Letter written by Orion Ashenfelter to his family. Orion starts off by greeting his family and telling them that he is okay and that he wishes the same for them. He tells his mother that he has sent her a painting of the ship that he was onboard, which was the first ship that fired a gun in the war with Spain. He mentions that the painting also includes the Chicago on the right, as well as the U.S.S. Albany. Orion writes that for the last 8 months he has been doing the duties of an officer as a carpenter’s mate. He writes to his parents that he thinks that he should be paid an officer’s salary for those 8 months that he has been doing the duty.