Ooltawah Tenn

March 22^ond 1864

 

Dear wife and Children

I will this afternoon write a part of a letter to you to let you kno I am well and to pass this stormy day over our Co is on picket today and a sorry time they will have it commenced to snow last night and has been ever since the snow is about a foot deep and verry soft an old citizen says he never saw such sno in Tennissee I feel prety well satisfied I dont have to be out on picket today and tonight as it is I sit in my shanty by the fire nothing to do but eat sleep and write there is lots fun snowballing this morning the officers was out throwing at the boys they soon runn them in their tents then they went in to shell them out / they told them to hold out the white flag such showers of snowballs I never saw they made the officers put out a white rag each tent in turn they have made a large snow man in front of the Chaplains tent and a women in front of our quarters on our Coler Line I will now close for today and take a nap I look for a line from you next mail

 

tuesday night All right I got your letter six days after it was mailed you have lots trouble in your cuntry bad wether muddy roads and shooting soldiers and worst of all the rats eating your shoes we have no trouble now days here only today has been stormy the sno is A.S. Deep if one sits down tonight is cold our boys will have a rough time on picket tonight

 

you may immagin how it goes to be be out in the woods tramp back and forward at your sentry poast sno 1 foot deep and no fire for 2 hours then curl down in the sno to sleep or do without as best suits you that is the way we soldiers live to fight for our cuntry see the consolation and credit we get for our sufferings If I was a man that done much praying my greatest prayer would be that god would send fire and brimstone down on Bucyrus and lay it in ashes I am like you I get Pase when I think of it well mam I will go to roost I have a roost of pine poles to sleep on tonight I have 4 blankets one under 3 on top I will finish tomorrow as the male wont leave until evening 23^d this morning I will finish so you got my money all right I wish you had a larger pile I dont care about the pile you hinted at being larger but the money pile if they rais our wages it is in the papers that they are going to raise Privates to 18 Sergeants to 30 I want to save some enough to leave Bucyrus with if we get out of the servise /

 

it is so cold I hardly can write I had a pan of hot water and washed my socks last night late it was froze not 2 feet from the fire this morning in my tent such wether never was saw here but the sun is comeing out by night I expect the sno will be all goan

 

            Well we still have our fun at night when nice there is music and dancing there has got to be lots of jumping so I have to mix in that there is none to jump with me I jumps in our Co or I or H. I have beat the Bully they call me the old man they say lookout there comes the old man no use for us to jump against him

 

Well you say you like to get letters so well you cant like it better than I it would suit me to get 4 or 5 a week I want you to write as often as you feel like it while I am here I can write often our mail is getting regular now one more thing I will tell I have forgotten / if I told in any of my letters if you remember I told you when I was at home that Jerry Couts was missing I have heard since that some of their Regiment which is the 3d OVC was out and a small party of them was surprised by Gurrillas and one captured but the rest comeing up the Gurrillas had to skedaddle and leave there prisoner this band in part was of our own men Couts is one another from near Anapolis and some of the 4^th OVC and the 4^th Regulars they are many of them sothern men but Couts and the Ohio lads have no excuse they are a band of Thieves Robbers and Murderers

 

I am glad you sold Queen she was but a bill of expense and a specimen of boys folly I got a letter from Jef a few days ago he was as contented he said as a rat in a corn box /

 

I have some rings I will send if I get a chance they are large one is Laurel the othe Boan with silver plate on the Laurel has 3 silver sets I have sold one for $100 next Pay day I have a shield for a neck tie with Gluttaperchy and silver sets but now I must dry of as my silver is all I wish you to send me a Peg all if I had one I could fix my shoes sometimes to last a little longer get a crooked one a larg sewing all. I can break it to suit Put it in a letter I dont kno what more to write our cows dont give milk but our hen laid an egg tother day the cat ran away and we have no dog

                                                                                    C. M

 

                                                            To the other Half

 

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we expect Lt Colonel McDonald here in about 2 or 3 weeks when he comes listen if you cant hear some cheers comeing from the hills and mountains of East Tennissee if not to cold if cold they will freeze any stop on the road in chunks

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