Carver Hospital                      

Ward 4                                                                        

Washington August 26^th 1863

 

Dear Father Mother Sisters & Brothers I now take pen in hand to write and inform you that i received your kind and welcomb letter and was very glad to hear that you were all well and more so to inform that i am no worse and if any thing on the gain i think i have a little cold just now and the phthis is the leading thing for when it comes on it bothers me to breath when i lie down nights but the Doctor gives me some mixture that helps me very quick but the Diarrhea is about the same as it has been for 8 months past sometimes it is better then again it is worse. As for the pain in my side i am satisfied that it will never be any better / or any worse i have been thinking of trying to get transfered to the State hospital i wrote to Levi but he does not sea fit to answer it i think he could go and sea O Benedict and most likely he knowes the senators from ower state or one of them at least so he could send to him here in washington and get me transfered or get a furlough of 30 or 60 days and may be more i wished if you sea Levi you would tell him i should like to have him write to me once in a while and i will try and answer his letters as quick as possible for i should like to hear from him & all the folks but i am getting off the track the weather is very fine here now we had a very heavy shower yesterday after noon so it / cooled the air and layed the dust so it is very pleasent today there is but about 900 hundred men in this Hospital now but when i came here there was between 1700 & 1800 hundred so you sea they are sending some of them away every day or nearly every day there is but very few considered dangerous at present the health is improving very fast in this Hospital out of sutch a large number there has been only about 20 deaths in 31 days so you sea that is small considering them all sick that are here and out of the 20 there was two sunstroke in one day and died that was the fore part of last week i forget the day now there is one thing that looks like brotherly love in the soldiers there is so many states all mixed up and no quareling in the ward / where i am there is one from Minisota 2 from Wisconsin 1 from Ohio 2 from Pensylvania 8 from New York and 4 from Conneticut that is what is in this ward then in the next ward there is some from Massachusets New Hampshire Delleware Maryland Verginia Indiana and Rhodeiland so you sea there is a reperesentation from nearly all states. N.B. there is some from Illinois California and there is in other Hospitals some from North Carolina the soldiers all try to help one another as a general thing and i am hapy to sea sutch a fealing as is shown in general throught the hospital i have not heard from the Reg since they went to Charleston I heard that they wer on Morris island in Charleston harbour. i received a letter from Pheebe today she sayes she is well. I am glad you sent this sheat of paper for mine is all gon write often and i will try and answer them my love to all and i will close From your true and loveing sone to his Father & Mother

 

I remain you humble servant WAClark

 

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