In the evening of the 28th a brigade marched out to Atchafayala. They found no enemy and returned to camp that night. On the 31st a large detail and a train of wagons went after lumber with which to build winter quarters.
On the 1st of November all of our brigade except the Twenty-fourth Indiana, was sent out on an expedition. They ran up the river near the mouth of White river. On the 7th our regiment, the Twenty-fourth Indiana, embarked oh the steamer “Ohio Belle,” and ran up the river fifteen miles to where the gunboat “Ozark” was stationed. We got off and marched six miles out through the country. This is the most broken country which we were in while in Louisiana.
We found plenty of women on this trip, but no men. Almost all of the women claimed to be widows. One old Irish lady gave one of the boys a good cursing. She said that he was not a genteel Irishman or he would not be caught in the d—— yankee army. She also said that her husband was a genteel man and was captain of a company in the Second Louisiana regiment.
Our officers gave orders for the boys to not take off more geese and chickens than they could carry. While the old lady was swearing around the boys soon had her geese, turkeys and chickens divided up between themselves. The fellow that could run the fastest got the most.
We started back to the boat loaded down with poultry. It rained on the way back, making our march very disagreeable. We captured two prisoners on the return to the boat. We marched at will and were badly scattered. We got to the boat about sunset. It was a sight to be remembered to look back and see our straggling boys coming down the long slope to the river, loaded down with flopping geese and squalling chickens.
We got on the boat and landed at the bend at ten o’clock that night. On the 23d two hundred rebel cavalrymen made a dash on our picket line, half a mile from camp. The colored troops were stationed at this place. The rebels killed a white lieutenant and six negroes and left. They also made a dash on the lower part of our picket line. Here they killed two of our white soldiers and then made their escape to the rear.
November 27th we had grand review by General Ulman. Nothing more of importance, except camp duty and drill, occurred until December 11th, 1864, when the captain of gunboat number fifty-three of our Mosquito Fleet, while the boat was near Hog’s Point, went on shore and was killed by guerrillas.
We were immediately called upon to fit up an army to go on an expedition, and scour and destroy all of the country for twenty miles around that vicinity. The troops that were fitted up were the Twenty-fourth and Sixty-seventh Indiana, three companies of colored troops and two companies of cavalry, accompanied by four gunboats. We were under the command of Colonel W. T. Spicely.
We went twenty-five miles to Hog’s Point, where the cavalry and colored troops got off and marched down Old river. We went on down one mile and turned into the mouth of Old river. We went up twenty miles, near to the place where our cavalry was scouring the country. We landed and sent large details on shore to confiscate and burn all of the property in that vicinity.
At four o’clock our entire force got off and marched six miles out through the country, in the direction of the Cutoff. We set fire to all of the buildings and captured several horses, mules, and cattle. Here we went into camp and foraging parties were sent out in all directions. This was a very rich country and was settled mostly by the French. The boats were soon loaded to the guard with horses, hogs, cattle, sugar, molasses, and poultry of every description. We were learning them a lesson for their sneaking guerrilla warfare. Taking the life of one of our captains had cost them thousands of dollars.