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Camp Near Falmouth, VA
Dec. 22, 1862
My Dear William,
You must please excuse me for some delay in answering your kind & most welcome letter. I have been sick for tree weeks so that it was all I could do to scrawl a little in pencil to my wife. The poor old 14th has passed through another awful times, a great deal worse than Antietam: more discouraging & disastrous in every way for Antietam was a victory after a sort & Fredricksburg was an awful, foolish, wicked blunder & defeat. The 14th, French's whole division, all the troops indeed behaved with utmost valor & endurance, & scarce a man in our whole crowd flinched, but there wasn't a ghost of a chance from the first. We couldn't see an enemy, had no artillery to support us, had a mile to march over smooth open ground before getting into position to do anything. Exposed all the way to a whole semicircle of terrific batteries & then a most terrific musketry fire from rifle pits which wholly protected the enemy. No valor or numbers could accomplish anything under such circumstances. They let us take Fredericksburg easy just to lead us on into such a scrape. Gen. French is suspended from his command because he said it was nothing but butchery to send troops into such a place & refused to take his division in. But old "Winkeye" was right that time anyway. You have heard doubtless from the boys of the killed & wounded & missing from Madison. We have heard nothing new from the wounded within a day or two- Capt. Gibbons, who was shot in the thigh, is dead leaving a wife &n large family of children poor. Lieut. (?) died this morning of his wounds. Lieut. Stanley is not expected to live anytime and so they go. Capt. Tubbs (who was very slightly bruised by a rail or some dirt that a shell threw upon him has gone home on a furlough of thirty days. Dr. Rockwell has resigned I have heard to take effect on the first of January but I doubt whether he gets away or not. Capt. Coit has not returned yet. Lieut. Sherman is quite sick & I suppose would be glad to resign & get home if he could. Lieut. Seymour who as promoted to be Capt. of Co. G. has resigned as I understand at least he I sick & and has never taken command so the Co. is left as badly off as ever for officers. Capt. Merrit has got his resignation through at last & gone home. My 2nd Lieut. Hawley was wounded in the foot & has a furlough so I am alone in my Co. too. There are no officers really fit for duty. Capt. Davis is in command of the regiment. I am today I hope a little better. Don't know whether I can ever get well in this confounded hole or not. Can't get anything to eat but salt pork & hardtack which is not just the best bit for a man with bloody diarrhea running him down. I long for some apples to roast or some jellies or some delicacies. Have one or two boxes on the road but can't get them. However I as determined not to die if I can help it & will be with the boys to the last. now especially that providence has so deprived them of their officers. I rejoice with you in your being home think it was undoubtedly the saving of your life. I didn't tell you so, but I was on the point of thinking it my duty once that I thought you were about to die. I thank God and hope you do daily, my dear William that he brought you safely through. I want you to be a religious man, my dear fellow, not a man of (?) of long, sanctimonious face, but a man whose influence shall be on the side of your Kind Heavenly Father & of every good cause in the world. I want you to work with me for good if I ever return to Madison. You did a man's work & wore your self respect & honor in all your course in the army. I trust in great confidence that you will be evermore a noble man every where. My love to Anna. Write me again & often. I don't care how many such shells burst in my camp I assure you
Your sincere Friend,
Samuel Fiske
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