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for hanging kettles and a bake oven, so you see we are splendidly fixed for cold weather, if we could stay here this winter we should be all right. The eight Missouri has a hard name here, they never have any guard around the camp, they have been in service one year and a half have been in several battles, sesech get no mercy shown them, they threatened to burn Memphis because one of their men got shot by citisens. I wrote home from Cairo Louisville and Frankfort did you receive them all. I have never received the Harpers Magazine you sent. It is no use to send papers, for they will not come through by mail, if you see any thing that would interest me cut it out and send it in a letter. In comeing down the river we passed many places that have acted a conspicuous part since the war broke out, at different points in the river lay eight or ten of the gun Boats that have done so much on our western waters. At island No. 10 the fortifications have all been washed away by high water, while on the Ky. shore the fortifications are all there minus the canon. At fort Anderson all that remains is the chimneys of about a dozen houses. At the other forts along the river there was nothing to be seen of any importance. Saturday morn I put off finishing this last night thinking I might receive a letter from home, but the mail comes only every other day and to day is the day. Guerilla's burnt a union mans Cotton within four miles of here last night, the pickets captured some seven or eight the balance left in a hurry

[begin vertical writing] Cotton Planters are no buisy picking Cotton, there is but very little comeing to market [end vertical writing]