Hines told me I could ride for the cream and eggs. He went to his tent and brought canteens enough to hold about a gallon and a half. I started off and when I got to the house, the lady remarked, as I gave her the canteens, that “the man must expect to fatten his sick man.” I told her I expected he had several sick men he wanted to give cream to, never hinting at “egg-nogg,” you may know. I soon got back to camp and as the ground was covered with snow, my horse slipped right in a hole made by the picket rope post and turned a complete somersault, falling right on top of me. I whistled to the horse and he sprang up at once. I thought I was smashed up right this time and would certainly get a furlough to go home. My brother-in-law and a neighbor, A. A. Woodson, had come down to take me home from the hospital, but before they arrived I was back on duty. They were still in camp with us when this occurred and my first thought was whether I’d be able to go home. I first tried to move my right arm and it worked alright, then my left and it responded also. Then I tried both legs, thinking some of the limbs were sure to fail to work, but to my utter astonishment, I wasn’t hurt at all, only stunned. My first remark was that any big headed soldier that wouldn’t get hurt by such a fall as that ought never to get a furlough. When I got into camp and told the joke on myself the boys enjoyed it hugely. The winter quarters were completed by this time, so we broke camp and occupied them. While we were expecting to enjoy the winter quarters, unlike Geo. Washington’s men at Valley Forge, as there was plenty of every thing to live upon and we were all well clothed, we received orders for half of the regiment and Col. Radford to move on to Leesburg. Five of the higglers from our mess were ordered out, so it only left John K. Young, Lewis Young and myself. The regimental quarter master, wagon-master and several other men offered to furnish the rations and pay the three left in our mess to cook for them. My job was to notify them when meals were ready and as these men had control of the rations they also had control of the whiskey. When I went for them the first time they drew the bottle for a social drink, all around. Pharoah’s dream occurred to me that moment, how seven years of plenty must provide for seven years of famine. So while I had that bottle at hand I thought I’d just keep it for a time of need. I accordingly slipped it into my coat pocket, unnoticed by the other men. Every time I went for the men, I played the same prank on their whiskey, as I knew the whiskey was to be blockaded soon and we would need it for the boys when they were sick. After three or four days some of them said to me that some body was taking their whiskey while they were gone to their meals and I told them I was next to a detective to find such fellows and I’d soon locate him for them.