Archive Record

Images

1 of 1977

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Metadata

Catalog Number

1805.025.18

Collection

Carlton Birch Letters

Object Name

Letter

Title

Letter from James Birch to My Most Amiable

Scope & Content

A letter from James Birch to his "Most Amiable" about his life as an American solider in the Mexican War. James wrote this letter on May 24, 1847, at the Castle of Perote. James described his failing health, the food he ate, the high prices of goods, and the atmosphere and medical care he received at the hospital. He mentioned the large number of graves around his camp and his hope of being discharged and returning home.

The letter was not to his wife, as he mentions her in the letter. The letter is also incomplete and comes to an abrupt end.

Date

May 24, 1847

Notes

The full transcription of the letter is as follows:

Castle of Perote Monday May 24th 1847
My Most Amiable

I enclose this with the Letter to My Wife to inform You and her and all the Rest of the most interesting family of individuals that Genl [General] Scott who although a Whole team himself has just arrived Bringing Near 300 Teams with him and Numerous Pack mules the News that I can gather by his arrival is that he Does not expect any more fighting and [word crossed out] that at no Definite time can be fixed for our homeward journey but I have made my Mind up unless there is a great change comes over me and that I fully Recover my Health I shall apply for my discharge and be home before November to go to the Hospital Here is the next thing to going to Your Grave men here gradually waste away and even if they do Not Die they are Left with Broken constitutions for the Balance of their Days [word crossed out] Some few indeed the ctimate [climate] appears to agree with but even they mut [must] bide their time and possibly may find themselves mistaken the Interpreter says that the Mexicans themselves cannot Keep their Health in this place you can Now from the eastern Wall of the castle count 27 graves which have been filled [word crossed out] since our arrival (and up to the day) this is 10 More than was actually Lost in the taking of Vera Cruz and the Castle surrendered and if you Visit the Hospital and saunter around the Castle you will count our one hundred who if they Do not [word crossed out] help fill up more graves May at the Best or Worst as you chose take it Linger out a Miserable existence a great Part of this is Attributed to the Water which Runs from the Mountains and is strongly impregnated with copper Much to the Bread which has hitherto bee [been] sour and Mouldy [Moldy] and I see but Little hopes of a change for the Better and seriously is the Beef Charged with being the Cause but Let the Cause be what it May we are Likely to Remain in a state of Profound ignorance if we Depend on the Doctors and Scientific Men we have here at Present the former if you go to them for advice invariably administer Either Blue Bills Quinine or Opium for the Administering of Which I Believe they have Regular days Let the Complaint be what it May on the same Principle that Mrs Squeers Administered Brimstone and Molasses about 9 oClock the Drum Beats [word crossed out] the Docters [Doctors] call the sick are called and the Potion given in about as Regular a manner as you would give a horse his oats and the Patients are Looked upon by both Doctors and assistants [word crossed out] as you would Look upon any thing you considered a Nuisance

therefore I wish you to see that the few thing I speak of in my Letter to my Wife are shipped to the Care of Mr Hill I calculate that I shall have at the Least when I arrive in Philada [Philadelphia] full 200$ but I intend to make every effort to get a Situation in some of the Towns between [word crossed out] N [New] Orleans and there Letters addressed to me in future Must be Directed to the Care of Coln [Colonel] Wynkook 1s Regiment PA Volunteers and Marked for the Army in Mexico the men who I Expected would carry my wifes [wife's] Letter could not proceed on account of a Body of Mexicans Lancers some 2 or 300 hundred in number occupying the Road between here and Jalapa [Xalapa] they have been Routed and a train Returns to Morrow or Next Day with a Strong guard and this with my Wifes [Wife's] Letter will go Direct to Vera Cruz [page break]

I had indulged in the hope that I would [word crossed out] see the City of Mexico but that hope has fled and Although I have seen much that interested me and afforded me great Pleasure still Much Remains of interest which I should Like to see but I feel not that same energy that I did on our First Landing the Diarrhea Weakens both Mind and Body

What a glorious place this would to have a Lot of Furniture in fact every thing that is useful or even Ornamental at the Present time all sorts of goods Command any Price. for Such is the scarcity of every thing desireable [desirable] this is easily accounted for the country has Received Little or Nothing from foreign Nations for upwards of two Years but I will Guarentee [Guarantee] that the Yankees will will take advantage of the Present Low Rate of Duties and the Scarcity of goods to Run in any quantity of them [word crossed out] A man who could have Landed a half Million of Dollars Worth the of the Proper Kind of goods the Day after we had possession of Vera Cruz after paying all expenses would have Doubled his money easily in two Months for No one thinks that 3 times as much as you pay in Philada [Philadelphia] [word crossed out] Dear for an Article here it is when they come to 5 & 6 times the Price that they growl the Suger [Sugar] which has been Dealt to the Men is of Mexican manufacture it is called Bolousey it is outrageous worse than Molasses to Sweeten tea or Coffee I had procured a Little tea and I went into Perota [Perote] to purchase a pound of decent Suger [Sugar] and I had to give a quarter of a Dollar for a Pound which would have cost about 8 cts [cents] in Philad [Philadelphia] to their own country men the price would be about one half what they charge us I consider the Mexicans about the Meanest Race of People on the face of the earth they will Bow in the most cringing Manner to the one he would Stab the Next Minute Stupidly ignorent [ignorant] for abundent [abundant] is the opportunities they have to imitate at Least if not invent the necessaries which they Require but their Wheels are Solid Blocks and the Articles of [word crossed out] Husbandry Require four times the Power to Draw than that any thing Decent would [word crossed out] a quaint sight is it indeed to See one of them Ploughing quite Primitive is their appearance two or three oxen pull the Plough and the Mexican with his Characteristic Costume the Hat of Which has a Rim over twelve inches in Breadth Segar [Cigar] in his Mouth and pole in his hand some 15 foot in Length with a sharp nail in the end to goad the oxen thus he goes taking More Days to perform his Work than a Yankee would Require hours

on My Journey here I met a carriage the Property of a Wealthy man the sight of which would have created great astonishment in Philada [Philadelphia] the Body of it once has been Genteel and evidently seen better Day if you could procure the Body of the old Hack Jimmy Hackerty Drove some eight Years Ago in philada [Philadelphia] and hold it now to the Sight it would scarcely Present More Venerable appearance and this piece of antiquity was Dumped on A carriage that would have disgraced a jersey coal wagon and this to hauled by 8 fine Mustangs four abreast a man could could have made a comfortable fortune exhibiting it in the States

Extent of Description

1 leaf, 13" x 8.75"

Relation

Show Related Records...

Condition

Excellent

Condition Notes

Noted as "poor" on 10/05/2005, as the letters were in a scrapbook titled, "Record in War." However, the collection was conserved by the Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts (CCAHA), Philadelphia, PA, in 2010. Each item was removed from the scrapbook and placed in individual folders.

Legal Status

On loan from The Civil War Museum of Philadelphia.