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Title: Letter from John Halliburton to Juliet Halliburton, April 22, 1861: Electronic Edition.
Author: Halliburton, John Wesley, b. 1840
Funding from the University Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill supported the electronic publication of this title.
Text transcribed by Bari Helms
Images scanned by Bari Helms
Text encoded by Amanda Page
First Edition, 2005
Size of electronic edition: ca. 14K
Publisher: The University Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
2005

No Copyright in US

The electronic edition is a part of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill digital library, Documenting the American South.
Languages used in the text: English
Revision history:
2005-06-15, Amanda Page finished TEI/XML encoding.
Source(s):
Title of collection: John Wesley Halliburton Papers (#4414-z), Southern Historical Collection, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Title of document: Letter from John Halliburton to Juliet Halliburton, April 22, 1861
Author: Cousie
Description: 4 pages, 4 page images
Note: Call number 4414-z (Southern Historical Collection, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)
Editorial practices
The text has been encoded using the recommendations for Level 5 of the TEI in Libraries Guidelines.
Originals are in the Southern Historical Collection, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
The John Wesley Halliburton Papers contain thirty-eight letters written by Halliburton to his second cousin and fiancée Juliet Halliburton of Little Rock, AR, between January 31, 1861, and May 13, 1861. The letters have been arranged in chronological order and the pages numbered 1 to 174. The page numbers are assumed not to be part of the original document and have been ignored.
Original grammar, punctuation, and spelling have been preserved.
DocSouth staff created a 600 dpi uncompressed TIFF file for each image. The TIFF images were then saved as JPEG images at 100 dpi for web access.
Page images can be viewed and compared in parallel with the text.
Any hyphens occurring in line breaks have been removed, and the trailing part of a word has been joined to the preceding line.
All quotation marks, em dashes and ampersand have been transcribed as entity references.
All double right and left quotation marks are encoded as ".
All single right and left quotation marks are encoded as '.
All em dashes are encoded as —.
Indentation in lines has not been preserved.

For more information about transcription and other editorial decisions, see the section Editorial Practices.
Letter from John Halliburton to Juliet Halliburton, April 22, 1861
Halliburton, John Wesley, b. 1840



Page 1
Chapel Hill
April the 22nd

My Darling,

You must expect a very mixed letter tonight; for with what political excitement has done for me, together with a little adventure of my own invention I am in a humor for anything, and so anything either foolish or wise (this by accident of course) may find a lodgment here. The shock of states the war of eliments and clash of arms have failed to drive the love I bear you one instant from my mind. I still look for your letter. I still long to hear that you are well. I still love to hear that Cousie loves me. I have one of the funniest adventures to tell you imaginable. One of my fellow students, (a very simple fellow) who comes to see me every day and sometimes sits an hour or two at night when I wish to write to you, came in last fryday night and worried me to death almost. He talked of war, love, and politics; of moonlight & flowers but in the dullest way in the most ignorant manner possible. I told Chum if he would assist me I would promise to keep Carter (Mi) away from our rooms. He said anything that he could do would be given willingly. I told him to [go] and get Timberlake, Hord and Parker and meet me at Carter's room. I laid hands on a bag (an old meal bag) and with half a candle "mosied" of[f] to meet them. When we got there Carter wanted to know where we were going. I told him we were going out to hunt the "Yelpin Kechor.

Page 2
" "And what's that" said he with staring eyes. With the utmost simplicity I told him they were a curious kind of "B-i-r-d" and it was considered the most enchanting sport in the world to catch them.
He asked if he could go with us. I told him if he would get another bag and candle he could help me "hold bags." "How! do you take them in Bags?" said he. "Yes", said I, "you take the candle lighted and place it on a stump and hold the bag open close to it then while the other hunters go round and beat the bushes you must be perfectly still or else the birds wont come up to the light where you can put them in your bag." "I'll go" said he. "All aboard" said I. We jumped in a hack and went out about 8 miles and stoped, jumped out, struck a match, lit our candles and Carter and I took our places about fifty-yards apart (at least so that we could see each other's candles). Then after cautioning him about silence— the "drivers", we called them, went around beating the bushes and driving the birds to the "bagers." Well in a few minutes I lef[t] my candle on the stump, took my bag, ran to the hack where all but Carter had come and then we drove for the Hill as hard as we could drive leaving poor Carter alone in the woods after "Yelpin Ketchers." He stayed and stayed hoping and listening for us. But my candle was there and he thought I must surely be. We went on to town then it was 12.O.C. I guess, and got some more boys, all took muskets and went to meet Carter . About 2.O.C. we met him puffing

Page 3
and blowing. We stoped on the side of the road and Carter came by talking of what a Summary venjeance he would take on us — and our bad frindship in leaving him where he might be "shot by any runaway or robber." Just as he said this one of us fired off our musket — and Carter uttered a yell that would shame any Indian warrior or Steamboat and broke for Home with us at his heels, a real "John Gilpin" race. Now and then we would fire off a musket and shout out "sieze him Bob! or Sam or Bulzebub" and Carter would only run faster and holler louder: at last he got to his room and he is on the bed yet and swares that he will never speak to Hord, Timberlake, Wesson, Parker or Halliburton again. We same five had another adventure a few days ago but I can't tell it now.
I received a letter from Lucinda Lucas this evening. It is a good letter compared with some she has written. Indeed I think she is improving in all but penetration. I will "a tale unfold" some day that will make you think me a "strange man." "Man" I say for I was 21 years old last Saturday. Ain't you glad! In the mean time you will please write to Cinda. She appears to be anxious to hear from you. She will help us enjoy ourselves perhaps some day. Write to her Darling. Write to all your old friends. A little word now and then will make you many a friend and it is my desire that all should be friends to you.
Everybody here is talking about war. Many have gone to hunt it up. "To seek the bubble reputation e'en

Page 4
in the canon's mouth." I shall wait until June and then if needs be will offer my services to Tenn.
I made my maiden speech last Saturday on my birth day. A Secession Flag was raised and two young ladies made a speech then our President and a few other old men. A few boys were called on (students I mean) and then I was asked to speak but declined as I was not in favor of Secession. They insisted and for five minutes I told them how I loved the Union, and then thinking of your piece of poetry at Brownsville, I expressed my willingness to die
"For the Union of hearts the Union of hands,
And the Flag of our Union forever."
I was taken up by some boys and rode around on their shoulders — they carried me to the ladies who gave me a Boquett but it was a secession boquett and could not sail under the "Star Spangled Banner" fastened to my hat. One young man hissed me and was knocked down for his pains by Timberlake (my dearest friend). All were astonished that I should be the only Union man in the crowd. I heard of two or three fights that evening. Timberlake and I went in a crowd of countries and I pretended that a secession flag should not be raised while I could prevent it. He implored me to desist. I would be killed. The old fellows swore the flag should go up if I was killed. One old fellow came up and said "My young friend you are alone I believe but I will fight wit you — I will see you have fair play." I thanked him and told him to come on but we were persuaded to let it alone. We were trying them you know. I carried that fellow to my room and we are the best of friends. He thinks I a perfect hero what do you think of

My love to all.

Cousie?