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Camp Near Monroe. July the 18th A.D. 1863
Dear Wife I once more set down to write you a few lines to let you know that I am well and I hope when thees few lines comes to hand they may find you and familey well. Ive wrote to you regular every 10 days but I dont know wether you hav received them or not but I dont expect that you do from what I hav seen and heard. I hav ben to the post office at delhi to see for my self. There is a great many letters wrote by the soldirs. They crowd the post offices so the post masters gets careles and they dont care what becomes of the letters. They are throwed about and about half of them lost. I understand that they hav got so many in Monroe that they are throwed and scattered all over the street. I saw Briant Oliver this morning. He sais that you all dont get any letters. I hav the chance of sending this over into texas by a soldier that is on his way from Vicksburg. I reckon that you hav heard before this time that vixburg [Vicksburg] has fallen in the hands of the feds. It was surrendered on the 4th of july. The feds surrounded it and perrished our men out. They couldent take it know other way. Our men helt on to it as long as they could. There provisions giv out. They eat mules several days before they would surrender. There was about thirty thousand of our men taken and [paroled?]. They hav ben passing about a week. We had several little fights on the missippi [Mississippi] river just abov vicksburg. I wrote to you and giv you a sketch of them all but I dont know wether you hav got my letters or not. The last letter I got from you was dated the 10th of June. It was directted to Shreveport. It come threw in about 17 days. We hav got out of the bottom once more. We are the proudest fellowe you ever saw. It was a verry disagreeable place. We had to drink the worst water that I ever saw people drink. I hav went to ponds nearley famished and I would hav to nock a green scum off of the top to get a drink. We hav got back to monroe. We are one mile abov Trinton [Trenton] on the side of the river next to Shreveport. I dont know where we will go to from hear. We may go out on red river some where. I think we will go out some where to recruit and to rest this armey. We hav ben put threw since we left Arkansas. We are all getting verry scarse of close. We hav ben waitting for the goverment to cloth us but it appreas that we wont get any. My close will last me a while yet them coarse shirts that you made me is good yet and my drawers and them cotton pants that you dident dye. But the others is about woar out. Those jeans pants you sent me is tollirable good yet all but the legs. They was too big. They caught [up?] the mud so that it woar them out around the feet. The next you make me make them by the same pattern that you made the first by. I am in hops that I will get the chance to come home before I get clear out but it is unseartain. Hav me too soots reddy so if I get out and dont get the chance to come I can send after them. I wrote to you on the 14th of this month and mailed it at delhi but I dont expect that you will get it. I thought that I would write to you again as briant olliver told me that you all want getting any letters. When you get this write to me and let me know how you are getting along. What sort of a crop you hav got when it rained reigned and every thing that you can think of. I wis that I could get letters enough from you to keep me readdin all the time. When the rest of the boys gets letters and I dont get any it makes me feel quite [lolley?] to stand off and see them read them and I dont hav any to read. That is all the way that we hav to converse with each other and it appears that we cant converse that way. When we left Delhi to come out to Monroe we came out on the cars. I couldent help from feeling like I was comeing home. I couldent hardley stand nor set still. The last letter that I got from you you stated that you was not well. I hope that you wasnt sick long and if you was I hope you are well by this time. I hav wrote to Mother and Sister Jane and Mr Griffin all scent by. If they dont get them tell them to write when you see them. Betty it isent worth while for me to write any thing about ware nuse. We can hear any thing that we want to hear. I dont beleave any thing that I hear hardley. I expect that you all hear as much as we do. There is one half that sortain you hear that isent so. I hav got so I dont hardley beleave any thing if I see it the men in this armey is out of heart. They all are about reddy to giv it up. Every thing looks verry gloommey on our side. I understand that port hutson [Port Hudson] surrendered on the 9th of this month. I hav heard that New orleans has ben retaken by general Tayler [Taylor] but I dont know wether the nuse is reliable or not. I could write you lots of such nuse as that but I reckon you hav heard of it. I got a letter from John some time ago. He said that him and Dock was well. He wantted to by my clame on Mothers old dower. He said that he hat baught all of the rest of the childrings. I wrote to him that he could hav it at the same that he giv the rest that was $50.00. He said that he had the money reddy for me. That money that he has ben owing me for the land that he has sold for me. He said that he would send it to me by male at my risk. I wrote to him to send it to you $100.00 at a time. I moove about so much that I am afrade for him to send it to me. If he sends it write to him to let him know that you got it. If you need it use it and if not pay debts with it. I wouldent keep much confederate money on hand if I had a bushel. Let me know wether John McDuffey got them cards or not when you get this. I havent seen Sid and Thomas in about too weekes. They was both well the last time I saw them. Henry Jones is verry sick and so is Carley. They are both at the hospital in Monroe. Giv my best respect to all of our relations neighbors and friends. If you see any boddy coming to Walkers divis Hauses [Hawes] brigade send me a braid of your hair and some of Priscillas. To back your letters thus W. E. Stoker Col Culbersons [Culberson] Reg Hausees brigade Walkers divisions. Nothing more but I remain your affectionate husband untill deth. Kiss Priscilla for me and Ile hug you and kiss you a hundred times if I ever get home which I hope I will before long. W. E. Stoker
