Aprile the "16" 1862

 

My Dear wife it is with pleasure that i im brase the opertunety to rite a fiew lins to let you no that i am tolerbel well my arm is about well it my left arm it was hert just below the elbow jointe and it was hert vary bad for severel days but is so that i can yose my arme and i truley hope when those fiew lins com to hand tha will find you all well and doing well and well satis fied we hav had one of the hardest battels that has ever bin seen on the a marican soil and after the battel and the ded men lay thick the rebels was prettey near all shot in the hed the worst site i ever seen / was a rebel shot in the hed and the muskettry fird the leavs and tha bernt to him and burnt his clothing off of him and burnt the skin untill it curld up and the flesh looked like it was baked doon and i saw a man that had bin struck with a cannonball in the hed and it tore all of his hed off and left the end of his chin and tore his brans out of the skull and skatterd them over the ground i seen thousans of men ded on the battel field and lots of our men dying that was wounded wee fote with the thirtey first regment and did not now it untill after the battel was over and i will tell you of som of the men in the regment John batey mason melton Albert Corbin thomas Corbin and [?] owns he was wounded and died the next day 

 

after the battel was over it lasted to days william hatfield and jeiry hatfield and i saw James bridges he is in the 15 ind regment and he says he left rus mitchel at nashvill tennesee and henry went home on aferlow he was sick he is well i recived your kind letter dated the 4 which i red with pleasure i was glad to hear from you all but was sorry to hear that sweete littel Jacob was sick but hope that he is well well soon i hav rote one letter sinc i came hear for fier you never got it i will mention about about the boys on sondey eavning our regment and one of the west Constans regments was taken prisners and generel printes was taken with them J T tindel was shot in the brest and fell ded on the grouned and our Capt was taken prisner / and the lutenant conel Capt debolt and 4 other captans lutenant mun was wounded in the left side with a spent graepe shot and Adjutent marten in the left foot and marion and william baker and will hampshire John snops John n Coon adem Coon John A marten and agrate meney others and i am truley thankful that i am now hear well again we dont now how long we will hear be hear our Adjutent he has peatition peptiteoned to generel helleck for the remander of our regment to be dis charged but we hav not got anancer yet. direct your letter to St louis if i never se you eny more i want to meete you in heven tell the sweete children houdey for mee and kiss them for mee

 

fare well dear wife J Sanders to

                        Rittey A Sanders

and children

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