Coit, Charles M. (1838-1878) to his family

In my own Little Hut at Carolina city April 4 '62 Dear Mo. Sis. & Bro. Have been at work all day, Charlie & myself getting my tent, our beds &C to rights, the afternoon being devoted on my part to building a writing table & I propose this evening to dedicate said table by writing to the old folks at home. I flatter myself that I have made a pretty good job of it & have even been complimented by an old carpenter for the design finish. I am much pleased with it & intend to take it with me when i move my quarters to assume the duties of Capt. of co. B. I do so hate that title, Capt, think of another Captain Coit. I like Adjt or even major much better. That reminds me - Dr. Storrs came to me a few days ago & said he was going to speak to col. Harland & advise him to present my name to the Governor as a proper subject for a Majority. I told him I would not accept it if it was offered me as I did not think myself fitted for the position while there were several others in the Regt, my superiors in rank, who were capable & moreover that I should be very angry with him if he mentioned it to col. H. so I hope he did not. I think his idea of making me major originated from a desire to keep me a member of the Field & staff rather than having me a captain, & I do believe all the Field & staff regret my leaving their number. This is very grateful to me of course & I write all this because I know it will be pleasing to you. I only hope my Company may have like feelings towards me when this tedious old war is over & I leave them to engage again in the natural warfare of a Yankee - making money. I think I did not state in my last, dated at Newburn that I shall [2] act as Adjt for - several days at least -, until I can make up my back work. I am in no hurry to add the second bar to my shoulder straps & think honestly I would prefer to remain where I am though perhaps I can do more real service as a Captain. Certainly I can if I prove a first rate one but I am very doubtful about that. I have probably drilled as little as any man in the Regt & a Capt must understand that thoroughly, I have been in my tent writing while others drilled then this Co. has never been well disciplined & I am not used to managing men. Capt. Ruth would one day be very severe & the next let the men do just as they had a mind. Capt R. used also to have a spree semi-occasionally which did not improve matters at all. The Co. has grand material in it & can be made one of the best in the Regt, I hope & pray I may prove the man to make it such. Do pray for me for the position is of much more responsibility than my present one & I feel that I shall need help from on high even more than at present. Taps sounded long ago & I must to bed whenever I begin to write at night tap, tap, tap, goes that old drum. Good night. April 5. I must first thing tell you what a scrape I got myself into this afternoon. one investment that I made in Newburn the other day was twenty cents for two cakes of soap that I suppose- ed I could use with salt water & as I have been for some time deprived the privilege of a good wash I today set about an hour for that duty. so I started for Bogue sound this P.M. with a bundle of clean clothes under my arm feeling as grand as possible. well I soon found myself in the water & lathered myself over nicely & then as I supposed I washed off the soap but when came to use my towel, "oh dear what can the matter be" I could hardly use it at all & found to my sorrow that my - nice soap - & salt water did not "jibe". I had a real good [3] laugh over it & then dressed & marched back to my tent to try the virtue of fresh water. Have been interrupted so as I now resume writing the tattoo is beating for half past eight, so the old Taps will probably find me at work again this evening but our mail is just in & I have recd two letters from the dear old home & 1 must answer one or two things. First, in regard to my gallant exploit in planting the stars & stripes on the battery. - It is all gammon. - As we - "charged" - into the battery, or rather just after we entered Genl Parker, who followed us at a short distance, called for our colors. The order was not un derstood so I ran to the color Co., to repeat it. Capt. ward's & as the sergeants came forward with them I believe I walked a few steps with them & told them to go out to the rampart a few yards distant where Genl Parker was waiting for them. So the color sergts raised the flags & the Adjt had no part in it at all. There was very little danger in it anyway for there were very few balls flying around us just then & the battery was entirely evacuated & we were formed inside, so in fact the colors were planted on the battery back of the Regt. They were so planted that our own troops might know that the battery was ours & so that they would come straight forward to support us & not mistake us for rebels & fire upon us. we did