William Wirt Henry to Mary Jane Henry
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This has been a warm pleasant Sabbath day, and is a beautiful moonshiney evening.
I have been at home most all day attending to visitors from the "Old Brigade" as
they have gone into camp on our right, about a mile and a half off, and all have
to go down to the village and see how that looks, and consequently they have to
pass our camp, and most of the officers call up to see us a few minutes. There
has been a stream of them here all day, and among the rest "Old blackhawk
Hutchins" called to see "how I was getting along" So you see I have not had time
to
get very lonesome during the day but now in the quiet of my
little tent with no one but the Chaplain, I get out your last kind warmhearted
good letter and read it over again, and my thoughts turn back to the "Green
hills" and I must confess I am sad. Oh! you blessed good
wife, how I do want to see you. I must see you before
long certain, for I cant stand it. It will make a coward
of me soon if I do not I think Col Jewett is using me real mean to stay so long
in Vt when he knows very well he is not going to get the first recruit for this
Regt., and leave me here to do his work for him. It would be no use to attempt
to get a leave of absence as long as he is away and I have the command of the
Regt. He wrote me he would be back
the last of last week but I begin
to think he wont come back until he is ordered back from
here. I will petition the Genl. to have him ordered back if he does not come this week for I am not
going to stand it. From the signs of the times here now the Army of the Patomac
will not make a fall Campaign but after a little do as I said some time ago,
fall back and winter in the Vicinity of Washington. Two of the large "Army
Corps" have allready gone back, but as they have turned over their
transportation; we think they are going down the coast some where. One thing
appears to me to be certain, that is the managers do not
intend to take Richmond this fall or winter. It does seem as though things
dragged terribly, and the country wasting
their money and precious
lives, by prolonging the war, when if they would only
rise and put forth the strength of the Nation in one grand struggle, the war
would be closed in four months. Well all my talk, and feeling bad over it will
do no good, so we will make the best of it, and I think now that about the middle of Nov. will be as soon as I can reasonably expect
to get away for twenty day, then if I can only be in good winter quarters
somewhere and can fetch you back with me, and make it pleasant and comfortable
for you we should enjoy it all the better from being separated so long, but it is hard to wait. Our boys are all well. Jack Hubbard
I have not heard from since he went to the Hospital but suppose he is doing
well. I sent you by Exp. a day or two ago "one hundred more” take good care of
it.
As Ever William