1862 Sep 21
Georgia
Pike County
September 21, 1862
Mr. William H. Harden
Dear companion,
I now seat myself to let you know that I am well at present, hoping when these lines come to hand they will find you enjoying the best of health.
I received your kind and affectionate letter this morning and was truly glad to hear from you. I am glad to hear that you have got your shirts. I was afraid that you would not get them. I made you another one to send by Mr. Daniel, but I will not send it now that you have got them.
Mr. Daniel starts to you Tuesday morning. I will send you a jug of syrup. Your Ma give me some butter and some flour to bake you some bread and ginger cakes. Aunt Varchus put in some flour, too, for Jimmy Short. I will put it together. Varchus says to divide bread with him. She never had no butter to send. I will put in some raw potatoes. I would cook them but they would mash all to pieces.
Mollie is not well. She has the worst cold you ever saw. She had high fever last night and night before. Me and Ma never sleeped much with her. She haven’t got but two teeth yet. I think that is mostly what ails her. She is the sweetest little girl you ever saw.
Pa’s folks is all well but Minda. We all think she has the yellow ganders.
Mr. Lynch’s family is all well except the children has the whooping cough. Mrs. Lynch heard from him the 20th of September. He was at Beans Station the 12th.
James Harris is with him. Uncertain whether he dead or alive now. Cap is going to start after him Tuesday morning.
I haven’t heard from your crop and hogs since I wrote the last letter.
I heard that Elihu is going to give me half of the tobacco.
Mr. Brooks is got your syrup made. I don’t know how much there is of it. I will try to get Pa to go with me down there this week and then I will tell you more about it.
Pa says that he has nothing that will interest a suckling pig, let alone a man. He has no late news.
We are all out of salt now.
Ma is got a pig up fattening for the Association. You must try and come then. It commences on Friday before the third Sunday in October.
I must come to a close. I am in a hurry now - Mr. Daniel is going to start this evening. I will write more in the morn.
Tell the old man Seab to write to me how his heifers is getting along, and how all the stock is, and what he thinks about the war. I heard he was conscripted. If so, I know his lips tooted out as long as my finger.
W. H. H.