Dec. 15th, 1863.
I have passed many anxious months lately, in this siege of
Charleston. My only child and son was at Fort Sumter, a First Lieutenant in the
1st Regular Artillery Regiment. He passed through the first attack in April
safely — though occupying a post of danger, but, on the 17th of August, in the
attack upon Sumter from the enemy's land batteries, on Morris Island, my poor
boy was wounded by a fragment of a 200-pound parrott shell: he was slightly cut
in the back of the head and wounded in two places in the shoulder; and picked
up insensible. I went to him as soon as the news reached us of his being
wounded, but was but two days in Charleston, when we were roused from our
slumbers, at two hours past midnight, by the enemy shelling the town filled
with sleeping, helpless women and children. The next day I left with my wounded
boy to return to my quiet home in Georgia. He was with me but ten days, when he
returned to Charleston, though he had not then recovered the use of his right
hand and arm, which had been, from the severe contusions on the shoulder,
entirely paralyzed. He had been in command of his company, at Sumter, since the
first of the attack, his captain being absent on sick leave, so that he was
anxious to return to duty and has been ever since, for the last three months,
at a battery on James Island, near Fort Johnson, where I am again anxious about
him. He is a devoted son, and the trial to me of having the boy so constantly
exposed to danger is almost more than I can bear. ... I had hoped you were
spared the anxiety of having an only son in the service, so young as he is, I
can truly feel for you, but then he is not your only child. You have
daughters at home to cheer and comfort you. I never wished until this cruel war
that my son had been a daughter, but we must believe it is ordered for the
best. I was made very happy last week by my son's return to us on a short leave
— he makes everything bright and joyous for me and I miss him sadly when away.
If we had only had a navy to fight for us, as the army has done, this war would
have ended in a few months, I imagine; and now, who can see the end of it? With
the coming spring instead of peace and joy, when the earth is all beautiful and
smiling, we are told to prepare for another fierce attack of our cruel foe and
more carnage and blood and slaughter await us. My heart sickens at the thought.
I heard from Aunt N. from New York, December 6th. She seems very miserable about
us all, and wishes I were in New York to share some of the many comforts they
enjoy. Much as I once liked New York, I never desire to see it again and
would rather starve and die here than live and grow fat under Lincoln! They
have no idea, even our Southern friends there, of the feelings aroused in our
hearts by this war. I am busy getting John ready to return to his post on James
Island. As it breaks my heart to think of the poor boy being on picket all
night in the rain and having only dry hominy and cold water for breakfast, I am
scouring the country to buy syrup and eggs and a few comforts to keep him from
starving.
SOURCE: Louise Wigfall Wright, A Southern Girl in
’61, p. 162-5
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