Camp Peirpoint Nov
11th [1861]
virginia
Dear Parents I Now
Take my pen in hand
To inform You that I am well at
Present Time Thanks Be to God for his
mercies Bestowed on us hoping that
Theas few Lines will find You all
Well in the same State of health I am
as Stouter Now then I have Been
for A Long time for I had A Bad Cold
For A Long Time and Now I am well
A Gain So I thought I would Write You
A Letter A Gain I have Not Got Enny
Letter from home for A Bout 3 weeks
and I Thought it Long Time Not to
Hear from home for so Long A Time
I Got A Letter from Augustine E[??]
on the 4th of November and he Said
that they were all well At present
Time I hope that You are all well to
Philip [Andrew Lantzy?] Pleas this [seem?]
[top margin]
Direct Your Letter to washington
as usual and it will
follow us
[page 2]
I haint much to
Write this time But
I will tell You A Little
A Bout the weather here
and when You Write I
want You to tell me how the weather
is on the mountain and how Cold
it is there the weather is Getting midling
Cool here here But we Nead Not suffer
Enny Cold Yet But I Cant tell if we
will Get in to Barax or Not But I think
we Can stand it here if we Do Not
Get in to Enny winter Quarters so I must
Bring that Part to A Close for that
we have Good Times here so far But I
Cant tell how Long it will Last this
war will Be over I think inside of
six month or Else it will Last 2 or 3 Years
But I think it will Be over soon
for there is A Great many Rebels
Laying Down there arms and Going
home and our men are Licking
them fast Now But We have Not
[page 3]
Been in Enny fight Yet But
we had Marching or
often But all the fight
we seen Yes was Long
Go At the Great falls whe[re]
the Rebels shelled us But
Did Not hurt Enny of us what Eve
we was on seven Day Picked [1] and I
Did talk with the secesions my self
A Cross the River A few Days Before
they Did fire on us we Could Talk to
them A Cross the River of the Potomac I
Tried to through A stone A Cross But
I Could Not Do it and the Rebels
said that they wished to God that we wou
Not Nead to fight Enny for it Looked
hard to hear them say that they would
Just as soon Shoot Jeff Davis and
Buregard as Abe Lincoln or General Scot
they said that they had Ondly Enlisted for
12 month and they asked us how Long
we had Enlisted and we told them 3
Years or Doring the war when we was
on Picket there I Catched A Large eel and
[page 4]
A Lot of Cat fish
I Got A Good mess of
fish when I was there
But we are to far A way
From the River Now I Cant
Catch Eny Now I Gess You all heared A
A Bout that Battle At Balls Bluff on
the Potomac River when our men where
Whiped But we was Not there But we
Could hear the Gun and Canons Go off
So I must Bring it to A Close for this
time we have Plenty Canons here there is
Some on Every hill here of ours So there
Is Not much Danger here I want you
all to take it Easy A Bout me Being so
far from home our hopes are Good here
Yet So Do Not think hard my Dear friends
for I will write Every 2 or three weeks to you
and I want You to Do the Same I want you
to Keep me one of Sam Colts Now for I think
I Can send You 15 Dollars or 20 Dollars
in A few weeks You will hafto Get it at
A A Barkers & I will Let you know when i
Will send You A Letter when I Do send the
money tell my mother to feel saddisfied
for hir son will Be home some time
when You are Not Looking for him if it is
Gods will so God Bleas You all Good By till
I will se you all A Gain
[upside-down and amongst the lines]
Pleas and Write soon to me and
tell me all the News there and [Joseph Lanzy?]
I want You to make Good use of my [munney?]
if I Should Never Get home to see You Enny
more But Keep my Colt till you will
know if I am At home or Not so
and tell me A Bout that money of [M???]
if he Left You have it or Not So I will
Know all A Bout it Pleas and write
Soon and Direct Your Leter to washington
as usual and the Letter will
follow us where Ever we
Go we are in virginia Now
A Bout 10 miles from
the Rebels
[top left margin]
I mst
Read
Both
way for
I have Not Room
to Write all one way
But I hope You Can +
+ read this Letter
to You [Cant??]
[????] it to
[me?]