Letters From Valley Forge

The year is 1778, the place is Valley Forge in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. George Washington and many other revolutionary soldiers are here. I am one of them. Valley Forge is a Winter Camp we have built to keep an eye on the British. Life here is torture. Everyday I see my friends and fellow soldiers die. I have been here eight months with only one more to go. I cannot wait to leave this god-forsaken place. But George Washington and others would like me to stay to fight for what is right. I can not stay here, for it is unbearable. There is not enough food to go around, illness and disease are spreading like wildfire, and the living conditions are horrid.

We ran out of food quite quickly after we got here. There is no protein in any of the

Such illnesses include dysentery and smallpox. Many of my friends have met their fate at the hands of dysentery. Dysentery is an infection that causes diarrhea, with blood and mucus visible in the feces. Smallpox is a virus in which a person gets a severe fever with pustules. Here at Valley Forge, our surgeons and doctors have made smallpox less of a threat. By smearing puss from a victim of smallpox into a fairly healthy man, it fights the infection. Only about one out of fifty patients die. It was stated by Dr. Albigence Waldo, “Vomit half my time”, This is a common case amongst us soldiers. I see my friends get amputated on and killed every single day of my life. It is a terrible thing to watch people that you knew go to a better place, while you are still stuck here, dying slowly and painfully. Half of the people here at Valley Forge are sick and dying. I can not stand it for much

I miss my family and friends back at home. My mother is growing old and needs my help to take care of her. I can understand why someone would like to stay. George Washington does need all the people he can get and the congressman do provide food and clothing. Even so, I will not be re-enlisting, since I do not have a death-wish. I shall quit as soon as I get the chance, due to the fact that there’s no food, illness is everywhere, and I cannot stand these living conditions. I do not have much more time on this world. It is only a matter of time before I die just like I have seen so many of my fellow soldiers do right before my spoiled eyes. Leaving is the only option for