MHS Collections Online

Head Quarters 1st Brigade
Pecks Divis July, 15, 1862

Dear Wife

    I am very uneasy to
hear from you as it is over a week since I hurd
from you, and I searched vainely in the pile
of letters this morning for one of those narrow
familier envelopes that I am so glad to see –
I know you write if you are not sick but
I dont understand why I got got them as I
hear from Willey and he gets his regular enough –
Willey was down here and stoped nearly all day
and took a lunch with me he is looking well,
and as saucy as ever, the 1st mass, is prety
well used up their not being even 2 good compa –
-nies left, but their are no worse than some
others, the 11th main in this Brigade is just
as bad, Swarms of Officers are trying to get
home or trying to resigne, but now is the time
that tries a good soldier, and when it becomes
every man to stick and hang, untill things
change for the better, they get panic struck
as they are not posted – the fact is the enimy
never showed so little disposition to attack us
as they do at present - they are a long way
of from us and are just as badly whiped
as we are in fact we killed 3 to one as insome caces whole regiments of them were mowed
down by our superior artilary – but I do hope
that the people of the north will stop crokering
and take a musket and fight I want to see
the governer draft as they make better soldiers
I verily believe than volunteers, and then
some of the crokers will have to an oppertunity
of displaying their ability to whip the rebels with
75 Thousand men when they have 200 Thousand
and as brave men as ever fought all though
deluded as they are – to concern them it
will oblige us to not only eaquel them but as
in all cases of an war of invasion we mus
have half as many men more to whip them,
and not less than one half – I think that
we have done our share and as every man
has as much rite to fight for his country as
another let the governer draft at once and
have the men called for put into the field
at once to do their share of the fighting – and
if I had my way I would shut up congress
put a gun in each members hand and stop
at once the bigest eavel of the lot and that
is, two cent lawyers and poloticians undertaking
to controle this war which is something
they know nothing about, and they are
answerable for the thousands of unknown ded
that cover the ground from heare to Richmund
and for the suffering of the troops who have ben obliged to fight their way through 3 times
their number and very many who wer
wounded even slightly, wer left on the
field many of them to die from exposir and
neglect, so much for Poloticians who take
good care to keep out of the fight, interfeering
in something they know nothing about –
I will make a prediction that if this Army
is not reinfosed within 2 weeks with 100 Thousd
men so as we can march to Richmund at
once – we will have to go home and give
up the fight to those who with meens
at their disposial not an hundredth part
of ours, manage to beet and out maneuver us
by leting Military men attend to mili -
tary matters, and Poloticians attend to
polotics, but I supose you will be tired
out before you read this through and
I know Mc Clellan is up to something, as
troops are pasing up the river and something
may yet be done before we know it –
I looke so at all events – the weather
is warm but pleasent, in fact the middle
of the day it is imposible to keep out in the
sun, and I take the liberty to keep as
coole as posible and as this Genl is as
lazy as I am we don’t fight about it –
as long as I take charge of the numerous
reports & reterns which are so numerous that they frighten the old fellow so I have
it all my own way so far so good, love to every –
body to baby & mother in particular
and to Amand my dear wife