Files
Download Full Text (9.1 MB)
Date Original
1864 January 22
Description
Letter from William Walker in Little Rock to David Williams discussing ownership of his house, the state of affairs where he was living, and his fondness for General Frederick Steele.
Transcription
Little Rock, Jan/22d 1864
Dear Friend,
Your of the 28th ult. has been received. We are truly glad
to hear from you, and heartily rejoiced to know that you had fared
so well under federal rule. May your former good fortune at-
tend you and yours through all the vicissitudes, to the end of this
horrible war; and above all, I hope and pray, though not without
serious and painful misgivings, that you may yet be restored
to the blessings of civil and religious liberty under a representative
government - My faith in this perpetuity of our republican form
of government is greatly shaken of late, and I begin to doubt the
capacity of the people to govern themselves.
We have not been so fortunate as you, yet our grievances
are so trivial and inconsiderable in comparison with those of
thousands of our fellow citizens, that we feel thankful that our has
been no worse, and that we are compensated in a great measure
for all the ills we have borne by our good fortune in having Maj.
Genl Steel[sic] in command. He is a magnanimous, humane,
honorable and just officer, and deservedly the most popular
federal officer in the South. He has the confidence and esteem
of every one.
Genl Davidson, the second in command is a des-
pot, and is cordially detested by the citizens. He has been try-
ing to have Steel[sic] removed - wrote to Washington that Steel's
conciliatory course had disgusted the union citizens and the
officers and soldiers of the Army - You will hear the partic-
ulars of this soon.
I will write you at length in a few days - I must be
brief - the boat I just hear is about to leave.
Do the best you can with my house. If Thompson refuses
to surrender possession apply to the commanding office for an
order to disposess him. if that fails, ask for the appointment of
Physical Description
Letter, 2 pages, 9.5" x 11.75"
Subjects
Civil War; Correspondence; Military officers; Houses
Contributor
William Walker
Geographical Area
Little Rock, Pulaski County (Ark.)
Language
English
Identifier
MS.000086
Resource Type
Image
Collection
Clara Bertha Eno collection, MS.000086
Publisher
Arkansas State Archives
Contributing Entity
Arkansas State Archives
Recommended Citation
Letter, William Walker to David Williams, Clara Bertha Eno collection, Arkansas State Archives, Little Rock, Arkansas.
Rights
Use and reproduction of images held by the Arkansas State Archives without prior written permission is prohibited. For information on reproducing images held by the Arkansas State Archives, please call 501-682-6900 or email at state.archives@arkansas.gov.
Preview
