Emmons County record. [volume] (Williamsport, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1884-current, 1913-07-17
PIONEER PAPER OF THE COUNTY
Editorial Correspondence
Gettysburg. Pa, July It'll.

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the Blue and the Grey is over; and,
having little time, am thinking
that perhaps the readers Of the Rec
ord may be interested in an account
of the trip, although it would take a
page of the paper to give even an
extended synopsis of the matters Of
interest to an American to be seen on
the battlefield of Gettysburg. There
we're three comrades from Emmons
county who made the trip-Messrs.
Bales and Sisco and yours truly.
Comrade Long of Logan county,
father Of the Braddock merchant,
was also member Of the North Da.
kota contingent.
We left Fargo on the evening Of
Friday. June 9th. and reached
Gettysburg on the evening Of SUM-
day June 10Th. just forty-eight hours
later. The stops on the way were
brief. the train being a special COM
posed of tourist sleeping cars. A
feature Of the trip was Jamestown,
on the Conemaugh river. where sew
eral thousands people were lost by a
flood years ago. Before reaching the
town the brakeman passed through
the coaches announcing the name of
the town and its historical associa-
tions. 1t is not to be wondered at
that when the dam few miles above
the town broke and the water reached
the town, there was tremendous
losses of life and property; for the
city is in narrow gorge. with high
hills on either side.
AS above written, we reached the
camp-ground at Gettysburg on the
evening of Sunday, the 18th, and,
after being fed. were assigned to our
tents. We found the camp to be an
immense proposition, about 1000
tents being required for the old
soldiers and another thousand for
the regulars, boy scouts, hospital
service. ETC., the camp Of the veter-
ans alone covering S acres. There
were present $4,000 Federals and
1000 Confederates. The latter
came in their gray uniforms, and
were tine-looking, well-preserved
lot of old men. We must admit
that the "Johnnies" would have ta-
ken the first prize over we "Yanks"
had the function been beauty show
instead Of a reunion. The average
age of the former was CT and of the
latter u years.
Besides the "a 900 old soldies pres.
eni. it is estimated that 200 900 9TH
ers attended the reunion all or part
Of the time. There were thousands
of automobiles present from a dis.
lance, a large proportion of them
from Baltimore and Philadelphia and
many from New York. Adjoining
towns were crowded, and the farm
homes within an area Of several
miles from Gettysburg were filled
with guests. Gettysburg is a city Of
scant 5000. but it can probably &C.
commodate more people with dread
and board than any place it's size in
the United States. Owing to the
fact that the word had been circu-
lated by the Metropolitan newspa-
pers, before the reunion, that all of
its capacity had been engaged, its
accommodations were not all taken.
1t is an impossible task for one
within a limited space in a newspa-
per to describe the battlefield of
Gettysburg az it is today. Within
an area Of several miles the three.
days battle took place, part Of the
fighting occurring in the streets Of
the town. There are monuments,
markers and statues everywhere,
created by the Federal government
and by the states. There were al
ways big crowds at Culp's Hill, Gem
etery Hill. Cemetery Ridge, Devils
Den, The Wheatfield, The Peach
Orchard. Round Top and Little Top,
as well as along Seminary Ridge,
where the Confederate infntry
and batteries were largely stationed
and from whence Longstreet's As.
sault (popularly known as Pickett's
Charged started. LonRstreet was
the corps commander who received
General Lees orders for the charge,
but who did not approve of it.
Pickett was the division commander
who received the order from Long
street and who led the charge. The
point of most interest to those who
were in the battle Of Gettysburg
was that desperate assault by Pick
etts where $4,000 men charged
across q valley in the face Of the
most tremendous cannonade of the
war. backed by the fire of thousands
OF infantry men, and where dead
and wounded men were niIpd thyoc