[Letter]: 1862-08-17 from Joseph to Mother

1862 August 17 from J. D. Richardson (Washington, D.C.) to Mother re: received her letter of the 16th glad he has good health but sad to hear of death of his uncle although he expected to hear of it for some time because Jemina told that he was so ill. He reports that he is in the best of health. Yesterday he was for the first time sergeant of the guard and it is no small job -- in charge of Generals Halie? and Waddworts (James S. Wadsworth) Headquarters, the clothing depot, medical depot, 25 men keeping to their posts and everything that should happen would be his responsibility. He had six to seven million dollars worth beside the buildings to take care of, but everything was all right - only one man got drunk and he had to send him to the guard house and have him held in a large brick building fitted for the purpose. Prisoners are sent with a note what is to be done to them. The guard in charge takes all the person’s clothes off and then puts him in a room just large enough for a turn around and a small hole where a hose fits [possibly as form of waterboarding] and give the drunk a bath which sobers them up very fast. The prisoner gets only crackers and water. He describes a deserter of his regiment and company brought back to Washington and put in prison. The deserter had a furlough to go home to see his sick wife who died and four little girls left motherless and homeless had not he been there so he made up his mind to stay there and not return to the regiment, but the desperate situation will not clear him in the eyes of the law. He describes a fire close to a government stable with about two thousand mules stabled but the stables did not catch fire. He describes how big and fat and black he has become. He hopes that he may yet prove himself to be a true man to his beloved Country just like the regiments serving in the South. Tomorrow every regiment in the service has to be inspected and mustered to see how many men there are in the service and how many have deserted which are a good many as they are being brought back everyday by the hundreds but he will not give them that trouble. All the Beverly boys are well. [a P.S. is a song lyric “I bursted my Blader [Bladder] climbing the Lader [[Ladder] For you Mary Ann, For you Mary Ann. And bullie old song Join in the Chorus and help it along.” [Enclosed is a 4 x 6” card with a note describing the content of the letter - perhaps in Stuckey’s hand]