1861
State of N C Raleigh May th 26
My dear Father and mother
I take my pen in hand this eavenig
to drop you a few lines to let you
know that we are well at this time
hoping that you are all enjoying the
same blessing we have all ben enjoying
very good health since we left home
except the bowel complaint and a
few founders there has ben several
of us had a light tuch of the bowel
complaint but we are all giting better
of it W P Fortune delivered us a
letter from you last wednesday
morning We were very glad to heare
from you all Jacob wrote a leter to
you last sunday morning at statesville
and sent it to the post office and forgot
to put a postedge stamp on it and did not
know whether it went on or not We left
Statesville last sunday morning and
went down as far as saulsbery
[page 2]
and there we st until tuesday morning
and we left for raleigh we got to raleigh
tuesday eavening and have ben here ever
since we were sworen a saturday
morning to serve twelve months under
the governer and other officers unless
discharged sooner We recived our armes a
[inserted above “x”] that will carey a [????????]
saturday eavening they were rifles x there is
a very good prospect for a battles before long
and we will be redy for it very soon
The newse come here yesturday that the
yankeys had took Alaxandrey in virginia
there was five thousand yankeys come on
our men there which was only six hundred
in number and they give ba[??] without
any fighting the yankeys will be apt to
have a trile there before long There has ben
three rigments left here for richmond
virginia and the fourth one is made up
we are in it thare are [?????] to mak
the fifth one Our officers are [???] going start
to weldon to morow morning to help to
[page 3]
elect officers for the rigment
It is supposed that we will start for
weldon the last of this weak it is likely
we will [several words crossed out] stop a peace
this side of weldons Capton Mcdowels company
left here last tuesday morning and we got here
in the eavening we were very sory that we
did not get here in time to see them start
They left in very good sperit so we wre told
We are all in very good sperits and have
got a long very peaceable we havent had any
fighting among each other but we expect
to make the yankeys fly if we get a holt of
them I was at preaching to day and
have not much time to write so I must
quit without it was better you must
look over my mistakes and excuse my
bad writing for it is a bad place to write
So nothing more at present give my
best respects to all my friends Wm. M. Patton
Tell Miss White that Jeferson is well
all the boys that left Swananoa are well
[continued in margin]
and are in very good sperit