Elbridge Gerry Manning, Jr., class of 1861

of this long tedious illness. You have been a soldier too long, my dear boy, not to knkow that it is better, far better to always take things easy and look on the bright side of things - depend upon it there is always a bright side - always a cheering part, can we but look for it, and seek it earnestly as we ought. I am glad to have you write of old times - it really does me good. How we did enjoy ourselves in the "Crescent City." If we did avoid anything stronger then Bellanger's soda or coffee, and escaped the dire contagion that so troubled many, it certainly did not detract from but assuredly added to our pleas-

ure and enjoyment. And what a pleasant time we had in the dovre - marred and saddened however by your dear father's death. It was a calm, quiet dream - everythinig as pleasant and serene as the most indolent could wish, but certainly a dream that could I have my will would be frequestly be repeated. You cannot well imagine, my dear boy, how much pleased I am to learn that your family had such pleasant and loving remembrances of me. Be assured that whenever I visit him, no matter for how short a time, I shall use my best endeavors to call on the folks at Andover. I am now expecting seven days

2 Office of the Chief Signal Officer. Washington D.C. March 9th 1869 Dear Ell: I received your epistle of March 4 about an hour ago, and although I wrote you a note two days ago think that you now deserve more than that from me. I am sure I do not know how you {illegible} when you figure out the result that I am indebted to you to the extent of our letter. The last letter that I received from you was written by you in December, and in it you promised to write again in a few days without waiting for an answer from me. I immediately answered it but until this time have seen neither the answer or the extra letter that was promised me. I am glad however that you have finally broken the ice once more, and trust that you will

N.B. - Address reply to the Chief Signal Officer of the Army.

be more regular in the future than you have been in the past. As your sister confessed to you, Hattie also has been delinquent in this matter of letter writing, but I did not know but she had fallen into love and consequently could with difficulty spare time to write to one who is simply an old friend of his brother and who has known her but a brief period. I shall however call on them, my dear fellow, and am exceedingly sorry that I shall not be able to meet you also at home. It is how ever better for you that you should remain south until your health is fully restored: any visit north at this moment when you are in a very fair way to recovery could not but prove a dangerous and foolish experiment

Be assured, my dear friend, that you will not then be forgotten by me, as you have not in the past. I exceedingly regret hearing of you being compelled to refund. I know how hard it is myself. I had to pay back $75 {commutation?} her that I overdrew here & refune $16 on fifty rations, through decisions of the {illegible} General. However I had trimmed my sails for it, and consequently managed to get along. I have lived very close up to my pay during my sojourn here, and am not certainly over $75 ahead since I came here. I presume I shall dispose of that with my March pay on top of it when I get into Mass, and shall get west with depleted pockets. I shall then try to save up something. Why don't you too. You cer-