In the letter Thomas discusses sickness in the area; the death of a couple of relatives from the disease; and the unnecessary expense of current lifestyles: "We live in a world of exstravegancy [sic] of dress & eating which cant [sic] be kept up...
During the Civil War, Semple served as a captain of an artillery battery organized in Montgomery (known as Semple's Battery). He was later appointed a major and transferred to Mobile. In the letter he discusses his health; conditions and the...