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A  BATTLE  ODE    DESCRIPTIVE   OF  THE 

Grand  Charge  of  the  Third  Day 

JULY    3,     1863 


ROBERT  WM.    DOUTHAT 

(Now  Professor  in  the  West  Virginia  University) 

The  Gettysburg  'Battle  Lecturer,  one  of  Tickett's  Captains, 

and  the  only  one  of  the  Ten  Captains  in  his  Regiment 

who  came  out  of  the  Charge  unhurt 


NEW  YORK  AND  WASHINGTON 
THE  NEALE  PUBLISHING  COMPANY 

1905 


^^ 


LIBRARY  of  CONGRESS 
Two  Copies  Received 

NOV  28  1905 

Cooy  right  Entry 

CLASS    O,'    XXc.  No. 

COPY    D. 


COPYRIGHT,  1905 

BY 

ROBERT    WM.    DOUTHAT 


All  Rights  Reserved 


^thxmtmn 


To  Every  Man  of  Every  Nation 

Who  Admires  Human  Courage 

Exercised  in  Favor  of  his  Country 

This  Battle  Ode 

*' GETTYSBURG" 

Is  Respectfully  Dedicated 
By  the  Author 
Who  was  a  participant  in  "  The  Charge 


**The  Charge,"  generally  known  as  **  Pickett's 
Charge,"  might  be  called  "The  Pickett-Pettigrew- 
Trimble  Charge,"  but,  rather  than  give  it  so  long 
a  name,  the  world  has  chosen  to  give  it  the  name 
of  the  commander  who  led  the  right  wing,  partly 
because  Pickett's  three  brigades  were  made  up  of 
fresh  troops,  and  as  such  were  intended  to  give 
direction  to  the  assault ;  and  partly  because  in  the 
charge  Pickett's^ three  brigades  suffered  most. 

As  a  Virginian  I  scorn  the  boast  that  Pickett's 
Virginians  were  in  anywise  more  gallant  than  the 
Tennesseeans  or  North  Carolinians  or  Mississippians 
who  were  also  in  the  assault.  These  latter  had 
been  in  the  terrible  battle  of  the  first  day,  and 
Pickett's  men  had  not  been  in  either  the  first  or 
second  day's  battle.  Tennesseeans,  North  Carolin- 
ians, and  Mississippians  had  suffered  greatly  on  the 
first  day,  losing  over  half  their  men,  and  many  of 
those  who  had  been  wounded  in  the  battle  of  the 


GETTYSBURG 


first  day  went  into  the  Great  Charge  on  the  third 
day  with  bandages  on  their  heads  or  arms,  at  sight 
of  which  the  imperturbable  Lee  is  said  to  have 
shed  tears. 

Heaven  forbid  that  Virginians  should  ever  arro- 
gate to  themselves  the  glory  that  comes  from  this 
Charge  !  The  glory  belongs  equally  to  the  men 
of  sister  States,  and  there  is  certainly  glory  enough 
in  the  Charge  for  all,  for  no  assault  was  ever  made 
in  all  the  annals  of  war  more  gallant  and  glorious 
than 

The  Grand  Charge  of  July  jd,   i86^.  Against 
Cemetery  Hill ! 
Across  the  "Broad  Falley  of  Death, 
Through  a  Hail  of  Deadly  Missiles, 
Against  an  Avalanche  of  Fire, 
Over  the  Breastworks  of  a  Stubborn  Foe, 
Into  the  Center  of  Overwhelming  Masses  of  Fed- 
eral Infantry! 

Here  was  a  "devotion"  of  which  the  Roman  of 
old  had  never  dreamed ;  here  was  a  "  holocaust "  of 
sacrificial  victims,  such  as  Greece  had  never  known! 
The  men  who  at  Marathon  and  Leuctra  bled  were 
not  greater  heroes  than  those  who  fell  at  Gettys- 


GETTYSBURG 


bur^.  Napoleon's  "  Old  Guard  "  never  went  more 
grandly  to  death  than  did  Confederates  "  against 
the  roaring  crown  of  those  dread  heights  of  des- 
tiny," nor  did  Wellington  command  better  soldiers 
than  those  who  under  the  Stars  and  Stripes  met 
and  repulsed  this  terrible  assault. 

The  Charge  described  in  the  "  Battle  Ode  "  fol- 
lowing this  Introduction  was  preceded  by  a  terrific 
artillery  duel  of  three  hundred  guns,  and  this  duel 
lasted  about  two  hours. 

