Convalescent Camp July 5^th 1863

Dear Sarah I take my pen this Sunday noon to let you know that on last friday I received two letters from you one was dated June the 26^th I received it in the Post office here the other letter was dated on the 27 June Doctor Highold returned to this Camp on last friday and he gave it to me he told me that he sean you and that you was well and looked well dear Sarah I was so glad to receive these letters from you to hear that you was well as I had not heard from you but once since I came to this place dear Sarah I am well at present my nea has now got well of the Rheumatism and I do hope that these lines will find you and all the friends engoying good health. dear Mussy I have a very good time of it here I have no marching or fatigue duty or garding to do here as I had while in my reagement. My duty is very lite here I have a house to stay in and a midling good way of sleeping and have nothing to do except write perhaps one hour in the day and sea that the men keeps the barracks swept out and that thy keep themselves clean our boarding is not very good here thy are about from five to eight thousand soldiers in this camp study thy are coming and going evey day thy are a great many wards in this Camp thy are a good frame house bilt for each ward and each ward holds one hundred men thy are four boarding houses and thy are men Cooks enough for each house these boarding houses are large and thy can ove fifteen hundred man eat at one time our bred is very good that is the only good thing we get here the Coffee we get here is not made very good it is always made two week for me we get boiled pork and beef enough but we get none that is fried we use no hard crackers here sometimes we have potatose/scoop and dried appels stued but it is very seldom that we get this—but we get along very well we can by any thing that we want to eat here such as pies and all kinds of cakes and milk and scider we can by at any time we can by pies at 10 cts a piece cakes at about what thy sell in Brookville we pay here 10 cents a quart for milk I generialy by a pint of milk every day and use it for my diner the country peaple here makes a good deal of mony by pedling those things here dear Mussy the letter I sent to you without a stamp it was not because I had no stamps that thy ware none put on this letter when I wrote it I folded it up and directed it and forgot to put a stamp on it untill after I had put it in the Post office I then thought of not putting a stamp on it but I knowd that it would go frome here without one your kindness has kept me supplied in stamps ever since I left home I received some stamps in your last letters I have 15 stamps in my pocket at this time all of which you have been so kind to send to me dear Sarah I am almost out of mony at this time and I do not know how scoon I will get any of my pay here I wish you would send me five dollars in your next letter to me and as scoon as I draw any mony I will send it to you dear Sarah I do not get any higher pay here than what I did when I was acting soldier my pay is thirteen dollars a month and found in Clothing and boarding dear Mussy thy have been some very hevy battels faut this week in Pa and in Maryland between Generial Mead the Commander of the Army of the potomac and General Lee of the rebel army they was a very heavy battel fot on yesterday the 4 of July betwene Generial Mead and General Lee the rebels was defeated with a very large loss of kild and wounded on both sides they have been a great many officers kild two on each side by reagement I expect was in yesterdays/battle I expect in a few days to hear of a good many of our boys being kild I have sent you a Washington paper with this letter which will give you the latest news up to this date I was sory to hear of Rish Scott Dunkelbury and young Clark being kild but a man in battle is liable to fall at any moment it is a daingerous place to be in—dear Mussy the blackberies and huckelberies is wripe here now and thy are very plenty in the woods and fields here I was out a short time this fournoon and I got as many as I could eat and picked about a gallon and brought into camp with me I entend stewing them for supper this evening dear Mussy if I can get a furlow this fall I will go home to sea you it would cost me about thirty dollars to go home and come back here as thy charge solders going home on furlow only half pay dear Mussy I have nothing more at this time to write please give my love to Oliver and Mary Thompson and Childrin and tell them to write to me I have not received any letters from them yet give my love to Grandpap Clements and the girls also my love to all the other friends Dear/

Sarah I close this letter by sending my love to you also I send you 20 sweet kisses this frome your Affectinate husband

                                    please write scoon

                                                W.Rodgers to Sarah Rodgers

 

[envelope: partial postmark –ington/Sarah Rodgers/Brookville/Jefferson County/Pa/box 197]

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