James River Aug 10^th 1862

 

Sister Your favor

Is at hand I received a paper while at Malvern hill & another when I came home containing a Silk Kerchief for which I must remain your humble debtor We have been paid and I purchased another for 2.00$ about the same kind I only meant for you to send a cotton one. nothing is as good on a march as a Kerchief, to wipe away the sweat which fairly runs from a fellow. You can imagine how it would be to carry a gun 60 round of Cartride Belt Box Bayonet Scabbard haversack Blanket oil cloth (60 lbs) and run double Quick from mansfield to Bellville across the country through the swamps We run that far without watter some of us /

Maby you read in the paper about the fight. It was done mostly by cavalry and artillery lots of fellows went out of our regiment into light artillery. So when you hear of Ricketts Battery you can think of the the old 59^th N.Y. I will tell you some little things but say nothing there. When we was drawn up in line of battle behind the woods at Malvern hill and waiting orders to drive the enemy from the wood, ame Plank cried the boys all laughed at him. Polk Rankin fell out half way come back to camp and told the fellows how he stopped to rest and the rebel Cavalry got after him, while we drove all thier pickets before us. polk was afraid. They fun him all the time some other fellows grew suddenly sick /

 

Oll wanted to know who our 2^nd Liut was his name is W^m K Smurr of New London O We all like our officers pretty well Fort Alexander was play but this is Soldiering indeed There is lots of our fellow up at White Oak Swamp laying around that never was nor ever will be burried nothing will mark their spot but bleaching bones allready the silent vultures darken around thier prey We are often slow to think poor fellow you have about 4 feet of your Bounty land, and an honorable discharge then Pour Scotts requiem o’er the dead, Soldier rest thy warfares o’er Sleep the Sleep that knows not Braking Dream of battle fields no more days of danger nights of waking & so forth /

 

When we write the boys we most allways write devilment and pretend to have the best kind of times you tell Charles if he knows whats best to stay at home till draft for if ever I’d enlist again I’d enlist to stay at home I would prefer a quiet little nook in the Ohio Penitentiary to the torn and ruited fields before richmond not for fear, nor fight but march by night fight by day, half the time without watter or crackers tired half to death, thats what I call rough yet most of our boys dont care when the shell is flying they’ll be making fun cracking jokes &c. we two of our fellows just from richmond say they met a couple of Sesesh Cavalry and they flipped coppers to see which would surrender. our fellows lost. So they all cooked supper together and had a little chat and started for richmond. Such is soldiering

 

I have no more to say this time

                        (Poor pen this)

Will

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