Year: 1862

September IA, 1862.


"DEAR JM:-We arrived here yesterday
after damnation march you ever heard Of.
We marched over to Nd, on last Thursday
week. Ever since we left GordonsviIle we
have had a he'll of a time; first fighting
with old Pope, then hard marching after
the God dam Yankees and living on green
corn and muddy water. Hard fighting,
hard fare and most God dam hard marches;
my feet got so dam sore was forst to 60
barefooted. | can hardly get along. Our
boys is nearly worn out, hut still we are
dragged along at the point of the bayonet
by our dam'd officers, who don't care dam
for US, SO we do the lighting and they get
the honor of the whipping of the dam Yam
KEGS.


al AM getting most dead sick of this
war, and if only knew when | entered in
the service that the war would 0e so long,
aud we would be led in such dam eter-
nal dogs life, l would have run away from
the whole dam Southern Confederacy, for !
begin to think that we have been humbug-
ged the damdist by our officers in the war.
What in hell difference does it make to us
Jim, whether we live under old Abe or
under JEFF Davis; neither of them care Il
dam for Us, only 10 do their fighting and
voting. and then we may go to hell for



am turning Yankee, am as good n
southern right man as ever, but begin to
think that we have been fooled by God
dam'd set of office seeking villins who are
too dam lazy to work, and have lost good
fat pickings by the election of old Lincoln.
and want US poor white niggers to buid d
their house for them, while they DONE
care dam if it fail on us and kill every
dam one of as if they can keep their dam
niggers and grow fat in office. You may
think that talk dam queer for a serjent in
the Confederate army, but will be dam
if | don't think its time to stop this dam
killing ofpoor white men that the rich may
grow richer. If our captain was to hear
me talk so expect he would have me re-
duccd to the ranks aud put in the guard
house and bucked or perhaps shot like poor
Max; but tell you, jim, have been think


ing good deal lately over this matter, since
have got into Maryland / have talked to
n great many Yankees or Union men rs
they call themselves, and they generally
talk very sensible; they seem to be down ou
the niger ms much as any one in the
South, aud say they only want to preserve
the Union under our government; and AL
most begin TO think that it would be a dam
shame to divide it for the sake of n few Of
fee seekers. have found great deal of
hOSpltAllty among tne people ueEeI anu uuu
they don't differ with US on many points.
They only say preserve the Union and let
the dam nigger go to hell. They ask US
what we are fighting for, and when we tell
them for our rights, they say they have all
they ever had, and it would be dam folly
for them to join us, and in fact, to speak
candid, can't finally see what rights we
have lost to make such hell OF fuss
about.


find things quite. different here from
what expected We was told that Nd.
was ripe for revolt, and as soon as we
entered her borders 10000 or $4,000
would flock to our standard; but we found
we had been fooled the damdest, for the
people all appeared to be very well salts
fed with their condition, and if l can
judge from the appearance of their cOun-
try and the prosperous condition of the
people, | think they have made dam
good hit of it by staying in the Union,
and it would have been dam sight bet
ter if we had all remained contented with
our condition and not made dam set of
fools of ourselves. l am afraid we are in
a trap here, and the half will never get
out l think it was dam bad thing in
coming over here, but we was forced IN a
manner, as we was nearly starved out,
and this is land of milk and honey I;
everything in abundance. l tell you, Jim,
we live high to what we used to do in