Camp Dennison, Aug 10 1862
Dear Mother, 
	I ought to have written to 
you sooner but have had so much on my hands
that it was impossible for me to do so.
I returned from Kentucky last Tuesday 
safe & sound and found about sixty about 
as rough ungovernable fellows in our 
quarters as even I saw together. They had been 
collected from Toledo Cleveland Columbus 
and other cities, with no idea of military 
rules or discipline, and were under the command 
of a man who was temporarily appointed by 
the Captain, as sergeant, and who allowed 
them to do as they pleased, to obey or disobey 
his orders, just as they chose. They would 
be present or absent at roll call, to tell 
him to his face that they would not stand 
guard when detailed in short they they the 
barraks in which they were quartered had 
acquired the name of the  lunatic asylum from 
the cursing swearing & fighting heard there at 
all times of the day or night. In my absence 
an a sergeants appointment had been forwarded 
to me by Cap. Ward to Camp Dennison


Which on my arrival was handed me by the 
[L.M.?]. Consequently, there being no commissioned 
officers present, I took command & and a sweet 
time I have had of it.  I commenced by reading 
the articles of war to them and hinting that any 
violation of them would be followed by double 
duty & a second by confinement in the guard 
house on bread and water. I presume they thought 
I could not be in earnest for at roll call 
the morning following I had the reviler beat 
for eight minutes in the barrack room and 
then there were fourteen who did not get up to 
roll call. My detail for guard that morning 
was ten privates & one corporal. I did not have to 
detail as I had plenty, spotted for being absent 
at roll call so I put them on and kept them 
on forty eight hours. ([24?] is the regulation) they
made a good deal of noise about it & said they 
would see whether they would do double duty 
the morning after they came off. Three of the[m?] 
were three of the same ones absent again. I took 
a file of boys who had been in Kentucky 
with me and put them in the guard house & put 
two Kentucky boys guard over them with loaded 
enfield rifles & fixed bayonets with orders to let 
no one come within ten yards of the guard house. 
There was a good deal of swearing in the 
barracks about it but it ended in swearing

& even that was not done in my presence. 
They knew that that the Kentucks as they call 
us would stand by me & uphold me in any 
course I might pursue, But I must stop talking 
about this & occupy my room & time in writing 
something else. I found a letter from you when 
I returned, also a watch for which I am thankful. 
I presume some letters were forwarded to me 
from you while I was in K by the [L. M. ] as 
said he had sent a package of  [?] some from 
the Capt. Some from the Lieut & some from 
neither. I suppose the reason that I did not 
receive them was that for two weeks we were cut 
off from communication with the north by Morgan  
& other Guerillas, who had burnt the R R bridges 
& had [?] of the pikes. We start at 
5 O’clock tomorrow morning for Cincinnati to 
attend the funeral of Gen McCook a brother
to our Col. I had private information 
about half an hour since that we should march 
from there to Kentucky, after filling the Reg 
from skeleton Rigts & being mustered in 
to avenge the death of the gallant Gen
our Col is a shrewd sharp man, a verry 
strict disciplinarian & a thorough soldier.
expect some hot work amongst the guerillas 
he is a fighting man. From your son, H.B.J.