Hoofs and wheels made a heavy, sticky
sound as they sank in the mud, and were then pulled out again.
"Do you see any signs of daylight, Dick?" asked Pennington.
"Not a sign. I see only a part of our regiment, trees on either side of
us bending before the wind, and rain, and mud, mud everywhere. I'll be
glad when it's over."
"So will I," said Warner. "I wonder what kind of hotels they have in
Jackson. I'd like to have a bath, good room and a big breakfast."
"The Johnnies are holding breakfast for you," said Pennington. "Their
first course is gunpowder, their second bullets, their third shells and
shrapnel, and their fourth bayonets."
"They'll have to serve a lot at every course," said Dick, "because
General Grant is advancing with fifty thousand men, and so many need a
lot of satisfying."
The storm increased in violence. The rain, falling in a deluge, was
driven by a wind like a hurricane. The horses strove to turn their heads
from it, and confusion arose among the cavalry. The infantry mixed in
the mud swore heavily. Staff officers had the utmost difficulty in
keeping the regiments together.
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