Thursday, December 25, 1862 - Fairfax Station, Virginia

Fair Fax Station Dec 25^th/62

Dear and ever beloved Wife

it is Cristmass day and being excused fromn drill to day I thought I would write you a few lines and let you know how I am getting along I am well as common to day I have had rather of a bad cold for the last two or three days past but took two doses of pills and worked it off so I am all right now and when this reaches you I hope it will find you and family all well I have not received any letter from you since I last wrote but shall expect one to morrow evening it is but four days since I wrote to you but I thought I would write when I had a chance it is not as cold here to day as it was Sunday it is very comfortable staying around hear days but when it coms night that is what gets us not to have any good place to sleep is the worst part of the business come to lay down on the cold damp ground in the room of a good feather bed and a good bed fellow to boot out in the open air at that instead of in a good snug dwelling house like my own; you might naturalry suppose that would make any one homesick if anything would but while I a deprived of enjoying a part of those things and have to [sucum] to the other I have not the least ide of getting homesick although I should very much like to have the war come to a close and be sent home to my little family once more to enjoy the comforts of life with them and I hope and thus that ere long that may be the case but still we cannot tell what is in the future for us we have non of us received our pay yet nor do I see any prospect of it; it has been the talk for a long time that we was going to be payed off to morrow but to morrow never comes you know that being the case I dont know as we shall ever get our p;ay if I am luckey enough to I will send it home to you as soon as I get it if you get yours you may have enough to keep along untill you receive some from me, I sent you two dollars in the last letter that I wrote to you write if you get it also whether you have got your bounty money or not; do not worry about me but take good care of yourself and children as you can keep all of your shoes mended up in good shape so as to keep your feet dry theough the wet weather; when you answer this I wish you would tell me how much you are owing to the stoars and what you have got to pay with if you have if you have used up the old net egg in the trunk yet take it if yu nead it if not let it remain for seed; there is many things that I might write to you in regard to this kind of life but I prefer to let it be untill see you face to face still that may never be but I live in hopes yet so I will close by wishing you a merry Christmass

From Your Affectionate Husband A.C. Smith

Well dear children one and all I wish you a Merry Christmass your dear father would like to see you all and be at home with you to day if it was so that he could but that is not the case we shall have to wait a while yet for that you must all be good children and mind your dear mother then I shall love you all the better from your Father A.C. Smith