Culpeper, Va

January 15^th 64

 

Brother George

                                    I received your ever welcom letter the 11^th I was glad to hear from you again & to hear that you are well Your letter found me well & I this may find you & the rest the same We hav had verey cold wether this winter it has bin colder than last winter so far It has not thawed eney sinc New Years day till yester day It rained here all day New Years & snowed the next day The snow has not gon yet but it is melting fast to day It raines here to day & it is quite warm I saw Henry Knapp yester day he was here to see Ira & John He is as fat as a hog & looks beter than I ever saw him at home I saw Rastus Foster this fall but rat did not loock natural to me He was well 

 

Hav you seen Arch Foster this winter I wish Arch was here & had never run away He will not get off as maney hav if he is fetched back Thare is maney deserters from Company A & I fear that some of them will meet a hard fate Arch was a good boy & I would hate to hav him fetched back knowing that he never would hav run away had it not bin for some others that went with him Thare was five that ran away with Arch & not one of them hav bin fetched back yet I dont care mutch for eney of them but Arch Hav you herd from James Smith this winter I hav herd from in a long I hav rote to him last but I dont think he got my letter if he had he would hav rote to me before this I would like to know if Bill Stephens got red of comeing out or not & if not what regt he is in & whare he is I hope that you hav given up the ide of inlisting if not you beter I hav not got a Brother that I think could stand what I hav 2 years past 

 

Our regt is about being excepted as a veteran regt & if it is I presume that I will be transferd to some other regt I cant go home with them without I reinlist & that I cant do yet I cant see the point & think it a big thing on ice I cant see whare in this war is eney nearer over than it was 2 years ago But it may be it is but I will bet that 2 years more dont see the end of it I wish that it was over now I never want to hear the sound of a canon or a gun again but I will hav to see more perhaps next summer than last I cant be placed in eney more dangerous placis than I hav bin in & yet may not get out as safe as I hav heretofore But I hope & trust that I may get out alive wether I hav a limb left or not I dont know what has protected me this far I never had a shot through my clothes till the Battle of Getteysburg then I had a narow chanc of loosing my leg 

 

Thare is no nues that would be interesting to you for me to write so you must excuse me for this time Give my best wishes to Father & Mother & all the rest & dont for get to write & give me a full history of what is transpiring around in Preston except this with the best wishes of your far off Brother

                                                                       

Sergt Abner B Palmer

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