Camp 13th Iowa Infantry
Clinton, Mississippi
July 17th 1863
Dear Friend Ella:
I had begun to think
Ella had forgotten her absent friend, Ed — until a few days ago when a letter
came from her with the date of June 28th. I am always very anxious to hear from
you and when a long time passes without the receipt of a letter, I imagine a thousand
things, wondering if you are tired of our correspondence, or if I have failed
to please you. As regards your showing my letters to your friends, I have no
objections if there is anything in them of interest to others. I do not
intentionally write anything of which I am ashamed to have anyone read; perhaps
there are things in them occasionally which had not better be too widely
circulated, but I leave the matter to your discretion.
My Fourth of July
passed off very quietly. Our brigade lay at a ford on Black River all day
watching the movements of Gen. Johnston’s troops on the opposite side of
the river.
Frank has never
shown me your miniature nor have I seen a likeness of you taken since I came
away since I have been in the army. I expect you have changed very much since I
left you and am anxious to know how you look; but presume I shall have to wait
until my return. I was greatly surprised to learn that you had not imagined
what possesses a woman to shear her head of her greatest ornament — and you had
such beautiful hair that it seems a pity that you should have done it.
Evening, July 19th
Do you begin to
think that after all the promises I have made about going home this summer that
I am not going to fulfill them? It really looks so now — but I assure you that
were it possible, I should have been at home ‘ere this. It is very true that
many officers are going home all the time; and it looks singular that among so
many chances, I cannot obtain the privilege of leaving. But to get a leave of
absence one must be sick, or pretend to be, and my principles
will not allow me to resort to false statements to obtain even
so great a wished for pleasure.
To say that I am
contented would be false, for I have anticipated so much happiness from a visit
that to be deprived of it makes me quite discontented — and you know
that, “Hope deferred maketh the heart sick” — and certainly I have hoped
long enough to go home, as my letters will testify. However, I still hope on
believing that my turn will come after awhile.
You don’t know how
much I want to see you and I am afraid that when I get a chance…
[unsigned letter;
missing second sheet]
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SOURCE: This letter was put up for auction on Ebay. Accessed August 5, 2017.
