Millikens Bend Louisiana Feb 7th 1863 
 Dear Wife 
   I Rec,d a letter from you [crossed out] [illegible] night Before last dated 
          usual 
Jan; 18th it found me as well as ^ and I was glad to learn 
that you was well [crossed out] [illegible] we are Still at camp where I wrote to 
you Before there is nothing of great Importance Transpiring  
here at present I hear Some canonading down at Vicksburg 
to day and I hear [crossed out] [illegible] that the cause of it is That two more 
of our Gun Boats Run the Rebel Blockade this morning 
Three Gun Boats Run their Blockade the day I wrote you last 
which makes five that have Run through the fire of their 
blockading Batteries; We Rec,d the official Report night 
   before last of the Death of William Downie he Died on the 25th 
        	                      in 
of January [crossed out] [illegible] the Hospital at Jefferson Baricks the news 
        us 
took ^ Rather By Surprise as we thought his wounds not Dangerous 
and Suposed he was getting well; our officers Say we will 
move from here in a couple of days they Say they think we are 
going Back up into Arkansas and Some think we are 
going to East Tennessee to Reinforce Gen, Rosencranz 
But the former I think the most porbable they Say the 
Boats are laying here at the [crossed out] [Shore] Shore that is to carry us 
You Said the last letter you had Recd from me was dated 
Dec 27th I think you must have been Mistaken in the date 
it was in my letter of the date of Dec 21st that I sent 
you the name of the girl and you Spoke of it in your 
   letter of the 28th  [crossed out] [that] from the 27th of Dec to 18th of Jan would 
      make it three weeks old 
 I have not had any letters Since I have been here Except 
the One I Recd from you I got a letter from Sarah McLain 
at Moscow and I have not Answered it yet I Expect she 
thinks I am Slow about writing But I must try and write 
to her Soon I have not had a letter from Susan Since last 
Sept; I wrote to her last; So I will not write until 
She writes again I have not mutch news of importance 
to write to day So I will give you a Short Letter 
this time: I will Send you another Ring in this letter 
that I made of Black Horn  I cut a Shield and a 
[crossed out] [illegible] Diamond in it But the Ring was Rather small to 
   cut the Shield wide Enough for the length 
   perhaps you think that whittling  Rings is Small 
 Business for Soldiers But Some of the Other Boys 
was at it So I thought I must     try my Inginuity 
with the Rest for I did not want them all to Beat me 
    well the mail is going out Soon so I must 
 Close you need not put yourself to the Trouble to 
Send me any money for if I get out I can Borrow 
what I need I have never been Entirely out of money 
Since I have been in the Service though many of the 
Boys are Straped in less then two weeks after they are 
   paid I was lucky Enough to get a Dollars worth 
of Stamps at Memphis So you need not Trouble your 
Self about them [crossed out] [if you]   So Good Bye   for This Time 
Write   Soon			Thos.J.Davis 
 
Lucinda M Davis