Memphis Tenn Mar 24^th 1863

 

Dear Miriam

                        I thought I would write you afew lines more before we leave Memphis we thought that we would have been gone from here before now but army matters are like life verry uncertain I wrote you aletter yesterday and sent you fifteen dollars pr the hand of Mr Johnson Comer of Pocahontas I want you to use the money I send you for your special benefit as I do not care anything about the debts or anything that way since our beloved Eddy has left us it is no doubt better for him than to have lived until he had reached the years of maturity and of sin his pure spirit has gone to the God who gave it and he is now at rest free from pain and all care we may possibly go to him but he can never return to us It looks hard to me / that he should have lived until he had become interesting and shown that he was achild of uncommon intelligence and until our whole hope for the future and our affections wound around him as they were and then to have been taken away from us It is averry severe lesson to us but I am afraid it will do me no good I want you to send me the paper that has his death in it I will send you fifty cents in this letter and I want you to send me some postage stamps for it as the place we go to Vicksburg is averry hard place to get stamps and things of that kind The loss of Eddy makes me think of home more than I ever have done since I have been in the army I was on guard last night it was averry wet cold and disagreeable night it rained most all night but has cleared off again. I have sent my overcoat home in abox with the coats / of the other boys they were sent to Jo Myers of beaver creek you can get your Uncle Billy to get mine for you George Palmer has deserted we do not know where he has gone to but suppose he has gone on board of a gunboat I would like verry well to go into the gunboat service and will if you and Ma will agree to it it is not as hard service as the infantry. You must write to me verry often I have not received aletter from you since I left home

 

                                                                                                            Nothing more but

remains your affectionate

husband until death shall

part us

                                    H. B. Drake

                        Miriam E. Drake

 

P.S. if we should stay here or at another place that it would do for you to stay you may come and stay with me if you want to

Write soon as you                   H B D

get this

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