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Regiment: 5th Michigan Infantry
Battles Mentioned:
Historical Figures: Henry W. Halleck
Monday May 12th 1862
My Dear
I have written you so often I
fear I can not make a letter at all
interesting to you. I have been waiting
as patiently as I could for the last few
days for a letter from you but in
vain have you failed to write or
has it miscarried do you know how
lonesome I get when your letters
fail to reach me regularly to be
sure I can have no great cause of
complaint as I have them middling
regular. I wrote you the other day in
haste after our fight but I
presume you will not get it also
yesterday wrote to Orve enclosing
five dollars more for you
making in all $15.00 but I shall
feel quite uneasy about it until
I hear. but after this there will
be no trouble about it for about
all of the boys in our company have
made an
allotment to the war widows
so that should it miscarry or be taken
to th from the mail no one could use
it but you until you signed it
it will be an order on the United
States Treasury and worth a premise
we are now about 18 miles from
Williamsburgh where we had our fight
and from where I wrote you last
we have been laying here since
Saturday recruiting and waiting
for provisions it is a very pretty
country here about 40 miles from
Richmond about all the male population
have left and are in the army all
the nigers are left I have some
tall times gassing them up. they are
the only ones that appear glad to
see us.
one great peculiarity of this
country I have noticed is that nearly
all the birds such as Chickens
turkeys and geese all loose there
feathers before there migration north
sheep also get there wool taken off
about there days pretty fast
I do not know if we shall have a
fight again this side of Richmond
for we have already got possession
of the York and James Rivers. you
have no doubt heard that the
merriman uses gone up so that our
guns boats can go up to Richmond
and I also hear that our advance
is within 20 miles of there you of
course have heard of the fall of New
Orleans, Norfolk, Baton Rouge + to
they have now but two arrived
to attend to one in Missippi for
Gen Halleck to attend too and
the other we are going to use
up effectually but I presume
they will long keep up a sort
of Gurrilla warfare for from
what I have seen I am satisfied
there is hardly a union man in
virginna of late there national
tune has been skedaddle and
they play it verry effectually
I got a letter yesterday from Alma
Father was getting quite smart the
rest were well she pays all the
woman there have either got a
baby or is going to have one
Henry Cutler had just returned
home Mrs Cutler fainted and fell
in it Hannah ran crazy and did
not come to her senses until bed
time as she expressed it
when we get where the mail is
reguand there is any certainty
of letters reaching you I am going
to write a great long letter and
describe Country incidents and send
you something from seceshia
tell Paul when I go home I
am going to take him a little
puppy there is some of the prettyest ones here
so ever saw Yours Jim
