[1] Newbern N.C. Dec 31st [1862]

Dear Brother Birney

I now take my pen in

hand to write you

a few lines to let you
no that I am well and
healthey and hope these
few lines will find you
enjoying the same good
health to day is the last
day in the year and a
cold and blusterin day
it is for this part of the
country but not so cold
but what I drilled without
over coat or mittens we wer
mustered in for pay this
fore noon and signed the
pay roals to night and
[page 2]
are to be paid for four
monts satturday we have
fifty two dollars due to us
we have to settle for oure
clothes this payday I do
not no how I stand
presisly but some whare
about eight dollars to pay
but I came out well to what
some do thare is one fellow
in our company that ows thirty
seven dollars and another that
ows twenty five but they will
not catch me again I
will make them pay me
twise what I ow them that
box that I sent home I guess you
think that I was in a hurry
when I packed it and you
will not be mutch out of
the way for we wer getting
ready for the expidition to
[page 3]

kingston and goldsborough
and did not have time to
sort them or enny thing but
put them all in I thought
that the tools would come handy
but I ment to sort them som
for thare was some that was
not good for enny thing and
I should have kept some of them
if I had thought that we wer
coming back again to stay but
the story was that we wer not
agoin to come back to newbern
again but we are here and
are likly to stay for a spell
for all that I can see and
the hooks I ment to picked
out some of the bigest for they
are not good for ennything
thare but they are what they
use here for salt water trout
I thought the books wood be
[page 4]
interresting if you never
read them but the pants you
can cut up for carpet rags I put
them in to keep the rest from shaking
we recived a letter from emma to
day dated the 21 she wanted to have
me write all about our expidi
tion up to plymouth I wrote one
long letter and told all a
bout it as soon as I came
back to newbern but I will
write it again when I feel
like it I have not time to
night for it is late and
I am sleepy to morrow is new
year and we are a goin to have
an oyster supper they got
four gallons to night and are
agoin to get some more in the
morning please excuse bad
writing and spelling for
I see the folly of not goin to
school when I had a chance
I advise you and wallace
to improve your time
while you have a chance for
you will be sorry for it
if you dont tell asher that
I send my best respects to him
and the rest of the young folks
and tell them to write and I
will answer their letter from
your ever affectionate brother
Alfred