Kights Hospitall

New Haven

May 16^th 1865

                                                                                               

My Dear Wife

I received your kind letter and you can not know how much joy it gave me for I had given up in dispair of ever seeing you or hearing from you. god only knows what I have suffered or ever can in this world. Capt J. M. Lewis or Col as he is has an acount to settle if not in this world in the world to come and he will have as much time as he can answer at the day of Judgement, but I will say no more about him or his Company. Wells was the only likely man in the Company and O god that he is gon, he was a brother and we were brothers and may the god of Heven bless him O I have a long story to tell you but I can not write it for I am very nervous to day and your letter has unstrung all my nerves for none can imagine what a thinking I have kept up through this long / sickness but thanks be to god I am better but it is a wonder Dear Wife that I am alive for O how sick I have ben. I have looked forward to death as a relief for my sufferings But thanks be unto God I am alive and I hope we shall meet in this world again it has ben my only prayer for the last year but I am so much better that I take courage. the days are so long and the knights longer for I do not sleep much, but think and long for sweet home. it may be but the chastening hand of God but I know that he loveth those whom he chastenith, and that truth will prevail and I know my dear Wife when you know all you will believe me not withstanding all the Lewises may say it is a pirate name and a deavil nature but God will deal with him. kiss the children for me and tell them they must be good but I know my Darlings will O how Father longs to see them and hold them to his heart. O Lucy the treachery deceit / and iniquity in this world I would not have believed that man was so lo and depraved before the war but he is not much above the brute creation. Give my love to your dear kind friends Mr & Mrs Hubbards and may the blessings of God ever rest upon them for the kindness to my dear family you cannot imagine what joy your letter gave me. when I received it I received one from Henry that came from patterson Park Hospitall Baltimore. when I left New Orleans I was getting along very well but they took me to Chicago and through Baffalo to Albany New York and then to Citty point from there back to Washington to the shenandoa Valley by the way of harpers Ferry to my Reg and we had about 3 miles to walk and I was very weak and did not get to the Reg untill all the rest had arrived I got there about eight in the evening and all this rout I had no / medicine and in crossing a brook got in and had to sleep on the damp ground and no blanket and took cold and brot on my chills and feaver again and worse than ever but the next morning Lewis had my gun and acotriments taken from me, and me put into the gard house under gard the gard house was an old shed so I lay there two days & made up my mind to die a martyrs death but a good samaritan gave me a rubber blanket and called the Dr to me. the mans name was Dilworth God bless him. so the Dr sent me to the Hospitall at Harpers ferry & from there was sent to Patterson park Hospitall and from there hear to the Knight Hospitall so God bless you my loved ones this is a good hospitall & I am mending fast now I have heard from home               

E. D. Holdridge Soldier

New Haven Conn

Knights U.S. Hospitall ward no 4

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