Camp Boggs

Remarks for the Month of      July 27^th            , 1864

                                                           

Dearly beloved wife I received your kind & welcome letter of July 3 yesterday evening (Tuesday) which I read with much pleasure & satisfaction. I was very much rejoiced to hear from you & more so to hear that you were all well & seemed to be in very good spirits. I just got into camp yesterday evening from the convalescent camp near Alexandria I suppose you will have heard of my being there as I wrote to you while I was there. I am nearly well again able to be on duty again I have gained twelve pounds in flesh in the last three or four weeks I now weigh 128 lbs & I am afraid that your fortune tellers coffee grounds run backwards when he said I would over weigh you & I am afraid some of his future predictions will turn out false though they are very good if true I expect you forgot to ask him what I was doing down here as some of the boys are marrying & others spludging round wonderfully of course it would not do for me to write any thing about these things, but I think from appearances here that the chances for a better half is scarce as we are camped in this pine woods about 25 miles from Alexandria. I think it is very thinly settled around here. I wished you'd asked him if we couldnt have two or three more girls for this soldiering I dont like & the boys may have it to do. then I dont know why he he couldnt have divided the thing & had a girl next but he may have been mistaken yet, at least we will see. I would have be been very proud if Jess could find his horses. I recon he will go up & hunt for them. you say your last letter was dated May 23 I have written five since then but directed the most of them to Weston but it seems as though you dont move & I will direct this one to Gainseville & expect to send it by Clark Loring his furlough has gone up I expect he will get off to morrow our furloughed man has not got back yet as soon as he gets back our C^o will furlough another man I do not know who it will be though I wrote to you in my last letter that I expected that our company had furloughed two more men which was not the case & there are four or five that will get to go home before I do that is they got to the command before I did & I believe that is the way they will furlough them now as we have some new officers in our Company now we held the election yesterday to day is the 28^th I wrote to you that I expected Scruggs would be elected captain but he was beaten by 2 votes I think he would have been made the best officer but others didnt think so. W H Marshall was elected 1^st Lieut a man that had been 1^st Lieut in this Co before but had been dropped on account of being absent without leave

                       

they wouldnt allow us to elect a captain 

 

            There were a good many of our prisoners exchanged last week two boats went down to the mouth of red river with about 1000 federals & brought back about the same of our men amongst them two of our company that were taken last fall soon after the battle of Fordoche they had been kept confined & fared badly only as the Ladies of New Orleans sent them clothing & provision they were all furloughed home as soon as they got to Alexandria & they needed it too there are also a great many Vicksburg prisoners that have just been exchanged for which increases our forces down here considerably

 

            Walker's command has gone back to Harrisonburg. I saw a good many of the men while I was at the convalescent camp all the news we get from across the river this m is good these prisoners that came up say the yanks are very much down fallen and dont like to talk about the war before our men they think Baltimore is taken certain and Lee has repulsed Grant in every quarter it is said that Grant has lost immensly & I have no doubt of it our losses have been heavy to but nothing like theirs Lincoln has called for five hundred thousand more men but the question is can he get them I cant help from thinking that the war will close with Old Abs administration I have heard nothing from Ed Milt yet I expect he is in Missouri now I think Marmaduke is in Missouri with his division. I have no idea how long we will stay here at this place no yankees near here that I know of I dont think there will be any more fighting on this side of the river soon. tell Jess that I would like if he has to go into the regular service to have him in this company but I would advise him to go into a cavalry Company as I dont think he could stand it to march a foot, & get in to some company near home if he can. I would be very glad to be nearer home myself, if I could. I want you to write to me where you live & whether you have moved or not & where you want me to direct your letters I believe I get about all of your letters some of them are a good ways off long time a getting here we have a good meeting going on here now that is evry night there is preaching & good many mourners up & some professions I wish you had the opportunities of going to meeting that I do but you must do the best you can & try & give your self time to read some evry day in some good books especially your Bible it will be better for you & you will never regret it keep our boys learning as much as you can tell them I want them to learn well while I am gone & that I hope to be with them & stay with before a great while & may God grant to bless & protect you all is my prayer for you all give my love to Jess & family & to enquiring friends my love to you & the children. Clark will not get off to day, so no more now you must write often & take good care of yourself & hope for the best your devoted & affectionate Husband

                                                                                                           

Tho W Johnson to

M. E. Johnson

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