on the 9th, General Lyon taking about three thousand men, while
Colonel Sigel took less than two thousand. Exceptions have frequently
been made to this mode of attack. Had it been successful, I presume no
one would have found it faulty. It is an easy matter to criticise the
plans of others, after their result is known.

The columns moved by different roads to obtain the desired positions.
The march was as silent as possible. The only sounds were the rumbling
of wheels and the occasional clank of arms. No one was heavily
encumbered, as we expected to return to Springfield before the
following night. Midnight found us in a hay-field, four miles from the
Rebel camp. There we rested till morning.

On the previous night I had been almost without sleep, and therefore
took speedy advantage of the halt. Two journeys over the Plains,
a little trip into New Mexico, and some excursions among the Rocky
Mountains, had taught me certain rules of campaign life. I rarely
moved without my blankets and rubber "poncho," and with a haversack
more or less well filled. On this occasion I was prepared for sleeping
in the open air.

One bivouac is much like another. When one is weary, a blanket on the
ground is just as comfortable as a bed of down under a slated roof. If
accustomed to lie under lace curtains, a tree or a bush will make an
excellent substitute. "Tired nature's sweet restorer" comes quickly to
an exhausted frame. Realities of the past, expectations of the future,
hopes, sorrows, wishes, regrets--all are banished as we sink into
sweet repose.

At dawn we were in motion. At daylight the smoke hanging over the