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The Civil War Letters of William Beynon Phillips

    

Fort Lincoln,
[Washington,] D. C.
June 25, 1863

Dear Annie,

I received your very kind letter last week & as usual it found me, that is, very happy to hear from you. I always await with anxiety for your letters & I must give you credit for being punctual in answering your correspondence, which is not the case with some I know of in Hyde Park. They are up there just now either to lazy or indifferent to drop a line in reply to a fellow, who once had an idea they were friends; but I shall console myself with “When friends fall off & prove unkind, E'en let them go & never mind. Be Cheerful.” But dear Annie if you fall off, why it’s a song that somebody else must sing for me, as I could (not) come down  to that indifference as to you, (I missed the “not,” but I stuck her in, double quick). Pretty fellow I would look without that “not.”

I am happy to be able to tell you that my health is good & I hope that you also are enjoying good health. If we have health, we have the first & greatest cause of happiness. Why didn’t you stay longer in Hyde Park? It was too bad [you had] to go back almost before you went there. I am afraid you are too much of a “stick at home.” You better believe if I come up there, I’ll get you out of Carbondale & suburbs and make you believe there’s some other place besides Carbondale. I hope to get a furlough as soon as we shall send those Rebels back to Virginia again.

I must now tell you that I don’t soldier anymore. I was made clerk of the 1st Brigade, Defenses North of the Potomac, some 3 weeks ago & it’s a good berth I can assure you.  I like it first rate, & the both of us like each other. There is five of us in the office, the Colonel, the Adjutant, Sergeant Major, myself & another named Sergeant Humphrey. “Bully fellows.” The Colonel though is an old sour kraut of the Regular Army, a man over middle age & as sharp as a needle. He is acting Brigadier of this brigade.

Well, dear Annie, I pray you don’t get nervous if the Rebels come up to Carbondale. They are “marching along” up for Pennsylvania but their object is this city & if they attack from the Maryland side, we will have the honor of repelling them. There is great preparations here for them & we do hope they will come. They’ll get something in the shape of a shell shot; that a repetition of it will be “Respectfully Declined.” They say that 100,000 is menacing Washington. We heard the roar of battle here Sunday [21st] & Monday [22nd] all day.  The cannonading was incessant. That was the first sound of rebel cannon I heard yet. But it looks now as if we were to get better acquainted still. They shall have an introduction too if they wish it.

We caught a Rebel Sergeant of Stuart ’s Cavalry yesterday within our lines, believed to be a spy. He was a fine looking young man, very clean & tidy. I pitied him – but yet that man no doubt had none on us, or else he would not be within our lines. You can look out for some stirring news that will end this war, about the next month. This war is going to be closed up this summer I believe.  It looks so to me anyhow. Now, my dear, I hope you will give me an answer soon, & be assured of my sincerest love for your dear self.

From Your Affectionate, as ever, -- William [Phillips]

Batty “M” 2nd Artillery P. V.
Fort Lincoln, D.C.
As usual.

Footnotes

Sergeant James Humphrey entered the service as a Corporal in Company D of the 2nd Heavy Artillery, 112th Pennsylvania Volunteers. When his service terminated, he was a First Lieutenant.

The Colonel was Augustus A. Gibson, who commanded the 112th Pennsylvania Volunteers. As one of the most experienced officers, he was made Acting Brigadier over the various regiments that were added to the defenses north of the Potomac in the fall of 1862 and spring of 1863. He had a reputation for strict camp discipline.
 
The roar of battle was the sound of field artillery exchanged between Alfred Pleasanton's and J. E. B. Stuart's cavalry in a skirmish that took place at Upperville on June 21st. (See drawing of skirmish appearing in Harper's Weekly in banner above and also the history of the 1st Artillery, Eleventh Vermont Volunteers)    

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