From Mrs. Lyon’s Diary
Fort Henry, Dec. 16, 1862, eight o’clock.—Captain Ruger and Lieut. Bowerman came to the boat to meet their wives, but William had not the least intimation of my coming and stayed snugly in his tent until we were nearly here, when Captain Hewitt ran in and asked him if he knew that his wife had come on the boat. William said: “No, and if you have deceived me you shall be court-martialed.” It was a complete surprise. He could not get over it all the evening. After we had gone to bed, a party came and serenaded us. The music was very sweet. They had a flute, violin and guitar. After serenading us, they went to Colonel Chapman’s and to Captain Ruger’s and Bowerman’s. They have a double log-house for both families. I can’t say that I like sleeping out of doors. My first experience was rather unpleasant. The tent post was one of the bed posts. The wind blew quite hard that night, and we rocked about as you would in a boat in a gale, but we have remedied that. It seems so noisy, living in a tent, and so exposed — only a thin cloth between you and the outside world. I think I should prefer a log cabin; but William enjoys this so much, he wonders that I should not. We have a little stove and are quite comfortable.
