4th New Jersey Infantry

Item LTR-5517

Description

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

Washington, DC
May 2nd 1861

Dear Brother,

I take this opportunity of writing to you to let you know that I am well and heart and I hope these few lines may find you and all of the rest of the family and folks of Blackwood the same. We left Bordentown on last Friday night about 7 o’clock in the Propeller F. W. Pran in company with 13 others and we stopped at Wilmington, Delaware and few minutes. And then we left for Chesapeake City where we stayed till about 5 o’clock in the afternoon. It stormed so hard that the captain would not venture down the bay till it stopped raining. There is a guard place along the canal all the way from Wilmington to Chesapeake City. We landed in Annapolis on Sunday about noon. They have two spies living in the city and they have got one or two more there. We left for Washington on Monday about 6 o’clock in the afternoon and we landed in Washington about 10 o’clock at night. They have got about 800 men placed along the road between Annapolis and Washington. We have had nothing to eat these three meals but a few crackers. But we are going to set down to a bully dinner. I tell you it was not because there was nothing to eat that we did not get it. For there is plenty of provision in town. It is the fault of the quartermaster. We got up a temperance this morning and are going to put him out of his office. We are going to have a general parade this afternoon. There is between 20 and 30 thousand soldiers in this city. They say that we are going to be stationed at Alexandria in a few days. Some of the folks say that we will have some fun before the week’s out and we are all ready for it. I have not seen but one Palmetto flag and that was on Chesapeake Bay but we soon put that down with a fall from one of our 6 paraders. Give my best respect to all the folks around home. If you want to hear anything from us just take the Philadelphia Enquirer for we have got a reporter along with us. You must not mind the mistakes and bad writing for it is hard matter to do anything like good writing here. I would like to have a little money if you could send it. For we can get out and buy something to eat, sometimes we cannot draw any till our month’s up. If you do send me any letters, be sure and send to Washington without and tell you to it is now dinner time and I have no more time to write.

From your affectionate brother,

Stevenson Leslie

N. B. This is the way to direct a letter to me.

Stevenson Leslie
Company F
4th Regiment, New Jersey Volunteers