Poe Archive

Camp near Belle Plain Landing
Sunday February 1, 1863

Brother and Sister,

I thought I would write you a few lines today. I always calculate to write evry Sunday when I am where I can whether I get any from you or not. I received your letter that was written last Sunday last night. When you write Sunday I generally get them Saturday night. As I wrote you before, we are back in our old quarters. We have not drilled any since we came back. It is so muddy it is about impossible to move. We had 12 inches of snow fall the 28th of Jan so that it is muddy enough now. The weather is very warm. It freezes a very little nights not anymore than enough to hold a man and is all splosh days. I have not rec'd the box yet. The roads are so muddy that they cannot get them up from the landing which is three miles from here. There has been a team started twice from here after them but had to come back on acc't of the mud. They say there is a lot of them down there for this Reg't. We were payed off last Thursday up to the first day of Nov. I only got twenty seven dollars and seventy cts. You know we were payed one months pay in advance in August and that was taken out in this payment. I shall have pay now. They owe me for two months as Corp. making twenty six dollars and $ .00. Since I was promoted making 43 dollars in all. I guess I shall keep what I have got as I do not know when I shall get any more. We have never heard anything from John Fenderson yet. There was three boys brought in last night that deserted on that march. Our company is very small now. We have only 14 men in it here. The rest are sick and wounded. I shall have to close for want of any thing to write. I want you to write soon and write all the news. Tell Father if he sees Cyrus Bosworth to give him my respects.

From your brother,
John H. Frain