(Stationery has engraving of Major General Pope in pink in at top left corner.
Covington, Ky Sept 5 (1862)
I am still in Covington and do not know as we will leave very soon we did not leave here as we expected when I wrote before we have very good times now have posession of the city and do about as we please we have our rations cooked by the Ladies of Covington and we occupy several long halls to sleep in and there is a great large house made apurpuse for to eat in the union army has evacuated Lexington and the Rebs are fowling them up & we expect them here every day we went out about 2 miles from town night before last and stood picket gard we went up on a high mountain where we were stationed and we could see Cincinnati Covington and Newport the Ohio river runs west along past Cincinnati and Covington & Newport lie right acrost from Cincinnati and the Licking river seperates Covington & Newport and they both are pretty large cittys Covington has about 15,000 enhabatents and it (was) nice to get up on the mountains and vewe the landscape ore these three Cities lie in a vally and mountains all around them and they have got batteries planted so as to Command every direction that the rebs would be likely to come every man that is able to work eny yeng or old in Cincinnati Covington & Newport are ordered by General Lew Wallace to Suspend all bisness and work on the entrenchments and the recruits are coming in last and thick and fast in Companies and regiments we have gards out about 2 miles all around the City and When we are in the City we do about as we are amind to there is about an acre in the market ground and it is filed up every morning with everything that we want. Aples peaches plumbs pars grapes and every thing else you can think of and the boys buy Some and Draught (draw) Some When they take a notion to buy they buy and to Draught they Draught We have big times Covington is now headquarters and I dont expect we shall leave here very soon I am in a Doctors office writing and his pens and ink ant good and i cant write good Direct to Covington Ky 96 reg O.V.I Company G Cimball, Cap
(written upside down across top of last page) the folks are a sort of irish Dutch I cannot hardly understand what they say and the Country is about half open to the commons and the other half porly fenced. Marching I sweet (sweat) so that I weet (wet) my postage stamps and stuck them together and spoiled them.i