Magie, James K. to Mary Magie
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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC05241.14 Author/Creator: Magie, James K. Place Written: Franklin, Tennessee Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 22 February 1863 Pagination: 4 p. Order a Copy
"No. 2." He has been promoted to Division Postmaster. Recounts three incidents which occurred while traveling between Nashville and Franklin. First, he tells of finding a group of men in Butternut whom he thought to be Confederates. He thought the men would capture him but they turned out to be local laborers running telegraph lines. For the next story, Magie cautioned his wife not to read the passage outloud. He then wrote how he followed a trail of calico to find a soldier and woman in a "horizontal position." He adds the couple claimed to be married. Finally, he mentions seeing two young ladies on horseback with a 15-year-old black boy seated behind one of the girls and holding her waist. Magie states that such a sight "in Illinois would be considered a monstrous piece of abolitionism."
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