Camp Sherman Black River Miss

August the 13^th 1863

 

Dear wife I again take my pen to write you a few lines to let you know that I am well and I hope these lines may find you all well and doing well I have but little to write but I will continue to write occasionally to let you know how I am getting along whether I have any news to write or not the last I received from you was the 22 of July I am some what uneasy about the flux that you speak about being so bad there I am afraid that it will take some of our children off to the spirit land but if they have it do the best you can to take care of them and be verry careful about letting them eat to much green fruit that will make them sick my heath is as good yet as comon I was a fraid I would have the Ague but I begin to think ma be I wont the health of our reg^t is as good as comon there is some being discharged that has been / sick so long it is talked now that our reg^t will be filled up with Conscripts several of our officers has resigned and gone home on last saturday evening Warmoth came back we called him out to make a speach he flattered us a good deal and told us he was not Lieutenant Colonel of the 32 but he was a citizen he said he would soon be restored again and that he believed that the time was not far off when we would all go back to Missouri as soldiers we all understand him well. it is but one year since he told us big tales at Rolla what will be done with the regt I dont know and I dont much care if Warmoth was to tell us the trooth we we wouldent believe it. this country is full of paroled prisners and since Uncle Sam has gave them plenty to eat they are getting verry saucy they will some of them argue the rebel doctrin strang but if they are pedling they are verry careful how they talk but they wont / take rebel money for nothing they they bring to sell the citizens come 20 and 30 miles here to draw rations and others comes equally that far to peddle on peaches & Aples mellons butter &c some of the finest ladies some say there Union and others say there rebels there men is in the rebel Army nearly all the women though say they are widows all of their husbands died at home there is numbers of women draw rations regular and their men in the rebel army and our army has to guard all of their houses to keep our men from taking their house plunder there has been some that mooved beyond our lines would not take the oath I would like all would do that way and we wouldent have their houses to guard the Provost Marshals office is crowded all the time with rebels men and women to get passes and leave to peddle and to trade with the sutler I could buy 100 dollars of Confederate for one dollar of green backs but some will / say their money is as good as ours this Country has been devoured by our Army there formally was a great deal of wealth but little remains now except old clay hills enough of that Sherrill is well he and I take a walk out to the depot to see the rebels ladies come for their rations some are verry familiar others are perfect she Devils as you know some of the rebel women are we stay there till we get tired and on our way back we are shure to call in to a brush shanty for our beer (spruce bier) I cant writ good now for it is just after dinner and verry warm and I am verry lazy you must excuse me for doing no better there is many things I wish to say but it is to tedious to write I dont expect many letters from home for no one writes to me but you and father and you know how often he writes I have got three letters from him in one year /

 

afew more words as for the signs of the times I can tell but little about it at the present it eems as though there are plenty of work for this army to do in other quarters I dont know yet where we will be sent you talk about little rock you think it is taken I dont think it is taken yet some of this army has gone in that direction I think they will clean the rebs out from west of the river I would of liked to of been in that expidition to get to little rock I would be more than two thirds of the way home I believe but I fear we will go the other way I dont see why that some people dont write to me that I have wrote to there is Thom and others I dont hear from if Adam comes home I want you to write to me forth with and let me know it or if you hear from him let me know it I studdy a good deal about home at times and sometimes dream a bout home but it just serves to make me studdy the more a bout home / it is most pay day but we fear that we wont get no pay for two months because there was a steamboat accidentally burned with all the money for this Army and the money will have to be struck again before we get it you said you would send me your likenesses dont put your self to too much trouble a bout it but any time you are ready you can send them put them in an envelope and back them as you do your letters and put stamps enough on them and they will come it takes 12 cts in stamps to bring one case I think I will send you some money soon I would of sent it before now but I was waiting to see if I wouldent go home and when I failed I thought I would wait till next pay day and send the more but I fear that pay day will fail tell America I send her a ribon my watch guard tell Columbus I wont send him any for he has forgotten me

 

yours truly as ever      Josiah Bradford

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