Camp Vermillion August 10^th 1863

 

            Dear wife I will have the pleasure of sending you a few more lines in the morning to let you know that I am still in the enjoyment of very good health & hope by the blessings of God that it may find you all in the enjoyment of the same great blessings

 

I started a letter to you yesterday morning I thought of several you might get one I have not much news to write to you of interest evry thing is quiet in camp a good deal of sickness especially diarhea it seems as though our fare does not agree very well with us or the most of us eat to much we have tolerable beef now & plenty coarse corn meal sugar molasses & salt then we get a little by foraging such as chickens potatoes & some watermelons & peaches & squashes which we make out on very well especially when we have meal coffee for breakfast I have no idea you live as well as I do if I knew you did I would not be afraid of you suffering for something to eat I think there is a good deal of sugar in this country yet & molasses if I could I would be glad to send you a hogshead of sugar. there seems to be a good deal of dissatisfaction in the army at this time & some derserting going on none have left our company lately we have 30 me present in our company as a general thing the companies are not more than half full Henry M^cCulloch passed through our camp saturday on his way to texas he said he was going to texas or to northen Texas to raise a force & to bring those derserters to justice that are not in the service we had a very hard rain yesterday it run in our tent & wet nearly all our things I expect we will move camp again to morrow but a short distance though it is said that Bates Reg is ordered to texas & some think we will have orders to go there soon the feds have possession of Berwicks Bay I have no news from across the river that I can depend on as to reports there plenty of them & may be one in a hundred will be true but you will not know it till it gets old the feds papers give the correctest news in regard to the fighting thes days & they stretch enough I am very anxious to hear from our army east of the missippi 

 

I cant see why it is I cant get a letter from you it is now over two months since I heard from you I never was more anxious to hear from home in my life I know you must write often such things is enough to make soldiers dissatisfied. if I could hear from home once a week or even two weeks I could be very well satisfied as it is I cant be though I shall not desert except my mind changes considerably from what it is now things look dark & gloomy at the present time but I hope it will not always be so I would sacrifice a good deal to have an honorable peace Some think there will be peace soon I will confess that without the interference of foreign powers I see but little grounds for peace soon there is some of the sick men getting furloughs home I wrote you that I wanted you to se Diamond or Roff whether I could get a transfer to either of their companies or not if so for them to write out the necessary papers & send them to me I dont know that I could get one & if I could be close to home I would not try as infantry service I believe is the easiest but I would like to be in one of them frontier companies I have had very good health since I left home yet I have the diarhea nearly all the time I have never reported sick any day since I came back I weigh one hundred & seventy seven pounds so you se I am not fleshy at present I would like to know how you are getting along with your work this summer I know you have lost no time when you were well you were getting along fine when you last wrote I think we will be paid off again in a few days I spend but very little money one reason I have not got it and I dont borrow here I trust you have plenty yet I cant send you any more soon there was a law passed I think raising the soldiers wages but we have never had it paid to us yet I would like to hear from Jess what he is doing whether he will stay where he is another year or not if he leaves you will be left in a bad fix I am afraid but I think you have some friends ther though they may no will not let you suffer & some are trying to make all the money they can I recon I would like to know what grain & other things are selling at. 

 

            Dear wife I hardly know what to write to you I think of you a great deal & would avise you for the best if knew how but being away can only advise you to live as you would whish when you die I can se that this is a hard place to live as I ought evil is all around & temptations on evry side I very often find my self doing what I would think I would not do but it is a hard place to do right therefore if you ever humble your self before our merciful creator recollect me in your petitions try to live as you would like to die teach our children the truths of the holy bible & imprint upon their their duties to their God & to you & one another tell them to recollect their Pa & think of me sometimes tell them that I will come home as soon as I can tell Eddy I want to se [paper hole] much he can learn against I get back & I want to know how far he is in his books what he is learning & Johny he must learn some too he is larger enough to learn now & I think when he gets a start will learn very fast willie will not learn much only in talking &c it is half of the time I cannot the lines on this paper so you will pleas excuse the crooked lines Send your letters to me by the way of Niblets Bluf Texas Captain Bumpus has resigned & Lieut Nubia has been dropped from the rolls so we have but one commissioned officer in the company I do not know whether their will be any others elected or appointed Our Colonel is under arrest but I think will be in command in a day or two as it is getting late I must bring my letter to a close by sending you my love & respects kiss the children for me from your affectionate Husband

T.W.Johnson

 

the drum is beating for dress parade now

 

[overleaf]

 

Eagle Ford Tx             Due 10 cts

Aug 29

 

Mrs Martha E. Johnson

Gainsville Cook

C^o Texas

 

From T.W.Johnson 3 sargeant

in Co I Hawpes Reg

Spates Brig^d

SOURCES