the 13th 1862
Virginia Orring County August [1]
my Dear wife I seat my self
to Drop you afew lins to let you
No that I am well at present and
I hope that when those few lins
Come to hand tha may find you
and my lovely children all well
we marcht 25 mils last Friday
& Sadurday and Saturday eavning
we went into abattle we went
in to [?] first [???] [2]
Brigaid and the yankes Some of them
Come up Behind us and we had to
retreat ashort Distants but But
we all Come to a together again
and then we maid them run Back
faster than tha Came we Run them
Back about 2 miles and kild
them all the way along we
had one hundred of our
kild and wounded [????]
[????] [???][???] our Regt
[????] six wounded in
our Company and one kild
[page 2]
that was Parram Wise but Mckintosh [3]
was wounded in the thigh and the man
that Come in G.W. Turners plaice
was Shot through the arm ther was
Nine of the Boys from our settlement
hurt tho all Stud up to the
Racket Verry well after tha got
Straitend out I Dont know
how many of the yankes
was kild and taken prisners
I wount to see you all verry
Bad But ther is No chaince for
me to go to See you I hope
that we may all go through
this war Saif and I hope that
we may Both live and keep in
good helth and Spend the
Balince of our remaining Days
in ge together and if I Could
See you and my Dear little
Children it would Bee of great
Sad isfaction my Dear wife
ther is No telling how Bad
I waunt to See you you and
[page 3]
Children is all ways on my
mind for I No that I left you
in A bad Condision But I hope
that the lord may help you
my Dear I hope that you will
Raise your Sweet little
children the Best you Can and
Teach them to mind and obay
and teach them to love one another
and I pray that you and them may
allways may have good helth
and good holesome food to
Eat if you Can you had
Better git arite Smart of
Dride fruit for I exspect
that provisions will Bee verry
Scarce and hard to git and if
you Can git Some dride fruit it will
help you Some times is hard hear
and from what I Can learn
from Ala I No that times
is hard ther I hear that there
is Nothing making hardly to
Eat and that grivs me
[page 4]
to hear that provisions will Bee Scarce
for I am afraid that you will
Bee hard run for Some thing to
Eat I intend to Send you Some
money as soon as I Draw my money
I Caint tell when that will Bee
I was truly Sorry to hear that
Some Scamp had intruded on you
and I wount you to rite to me all
about it and who it was and
rite to me how you ar
making out for Something to Eat
and if you think that you will
Nead Any money in ashort
time rite to me and I will Borrow
Some and Send to you I Can
Barrow Some tel I draw my waiges
the Boys from our Settle ment is
all well that is with us I
have Not Seen Narry one of the
Simes in 4 weeks Nor I have
Not Seen Neither of the Mcknight
in the Saim length of time
lafayette Mcknight he was left
with the sick
[end of letter]