1861 August 26 Sycolin, Va.

               Sycolin, Aug: 26th 1861.
                 My dear girls,
                                         After leaving you
Thursday morning with a sad heart,
I was soon seated on the cars rolling
away for my distant field of work.
It had not been long before I heard
a scream from a young lady seated in
my rear, after which with convulsive
sobs she said “Oh my brother is dead”!
I ascertained from the conductor that
she was alone & from one of the southern
states going to see her brother sick at
S Moore’s Alb:  upon enquiring of him
about the family, he told her they had
carried up the day before the corpse of
a young man from that place, when
she gave the scream – For one hour
she cried as if her her [sic] heart would
break, after which she reached her
destination.  Poor girl I wept freely

[page 2]
for her. Oh! who can tell the sorrows
that must ring the hearts of thousands
on account of this war!  It is thought
that there are over ten thousand of our
soldiers sick in the Armies of Manassas
I reached my destination that night, and
next morning mounting Billy made for
my appointment the Grove.  Reached
Helmswood Friday night and had satur-
day to prepare my sermons for Sunday
While I write the cannon are booming
on the Potomac a few miles the other
side of Lees burg.  They were firing yester-
day and one of our men from Richmond
was killed, and some wounded so I hear
Don’t know how many of the enemy
are killed.  The enemy in small squads
have been coming over and our men
have moved to the rises to stop it.
Well my children, I reckon er’e you
receive this you will be with Cousin
Lizzie and at work among y’r books
I wanted to say more to you, but

[page 3]
it did not seem to come to my mind
sad as I felt.  But if you both can
realize this great anxiety that I feel for
y’r welfare, you will try to accomplish all
you can in the way of studying, as well
demean y’rselves with strict propriety in
every thing.  Remember my dear Bettie
what I told you about – “notions”: I could
say no more, yet I think you understood
me.  Be particular about y’r clothes, and
attend to Cousin Lizzie’s directions about
rules of deportment &C  Above all my
child don’t forget y’r prayers.  Oh! I
do want you to be an exemplary Christian
[-]. You must not fail to pray because
you don’t feel like it.  That is the very
time you ought to pray & pray until you
do feel like it.  May God bless my child
and help her by his Spirit & cause her
heart to love the blessed Savior! – My dear
[-] try to keep [-] temper, and re-
member the last words of y’r dear mother
as she laid her thin hands on both y’r

[page 4]
and committed you to God’s care.  Oh:
my child! Are you not going to try & meet
her in heaven?  You cannot begin the
preparation too soon.  Y’r heart is now
young & tender, and it will be easy to
give it to God now while if you wait
it will be growing harder & colder until
all inclination will be gone – Say y’r prayers
regularly & read y’r bible, and remember
y’r father when you both pray.  The times
are ominous of great events and we
will need all this religion we can get
Pray for you’r country, and for the sick
Soldiers at Manassas   they are burying them
every day.  My heart bleeds when I think
of the suffering – Write as soon as you
can after getting this, and direct to
Upper ville – After that to Hamilton
Give my love to Cousins J & L & children
& Uncle Wm & family –
                       Affectionately
                                Y’r father
                                     R.W. Watts.

Robert W. Watts,  1825-1910, Methodist minister who served several churches in central Virginia.

[transcription by Mary Roy Dawson Edwards]

MSS 809