.NTY1.NzMy

Camp Chaffin’s Farm Aug. 9th 1862

My dear little charley.

I have been wishing to write to you for some time, and will write now so that I may send it in my next letter to your Ma. I think of you & little Minnie every day, & wonder how you look & what you are doing. I would like to see you dressed up in your Sunday pants & jacket, & to see little Minnie running about and talking. When I left you, you wore a coat, and Minnie could not walk or talk. I would like to have you here with me a little while, & show you a great many horses & wagons & guns & men, and a great many little frogs. There are so many little frogs here all over the country, that sometimes I have to stop walking to keep from treading on them. And some times I mash them under my feet. They are about as large as the end of my finger, - most of them are black, & some are nearly red. Sometimes they climb up on the top of my

[Pg 2] tent, & then their feet will slip & they tumble down heels over head to the ground. A tent is a cloth house – we all here live in cloth houses, & since the weather has become so hot we sleep out of doors. I like sleeping out, now, much better than in a house. I wish I could be at home with you to eat some of those good pears. Tell Ma, she must dry some & send me. And some dried apples & peaches too if she gets a chance. I hope you will be a good boy now, you have put on breeches, & mind everything your Ma tells you & never make little Minnie cry, or cry yourself. You must take good care of [Tasso?] for me & when I come next Fall we will take a hunt with him. You must learn your letters too, & learn spell & read – and after a while you will be able to write letters. Do you ever go to see Emma Graves now? Kiss Ma & little Minnie for me. Give my love to all at Grand Pa’s & to all the negroes. Your aff Pa NVW.

[Pg 3]

[Envelope]

Mrs Nannie V.Walkins care Mr. Tos. B. Daniel Townesville N.C.

[Marginalia – left side] Send by [Sass. Fork?] mail

[Letter]

My dear Wife – I have written a letter to Charley on the other leaf. You must tear it off for him. Just as I had finished I received two good letters from you – the last dated Aug. 6th, mailed at Townesville Aug 8th, & I got it this evening early. It does seem that we are so near together I might have a few days to see you. A wagon was just starting to Richmond & Sam went in it to bring the barrels & boxes – so we look for them to-night. We have been living very well for the last two weeks, as we got another little “reinforcement” from K & Q, just as our other boxes were giving out. I dislike to trouble you all so much, but know it gives you all pleasure to do anything for us. Your letters come came as we were at dinner – the “[ ? ] will please forward this” frightened me so much (thinking something must have happened) that I lost all my appetite, but on opening & seeing it was about [ ? ] of good things, it became better than ever. Your letters were so full of news (just such as I love most to hear) about home & your Pa’s folks, & Charley & Minnie, that I almost feel as if I have been home.

[Pg 4] Tell Sis. Martha I went to see her to thank her for taking care of you & the children so well. Why did you explain her little note? I understood it, & kept it for Doc & Dave to see, as something characteristic - we had a [] [  ? ]. I hope very much I didn’t write anything I oughtn’t to – as I have really forgotten what I did write. I felt almost sorry to learn that you are going to leave Home again & go to your Pa’s. I love to think of home with you & Charley & Minnie there, when you are away I think of it as closed up & deserted. And I am afraid too that you will again get in bad health – that you will not take enough exercise, and have the dys- pepsia and be poor & thin when I come home to see you. Dear Precious, you must guard against this for my sake. And yet I would not have you stay at home alone. I know you would get lonesome, & more anxious about me & wouldn’t be as happy. I often pray, Darling, that you may be patient & not too anxious & uneasy about me. My greatest [ ? ] (the only one I mind at all) is separation from you & the children.

[Pg 5]

[Envelope – same as Pg 3]

Friday night, a Mr. Page, who was orderly Sergeants of the H. L. Boys came done to report to Gen. Wise & spent the night with Sam. He says the 20th Regt. in which the H. L Boys were, are to be placed in Wise’s Brigade. Joe Daniel will then be near us – poor Doc, I am sorry for him. Sam got a letter from Abe Daniel yesterday, when I got your two, but I was so much taken up with yours, I neglected to read it & haven’t thought of it since, till now. I was very sorry to hear of poor Willie Scott’s death – had heard of it from [Pattie?]. They all stopped writing to me from Pr. Edwd several of my letters had failed to reach them, and they had heard that I was discharged from the service. Abe D. also wrote thinking that I had been discharged & Doc had gotten the post of [  ? ] & that Sam was alone. I dont know how the report got out. [Pattie?] said that Bro. Dick was at home, he had a very bad cold & feared his lungs were in- volved, but was improving very rapidly, & thought he would return soon. Everybody, it seems, gets home, in some way or other, but Sam & me.

