Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1913-02-13
LOVE LETTERS OF GENERAL
PICKETT ARE FINE ROMANCE
He Tells Of Battles and Of
Valor and High Ideals
Of Warriors.

with radiance. | write to make an earnest
reuuest-entreatng. praying. that you will
grant it. You kr ow. my darling, we have
no prophets in these days to tell us how
near or how far is the end of this awful
struggle. If the battle is not to the
strong" then we may win. but when all
our ports are closed and the world is
against us, when for us a man killed is
man lost. while Grant may have twen-
:y-five OF every nation to replace one of
his. it seems that the battle is to the
strong So often ALREADY has hope been
dashed to the winds
AS you know. it is imperative that | re-
main at my post and absolutely impossi-
BILE for me to so to you. So you will
have to come to me. Will you. dear?
VIII you come? Can't your beautiful
eyes see beyond the mist of my eagerness
and anxiety that in the bewlderment of
my worship-worshiping. as | do, one so
divinely right and feeling that my love is
returned-how hard 1t is for me to ask
you to overlook old time customs. remem-
bering only that you are to be a soldiers
wife? A week. a day. an hour. as your
husband would engulf in it's great joy all
my past woes and amelorate all future
fears.
So. my Chulita. don't let's wait. Send
me a line by Jackerie saying you will
come. Come at once. my darling. into
this valley of the shadow of uncertainty
and make certain the comfort that If !
fall l shall fall as your husband: that you
will bear my name. will have been my
wife and will have all the rights of a wife
You know that I love you with devo-
ton that envelopes absorbs all elsa de-
votion so divine that when in dreams
see you 1t is as something too pure and
sacred for mortal touch. And IL you only
knew the heavenly life that thrills through
me when | make 1t real to myself that
l<,. md tpL
my dear little one. Of the uncertainty and
dangers Of even a day Of separation and
don't let the time come when either Of us
will look back and say. 1T might have
been"
II | am spared all my life shall be de-
voted to making you happy. to keeping
all that would hurt you far from you. to
making all that Is good come near you
Heaven will help me to be ever helpful
to you and will bless me to bless you. II
you knew how every hour kneel at your
altar. il you could hear the prayers | Of
fer to you and to our Heavenly Father
are sun " IIarcn forward Every tramp
tramp. tramp is a thought, thought.
thought of my darling. every halt a bless
ing invoked. every command a loving ca
ress. and the thought of you and prayer
for you make me strong. make me better.
give me courage. give me faith. Now. my
Carissima. let my soul speak to yours.
I.isten-listen-listen! You hear-l am an
swered!
This was written the night before
the charge of Gettysburg:
Well. my sweetheart, at o'clock the
awful silence was broken by a cannon
shot and then another. and then more
than 100 guns shook the hills from crest to
base. answered by more than another 100
the whole world a blazing volcano, the
xvh01o ~ hoa von a fhunderho1t thov do rlx
ness and absolute silence. then the grim
and grewsome, low spoken commands,
then the forming Of the attacking col
umns, the hurrying Of the men to the po-
sition assigned to them. My brave Wiz
ginians are to attack in front. Oh. may
God in mercy help me az he never helped
me before!
I have ridden up to report to old Peter.
I shall give him this letter to mail to you
and a package to give you IL Oh. ny
darling, do you feel the love Of my heart.
'If?"
Now. my darling. ! 90. but remember
always that I love you with all my heart
and soul. with every fber Of my being:
that now and forever ] am yours-your0.
my beloved. 1t IL almost o'clock Ny
soul reaches out to yours-my prayers.
The following is part Of the dramatic
narrative of the battle Of Gettysburg:
An. II I had only had my other two pr,-
gades . different story would have been
flashed to the world! Poor old Dick Gar
nett did not dismount. as did the others
Of US. and he was killed instantly. falling
from his horse. Kerhper was desperate
ly wounded. was brought from the field
and subsequently taken prisoner Poor
old Lewis Armistead--God bless hin1i-was
MORALLY wounded at the head of his com.
mand after planting the flag Of Virginia
within the enemy's lines Seven OF my
colonies were killed. and one was mortal
~ wounded. Nine Of my lieutenant colo
nels were wounded. and three lieutenant
colonies were killed. Only one field officer
Of my whole command. Colonel Cabel. was
unhurt and the loss OF my company off,
GERS was in proportion.
wonder. my dear. II in the light Of the
great eternity we shall any Of US feel this
was for the best and shall have learned
to say. ''Thy will be done?" No castles
today. sweetheart. No: the bricks Of hap
pness and the mortar Of love must lie I'M
touched in this lowering gloom. Pray.
dear. for the sorrowing ones.
Writes on Birth of Son.
This letter was written upon the
news to General Pickett of the birth Of
hts son, 1.-The Little General" as he
was known in the whole Confederate
army:
God bless you. little mother Of our boy
bless and keep you'll Heaven in all its
glory shine upon you! Eden's flowers
bloom eternal for you! Almost with ev-
cry breath since the message came reliev-
ing my anxiety and telling me that my
darling lived and that little baby had
been born to us have been baby my
self Though l have known all these
months that from across loves enchanted
land this little child was on its way to
our twin souls. now that Gods promise
Is fulfilled and 1t has come I can't believe
1t. AS think of it feel the stir Of para
disc in my senses, and my spirit goes up
in thankfulness to God for this, his high
est and best. the one perfect flower in the
garden of lfe-love.
Binding tears rolled down my cheeks.
my sweetheart, as l read the glad It'd
ings. and a feeling so new. so strange.
came over me that l asked of the angels
what it could be and whence came the
strains of celestial music which filled my
soul. and what were the great, grand
stirring hosannas and the soft. tender,
sweet adagios that circle around and
around. warmed my every vein. beat my
every pulse. And. o little mother of my
boy the echoing answer came. "A little
baby has been born to you. and he and
the new made mother live
Following the failure of the peace
conference which preceded General
Lees surrender General Pickett wrote:
On every side gloom. dissatisfaction and
disappointment seem to have settled over
all. men and officers alike. because Of the
unsuccessful termination of the peace con-
ference on board the River Queen on the
fatal Sd. The anxious, despairing faces
see everywhere bespeak heavy hearts
| Our commissioners knew that we were
gasping our last gasp and that the peace
conference was a forlorn hope. Because
of the informality Of the conference and
my knowledge of Mr.. Lincoln his human
| ity his broad nature his warm hearf I