not go - straight - over the battery but flanked it, that is went round & came in at the side. I am very sorry such a report has been started, it sounds too much like the - wonderful exploits - of - all - the three months men. Do deny it point blank if you ever hear it again. I should not have thought it strange if the report had been a newspaper for it is just on a par with their lies about charges & hairbreadth escapes. The Tribune reporter makes his head quarters with the 4th RI Regt & so in his account of the battle when he speaks of Genl Parke's Brigade it is all the 4th R.I. & yet we were near there all the time & I do not believe they were more exposed than we were. Col. Harland sheltered his men more [4] than col. Rodman did his so our loss was less than theirs. If the reports of today, that col. Rodman is made a Brid. Genl, prove true I shall say that it is more owing to that reporter's account of the battle &C than anything else for I do not believe he is competent for the position. He is quite illiterate & I dont think particularly practical either. Dont ever repeat what I write about another officer. I must stop again & finish tomorrow. Again Good night. Sunday. 6th - I have been at work all the morning & the remainder of the day I intend to rest & spend a little more as this day should & a little part of this P.M. I will devote to finishing this letter though I should hardly call this Sunday enjoyment if I was home, but I shall be very busy during the week & very likely shall not write again for several days. I am glad the buildings are rented so well - will the Walden pay us if he does not pay his other debts, I have thought much about the rents as the quarter drew near afraid there would be trouble. Do write very fully about all our business matters. our pay masters are here (or rather at Newburn) & I expect we shall soon see a little more cash. I shall send as soon as possible $150. I recd by the mail last night, besides your two letters, one from Mr. John B. ward enclosing blank power of atty. For me to sign so that the bank may draw interest on some us Bonds in my name as Treas. I shall reply as soon as I can find some one to make my acknowledgement before. I was under the impression that the stock had been transferred to him. You ask about Genl Parker. I like him very well but dont thing he is as great a Genl or man as Genl Burnside. I think it very doubtful whether you found rapt upham if you went to Meriden. He is a vermont boy & very likely will spend part of his 60 days furlough there. I would like to know how he is getting along. I can't think of Henry Goddard as much of an officer particularly in a cavalry Regt tho' perhaps that is the place after all for volunteer cavalry are not expected [5] to do much service, certain it is in the voluntary service the main dependence must be on the Infantry & next the Artillery. Cavalry is a grand scare crow & really not much more unless very thoroughly drilled & led by the best officers. Bela is highly favored in getting a commission in the 1st Artillery, it is considered the best volunteer Regt in service. I hope they may "march straight on with McClellan to victory". If Genl MCC. Is not ready to fight I wish he would send us some of his splendid troops & let us do the fighting here & not be obliged to lie still waiting for more troops & so give the rebels time to build batteries each time. If we had had forces enough to keep open communications I suppose we might have marched to Goldsboro with little or no opposition immediately after the Newburn fight. Now they have had time to build heavy fortifications between the two cities. But this little fort down here called Macon is my job & there is no probability of my being in any advance from Newburn at present. while I think of it I want to satisfy you that I am in no more danger as capt. than as Adjt, this is certainly so. I have been in the Coln tent to inquire whether he was a Notary Public: & could receive my acknowledgement & from him get the news that Genl McClellan has landed at Newport news with 120.000 men to attack Richmond I suppose, so perhaps I shall be obliged to take back all I have said about him. If he will only make this a short war I shall be most happy to do so & I will be as loud in his praise as anyone. I cannot but think Genl Mcc. has it more in his power to shorten the war than any other commander. The greatest success be to him, I shall write Mr. ward tomorrow. As my bag does not appear I would like you to send me if an opportunity by C C Johnson a needle & thread case filled, a dressing case filled, those that Sarah H. gave me were such nice ones. I did hate to lose them. I bought [6] a cheap hair brush in Newburn I could not find a good one. I could not buy a tooth brush or comb either. I would like a good whalebone hairbrush like my other, very much but I know they are quite expensive. I should like also two tooth brushes rather soft & a large & a fine comb. I believe all the Norwich boys you know are well. Geo Moore has been a little under the weather but was better the day I saw him at Newburn. He is a mighty poor specimen of a sutler, we dont get the least benefit from him & I should not be supprised if his duties here were ended at any time & the sooner the better I think. A good sutler might make money & would be a great convenience to us. we are very pleasantly encamped on ground sparsely studded with small pines, the country road to Beaufort & Morehead at our back & the rail road in front, & a short distance back from the sound, on good dry ground. Co A is at present on duty across the sound on the Banks. CO's D (capt ward's) & K (capt upham's) are in Morehead & have fine quarters in a good house. co. B. is at Beaufort, the remaining CO's are at this encampment. So you see we are all round. The Fort is plainly visible from all these places. We have been reinforced by the 5th RI Battalion & the 9th N Jersey Regt is in the Newport Barracks, within 9 miles of this place. We are sending cannon &c over to the Banks whether any approaches have been made I am not informed as we are a little off the line of communication & I have not had time to inquire. It is rumor ed that col. H. is to be appointed Acting Brie Genl again, dont know whether true or not. If so the appointment will come from Gen Burnside & that I consider a compliment. sub rosa as usual. I do hate to circulate rumors. My ride from Newburn was very pleasant though the day was oppressively warm. on one part of the road the [7] pine woods were on fire & a grand sight it was. The dense smoke partially obscured the sun and when the fire reached a clump of bushes the crackling reminded me of volleys of musketry at a distance. All the larger size trees are scraped & little wells cut at the bottom of scraped side to receive the sap. (In one of these wells that had been burned out in some former fire, f rested my head. As I lay on the ground the night before the battle of Newburn, I found the very tree on my ride up to the city) this side is at this season covered with the pitch & the well full and when the fire strikes a tree it is almost instantly enveloped in flame all up the tall trunk. I had often seen single trees burning before but now I have seen a forest both sides the road & extending as far as I could see presenting a belt of fire for half a circle, the tall dry grass carries the fire from tree to tree & forms the advance - the skirmishers. In several places I found trees that had burn completely off at the butt, where the well is made, & had fallen across the road. It was indeed a fine sight but the damage done must have been great, one man I understood would be ruined summarily by it. From when I met the fire to where I left its traces was exactly five miles & it was burning furiously as long as I was in sight. All our cooking lately has been by frying but I yesterday put a vetoe on that yesterday and I am not going to have anything cooked in that way again for a long time for it must be very unhealthy in this climate. I am very well indeed & shall strive to keep so. I am not half as much afraid of the fever as the wood ticks, lice, flies, miskitoes & the countless insects so plenty in this region & it is impossible to avoid them. Do get me a good miskito bar. I shall need it much when hot weather comes. How I [8] am spinning out this letter. But I should expect you to read it even if you had not before thanked me for previous long ones for I know how I devour every word in all yours & always find them too short. I enjoy Ellen's very much & wish she would begin a little earlier, - she always begins "George is putting on his coat to go to the office & I can write but word" - & write a good deal longer. we have lost a valuable officer today. 2d Lieut wm H Johnson of Capt upham's Co. lately promoted from orderly sergt. Has been sick ten days with fever brought on by exposure I suppose. Has previously been very strong & well. I am so rejoiced that we are at last settled again & have at least a canvas roof over us. Johnson was I think from one of the first families in Meriden & was a fine fellow. Merriam, my orderly, is a relation & is going home with the body. Merriam is unwell himself or rather has been. I cant but regret his leaving at this time as I need him so much in writing up my books before vacating the Adj'ts office. I shall detail one or two hands but they will of course be green. You do not mention uncle George in your last two do please write fully about him. I think he must be better or you would have written. Do remember me to him & to Aunt Mary & to Steve & Ed Clapp & everybody. Good bye dear mother sister & brother Affectionately Chas Do deny the report Charlie wrote home. I have given him a good blowing up for it, he says some of Co. D. men told him. I am sorry my paper is so dirty. I did not notice it in the evening.