/62
	St. Clouds. Hill Nashville Tenn. Dec 4th
Dear Brother
	          I received your kind letter of the
23rd [illegible] yesterday and I was very happy to hear
from you and to learn that you were all well
and prosperous. I had not heard from home
before in a long time, and I was very anxious
to know how you were getting along. I am
glad that your crops have turned in as well
as they have and that you are getting along so
well with your work. I suppose that help is
pretty scarce in Michigan now and wages must
be high to what they generally are. and you will
not be able to hire much and consequently you
will have a large amount of work to do your
own selves. but you must do the best you can
with it. I wish that we were at home to help
you a while but that we can not do. at present
we are not doing any thing at present except
guarding the Engineer Camp which is of
considerable extent. There is now being organized
at this place a large force of Engineers or pioneers

There is two men detailed from each
Company of every Regiment in this
department to be formed into Corps of Engineers
and Mechanics. to be attached to the several
divisions of the Army. what the idea of raising
such a large force of them is I do not know and I
can not see how they can all be profitably employed
but we can tell better after it is tried a while
the Army at this place and South of here is
not doing much at present but I think there
will be a forward movement soon. we do not get
much news here that we can depend on but we
hear a great many rumors which generally turn
out to be nothing but rumors. we hear now
that Gen Burnside is superseded by Gen Hooker
probably you know more about that than I
do. as we hardly hear of any thing that happens
till weeks afterward. well I hope they will
get the "right man in the right place" after a
while although I must say it takes a long
time to do it. the whole career of the Army
of the Potomac has been one of defeat and
disaster and the western Army for a while

     past has been following suit. but
     I hope that we will have different
proceedings now. the Country about here
is absolutely stripped of all kinds of forage
and provisions and the few inhabitants
that remain in the Country are completely
destitute of the necessaries of life and there
will be a vast amount of misery and suffering
the coming Winter. the Southern leaders have
brought a fearful visitation upon the Seceded
States. Oh, surely the curse of God must alight
on the heads of the men who would bring the
withering blight of a cruel and devastating war
upon one of the fairest countries under the
Sun. I hope that the war will Soon be over
and peace once more reign over a  happy and united
people. now dear brother do not fail to write to
me as often as you can and tell the others to write
also for I am always very glad to hear from home
we are expecting our pay now every day. as Soon
				                 the watch
as we get it we will express it to Holly to be on^
Give my best respects to all. Ever Yours.
Direct to
Co E 1st M.E. & M Louisville K.y.   Alexn Campbell