Camp Near Fredricksburg Virginia
December the 2nd 1862
Dear Wife
I again take my pen in hand to
inform you that I am in tolerable helth I have
the rumaties and a powerfull bad cold and cough
I have no news to wright we are laying here doing
nothing the enemy is laying on the other side of the
river in sight all our fourses are here Jacksons armey
is here it just come in the other day some think that
we will have a battle here but I donot think we
will the yankeys are trying to find out the strength
of our fourse they go up in baloons and have spyes
in our camps for that purposs if we do have a fight
I think it will be a powerfull one We are in a
scarse country to get provisions we cannot get any thing
to eat without paying four or five prices we cannot
get a bit of butter milk bacon lard or anything of
the kind all we get to eat is Old dry crackers and
beef without hardly any salt we get enough of salt
just as you can tell it if you had some of
it to eat you would say it had no salt on it
yestarday we got some bacon and when it was divided
out we got a piece of it about as larg as your three
fingers to a man about as much as I can eat at
one meal this is the first we have had in a
month or more you dont begin to know how
hard we have it laying in the cold and having nothing good to eat
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I have not received any letter from you in a month
and would be glad to here from home once more
I am sorter pestered this morning I lost
$20.00 a twenty doller bill some how in changing
when I had my pocket book out I droped it I
expect that is the way I lost it. it come light
and went the same way I won it. easy so it didnot
do me any good though it was a right smart
to loose I was a going to send it home the first
chance I guess I cant now there is every thing
played here to get money but they have not
got any out of me yet
I want you to wright to me soon and give me
all the news and how you make out for wood
I would be glad to come home but I donot
think I will get to come until piece is maid
unless we all leave and come home anyhow
I dont think old Jeff Davis can feed us much
longer and we will all have to starve or
come home I would be glad if we could leave
here and get some where we could get something
good to eat and have something sent from home
I donot expect we will go into winter quarters this
winter we have had very favorable wether here
it is a little cool though we can get wood a
plenty where we are If I was at home and could
get some milk and butter and chicken and a
little brandy I soon would fee[l] like a live person
there was a man died last night going to the
sinks with the diarear that is two that has died
very sudden in a short time our wages and wat
we get wont begin to feed us we may spend all
of our money as fast as we get it and eat our
rashens and go hungry I hope onlode the cars the
other night we to out 19.000 lbs Bacon 3.000 lbs of crackers
280 bbl of flower 60 bbls picled pork and they said
that wasent more than enough for Longstreets division
37000 men I must close hoping this letter may find
you all welll so no more at presat yours truly
M A Zimmerman J.C. Zimmerman