Person:Margaret Buchanan (37)

Letter to Margaret Buchanan McDaniel

Born 1831 – Died 1903 January 31, 1863

From Felix Grundy Buchanan Her Brother Born 1838 – Died 1907

• Camp Gregg, 1st Tennessee Regiment,

Near Guinea Station, Virginia

Dear Sister: - Mrs. Mag McDaniel

Thinking perhaps a few lines from me would be acceptable to you, I have concluded to spend a few moments of the night such ideas and items of news as may present themselves to my mind. If my memory is not very treacherous, I received a letter from you about the first of December in which you seem to be much elated with the hope of better mail facilities, as we would be able to keep up a more punctual correspondence.

You said the bridges on Winchester [Virginia] and Fayetteville [Tennessee] Railroad were being rapidly repaired and when completed a regular mail would be established, and letters would go direct.

Now that letter created happy feelings within me; for I felt confident in the future, I would receive more letters from home. I presume ere* this a regular mail has been established, that the bridges have now been finished, that the cars make daily trips to and from Winchester.

All this has been accomplished several weeks since, but how many letters have I received from you? Not one. Whose fault is it; it cannot be in the mails, for I have received several letters from Father [Andrew Buchanan] that came through the mails in a reasonable time.

I do not wish to grumble for I am well aware that such stuff never made an interesting letter, but I do not think you write as often as youmight. If it was not for Father my letters from home would be very few. Surely you can write as often as he; and I believe if you only knew the pleasure letters from home afford me, you would write more.

I know you are wearied with this, yet I am almost disposed to continue in the same subject. I have no news that would be interesting to you, even camps are void of exciting rumors just now. I have not seen a more quiet time in the Army for several months past. But this can easily be accounted for all owing to the state of the weather, the great quantity of mud and water. If both Armies were anxious to fight, they could not well get together ere for the Rappahannock [River in Virginia] is considerably swollen, and it is so awful muddy that it is almost impossible to move an Army.

[Union Major] General Ambrose Everett] Burnside has been superseded by [Union Major] General [Joseph] Hooker, “Fighting Joe”as the Yankees call him, and I shall look for a fight as soon as the roads dry off. I do not know much about Joe’s qualifications as a General, but judging from his testimony, in the case of Burnside, before a committee appointed by the Federal Congress to investigate the Fredericksburg fight, I cannot believe that he is much military man. But I do not set myself up as judge of good generals, leave that to would be editors, newspaper correspondents, and non-conscripts generally.

If Hooker wishes to cross the River and have a fight, I suppose [Confederate Full] General [Robert E.] Lee is ready, I can see nothing wanting.

My health is good, and everything considered I am doing remarkably well. The health of the Regiment is good, there is but little sickness in the Army.

Give my love to all the Family, speak all manner of pretty things to the children. I would like to see the little brats now. Tell Coleman [Adams McDaniel] to write to me, and you are politely requested to do the same.

• Respectfully Your Brother,
• Felix G. Buchanan

Ere – Before, soon.