the
Newbern April .26. 1863
Dear parents with much
pleasure i take my pen in
hand to inform you that
i am well hopeing that
these few lines will find
you the same i wrote
a few lines to you a
few days ago when i were
in newbern but within a
few days we have changed
ower location on the line
of railroad betwixt Newbern
beaufort two miles from
morehead whare we enca
mped before we went
to hilton head it
is a pretty good camp
ground sea shore on
one side and woods
[page 2]
on the other so i
think it will be
a healthy place for
ouer summer Compose
yer ower mager ses
we shall probily stay
here four months
or dureing the hot wether
for we have bin stormed
round pretty well for
the last three months
now if you have got
my last letter
you have had a little
account of ower last
experdition to washington [1]
which we was a day
or two late for the
rebs they got out the
day before we got there
or else they would have
got some of unkle sam
[page 3]
blue pills on there
stomac the reason why
he started this experdi
tionwas that general
foster going to washin
gton on a visit and
the rebs hearing of it
they came down with
about thirty thousand
and serounded the
place and p[l]anted
batteries down the river
one on each side and
one on a island it
looked to me the river
not being but little
more then half a mile
Wide which being comple
tely [pened?] in and they
send in to him
to serender he sent
[page 4]
if they wanted him
and his men to
com and take them
he being well intren
ched behind batteries
and they dident like
to undertake the job
layd back and he being
bound to get out
of it started down
the river thinking
that the saferst
way and when they
came in rang[e] they
pord in vollies that
allmost blew the boat
out of water i
rearly have forgot how
many holes they put
through her but it was
a good many i hurd that
[end of letter]