Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 20, Number 1, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 6 September 1898 — Another Jasper Boy Heard From [ARTICLE]

Another Jasper Boy Heard From

Private Hayes, of The First Artillery, at Fort Pickens, Florida. Ft. Pickens, Fla., Aug. 29,1898. As I suppose the people of Jasper County would like to hear from this part of the United States and this portion of the U. S. army, I will endeavor to write a few lines and give a description of the situation and condition of this battery. There are two batteries of heavy Artillery in this camp, battery L. and H. Ist Artillery. There are three of us boys from Jasper County and all belong to battery H. There are about two hundred men in each battery, counting all of the officers. This fort is situated on the extreme western end of Santa Rosa Island. This island is about forty miles long and a half mile wide. It is just off the coast of Florida, near Pensecola. and overlooking the beautiful Gulf of Mexico. . This is a very strong fort, it is supposed to have been built during the Civil War and they are now rebuilding it and mounting new guns. There are now in the fort one fifteen inch gun, two eight inch rapid firing guns, four ten inch disappearing guns, and two twelve inch pivot guns, and several field pieces of smaller sizes. Also there is a large mortar battery here. We have all kinds of drilling and are getting pretty well drilled, we are through drilling on the cannons and now drill on manual of arms and cordage. Some of the boys are very dissatisfied here as we are having very wet weather now, it has rained steady for three days and the water is about three feet deep in the mote. We left our tents and went to the case-mate where it is tolerably dry. The water here was found to be impure, and we have had no water to drink for two days, and are expecting to move to a new camp in Alabama this week. Our rations are very simple and not any too clean, for the sand here looks so much like granulated sugar that I believe it is sometimes used for it, or at least te a great extent. Our chief food is “Hamburger” which is something similar to sausage. “Slum” which is made of beef, potatoes and water; bread, boiled potatoes and coffee. On Sundays we have a little extra such as rice, beans, beef-steak, bologna and butter. ’ We are expecting to be mustered out of the army as soon as Captain Andrews returns from New York. He left here about three months ago. Leut. Martin is acting as commanding officer during his absence. The weather has been tolerably cool for this part of the country since I came down here, the warm- • est day we have had was about 90 degrees. I will close for this time. Private John G. Hayes.