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Interesting set of letters by John Day Smith who was a Civil War Veteran, went to Brown University and Columbia law school, served as a republican in the Minnesota House of Representatives, and authored two significant books:
The History of the 19th Regiment of Maine Volunteer Infantry 1862-1865 (1909)
And
Cases on Constitutional Law (1896)
These letters mostly discuss family matters however one does go into his history in the Civil War and some of the people he met. He fought at Gettysburg, Bristow Station, Mine Run, The Wilderness, Jerusalem Plank, and more. He saw Lincoln in Fredericksburg after a disastrous battle, listened to Frederick Douglass, William Lloyd Garrison, many others, and even met personally with President Garfield.
Day consistently mentions his Christian faith and makes some comments about Coolidge endorsing Secretary Mellon who had gotten rich through distillery works at Pittsburgh. He said \"Amd we Christian people are now to endorse the whole outfit. I will not stand for it!\"
The letters are in very good condition with one page of one of the letters having a small hole in a crease. Each is signed by Day and addressed to his niece, Mildred E. Smith.
Let me know if you have any questions or if you desire more photos. Thank you.
