Letter to the Front from Pa,   Feb 15/63

Cicero he has got back, boxed up in a coffin


This letter came from Preston Wells by way of Valerie Radee

Eckford Feb 15/63

    My Son

I received a letter from you and Charley, on Monday Evening the 16th dated the 9th and the 10th and was verry happy to here that you were better and got so much of your pay, you wrote that you have sent me some money, 30 dollars I understand it to be, you said that you have sent it by Express to Wm Gregg, he told me that evening he had got a letter from Charles, stating, that he had sent some money but it had not come yet, he said he would send to the office for it, I am verry thankful to you for sending me so large a sum of money, Charley wrote me , (if Henderson heanded me the money) to see to paying his taxes, tell him that I will verry cheerfully do that for him and any thing more that is within my power, you mentioned that some will think Soldiers money comes easy, such the fact with us at home,

I have wrote you that Henry R Cook had gone after Cicero he has got back, he took up the body boxed up the coffin just as it was and started back with it, he got home Sunday morning the 15th and it is expected that the body come into Marshall on Monday evening or thuesday morning, the Funeral is to be held at the Baptist Church on Thursday the 19th at 2,o,clock,

I will here state that I mailed a letter to you about 2 hours befor getting yours, you wanted to know how Stuart and his wife got along, they are living together and I guess as well as ever, we have not been to see them since they were married the last time, the repot is that Chrristiana and her nimshy are keeping house be themselves, we have not there for along time, he has never paid John up yet for fifeing, befor you went away / Pa

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Dear Willie
      I will try to write a few words to you   I am washing   John and Ida is at school and it is as warm as a spring morning and so foggy we cant see but a little ways,   we were very happy to hear you you were better   you must keep up good courage and you will get along a great deal better than when you become be come disheartend,   Tell Charley we thank him for the line we got from him and hope he will try to give another   Old Dan is getting along after the old sort   he is living in the Lewis house   he has done very little clearing on his Charleys lot since he [Charley] went away   ask him if Dan was to have the trees out of the north & south road for himself for he has cut several of them and made stove wood of it and sold to Gleason   he is now about taking the Lewis place of Gleason for three or four years and is going to put corn on Charleys

My Child we dont want you to schrimp your self to send money to us although it will be a greater help to us than you can think for your Father has not been able to earn anything this winter and we were never so distitute of clothes before in our lives   we have not been able to attend a funnerel this winter and every thing is so high that it would take a fortune to clothe up a family   very poor factory cloth is from two & six to three shillings1 per yard   calico from twenty eight to thirty one cents and everything else according   it costs almost as much for a pair of shoes for Sada now as it did for me one year ago,   but we should have sent you money long ago if we could have got one dollar to send   I must now close my dear Child   Keep up your courage   be a good Boy   trust in our Heavenly Father and dont never indulge the thought agin that your parents will cast you off or forget you for that is impossible   good bye now from your affectionate Mother

M B Wells

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notes

  1. The US dollar was originally pegged to the Spanish piece-of-eight in 1792, the people being used to pounds and shillings equated the one eighth of a dollar or "bit" to a shilling of twelve and a half cents. Thus the poor factory cloth is 30 to 36 cents /yard.
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edited by Peter J Wait,