Kinston NC Nov 23the 1863

My Dear Wife and Children I Received your kind &
loving letter it giv me great satisfaction and
I was mad too I think it tis hard that you
hav to giv that place up after sowing your
Wheat I want you to tell Bill if he hant
sent you that wheat that I want him to send
it ½ bushel & ½ tobe you Rote to me to
git aferlow if I could I went to Kinston to da y
to see the Colonel and he wasant at home I dont
now whether I will git it are not if I dont I want
you to do the best you can till I git home and
then I will help you I want you to tell Joseph
Landis to pay you for them coffins if he asks
you what you charge you can tell him if he
will let you have wheat at one Dollar per bushel
that he can give you 6 bushel if he dont
you can tell him to pay you $16 Dollars you can
tell him that you want the wheat what did higgins
giv you for them berals I dident hav nothing for
My breakfirst only Corn Bred and I went over to
Kinston and I seed sum Crackers and I give
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fifty cents for six about as big as a dollar
it seems like it will take all that I can
make hear to git sumthing to Eat and to git
paper and tobacco and invelips I had to give
thirty cents for this paper that I Rote this
letter on and then I have to pay from 25
to thirty cents per garment and it
takes about all that I git your letter you
Rote the 19 I got it the 22 that is the first
letter that I have got in two weeks I thought
that you had for got me but I dont think
you have you Rote to me that you had got
my coat and you wanted to now what I had
done With my hat I swated with higgins
I could not git nary other hat and I had to
lay on it and wallow over it so I thought
that I mites swell let him have it as any way
you Will think hard of me for that but
I Dont want you to think hard of me
I could not take care of it you Rote to me
that Higgins said that he would send the
papers By Litel I have got out of hart that
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I ever Will git home any more till this
War ends I am hear and you are there so
we are many Miles A part we bee but
if I live till christmas I think if God
will let me live that long that I will
git closter home I trust in God for every
thing if I had of bin at home when Bill
Rented you out of house and home I think
that I would of heart him and I Dont
now but what I will yet but I ought to pray
for him and any other man that does as
he does the Bible teaches us to pray for
our inmas but it is hard to pray for any
Speclator when tha doo so but I pray God
to for give him You Rote to me that higgins
would Come down hear when he got his
Wheat sown I Dont think that he has any
Ida of it may God help him to think of my
Wife and littel Children and Doo all he can
if I can come home I dont want him to
bee always about it we had preachen hear
twist sunday But I would of been mutch
glader to of bin at home to of went to
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with you I want you to Rite every week
if it takes all that I make I would rather
see you than to have one bushel of gold
dust it would give me more satsfaction
than all the gold that has bin dug out of
Brachet town I dont know what to doo
if I was to come home and then tha catch
me then I would have to go back but I
think that I will try it sumtime if I live
tell mother and sister that I am tolerable
well at this time hoping that she may be
well this is the levlest contry that I ever saw
it tis as leval as your garden tha ant a hill
that can be seen about hear I had to go in
Dres perade Just now and had to finish my letter
after wards it tis nearly dark and I must
come to A close by saying that I Remain
your loving husband until Death May
God Bless and save you all is my prayer

FM Poteet to his loving Wife and Children
kis my litel babes for
Me my loving M. A. E. Poteet
Wife