Camp Styles
Jany. 28th 1862
My dear wife,
I received your darling letter sent me by Jonny, and also a splendid trunk of provisions. Louly, you are beyond a doubt one of the best little wives that ever lived since the world was made, I don't say so for the purpose of making you vain; for I believe you are above all such petty foolishness, and I only say so because I think you deserve to be told so, and I hope you will continue as you have commenced, if you do I will certainly have a model wife. Mr. Mathews left here for home on Sunday. I expect you will be disappointed in not getting a letter from me and also the money I promised. But he left when I was on guard and I did not know he was going. The first I knew of his going was when I got off guard and came home they told me he had gone home. I am very sorry he slipped off without letting me know that he was going. I wanted to know of it for several reasons. I wanted to get him to collect the money for the hides, and also, wanted to send you and Ma some of the needful. I am present sitting on a court martial and don't know how long before we will get through with the abominable thing. I never was as tired of anything in all of life as I am of that. I believe this is the fifth day I have spent on it and expect to spend as many more before we get through with it. I am not allowed to leave camp, and won't be allowed until the court is adjourned, so of course you need not look for me for some time yet. Our old Professor
from Marietta is down here giving us fencing lessons with the sword. I took my first lesson on yesterday, and did remarkably well. Mr. Mongay [1] says he never saw boys improve faster than we do. I even hate to lose time from my studies and practice to go home and see you although I am almost dead to clasp my dear sweet pet in my arms again, but you see Professor Mongay will not remain but about two weeks with us and I am very anxious to learn all that I can whilst he is here. It may be the means of saving my life before the war is over. Mr. Mongay is one of the most expert men with the sword we have in the Confederacy. I fancy I am now almost a good match for any of the Lincolnites and hope before the Professor goes home to be more than a match for any of them. I take great delight in the exercise. It looks rite funny to see two men standing up knocking at each other with all their might and they not able to strike each other. I don't know when I will get a chance to go home for as I have said I am so anxious to learn the sword exercise that I may not leave until Mr. Monday leaves. Witter has had the measles but is quite over them; he had them very light they did not hurt him at all so if you see any of the home folks you can tell them, he has gotten entirely over them. He speaks of getting a leave of absence and going home. I don't know whether the Col. will let him off or not as he is getting very contrary about leave of absence lately. If you see, or have a chance of sending word to Mr. Stewart I wish you would tell him that Alex Atkinson wants him to make him a half dozen chairs just like those he made for me, and that he will give him the same price for them that I gave for mine. He wants them rite away. Now darling I hope you won't grumble at me for not writing you a love letter this time for I had so much to tell you that I did not have room for writing love. But to tell you the honest truth I do love you just as hard as I can and that is all I can do. Give my love to all and write often to your absent half. May the blessings of Heaven ever be with you is the fond prayer of your own dear husband,
Nate.
Kiss Ma for me and tell her I am very much obliged to her for the bread and butter she sent me.
[1] Mongay - Nate attended The Georgia Military Institute, established in Marietta, Georgia, on July 1, 1851. It was burned by the Union Army during the Civil War and was never rebuilt. GMI operated regularly until the spring of 1864 when the cadets were formed into two companies and deployed to West Point, Georgia, as a result of the Civil War. Professor Victor E. Manget, professor of French, was assigned as captain of Company B. The Professor 'Mongay' from the Marietta Military Institute that Nate writes about could be a misspelling of Manget: Mongay would be a French pronunciation of the name. (However I could find no information that Prof. Manget was an expert fencer.)
Note: this could be the Victor H. Manget born in France in 1813, and died in Georgia Feb 24, 1864, buried in Marietta City Cemetery. He had a son named Victor Eugene Manget.