The FReeper Foxhole Enjoys a Lazy Sunday and Reviews Civil War Regimental Colors - Nov. 21st, 2004

http://www.nps.gov/mana/education/Rally%20Around%20the%20Flag.pdf ^

[SAMWolf]

Raise the Colors and Follow Me

The Irish Brigade at Antietam
September 17, 1862



Salute of Honor

Appomattox Court House
April 12, 1865

They faced each other in two long straight lines - just as they had so many times before on so many bloody fields of fire. This time was different. Three days earlier, General Robert E. Lee had surrendered the skeletal remnants of his hard-fighting Army of Northern Virginia to General Ulysses S. Grant in farmer Wilmer McLean's parlor. Now it was time for the Sons of the South to lay down their arms and give up their bloodied battle flags. As enemies, these men in blue and gray had faced each other at Petersburg and Cold Harbor, at Gettysburg and Chancellorsville, at Fredericksburg and Antietam, at Second Manassas and Malvern Hill. Now they again stood in great ranks opposite each other - one now the victor, the other now the vanquished.

Placed in command of receiving the Southern surrender was Brigadier General Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, a Northern war hero who bore four battle wounds inflicted by these men in gray and butternut now assembled before him. Absent in Chamberlain, however, was any animosity toward these former foes; present instead was a sense of respect for fellow countrymen who had given their all in the grip of war.

At Chamberlain's order, there was no jeering. No beating of drums, no chorus of cheers nor other unseemly celebration in the face of a fallen foe. "Before us in proud humiliation," Chamberlain would later recall, "stood the embodiment of manhood: men whom neither toils and sufferings, nor the fact of death, nor disaster, nor hopelessness could bend from their resolve; standing before us now, thin, worn, and famished, but erect, and with eyes looking level into ours, waking memories that bound us together as no other bond. Was not such manhood to be welcomed back into a Union so tested and assured?"

At Chamberlain's command, the Northern troops receiving the surrender shifted their weapons to "carry arms" - a soldier's salute, delivered in respect to the defeated Southerners standing before them. Confederate General John B. Gordon, immediately recognized this remarkable, generous gesture offered by fellow Americans - and responded with a like salute. Honor answering honor. Then it was over. And a new day had begun - built on this salute of honor at Appomattox. Former foes both North and South - in mutual respect and mutual toleration - now faced the future together. As Americans all.

[Grzegorz 246]

[w_over_w]

Evening Grace Snip & Sam~

God bless you this day . . .

This Texas Flag was carried by the 1st Texas Infantry into the Cornfield at Sharpsburg. After 20 minutes of savage fighting, 82.3% of the regiment was dead or wounded, the highest casualty rate suffered by any unit during the war. After seven color bearers were killed carrying the flag, it was found on the field after the battle, surrounded by dead Texans. Returned to Texas by the Federal Government in 1905, it is currently undergoing conservation.

[snippy_about_it]

Thank you Sam, great paintings.

[snippy_about_it]

Hi Grzegorz!

[snippy_about_it]

We were at Sharpsburg. A moving experience. Thanks w over w.

[snippy_about_it]

As promised. The "Sam and Snippy" store progress.

It decided to rain the day the carpet was put in




Sam can't sit still so he's off to feed the ducks


No time to waste so inventory is moved from the tile to the carpet


How about that trim work near the ceiling, good work Sam...hey, are you in the back office freepin?


Another coat of poly on the floor sign and one for the seed bin sign


More inventory


Sure, there is carpet under there somewhere


Back room


The seed arrives......we rearrange the stock...



Next week....Sam's new biceps. :-)

[PhilDragoo]

Massive undertaking muscularly undertaken. Bravo.

[SAMWolf]

Evening Phil Dragoo.

Bravo.

Thanks Phil, believe me my body has been reminding all week how "massive" those shipments were.

[SAMWolf]

2000 In a setback for George W. Bush, the Florida Supreme Court granted Al Gore's request to keep the presidential recounts going; Democrats were jubilant, Republicans bitter and angry.

[Professional Engineer]

Looks good except for one thing...



Your office is waaaaayy too neat.

[Professional Engineer]

Spiderboy, Bittygirl and I were busy yesterday pouring a concrete pad for our new 50,000 quart recycle silo.

Spiderboy and I built a race track recently. Today we had some grudge matches going between a pair of Cobra drivers.

The Cobras in action. Mine is the light blue one. ;-(

Squad 51 is putting the hurt on an Indy car!

Squad 51 about to pass an out of control Cobra.

My hot rod Chevy pickup about to race Splittin' Image.

And they're off...

[w_over_w]

The progress with the center looks great. Job well done!

Brovo indeed!

[Soaring Feather]

Wonderful pictures PE. Thanks so much.

[Soaring Feather]

WOW, you have been busy. Snippy, I love the purple trim near the ceiling, with the forest green it a zinger.

Great job and thanks so much for the update.

[Valin]

Great photos. (If I may) in the 3rd photo there appears to be a suspicious looking person walikng away. Now I don't want to say anything BUT if it were me I be talking to the local cops to be on the lookout for him.
In all these photos there's something missing, I don't see a coffee pot. This strikes me as vaguely unamerican!

[snippy_about_it]

Your office is waaaaayy too neat.

Trust me, it didn't last 5 minutes.

[snippy_about_it]

Bravo.

Thanks Phil. The best part is we are working hard and working long hours but it still feels good not working for a "boss".

[snippy_about_it]

...new 50,000 quart recycle silo.

Clueless here? What is it?

The race track looks cool. Is that a sheet of copper at the bottom?

[snippy_about_it]

Thanks but time's a wastin' and we've a lot more to do. We are waiting for our cedar displays and shelves to arrive, tick, tock, tick, tock.

We opened and tagged some inventory today. Looking for just the right thing for you. ;-)