"Bright and Gloomy Days provides the unique perspective of a Confederate army supplier and Moravian. The letters of Charles Frederic Bahnson, an assistant quartermaster in the Confederate army, to his father, a bishop in the Moravian church, between 1860 and 1865 relate events such as the Gettysburg and Shenandoah Valley compaigns, tell stories of the "good life" in the garrison of the forts near Wilmington, North Carolina, and even provide news of a slave woman's poisoning her mistress's child. In his correspondence, Bahnson reacts to early news of the war when he lived in the North, army politics, construction of winter quarters, commodity prices in conscription, punishment of deserters, handling of the dead, Confederate morale, and problems related to his official duties as a junior officer." "Bahnson expresses strong patriotic sentiments but frequently refers to his assignment as a "bomb proof department," illuminating his desire, his friends, and his family. Because of his "safe" situation, his many references to camp life chronicle not military action but the daily routines of life in the campgrounds. The letters of Charles Frederic Bahnson illustrate a dedication to the Confederate cause and a sense of duty to his fellow southerners, along with a commitment to the Moravian faith."--BOOK JACKET.