Battery Anderson, Virginia
April 11, 1865

Darling,

I will now try to pen a few lines and I hope they will find you well for I am in the best of health. There is no news of importance now so I hardly know what to write. Our company has to do picket duty now and heavy fatigue duty. And an order came today for us to drill three hours a day, two of them as infantry and one as artillery. So we shall have our hands full of duty of all sorts.

I see that you have forgot to number your letters but it don’t matter if I only get them all. I am very sorry, pet, that you can’t talk plain for your sake, but for my own, I care not if you will be all the same to me if you never spoke a word. All that I want is for mt pet to love me for there is but a few others to do so. If I had any necklace on me all the time, I would be happy. You know what I mean by my necklace. If not, I will tell you. I mean your little arms. I am very sorry that I could not get home which you was sick. But as it is, it may be for the best. I hope so at any rate.

Do not think, pet, that the war is over by our taking Richmond and Petersburg, but there is one thing sent in—that is, we are trying hard to finish up the job and I hope it will be done this summer for I am tired of leading the life of a soldier. But if they try to keep it up much longer, I am willing to stay until all of their leaders has a dance in the air on a one stringed instrument for I think they are only trying to show how obstinate they can be and they had ought to be hung—the whole lot of them.

One of our doctors came up from City Point today and he says that a dispatch was brought in from the front stating that Lee had surrendered. I hope it is true but I don’t believe it is. We can’t get any news here till it has been sent to New York, printed and sent back in the papers, so all that I can tell you of is what I see with my own eyes.

I hope, pet, you will be well soon (as I expect to go into the infantry business when I get home, whether I do here or not, so make up your mind to take it when I get there.) I can laugh at you now but I won’t for I may hurt your feelings. Do hurry with that box for I need my watch and must have it as quick as possible. You say that they are noisy there. I hope it won’t be so when I get home for I can’t bear a noise when I want to go to sleep.

I stopped writing to find out what they were firing for in our rear last night and if they tell the truth, the war is over for they say that Lee has surrendered and has gone on to turn over Johnston’s army to Grant. But I fear that it is too good to be true. We can get no news except camp stories until after you get it at home. This is the third time that I have tried to write this letter so I will finish it now. I have been ordered to put on my sergeant’s stripes tonight so I am a little higher than I was when I wrote last. My love to all. Good night. Write soon. Your loving husband, — Chester Chapman