Camp White, February 7, 1864.
Dear Uncle: — The capture of General Scammon and two of his staff, will postpone my coming a few days, only a few days, I hope. I must be cautious what I say, but to you I can write that his capture is the greatest joke of the war. It was sheer carelessness, bad luck, and accident. It took a good many chances, all lost, to bring it about. Everybody laughs when he is alone, and very intimate friends laugh in concert when together. General Scammon’s great point was his caution. He bored us all terribly with his extreme vigilance. The greatest military crime in his eyes was a surprise. Here he is caught in the greenest and most inexcusable way.
We shall come, I think, in a week or so via Cleveland.
Sincerely yours,
R. B. Hayes.
S. Birchard.
