Morganza, La.

Dec. 28^th 1864.

 

My Dear Wife,

                        At the time of writing you about the Ellison business day before yesterday I was laboring under a great mistake about the facts in the case. I was then of the impression that C[?] was the man that owned the 80 acres, the half of which I supposed was in cultivation, while Ellison owned but 40 acres and it all raw land excepting a small lot. I also thought thought Ellison had never been paid anything unless it had been since Harvey had sold the hogs. But to-day I was looking over some of your old letters on / purpose to see if I was right about the matter and was both surprised and alarmed to find I was so badly mistaken. If Harvey takes the proper course in time, I think it will be all right. I am pretty sure that if he goes before some official—perhaps the Clk. of the Court or the County Judge—and presents the bond and makes a tender of the money as soon as it is due, the Court will make a deed to the land; but if he makes no tender of the money till some time after it has become due, it will show a failure on our part to fulfill the contract, in which case we would be almost certain to lose the land and all we have paid on it unless Ellison returns from the / army all right and is an honest man after he does return.

 

I hope Harvey has had the forethought to council an Atty. and act before it is everlastingly too late.

 

When I read that paragraph in your last letter about Ellison having been drafted and gone to the army, I rested very easy about it because I thought if we did not get a deed to the land we would lose no money by it. It is now said that we will be paid off as soon as we are mustered on the last day of this month.

 

I rec'd a congratulatory letter from J. D. Sawer the other day. He had seen a published copy of the order of our consolidation and of course supposed that I was the bona fide Quarter Master / of the Battalion. Wasn't he (perhaps myself) sold?

 

In my reply I assured him that I fully appretiated the sincerity of his congratulations, but that our "Lucas County arrangement" had been so completely upset that a letter of condolence would be much more appropriate to me just now.

 

I have not seen anything of the missing letter yet.

 

The 38^th has not been heard from since my last writing. If they do not come pretty soon I shall begin to think there is something in the wind.

 

            Well I guess I will quit writing for the present.

 

 Your affectionate husband,

Enos Reed.

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