2020-07 2 sessions
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 7/23/2020
War-date Union officer's battle letter, 6pp. folio, written by 1st Lt. Harrison Hume, 11th Maine Vols., "Camp Seven Pines," [Va.], June 2, 1862, to his parents, reading, in small part: "Thanks almighty God I am safe. Oh, such a battle. Ah, little did I know what a battle was before last Saturday. The hail storm of bullets, the bursting of shells, the shrieks of the dying & the wounded, the cheer after excitement…it cannot be imagined…men were falling all about me…Casey's Division is composed of three Brigades. We are in the First Brigade…the 2nd & 3rd Brigades were new regiments…Casey's division was put in the front…it is part and parcel of…miserable generalship which has been displayed throughout all this campaign…our men were weak from starvation…we had not but four meals of meat for a week…the whole division was worked to death on picket…building a bridge, digging trenches, falling trees etc…for a few days before the battle we dug trenches…& made defensive works…instead of encamping…behind these works…we were placed in front of them & fought in front of them & had to retreat through the very obstructions we had placed for the rebels…we have been so reduced by sickness…we could not have showed but 250 muskets…Major Campbell asked me to form the regiment…said I…'there is nothing to form.' Well, said he 'from what there is.' I then formed the three remaining companies…got out 93 men. The battle was something like Pittsburg Landing surprise. The first intuition we had…was some shells thrown in the direction of our camp…before the picket firing commenced…we took no notice of it…but in ten minutes after the picket firing commenced, the rebels were right upon us…a battery stationed…in the middle of the field…we were ordered to support…marched through a piece of bushes…bullets…falling about us. Our men falling. It exhausted us very much…going through this…near the…battery our Brigadier rode up…our little squad gave him three cheers…he led us on under fire (he calls us his little Yankee squad). We rushed up into the left of the 104 P. V….the woods were full of rebels, firing…into us in all directions. We lay down (many had fallen going across the field)…our men kept firing & we kept telling them to fire low…the balls were flying like hail. Men were being shot on all sides o me. Lieut. J. W. West…was shot & soon died…our little band had no idea of retreating…the thought came into my head as I was lying there under that canopy of fire, 'Oh God, for reinforcements. Our generals have put us into a murderous position'…behind us…regiments were standing & looking on but…we had no thought of retreating…all at once…we saw the whole right of our line running…we knew it was no use for us to stand…had we stood there twenty minutes longer we should have all died…& retreated, all the time the balls falling like hail being under a cross fire. Many of our men were wounded in retreating…I never lost my sense of danger…I expected every moment would be my last…we fell back to our camp but the rebels advanced…we had to leave there…we rallied what men we could behind the breastworks & then fell back a mile & a half…I thought we never should rally 25 men…as we could hear nothing from the 7 companies out on picket…but all of them came in…except one company…we went up with 93 men & left more than half of them on the field. Our whole loss…is 8 killed, 41 wounded & 30 missing…as for myself, I was perfectly cool all the time. I never lost my sense of danger, nor my presence of mind…my services were undoubtedly appreciated for the next day I was promoted from 2nd Lieut. to…first Lieut. & Adjutant of the regiment…it was nothing but a sense of duty that made me go into it…I stopped at the station where they were sending the wounded…to the steamboats, carload after carload were sent off…ah, it was dreadful. Porr West, we all feel bad about him for he was much respected…Lieuts Rice & Brown, fine fellows, were shot through the legs…in fact, most of the wounds were in the lower part of the body. John Morrill was slightly wounded…it is a wonder any of us escaped. Casey's Division was almost destroyed…the division has suffered from thirteen thousand to seven thousand effective men…the rebels threw a tremendous force on this portion of the line. Brigade after brigade…are driven back now but not much further than they were before…I don't know how this contest will end. I hope in complete triumph of the Union forces…Harrison. Direct to Adjutant H. Hume…". Negligible damp stains, else VG and very readable.
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