White House Landing

May 5th [1864]

Dear Brother

I take this
opertunity to write to you
to let you no that I am
well as I have been for
a good while the regt
is to the front I and
George Lewis a man from
our Co was left behind
we was not able to march
I had the piles pretty
bad but have got most
well now we are agoin
to start for the regt
to morrow I hear that the
regt is pretty badly
cut up again Majar
Walker and Adgutant
Wright are killed thare
is not but three Captains
in the regt now and not
[page 2]
but a few officers of enny
kind nor men either they
did not have but about
two hundred when they left
here I have not heard of but
two or three being wounded
in our Co Sergt Prat is
slitly wounded in the hand
and one of our Corporals I
did not hear whitch Hiram
Spooner the hospital nurse
from our company is killed
that is all that I have
heard from I have not had
enny letters from home since
I left Bermuda [1] they go to
the regt and I feel annxious
to get them thare is eight
hundred rebbel prisnors
here waiting for transportation
to some prison thare is
three wimmen soldiers among
them one is Ordly Sergt of
[page 3]
a Company they are agoin
to make this place head
quarters for suplies for the
whole of Grants army they
are laying down the track
on the old rail road that
McLellan destroyed the
time that he retreated
from here to Harisons
landing they have shiped
an engine and a number
of cares here I was down to
the wharlves a little while
ago thare was a lot of
fellows afishing catching
them big trout with eyes
as big as your fist as
a fellow in our company
calls them they catched
them pretty fast and some
pretty good sised ones I
do not no as you can read
this for I have not a table
[page 4]
to write on nor a chare to
sit in but I have the ground
to set on and a peice of board
to write on and that is
better than we always
can get I shall be glad
when I get home whare I
can live like someboddy
again and not like a
pack of hogs as wee have
to here but it is three
months and fifteen days
if I live that long and
I guess that I shall I
have not ben hit with
enny shot from the rebs
to hurt me yet but I have
had some sing pretty
close and one spent ball
hit me on my wrist when
you write direct your
letters as you allwayes
have wee are the first
brigade second division
eighteenth army core
we went by the name
of hickmans star brigade
but he is in Ritchmond and
we have got a new general I
cannot think of his name
Alfred