CONCLUSION.
Reading edition
"You can have ten descriptions of a battle, or plans of a campaign, sooner than one glimpse at the unthought of details of a soldier's life."
The history of Co. F is finished, and is far from satisfactory to the writer. Originally undertaken for the purpose of supplying the Hon. G. G. Benedict, State Military Historian, with material for such a brief record as he could afford room for in his history of the Vermont troops in the war of the rebellion, it has grown far beyond what was intended at the outset, and far beyond what would be proper for him to publish in such a work as he is charged with. It should have been undertaken by some other person than myself; by some one more intimately and longer acquainted with the company in the field: by some one whose personal recollection of the detail of its daily doings is more exact than mine can possibly be; for the history of so small a portion of a great army as a company is, should be a personal history of the men who composed it. The record of a company is mainly made up of the every day scenes and every day gossip about its company kitchen and its company street. With these matters the writer does not profess to be, or to have been, familiar.
The work has, therefore, become more of a description of campaigns and of battles, and more a history of the regiment to which it was attached, I fear, than of the company. Such as it is, however, its preparation has been a labor of love, and it is published with the earnest hope that it may serve at least to keep warm in the hearts of the survivors the memories of those who marched with them in 1861, and whose graves mark every battle field whereon the Army of the Potomac fought.
Wm. Y. W. R.
Transcriber's Note
Some inconsistent hyphenation and spelling in the original document has been preserved.
All instances of Rapahannock changed to Rappahannock
All instances of Spottsylvania changed to Spotsylvania
Typographical errors corrected in the text:
Page 3 lands changed to land's
Page 4 taget changed to target
Page 9 augered changed to augured
Page 10 oganized changed to organized
Page 13 or changed to on
Page 15 blocade changed to blockade
Page 20 leggins changed to leggings
Page 21 complmentary changed to complimentary
Page 31 navagable changed to navigable
Page 33 suplemented changed to supplemented
Page 34 relieveing changed to relieving
Page 40 consumate changed to consummate
Page 45 intesely changed to intensely
Page 53 canonade changed to cannonade
Page 57 hesitatation changed to hesitation
Page 59 Seargent changed to Sergeant
Page 78 removed word "in" before "converted"
Page 81 at changed to an
Page 101 Hasting changed to Hastings
Page 106 Fredricksburgh changed to Fredericksburgh
Page 107 usul changed to usual
Page 107 occurence changed to ccurrence
Page 120 randon changed to random
Page 121 irresistable changed to irresistible
Page 142 SPOTTSYLVANIA changed to SPOTSYLVANIA
Page 144 amry changed to army
Page 148 Hayes changed to Hays
Page 149 necessarially changed to necessarily
Page 155 levie changed to levy
Page 162 veterns changed to veterans
Page 164 handfull changed to handful
Page 167 tweny changed to twenty
Page 171 Totopotomy changed to Totopotomy
Page 172 indispensible changed to indispensable
Page 174 Totopotamy changed to Totopotomy
Page 175 arogant changed to arrogant
Page 176 renpered changed to rendered
Page 182 SEIGE changed to SIEGE
Page 190 Jeausalem changed to Jerusalem
Page 202 Wooley changed to Woolly