Bayou Lafourche Near Thibodeaux LA

 

Camp Stevens Jan 19^th 1863

                        Dear Wife your letter of Dec 18 I recd about two weeks ago on the 2 day of Jan & the two papers a few days after. I was glad to hear from home & friends & to know that you had got a letter from me since I left New York. you had ought to have had 2 at the time you got the one that you answered for I wrote & mailed two at port Royal and one at Fort Jefferson I have sent you two since I came to New Orleans. I sent one to the office last tuesday. We have been on the moove so much since we came here that we do not have much mail privileges. When I wrote you last week the boys had just left camp for Berwick Bay about 30 miles from here for the purpose of fighting the Rebels. They went up there and had a battle with them & whipped them took about 60 prisoners killed a good many and have got back again with but the loss of but one man in our Regiment that was a Cayuga man he was shot by one of our own pickets through mistake

 

We had about 1000 men there on our side and out of that number we lost in all 8 killed & 40 wounded mostly of men of the 75 regiment the one that Mrs Cossums son is in he did not get hurt. Our boys in Co A was sent a head as skirmishers so they had a chance to try their courage. I did not go with them as I was left behind in charge of  the Co baggage there was some 16 left with me from our company but they were left because they were sick we had to take the baggage all to the rail road and load it on the cars so we should be ready at any minute to moove either way we lay there from tuesday until Saturday when the Regiment came back and we came in to camp again they had some sharp fighting up there as near as I can find out I will send you / a paper with an account of the fight in as soon as I can get one

 

            There is about 30 of our Co sick so that they are unable to drill none of them that is here except one is thought to be dangerously sick he is a boy from Fairville he has the Typhoid feever. the most of the sickness is diarhea & hard colds I am well at present So is Bill he has been as rugged as a bear all of the time. I was sick a week when we first came here with a fever & disentary but homepathy brought me out again all right. I have not had to do any duty except doing a few errands for the Colonel & Adjutant and something like that since I left Auburn So you see that I am favoured probably to much for I feel as though I was a getting lazyer than I was at home but not much fatter. We have plenty to eat such as salt pork, salt beef good new bread every day, beans, rice, meal, split peas, potatoes common & sweet, occasionally fresh beef coffee & part the time black tea to drink. I had a good mess of stake for my breakfast. I drew my rations raw and cooked for myself as I liked. to day I shall get some flour & make some biscuit for dinner butter is worth 50 & 60 cents Pies about as large as a common pie plate 25^cts each, apples very smal 5 cents apiece cheese 40 cents a pound Chewing tobacco $2.50 a pound Smoking $1.00 to $1.25 a pound & scarce at that I have not had to buy any yet since I left New York until this morning I have been using tobacco that I had gave to me at home. this morning I bought my box full it holds about 5 pipes full I had to pay 15 cents for it but I will quit smoking before I will do it again. I think it outrageous to be skinned that way for nothing every thing is very dear here             Feb 1^st I quit writing this because I heard that there would be another mail in here in a day or two and I thought that I might / another letter by that mail and I was not disappointed for I got two from you one Jan 11^th the other the 13^th. I was very glad to get them as well as the papers that you sent me I got 4 at the same time two Tribunes & two Newark papers I wrote you in my last letter that the boys had gone of for a fight and that John Van Dusen was sick he is now well again the boy that was sick in the hospital with the Typhoid fever died a few days ago there is a good many of our regiment sick the Hospital is full and some sent to New Orleans French is down there playing at sick

 

            Last thursday we were paid off our wages up to the first of Jan I had $54.60 coming to forty dollars you will get probably before you get this as the sent you a government check for that amount at the expense of the of the government if it is lost they have to make it good. you will have to go to the bank to get your money when you get it you wil have to sign yor name on the back of the check Reynolds perhaps will take you up there

 

            I am now in the Hospital as nurse and shall probably stay there for some time they live first rate there as good as we do at home nearly it is not very pleasant place but at the same time there is some advantages in being there I shall not have to go in to any of the fighting while I stay in there & shall probably get 25 cents more a day wages. there was a man died this morning there from palmyra he suffered more than any man that I ever seen and live as long as he did he had the bloody disentary it take some 8 of in the hospital to take care of the sick when one gets well enough to go out there is another ready to take his place /

 

            In regard to father and Mothers going to Hirams to live if they want to go you had better let them go if Hiram will not take care of them where they are I thought may be he would take care after I was gone. I do not see how you will all live on what money I get to send you and I will send you all I can I have some hopes that I shall come home again before the three years is out so that I can take care of all of you again we do not know any thing here what is agoing on as we can not hear anything here

 

            We have to move our camp again in a day or two we are going probably some 40 or 50 miles I do not know exactly where we shall go after we moove I shall write Reynolds a good long letter and tell him all about what I have been doing since I left home &c tell him I am very much obliged to him for helping you as he does and I will try and pay him for it when I come home But my time is up and I must go back to the hospital again write often I do not care if you write every day if you can do not wait for me for I cannot always write when I would

 

            Tell father & Mother I will write to them before long

 

Yours as ever

L. V. Tucker

 

(PS) I have written to

            Bill Cookington about that note and told him he must pay it write off or he would get sued                       

L.V.T.

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