In my letter of June 8, I give an account of our camp and surroundings at Murfreesboro:—
"When we arrived here the general directed me to camp the regiment in the fortress, a large and very strong series of earthworks and rifle-pits, built by Rosecrans's army after the battle of Stone River. The enclosures are large, open spaces, without a particle of shade or grass, entirely exposed to the sun. The troops already in the fortress have erected tolerably comfortable barracks, but there was no material out of which to make any more; and as our men had nothing but shelter tents, I was afraid if put into such a camp the exposure would bring on sickness. So I rode all round the vicinity of the town and found several very good camping-places, and induced the general to let us camp out of the fortress, in such suitable place as I might select. I found a very fine camp in a beautiful grove just at the edge of the town, and adjoining a very fine spring of water, which pleases officers and men very much. Two companies are stationed below on the railroad, and we shall have eight companies here, making a very respectable battalion.
"How long we will remain here is very uncertain, but we shall be very well satisfied to stay here during the remainder of our one hundred days. Since we went into camp I have been putting the regiment through in drill and duties of soldiers, keeping officers and men quite busy. Besides these drills, Lieutenant-Colonel Walker drills the officers an hour, and I have two recitations of officers an hour each in Tactics and Regulations. In the evenings after supper I give them a lecture on the Army Regulations, organization, and military customs, which is quite as profitable to me as to them, as it requires considerable study and posting on my part. We had our first battalion drill to-day and it proved quite interesting. At the present rate of daily duties in one month I shall have the regiment in a condition to compare favorably with the veteran regiments in drill at least. I want to bring them home well drilled and thoroughly instructed in the duties of the soldier. I have the reputation of being a strict disciplinarian, but I think the officers and the intelligent men appreciate it. The exercises not only make them better soldiers, but the active service makes them more healthy than to lie idle in camp.
"Our camping-ground is on the lawn in front of one of the finest houses in the State. The surroundings were before the ravages of war very beautiful. The house was the headquarters of the rebel General Bragg, before he fell back after the battle of Stone River. The owner was formerly quite wealthy, the possessor of a large plantation here and one in Mississippi. He is now keeping a store in town for the support of his family, reaping the reward of the rebellion of himself and relatives."
In my letter of June 13 I give another view of camp life:—
"Yesterday was our first real Sabbath in camp, and we spent it very pleasantly. We had the Sunday morning inspection at eight o'clock, beginning it with a short religious exercise by the chaplain. The inspection would have been very creditable to old soldiers. The men had their arms and accouterments and clothing in fine order and looked well. These Sunday morning inspections have a fine effect, it causes the men to clean up themselves and their arms, and makes them feel it is a real Sabbath, which they are likely to forget in camp.
"After inspection we were quite liberal in allowing the men more passes for the day, going out in squads in charge of officers. Some went to church, but many went to stroll over the battlefield of Stone River, which is about two miles from town. Major Hynes and I went in town to church, and heard Dr. Gazeton preach. He has just returned from the South. The Doctor is (or was) a New School Presbyterian of some reputation in Tennessee before the rebellion. He is a bitter rebel, but, of course, did not give any manifestation of it in his services. There was a strong New School Church here before the war, but they were all rebels; the church building almost ruined by the armies, and its members very much scattered.
"At five we had preaching by our chaplain, a Baptist brother from Spencer County, a good man but a very poor preacher, an old farmer and ignorant; is worse than the chaplains of my other two regiments. I shall go out of the war, I fear, with a poor opinion of chaplains from personal experience. Although our chaplain's sermon was a poor affair, the men were attentive and respectful. Altogether the day was very creditably passed by the One Hundred and Thirty-sixth Indiana. But how much more pleasantly and profitably it would have been spent by me at home, with my own family and in our own church."
In a letter of June 15 I refer to the character of the regiment:—