Letter from Luther Bruen, Nokesville, VA to Augusta Bruen, 1864-04-16
Nokesville April 16th My Dear Wife: I believe none of my letters have miscarried, altho' the one containing the chicken letter to the boys appears to have loitered on the way. The last letter I sent, two days since, being a very precious one, (containing a $50 greenback) will I hope reach you as safely as the less valuable ones. It's no wonder I have heard nothing from Robert, as he has not had time to reach Washington. It's as well I suppose, since he will get my letter before he has had an opportunity to splurge much about me. This Congress appears to be as worthless a one as we have had for some years, and it is doubtful whether the bill creating the Bureau of Military Justice will go thro! I suppose nobody feels any great interest in it, so that no particular effort will be made to bring it up, and should it come up, it will probably pass as amended by the Senate. You ask again about Stacey's love affair. I intended to tell you of it but have always forgotten to do so. He was engaged to some young girl in Chester, I believe, for a long time. The engagement was entered into when both were very young, if not children. He repeatedly urged a marriage which was always put off on some pretext. Finally he came to the conclusion that he did not love her well enough to marry -- perhaps this was after he had been exposed to the fascinations of Miss C. and told his lady-love the conclusion he had arrived at after a very close self-examination. And so he was very soon off with the old love and on with the new. The old love is reconciling herself as well as she can to the altered state of things. That is about the whole story, tho' I do not pretend to give the moving incidents of story as told me by Stacey since I have forgotten all but the outlines. Your last letter made a quick trip altho' you have evidently misdated it, since it is post-marked the 13th, while you have dated it the 13th and put in a paragraph dated Wednesday which was the 13th. Nevertheless it has come on in very good time, reaching me on the evening of the 16th. It came along with yours of the 10th, so that the one has been a laggard or the other has been prompt. We had rain last night and half of to-day, after several days of fine weather. We have still no definite idea of the time we are likely to move; all we know is that the time steadily approaches and will be here before very long, unless the weather should be much more unfavorable than now appears likely. -- In my last informed you that I had sent you some papers from the Great Fair and Sella a very handsome printed poem, printed to be sold there. You will no doubt recognise the handwriting -- you have seen a good deal of it -- if I had not told you, and I only write this out of nervousness lest the precious letter afore mentioned should not come to hand. I think I shall write Robert to-morrow asking him to get me a leave to visit Washington for a day or two. I want to buy a few things before we start out on the campaign which will enable me to keep myself more comfortable. We shall probably have difficulty in getting anything to eat after we are on the march, so I want to be prepared to carry a little something with me for an emergency. Robert is not a very safe individual to entrust with commissions or I would write to him. I shall have to send some of my things to the rear, as it will not be possible to carry all my traps along, and that is another reason why I wish to go to W. I shall leave no debts in the army -- except perhaps a dollar or two to the sutler. I owe Luther Brady $15 which I must continue to pay thro' Robert somehow, if I cannot get to Washington myself. Luther has my trunk and #I propose to leave any other baggage I can behind with him.# #The stamps came in good time. I only had 5 left.# #Tell Sella I got her letter and was very glad to receive it it. (Private - it is not so good as she ought to write, however.)# #You see, it is about time for me to stop as there is very little room to say more, if I had anything more to say. I don't like my letters coming in on you all in a heap as the last did so I suppose I shall have to space them more as the printers say. Good bye love Thine L.#
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April 16, 1864
Bruen, Luther Barnett
Nokesville, VA
4 pages
United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865
Bruen, Luther Barnett -- Correspondence
Catharine Mitchill '31 Collection of Family Letters, Wellesley College Library, Special Collections
MSS.6.305
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http://repository.wellesley.edu/mitchill/305
