The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1902-11-02

army at its first move ION to Richmond
And the South--if we can believe the
words Of an Alabamian-"the South couiu
easily whip the Yankees with pop-guns
before breakfast" and 1t would be sucn
a harmless affair that another Albanian
offered fr sely to drink all the blood that
would be split during the encounter!
With the Russell Volunteers, attached
to the 9Th Alabama Regiment, J. j. Sell
bles, Colonel, and John B. Gordon, Ma
Tor. a number of Southern youths started
out one morning in the Spring OF 1901 10
take part in the great picnic! After
tiresome twenty days wait at Corinth,
Miss, they were ordered to Manassas ana
assigned to General Ewell's brigade.
These fresh solu4er boys. these young
recruits, were fairly thirsting for the fun
of the fight, and were apprehensive that
ii would all be over by the time they
reached Manassas! But, on arriving there
late one afternoon, these fears were dls-
PEELED by herring for the first time that
for which they had so impat'ently walt
ed-the report of the Federal guns The
discharge failed to bring on its breath'
however, the rare fun they had antlcl-
pated, and. hearing the Jonnd, silence
fell upon them-a moments full, express
sive silence. Then a private. Berry Ed
a
said, in slow and earnest tones. BOYS.
I'm not half as mad with old Lincoln as
I was before I left home; l believe hes
a right good old fellow and they've been
lying on him.!
Neither did the fun begin when the
blue-coated boys came into sight ana
Thaddy Bowen, another Russell County
boy who was afterwards numbered among
the bravest of the brave, ran back ex-
citedly into the midst of his friends. and
exclaimed, Boys, I've seen EN- and
they're great big blue ones!'
In the terrible slaughter of that mem
orable Sunday, July the list, in the deaf
ening roar of cannon. by the sight of the
invincible Jackson standing like a stone
WALL" by the dust and the smoke and
the dead and the dying, the gala-day was
consumed and from its ashes leaped forth
the flashing blade. the bugle's blast, the
wild note of the first great battle OF the
Civil War!
And, flushed with the triumph of this
first victory. the lads in grey started forth
with brave hearts and eager hopes adown
that long and cruel road which stretched
out from the red fields of Manassas to the
white flag OF Appomattox. And on they
went, following where their chieftain led'
never faltering, never wavcring. through
II
| on till every milestone was stained with
noble blood, and ever yvalley filled with
heroic forms that never more would
feel the rapture of the tight" On and on
"a pitifu handful now against uncounted
| foes-but still bravely on, until, not con-
auered but outnumbered. they reached
the end, and furled the loved nag that
| mot a sword was left to save
| 1t is not enough that our tears should
| flow as the last act in the tragic drama
| is presented, and we see those strong and
| fearless men, who have unfilnchngly
| faced death on an hundred battlehelds,
| break down like little children and sob
| as IL their hearts will break as the GER
| tainty of what they have dreaded bursts
upon them: it Is not enough that we
| should cover with flowers at each recurr-
| ing Spring the graves of many unknown
| Confederate dead; but, what we should
| do Is to get the name and prove the SER
| vice of every Confederate soldier. How
this is to be done, Bill Arp says he asked
an old private the other day. and he re-
| piled, that he could prove his service
| by a dozen comrades" But when they
are all dead, and yon are dead, how will
the children prove that their father OF
| grandfather was a Confederate soldier?
| asked he In that case" tile old soldier
thought the thing would be lost
But Bill Arr is determined that 1t shall
not be lost. and so he has appealed tc