Newport News Feb 26^th 1863

 

Dear Cousin Frank

                                    I have this afternoon received your’s of the 22^nd & as we have no drill this afternoon I will set about answering it immediately. You will see by this that we are still farther advanced towards the land of Dixie & a pleasant change we have made too. From the land of mud & misery we have journeyed towards fairer skies & balmier rains; & as for mud, it is impossible the soil is so sandy. We are encamped just back from the beach, right opposite the wreck of the Congress & Cumberland destroyed by the Merrimac in her raid about a year ago. Their wrecks are still visible a few yards from shore, a sad memento of rebel daring & devilish ingenuity. Thus I think as I look at them, but as I look farther out upon the water, I see something that reminds me that the Merrimac was not so successful as she wished to be on that occasion, something truly resembling a cheese box on a raft as the rebels styled it. And though it is not the original monitor, It is I doubt not/fully as effective & perhaps more so; & it’s presence there also reminds me that there is another Merrimac threatening to make her appearance every day, & in fact does occasionally stick her nose round a bend in the river & as often withdraws it again, when our iron clads make their appearance.

 

We do not have fair weather all the time however. For last Saturday night & Sunday we had the most violent storm of wind & rain mingled with snow I ever saw, but the beauty of it is, there is no mud when it clears off & we have had pleasant weather since. We had a review yesterday of our whole corps. I tell you there is considerable of an army of us here come to get us all together. I wish you could have been here, it was a beautiful day & the muskets & bayonets glistened finely. You would have enjoyed yourself, Ill bet, that is, if you could have had the pleasure of standing & looking on where you pleased, & didn’t have to do the marching, nor stand at shoulder arms for a couple of hours on a stretch; We have the luxury of having soft bread again here, not a mouthful of which had I tasted since we left Washington until we came here, hard tack being our staff of life previously. Another luxury, a number of us managed to get hold of some good boards, so that we have a board floor to sleep on, instead of the ground. Oh I tell you there is nothing like a soldiers/life, just romantic enough for your humble servant. once in a while though, it is something besides besides romance, but I have grown fat on it so far. what I shall come to when it gets to be hot weather I can’t tell. I do want to see you all, once in a while, that’s a fact, but—“gay & happy”, you know, & that’s what I’ve managed to be so far. Time has passed very quickly away, much faster than, when I think it over, I should expect it would, for a winter nearly spent without winter quarters is not just exactly the thing to make time pass away quickly. One thing I have not allowed myself to fret, or be in the least bit worried about anything. To this in a great measure I attribute my having such good health, & when one is strong & healthy, he has the greatest blessing that can be conferred on him. Tis true a ball will go through a well man just as easy as it will a sick one, but in this war as in all others sickness destroys more than bullets, & is infinitely more to be dreaded, I think. Well my time is most up & I must close, hoping that you will continue to remember me, & when you sit down at the melodeon, sing a song for one whose happiest moments are spent in thinking of the good old times we have had, many more of which, I hope are in store for us.          Your, Aff cousin, Kirt.

 

[front margin:] When you write direct to Newport News, via, Fortress Monroe.

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