Jacinto, Mississippi

Monday evening June 30^th, 1862

My Dear Wife:-

Another month is passed.  Another muster day is over.  There is now four months wages due us.  There is a Paymaster in the neighborhood paying off other Regiments.  We think he will soon pay us for two months.  He may possibly not pay us for some time.  There is not much trouble about money however, for if we all had plenty there is not much chance to spend any of it.  In fact there has been nothing here to sell till yesterday when a load of pies, butter, buttermilk, eggs, etc except a very few blackberries brought in by the Negro women and children.  Butter is fifty cents per pound, buttermilk is 10 cents per pint, sweetmilk is sixty cents per gallon, eggs are 25 cents per dozen.  A common round blackberry or green apple pie is 20 cents. You cannot imagine the great quantity of blackberries there is in this country.  There is a great many old worn out fields, and the only production of these is a kind of Sedge grass, young pines and blackberry briars.

The weather is very hot, but the health of the Company is about as good as common.  My health is as good as you could wish me to enjoy.  So you may know how well I am.  I keep my weight very well for so hot weather.  It is today 149 pounds.  What is your weight now?

I wrote to Dave Nichols three or four days ago and enclosed a note to you which has told you of my receiving yours by the hands of Eldridge Jones.  I have not yet received the one you sent by the hands of Charles F. Wilton.  I received the package of papers, thank you.  He also brought two papers that pap gave him the money to buy for me.  Thank him also.  Papers or letters are always welcome visitors to me.

I sent a note in John Fosters letter directed to Nancy, in answer to hers and Johns letters.  They will have to excuse me for not writing more, for of all the busy times in a Company, the last of the month is the most busy, particularly muster months.  I will try to write more to them the next time.

I will now try to answer yours of the 12^th to 15^th.  You use the name of Mrs. Smart.  That reminds me of the man that Henderson B. Jones introduced me to at Camp Butler.  I well remember him.  He appeared to me like a gentleman.  I hope your acquaintance with his wife may prove pleasant.

When I framed the Tobacco Union, I did not think that Diora would ever rehearse it at a school exhibition.  How did she get along with it.

I am sorry that John Hamilton remains so weak.  I sent you a notice for him to either return to the Regiment or send a certificate from an army surgeon.  I hope you took it to him as soon as received.

Your understanding of my views of the new Constitution are correct.  I would not if I had had the chance, voted for the new Constitution as a whole, but parts of it is excellent.  Part of it that is so good is only a reprint of the old one.  Then the section in regard to the 7 per centum of the net proceeds of the Illinois Central Railroad is worth a great deal.  While on this subject I will just say that Congress has just passed some bills that I know you will be pleased with; one is the Poligamy bill, the others are the Pacific Railroad bill then there is the bill giving pensions to widows and orphans of the soldiers of the Union army, which I think will soon pass.  I think a good confiscation bill now would do for this session of Congress.

Four days from now and you will help celebrate the Anniversary of the Independence of the United States.  I cannot be with you.  May the smile of friendship be upon every face.  Love be in every action and Truth be in every word.  May lessons be learned there that will guide our children in the way they should go through life.

You think strange that I do not know the movements of my own division.  It is a little like you knowing the actions every day of all the people in Marion County.  Thirty or forty thousand is a great many men.  If is five times more soldiers than the southern sympathizers in our neighborhood said could be raised in the whole state of Illinois.

I am glad that you intend to buy a willow wagon for the babe.  I think he must be tolerably heavy by this time.  I am very glad to learn that there is some apples and walnuts on some of the trees.  Tell me about those grafts in the garden, how are they doing.  Have you any peaches this season.  How are the currants doing, then your cherry trees, how do they look?

I have nothing new to write you, only that Lieut. McDonald was yesterday elected Captain and Sergeant Breeze was elected second Lieutenant.

You have no doubt heard of the opening of the Mobile and Ohio Railroad from Columbus, Kentucky to Corinth, Mississippi.  This saves our supplies and mail from coming up the Tennessee river to Hamburg and it saves our teams from a trip of twenty or thirty miles every load.

I think that before this reaches you the cars will be running on the Memphis to Corinth.  My bedfellow, R.F. Young is rather puny.  I fear he will not be fit for duty for some time.  It seems like he will never get stout again.

Hoping to hear from you soon, I bid you good bye.

William A. Smith