[Pg 6]

[Envelope – same as Pg 3]

Aug 10th Sunday evening. I am again on my picket guard [  ? ] nothing like such a pleasant peace as be- fore when I last wrote. [  ? ] a dry, but, dusty place, to guard, a [  ? ] on the turnpike to R.mond. I however succeeded in hearing a fine sermon from Mr. Wyatt, Chaplin of the 26th, before com- ing on my post, about a mile from camp. Also in eating the best dinner we have had in camp since I have been in service. Corn bread roast beef, fried chicken, nice irish potatoes boiled & raw [carrots?], pickle [beets?] & cucumber & [ ? ] – the potatoes & pickle [the?] beets because they came from home. Sam & Phil [....ham?] (one of our [...uess?]) went yesterday evening with the wagon & got back to camp about 11 O.C. last night with the barrels & box. Such a [ ?] Donkeys. Everything in fine order. The boys all say they have never seen such apples & potatoes & onions. A good many even from the Regt, crowded around when it opened the barrels & offered me 5 cts a piece for the onions. I gave them some, but

[Pg 7] of course refused to sell. The applications to buy were so many that one of the boys stuck up a notice, “tent for sale.” I could easily have sold out [of?] apples 50 cts a day, onions & potatoes $1 a day & the other things at any fancy price I might have asked. I gave as many a I could spare a- way & sent Col. Goode a mess of the finest onions & potatoes. We had “Honey Sam” for breakfast, Doc took “Honey Doc,” & we are keeping “Honey Nat” for to-morrow – will give “Cordial Sam” a cordial greeting the day after. The jam was[underlined] [ ? ] – & the marmalade! Nobody had ever seen anything like it. The Shoes & Shirt were exactly the things I wanted & fitted finely. I am afraid you deprived yourself of the cloth for the shirt – didn’t think when I wrote of the im- possibility of getting calico, or I would have gotten a shirt in R.mond. The tobacco was very nice – we have been chewing such [ween?] since being here that we prize it as highly as anything you sent. Give our thanks & the thanks of the whole

[Pg 8]

[Envelope – same as Pg 3]

Mess to every one who had a hand in it. You dont know how much more I[underlined] valued them because they came from home, & you[underlined] had had a hand in posting them up. Soldiers become childish about such things, like sick people who are getting well. And though we know[underlined] the dear ones we have left, love, & think of, & care for us every hour – such proofs of it make us feel[underlined] it much more sensibly. Mr. Wyatt preached us a fine sermon from the tent “Always abounding in the work of the Lord.” (1. Cor. xv.58) – addressed to Christians – his subject, “Chris- tian activity”. He is a man who does a great deal more good out of than in the pulpit – yet is a good preacher, & to-day gave us a fine sermon. He has gotten up for the 26th a soldiers circulating library, has just gotten it & I intend to apply to-morrow for permission to use it. He has also gotten spelling books & readers for those soldiers who cant read. Our Lt. Ryland told me to write to Mr. Hines to come down. I am mightily ta- ken with the idea of his coming.

[Marginalia – Pg 6]

12 O.C. Moonlight – Was sleeping very sweetly under the shade of a tree when I was awakened by a pretty smart rain. Soon rolled up my blanket & got under a [ ? ][crossed out] plank sitting against the fence - found it was my time to go on post – am writing now to keep awake. The cloud has passed off & the moon shines beautifully. Will have to stand two hours & a half – till 2 O.C. & to keep the gate shut & the [ ? ] out of Mr. Chaffin’s Farm. Three privates & a corporal stay here all the time for that purpose. Old [ ? ] seems [more?] [mad?] about taking care of peoples property. He keeps same number post- ed a mile or two up the river to guard Col. Knight’s water-melon patch & this unnecessary expense of the men when so many are away that[crossed out] from sickness that those who are here are compelled to be on double duty, & stand guard or ditch every other day. The boys thought it was a fine joke on me when they found before that I was writing to you by moon shine. They thought it too sentimental for an old man like me.

[Marginalia – Pg 5, left side]

Monday morning – after a glorious nap I am up again this morning. [ ? ] to close my letter. Give much love to all at your Pa’s. We hope & hope that the war will end soon, but cant see how. May I soon, Darling, be with you again at our dear home. Yr devoted Husband N.V.W.

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