If  you  could  imagine  three  hundred  thunder- 
storms, all  raging  at  once,  and  you  yourself  with 
ten  thousand  other  persons  in  a  forest  and  the 
lightning  striking  every  other  tree  and  killing-  every 
other  man,  you  would  have  some  idea  of  how  we 
felt,  if  not  of  how  we  fared,  during  those  two  long 
hours.  It  was  a  period  of  awful  suspense,  such 
perhaps  as  no  body  of  troops  in  any  part  of  the 
world  ever  had  to  endure.  The  roar  of  the  battle 
was  heard  for  more  than  a  hundred  miles  and 
mother  earth  trembled  as  from  an  earthquake. 
Multitudes  were  killed  and  wounded  on  both  the 
Seminary  and  Cemetery  Hills ;  and  while  to  those 
under  fire  agony  seemed  to  reign  supreme,  to  those 
at  a  distance  the  awful  sublimity  of  the  crash  and 


8  GETTYSBURG 

roar  was  as  that  which  shall  come  "  in  the  wreck 
of  matter  and  the  crash  of  worlds." 

Some  of  the  things  said  by  Federals  concerning 
the  ''  Artillery  Duel "  : 

(1)  Col.  Norman  J.  Hall,  U.  S.  Army,  comd'g  Brig.,  2d 
Corps  : 

"  The  experience  of  the  terrible  grandeur  of  that  rain  of 
missiles  and  that  chaos  of  strange  and  terror-spreading 
sounds,  unexampled,  perhaps,  in  history,  must  ever  remain 
undescribable,  but  can  never  be  forgotten  by  those  who 
heard  it." 

(2)  Gen* I  IVinfield  Scott  Hancock,  U.  S.  Army,  comd'g  2d 
Corps  : 

"  The  number  of  the  enemy's  guns  is  variously  estimated 
at  from  115  to  150.  The  air  was  filled  with  projectiles, 
there  being  scarcely  an  instant  but  that  several  were  seen 
bursting  at  once.  No  irregularity  of  ground  offered  much 
protection,  and  the  plain  in  rear  of  the  line  of  battle  was 
soon  swept  of  everything  movable." 

(3)  Col.  Chapman  Biddle,  U.  S.  Army,  121st  Penn.,  ist  Corps: 
"  The  fury  of  the  unparalleled  artillery  fire." 

(4)  Gen' I  O.  O.  Howard,  U.S.  Army,  comd'g  1  ith  Corps  : 
"  There  was  safety  on  Cemetery  Hill  nowhere  :  shells  were 

exploding  in  the  earth,  in  the  air,  in  the  rock  fences,  among 
the  tombstones,  and  in  the  caissons — in  front,  in  rear, 
around  us,  under  us,  above  us;  and  one  of  the  Con- 
federate shells  killed  and  wounded  twenty-seven  Federal 
soldiers  in  one  regiment." 


GETTYSBURG 


While  many  men  and  horses  were  killed  and 
wounded  on  the  Confederate  side  during  the  two 
hours'  cannonade,  yet  the  terror  and  agony  were 
not  all  on  the  one  side. 

Capt.  Jno.  G.  Hazard,  1st  Rhode  Island  Light 
Artillery,  comd'g  Brigade,  says,  "  So  great  was 
the  loss  in  officers  and  men  and  horses,  that  it  was 
found  necessary  to  consolidate  five  batteries  into 
three.  In  several  of  these  batteries,  every  officer 
was  either  killed  or  wounded."  Cushing's  Battery 
was  so  completely  disabled,  that  fifty  men  had  to 
be  detailed  from  71st  Penn.  Inf.  to  help  work  the 
guns ;  and  finally  Gushing,  wounded  in  both  legs 
and  having  only  one  gun  left,  had  that  gun  pushed 
to  the  front  and  was  held  up  until  "  he  could  serve 
his  last  canister  into  the  enemy's  ranks." 

Men  were  decapitated,  disemboweled,— wound- 
ed in  every  conceivable  manner, — and  one  Federal 
cannoneer,  J.  F.  Chase,  Steven's  Fifth  Maine  Bat- 
tery, was  wounded  forty-eight  times. 

If  our  6,000  shells  had  each  done  the  same 
amount  of  damage,  there  would  have  been  few 
Union  soldiers  left  to  tell  of  this  the  mightiest 
artillery  contest  that  the  world  has  ever  known. 

