HENDERSON COUNTY, TN - LETTERS - John C. Smith to wife Lucinda J. Payne Smith, 25 Jun 1864 ----¤¤¤---- NOTE: Writing to his wife Lucinda Payne Smith: John Culpepper Smith had an interesting writing style that precludes any ease of reading. He did not seem to see the necessity of inserting capital letters at the beginnings or periods at the end of sentences. I have edited the following transcript by applying capitalization and punctuation to facilitate interpretation. The spelling is his own. - RGE 2003 June 25th 1864 Tupelo Mississipi Dear Lucinda I take my pen the fourth time since I left Jackson Tenn to write you a few more lines to let you know I am yet a live and in the enjoyment of health and has bin ever since we hav bin in Miss. When this comes to your hands I hope will find you and our precious little children enjoying the grate blessing of good health and enough to liv on for it would grieve and distress me to know my dear ones at home should be suffering or deprived of the necessaries of life while I am a way but I still hope we are only separated for a time thairfore I want you to try to brave the storm and do the best you can for your self and children in your lonely condition. You and the children are my last thought at knight and first in the morning. I can sea you all as plain in immaginnation as tho it was real and in my dreams think myself hapy in your kind embrace amidst the prattling voices of Alie and Mary and thair many little playful ways which if could only be so it seams would be the graites pleasure and satisfaction immaginable but I hav no idy when I will be at home a gain. We are now camped three miles west of Tupelo Miss how long we will remain here I cannot tell. Our horses are very much jaded and nead rest and recuiting. My horse looks the worst I ever saw him. Page 2nd We have such a long hard raice after the yankeys. Both men and horses was nearly worn out. I think our regiment must hav followed them 75 or 80 miles and fought them three times and never failed to rout and run them at either battle. The first fight was about five miles from Guntown Station at the cross roads running from that place to Ripley and from Corrinth to Tupelo. That was the longest and hardest battle I hav ever experienced. Our regiment got in to it about one Oclock as near as I can tell and fought on till about sundown. The yankes stood firm for some time and the bulets seamed to fly as thick as hail wounding a good many of our men and killing some. I suppose thair was twenty men killed in our regiment out of two hundred that was in the engagement and thirty wounded making fifty killed and wounded in Wilsons Regiment. The amount lost in killed and wounded on the southern side is estimated at six or seven hundred while on that of the yankeys is said to be between fifteen hundred and two thousand. This is as near as I can come at it up to this time in the three fights I went threw the two first without receiving a scratch. In the third I was prisner guard. The second fight was at ripley Miss. the third near Mosco Tenn. We captured all thair wagons and canon and a quanity of Army stors. Page 3rd It is said we captured two thousand prisoners making in all killed wounded captured thirty five hundred or four thousand. It was a complete victory or as much so I recon as any could be under the circumstances. I will quit the war nuses as I hav written some about the battles in my last before this. James Eliott is at our fire now but cannot tell any thing particular about you or our neighborhood. I want you to write every chance you hav and tell me how you and the children are getting on and all the nuse you can. The time seams long for you not to send even the mark of a pen while I am so anxious to here and know from your own words as other seams not to know what I wish to know. It seams like you could sent a leter before this time as thair has bin severl persons coming if you know knew when they was starting. I wrot to John Woods a leter but haven't got any answer yet. Jack White who belongs to our Company said he was at Swifts last week and said they told him you was all well which give me some consolation. Whit said McNatt was coming to camp soon and Page 4 bring leters for us all from that secion. I hope he may but I hav some doubts but I think all of them fellows back thair would do well to come in soon if they want to do well for them selves. It is now said every man that runs a way has to if caught in the act ware a chain around his ancle with a heavy ball attached to the end of it and do hard service. Tell Sandy and Selena Thom is well ans went threw all the battles like a good soldier without getting hurt but got a ball shot threw his hat but did no other damage. Tell Parson and Selena I would like to get a leter from them and know how they are getting along. Tell uncle Newton and Aunt Iby I hav not forgotten them and would like to get a line from them if they get a chance to write. Tell father uncle Benjamin Smith and wife is ded. I saw a man in Ripley that knew them both. Couin Joseph is in the army. The man that told me coul not tell where uncle Bens children was. I will hav to close for want of time. Good by my love for this time JC Smith. ___________________________________________________________________ Copyright. 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