Nothing new from the armies — all quiet. At home we are in statu
quo, except that we have had a very agreeable accession to our family party
in the person of Colonel Charles F. M. Garnett. He sleeps in his office, and
messes with us. He cheers us every day by bringing the latest news, in the most
pleasant form which the nature of the case will admit. My occupation at home
just now is as new as that in the office — it is shoe-making. I am busy upon
the second pair of gaiter boots. They are made of canvas, presented me by a
friend. It was taken from one of our James River vessels, and has been often spread
to the breeze, under the “Stars and Bars.” The vessel was sunk among the
obstructions at Drury's Bluff. The gaiters are cut out by a shoemaker, stitched
and bound by the ladies, then soled by a shoemaker, for the moderate sum of
fifty dollars. Last year he put soles on a pair for ten dollars. They are then
blacked with the material used for blacking guns in the navy. They are very handsome
gaiters, and bear polishing by blacking and the shoe-brush as well as morocco.
They are lasting, and very cheap when compared with those we buy, which are
from $125 to $150 per pair. We are certainly becoming very independent of
foreign aid. The girls make beautifully fitting gloves, of dark flannel, cloth,
linen, and any other material we can command. We make very nice blacking, and a
friend has just sent me a bottle of brilliant black ink, made of elderberries.
SOURCE: Judith W. McGuire, Diary of a Southern
Refugee, During the War, p. 251-2
No comments:
Post a Comment