail or moaning, much like that of a child in pain. The shoes are fitted and then fastened on, the mule is released and suffered to rise, very much dejected with the rough and ungentlemanly treatment it has received. Mules are being rapidly adopted as draught animals – they are capable of enduring more fatigue, and altogether are far hardier than the horse. They are now used as pack-mules for our cavalry.”
Published in the March 14, 1863, issue of Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper.
FEBRUARY 4TH—One of the enemy’s iron-clad gunboats has got past our batteries at Vicksburg. Gem Pemberton says it was struck “three times.” But it is through.
The enemy’s presses reiterate the assertion that Gen. Longstreet is in Tennessee with his corps; and that the detachments from Gen. Lee’s army amount to 75,000 men. This is evidently for the purpose to encourage Hooker’s army to cross the Rappahannock. These presses must know that Gen. Lee’s whole army was less than 75,000 men; that Longstreet is still with him, and that only one small brigade has been sent away to North Carolina. Well, let them come! They will be annihilated. But is it not diabolical in the New York Post, Times, etc. to urge their own people on to certain destruction? If Hooker had 300,000, he could not now come to Richmond!
We have extremely cold weather now; and, probably, the rivers in Virginia will be frozen over to-night.
