Camp Sickles V^a            

May 25^th /63

 

My Sister & Bro—

                        Your favor of the 15^th came to hand last evening—I am much pleased once more to hear from home

 

            You say in your letter that "all the news you care anything about is army news"; now you are just like me that is the very kind I care nothing about, the news I wish to hear is "home news", but you dont seem to think of this for you cut all letters so short. You do not seem to think that "I ha a sarer heel than ye cud ha" that is I long as much (if not more) to hear often from you as you do to hear from me. then why is it that I can but hear from home once in a month? And why is it that Uncles folks or Albins dont think worth while to send me a few lines now & then /

 

Army news is as old a story to me as home news is to you, but that does not excuse me if I do not write, though I think in this respect I am not to blame for I write as often as this "Gipsy life" will permit. I look for a letter to night from some of you in answer to that M^cKean letter. If Willson is too tired you can write, cant you Lizzie? Now for my opinion of the late move—and first if some of the Copperhead gang had been here they would be far less outspoken than they seem to be. I think Hooker did all that "Mac" could have done & perhaps more Bill M^cKnight to the contrary notwithstanding and it would do me good to be one of a few soldiers who would "wipe out" his vile paper & if need be for the country's good "wipe" himself from existence. He & his class of demons do not deserve to live Strange freedom they claim! freedom to do wrong!! freedom to overthrow that government which they are sworn to protect!!! 

 

The N.Y. Herald also is as vile a sheet as any Secesh could wish. Why is J. G. Bennet its editor permitted to publish such treason. It looks to me as if you of the North were making sport of the lives of your soldier-relatives in the service of the country by keeping up such howling in our rear for every howl is only strengthening the hand of the devilish foe in our front who to do them credit have the manhood to come out boldly & fight. This the coward Copperheads will not do. They will talk & blow much about resisting a draft but when the time comes they will submit for they are too cowardly to fight even on their own ground—now mark it. In giving you my opinion I give you also the mind of the Army in general.

                                                                                   

Now for the fun—

Well there is none here, it is all earnest but it is rather funny to me to hear of the "Amours" of those round home who were but children when I left home 

 

Annie M Albin for instance; and her bro. the Prof. Sis Uber also & a host of others who were too small even to come to a night meeting of any kind at that time. Surely the country round home has taken quite a change! Jno Snyder keeping base lawyer under the wild cherry where Enoch & I used to hold forth. A Covenanter's (A Montgomery's) love returned by a Methodist girl!!!!!! A couple of Yellow [?] Rowdies keeping company with the Covenanter's fair & proud lass!!! This must be the days spoken of by our Saviour which would be before his coming. The cup of abominations must be nearly full. Every mans hand is against his neighbor How necessary to take heed lest we also fall into error. Jimmie says he heard I wrote to Ja^s Haggart advising him to marry that glib-tongued M^cKnight. Now I'd like to know who said I did. It would be a fine thing to advise a friend to go into a life-long enlistment with such a girl would it not. But "Love will enter in where it dare not well be seen" Burns /

 

You want me to be in earnest about coming home. Well I tell you in earnest I'm enlisted "during the War" and it was hard enough to leave home at first and I have no desire to try it over again for it would be but another boo hooing scrape and a furlow for 10 days would only give me time to stop in & bid you all good-day & then step out again, so for that reason I will not be home untill I can stay at least long enough to look round me a little, besides it is no use to spend 30 or 40 dollars in a scrape which would but end in tears at last. What think you of my taste in the matter? Josh Snyder is well and so are the most of the boys. It has been extremely warm for the last few days but today it is quite pleasant and we hope for rain Cap^t Clark & P Eberet is back here they came on the 16^th ult. /

 

That young lady "La Belle M^cKnight" told P Eberet that I kept a regular correspondence up with her and that I wrote to her often, the liar!!!

 

Now as to C Lincoln—Dont mention her. thats all I want of her.

 

Dan Heasley has my best wishes for his wellfare. I am going to see Josh to day & he & I will have a laugh over the calf love of A. M. Albin. I would like to hear from D^r Rose but he & I are at an odds on a small subject. I confess I was fast with him but in the moment of anger only it was this: I wrote to him telling of the battle of Charles City & roads and I used something like this language. I said that "we" fired untill our guns got so hot we could not hold them by the barrel" I was not in the fight I lay on the hill above so weak that I could hardly walk and much against my will was an idle spectator of the carnage, and it provoked me much when he (the D^r) wrote to Rose of Co. E. telling that "his friend Baker said he fired his piece untill he no longer could hold it in his hands. Now when I used the word "we" I did not wish to include myself, for in writing of the actions of the Co. or regt. I felt justified in saying "we"—I do not nor did not claim to have been in that battle Jno Snyder got his wound in that fight & he knows I was not there but he did not know I was a looker on.

 

            Who did you say taught at our school or is teaching this summer

 

            This letter must come to a close soon for I dont think of any thing more only my respects to all friends /

 

Andy Houston will be getting a wee frow I suppose some of these days—those 2 of whom I spoke as being killed were not my messmates.

           

James I still chew tobacco as bad as ever, but I advise you never to touch it & to take my advise in this particular

           

Give my love to all the relatives and if you see L.B. tell her I am well and think of her once in a while

                                               

My love to Mother

no more

J. D. Baker

 

L & JRW Baker

1863

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