Marine Hospital New Orleans L'a Jan 28^th 1864

 

Dear Wife

            To night I will commence another letter to you even if I do not finish it until an other day. I prefer to write in the night because it is still and quiet and I have no one to trouble me and it does not bother me half so much as it does in the day time

 

            My health is better and I begin again to feel more like myself. I am feeling better now than I have since I have been here before I hope that it may continue and that I may enjoy good health before warm weather really sets in The weather here now is delightful the days are warm and pleasant and at night it is nice and comfortable sleeping

 

            The folks here are beginning to make their gardens and are preparing for farming generally, quite a difference I presume from what it is in Arcadia at this time of year but I hope that warm weather may hasten its appearance with you and drive away the cold winters snow

 

            Well Ma I am sorry to disappoint you and Mr Reynolds so bad in regard to coming home for I would like to see you both just as well as any one can but I cannot controll the circumstances or I should probably have been home before this. I cannot express my feelings toward Mr. Reynolds for the interest that he takes in our welfare but trust that I shall yet be able to pay him in part for the greatdeal that he has done for you since I left home. At all events it shall be the study of my life to do for him all that I can not only while I am here but after I get home which will be as soon as I can 

 

You did not say how lilly liked her ring. When I send the children anything I want you to use your own judgment about when to give it to them give Frank his ring when you think that you ought to and he deserves it. If he wants to get things for you with his money let him do it and I will send him more money, but you need not tell him that I will send him any for letting you have his, tell him that he need not save his money for me but if he wants to do something for me to try hard and learn to read and write for that will please me more than the money. the pennies that the children have sent me I have them all yet in my pocket but if I send anything more home in a box I probably shall send them home as I may loose them by carrying with me. I shall send you a box after I get paid if I can get anything to send that is worth sending. pay day is long in coming this time

 

            But I will stop for to night and finish the rest to morrow night and then be in time for Saturdays mail. I wrote a short letter to Horace Greely to night. I wonder if he will answer it. I told him to send me a tribune almanac. if I get that he is a gentleman

 

            Friday 28^th      I will try and finish my letter to night although I have but little more to write and that of not much importance but I like to write and may as well do that as anything

 

            Well I expected to have had that pin to have sent you in letter but I went down to the city to night to see about it and also to get my watch fixed but the pin was not yet done. So of course I cannot send it this time but will do it as soon as I can get it from the shop where it is making 

 

            Well no pay yet is not that very encouraging to Uncle Sams boys, but if we do not get it he allows us more wages now the wages has been raised to $16.00 instead of $13.00 as heretofore so this year we shall have a little more to send home. the increased pay commences with the first of this month. We are also allowed thirteen dollars a year more for clothes than last year and then the prices of clothes has been put down a considerable Pants that was 3.50 last year now is only 2.50 and overcoats that was then 9.50 now is 7.50 and other stuff in proportion, so if we get all that is allowed us it will make quite a difference we are not obliged to take the clothes unless we are a mind to. if we do not take the clothes we get the money for them the clothes that I have drawn since I left Auburn amounts to only $13.40 for over a year I think that I have not been very hard on clothes and I have enough to last me six months yet I think if I use the careful and do not have them stolen again from me.                  

 

The Hospital Steward of our Regiment is down here after me to go back to camp, but as near as I can learn his coming after me is in vain for I think from what I have heard that the doctor told him that I could not go at all events it has not troubled me much yet and I guess will not much                  

 

As I have no money to send you yet I will send you another ring. this is for you if you can wear it. I got this up on purpose for you I have worn it for a few days myself I have several more that I wish that I could sell so as to send you the money but I am not the only one that has no money to send home for I have a little left yet and perhaps not more than one out of ten here has any at all left 

 

            If I do not go to church Sunday I shall try and take a walk through the city cemetry. I have been through the Catholic and the Soldiers Cemetry and now I want to see the city and the Jews Cemetry. Visitors are allowed to go through every Sunday or rather on those days the gates are open and you can go in with out any difficulty while at other days you will probably have to pay the sexton for unlocking the gate for you to go in. If I do go I will tell you all about it when I write again which will be as soon as the first of the week for I mean while I am here to write as often as twice a week if possible and more than that if I have anything worth writing about

 

            I have been and am now reading when I have leisure Bayard Taylors travels I find them very interesting there is some 6 or 7 volumes of them here in the library we have a library of some four or five hundred books so I can get all of the reading of that kind that I can read I have read some 15 or 20 already it helps me to pass away time when I have nothing else on hand to do                  

 

But I will close up for this time and write to you again soon                   

 

Write as often as you can

 

Yours as Ever

L. V. Tucker

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