Tennesee January the 11^th 1863

 

Dear wife I will try and write a few more lines to you to let you know how I get along but must inform you that I do not get along very well for my health is not first rate but I am able to be around and do my share of duty which brings me on guard evry other day and knight I have got a bad cold and I have that tickling coughf that I used to have at home and in the situation that I am placed in makes it very bad for me it was bad enoughf at home when I was where you could wait on me and take care of me but I have no help here Ransom Mack has to take care of himself or or die O wife how I do miss you and how lonely I be while absent from you when I left home I did not think that I should be away from you so long O what intrigue and deceipt has ben practised in this war I say it is both shameful and disgraceful it is a war as of speculation as much as for freedom or more so the poor private souldier has to be presst away from his family and home when if those that were placed in command had done their duty as they ought to have done this war might have been closed long ago the poor souldier at home the war debt stoped and our government restored but the way this war is caried on and ever has been its a great doubt in my mind whether the north will ever whip the south evry little while we hear of one of our Jenerals being superceded the president not not daring to trust him longer orders his removal and puts another in his place and this has been the case in many instances each one on dissmissal has been in long enoughf to feather his own nest and what more does he want or care for and so you may trace it down from the head Jenerals to the Cornels of regiments to the Captains and Lieutenants of Companies they all draw big pay and just as soon as they have been in / service long enoughf to fill their pockets and have had the honor of being Cornel or Captain or Lieutenant as the case may be and get tierd of the service then they will turn their toils upon their Companies who elected them to office calculating that they would would stick to them and share the fortunes of war but it is not so with this high headed gentry the first thing we hear is such a Capt has resigned and absquotlated and gone home then a lieutenant leaving their Companies the poor private souldier drawing only thirteen Dollars a month and they are compeled to pay the sutler half of that per month for something that the government dont furnish them in order that that they may keep their soul and body togather I say that they are left thus by their officers to fight cut bait fish or swim whilst they go home to rival in all the natural luxries of life again the rebels have the advantage of us for they are at home in their own Country they have their secret lurking places they wont often come out and fight us fairly no that is not the game they are playing they know as well as we do that evry inch of teritory and miled of railroad that we get must be strongly guarded and it is their whole aim and study to spy out out our force and find where it is weakest then they will asemble togather a force which they think is sufficient to conquer and make a desperate dash and if not overpowered they will burn bridges tear up railroad track take what prisioners they can and then they are off again before we can get enoughf of our men togather to capture them and it is almost in vain to look for them for they are chiefly mounted gurrilies thus you see that a small army of them will keep a large army of ours here so that we shant go to places which is of more importance to them I will not coment upon the management of the war any more in this leter but if I ever live to get home I will give you a verbal transaction of the whole concern

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