Camp Anna

                                                                                    Goldsboro North Carolina

                                                                                                March 29^th 1862

 

My Darling Tuann

                        I wrote to you a day or two since & a day or two before that, consequently I have but very little to write this time & I have no letters of yours to reply to. I would love dearly to get a line from my love if only to say you were well, but we have been on the move so much lately that the letters have not been able to overtake us & I know there are two or three on the way for me from you.

 

I write you in respect to [paper hole] Rimes by Mr Marshall. He is not coming here having been ordered to report at Atlanta. so he will not bring him.

 

I wish you would cut off the tail of my “Lee Mounted Rifle” coat & cut the buttons off of it & make a round about of it. Take the buff off of the cuffs & replace it with the part of the tail you cut off [paper hole] if the sleeves do not extend under the buff cuffs Take the silver braid off the sleeves. Make a round-a-bout of it, all but the buttons & sew the button holes up the front for one row of buttons. I will have brass buttons put on here.

 

If you can get gold cord enough off my smoking cap, I would like you to trim & send my black pants—they should have a black velvet stripe one & a half inches wide with a gold cord on each side of it. Double & twist the cord if there is enough. if not, you will have to put it on single. It should be double if possible If you have to put a cuff on the jacket it should be / bound with cord. Send in a dozen of the buttons with the jacket—

 

The black pants are rather short for me. I wish you would turn them down at the bottom & let the stiffening down too, so as to make them as long as possible.

 

Rip the two legs apart & let them out to their full extent, the whole length of the seam up the back. (I am getting rather corpulent) Take off the silver braid from the coat collar & if there is any buff on it take it off. I want it just a plain blue cloth jacket. no trimming unless in putting in the cuffs it should require [paper hole] gold cord. If there is enough cord it would do well to make a pointed cuff trimming at any rate.

 

Have them fixed as soon as possible as I may have an opportunity of getting them brought on soon.

 

If you do not have to put cuffs in place of the buff ones & the blue cloth extends under the buff on the tail, there will be enough of the tail to make a vest. send it in with the rest & I will have a vest made. It is almost impossible to get a scrap of blue cloth here.

 

Make the button holes in the jacket rather near the edge as I expect it will be quite small enough for me.

 

And now I believe I have told you all about the jacket & pants so that it will certainly be right. Get them ready as soon as you can conveniently my Darling.

 

The new blue coat I got was so small I had to dispose of it. The one I wore / in Lee is so tight I can hardly wear it. My blue uniform pants are worn out & the black ones were half worn when I got them from home so you see I am pretty well out of clothes & they are so outrageously high I hate to buy them—particularly in my uncertain position here. I am waiting for certain developments to determine me whether to stay here or not.

 

I believe I told you we left D^r Smith at Suffolk with some sick. Several of them have died since. Whether or not it could have been helped I do not know. There is a good deal of puling in the regiment concerning him.

 

There are quite a large number of troops encamped about us here.

 

I do not much think we will have anything to do here.

 

We are constantly ready to move & could be on the march in twenty minutes after the reception of the order.

 

We are to have a “Brigade Drill” tomorrow by Gen Cobb. It will be composed of five regiments. Quite a pretty sight.

 

I wish you could see it but I am now more than ever glad that I did not bring you on here as my duties have been such that I could have been with you but very little & in moving you would have found it extremely unpleasant

 

I am afraid the large tone of Dr C[?] does not please you.

 

I would be well pleased if you did join the the “Sewing Society”—tho’ they are fruitful / sources of discord. Still the people of Lee & Sumter have been kind & attentive to you & if you cannot go I would subscribe at any rate & tell them situated as you are you cannot conveniently attend.

 

Well my Darling I have nothing to tell you. no letters to answer & nothing of any interest happening to tell you of. Give my love to Mrs C West Mother Son & all

 

Give my love to Inez & tell her I owe her an apology for my apparent neglect but we have been in such a stir for some time past that I could not attend to it.

 

Please attend to the jacket & pants as soon as you can.

 

Give Best respects to all

Good bye my precious Darling

Write soon. I would love to hear from

you—Your aff husband          Erwin

 

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Camp Anna

Goldsboro N.C.           3/29/62

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