Augusta County Va Camp 18 miles from
Harrisonburg
May the 18th 1862
Dear wif I take my pen in han to wright
you the times in camp I am well to day & thank
my Lord for the ingoyment of this blessing & hope
theas lines may fiend you & all the rest well I
have written several letters in a big hurry & had
not time to give you the perticlers of the day
& to wright as much as I wanted to I am very
mutch pleased with your letter of the 8th of may
you no you allways said you could not fine
eny thing to wright to fill up a hole sheat
but I think a sheat will hardly hole all
now if I had the time I could fill up 2
sheets eny time but some times bout the
time I commence wrighting we ar ordered to pack
up & start you may think we have but
little to do her but we ar allways bussey
I tell you when we ar on the march the
camp life is a harde one in deed my hogs
at home is treated as well as wee ar &
my horses ar treated Duble as well as we
ar when sick our officers pay little or no
attention to the sick & my dayly prayer
is that God may have murcy on us &
give us peace soon in our land that this
suffuring may may be over I sometim
es feal very bad when I see how sick people
ar treated & some times I get mad at hard
[page 2]
treatment if one gets sick her
he gets nothing to eate in a common
way & has to walk if he can crawl at
all thare ar so meny sick they have not
wagons to hall them all every man for
him self her us tge motto thare ar
a great meny unwell in our armey men
her do no lay up for a little sickness
becaus they no the sick fair so bad thare
ar not meny Companys that have
more than 50 men for duty in a comm
on way some 30 some 25 & so on all
of the new recruts ar sick but 2 my
self & will Gross frank Anderson
is her but is on the sick list but
going about we have [had?] a very wet
may only 1 weak of fair wether & no
tents at all but expect to get some
now in a few dayes you say you
ar afraid our pastur will not last
untill harvest if not you had better
turn out some of the young cattle
a few week & keep the milk cattle & hogs
& sheap in but do as you think best
you will hav to manage untill I
get home eny way the best you can
you must let me no in your letter
how tobacco sells but I do not
[page 3]
to sell untill next spring I thin
k this war will be shure to close this
year & tobacco will sell better next year
eny way I would like to come home the
bes kine soon & will come as soon as I
can get a furlow but do not expect one
before June or July this is a hard strug
le and the strugle will soon be over
I beleave & may the prayers of Gods people
in the south be lifted up for the favor
on our side the rath of God is on us
but the Lord help us to repent & then
it will be removed. give my love to
Len & famly & tell them to wright to
me I will wright to them as soon
as I can wee have bin on the march for
3 weak & have no time to wright my love
to Casandria & Hudson
& to Mrs Virginia ferrel & M P ferrel &
wife Kidd & famly Turner & famly G P
Luck & famly samuel Jones & famley &
Mrs sarah Coffee & famley tell her we ar
close to John C Coffee but I have not
bin able to see him yet I inten to go &
see him if posable giv my love to Mrs E t
read and all of the rest of my neighbors
& friends & tell them to wright to me
[page 4]
a letter from eny of my neighbors or friends
would do me more good tha a 5 dollar
note on the Richmond Bank & you may
gess how much good one from you dose
me you may say that I am home
sick but no more so than all the rest
of the boys ar keen to come home
thareis no place like hom home sweet
home I long to see & thare to stay & I hope
in the Lord the time will soon come
when the trubles will be over & we all meet
again on earth to in joy the plesures &
comforts of home if the people of the south
would would repent as sodom did I think
pease would cover our land in 3 mounth or
at lest the fighting would stop wright
often no more for the present your ever Dear
& affectionate husbon John A Dewitt
to Mary DeWitt
to mr Kidd Dear sir you will please
attend to eny little matters that
mary can not attend to in regarde to tra
ds & settlements in a word to the best
for me you can in all my temperal
affars & you will oblige your friend
very much John A DeWitt
I will wright to you soon I sent you
a letter bout the 8th of may no more
far well for the present
Jno A Dewitt