Tuesday, January 1, 2013

A Letter Home


http://www.assonetart.com/TroianiTheBoyColonel.jpg
 THE BOY COLONEL
Battle of Gettysburg, 1 July 1863. This print is dedicated to the youngest
colonel in the Confederacy, 21-year old Colonel Henry King Burgwyn, Jr.
commander of the 26th North Carolina Infantry Regiment who was killed
in the engagement against the Iron Brigade at McPherson’s Ridge. Of the
895 men who had started the Battle of Gettysburg, only 3 officers and 67
men remained present for duty. The regiment’s total loss was a staggering
697; of those 174 were killed outright or died of wounds.
                                                         =====================

 Via The Lonely Libertarian
 

May it never come to pass

Written By: Bob - Dec• 31•12
Sept. 19
 Dear B.,

I hope this letter finds you in good spirits. I’ve heard it through command that the loyalists harassing I-40 have been dealt with, so you should be getting all the rice, flour, etc you could want within days, now that the port in Wilmington has been repaired.

Because of security I can’t tell you precisely where we are, but I can say that we can see the Washington Monument through the smoke from time to time. I’m not even sure how to describe the fighting. Spider says it reminds him of Hue. The younger Marine veterans speak of Fallujah. All I know is that loyalists have contested every inch since we dismounted in Lorton.

Most of the harshest fighting now is pile to pile. It reminds me of what I saw on the History Channel (remember TV?) about Stalingrad.

Tell the girls that I love them and that I think about them every day. I k
 
[Letter recovered near body of rifleman from Company E., 26th No. Car. Infantry, at Battle of Arlington Ridge on Sept 23, during the Second Third :) American Revolutionary War]

21 comments:

  1. How sad.

    Great painting.

    Tino

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, I have the painting in the form of a bookend.

      Delete
  2. Awesome painting!
    Storyline..... as seen through one's Crystal Ball? I let out a big sigh as I ponder the future and resolve to stand my ground until I am carried from it, or left behind for the buzzards.
    Let's hope 2013 sucks less than anticipated.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It is difficult at best to carry a battle engagement to victory when the losses sustained amount to 90%??....
      But when you are fighting for your home and families.....

      Delete
    2. It is difficult at best to carry a battle engagement to victory when the losses sustained amount to 90%??....
      But when you are fighting for your home and families.....

      24. A Federal surgeon at the battle of Sharpsburg:

      " It is beyond all wonder how such men as the rebel (sic) troops can fight on as they do; that, filthy, sick, hungry, and miserable, they should prove such heroes in fight, is past explanation - one regiment stood up before the fire of two or three of our long- range batteries and of two regiments of infantry, and though the air around them was vocal with the whistle of bullets and scream of shells, there they stood, and delivered their fire in perfect order; and there they continued to stand......"
      http://www.namsouth.com/viewtopic.php?t=75&highlight=quotes

      Delete
    3. My father told me many stories of the WW II Battle of Hurtgen Forest, which took six months of 1944. He, always the oldest man in his company, was often one of only a few men left after shelling by the Germans. They often lost over 90 per cent according to him. He especially feared the German 88 mm guns on their tanks which Dad said was the greatest gun ever used in war. Large areas of the thick forest were cut off at the height where the 88 shells hit them. I have found pictures on the Internet that verify his stories. Finally, in December 1944, he was hit with mortar shrapnel and sent home alive, thank God, to live another fifty years.

      My dear wife sat down with him in the early nineties and an 8mm movie camera and interviewed him about the war. We recently had the film put on DVD. It is the definition of "priceless" to me.

      Delete
    4. that's six months of 1944-45. Sorry.

      Delete
    5. in December 1944, he was hit with mortar shrapnel and sent home alive, thank God, to live another fifty years.

      Indeed.
      ================
      My dear wife sat down with him in the early nineties and an 8mm movie camera and interviewed him about the war. We recently had the film put on DVD. It is the definition of "priceless" to me.

      You ought to put it on You Tube.

      Delete
  3. Today I began re-reading the Anti-Federalist Papers. I started with the Federal Farmer, believed to have been Richard Henry Lee, a Virginia farmer whose writings I greatly admire. Then I skipped to the end, No. 85, by A Plebeian, Melancthon Smith. I guess I never really read it before. To me, he clearly warns that the day will come when our present situation will prevail. And it allows for such an insane occurrence as Lincoln’s Ego War against individual freedom.
    I commend the Anti-Federalist Papers to your reading. They, along with much other wisdom, may be found at the web-site of my departed friend, Barefoot Bob Hardison.

    http://www.barefootsworld.net/

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