Providence Louisiana Feb 14th 1863 
     Dear Lucinda 
     I Rec,d a letter from you last night dated Feb 1st and was 
  glad to hear that you was well; I am as well as usual 
I was glad to learn that you had Rec,d my picture and the money 
I Sent you; perhaps it was the way I was Shaved; that 
caused you to think that I looked poor [crossed out] [and] [crossed out] [illegible] as I did 
when I come up from Illinois; and perhaps I looked too 
Sober at the time which gave the picture a Sad Appearance 
As for being Sad I do not feel any more Sad than I did when 
I was at home Although I do not Enjoy myself So well; I do 
not give myself up to  hysterics but live in hopes of again 
Enjoying a Civil and peaceful life with my peaceful little 
    family which I feel proud of and whose Society would be 
more pleasure to me than any other of Earth 
To day is Valentines day; one year ago to day I Arrived at 
home on my furlough from Milwaukee though there is a great 
          Between 
contrast [crossed out] [in] ^ the weather [crossed out] [illegible] there and here; a year ago to day the 
weather was verry cold with about two feet of Snow But to day the 
weather here is warm wet and muddy the Peach Trees are in 
full Bloom and we are having warm Rains which has 
mutch the appearance of Spring; I am in hopes however that 
I shall not have Remain in the South another Summer for I would 
Rather Stand the cold winter weather of the North than the hot 
Summer Sun of Dixies Climate; the talk is that we will 
be paid again Soon but it is [crossed out] [illegible] uncertain when for that was, 
the talk before; there [crossed out] [will] will be Six months pay Due us again 
the last of this month 
    We have moved again Since I wrote you last .  we left Millikens 
Bend on the 8th and come up the River on Boats for providence 
Sixty miles above Vicksburg; there is (only our Division here 
about, 8,000, men We left Fosters Battery down at the Bend I have 
not seen Jabe Since I wrote to you Before; this is a verry 
Rich country here or has been; There is Some large plantations here 
with two [crossed out] [illegible] to three hundred Negros on a plantation 
you wrote Something about getting a Certifficate of Mr [Keyes?] 
you Said you wrote Something about it in your letter of the week   
before but I have not yet got the letter; Of course I did not 
mean to [crossed out] [illegible] Allow your Mother to lose her land if we was 
able to Save it for her.  So If you have got the Certificate Keep 
                the Land 
  it and not Allow it, ^ to be Deeded away; You wanted to 
if I had clothes Enough to Keep me warm I have all the clothes 
and Blankets that I need and in fact more than I can 
conveniently carry on a March; we also have plenty to Eat though 
Sometimes in no great Variety; I Rec,d a letter last week 
from Brother, Isaac he has got his Discharge and left Leavenworth 
with his wife and gone Back to Illinois to live; Perhaps you 
thought I was too hard on you in writing about those Errors, 
   I have no Doubt [crossed out] [but] that you are kept quite Busy and have not 
mutch time to Study; But people verry often become careless 
and Neglect what they Really know; for that is the case with myself 
I did not Say anything against the quality of your writing it was 
[Written upside down] 
       Although She used to talk more propperly 
[End]         
only the form and Spelling; Neither did I wish to Over task 
[Written upside down] 
           you can See the want of form and language in it very plainly 
[End] 
you; but do aS well aS you can conveniently Is all I Desire for I 
[Written upside down] 
I will Send you a letter that I Rec,d from Sister Elisabeth 
[End] 
know you have a head that is capable of Learning; I Must close for 
the present; Farewell				Thomas.J.Davis 
LucindaM.Davis