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Andrew F. Davis papers, 1862
05_1862-06-14-Page 01
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Tuscumbia Alabama. June 14th. 1862. Mrs. Sarah Davis Dear Wife A few minutes after I finished my last letter to you I started out on picket duty, and went to the village of Iuka and remained 24 hours, Myself in command of 20 of our men made our head quarters at a Seminary, (which like allmost all of the institutions of a like character which I have saw in the South was evacuated) which is situated within a few rods of the celebrated Iuka mineral Springs which are seven in number and all rise within a space of one acre and are all of a different taste being impregnated with different mineral substances. The most prominent are one of Sulphur and one very Strongly tinctured with Alum. The others are of different metalic substances the names of which I have forgotten, We then went back to camp and the next morning we were on the march Eastward towards the Alabam line which we reached in 6 miles and crossed into the State at the crossing of Bear River. Immediately in comeing in to the State we appeared to be entering into a new country. for ever since we come within 30 miles of the Tennessee River we have been in a very poor and sandy country, but as soon as we crossed Bear River we entered as beautiful a country as one would wish to see as the soil is good and the country well improved. The land is generally rolling but not enough but what it can all be cultivated and it reminds me verry much of the praries. The farms are all very large, some of them containing as high as 2,000 & 3,000 acres, and a large part of it planted in corn which is about as high as my shoulders. Until this seazon all this ground which is now growing corn was used for growing Cotton and in many places now through the fields you see rail pens built like the prarie farmers build for their corn which is filled with raw cotton of last years growth. But Seceshia finds that if Cotton is King it is not good for the Stomache as it would be hard to digest, therefore they are planting corn, as they say
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Tuscumbia Alabama. June 14th. 1862. Mrs. Sarah Davis Dear Wife A few minutes after I finished my last letter to you I started out on picket duty, and went to the village of Iuka and remained 24 hours, Myself in command of 20 of our men made our head quarters at a Seminary, (which like allmost all of the institutions of a like character which I have saw in the South was evacuated) which is situated within a few rods of the celebrated Iuka mineral Springs which are seven in number and all rise within a space of one acre and are all of a different taste being impregnated with different mineral substances. The most prominent are one of Sulphur and one very Strongly tinctured with Alum. The others are of different metalic substances the names of which I have forgotten, We then went back to camp and the next morning we were on the march Eastward towards the Alabam line which we reached in 6 miles and crossed into the State at the crossing of Bear River. Immediately in comeing in to the State we appeared to be entering into a new country. for ever since we come within 30 miles of the Tennessee River we have been in a very poor and sandy country, but as soon as we crossed Bear River we entered as beautiful a country as one would wish to see as the soil is good and the country well improved. The land is generally rolling but not enough but what it can all be cultivated and it reminds me verry much of the praries. The farms are all very large, some of them containing as high as 2,000 & 3,000 acres, and a large part of it planted in corn which is about as high as my shoulders. Until this seazon all this ground which is now growing corn was used for growing Cotton and in many places now through the fields you see rail pens built like the prarie farmers build for their corn which is filled with raw cotton of last years growth. But Seceshia finds that if Cotton is King it is not good for the Stomache as it would be hard to digest, therefore they are planting corn, as they say
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