Helena Arkansas May the 6th 65 My Dearest Elizabeth I am as well and harty as I ever was in my life I have just returned from town where I went after some rations and when I came in I went to my writing table & spread my little hose and found a letter from you knowing that the mail had come in since I left and that the boys allways put my letters there I took it broke it open and as usual looked at the 2nd & 3rd line to see if all was well there I sit down to peruse it with sech interest and feelings that does not accompany my reading any other letters. The smallpox is not as hard in the Regt now as it has been. Some have got it but they are campt some distance from here and we do not visit them. I was complaining some time ago of a hurting in my brest I stopt drinking coffee entirely and and eating meat and bought a bottle of McLeans Cordial and I take a dose every morning and it has cured one entirely that is the hurting in my brest left me and I feele much releaved tho I never reported to the hospital and of corse never stopt duty Sickness is looked for when the water goes down it has commensed falling soon and as this medison is recommended to keep of yellow fever chills & so forth I shall use some of it for a time Times is dull and the news unimportant and the excitement seames to have taken a lull Scouting is no amoung the things thats host drilling is unknown Fighting has stopt I hope it never be resumed Picketing goes on not as [torn] Dress [torn] has assumed a [torn] appearance. Officers lounge around there Head Qrs. with an occasional remark on the conduct of there superiors Soldiers are laying around in the little shantys and look as tho they are waiting for something to transpier. Papers are eagerly snatched and read from all parts from the Union Eagle to the New Orleans Times Cincinnatti St. Louis ternsbill Chicago Tennessee paper are all read over all the news closly picked out Little Rock papers and Texas papers is most called for now as in Texas and West La. is all the Rebel Army now under armes and they was negotiating for the surrender of all the confederate troops west of the Mississippi and we look daly yes hourly for a notice of that fact When that is don we are don Firing was herd the other day in the direction of Little Rock and the camp of the 87 immediately livened up and grate things talked of Oisters eatin whiskey drank and in fact a general stere and various speculation on the cause of the cannonading some thought it was a salute in honor of the final snags[?] of the Union Army (by the surrender of Curbee Smith to Hooker and others sent from Washington for that purpose. all Eys was turned up the river for news weretofour now they are turned aroun and all hands anxiously awate the results of the conference with Smith. Helth is not so bad in the Company now only 4 or 5 sick. the prospects of going home without another scurmish has cured some of us and makes us feel better it is the comon opinion that we will get home in June or sooner but when I have herd of the surender of all confederate forses west of Mississippi then I will say)(it wont be long till then) Prudy Mabery did not do as you told her tho she told one of it but you know teling aman does not sufice Lizzie I hope to be able to tel you soon something of coming home but at present you knows as much as I do about it you must juge of that by the signs of the times. for when the work is don then we are don I supose that there is to be seriesly thousands mustered out rite off but as our enemy is stll under arms I do not expect to be disbanded in that namely Shermans Army and Meads will be among the 1st to go home. They have done a good ¦est, but we have done our duty all we have been ordered to do and that is all that is required of us so we are intitle som sho as well as others tho I have not the least idier but we will get justis in the end When the Country is safe then we want to come home not till then as that is what we came for and not for honey. So the paper has plade out and I shall close for the present after subscribing myself yours M.A.H. Patrick J. Anderson http://worldconnect.genealogy.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?db=patanderson 9654 Baltimore Avenue, Laurel, Maryland 20723