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Letter from Lloyd Powell (near Martinsburg, Va.) to Selena Powell (Winchester, Va.)
28 June 1861
Powell Papers - 65 P875, Box II, Folder 5
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In Camp, near Martinsburg Va
June 28th 1861
My dear Mother
Your two notes, together with the package accompanying each were safely delivd to me by Mrs McGuire & Lieut Ginn. Nothing could have been more acceptable I assure you. It gave me great pleasure to hear that you were all in your usual health & spirits, & from present appearances I think one may anticipate that they will not be tasked much longer to the same extent. Every day seems to bring with it new assurances of a speedy and honorable peace.
The provisions you sent me dear Mother were exactly what I most relished. You can scarcely
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imagine how much we enjoyed them. I can suggest no additions except perhaps a little pickle. The biscuit, ham, cakes, & bread & sweet meats, make up a bill of fare which is unexceptionable. Cheese & fresh meats would be liable to spoil during this warm weather I shd think. I am now sitting in the shade upon the bank of a clear & cool mountain stream in which I enjoyed the luxury of a bath a few minutes ago, writing to you with the pencil & upon the paper which made a part of the contents of the dressing case. But for its arrival this communication would have been even more brief & unique than the last. How can I ever be grate-
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ful enough my dearest Mother for the many incdences of your affectionate care & consideration which you have heaped upon me all my life? The sight of Mrs McGuire rejoiced the hearts of the Winchester boys very much, & upon the display of the many bundles & letters which she brought with her their delight & enthusiasm was unbounded. The camp fare here has been very indifferent so far, & we have generally supplied ourselves with more wholesome & palatable food from the farmer's homes in the neighborhood, & from the bundles of provisions sent by our friends. We have always found it perfectly easy to buy at extremely low prices an abundance of sweet & fresh bread, butter, & milk. So you see there is not the slightest danger of our suffering from want
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of food. One of the things which I enjoyed most in the package sent by Mr. Ginn was the "Richmond Dispatch." A late paper here is one of the greatest & rarest luxuries I know of. Please send me one when ever you can do so without inconvenience.
This camp life is a very rough one indeed, but so far I have stood it remarkably well, & now that I have become accustomed to it you need have no fear whatever as to my health & comfort. The only thing I have suffered from in the slightest degree has been foot-soreness. How long we are to remain here or to what point we move after leaving our present camp I cant say. Our tents are expected from Winchester this evening. We shall then be divided into messes of 6 each, go regularly to housekeeping, & be infinitely more comfortable in every respect. The mess of which I am a member is composed of Jas Sherrard, Marshall Jones, Ben Holliday,
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myself, Richd Meade, & Wm Barton. The two latter are now in Winchester, but are expected here in a few days. What an admirable opportunity will be afforded me for the display of my culinary talents!
You must not imagine that camp life is by any means an idle one. Besides the guard duties which fall to three of our company everyday, we have a drill of an hour before 6 A.M., an hour and a half's drill in the fore noon, & about 2 hours of the same sort of exercise in the evening. At half past four A M we must be up & answer to our names, & by half past nine at night the lights must be out & everyone quietly ensconced in bed. Very sensible & wholesome hours, dont you think so? You do not mention whether you have heard anything
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from Charley lately. I shd like very much to know how he is getting along. Grand-Ma & Min are still with you I suppose. It would be hard I think to find a safer place than Winchester now is. The enemy still remains at Williamsport some 7 miles from us & doesn't seem at all disposed to cross again to the Va side. Whether we shall follow them into Md or not I don't know.
Please write to me as often as you can dear Mother. Your letters are a source of great enjoyment to me. I look forward before very long to the pleasure of seeing you all again. In the mean time with much love to dear Grandma, Father, & the girls & a very large portion for yourself, I am my dearest Mother
Yr devoted Son
Lloyd Powell
I am sure you will make all due allowance for the appearance of this scrawl, when I tell you that I write sitting upon the ground with my knee for a writing desk. I think perhaps it would b better for you to address your letters to me in furture to "Lloyd Powell, Co F, 2nd Regt, Va Vol." It is in this manner that our company is designated in the Army. I meant to return a bundle of soiled clothes, Lieut Corbin having just arrived with the clean ones. It will be unnecessary to send these back until I write for them, as they wd be too much to carry on a march. The oil cloth came safely to hand & answers admirably.
