Franklin Tenn May 13th 1863

My Dear Parents
I had the plesure of receiving
your kind latter to day dated the 6th you
cant imagine how much pleased I was to here from
home. I like to get a latter from home about
once aweek and I write latters to you as often
as I can some times twise a week and some times
only once a week it is acording to what kind
of wather we have it is rany wather we have
more time to write for the reason that we cant
drill in raney days for the officers dont like to
drill the men in the rain and we dont work on
the forts when it rains and we have the best
times rainy days but we have very good times
any way the drill that we have dont hurt us
nor the work dont hurt us ather for the boys
have lurnt how to sodger they dont hurt they
selves very mutch you may bet when they work
ten good men that had been hired to work w-
uld do as much as 20 or 30 soldgers for they dont
care how they work they dont take an intrest
in it as if they was to work at home. I dont any
way the officers they dont care much how we
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work I have had Cap Wilson tell us not to
hurt our selvs but he need not tell us that
for that is pretty well lurnt we hefto go out
choping once in a while they are choping all the
timber down that stands in the range of the forts
it dont take long for a lot of soldgers to chop
the trees down where their is 2 or 3 thousand choping
this plase is geting stronger every day their was
4 big guns call the seige howetsers they throw
shells that are 8 inches acrost they are for a
short distance and their is three other guns one
is a Parrot gun and the others are seige guns the
parrot gun will throw a shot 4 or 5 miles it is
about 12 feet long it is just the thing to reach
the rebels when they are a great ways off their is
4 or 5 batterys here besides them 6 guns in a battery
I think if the rebels try to come in here now they
will have a hard time of it. but I dont think they
will ever try this plase agane very soon. the rebels
haf been routed about as fast as they want
to be lately we haf reports that Richmond
was ours but we haf not had the true report
yet but I think that if it ant ours now it will be
soon if we get Richmond it will be a dampr
on them I think I got a latter from C. H. Dow
to day he said he got a latter from John [???]
and he said that things looked favrible around
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Vixburg I think that it will be ours soon the
war looks a little more like coming to a close
than it did: their is an old Planter lives
not far from camp and some of the boys was
talking to him about the war and he said he
thaught the war would not last much longer
for he sed the rebels could not stand it much longer
if they lost Richmond and this same old
Planter has got two sones in the rebel arma
but he said he was for the union but we cant
tell what they are until they are tried they will say they
are union because they are a bliged to we cant trust
them far: I expect their is a great many Copperheads
in dover yet some of them raskels had aughto be
shot in dover I could pick out a quite a number in
Dover that are as bad as rebels as these at the south I say that
they had aughto be taken and brought down here
and put into the rebel lines and them give them
the same souse as the others haf that old Copperhead
that they caught to Dayton Ohio the other day they had
aughto haf shot him on the spot: I got a latter from
Katie from newburgh to day she told me what kind of a
time she has their a keeping house all a loan she told
me about what kind of a time she had making the first
batch of butter she told what kind of salt she put
into it she said when she went to salt it she went and got
what she thaught was salt and salted it nise and come
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to find out it was a nise pees of saltpeter ensted
of salt I should haf thaught it would have made
Uncal Sandy look soryfull to loos as much as
that for you know he is tight as the bark to a beach
tree, I am going to write to her to morow she sais
she is lonsum when aunt Cate aint their Katie
said her canser had broke out agane and she was tov
Cleveland a geting it cured she is having a hard time with
it. every thing looks nise here now and the wather is nise
to their is just anough rain comes to keep things nise
and green I suppose the wather is bad for planting where
you are by what you say I suppose you have got your ground
ploud for corn by this time Lute said you was plowing up that
lot by the ashers that will be apt to rase a good pees of corn if ritc
ness is all it wants I suppose you wont plant much this spring
if help is so scarse I should think old Cutler would behave
him self and help you but he is not worth much any way I
would rather have James than him any day: when you write let
me know whether you have got that money that I sent you by Major
Gates or not I sent 20.00 dollars and Bill sent 15.00 and Sam
sent 20.00 I herd that Gates left it to Berea he had no write
to leave it their for he was payd for taking it home to eather
you or [??] he has not done right if he has not done it when
he got pay for it let me know when you write how it is and I will
see about it 20. dollars is to mutch to loos for nothing we expect to
be payd off agane before long but we cant tell when: I suppose that
box is on the rout by this time but we cant look for it for a week or
two I think some of sending my over coat home by express Bill and
I are going to send ours to gather for we dont want them now it is
warm anough to go with out any thing on atall it will not cost
over a doller any way to send both coats and that is batter than throw
ing them away for they will make good karpet rugs if nothing else
and I expect Ellen and Lute will want to be making karpet now
when Ellen gets over in that log house. Lute I suppose you will go
and live with your big mother before long I guess she is a good woman
I wonder what uncal Fred will say when he hears of it I want you to give
me the Directions to him for I haf give up looking for that latter with that
cake in I suppose that never will come through I have not had a paper from
you in 2 or three weeks but I suppose they will come through bimby I am glad to
here you got that paper that I sent you we hefto pay 10 cts for a paper here I sent
you some twise now but maybe the other got mislayd some where. I am glad to hear
that Claria and Jennie was so pleased with that ring I thought it would fit
them I have not herd from Rudoph in a long time only by your latter I suppose
heis on the march all the while and he dont git my latters [??] to here he is well
the dover boys are all right yet exept Austin he is to Nashville and we dont here
from him very often I am well as ever G. Porter is well now I must close give
my best regards to all with my love to all of you this is from Andy Rose