. History of the Eighteenth New Hampshire Volunteers, 1864-5 . ilding road. December 4. Sheridans troops going against Peters-burg. For winter life at City Point, in its camp on a high and dryplateau about two miles west of the James and half a milesouth of the Appomattox, the battalion built log huts of thepine which was abundant in the vicinity. The skill in wood-craft, which was common among the men of the Eighteenth,here came into good use, and there was warm rivalry betweenthe companies. The pine forests close at hand were drawnupon for the materials for the walls. The soil furnished thec
. History of the Eighteenth New Hampshire Volunteers, 1864-5 . ilding road. December 4. Sheridans troops going against Peters-burg. For winter life at City Point, in its camp on a high and dryplateau about two miles west of the James and half a milesouth of the Appomattox, the battalion built log huts of thepine which was abundant in the vicinity. The skill in wood-craft, which was common among the men of the Eighteenth,here came into good use, and there was warm rivalry betweenthe companies. The pine forests close at hand were drawnupon for the materials for the walls. The soil furnished theclay, and the brigade quartermaster, axes, shovels, picks, andwheelbarrows. Logs of the straight-grained native pine,ten to twelve feet long, were cut longitudinally in half;smoothed with the axe on the split side, the halves were setup on end in trenches two feet deep, with the bark, or aroughly hewn surface, on the exterior. Projecting severalfeet out of the ground the walls thus made gave sufficienthead room. The joints were thoroughly plastered with City Point 39 The pieces of canvas, six feet square, one of which servedeach man as his portion of a shelter tent, were laid overa ridge pole for a roof. Doors were made of boards split fromthe timber and hewn with the axe. Fitting an aperture at oneend or side of the wall a fireplace was laid up of bricks whenthey were found, or of stones thickly coated with clay, toppedwith a chimney of sticks cob-house fashion, coated withclay on the inner surface, and generally prolonged with anempty and headless beef or pork barrel. Each hut — eightfeet by twelve, or twelve feet by sixteen — was for four ormore men. The ambitious band house was sixteen feet bytwenty-four. The officers huts were rather larger than themens, and each served for three or less. Bunks were builtwhichraised the beds above the ground a foot or two, and some-times a bunk above made the double-decker. Tables, chairsand cupboards were also made, and sometime
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