wythville va March 18th 1863
Dear Wife I take my pen
in hand to rite you a few
lines to let you know
that I am well at presant
and I hope that this will find
you an little Willie both
well and doing well
to day is wedsday and last
wednsday a part of the Bat
talion left Jeffersonville
and to morrow the last of
them will get here the roads
is so bad that they have to
hitch 10 or12 horses to one
cannon and go one day journey
and then go back and bring
another one up and keep on
that a way so it will take
them 8 days to go 44 miles
we have not got a tent on
the hill and it looks very
much like rain = so turn over
[page 2]
this is the third letter in March
Jack got here this morning
I was glad to see him and to
here from you and all the
rest he brought me a letter
I dont know where we will
go but they say to Murtheys
burrough ten but I had as
soon think that we will go
to ritchmon as any other way
I dont know where to say
for you to direct your let
ters I would like to here
from you but I think you
had better not rite intil
you get an othere letter from
me and then I can tell you
we have had 26 snows
so I will quit for this
time so good bye for
this time I will rite
in a few days if I have a
chance so good bye again J.A
McMurtrey