1862 March 3 Cavalry Camp near Leesburg

Cavalry Camp near Leesbrg.
March 3d 1862

I hoped to have had a letter
from you this morning my
darling, but was disappointed
the last one I recd was written
in Lynchburg on you way
home. that was lst Tuesday,
nearly a week ago, I wrote
to you Saturday night, and
intended to write again yesterday,
forgetting that there was no
mail until this morning,
it is well however that I wrote
Saturday night, as I would not
have had an opportunity
of doing so yesterday, we
were called up by light, and
started off on an expedition
to Lovettsville, which is occu=
pied by the yankees, we had

[page 2]
about 100 of our Regt, nearly
a whole Reg of Infantry and
one piece of artillery, the
whole under command of Col.
Radford, we all marched up to
Wheatland, about 5 miles this
side of Lovettsville and Col.
Radford proceeded with the
Cavalry towards Lovetsville
to reconnoitre, we approached
within sight of the place,
saw a few of the yankees,
and remained in the road
marching backwards and
forwards, and standing still
in the snow, which was fal-
ling fast nearly all day,
and returned to camp last
night about 9 o'clock with=
out accomplishing anything
completely worn down, having
been in the saddle the whole

[page 3]
day, this evening we have
recd orders to have all things
in readiness to start off at any
moment between this and to=
morrow morning, but I pre=
sume, from the way the rain
is falling and driving snow we
will hardly be called out
to night,--I hardly ever heard
such a rain as is falling now
and has been all the evening.
I think it probably the plan
is for us to start out very early
in the morning, I sent you
the letter this morning that
I wrote Saturday night, and will
send you this tomorrow mor=
ning, I will write to you every
chance I can get now, though
I may be prevented from doing
so, we may be called off at any
time to stay several days, and

[page 4]
we are obliged to keep an officer
now all the time at Wheat=
land, and I may be sent there
for an indefinite time, so if
you should not hear from me
very regularly, you may know
the reason, I can't imagine
why it is that you have
not recd. my letters, I have been
directing them to the Ct Ho. ever
since I heard you were going
home, and I hope you found
one or two others when you got
home, I am especially anxious,
to hear from you now, I want
to hear from Robt. and then you
were talking about being sick
yourself, and I am all the
time uneasy about you, I trust
in God nothing may happen to you
my darling, for I have suffered so
much about you lately if anything
else were to happen to you I should give
up in utter despair, I trust that a kind

[sideways in top margin of page one]
Providence will
keep you and
my little chil=
dren from all
harm, for you
and they are
my all in this
world, good night
my own
darling,
write to
me as often
as you can
and tell me
all about
yourself
and the
children,
Kiss them
all every
night and tell
them good
night for
papa
Your own
husband
ERP

Edwin R. Page, 1st Lt., 2nd Virginia Cavalry

MSS 8937