A dairy entry from Villiage Life in America shares scenes of soldiers being recruited -- From Daily Observations from the Civil War. "...it will not seem so grand if we hear they are dead on the battlefield, far from home...."
"...A lot of us girls went down to the train and took flowers to the soldiers as they were passing through and they cut buttons from their coats and gave to us as souvenirs...It seems very patriotic and grand when they are singing, 'It is sweet, Oh, 'tis sweet, for one's country to die,' and we hear the martial music and see the flags flying and see the recruiting tents on the square and meet men in uniform at every turn and see train loads of the boys in blue going to the front, but it will not seem so grand if we hear they are dead on the battlefield, far from home...."
Reminds me of this poem: Dulce Et Decorum Est by Wilford Owen -- one of the great war poets of the 20th century.
An article by Disunion--New York Times, April 30, 2011 -- What Were the Women Doing? A narrative of black women in the mid-1800's and their role of activism leading up to the Civil War. Very informative....
"Troops are hourly arriving here..." from The American Civil War, May 1, 2011. Private James W. Vanderhoef writes to his sister to describe the trip to Washington, DC from New York City.
And finally, from the Civil War Daily Gazette, "Troops to Washington, Virginia Prepares for War and North Carolina Gets Ready to Leave the Union."
