1861 December 16 Camp Stephenson

Dear Sister

I will endeavor to write
you a few lines this morning to let you
know that I am well and hope you may
be enjoying the same blessing when these
few lines reach you. I hope you all
enjoyed your Christmas as it was certainly
a beautiful day here at any rate. We got
back to camp last Sunday evening after
an absence of two weeks the greater part
of the time being made up in marching
night and day. I wrote to you from
Martinsburg telling you of our first trip
to dam No. four in which we did not
do much execution besides taking a few
prisoners; on the next day after I wrote
the brigade came on and we took up
the line of march for dam Number
five we staid there until Saturday
morning when we left for camp during
our stay there we tore up the dam and
stopped operations on the canal for the
winter there was one man killed on our
side a Mr Parks belonging to the Rockbridge
rifles and one of the artilery was wounded
I do no know how many of the enemy

[page 2]
were killed as the skirmishing was done
altogether across the river but there was
several of the enemy seem to fall and
carried off by their friends its is strange
there was no more of us killed than
was as the bombs were bursting around
us the whole time some of our company
picked u pieces of shell that fell
close to them. Our company or a part
of it were at work on the dam
one night the enemy seen did not
see us going in the dam but after we
had been in the dam an hour I went
to the top to look around and in
the moonlight they could see me when
they opened fire upon us the first
balls whistled over my head and
after that I got out of the way
when they opened a perfect shower of
balls upon us but we were prety
well protected and fortunately no one
was hurt. Mr Andrew Lucas arrived
here last sunday evening just about
dark I received the things you sent
me and it just came in time as
we were about out of provisions we
do not fare very well on a march
as there is not time to cook our
provisions, but in camp we fare very well

[page 3]
the roundabout you sent fits me very
well and the socks I will keep although
I do not need them just yet, but I
suppose I will need them after while I will
send the box home by Mr Lucas and
have got knapsacks and I will send
my sachel with what things I have
I send the undershirt home again as I
do not like to wear them here I have
put my uniform coat in and some lead[?]
and other things sam Lucas has a pair of
pants and a flannel shirt in and David
Hanger put in a pair of old socks John
Beard sent his old knapsack it is a
black one and the other sachel is B. F.
Hupps. I had some other things but
when we moved every thing that could
not be taken along was thrown away and
destroyed. the lead is in a little poke it
was picked up from off the field at
Manassas. John Clemmer told me to write
that he wanted enough of cloth like
my roundabout to make him a coat and
pair of pants he said he would give two
dollars a yard or whatever you sold it at
and pay the money as soon as he got the
goods when you write let me know
whether you have any of the cloth to spare
or not.

[page 4]
But I must stop writing as I have
taken up the most of my paper already
Give my love to all enquiring friends and
relations and receive a large share yourself

T. M. Smiley

[written sideways on page 4]
I send you a
button taken off
the coat of a
dead United States
soldier who fell
on the battlefield
of Bull run July
21st 1861

T. M Smiley

Thomas M. Smiley, Private, Co. D, 5th Virginia Infantry

MSS 1807