May 5, 1861 – Sunday

May 5, 1861 – Sunday.

George W. Sears,

Tioga Rifles, [Co. E, 13^th Pa. Res.]

to: Wellsboro Agitator.

Camp Curtin –

“On Tuesday last we arrived in Harrisburg about midnight, and early in the morning we marched to camp, and assigned quarters. There were seven companies in camp, and as the shades of evening dropped like a dark, gray veil over the lively scene, we began to realize for the first time that this was camp life; meaning if it meant anything, war. The weather was fine, and after night had fairly set in, the camp became light with watch fires, and not a little interesting. There were companies from nearly every section of the State; Dutch companies, Irish companies, Welsh, and last, but not the least, the wildcat companies from the northern tier.

“The Dutch companies were by far the most numerous. Short, sturdy fellows for the most part, with the Teuton strongly written in their faces, and some of them, I thought, a little homesick. At night they gather about the fires and sing the songs of Faderland, and right well they can sing. A company of them are, or were encamped within a few rods of the Tioga Rifles, and I stepped over to their fires to scrape acquaintance; not a hard thing to do, that last, for they were about to be sent off, and their hearts were full.

“One of them cottoned to me kindly, and made a clean breast of it. He had ‘a vife’ to his home, ‘zuch a goot voman,’ and two little babies, ‘nice vat leetle vellers,’ one of dem was a gal, ‘unt two sister, so handsome, not like de yankee gals.’ Oh yes, he hoped to see himself home again when de war was done! Had I ‘got a vife and some baby, and a moder?’ Home questions, these, at this time, and if my mug quivered a little, I trust it is no shame. As for the communicative Dutchman, he blubbered outright and then sung harder than before. He went away with his regiment the next day to Westchester, I think, and I went down to see them off – saw them get aboard the cattle cars, packed like cattle, heard the order not to leave the cars without permission, and away they went. They will most likely see no fighting.

“And as for us, shall we? I think candidly, yes – that is if there be fighting in store. I think so for several reasons. First, because Col. Kane (brother of the Arctic Doctor) is a fighting man, who wants his ‘wildcat regiment’ to fight, just that, no more, no less. Second, his position and influence will be likely to place his regiment where he wants it, in the van; and lastly, the regiment will be composed of material, and go into service with a prestige well calculated to give it an advanced position.

“The companies from Tioga County are well, with some slight exceptions, attributable to change of diet and general mode of life; although the weather has been most bitter. What do you think of the heavy fall of snow at Harrisburg on the 2d and 3d of May, Anno Domini, 1861? Can you beat it at home?”

Addenda:

“Mud, sleet, snow, and a general concatenation of disagreeables prevailing, tending to produce a benign state of feeling. You, oh Hugh of the Agitator, know how we came on from W[ellsboro], also how we followed it up by coming on to Camp Curtin. But perhaps you don’t know all the influences brought to bear in bringing about a move, the result of which is that some seven companies from the northern tier are sleeping on damp straw and awaiting – the deuce knows what; I don’t.

“We have been patriotic, we have – we have gone in, some, and have been let in – slightually. The object of keeping us here is to form a regiment, and a regiment can’t be formed without a stiff substratum of rank and file; having the rank and file to order, it is the easiest thing in life to raise a most elegant display of epaulettes for the wearing of which the somebodies will get a tall list of salaries, while the nobodies will toddle along on foot with what speed they may at $11 per month. Hence our position at present, a hard enough one for men who have given up lucrative positions and jumped into the ranks from the one motive of patriotism, only to find themselves the mudsills on which selfishness is to build itself a mansion.

“We are kept on from day to day by one specious excuse or another, and have as many conflicting reports in camp as would fill a column in the Herald. First we were to be joined by the Bradford companies and form a regiment; Bradford would not do it. Then we were to come on to Harrisburg and tail on to a regiment from below. This might have been done, but where in that case would have been our aspirants to regimental honors? No whar! it could not be thought of; beside the regiment from below were mostly rather of the sauerkraut order, and carried the most unconscionable muskets, to say nothing of their ignorance of any better weapon: no, it couldn’t be thought of.

“Next came the news of that sharp little fire-eater, Col. Kane, being on his way to Harrisburg with 300 riflemen – real riflemen – from Potter and McKean Counties. This turned out to be true, and they are now here. The fiery little Colonel was met by a telegram at Sunbury ordering him to send back all but 154 men. He halted and sent back word, ‘the whole or none,’ and they are all here. Among them are some old acquaintances of mine, and when they filed past, it did a hunter’s heart good to see the bucktails they all wore in their hats. The financing now is to join companies and form a rifle regiment, to be armed with the self priming minie rifle and saber bayonet. Not a bad notion if we are to go at all. I have an idea that such a regiment might form the apex of an entering wedge in marching through a hostile State, with as deadly effect, even as the celebrated New York 7^th.

“In behalf of Company A, 2d Brigade, 13^th division, I wish to thank the ladies of Wellsboro for the very handsome flag which lost no interest from the fact that every woman in the village had a hand in making it, as we are assured. It shall see what we shall see, and when we see it, I will try to tell it, change and chance permitting.

“Yours, &c., Nessmuck”

[WA: 5-8-1861].