The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1903-12-27


division in Longstreet's assault, though his
horse had been killed, and he had re-
ceived painful wound-a grapeshot shat
terlng his left hand-he was within few
feet of his own brigade when the final
fepulse came. It was then he spoke to
General Lee as reported by one of his
staff which 1 will give farther on. His
remarks were based upon a misapprehen-
sion as to the real conduct of his brigade
that had given way before the other part
of the line. Capt. Bond says, HE did
not know then. and the reading world has
been slow TO realize since how very great
had been its loss before retreating.'' In
point of actual fact in proportion to num-
hers. the losses in Pettigrew's brigade had
been twice as great as any of Pickett's
brigades"
There were not less than six distinct
separate engagements in the three days
battle. The Northern army suffered very
greatly, and both armless lost tremendous
~ on the first and second days. More
lies have been written about that battle
than probably have been written of the
other hundred important battles of the
disastrous and prolonged war. Capt. BOND
writes: Some of these accounts, border
ing on the hysterical, are simply silly
Some are false in differences. All in some
respects untrue There were nine brig
AIDES containing 300 men and officers.
They constituted the assaulting column on
the third day. THE field over which they
were ordered to march slowly and de-
hberately was about one thousand yards
wide, and was swept by the fire of one
hundred (Yankee) cannon and twenty
thousand muskets." Some monstrous
Munchausen liar wrote in st. Nicholas
magazine, for children, something like
this, as given by Capt. Bond: 'Those on
the left faltered and fed. The right be-
haved gloriously Each body acted accord
ing to its nature, for they were made Of
different stuff. The one of common earth,
the other of finest clay. Pettigrew's men
Con the Left were North Carolinians,
Pickett's were superb Virginians" That is
the meanest, most bottomless he ever told
upon brave men. No Drawer men than
Pettigrew's North Carolinians ever trod
a battlefield. There were thirty-seven
brigades from the South at Gettysburg
Virginia had eight; Georgia had eight
North Carolina had eight How did the
North Carolinians fight? They actually
lost fifty per cent more than the soldiers
of any other State lost. They lost more
than any other two States, alone excepting
Georgia and Alabama Both Virginia and
Tennessee had a greater military popula-
ton than North Carolina had, and yet
she had more men killed in battle than
both of them together. This is TRUTHS
the record
In Heth's Division there were five North
Carolina regiments. Their loss on first
and second days broke all records General
Heth, a worthy, brave Virginian, COM
manded in those two days. General Pet
tgrew's own brigade was In the very
hottest of the fight, and on the third day
he commanded. And yet Pettigrew's
remnant Of brigade were among the rear
guard-the post of honor when the defeat
ed army recrossed the river Their
morale, as Capt. Bond states, was unim-
paired by their tremendous losses.
Let Us look at the losses: History and
newspapers he egregiously here. Petit
Crews men, judged by losses, were the
most gallant command in Lees army
Look at the War Records. They are ac-
cessible. What do they reveal. Pickett's
heroes had a little less than fifteen killed
to the regiment. The FIVE North Caro-
Ina regiments of Pettigrews Division lost
229 killed. Capt Bond says that E'Pickett's
fifteen Virginia regiments We're fear
fully demoralized by loss of 224 killed.
Virginia had about the same numbers of
infantry as North Carolina had And yet
Virginia lost but 375 killed in the battle,
while North Carolina lost $685. At Second
Manassas, at Sharpsburg, at Chancellors-
vile, at Fredericksburg, Picketts men did
scarcely any fighting. 1t is believed that
IN the three days fight at Gettysburg
they did not kill twenty of the enemy
(Bond).
Colonel Fox, Federal officer, of Albany,
New York, has published a now we'll
known work On "Regimental Losses in
the war. He gives list of 81 Confederate
regiments that had most men killed and
wounded at Gettysburg. Of these 81, only
10 were from North Carolina. Virginia
had two (2). Three Mississippi regiments
are named. Bond says that these with
FIVE of the North Carolina regiments ''met
with their loss under Pettigrew'' Now
read this, and let the giant liars die
from shame and confusion 1 cite again
from Capt. Bonds most valuable book he
calls pickett or Pettigrew? North Caro-
lima at Gettysburg
''Pettigrew's own brigade had in killed
and wounded eleven hundred and five
winch Is an average TO tie regiment OF
two shunded and seventy-six (276). There
was not a Confederate regiment at either
First or Second Manassas which equalled
this average (276), and no Virginia regi-
ment ever did" equal it. Selah,
Hon. Joseph J. Davis, a Justice of the
Supreme Court of North Carolina, and
the equal of any man in character, said:
mo troops behaved better than those
of Pettigrew's Brigade, which was next
to Arthur's gallant little Brigade on the
right of the Division and did not give
way till after the troops on their left had
done so and until the whole line gave way.
To have accomplished more than they did
was as impossible as it was for Pickett to
have done more
He was in the battle. On 18th August
1889, Professor Charles S. Venable, a Vir-
ginian by birth, a great mathematician at
the University of Virginia, (who died
year or two ago., father of President
Venahie, of the University of North Caro-
lima. so highly esteemed, wrote to Mr.
Justice Davis a most interesting letter
from which I copy a part. He was
Colonel on General Robert E. Lees staff
all through the war, believe, and most