war then in progress, and of his adventures in hunting and fishing, which he described as the best in the world.  About two miles from the bar, we emerged into the lagoon, a broad expanse of shallow water that lies parallel with the coast, separated from it by a narrow strip of sand, backed by a continuous series of islands and promontories, covered with a dense growth of mangrove and saw-palmetto.  Pulling across this lagoon, in about three more miles we approached the lights of Fort Pierce.  Reaching a small wharf, we landed, and were met by the officers of the post, Lieutenants George Taylor and Edward J. Steptoe, and Assistant-Surgeon James Simons.  Taking the mail-bag, we walked up a steep sand-bluff on which the fort was situated, and across the parade-ground to the officers’ quarters.  These were six or seven log-houses, thatched with palmetto-leaves, built on high posts, with a porch in front, facing the water.  The men’s quarters were also of logs forming the two sides of a rectangle, open toward the water; the intervals and flanks were closed with log stockades.  I was assigned to one of these rooms, and at once began service with my company, A, then commanded by Lieutenant Taylor.

The season was hardly yet come for active operations against the Indians, so that the officers were naturally attracted to Ashlock, who was the best fisherman I ever saw.  He soon initiated us into the mysteries of shark-spearing, trolling for red-fish, and taking the sheep’s-head and mullet.  These abounded so that we could at any time catch an unlimited quantity at pleasure.  The companies also owned nets for catching green turtles.  These nets had meshes about a foot square, were set across channels in the lagoon, the ends secured to stakes driven into the mad, the lower line sunk with lead or stone weights and the upper line floated with cork.  We usually visited these nets twice a day, and found from one to six green turtles entangled in the meshes.  Disengaging them, they were carried to pens, made with stakes stuck in the mud, where they were fed with mangrove-leaves, and our cooks had at all times an ample supply of the best of green turtles.  They were so cheap and common that the soldiers regarded it as an imposition when compelled to eat green turtle steaks, instead of poor Florida beef, or the usual barrelled mess-pork.  I do not recall in my whole experience a spot on earth where fish, oysters, and green turtles so abound as at Fort Pierce, Florida.

In November, Major Childs arrived with Lieutenant Van Vliet and a detachment of recruits to fill our two companies, and preparations were at once begun for active operations in the field.  At that time the Indians in the Peninsula of Florida were scattered, and the war consisted in hunting up and securing the small fragments, to be sent to join the others of their tribe of Seminoles already established in the Indian Territory west of Arkansas.  Our expeditions were mostly made in boats in the lagoons extending