William H. Eidson to Richard Yates

Willow Hill Ills April 31" 63

His Excellency

Gov R Yates

Sir

Haveing once before taken the Liberty to address you in behalf of our Soldiers in the field I now desire to address you in regard to the Copperheads at home of which (I am Sorry to say) we have not a fiew, Some make a great deal of Nois in Huzzawing for Jeff Davis ascerting their Loyalty to the South and their Eternal Hatred to the cause of the north threatning Union men with Hanging Laying in wait for them with deadly Weapons. Declaring publicly that rather than set One Negro free they would See the Constitution and laws sunk to H-l to rise no more writing letters saying they Expected to be in the Southern confederacy

by the first of April declaring their determination to resist any attempt to arrest deserters

And now My dear sir what makes this more Humiliating to me it Emenates from profest member of that party to which I have devoted all my life and I Still profess to be an uncompromising Democrat but god forgive me I can no longer support a party in whose pale Butternuts and Copperheads have the ascendancy

I am for my Country Unconditionally write a wrong and am willing to seal my devotion with my blood. I have Spent one year in the servis as a private Refusing to go for the sake of office and tried to do my duty in the field as Shilo Corinth & Hatchie River after Which by the advice of friends I Excepted a discharge not being able longer to perform

the duties of a private soldier And for this those Godforsaken trators denominate a man an Abolitionist My friends here are affraid for me to attend to my practice for fear of my being waylaid. God only knows what will be the consequences to me I have just returned from a trip to Murfreesboro where I have been for the purpose of administering to the wants of the Sick and Wounded and now I have spent all the means I have and if nothing can be done to arrest the proceedings of the Traitirs. I ask you for a place in some military department If I receive nothing more than the wages of a private. I would prefer staying with my family but put me where I can do something for my country Rescpectfully

Yours W H Eidsen MD

Willow Hill

Private Jasper Co Ills

Wm H Eidson M.D.

Willow Hill Jasper Co Ills

Mar 31st 1863.

Writes in regard to the Copperheads at home. says they have threatened to hang Union men and rather than see one Negro set free they would see the Constitution sunk. He has always been a democrat but not one of Copperhead kind. has served over a year as a private and wishes to go into the service again.

file

Recd Ex O April 3 1863.