the
Orang . corthouse .v. A. this . 9 . of . dec . 1863
My dear wife I now Seat
my Self to answer your cind letters whitch
I received from you I was truly glad to hear
from you but Sorry to hear of my dear
brothers death but I hope and trust in god
that he went in peace I hope he is now in
heaven with his farther never to be parted
eny more my dear wife the deaths of my dear
brothers greavs me to my wery hart but all
we have to do in this world is to live in peace
with god . and then when our time comes to
be cut off . we air prepard to meet our lord
and master . my dear wife I wont you to rite
to me what my dear brother Sead before he
died tel me whether he had eny thing to Say
or not. my dear I am well and harty
at present and I hope when theas few
lines reaches you they will find you and
my dear little daughter in fine health
my dear wife I am Sorry to hear of my dear mother
I am afeard I will never get to See her and
O how can I bear to lose all of my people and
never get to See them in this world eny more
O my dear it greavs me to my verry hart
[page 2]
My dear wife I have no news to rite as I am
in So mutch truble you Sead in your letter
my dear that you had no Shoos I wold by you
apair and Send them to you but I am out of money
and Shoos is thirty and forty dollers apair but
if you cant get none I will try and get you apair
get you apair if you can for I wont you to come to
See me before long try and get them if you can
for I will Send for you in afew days they air
some ten or twelve wimen coming to this
compny to See thair husbands in about aweak
and I wont you to come too and then you
will have compny and if you do come bring
as mutch prvishions as you can and bring all
of your money and get about twenty five dollers
of my farther I will rite to him and tel him
to give it to you So bring that and all the balence
for you dont know how mutch you will nead my
dear I must now close by asking you to rite Soon
and tel us what has become of my farther
we hant heard from him in about too munts
rite and let us no what has become of him
no more at present rite Soon John . H Hartman
to his dear wife Partha . L Hartman