The  artillery  battalions  and  batteries  of  the 


10 


GETTYSBURG 


Confederates  which  took  part  in  the  artillery  duel 
preceding  ''  The  Charge  " : 

I.  Those  belonging  to  Longstreet's  Corps,  extending 
for  one  mile  in  a  slight  curve,  arranged  in  order  from  left 
to  right  of  this  page,  as  one  would  look  at  them  from  the 
Union  side : 


(') 

Maj.  H.  W.  Henry's 
Battalion, 


i8  Guns, 

Branch  (N.  Car.)  Bat. 
German  (S.  Car.)  Bat. 
Palmetto  (S.  Car.)  Bat. 
Rowan  (N.  Car.)  Bat. 


(2) 

Col.  E.  P.  Alexander's 

Battalion, 
Commanded  by 
Maj.  Frank  Huger, 
i6  Guns, 

Ashland  (Va.)  Bat. 
Bedford  (Va.)  Bat. 
Brooks  (S.  Car.)  Bat. 
Madison  (La.)  Bat. 
A  Virginia  Battery 
A  Virginia  Battery 


(3) 


Maj. 


B.  F.  Echleman's 
Battalion, 
Washington  (La.) 
Artillery, 

8  Guns 
and  2  in  reserve, 
ist  Company 
2d  Company 
3d  Company 
4th  Company 


(4) 
Maj.  Jas.  Dearing's 
Battalion, 
i8  Guns, 

Fauquier  (Va.)  Bat. 
Hampden  (Va.)  Bat. 
Richmond  Fayette  Bat. 
A  Virginia  Battery 


(5) 
Col.  H.  C.  Cabell's 

Battalion, 

1 1  Guns, 
and  4  in  reserve, 
ist  N.  Car.,  Bat.  A 
Pulaski  (Ga.)  Bat. 
ist  Richmond  Howitzers 
Troup  (Ga.)  Battery 


GETTYSBURG 


11 


II.  Those  belonging  to  A.  P.  Hill's  Corps,  continuing 
the  first  mile  curve  at  least  another  mile,  arranged  in  order 
from  left  to  right  of  this  page,  as  one  would  look  at  them 
from  the  Union  side  : 


(■) 

Maj.  W.J.  Poague's 
Battalion, 


lo  Guns, 
and  6  in  reserve, 
Albemarle  (Va.)  Bat. 
Charlotte  (N.  Car.)  Bat. 
Madison  (Miss.)  Bat. 
A  Virginia  Battery 


(2) 

Maj.  W.J.  Pegram's 

Battalion, 
Commanded  by 
Captain  Brunson, 

i6  Guns, 
and  3  in  reserve, 
Crenshaw  (Va.)  Bat. 
Fredericksb'g  (Va.)  Bat. 
Letcher  (Va.)  Bat. 
Pee  Dee  (S.  Car.)  Bat. 
Purcell  (Va.)  Bat. 


Maj. 


(5) 

D.  G.  Mcintosh's 
Battalion, 


17  Guns, 

Danville  (Va.)  Bat. 
Hardaway  (Ala.)  Bat. 
2d  Rockbridge  (Va.)  Bat. 
A  Virginia  Battery 


(4) 

Maj.  John  Lane's 

Sumter  Battalion, 

17  Guns, 

Company  A. 
Company  B. 
Company  C. 


(5) 

Lt.  Col.  J.  J.  Garnett's 
Battalion, 
9  Guns, 
and  6  in  reserve, 
Donaldsonville  (La.)  Bat. 
Huger  (Va.)  Bat. 
Lewis  (Va.)  Bat. 
Norfolk  (Va.)  Bat. 


12  GETTYSBURG 

The  troops  engaged  in  the  Charge,  from  left  to  right, 
looked  at  from  Union  side,  were  as  follows  : 


Kemper's  Brigade,  .-3-7-1  -24  Va.  |    pj^^^^^,^  Division,* 

Armistead's  Brigade,  9-,4-38-5?-57  Va.  >  Longstreef  s  Corps. 

Garnett's  Brigade,  8-18-19-28-56  Va.  ) 

Archer's  Tenn.  Brig.,  i-7-i4Tenn.;  13  Ala.;  5  Ala.  Bat.    ) 

Pettigrew's  N.  Car.  Brig.,  11-26-47-52  N.  Car.  !     Heth's  Division, 

Davis's  Miss,  Brig.,  2-1 1-42  Miss,  and  55  N.  Car.  j  A.  P.  Hill's  Corps. 

