Camp California near Alexandria Virginia

December 9, 1861                   

 

Dear Father Sisters and brother i received yours on 9 and was glad to hear from you i am in good health at preasent you say father has no work yet that is bad i suppose the times is very hard yet we are getting along first rate now but we cant tell the minute we have to march we have beautiful weather it is like summer here in the middle of the day the mornings are a little cool we have very heavey dews here i was on guard here on Saturday for the first we had no trouble i have the same office yet we have no india rubber blankets yet i sleep well there is 4 in our tent the capt servent sleep with us he has left the capt and has got a dischare from the / docter from doing duty but he is going to be the major servent we have plenty of blankets our tent is floored and we have straw i received those ambrothypes i heard about the mulvihill i seen it in the baltimore Clipper the day after the occurence we hear we are to be examined by the docter but i cant say when for to make the volunteers like the regulars and to have a standing army i seen Brien Haggerty last week he is 2 sergent in the 69^th he was asking about Father let me know what kind of weather you have in New York we have beautiful to day was very warm i had to take of my jacket we expect to go on picket duty this week we have had no pickets yet we have to get up very early in the morning at 6 oclock for parade with muskets bets and every thing and a fellow / feels cold getting up so early if we miss rool call we have to do extra duty that is in the morning one night last week we had to lay on arms for fearing an attack so we had none you may send me some papers weekly papers or the sporting papers the clipper or wilks spirit we can get the daly papers from new york they are 5 cents i was over to the 37^th camp on Sunday i seen some fellows that i know we have seen a boody of men about 3 miles of but we dont know what they are we see their fires but i will tell you in the next there is 6 men in all the tents except ours so i have nothing more to say at preasent send my best respects to Mr Reynolds and family and to Marg Gardner and tell her i was asking about her and Mrs hyde and family / i would like you would send me one of those red caps Zouaves caps for we have none new once since and look how you send them for Mr sherwood has not got his things yet nor Mr Romain we have all 40 rounds of catriges

 

so no more at preasent but remains yours truly

John Loughran

 

Direct the same

Camp California near

Alexandria Virginia

57 Regiment

Comp F           N.Y.V.

Capt. McKay

Col Zook

 

PS you can take the size of my old caps and be sure and dont get one to small

            so good by

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