Camp Advance, Virginia
General E.D. Baker Brigade
On September 10th 1861

Dear Brother, I received your letter of the 6th and was very glad to hear from you and that you are all well when it left you and I hope that this will find you still the same. I am pretty well considering the weather I have passed through.

We have left our old camp and are at present on the advance towards the enemy. Oh the weather that we have passed through since we left camp for this place. Yet I’m as well as if I had bin at home to sleep in bed instead of the wet ground with the rain a pouring down upon us. Yesterday was Sunday but not with us for we were in the trenches all day. We are a throwing up a Battery. 500 feet front 300 feet flank. We got it about half finished. It will take about three days more to finish it so that it will be fit for service but when it is done it can’t be taken. We here are looking for an --?tiect-- this three days. But have not seen the enemy yet.

We heard last night that the Southern army was advancing led by Bureguard whose force was 80,000 men if not more. We have about 18,000 in our advance and then there is another division of 40,000 advancing from the east and about 150,000 from the north-east. We have at least 300,000 men in Virginia to meet the rebels with. Of 150,000 strong I think we can cause them purge. General Johnston is a coming.

There is a man to be shot this morning at 8 o’clock for going to sleep on his post when on picket duty. Some of our company are to witness the scene. Some of our company will have to look out or they will meet the same fate.

You say that Jim has not gone yet now. I don’t think the time has come for him. Yet I would like to have him here and I would learn him how to be a soldier. Yet he had better stay at home with it now.

If I write answer to all the letters I have received since I came here it would take me all day. But that part is passed for I don’t know whether I can send this once I get it written. I received one from Charlie Grover yesterday but that I can’t answer for a while.

When we came here we left our camp about 10 o’clock at night and we reached here about three at distance of 15 miles with them everlasting knapsacks on our back and then to lay down in the rain in the middle of the rows in the mud to sleep. Got up in the morning and felt burly. Rains all day all night and it cleared off on the next morning when you may bet that we wanted some drying. We have no tents for we are not allowed any in the advance towards the South.

They say that Bull Run is taken having been evacuating by the enemy once our men took possession of it on their own.

I will have to stop now.
I send my best respects to all the folks. So no more at present.
Goodbye for the present.
Your brother George W Lewis