Brockenbrough's  Va.  Brig,,  40-47-55  and  22  Bat.  I 


As  supports  for  Pickett's  right  flank,  there  were, 

Wilcox's  Ala.  Brig.,  8-9-10-1 1-14  Ala.  (^   R.  H.  Anderson's  Div., 

Perry's  Fla.  Brig.,  2-5-8  Fla.  (  A.  P.  Hill's  Corps, 


As  supports  for  Archer's,  Pettigrew's,  and  Davis's  Brigades, 


■    -..T    ^       r>  •  DO  -w,    ^  I  Pender's  Division, 

Lane  sN.  Car.  Brig.,  7-18-28-33-37  N.  Car,  (  ,  o  -r  • 

c     1  .    XT    /-       D  •  ^  o  XT   /-  /  (Com.  bvGen.J.R.  Tnm- 

Scale'sN.  Car.  Brig.,  13-16-22-34-38  N.  Car.  \        /         .;* 

I      ble),  A.  P.  Hill  s  Corps. 


*  Corse's  Brigade  of  Pickett's  Division  was  not  in  the  Charge,  having  been  left  be- 
hind to  help  guard  the  approaches  to  Richmond,  Va. 


GETTYSBURG  1 3 

Some  of  the  things  said  by  Federal  officers 
concerning  the  "  Charge  " : 

/.  Maj.  Gen' I  HemyJ.  Hunt,  Chief  of  Federal  /trtillery  : 

"  The  enemy  advanced  magnificently,  unshaken  by  the 
shot  and  shell  which  tore  through  his  ranks  from 
McGilvery's  Battery." 

2.  Maj.  Gen'l  IVinfield  Scott  Hancock,  U.  S.  Army,  com- 
manding 2d  Corps : 
"  Their  lines  were  formed  with  a  precision  and  steadiness 

that  extorted  the  admiration  of  the  witnesses  of  that 

memorable  scene." 

;?.  Brig.  Gen' I  John  Gibbons,  U.  S.  Army,  commanding  2d 

Div.,  2d  Corps  : 

"  As  the  enemy's  front  line  came  up,  it  was  met  by  such 
a  withering  fire  of  canister  and  musketry  as  soon  melted 
it  away,  but  still  on  they  came  from  behind,  pressing  for- 
ward to  the  wall." 

4.  Col.  Norman  J.  Hall,  U.  S.  Army,  commanding  ^d  "Brig., 
2d  Corps : 

"  Twenty  battle-flags  were  captured  in  the  space  of  100 
yards  square." 

5.  Capt.  Andrew  Cowan,  ist  Independent  Bat.,  New  York 
State  Vols : 

"  Our  artillery  fire  was  quite  accurate  and  did  much 
execution ;  still,  the  rebel  line  advanced  in  a  most  splendid 


14  GETTYSBURG 

manner.  I  commenced  firing  canister  at  200  yards,  and 
the  etTect  was  greater  than  I  could  have  anticipated.  My 
last  charge  (a  double-header)  literally  swept  the  enemy  from 
my  front,  being  fired  at  less  than  20  yards." 

6.  Maj.  T.  IV.  Osborn,  ist  N.  Y.  Light  Artillery  Brig.,  i  itb 
Corps : 

"We  used,  according  to  distance,  all  descriptions  of 
projectiles,  *  *  *  The  enemy's  advance  was  most 
splendid." 

7.  Brig.  Gen!  I  Alexander  Hays,  U.  S.  Army,  commanding 
^d  Div.,  2d  Corps  : 

"  Their  march  was  as  steady  as  if  impelled  by  machinery, 
unbroken  by  our  artillery,  which  played  upon  them  a  storm 
of  missiles.  When  within  100  yards  of  our  line  of  infantry, 
the  fire  of  our  men  could  no  longer  be  restrained.  Four 
lines  rose  from  behind  our  stone  wall,  and  when  the  smoke 
of  our  first  volley  had  cleared  away,  such  a  Held  was  pre- 
sented as  could  be  produced  only  by  the  angel  of  death." 

8.  Maj.  Theodore  G.  Ellis,  U.  S.  Army,  14th  Conn.,  2d  Corps : 
"  The  spectacle  of  their  advance  was  magnificent." 

9.  Capt.  Henry  C.  Coates,  U.  S.  Army,  ist  Minn.,  2d  Corps  : 
"  The  enemy  marched  resolutely  in  the  face  of  a  wither- 
ing fire  up  to  our  lines,  and  succeeded  in  planting  their 
colors  on  one  of  our  batteries." 


