White House Va. May 18^th 1862

 

Dear Nancy

                        I received your letter last night, written the 13^th and I got Mothers and Martha's the day I sent one home last Monday. I slept in the place where I wrote my last letter Monday night; Tuesday morning we had to get our breakfast and strike tents ready to march in half an hour after reveille but the roads were so blocked up with troops and wagons that we did not get off till ten oclock and then we had to stop every little way and at dark had only made about five miles. we the stopped and had coffee. then we had to stop till the roads were cleared of about thirteen hundred wagons. I laid down and / slept till two. we then started and about daylight got to Cumberland 4 or 5 miles. there was a large army there. We pitched our tents and parked our boat train and expected to stop two or three days but at dark had to strike tents, sling knapsacks and start again. there had been a little rain all day not much more than a mist but enough to make plenty of mud. It had been awful hot and dusty the day before but now it was knee deep with mud and dark as could be, but we walked through it and finally got to this place by ten at night. our train did not get through till day light Wednesday morning, and we had to sleep in the best place we could find. I laid some brush up to keep the wind off and slept so sound that somebody took my brush for their fire and I did not know it till I stuck my head out from under / blankets the next morning. It rained all night and I was some wet but we pitched our tents in the morning and had coffee and I was all right. I rained all day Wednesday but troops came along all the time. When we got here there was not many soldiers but now it is the largest camp I have seen. it is on the Custis place where Washington was married on the Pamunkey River. The camp is on a large level field maybe three hundred acres in it. we are off in one corner by ourselves. I was on guard yesterday that is all I have done since we came here. I think we will march again soon perhaps tomorrow. There are plenty of sutlers near us now and we can buy most any thing but at their own prices. butter $1.00 cheese .50c coffee 50c common sugar 25c &c. We have with us twenty five pontoon boats that will make 500 feet of bridge 

 

Henry Fay sent me a school report of the town of Leicester. The papers you send to me never get here so it is no use sending them and you need not send any more postage stamps at present. I have received twenty in all. I am only twenty one miles from Richmond. It is a fine country only the mud but the sun dries that up very quick. Half the time here I do not know what day of the week it is. last Sunday we marched over a hot dusty road sixteen miles. I think Father must be planting now. have those drains we dug stopped up yet. and does my woodpile hold out yet It is most six months since I was at home. Some of the old soldiers say we will be in Washington in two months but I have made up my mind to live in tents the rest of this summer and I like it as well as quarters, but next winter I hope we will have some good quarters the war being over. Jerome

 

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Instead of Camp Winfield Scott put Gen. M^cClellans Head Qurs. on my letters

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