Portions of the 23rd have been in combat and Bishop relates his negative interpretation of events for the campaign.
Lafourche Crossing La.
June 3rd 1863
Dearest Sarah
This is all the paper that I have tonight and the sutler is shut up so I will use up this for tonight. I received 2 letters yesterday from you dated the 14th & 11th of May. The letters were welcome as coming from you especially as they told me that you were all well, tomorrow I expect to receive the letters that were sent on the steamer Quincy, she has arrived in N. Orleans after a passage of 28 days,
we are still at the crossing 2 companies of us Co. E. & Co. B., we expect every day when we shall be called upon to go up to the Bay (that is Berwicks where we were last winter) yesterday Co. K. of our Regt. had a skirmish with the Rebs and drove them 6 miles they say, one of Co. K's men had a horse shot from under him in the mellie but none of our men were hit. I fear bad news from Port Hudson myself as we do not get any favorable news and I think that the silence is portentious of defeat, but I donot mean to borrow any unnecessary trouble about it, if we get licked out of this department why we shall have to skedaddle that is all if some us do not stay behind. Our Col. is in command of the R.R. and is quartered up at Brazier. 3 nights ago our folks shelled the place on the opposite side of the Bay. Gen. Banks has withdrawn all his forces from the Tech [Bayou Teche] Country to take them up to Port Hudson and it leaves us in a defensive condition. The Guerrillas have begun to ride again and I should not be at all surprised if we should have to give up this country yet.
[Ed. The remainder of the letter is missing.]
