Wauhatchie Tenn
Dec the 7 /63
Dear Charlotte
I again seit myself to write a fiew lines to you in answer to your letter of the 26th which I just received and was verry glad to hear from you and that you were all well. I am well again now and hope we will all ceep well. I had a hard time with the piles. I had them for over two weaks verry bad. I haint quite rid of them yet but feele well. I was afraid I would hear bad news from home when I got a letter but am verry glad to hear you are all well. I have dreamed about you for three knights. I dreamed I see you and Matie and Matie was ugly as she could be and I had to whip her. I wish I could see her. I dont beleive I would whip her. Your wrote your letter Thanksgiving day. I was here in camp that day but if I had ben well I would ben with the regt fighting. You sead you heard Gearys division lost a hundred men. I guess there wasent as meney as that but Gearys division done some hard fighting. Our regt was in all of it but was verry luckey. Lost but 38 men. We are in our lay huts now and expect to stay here this winter. They are going to have the railroad in runing order by Chrismas from Brigport to Chatanooga so there will be no troubel in getting supplies which is reather a hard case at preasent. Still we fare verry well. We are whay down here away from every body. We cant get eney papers here and we dont get eney news at all but when the cars run through here we will have better times. I think you can send a box then as soone as the express co extend their line to Chatanooga. I will let you know. You sead you wanted to send some cans. It will cost to much. The rebs are drove of Lookout Mountain so they cant throw shells in our camps eney more. That was one of the finest things of the war but it was a great under takeing. The mountain is nineteen hundred feet high. Our regt was one of the advance regts in the charge up the mountain. It was a grand site. I could see them go from our camp. Our boys made the rebs git right up and git. Our brigade took twice their number prisoners. I see a man from the eleventh corps yesterday. He sead he had heard oficers say that our regt had done the hardest fighting that ever was done by eney regt in the field and I think so to. It is all the 137th here. The whole Army of the Cumberland knows the 137th regt. I think we have done our share.
From your affecuate husbman. My love to you. Good buy,
Chas Engle
You wanted to know about seling the cow. If you want to ceep her you may. I thought it would be a job to take care of her this winter but perhaps you had better take care of her and have a cow in the spring as she is gentle and good. One year ago last knight I got my box on Bolivar. I wish I had such a box of things now. The weather is quite cold here. We have hard frosts. I haint got time to write eney more.