Wabash College.[?] S. April 12 [1865] 

      My Dear Mother.
                                I suppose I
should have written to you sooner but
I have been putting it off untill now
it is one week since I came.
The train arrived here about quarter
past eleven, and the town bore decided
marks of having been illuminated to a
small extent.  On Friday night our
society was brought to rather an abrupt
close by the ringing of bells over Lee's
reported surrender.  An impromptu
celebration was gotten up the "big gun"
fired, the men yelled, the women screamed,
the boys hallowed, the bells rang, the boxes,
and barrels, and chickencoops, and toolchests,
burned; the whiskey, and beer, flowed and
C-ville was aroused.  Of  V course some
butternuts had to be thrashed, and some

more free fighting had to be done before
the scene closed.  On Monday the
people illuminated themselves in the
daytime, and their houses at night.
At night everybody went to town, to
make a noise, and everybody made a
noise, with hand bells, cow bells, dinner
bells, tea table bells, and church bells,
tin horns, ^and brass horns, were made noisy
by boys, and men, and horns of whiskey made
men and boys noisy, everybody looked happy
^& everybody felt happy.  Speeches were made,
songs were sung, and the excitement was
kept ^up until the ^{list of}  speakers was was exhausted,
from Sen Lane down to the would be
lawyer.  Everybody was illuminated and
everybody's house.  All together there was a good
time.  My clothes and everything else
came all right.  I tried to get a paper
for you but failed.  I have received a
letter from Lucy and one from Mrs List,
I don’t know what why she wants to write me