Picket Guard By the Potomac
(Near Seneca Mills Maryland)
Thursday Eve” Jan 16th 62

My Dear Sister,

I thought I would write
a few lines to you tonight. Jake has wrote
today and I wrote a few lines in his letter
giving you an account of a battle between
me and a dog. Capt Rice who has been
home on a furlough arrived here today
he says he looked in all of the Express
offices in Washington and there was
no boxes for the 19th Regt. they dont
take any pains to get the boxes to Washington
after they once get hold of them a man liveing
10 miles from Boston sent a box to a person
in our Company and three weeks after he
was in Boston and went to the Express
office for something and the box was
there yet. I wish you had taken a
receipt for the box and sent the receipt
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to me by letter. if you have a receipt
sent it by the next letter. I can send
the receipt to the Express office in Washington
to prove that you sent a box to me and they
will have to forward the box or hunt it up
if it is lost. the Capt of a canal boat
that runs betwen here and Washington
will hunt up boxes for the soldiers
and bring them up to them if he has a receipt
of them I hear that we are going to be
relieved from guard and go to camp
next Monday. I hope it is not so for
we dont want to leave here till Spring.
they have nothing but the old tents
that we had when we left. Lynfield
in camp and they are cold and leak
when it rains or snows while here we
have as warm and comfortable a shanty
as we wish and nothing to do scarcely.
but we cant expect to have good times
always while we are “Sageing” and if
we never see eny more good times we
can say that we had as good a time
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while we were here as we could
wish I shall never forget our
picket guard on the bank
of the Potemac. I guess the farmers
around here wont either while the canal
was froze over we use to get rails to
burn from the other side of the canal.
the man who owned them said every
rail cost him as good as 25 cents and
that 500 dollars would not pay him
for the fences that were destroyed. he
was telling this to Jake a few days
ago and mourning for the loss of his
rails never mind old fellow says
Jake you must charge them to “old
Abe” he is a rail splitter. that is a
byword now in the whole army around
here when enything is lost or destroyd
never mind you can charge it to “old
Abe.” hes a rail splitter, but I must bid
you good night. it is a fine moonlight night
and warm. send the receipt of the box if
you have it as soon as you get this
[page 4]
and let me know who it was directed
to Jake or me. I suppose if we
go to camp Monday we will be
paid soon after I dont know
why they dont pay us now as the
pay Master is in camp we are both
well and enjoying ourselves finely
the nails are beginning to grow out on
my big toes but they are very sore
yet but are getting better I have had
nothing from the doctor for them but
am waiting for the box. I guess when
the nails come off the frost come with
them as I am not bothered with them
not only from the soreness where
the nails come off. they used to give
me the devil through before that. I
have come nigh fainting with pain
several times after comeing in from
the cold and going nigh the
fire. they dont bother me any that
way now. it was a good thing in
loseing the nails. but I am forget-
-ing myself. good night and god
bless you all . Lyman