Alphabet File page 234

  My youngest son, Geoffrey, a young lawyer in N.O. enlisted in the National Army -- being highly educated with perfect physique and health, was transferred to the regular army, which was short of officers, and commissioned as 2nd lieutenant of artillery, promoted to first lieutenant ­went of France, where he became captain - upon his return was reduced to 1st lieutenant, subsequently attaining the rank of captain, in the U.S. Last June he married a Washington girl.

 

    Carl, my second son, is a successful lawyer, residing here but practicing all over the state and in the Supreme Court -- he married here. His first child, a little boy, died in March, 1918. His second child (boy) is now a year old.

 

  My third son, Donald, is still a professor in the Boy's High School in N.O., but resides here. He married here, and has a little girl 8 years and a boy of 6.

 

  Carl and Donald own their homes -- Donald has quite a large place, on which there are bearing pecan, orange and grapefruit trees and he has a lot of poultry, vegetable garden, etc.

 

    My wife and I live at the old home place. My general health is very good -- Mrs. M. is rather an invalid, but it has been discovered that she has an abscess under a tooth, and hope that she will be all right when the tooth is drawn -- the abscess developed, in latter December, from its dormant state causing her much suffering until the doctors subdued it.

 

    Tell me of the result of the chemulgra(?) oil experiment. How many are there now (patients) in the settlement. Is the disease under control in the islands? Is your own health, as the photo indicates good? Without doubt Mr. A. R. Smith wrote you about the death of his uncle, Mr. Milton H. Smith I felt, and feel, Mr. Smith's death keenly.

 

  When I write again I shall say something about conditions here.

 

                     Your friend

 

                          Charles Marshall

 

P.S. Forgot to say that both of my soldier sons are just stationed in Washington.   CM

 

March 23, 1922

 

  Dear Dutton,

 

  Yours of Febry 9 (without day) received some days ago, perhaps ten or twelve. Some time was required to hear from Clarksville, and to get a magazine from Nashville for you, before replying.

 

    Also received the Hawaiian descriptive magazine; and, particularly, the Honolulu Advertiser and the Jamesville (Wis) Gazette with the most interesting account of your life story and sacrifice. I am saving these papers. I am surprised to learn that you confided your intentions to but three persons in 1886 (myself one of them). I remember your first call on me at the freight office in New Orleans perfectly. In a letter to a friend, not long ago, I made mention of you saying: we were friends and associates in Memphis in 1874-5, again at Clarksville in 1878 (about) and renewed our acquaintance in New Orleans in 1885-6 at which time you had entered the church and had become a monk and were an inmate of a monastery! You were somewhat awry as to my birthday not Febry 1849 but November 9th 1848. You had it right at one time. (I often wondered wondered how you had obtained it!)

 

  Mr. Wm. Bringhurst and wife, and Miss Bettie Garland are all living. I am mailing you today a copy of the "Confederate Veteran" of May 1921, which contains a group photo of the Clarksville survivors of the 14th Tenn. regt. (C.S.A.) in which you will fine "Billie" Bringhurst.

 

  I believe this is enough for your patience for one time.

 

                          Your friend,

 

                          Chas. Marshall

 

April 11, 1923

 

Dear Friend,

 

    I received your letter, or shall I say letters, and the inclosures of interesting "odds and ends" clipping notes etc. about Christmas -- I intended to write you three months but was prevented by several causes, bad eye sight and an injured arm among them - am in better shape now --  of course the cataracts are still with me and will be until they are "ripe" and be removed by an operation. I see still well enough to go about and do everything except to read or recognize acquaintances except by their voices, contour, walk etc. Can even write (if light, ink and pen are good, with irregularities as you no doubt observe - am sorry to learn that you also have eye trouble -- we have wondered what you are able to do for the attention of a specialist. - And what do you do when a surgeon is needed to set a broken bone, operate for appendicitis, etc?

 

Your ring is very clear and legible.

 

  You have a relative living in Edgerton, Wis cousin Miss

 

Simmons, I believe (can't find the correspondence in the mass in my desk drawers owing  to my poor eyes and I can't let other "rummage" thru my papers) who is going to write your biography. I have sent her a lot of material, names of persons to write to, etc. Her letters are written in good style and indicate intelligence -- I told her to get from you that name of the man Miss Cay__e(?) of Franklin

 

Tenn married and address.

 

  What was the name of the Mother Superior to whom you sent a sheet of a letter of mine written to you during the Spanish War and a sheet of whose letter to you was sent me touching (sic) the same was sent me (written in  ________ text and English) and where her convent.

 

  My oldest son Gilbert is a major Fort Monroe - The youngest a Captain of staff duty at Washington (Geoffrey)

 

  My second son Carl is a successful lawyer in Mississippi ­home her (2 children) The third, Donald, teaches in the Boys High School in New Orleans -- home here (2 children) Capt. Geoffrey has a little boy - Thus I have 5 grandchildren (three boys and two girls) Carl's first child, a fine little fellow died.

 

  Attribute all irregularities including ink blots to my defective vision.      Your friend, CM

 

                     (over)

 

    To Brother Joseph Kalawao, Molokai, Hawaii

 

March 11, 1924

 

  My dear Dutton:

 

    This to let you know that I am still in the "land of the living" and have not forgotten you (far from it!) though very lame, and cannot see to read and write only with the utmost difficulty in a weird, almost illegible manner.

 

The cataracts are progressing and the operations for removal are not far distant, I hope.

 

  I received your characteristic budget of jottings of thought, reflections, remarks, etc., together with clippings and letters from various persons to you about December 20th.

 

    Received from you a few days ago three Honolulu newspapers. (Mrs. M. will read them to me.)

 

  There was an inquiry on one of your slips received in December couched in the words: "I wonder where Major Gilbert Marshall is now, whose transport en route to the Phillipines I saw?" (Your words were to this effect.) As I wrote you, Gilbert commanded a regiment of heavy artillery in France. He dropped back to Major upon his return.