(Written in ink)
Dec 16th /62 Friends at home
I received a letter from you this forenoon dated Dec. 5th and as I have a few moments to spare I will improve it by writing. I am still at the same camp that I was when I wrote before. it was thought we would leave to day for Vicksburg but we have not and our teems have gone after ten days rations so the probablility is that we will not go yet for some time. we had a General review yesterday. all the troops in the vicinity of Memphis were out which numbered about 12 Thousand I tell you they made a splended appearance, and the 96th got the praise by the General of being the best Regt. in the hole lot. the men in our Regt are about as good a set of men as you will find. if we only had a good Colonel I beleave we would whip anything of our number but I shall not feel safe to go in to a battle with him he drilled the Regt. yesterday for the first time. and he made the bigest back of any drilling we have had. he knows nothing about drill, the Captains all got together the other day and reported him unfit for his ofice and it made him dreadful mad he put the Capts all under arrest the Lieutenant Colnel and Major are first rate men and they dont either one like the old Colonel. we have a great deal of trouble with him.
(Written in pencil) Dec. 21st we are on the Boat this morning bound for Vicksburg I suppose I have been rather slow about writing my letter I did not have time to finish it the other day. but I thought I would not through it by for paper is not very plenty. I said I thought we would not go yet for some time but it seems that we are about to go we came on to the boat last night about dark and they are fireing up getting ready to start. our Regt is all on one boat and they are rather crowded. there is a long fleet going down, I expect we will have a pretty big time, the General said if we were fired in to going down the river we wold hall up and tare them all up burn all the Towns that fired at us. The boats stoped clost to a Town last night (Dec 22nd) caled Delta the place where they put some union men into Barels and then roled them into the River about 18 months ago and there was a Missouria Regt Swore vengencece on the Town and they got of the Boat and went and burned the Town most all up they went into the stores and took what they wanted then set fire to it and if you remember reading 18 months ago about their hanging some 30 of ours and putting 2 into Barels and putting them in the River one was a Chool teacher this is the Town it goes by two names Delta and Prices Point it is in Miss. the Soldiers are determined to burn all Secesh Towns and the Old General is opposed to it that is Gen. Burbrage and Smith there is 2 Brigades Smith and Burbrage and we are all in Shermans Division. Sherman is with us (that is with the fleet) and I havent heard anything from him. I guess he dont care, nobody but the Kentucky Generals that want to guard Seces property.
;c941223 Postmarked Memphis, Ten, Jan 14, 1863
L C Dec 23
We stopped last night at place called Gastines Landing. it is on an old Secesh plantation. the Boys got of the Boat and went to the house found the man dressed in Soldiers clothes and they serched the house found four guns and two pistols all loaded and them took him Prisoner, he then owned that he was a Secesh Soldier home on a furlough. I went to the house and help hunt for arms and his woman looked so she was searched most to death but seemed to think it all right, there were 3 or 4 other houses the Boys went to and the men run into the woods and some of the Boys set fire to the houses and burned them up. there was a store house close to where we stoped that had about 1000 bushels of corn in it and they took on to Boats what they wanted they then burned the rest. in the morning when the pickets came in they brought in five other men. Dec 26. We are now within about 30 miles of Vicksburg. on the Boat one Brigade started yester and scout in the direction of Vicksburg one Company went with them about 10 miles and then was detailed to come back to the Boat with 10 Rebel Prisoners 196 head of cattle 5 mules 10 horses which our Caveley men captured, it was quite a time for Christmas. Diferent I suppose from the times you had in Berlin. our Brigade has not got back yet and don’t know when they will be back, the Brigade thats landed hear with us are out Scouting most all the time and bring in lots of prisoners and stock, I can not write any more now I have a chance to send a letter now for the first time since I left Memphis and probably will not have another for some time if you do not hear from me you need not feel worried for I am all right. L. C.