Correspondence of the Richmond Dispatch.
letter from a Farmville boy — military affairs.
Farmville, June 30, 1861.
I have been looking over your good Daily for the last month or two, and have seen but few letters from Farmville.
Supposing you have no regular correspondent here, although a boy I take the liberty of saying a few words as to matters about our quiet little town — The only thing that rouses our few remaining citizens from the lethargy into which they have fallen, is the war news.
They are expecting to hear of a battle in the vicinity of Alexandria or Manassas.
If Lincoln's cut-throats were to meet our brave boys in open field, we could whip them two to one; but old Scott and his master know that too well, and will not try it. They have heard of the big battle at Bethel, where we whipped them four to one, and they are getting a little more cautious.
There has a large number of troops passed our town since the first of May.
The greater part of them are from Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana.
The Southwestern counties of Virginia have sent a large number, and our little county of Prince Edward has also done her duty; she has eight hundred voters, and has sent eight companies--one cavalry and seven infantry, and our patriotic citizens are now raising an artillery company. Two of the infantry went from Farmville; they were Capt. Booker's company, one hundred men, and Capt. Cobb's company, eighty men. Our town has a population of one hundred and fifty voters, and has sent one hundred and eighty men. Well done for Farmville.
We will have plenty of men, if every county would do as well as Prince Edward.
The ladies, too, deserve credit — for the last month they have been diligently engaged in making tents and other things for our soldiers. Alpha.
