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BEING THE NARRATIVE OF BATTERY A OF THE 101st FIELD ARTILLERY
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fed, a fire started in the rolling kitchen, and hot coffee, hard-tack and canned willie were shortly available. With an eye rather to visibility than comfort, the steep slope, which happened to be well protected by small trees, was chosen as a sleeping place for the men. There seemed to be some question as to whether it was preferable to pitch the pup-tents broadside to the slope, in which case an unguarded, sleepy turn would not only down one's own tent, but would have the effect of a landslide, demolishing all below it; or in line with the slope, which would certainly mean a night spent in slipping out from under one's tent, feet first and retrieving the lost ground by painful twists and squirms. The latter method won the popular favor. Some of the more careful, dug water-trenches around their tents and even went so far as to try to level off the floor; others were too tired to bother.
Of course the use of lights was forbidden; blankets were unrolled in the dark, and to make matters worse, it started to rain. The water poured down the hillside and through the tents; the men who had not dug water trenches had to turn out now and do their best to avert complete disaster. On the whole, the night was not a success.
The next day was spent in drying wet blankets and clothing, grooming horses, and seeing the town, which proved very much of a "dud". It was soon discovered that the horses had eaten the caisson boxes during the night. These boxes had been built out of green wood at the start of the trip, and were used to carry extra equipment on top of the caisson chests. The boxes were repaired with difficulty and care taken
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