There were four weeks of monotony.
An advance of a half mile daily was not calculated to excite the nerves.
The chaplains and the surgeons busied themselves in looking after the general health of the army.

One day, a chaplain, noted for his advocacy of total abstinence, passed the camp of the First Michigan Battery.

This company was raised in Coldwater, Michigan, and the camp-chests, caissons, and other property were marked "Loomis's Coldwater Battery." The chaplain at once sought Captain Loomis, and paid a high compliment to his moral courage in taking a firm and noble stand in favor of temperance.

After the termination of the interview, the captain and several friends drank to the long life of the chaplain and the success of the "Coldwater Battery." Toward the end of the siege, General Halleck gave the journalists a sensation, by expelling them from his lines.

The representatives of the Press held a meeting, and waited upon that officer, after the appearance of the order requiring their departure.