Aquia Creek
Saturday Eve Feb the 21 63
Dear Charlotte
I have just received your kind and lenthey letter and it done me so much good that I thought I would write some this evening and let you know that I am well. I have ben chopping this weak until yesterday and to day I have worked at one of the forts. There have ben a hard storme here this weak. It snowed Tuesday all day and rained all knight and part of the day Wensday. Such stormes are hard on the soldiers. Our hours aint the best and duties have got to be done. I told you in one of my letters that I had a skin disease. I am getting better of it but I have had a quite a time with it. I itched so I couldent sleep scarcely eney. It was the worsed knights. I had to lay and scrach all knight. It drawed on me. I have grown poore but it haint ben so bad for a knight or two. I guess it will stop. I had a sore jaw. One of my gums swelled and broke. It was back of my teeth. I was rather hard work to eat hard tack. It haint mouch sore now. You sead the box hadent gone yet when you wrote. I dont think you can send it. I have bought a pair of shoes. I am sorry about the box but never mind. I can get along. You may sell the boots if you can or you can ceep them and I will ware them out at home one of these days. The drums will soone beat for roole calle and I will quit writing untill tomorrow. So good knight.
Sunday
Dear Charlotte
I thought I would finish my letter. It snows verry hard here this morning. It commenced in the knight. The wind blows and the snow flies. It is quite deep. We have a good meney leaguer stormes here. March will be the hardest month with us. I am glad we have got a fireplace in our tent. The most of the heat goes up the chimeny but it haint so bad as it would be if we had to lay in the low tents without eney fire. I am well but wishing teribly to be home but I cant tel when it will be. I dont know what to think of this unjust war. Some times I think it will soone close and then again I am rather discouraged. The money is what ceeps this war agoing. The officers dont do their duties. They all want to get rich and we have got to sufer and die for it but it will have to stop before long. The soildiers are getting dissadesfide and they wont fight as they once did. I dont much think they will be mouch more fightting. There is no use fightting. It has got to be setteld some other way. There was a rebel boat went by here a weak ago yester with a flag of truce. One of our gun boats fired acrost her bow and she raised the stars and stripes and come up to the dock. The Vice President of the ceceded states and eleven more of their smartest men was on it. They was bound for Washington. I dident see this but some of our boys were there and see it. I dident menshen it in my last letter for I dident believe it but I guess it is so. Perhaps they will settle this war some way. If they went they went for that purpose. I hope they will do something. I havent heard from Rast onely what you wrote. You sead I must make believe I was sick. I dont believe I could act it out well enough. If I was some sick I could make believe that I was worse than I was but that haint right. I hope I will ceep my health. What would I be good for if I came home sick. I want to come home well and I think I will.
Good buy Charlotte