West, Lewis H., 1829-? to Harriet Moore [incomplete]

References receiving her letter of 22 September. Talks about the latest accounts of the elections. Says he is sorry to hear Pennsylvania has probably gone copperhead and that "If she goes for McClellan all I have to say is that I hope the rebels may desolate the state from end to end." Claims that "The men who vote in favor of slavery after the experience of the last few years, are only fit to be slaves themselves, and the sooner they become so, the better." Says New York is the only state to make provisions for sailors to vote and that they received their blank ballots recently. Says 7 on the ship are for McClellan and 7 for Lincoln. Says that McClellan will probably have a majority of the New York men from the squadron. Says if the entire navy could vote, Lincoln would be ahead. Says the volunteers are for Lincoln and the regulars for McClellan. Says there are those of "disreputable character" who have lied about being from New York in order to vote for McClellan. Says he had a confrontation with someone in his crew who was speaking positively of the copperheads and that he threatened to put him in Fort Lafayette. Says "I will allow as much free speech as anybody, on board here as long as everybody agrees with me in politics." Says the countryside has been drained of men by the Confederates. Spoke to a recent refugee who told of a story of smuggling slaves in from Africa a few years before the war and how he was swindled by his creditor, a Mr. Lamar. Written while aboard the USS "Fernandina".