GETTYSBURG  15 


Sattb  mt 


I.  The  Artillery  Duel 


Three  hundred  guns  in  rage  have  striven, 
Three  hundred  guns  the  skies  have  riven, 
And  muttering  thunders  strong  and  deep 
Have  rolled  along  in  mighty  sweep. 
This  hurricane's  rush  has  ceased  its  roar, 
And  Alexander  sounds  the  note 
For  charge  against  the  central  host : 
"  Go,  Pickett,  now ;  the  charge  begin  ; 
Go  only  now :  a  victory  you  '11  win 
Renowned  Forevermore ! " 


16  GETTYSBURG 

Pickett,  gallant,  gladly  waiting, 
Accepts  the  lull  as  omen  bright 
For  added  fame ;  and  as  courtly  knight 
On  hurrying  steed,  of  chief  inquires 
If  Longstreet  now  the  Charge  desires ; 
But  Longstreet,  sad  o'er  loss  foreseen, 
Turns  head  away,  as  though  he  'd  say, 
**  I  'd  rather  much  this  move  forego. 
For  from  such*  charge  fame  can  not  flow 
Onward  Forevermore ! " 


With  ardor  that  shall  burn  in  story 
While  hearts  yet  thrill  to  deeds  of  glory, 
Says  Pickett, ''  Up  and  form  your  lines : 
To-day  your  battle  saves  our  cause  ; 
To-day  this  charge  destroys  the  foe's: 
Now  knit  the  brow  and  clench  the  teeth ; 
With  muscles  tense  and  hearts  aglow, 
This  charge  must  sure  the  center  break ; 
This  charge  the  South's  fair  name  shall  make 
Brilliant  Forevermore ! 


*  Reference  to  Napoleon's  Charge  at  Waterloo. 


GETTYSBURG  1 7 

*  With  God  o'erhead  and  gun  in  hand, 
No  force  can  stay  your  Spartan  band  ! 
This  day  your  foe  awaits  in  dread 
The  reckless,  rapid,  martial  tread 
Of  legions  brave  as  men  e'er  led ! 
Onward !   Steady  !  though  storm  shall  blow 
A  fiercer  gale,  still  onward  go, 
And  breast  the  billows  from  yonder's  shore. 
For  on  your  heads  shall  honors  pour 
Ceaseless  Forevermore ! 


"  On  left  brave  Tennesseeans  wait, 
And  choicest  troops  of  the  Old  North  State, 
With  Mississippians  true  and  tried, 
And  more  to  swell  Virginia's  tide ; 
On  right  our  Alabama's  pride 
And  best  of  Florida  abide ! 
Hence,  onward  go  !  and  trust  that  Lee 
By  matchless  skill  shall  make  you  see, 
That  from  this  field  your  wreath  shall  be 
Fadeless  Forevermore ! 


18  GETTYSBURG 

"This  plain  far  more  than  others  brings 
To  you  of  fame  which  poet  sings : 
Your  double-quick  in  peerless  dash 
Shall  be  the  wonder  of  the  world, 
And  men  who  see  your  flags  unfurled 
'Gainst  fiery  blasts  from  out  the  throat 
Of  guns  that  belch  a  leaden  hail, 
Of  guns  that  breathe  a  roaring  flame, 
Shall  gladly  give  to  you  a  name 
Illustrious  Forevermore !  " 


GETTYSBURG  19 


II.  The  Charge 


Ten  thousand  Southrons  now  rise  to  the  test, 
And  form  fheir  lines  out  to  the  west 
Of  "  Seminary's  "  famous  crest  — 
A  ridg^e  whose  top  was  swept  by  fire, 
Whose  sides  were  torn  by  cyclone's  ire, 
Whose  breast  received  the  dreadful  shock 
Of  storm  that  made  the  mountain  rock, 
And  sent  the  awful  thunders  down, 
Reverberations  of  a  vast  renown. 

Echoless  ?  —  Nay :  Nevermore ! 


