Near Fredericksburg Va
May 11th 1863
Dear Wife and Children
As I have a little time
I thought I would improve
it by writing a few lines to inf-
orm you that I am well and
hope you are the same I have
seen some hard times within
the last two week we left
camp two weeks ago to morrow
and marched six miles to the
river where we stoped for the
night it rained quite hard
we lay down for the night
the next morning we got up
eat our grub we was spending
our time as well as we could
until about noon when there
came a shell into our camp
from the rebel side of the
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river and they Kept comeing
you may make up your mind
there was some scratching among
us by that time. our Col told
us to run for the bank and
get down we all got there
and none of us hurt there
was two men Killed in a reg-
iment just behind us the
rebs soon stopt throwing their
shells we lay there two days
the third day they began
again and our battery which
lay just above us opened
on them we lay between
them our batterys fire pa-
-ssed just over our heads and
the rebs shells and slugs fell
all around us but no harm
done to us except a Col horse
had his under jaw shot up
we were taken out of
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that place or it might have
been worse with us. we left
there about 1 O. clock in the
morrning and they Kept us
agoing until 1 O. clock the
next morrning. we marched 24
miles with eight days rations
on our backs. where we stopt was
on the right of Hookers line
of battle. we got there just
intime to be ready to take
part in the fight that took
place on sunday we was not
in the battle but was in line
of battle all day so as to play
our part if the rebs should
under take a flank movement
the fighting was done about
a mile from where we lay
it is said by old soldiers that
was there that there never
was harder fighting done
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on that day our men had
the good luck to drive them
out of that place if they
done as well at Fredericksburg
we think the fighting would
be nearly done with but as
they have been more than a
than a mach for us it was
thought but to have our
men brought back across
the river again we left in
the night and come back
to this place about a mile
from the place where we was
shelled before we left we
was well nigh whipt when
we got here I said we had
eight days rations on our backs
we have to Keep that amount
of rations on hand all the time
so as to be ready to moove at
any time it makes a nice little
back load with the rest of the
stuff we have to carry I will
stop now write as soon as you
can Lyman Beebe