Dear Mary this leaves me well and verry well I trust it may find you and the children well we have been marching on the enemy for the two last days over the worst Road that men and wagons ever traviled up mountains down deep in to the valleys and then in to the mud knee deep and then up to the axletrees of the wagons I never seen the Road from Petersburg [i.e., Petersburg, Tennessee] to L. R. Smiths as muddy in my life as they are here. we have pitched our tents a gain but how long we will remain I cant say but I think we will move forward in a day or two if the wether remains fair the sun shined part of yesterday and to day for the first time in ten days I dont think there has been more than 4 or 5 days without Rain this month I never wanted to see fair wether so bad in all my time I am getting along verry well plenty to do and verry little to eat provisions are getting verry scarce we never have more than one or 2 days Rations at a time and no grain for my horse (Tomfer) I turn him out on Crabtrees pasture and there he gets the first Blue grass that ever grew to eat and more of it than ever

was in any country it goes verry hard with me to use him all day and turn him out at night to graize I will mention the price of a few article for Inst Irish potatoes $3.00 pr Bu chickens 50 cents a piece Tobacco 10 cents a chew or $2.00 lb and the above articles verry scarce all other articles out of the question for they are not here I wish you would send me a piece of corn bread for the people dont know what the word bread means in Va the Regiment is in verry good health and improving we can muster 700 men for duty now which is about as strong as Regiment here
you will perceive that this letter is mailed at Nashvill [sp. Nashville] I send it by a man going there to morrow I hope to hear from you and the children soon as I have not heard a word from you since I left and I am getting verry anxious to hear from you if you Know of any body coming here send a letter by them may be I would get it by hand better than by mail.
Tell your Father that Mack is verry well and seems to enjoy verry good health at this time give him my compliments and that we know verry little what is going on about the war that he knows more about it from the papers than I could write him in answer for every thing is in the dark here a Tenn Captain kill 2 Yankees the other day

and wounded another we have took several prisners and one virginia spy I hope he will hang by the neck for about 12 hours we had the Gen^l Inspector with us to day and he inspected our arms ammunition swords and Clothes knapsacks &c tell will I wish he would write me and give all the news in old Lincol [i.e., Lincoln County, Tennessee] for I think it a great country. all of her hill seem level to me now since I have been up here in these mountain where the verry tops seem to reach the skies I would like to hear from wash Blake by him sending me one long letter & Ben McKinney I think could write if he would try I want Ellen to write to her Grand Pa and let him that I am well and for her to write to me I would like verry much to read one of her letters and know how she was getting and whether she was Improving any or not in writing and in composition give my best Respects to all enquiring friends &c I will write you soon a gain when I have more time

yours &c
Chris C McKinney