Headquarters Mass. 56th Vols.,
Near Petersburg, Va., July 2, 1864.
Dear Hannah, — . . . I understand that Captain Hollis is engaged. He was engaged to a Miss French of some place, Exeter, I think, and just before the war the engagement was broken off. Rumor says that was the cause of Captain H.’s going to the war. When wounded and going through Washington, he met Miss F. and the engagement was immediately renewed. Romantic, is n’t it? Captain H. is a very nice fellow indeed, and I am sorry that you were not introduced to him at Class Day. . . .
I am very sorry indeed about Major Putnam’s death. He was one of my best and bravest officers. So was Lieutenant Priest. Both are a severe loss to the regiment.
We lose a man or two every day from the enemy’s sharpshooters. Two nights ago, when everything was comparatively quiet, I heard two fearful shrieks from one of my men. He was lying with two other men under a shelter tent. A stray bullet entered the tent, and wounded him in the abdomen so that he died in a few hours. He was the centre one of the three, and was acting as first sergeant of F. Co., making the seventh first sergeant in that company that has been killed or wounded in this campaign. I tell you it made me shudder to hear these two shrieks breaking the stillness of the night. Wounded men seldom cry out. I have had men knocked over close by me time and again, but have never had anything affect me the way this did.
We shall probably remain here almost all the summer, from what I can see. The weather is fearful, hotter than anything I have ever experienced. Occasionally we get a slight shower or a cool breeze, and then I feel as if I were in Paradise. . . .
Night before last there was a fire in Petersburg, probably set by our shells. I could plainly hear the fire-bells ringing. The fire burned all night. . . .