20  GETTYSBURG 

Across  the  ridge  as  legions  move, 
Both  shot  and  shell  their  courage  prove; 
Then  grape  and  canister  the  guns  employ 
These  braves  to  assail,  these  braves  to  destroy : 
''Close  in  your  ranks,"  the  captains  cried, 
"  To  fill  the  gaps  where  men  have  died ; 
Close  in  to  left,  but  do  not  crowd ! 
Steady !    Think  not  of  battle's  din  ! 
In  impact  close  the  prize  you  '11  win 
Precious  Forevermore ! " 

"  Onward !  Steady ! "— ''  He  's  fallen ! "— '*  Never 
mind! 
Hospital  men  your  friends  shall  find ! 
Your  faces  forward  !     Hold  your  fire ! 
In  yonder's  angle  yet  shall  rage 
The  fiercest  fight  brave  men  can  wage: 
There  must  you  meet  a  stubborn  foe ; 
There  must  be  shown  a  strength  unknown 
In  former  years;  and,  though  all  go  down, 
To  all  shall  be  the  hero's  crown 
Glittering  Forevermore ! " 


GETTYSBURG  21 

Nearer  now  and  deadlier  still 
Shell  and  shrapnel  rake  the  hill  ; 
Nearer  yet  and  fiercer  grew 
The  tempest  which  grape  and  canister  blew; 
Nearer  yet  and  thicker  fall 
The  double  canister's  deadly  pall; 
Deafening  the  roar  and  deepening  more 
The  storm  —  the  flood,  yet  none  the  less 
Onward  our  braves  for  honor  press 
Brightening  Forevermore ! 

Still  onward  rush  the  gallant  few, 
Still  onward  as  with  courage  new. 
Still  onward,  though  the  field  is  filled, 
The  front,  the  flank,  the  hill,  the  plain. 
With  hurrying  horse  and  fiercer  flame. 
With  Federal  lines  now  crowding  straight 
To  meet  their  foe,  to  meet  their  fate. 
To  meet  and  conquer  here  or  die. 
Whence  fame  shall  rise  and  praises  be 
Endless  Forevermore! 


22  GETTYSBURG 

Brave  Kemper  's  down  and  Garnett  too, 
The  colors  fall,  the  colonels  die, 
While  captains  and  lieutenants  lie 
Wounded  or  dying  outside  the  wall : 
Meanwhile  across  the  works  have  sprung 
Men  as  heroic  as  Homer  has  sung, 
And  Armistead  grand  e'en  unto  death, 
With  cap  on  sword,  in  loudest  breath, 
Calls,  "  Onward,  men !  this  day  shall  be 
Cloudless  Forevermore ! " 

Onward  they  go  as  rising  tide 
That  rolls  far  up  the  mountain  side ; 
Cemetery's  crest  they  reach  at  last. 
But  as  broken  waves,  their  limit  passed. 
Backward  they  're  hurled  by  hosts  here  massed. 
Brave  Tennessee  is  here  to  die, 
And  Carolina  always  true. 
Far  to  the  front  with  Pettigrew, 
Supports  our  left  and  glory  gains 
Priceless  Forevermore ! 


GETTYSBURG  23 

Cushing's  last  gun  at  length  is  reached, 
And  Armistead's  hand  toward  muzzle  stretched; 
He  calls  aloud,  "  Gushing,  surrender  !  " 
The  gun  replies,  "  Armistead,  no:  never!" 
The  gallant  Gushing  had  begged  to  fire 
This  only  gun  now  left  entire; 
And  as  the  fuse  he  cuts  once  more, 
His  soul  heroic  goes  out  to  fame. 
And  by  his  death  he  makes  his  name 
Memorable  Forevermore! 

And  now  they  meet  us  hand  to  hand : 
The  gatherin-g  foe  our  lines  have  hemmed ; 
All  loading  stops,  but  lo!  the  strife. 
With  clubbed  muskets  waged  for  life, 
Grows  fiercer  still  till  all  is  lost 
In  the  Last  One  Hundred  a  Holocaust  ; 
But  dying  groans  bravely  suppressed. 
And  smiles  yet  bright  from  features  calm 
Have  won  for  these  the  hero's  palm 
Glorious  Forevermore! 


24  GETTYSBURG 


QIonrluBtnn 

Had  this  charge  been  supported  by  10,000  more 
troops,  and  had  all  parts  of  the  Confederate  lines 
moved  at  one  time  against  the  Federals,  north, 
east,  and  south,  while  our  charge  was  in  prog- 
ress FROM  THE  WEST,  there  is  little  doubt  that 
Meade's  army  would  have  been  cut  in  twain  and 
routed ;  but,  while  the  charge  was  going  on,  the 
other  parts  of  the  Confederate  line  were  holding 
their  breath,  filled  with  amazement  at  so  terrible 
an  onset  against  the  very  center  of  an  entrenched 
foe ;  and  so  troops  were  allowed  to  concentrate 
from  all  quarters  against  the  little  band  that  had 
broken  over  the  Union  breastworks.  From  such 
encircling  hosts  and  murderous  fire  escape  was 
impossible,  and  men  must  die  or  surrender  to  the 
maddened  might  of  a  successful  and  determined 
enemy. 


