1863 February 6 camp near White Oak Church, Va.

Camp near White Oak Church Va Feb. 6th/63

Dear parents
                        I received your last letter a
few days ago and was very glad to get
the news and also to get the thread and
needles I want you to tell aunt Peggy
I am much obliged to her for the needle
she sent and I will try to make a good
use of it. My health is as good as usual
My appetite is quite good, but somet-
imes my back is very lame but I get
along first rate under the circumstances.
I have now got plenty of Post stamps, thread,
needles, paper and envelopes and you need
not send anything to me unless I write
for it If you could manage to send me a
little flag root in a letter I should be
glad to get for I have but very little

[page 2]
left & I find it very useful in many
cases In one of your letters you asked me
to write about Frank Adams I saw him
a few days ago he is well and is still
with the battery that he volunteered to
go with and is camped about 1/2 a mile
from us I suppose why he does not write
is because he has not been paid yet and
cannot write Al of the Raymond and Casco
boys in this Regt are well bu the most of
them are home sick and discouraged Samuel
Duran was over to see the boys in the 17th
Me. Regt. a few days ago he says many of
our boys are sick Elias Strout Freeland
Strout and cousin H. Jordan are sick
C. Symond has not been heard from since
we attempted to cross the Rappahannock
the last time under the command of
Genl. Burnside. now we have got a
new commander Genl. Joe. Hooker
and by his appointment we lost a one o
the best Genls there was in the army of
the Potomac it is Gen'l Franklin.

[page 3]
Genl. Sumner has also resigned he
was considered one of our best Genls and
after Hooker gets whiped fairly some other
inexperienced man will take his place
and what is there to encourage men to
fight under these circumstances I will tell
you what will warrent success to the
army of Potomac and to this whole
nation and that is to place Genl. G.
B. McClellan at the head of the whole
army with power to conduct the war
just as he thinks best then we should see
this war drawing to a close if this was
the case every man would grasp his
musket with renewed vigor and the whole
army would sweep down upon the rebels
and wipe them out of existence in a
very short time but as the war is
being conducting there is no telling
how long it may continue We have been
having cold and stormy weather for some
time past bot of snow and rain it is
a hard rain storm here to day

[page 4]
Our duteis are not very hard but it
keeps us busy the most of the time for
we have just as much to do as though
the company was full we have to be
present to the call of the roll three times
every day we have a dress parade every
night when it does not storm and we have
to go on guard once in six days and we
are detailed on an average of about once in
four or five days for extray duty we cook
our own victulas[sic] and get all of our wood
which we have to go 1/2 a mile after and
lug it on our backs this I call hard
work and, I tell you we do not have
much time to spare to write if there is
any thing you wish to know write to me
and I will tell you as near as I can I have
not heard from Washington since I wrote to
him I want to hear how your hay holds out
when you write again from you son Hiram M.
                                                             Cash


MSS 12916