Camp 23rd Regt NCT
near Motons Ford Va [1]
Dec 4th 1863
Dear Pappa..Ma.and.Mit
I seat my self
this morning to answer your kind
letter which came to hand day before
yesterday and it was read with great
pleasure. this leaves me well and
harty after having such A long
and tiresome trip but thank
god that I came out safte and
unhurt and have returned back
to our same old camp… know
I will give you the particulars
of the fight [2] on the 27 of Nove
the yankes crossed the river
three different places and during
the day wee wase in A line of
battle behind our breast works
heare at Motons Ford but at night
wee received orders to be ready to
march at A moments warning
[page 2]
so before the dawn of day next
morning wee ware aroused from
our sleep to meet the invador
and before the break of day wee
formed A line of battle and then
wee commenced bulding breast works
but didnt stay very long before
wee had orders to leave so wee
marched down in A few hundred
yards of the yankes and then
I was orded out to the front
by the time the rest of the
Sharp Shooters from the different
Brigades ware engaged in fighting
but as wee ware on the extream
left of the line wee did not
get in it untill last in the evening
and then the yankes advanced on
us and the fight opned so wee
shot A few rounds and then chargd
them driving them before us
for several hundred yards when
they received reinforcedments
[page 3]
compelling our line to hault
then they shot volly after volly into
our line the fireing was kept up
for some time then wee got orders
to retreat so wee fell back in good
order and then night come on
and the yankes advanced A line of
battle upon us finding that they
could nt drive us in no other way
but as they would advance wee
would shoot A volly into thare line
which would cause them to hault
they came upon us three different
times that night and our line repulsed
them each time. but Co .I. was
sent out to our support and that
evening in our charge wee capsuerd
A Lieut Col and 5 or 6 prisioners
and killed several and wee didnt
loose but one man in the time
and he was slightly wounded
and that night wee fell back to
miners run [3] thare wee took our
stand and very soon next morning
[page 4]
thye made thare apperance in our
front then I expected A regular
engagement would commence but
none but the sharp shooters was
engaged so they staid in A few
hundred yards of our line for 4 days
both armies viewing each other all
the time one on one hill and
the other on another nothing but
A small creeak divided the two
armies after they staid in this
formation for two days the sharp shooters
on both sides made A bargin not to
shoot at each other untill one side or
the other advanced so wee then went
to trading with each other you may
believe that they was pround to get off
in that way just to stop the shooting
I have not time to tell you all about our
trading frollick but one night they ware
orded to charge our breast works so they
formed thare line and piled up thare
knapsacks to charge us but they looked
over at our line and thare hearts failed
them and the order was countermanded
so they did not come and the next
night they retreated across the river
and next morning wee persuerd
them but could not over take them
before they crossed I do not know
how meny prisioners wee took that
morning but it was some over
5 hundred so wee have gained
A great victory without much fighting
Genl Johnsons division fought A
very hard battle one evening the
yankes charged them several times and
got whiped every time
[end of letter]