44th New York Infantry

Item LTR-239

Description

4 page original Civil War soldier's letter, written in period ink and war dated.

Camp near Fredericksburg, VA
November 25, 1862

Dear Parents,

I once more take a few spare moments to converse with you. I feel it a great privilege to take my pen to write to you. Although I cannot set myself by you and converse with you but pen, ink and paper is next. Well, we have been on the march nearly every day for the last month although we have not had any very hard marches. Imagine yourself packing up at three o’clock in the morning. Remember you are to take your whole kit of things. Bed and bedding, crockery and eatables enough to last you three days. And then set around in the cold November winds until perhaps 12 o’clock before you get started. And then you will have a little insight into a soldier’s chance of having his patience tried. Well here we are down near Fredericksburg where we were soon after we left Harrison’s Landing. The rebels occupy the town in force. The report is that Burnside has given them fourteen hours to remove the women and children. They say that they are busy at it now. I don’t believe that they will stand and fight here but they may. I don’t pretend to know. Only sunrise will tell. I received your letter of the 3rd. It found me well as usual. I had just written to you one before I received it and that is the reason that I have not written before. I am feeling tolerably well now and hope this may find you all the same. Mother, you wanted to know when I heard from Jane Austin. Well, I can tell you when I had the last letter from her. It was last spring. Just after we left Hall Hill. So you see I have not heard from her very lately. I am glad to hear that Adelbert is a going to board at Normend this winter and go to school. For I think that will be an easy plan for him. It seems that your family is going to be rather small this winter. But it will make it all the easier for you to tell the boys for me that they must learn fast and improve their time. For they don’t know the worth of a good education until they leave home and take up business for themselves. I have never seen or noticed the worth of a good education than I have here since I have been in the army. Mother, the next time you see Mrs. Austin please thank her for me and give her my best regards. And tell her that tea made me a quart of good tea and you better believe that it tasted good. I wrote in my other letter that you need not send me any money. But we have not gotten any pay yet. I don’t know as they ever intend to pay us again. I tell you we are seeing pretty hard times for tobacco. And I wish you would send me a dollar or two in your next. There is not much danger but that I would get it all right. Direct your letters as usual. It is always the same. They first come to Washington and then to the regular wherever it may be. I have just gotten a letter from Dayton and I tell you it done me lots of good. E. A. Nash has just received his commission papers as Captain of Company D and so we have lost one of our best officers. He is one of the best officers in our regiment and I am glad to see him promoted for he deserves it. We are now under command of Lieutenant Colonel Conner. He has lately been promoted and I tell you it makes a perfect fool of him. We don’t like him a bit. He is so awful strict. I wish that Colonel Rice would come back. He is just a whole solid man and we all like him first rate. I must close for this time. Please give my love to all of the friends and accept them yourself. Write soon.

Yours truly
Wilber H. Merrill