Chapter 13

CHAPTER 13 JULY 2, 1863 8:30 P.M. GETTYSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA It was getting dark when they arrived. The fighting had ended for the day, and at first, the news about the day's fighting seemed grim: The Union troops had been badly outnumbered. They had lost thousands of soldiers. But then Captain Campbell learned that somehow, the scrappy Union soldiers had managed to hold the high ground. "Our cannons are in the hills," he said. "We're dug in!" Troops had been pouring into Gettysburg all day, and tens of thousands more would arrive

overnight. The roads around the town were so crowded that the wagon Thomas and Birdie were riding in could barely move. They got out and walked with Henry. Thomas had never seen so many people in one place — thousands of Union soldiers. As they made their way through the town, it seemed that every inch of grass was covered by a tent. Supply wagons lined the roads. Horses and mules were tied to every fence and tree. Henry talked to some of the soldiers they passed, eager for news of the day's fighting. But these men were just arriving, too. Some men looked more ragged than Birdie's doll. One soldier said his regiment had been marching for more than three weeks. Birdie stared at the crowds of men. "They're all here to protect us?" she said, her eyes wide in amazement.

Thomas almost smiled — of course Birdie would think that this was her own personal army. Henry picked Birdie up. "Yes, Bird," he said. "They are here for you." Thomas could see Henry wasn't joking. And maybe Birdie wasn't wrong. These men were fighting for him and Birdie, weren't they? Fighting so that they could be free. Henry carried Birdie as they passed a long line of supply wagons stuck on the side of the road. Suddenly Birdie gasped. "Look at those men!" she cried, pointing. Thomas turned, and he too stared at the crowd of men surrounding the front wagon. "They look like us!" Birdie exclaimed. The men were black. "They're teamsters," Henry said. "They're paid by the Union army to run supplies from camp to camp. It's tough work. Dangerous, too. We've got

thousands of those men working for us. We couldn't fight this war without them." Thomas felt a jolt of excitement. Those men were free! They were working for the Union! "Hello!" Birdie sang out as they passed, waving madly. "Hello!" The men looked up in surprise, their tired and dusty faces melting into smiles at the sight of Birdie. Thomas wished he could talk to them. Where had they come from? How had they gotten here?

But there was no time. Their regiment had been ordered to set up camp in a wooded field outside of the town and wait for their orders. "We're in for a tough battle tomorrow," Captain Campbell said. "Get rest now, but be ready, men." The men dropped their bedrolls and knapsacks and collapsed to the ground. They peeled off their boots and socks and washed their bloodied and blistered feet. And then most of them fell asleep, not even bothering to eat supper or spread out their blankets. Thomas and Birdie slept, too. But sometime later that night, the entire camp was awakened by the bugler, followed by Captain Campbell's booming voice. "Wake up, men!" he bellowed. "The time has come!" The men staggered to their feet and gathered around the captain. "We will march across the ridge and take up a position in the hills," the captain announced,

pointing into the darkness behind them. "By morning, the rebels will be on the attack. Our mission is to help hold the ground." Just hours ago the men had looked so ragged and battered they could barely stand. Now they were alert, standing strong. "The fighting will be fierce," the captain said. "The rebels will come at us hard. They will fight with all of their might to knock us from those hills, to crush us. But we will hold our ground, men! We will hold our ground!" The soldiers listened with hard expressions. "Yes, Captain!" a soldier yelled. "We will hold the ground!" shouted another. The captain looked around, his steely gaze seeming to fall on each and every man. "This is it, men," he said, his voice rising. "Everything has led to this place, to this moment! This is our time!" Someone shouted out a word: "Fredericksburg!"