Apl 14/85
Battleford Column
N.W. Field Force

In camp Saskatchewan Ferry,

Dear Katie

I am sitting in bed and have written a letter to mother as we are not going to do any thing to day except cross the river which will take the best part of the day. We are having an extremely hard time of it and the men are pretty well broken up at the heels. The food is of the very worst kind and the Govt will get a firm blowing up when we get back.

We have not seen any enemy yet and bets are freely circulated at even money that we never shall. We have to march until we reach Battleford a distance of 200 miles and It will take us pretty well on to the end of the month to get there as we cannot possibly do more than from 12 to 15 miles a day. The heat in the day is intense I have not heard from you or from home since I got that first letter at Winnipeg from you. I am in good health with the exception of a cold and very [sentence not finished, or page may be missing]

Tell Gerald that if there is any work done I think this is the column that will do it. It consists of a detachment of Mounted Police under Col. Herchmer B. Battery with 2 guns under Mjr Short. Two Gatling guns just arrived under Capt. Howard U.S.A. C. Company from Toronto. The Queens Own under Col Miller and ourselves. The whole brigade under Col Otter and Lieut. Seers as Brigade Major. I shall be glad when the mails arrive from the east but it is hard for them to reach us as there is no mail going this way unless sent specially sent after us. You will have to excuse the writing as I am writing on a tin plate.

We have a band in camp belonging to the Queens Own and they play every evening in camp the scouts say that the Indians will be scared when they hear the band as they have never had one in this part of the country.

Good bye dear Katie and write to me often and send papers. Give my love to Gerald and his wife. I do not know what I should have done if it had not been for you all

Your Aff. Brother
Lewis