.NTk5.NzY1

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Chaffin’s Bluff Sept[ember] 20th 1862

My deal little Charley,

I have been wishing to write to you for some time. I have been out to-day cutting logs to build me a house to live in this winter. The other day when the boys were cutting logs, they caught six little squirrels, with bushy tails. They brought them to camp to tame, and two have since died. One of them hung himself. He had a string tied around his neck, and was jumping off of a bed, like Charley does sometimes, and the string caught, and when we found him, the poor little squirrel was dead.

A few days ago, three of us went down on the river a fishing. I thought of my little Charley all the time – how much he would have liked it. We fished five

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hours and caught five –hundred fish. You must tell James not about this. We caught about two hundred beautiful little yellow perch, and about two hun- dred cats some of the cat-fish were as small as your or Minnie’s little finger. Tell Grand-pa he must bring you to see me – and bring his gun and fishing poles. We will get in a nice little boat and sail about on the river and kill sora, and catch fish. I see a great many large white and blue birds, with necks longer than your arm – they are called cranes. You must read this letter to little Minnie, and tell her how much Papa loves her, and thinks about her. You must be a good boy always and not cry too much, and write an- other letter to me soon. – Your papa – N[athaniel] V. W[atkins]

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My dear wife – I have written a letter for Charley which you must tear off from this for him. I received a letter from you yes- terday morning of 10th & another in the evening dated 15th, the first I have gotten for some time. It did me so much good, I felt as if I must hasten to write, and tell you that you may enjoy it with me, as I would any other piece of good news; and I would have sent this off this morn- ing, but for the fact that I was detailed on the working party & could not write. You will see from this that our court has adjourned. I reported to the company for duty last night. Was right glad to get through with the court, as I was beginning to get tired of it, & to need a little more exercise. Our duties now are very light – eight men are detailed every day to cut poles – so it comes around to me about once a week. Besides

[Marginalia]

If you have butter to spare always send it in the boxes you send – It cost our men from 75 c[en]ts to $2.00 p[e]r pound, & indifferent at that.

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this we have no other duty at all. No drill & no guard to stand, until we have finished our quarters, and the negroes have finished throwing up the embankments & magazines for our guns. We got the transfer to a heavy battery just in time to save us from a long, unnecessary & perhaps dangerous march. [General Henry Alexander] Wise has just carried his Brigade down to Williamsburg [Va.], & it is rumored that they have already had an engagement, and been considerably worsted. We all consider it as much more dangerous to follow him than any other general in the service – not that his is more daring than others, but because we look upon him as entirely incompetent to lead even a regiment into battle. Our company is considered as pecu- liarly fortunate in getting out of his com- mand. He tried very hard to get us back before he left, but Gen[eral] Smith (G[ustavus] W[oodson]) would not hear of it; and Col[onel] Page, who is very partial to our company, positively refused to give us up. So we now consider our- selves as a [fixture?], until the Yankees drive us away again, which will not be altogether as easy for them to do as it was at Glo[uce]st[er] P[oin]t [Va.], because we will be much more strongly supported, as the giving up of our batteries, will be the giving up of R[ich]mond.

[Marginalia]

Besure and send this back by [flat?]