May ^the 5^th 1863

Fourt Pickering

Memphis Tennissee

 

Dear Beloved Wife with the gratest of pleasure and with much feeling and kindness it is that I enjoy the present privilige of righting you a fiew lines to inform you that I am well and harty I received your kind and welcom letter today and it was received with the gratest of pleasure and much sadisfaction and it gave me much joy to hear that you was all enjoying good health and I hope you are still enjoying the same blessings you stated in your letter that you was up to the quarterley meeting at the Chilcoats meeting house and that you herd that / I was not expected to live but that is all a mistake for I am as harty now as I have been for the a long time I had the diare for a while but when we got our pay I bought myself a bottle of stomache bitters and I took a fisic of them pills that you sent me and I have been using the bitters and I am getting fat and harty well you rote that I should get a furlough and come home but I dont think that I can get one before the first of July if I can then but as soon as I can get one I will come home to see you My Dear Wife and sweet little children Fred Hawk has not been / very well for a fiew days but he is geting better the rest of our boys are all well the health of the Regiment is midling good Samuel Steel died yesterday he was in C^o I Well Cordli James I Neptune started home today and I sent twenty dollars with him to you he sayd that he would take it over to you and I sent you a letter with him and Father one George Teeple has not got his furlough yet and I dont no whether he will get one or not but I think they ought to send him home for I dont think that he will ever bee able for the service the wether is warm and pleasant / I am still cooking for our Captain yet and I like it very well we get firstrate grub we get good ham and good lite bread and potatoes and dried apples and peaches and they buy a mes of eggs every fiew days and good tea and coffee and plenty of shugar and I have a good board shanty to eat in and cook in well I must quit for it is bed time

so nothing more but I remain your Most

Affectionate Companion

to my Beloved Wife

Hugh Bay to

Cordeliann Bay

and sweet children

 

so Good Night    

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