Raynors HCA 2017-02
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 2/23/2017
A good war-date Union soldier's letter, 4pp. 8vo., written on Lieut. General Winfield Scott patriotic stationery, by Sgt. John M. Parker, Co. I, 3rd New Hampshire Vols., Hilton Head, S. C., Feb. 23, 1861[2], in part: "…you will be much surprised…that I have not been to meeting for over six months and I sleep on straw and never take off my cloths when I go to bed. Do you think a fellow can behave so and not have a corresponding decline in the scale of morality? There is little excuse however for the last delinquency. There are a lot of fellows about ten miles from here that intend to pay us a surpass visit some night and our officers were anxious that the regiment should turn out promptly and look as well as possible so that they would not go away with with an unfavorable report concerning us…the worst thing we have to contend against is disease. Six have died out of our Reg. within a short time. Congestive and typhoid fevers are our worst enemy, but when a man dies here we don't [?] much about it. He is buried the same day in a rough pine box and is soon forgotten. We had a death in our company about a week ago. The man was sick a few days and died…the men were just as cheerful as though nothing had happened. This seems rather hard to you…but Olive you can educate a man to be most anything and habit will accustom us to things that we should be revolted at…perhaps it is well that it is so for if we spent our time in useless repining we should all sickness and die…John M. Parker." Included is the original stamped [with a U. S. Internal Revenue tax stamp] transmittal cover. Also included is copies of Parker's original pension papers. Minor spotting, else VG
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