July 3 — I renewed my march early this morning, with an entirely empty haversack, and I am ashamed to beg, consequently I walked all day without anything to eat except some spontaneous gatherings, such as fruit, berries, and cherries along the wayside. Between Crigglersville and the Blue Ridge I met a lady going to market with some pears. She gave me a dozen of them and as they were not very large I ate the whole dozen while I was talking to her.
I crossed the Blue Ridge to-day, and just little before sunset I struck the farm lands at its western base in Page County. I was then so hungry that I could just make out to tell the truth as I called at a wayside farmhouse for some bread and milk. The kind lady told me to tarry a while, and she set me a good supper, and that was the first square meal that I had eaten for nine months, and the first time that I sat at a table in fourteen months. I took my position without maneuvering and made the attack without any skirmishing, and it proved to be the most successful, pleasant, and satisfactory engagement that I have been in for many weary days. After supper I walked about half a mile, unrolled my blanket and nestled down in a fence corner to spend my last night of outing in this campaign.
