The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1913-07-09
PICKETT'S CHARGE
REENACTED By COEFEDERATES
ON CEMETERY RIDGE.
RECEIVED With Cheers
BY the Old Defenders, a Philadelphia
Brigade, When They Reach the
Stone Wall-Grays Climb Over to
Shake Hands and Halk Of the Days
That Were.

otOuc "dA-OfdyS C1IuD OVcF TO
Shake Hands and Halk Of the Days
That Were.
A handful Of men in gray re-en-
acted Thursday the charge Of Pickett
across the field of Gettysburg. Up
the slope Of Cemetery ridge, where
death kept step with them in '63,
$50 veterans Of the Virginia regi-
ments Of that immortal brigade
made their slow parade.
Under the brow of the ridge in the
bloody angle, where the Philadelphia
bridge was a handful in blue, scarce
ly larger waited to meet the on
slaught Of peace. There we're no
flashing sabres, no belching guns, on
ly eyes that dimmed fast and kindly
faces behind the stone wall that
marks the angle. At the end, in
place of wound or prison or death,
were handshakes, speeches and ming
ling cheers.
The veterans in gray marched for
a quarter Of mile over the ground
that they traversed during the
charge. They came up the slope In
column Of fours, irregular but re-
sponsive to the commands Of Maj. W.
W. Bentley of the Twenty-four vir-
ginia, one Of the few officers Of eth
er Pickett's or the Philadelphia bri-
gades present. Ahead Of them march
ed band and well down the column
was a faded Confederate flag, its red
field pierced with many holes, It's
cross bars dim and its shaft colored
with the sweat Of many a man who
died that it might fly high in the last
desperate effort to pierce the Union
lines.
Its progress was slow and painful
for the timothy in the field was high
and its plowed surface was not easy
for weady feet, Up to the very edge
Of the stone wall, covered now with
tangled vines, shaded by trees and
peaceful as a summer lane, they
marched in the hot sun while the
band played "Dixie''. There they
stood for half an hour while their
comrades in blue peered across at
them.
The blue line formed behind the
wall. Overhead floated faded stand
ard Of the Second army corps. Behind
them were the statutes of the Phila-
delphia brigade and the Fourth Unit
ed States battery where Gen. Arm
istead died.
AS the men in gray formed in
long line facing the wall, the Stars
and Bars and the h'g Of the Second
corps were crossed in amity; the
Stars and Stripes were unfurled and
the crowd that came to watch burst
into cheer. Representative J.
Hampton Moore, Of Pennsylvania,
made a long speech and Maj. Bent
ley answered him on behalf Of the
South. The veterans in gray were
given medal provided by John Wan
namaker. They crowded over the
stone wal, shook sands and the
charge was over. There was many a
picturesque figure in the line that
came up the slope. W. H. Turpin OF
the Fifty-third Virginia appeared in
the uniform he wore on the day Of
the charge. His feet were bound in
cloth, he had an army blanket strap
ped to his back and he calmly smok-
ed long stemmed corn cob pipe.
There were fifteen regiments in
Pickett's division that day in '63, and
the histories say that 5000 men
charged across the field. Every field
officer was killed or wounded except
one lieutenant colonel and two-thirds
of the line officers met the same fate.
OF the 5000 who charged, only about
2 900 returned to the Confederate po-
sition. The Philadelphia brigade num-
bered about 1900 men and lost 453
in killed and wounded.