th
Dear Absent Brother		March 10 /63
					           Sabeth Evening
			I received your letter dated February
Twenty Fifth I also received one from you just before you left
  Nashville and answered it immediately but you left probobly
before it reached there I am sorry to hear that you are so very
bad off I do hope you will soon be better or they will send
you home Mr [Deewato?] has got home he says that if you
have got the Erysipelas you aright not to be in the army he
says you should be sent home  I think so to you must
				New Albany Ind
					Tuesday March 17th 63
					Dear Sister
			I take this oppertunity
to answer your letter which I received
yesterday and was glad to hear from
you the letter is dated at the top of
this page there is no news of any imp
ortance that I hear but there was a
letter in this ward that was sent
from the front to one of the boys
in this ward it stated that they had
received orders to have three days ratio
ns cooked ready to march at a minites
warning that looks like a forward
movement   . I expect to hear of another
battle in a few days but there will
be hard fighting when they do get at it
I think the two armies are about equal in
numbers but I think our men are
better armed than the rebels there is
in one of the boys just read an
account of Colonel Minty giving

give them no peace until they give you your Discharge I was at ameeting
today I could not help thinking of you way of there away from friends
and home they have all got back but you and I do wish you might
come home [illegible in original] Horace and Charles you wrote in your letter as though
you did not know that Charles had got home he got home about
three weeks ago he is well and harty [illegible in original] got home about a week
after Charles the last I heard from there he was not able to feed
himself I believe that he has the Rheumatism in his shoulders
there was a very sad axident hapened here week before last on Saturday
the last day of Feb Mr Haners oldest boy fell into the well and killed him
(the well had no curb around it) he went out before day light to get a pail of

the rebels another whipping the
fourth Michigan Cavalry is the
bully regiment they are the favo
ites of general Rosecrans if he has any
				         k
job on hand that requires good spun^
he calls on Colonel Minty with his Regt..
and it is sure to bedone Mary I wish
that I was able to go to the regiment
so that I might be with the boys
but I fear that will never be but
I hope it will come around so that
I can go when warm weather comes
my health is not [illegible in original] very good but
it is improving I think but I am as
lame as ever there is no prospects of
my being any beter the Doctor told me
that I was good for the Hospital six
months longer but they cant keep
me two months longer for I will
write to Colonel Minty and he will
get me out but I guess he was only

water and it is supposed that he fell head first into the well they
thought his neck was broken Mr Haner feels dreadfuly about it he was a great
help to him you wrote about your Chaplin I am glad you had such
good advice and I hope that you will profit by it you must fetch
him home with you for we are very much in need of a good
Minister  [Parcial?] will never do any good here and I fear [Ross?] is not
much better I saw Mother to meeting today she said that they got two
letters from you last night she is well as usuel Mrs Fishbeck was to
meeting I never saw her look more healthy than she does this winter
Andrew I write upon the uper part of this sheet so that you may
joking me I got two letters last night
after nine Oclock the mail came in
about 11 O'clock but it did not bring any
letters for me the bagage master
was at the post office in the evening
					    t
and accidently found them among abou^
five hundred other letters so he brought
them up and left them with one
of the boys until I came in.. Well
Mary I suppose you want to know
what I was out so late well I will
tell you what I was about I was
at a regular old Fashioned.. Free. Will.
Baptist protracted Meeting it seemed
like home the preacher is [remainder of line lost due to cut in paper]
er there is a soldier here from [remainder of line lost due to cut in paper]
his Father and Mother has [remainder of line lost due to cut in paper]
to see him they brought [remainder of line lost due to cut in paper]
cake and other things to eat [remainder of line lost due to cut in paper]
right old Fashiond kentucky [remainder of line lost due to cut in paper]
are union people they are [remainder of line lost due to cut in paper]
common folks well I [remainder of line lost due to cut in paper]
feared to see my mother [remainder of line lost due to cut in paper]

have the rest of it to write upon there is no war news of any
importance they do not seem to be doing much down south you said
that I must keep the school mam for you  I will if I can but
perhaps you would not like her if I should the Methodists are holding 
Protracted meetings over to the Colony, they have got three or four Converts
I believe I have not seen Mr Harrisons People since I received your letter
   I will show it to them as soon as I have an oporunity well Andrew I
must close for my part of the paper is about used up I suppose you have
got the box that was sent you and Mr Fishbeck you must write how you
liked it write soon or answer this Personly your affectionate Sister M E Wilcox  A E Ferdon
the Hospital but I dont think
I am destined to be scared in that
way there is Some talk that
the sick and wounded that
are able to  ride in the cars are going
to be sent to their own state if
they send me to Michigan I Shall
come home on a visit well Mary I
have writen all that I can think
of I shall send a line to Charles
in this please hand it to him
     give my love to all and accept
the Same yourself.
		from your afffectionate
		brother Andrew Ferdon

		to his Sister

		    M.. E Wilcox