Fort Smith Oct 4th 64
Dear Father I now sit down
to write yow an other letter in
hopes that this will reach its destinat [1]
ion I wrote you a letter on the twenty
eight and have not herd from it
yet it is rather lonsom for a felow
out here not to here from home
you know there has been a spell
of wet wether here for the last
week and it is quite mudy
there is consideruble of entrist
here an regard to how shall be the
next president I cant [vote?]
or dont expect to but if I could
old abe would get my vote I know
I dont think that there will be any
more show far [welellon?] then there
is fore me and that is but little
there was a draft some days ago
thery was a draft some days ago [2]
[page 2]
in the City and it ended in a
general row thay fought
for about thirty minutes and a
regment of men was called out
and thay soon [font?] an end to
there fighting those that was
drafted had to go or furnish
a substitue I guess that there
is but little show for us to get
out of it this fall [we?] dont get
any answer from the war depart [3]
ment in reguard to that as near
as I can find out thay evlualait
to hald us another year it is
a mean trick but I gues that
I can go it an other yar we have
got good news from richmon
of this morning the rebs is geting
the worst of it as near as as
one can gues by the papers
I gues that old jeff will have
to give up be for meny names
to give up be fore many more [4]
[page 3]
years there is a company
of masachusetts boys here
from the thiryeth have just
come ot from springfield
thay got a good bounty of one
thousand for one year that
would almost pay them
for coming up I should think
youl must wote for old
abe and dont mark two
hard write often yours in haste
C Corp J P Campbell Arty [5]
Corp J. P. Campbell
1st R. J. Light Arty
Corp J P Cambe H J
Washington
D C [6]