[ Autographs ] CONFEDERATE HUSBAND AND WIFE CORRESPONDENCE A fine completely transcribed Confederate correspondence consisting of 22 letters and seven incomplete letters, almost all quite lengthy, written throughout the war by H. M. Lynn of the 9th Tenn. Infantry andhis wife, Mattie Simpson Lynn, along with numerous supporting and postwar letters and documents. About a third of the letters and fragments are written from the field by Lynn, with the remainder written by Mattie. While the letters by Lynn are good, Mattie's letters are superb and articulate, and give a detailed account of Confederate home life in a border state. We can only provide a sample of some of the highlights, which follow: H.M. to Mattie, Columbis Kentucky, Sept. 9, 1861: "...took possession of this place on Wednesday, the day they landed at Hickman. If they had got here a few hours sooner, they would have cut off two of the gunboats...our forcesare coming in very fast...about twenty thousand in all. Gen. Jeff Thompson was here with about three thousand of his troops...". Mattie to H.M., June 2, 1862:"...Calvin's goods were taken and divided amongst the Union men of the neighborhood. They went to Mr. Moffatts, took out the bureau drawers...fed their horses in them and destroyed all of Martha's nice cloathing...All that do not take the oath are imprisoned. There is certainly a day of retribution in store for such a barbarous unfeeling set of creatures...Riley Wiley has been before the authorities of Fort Pillow about Confederate money, but was released. The folks are scared to refuse Confederate money now..." Mattie, July 12, 1862: "...We looked for the Federals a long time but have not seen them yet....Some of their soldiers took old Matt Chambers carriage & horses. He reported them and their officers punished them....They went back..., cursed & abused C, then finally went to shooting. Mrs. C. went between them and her husband, until herhusband ran off...Jinnie and Mrs. C's sister took a double barreled shotgun, laid it on her sister's shoulder and fired, putting the wholeload in the man's head and face, killing him...the Colonel commended her...You and Sam hurry Gen. Bragg back to Tenn. and you shall have a big strong drink provided the Yanks don't come along and drink it first...". Mattie, at Idlewild, Tenn. Nov. 23, 1862: "...The Yankees have made their raids through here...60 of them took breakfast with us done us no great injury, though it was very humiliating to be made tofeel their power...don't think I ever spent as unhappy time as I did for two weeks after...stayed with Mrs. Dickson, as her husband had been reported to them as Captain of a Guerrilla camp...were left aloneto face the music, many a night...never undressed save to pull off ourshoes...". Mattie, Feb.3, 1863: "...Col. Richardson has conscripted until he has quite a little army of the Partisan rangers. The old Colonel is quite a thorn in the flesh to our old tory friends, keeps some of them skedaddling up and down the river, first here and then inYankee town..." Mattie, Apr. 15, 1863: "...the Kansas Jayhawkers paid our neighborhood a visit...took three of our best horses...Last week abrutish uncivilized set composed of Tennessean, Mississippian, Alabamians with some pure Yanks commanded by one Col. Hurst came and done worst than I ever expected men of any civilized nation could do..Burned Bob Strong's house...all except his stables. Took all or very near all horses they could...Their excuse is Richardson or the Guerillas...Uncle Bob[a servant] went with the house burners...I want every darkey to go that wants to. Rather they would be with the Yanks than at home dissatisfied...It was such a gloomy day, the atmosphere was thick with the smoke of our Neighbor's houses...". Mattie, June 21 1863: "...On...the eighth Inst...the Yanks...In full blue...came marching deliberately down on us, all privates...I was left alone withthem. I thought they might go pilfering through the house and my business was to watch them. The town folks had the others on them...".Mattie, July 11, 1863: "...Colonel Richardson has returned with authority to act as conscripting agent in this portion of the state, can fight the enemy if he chooses or let them alone...Two brigades of Yankees had been sent in here after his men...useless for them... conscripting in the enemy's line is a business that...has done our community a great injury..." Mattie, Aug. 27, 1863: "...The Yankees have been all around us...went on to Fort Pillow. A negro raid...came as near us as Mt. Zion...Southern Blood was fever heat when the negro came...Have you seen the account of the murder of one entire white family by...negro soldiers.... This is the kind of warfare we may expect if negroes are armed...". Mattie, May 30, 1864: "...for the Yankees...nothing is too mean for them...We are getting better acquainted with their manner of prosecuting the War almost every day..They are giving Fayette County a cleaning out, going around taking mules and negro men. They allow the negroes to volunteer if they will..there is constantly some going..." H.M. to Mattie, Oct. 20, 1864 froma partial letter: "....Left Chester on the first...have tore up between forty and fifty miles of railroad and captured...about two thousand prisoners...at Dalton Eight hundred...were negroes. The whiteYankees were paroled...Our brigade took possession of the fort and garrison after the surrender and consequently got most of the plunder..". The letters are completely transcribed, and come with many supporting family documents, as well as copies of documents pertainingto Lynn's service record. A couple of the letters suffer from mouse chews, but overall the archive is in good to very good condition. E2,