The Oskaloosa herald., 1913-07-17

/ in gray swept adown, across and
, again on up the broad, open field, on
either side of which lay, wildly ex-
pectant, the artillery forces of Meade
and of Lee, eager for the final out
come. F
No sooner had Pickett started on
/ his sweeping challenge, marching
proudly in two converging ranks
through the fields now ripe with har-
vest till the guns of Lee Numbered
their faithful rear support to the in
fantry, answered almost on the in
slant by one hundred and fifty can
non from Cemetery Ridge manned by
federal gunners, chorus of war and
carnage, blaring, blazing, killing, fill
ing the very heavens with the shock
of the mighty spectacle. belching
forth pitiless fire of iron hail. can.
lister and grape into the human ranks
below. Men and whole groups drop
ped as though mown by some mighty
sickle, and that was before the days
of the machine gun, too. Now doz-
ems, now hundreds, dead and dying
from exploding missiles and raking
fire, their places rapidly and repeat
eddy closed up by surviving comrades.
A constantly decimating body of SER
ried columns wavered when within a
few hundred feet of the stone wall
and breastworks Of the Union lines of
infantry, the rifles picked off their
thousands. II would seem no bird
nor shrub could endure through that
holocaust of bloody death. The Bliss
house and barn, on the way pierced
with hundreds of balls, was set fire to
by the southerners, to avoid it's get
ting into possession of the Kentucky
sharpshooters, since it afforded no
atom of shelter from the iron hail that
was sweeping the plain of death :,
BY fortune almost unbelievable,
one hundred and fifteen of Pickett's
men struggled to possession of a bit
of the stone wall, clubbing their way
to the very heart of the Union center.
They were in few seconds soon over
powered and captured, but not till
their leader, Armistead, who had led
them, his hat stuck on the point of
his sword and hoisted aloft, cheering
not till he had fallen mortally
wounded, torn to pieces. 1t is said. by
from his cannon, who, holding his
torn bowels in place yelled for per-
mission to give them one more shot"
and who then fell back dead beside
his gum The ''high water mark of
the Confederacy" had been reached.
Pickett's shattered fragments fell
| back. Lee saw his fearful mistake,
but CALAMITY galloped up and down
his broken ranks that late afternoon
cheering by his presence and direc-
ton, the men who gathered them
selves for retreat southwest across
| the Potomac. never again to threaten
the North with invasion. The capitu-
lation of Vicksburg at nearly the same
! hour, turned also, and In the same di-
rection, the fortunes of the Union, in
the maneuvers of the Army of the
West under Grant. From July 3, 1863,
! forward. the course of Union grew,
battle after battle, victory after vic
tory, into the glory of more perfect
Union! Appomattox became newt
| able!
And | am glad to have been here
these momentous days of celebration;
to have seen the hundred or so sur
| II u,ho To-
feeble way, but friendly. over the
ground where, half century ago yes
| terday, at the same hour there were
thousands struggling in wars awful
! spectacle.
1t was worth while for Lincoln, late
in November. 1868, to take time to
come to these hills and cheer up the
hearts of the North by his prophetic
eloquence. 1t was worth while for
Woodrow Wilson to come this fore
noon to these same scenes, under
vastly changed conditions, and point
the way to present and future patriot
ic duty in the demands of an era of
peace. It was a pleasure and delight
for more than fifty thousand veterans
of both sides to fraternize here again
these past few days of semicenten-
NAL. in "reminiscences, in pledging
anew a common fealty to our great
republic. now an unbreakahle and in
dissoluble Union. a.a.
The peculiarly intelligent and right
eous impulse which is usually thought
of when we call it the American spir-
it, bore successfully the test Of fra
tricidal strife, and has come away
gloriously victorious over its own
baser elements, in the reconstruction
of stronger union, now pervaded in
honest motives. stimulated by high re-
solves, waiting expectantly at every
gate of American opportunity!
Patriotism tried and true!
Something like 100000 people
4 those who fought at Gettysburg or
elsewhere, patriots who we're toe
young to go to war, good and grand
spirits all, gathered here the past
week to do honor to the semi-centen
NAL Pennsylvania and the United
States government, and many of the
. | .to.oe d;d mall. and ranann hared the