As they were growing up, I was frequently importuned by my
grandchildren to tell them of my experiences in the Civil War for the
Union; and now as the great-grandchildren are coming on, their parents
are asking that these experiences be put in some permanent form, as
their children may never have the opportunity to hear the narrative
from me. I naturally shrink from giving general publicity to my
personal experiences, especially as the field has been already so fully
covered by comrades in arms; but I have consented to prepare such a
narrative on condition that its circulation be confined to the family
circles.
In preparing the narrative I have not thought it wise to trust to
my memory of events which happened more than half a century ago;
and fortunately I have at hand my many letters written to my wife,
giving in detail my experiences during my entire service in the army,
and while they are in some respects too intimate and confidential
for general publicity, they have the merit of freedom from studied
preparation and constitute an account of events as they occurred.
In this preparation I have indulged the hope that through it our
children of this and coming generations may be inspired by a greater
devotion to the American Union, for which their forefathers hazarded
their lives and endured the hardships of war.