Waterloo Va, July the 24th/ 62

Dear Father I once more seat my self with pen in hand to let you know whare we ar we ar at a little Town called Waterloo 7 1/2 miles from Warrinton (Warrington, VA). day before yesterday wee signed the pay role and just as the pay master got all ready to for us we got orders to march so we packed up and of wee went for some fort but did not know whare but at 4 Pm we stayed here and got payed for 2 months and I expressed $20 to you. Ten for Myron and Ten for my self. we got the (illegible) week before last. we do not expect to stay here long. all ar expecting something to doo here in the valley soon. all officers and soldiers speak in the higest terms of our leader General Pope and express an (aneious?) desire to folow him to the last (illegible) (the rebels called whare they are going to die or whip the North.) and thare to contend for the rights and freedom of our country the (illegible) have and ar dooing a great deal of dam mage in this part of the country. Our Army here is scowering the country clean of horses cattle sheap hogs and all of the grass and in this Town we burned a larg factory where the oner had been making cloth for the rebels. Gen. Banks rod up to the mill and ordered them to stop it but they refused and one of his men set fire to it and it burnt consuming a large quantity of cloth. the way they got wool is they had nigars gow around the camps and pick up old clothes and work them over. I used to see old niggars have large loads of old clothes but I never could tell what they did with them

M. C. French