GETTYSBURG  25 

Pickett  lost  his  three  brigadiers  and  all  his  field 
officers  but  one  lieutenant-colonel ;  and  after  the 
charge,  regiments  were  commanded  by  beardless 
captains  and  companies  by  sergeants  and  corpor- 
als, so  great  had  been  the  loss.  Some  of  the 
North  Carolina  companies  were  almost  annihilated . 
This  was  particularly  true  in  the  26th  North  Caro- 
lina, which  suffered  more  than  any  one  regiment^ 
North  or  South. 

Meade  found  himself  so  crippled  by  the  three 
days'  battle,  that  he  could  not  agree  to  carry  out 
the  Washington  policy,  and  follow  vigorously  after 
Lee  in  the  retreat  from  Gettysburg.  He  knew  that 
Lee  was  not  any  more  really  whipped  than  him- 
self, and  hence,  he  preferred  to  merely  keep  up  the 
appearance  of  pursuit,  while  he  studiously  avoided 
any  direct  assault  upon  Lee's  battered  and  bruised, 
but  brave  men,  who,  if  they  did  not  now  cling  so 
tenaciously  to  the  Cause  they  loved,  yet  loved 
their  commander  with  a  devotion  that  would  still 
have  held  them  to  a  losing  battle  or  a  lingering 
death.  Gettysburg  was  not  a  Waterloo; 
for,  after  Waterloo,  Napoleon's  troops  deserted 
him,  but  Lee's  men,  40,000  strong,  were  yti  ready 
to  die  with  him.    Gettysburg  was,  however,  The 


26  GETTYSBURG 

Most  Decisive  Battle  of  the  War.  The 
flower  of  Southern  chivalry  was  here  so  blasted 
by  the  North  wind's  breath,  that  it  never  rebloomed 
to  decorate  again  the  rank  and  file  of  the  Confed- 
erate army.  27,739  brave  men  of  our  army  were 
gone  and  their  places  could  not  be  filled,  but  the 
23,049  lost  to  the  Union  army  could  soon  be  re- 
placed from  foreign  countries,  if  not  from  the 
North,  by  double  and  quadruple  the  loss  at  Gettys- 
burg. Hence  the  might  of  overwhelming  num- 
bers must  ere  long  decide  what  courage  and  skill 
had  hitherto  been  powerless  to  accomplish. 

The  BEGINNING  OF  THE  END  was  already  seen. 
Confederate  boundaries  were  being  contracted, 
supplies  were  diminishing,  men  who  had  suffering 
families  at  home  were  growing  more  and  more 
dissatisfied,  desertions  increased,  and  finally  Lee's 
veterans  of  a  hundred  battle-fields,  cooped  up  in 
Richmond  and  Petersburg,  were  only  waiting  for 
the  bursting  of  a  storm  that  had  been  gathering 
for  months,  a  storm  that  should  lay  open  these 
two  strongholds  in  the  East  and  scatter  the  rem- 
nants of  proud  and  puissant  armies  that  for  four 
long  years  had  resisted  successfully  every  attempt 
to  enter  these  citadels. 


GETTYSBURG  27 

Battles  had  been  fierce  and  furious  all  along  the 
way  from  the  Potomac  to  the  James  and  the  Ap- 
pomattox, but  Confederate  soldiers  were  fighting 
more  in  desperation  than  in  hope,  more  for  honor 
than  for  success ;  and, 

Hope's  star  so  long  before  their  eyes, 
Encircled  quite  by  rainbow's  dyes, 
Soon  passed  forever  from  out  the  skies. 


The  Author. 


West  Virginia  University, 

Morgantown,  W.  Va., 
^August  )i,  igo<j. 


28  GETTYSBURG 


Prof.  C.  H.  Cole,  Supt.  of  Schools,  Martinsburg,  W.  Va.: 

"  Never  have  I  heard  or  read  anything  to  equal  the  vivid 
language  of  Dr.  Douthat,  who  was  a  participant  in  the  great 
struggle." 

