Dear Father and Mother

I thought I would answer your letter of the.16.I was very glad to here from you. I hope this will find you as well as I am at this time. There is nothing mutch going on here now the rebs have bin shelling us some to day they havnot hurt any thing yet they use.32.lb. guns. we have non that large here the largest we have are.20.lb. I guess they are going to stay here as long as they can I dont believe that they can stay here very mutch longer with out looseing nearly every thing they have they may see the way out. We are strung out thin a long this side

our bregade holds as mutch ground as the division did we have very good works here all the brush in front is cut down and wound up so a man can hardly git through. they tryed to make the rebs think that we was going to charge them they took.2.guns out on the skirmish line and shelled the rebs a while but did not do any good. They say our cavelry has gone to let our prisoners loose that the rebs have got they say there is 200000) there was a corps of cavelry started day before yesterday. every man took two guns so if they should git them out they could arm them it would be a great thing for us I think we could make them git if we had that reinforcement. I think if hood [i.e., Gen. John Bell Hood] stays in command they will play out since he has bin

in command they have lost a bout twenty thousand men. they charged McPherson [i.e., Maj. Gen. James B. McPherson] .6.times before he give back they lost very heavy they say they have came out twice in front of the 15 and 16 corps to make a charge and there men wouldnot come any farther than the pickets I should think they had got enough of chargeing by this time they never made it pay yet. .I.W. Beaty [i.e., Pvt. Ira W. Beaty, Co. K, 84th Illinois Infantry] is not very well the rest of the boys are well. I believe Cal. [i.e., Pvt. John C. Harrah, Co. K, 84th Illinois Infantry] and Stockton [i.e., Pvt. William H. Stockton, Company K, 84th Illinois Infantry] are washing to day we have a hard way of washing no extra pants. we have to use dog tents in place of pants it would tickel you to see the boys going a round in such a rig you couldnot have got such a rig on the boys before they came in to the army. a fellow will do most any way in the army

The Captain thought that tobacco you sent was not as good as that we got of the Sutler. I would like to have tryed it in his place I dont think that is the way to do things I guess Stockton has the tea. yet he does not know whether to send it to him or not. I expect he would like to have it first rate, we have only got one letter from him since he left. a dezerter said that Hardee [i.e., Confederate Lt. Gen. William Hardee] was wounded. the reb papers say that, Hood is killed Hardee wounded Andy Graham saw the paper that had it in he was here today.
I was on camp guard last night and my hed is thick this is a very poor letter. I think I can do better next time So I will bring this to a stop they say the male has come I dont suppose there will be any thing for me write often to your hopeful

HH Maley

Wm Maley
E A Maley