#22


		Bridgeport Ala Feb. 21st 1864.
Dear wife I received you ever welcome letter
yesterday morning mailed Feb. 12th and also
the two packages of senna and powders and
also paper and envelopes this is the first
sheet of your paper so you must excuse its
being soiled I was not out of paper it can
be bought here now as well as at home I do
not know as I can comply with your request and
send this all back to you. but I will try and
do as you bid. I think you must be misinformed
as to our guards and the number of our men
we have 150 men in our company and
there is four companies here 150 men each
which makes 600 men of our reg and I dont
know how many Infantry and Cavalry.
besides battery men probably 3,000 or 4,000
more and all well armed but us so you see
if Morgan or some other band of marauding
rebels should pitch into us they would have
to hunt their holes awful quick the old
regiments are all reenlisting almost to a
man for the sake of the big bounty. I
think I shall not say to you that if
I was only out of this that I should
not leave you again but I will say that

when my three years is up you need not
expect me to enlist again but knowing
what I already know if I had not enlisted
I should enlist now. So that is Satisfactory
exceptain it may seem hard to you but I
could never held my head up in society
after the war is over if I had not enlisted.
You done perfectly right with lew Gardner.
but if all the men in town should ride
to the Raids it would not make me
Jealous of you. I am very sorry to hear
that Oscar is so bad I thought he 
would get well and come back to his
regiment I will get him one of the rolls
of honor it will cost me fifty cents
which he can pay you if he is amind
to get the clover seed of Oscar if you can
at any rate and have it sowed on the 
ground  I had rather if you dont get any 
more to sow what you have got without
any timothy seed on the piece next to
fitz's with the oats when they are sown. You
said you got thirty pounds of clover seed of
Oscar for six dollars and a half was it that
much per bushel or was it that for
thirty lbs which is only half a bushel

			Feb. 21, '64

please inform me the rings I promised I
     d
sent in this letter one to my dear little sick
Arden which is the prettiest. babes is too large
for him I expect I do not have but little
time to spare to make rings and nice shells
are hard to find and I want the very best
you know the initials can not be put on
here as we have not got the tools those
breast pins shall come as soon as I can
make them the men that do not cook dont
have anything to do now but make rings
while it is about all I can do is to get my
cooking and my writing done   I long to
see my little boys and my own dear wife
again.   the news came her night before
last that Morgan was near here
with 10,000 Cavalry and the Com was
                      to
all brought in[illegible in original] position and the Inf-
antry regiments stood in line of battle
all night we were ordered to sleep
with our clothes on to be ready at any
moment to give the old fellow a warm
reception if he came pickets were sent
out but no Morgan was to be found
it was quite amusing I have been
vaccinated but it did not work so this

morning I vaccinated myself from Henry Otto's
arm and if it dont work this time I shall
feel quite safe.  the small pox has been 
within 80 rods of here and several died
with it but there has not been any cases
for about three weeks
   Kiss the children for me may God bless
and protect you all. I am well good bye
for the present
	     from your husband
	        Simeon A Howe to C E. P. Howe