Rev.  W.  S.  Neighbors,  D.  D.,  Pastor  State  Street  M.  E. 
C,  South,  Bristol,  Tenn.: 

"  Prof.  Douthat's  lecture  on  the  Battle  of  Gettysburg  is 
worthy  a  place  in  the  classic  literature  of  this  country.  For 
loftiness  of  statement,  clear  presentation,  manliness  of 
spirit  toward  all  parties,  I  have  never  heard  anything  equal 
to  it." 

Huntington  (W.  Va.)  "Advertiser,"  June  24,  1902  : 

"  He  had  a  great  story  to  tell, —  the  story  of  one  of  the 
fiercest  and  bloodiest  battles  in  all  human  history,—  and 
he  told  it  with  luminous  clearness  and  simplicity." 

Monroe  (W.  Va.)  "  Watchman,"  July  2,  1903  : 

"  Capt.  Douthat's  lecture  is  a  revelation  of  historic  truth 
in  the  style  that  thrills  and  enthralls." 

St.  Joseph  (Mo.)  "  News-Press,"  July  1,  1905  : 

"  It  has  been  frequently  said  that  no  impartial  history  of 
the  Civil  War  has  been  written.      Whether  this  be  true  or 


GETTYSBURG  29 

not,  no  one  could  have  listened  to  Capt.  Douthat's  lecture 
last  evening  in  the  Lyceum  Theater  and  believe  that  an  un- 
biased account  of  the  Battle  of  Gettysburg  has  not  been 
written  *  *  *  He  held  the  attention  of  the  audience  every 
minute  he  spoke,  and  certainly  a  plainer,  more  graphic  de- 
scription of  the  battle  could  not  have  been  given." 

Rev.  W.  S.  Neighbors,  D.  D.,  Bristol,  Tenn.,  August, 
1902: 

"  Having  heard  Prof . Douthat's  lecture,!  shall  carry  with 
me  always  a  higher  regard  for  both  the  Blue  and  the  Gray." 

Rev.  Chas.  S.  Trump,  St.  John's  Lutheran  Church,  Mar- 
tinsburg,  W.  Va.: 

"  The  lecture  was  clear,  sympathetic,  edifying,  and  en- 
tertaining. Not  a  word  of  prejudice  or  uncharity  fell  from 
Dr.  Douthat's  lips." 

Huntington  (W.  Va.)  "Advertiser,"  June  24,  1902  : 

"  It  was  fitting  that  the  Gettysburg  story  should  be  told 
in  a  house  of  worship,  for  charity,  love,  and  reconciliation 
breathed  in  its  every  word." 

Bristol  (Tenn.)  "  Courier,"  August  2,  1902  : 

"  The  lecture  was  above  prejudice,  being  on  the  plane  of 
a  true  patriot's  thoughts— a  plane  above  hate  and  malice 
and  high  up  in  the  atmosphere  of  true  affection  and  rever- 
ence for  bravery  and  soldierly  qualities  in  whatever  cause 
they  may  be  exercised." 


30  GETTYSBURG 


Prof.  L.  J.  Corbly,  Prin.  Marshall  College,  Huntington. 

W.  Va.,  Sept.  1,  '04: 

"After  hearing  Dr.  Douthat's  Gettysburg  lecture,  July 
26, 1904, 1  remarked  to  a  friend:  *  I  have  read  everything 
available  bearing  upon  the  history  of  that  dreadful  conflict, 
but  now  feel  for  the  first  time  that  I  know  something  defi- 
nite, something  fixed  about  it. '  " 

Judge  W.  I.  Wallace,  Lebanon,  Mo.,  July  10,  '05  : 

"  I  don't  know  when  I  have  been  so  pleased  and  in- 
structed as  I  was  by  Dr.  Douthat's  lecture  in  this  city  on 
June  28,  1905.  I  regard  it  a  masterpiece  in  the  lecture 
field  and  so  commend  it  to  people  everywhere.  North, 
South,  East  and  West,  as  most  able,  eloquent  and  enter- 
taining." 

Parkersburg  (W.  Va.)  "Sentinel,"  Feb.  21,  '03  : 

"  As  has  been  said,  the  lecture  is  free  from  sectional  preju- 
dice, and  is  an  interesting  review  for  the  old  soldiers  and 
their  friends  on  both  sides.  It  is  an  instructive  and  thrill- 
ing story  for  the  young,  a  compliment  to  Northern  steadi- 
ness and  an  illustration  of  Southern  impetuosity." 


For  Engagements  with  the  Lecturer, 
Address, 

Capt.  R.  W.  Douthat, 

Morgantown,  W.  Va. 


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