No 23  
St Genevieve Mo March 12th 1863
 My Dear Wife:
 I am happy this beautiful morning to be enabled to say that I am well in the verry best of health & spirits.  We left Iron Mt on the 9th & came through in the days.  I have never stood a march so well.  The road is graded & a portion planked the rest Mcadamised.  We passed over some verry fine country, Farmington 15 ms. from Iron Mt is a very fine village, there appears to be considerable wealth there.  Valley Forge a few ms further is an old Iron manufacturing place there are no more villages on the way.  This is a verry old place, was settled before St Louis but is an insignificant place.  The country is well improved, the people are French & Dutch - they have fine orchards & vineyards, fruit rarely if ever fails.  They have the grape in many varieties, pears, peach, cherry, plum & I suppose that all kinds of fruit will flourish.  It almost spoils me from being a soldier to be in such a country.  I march along gaping
