Camp at Gettysburg, PA

Sir,

Beg to report on operations by the 44th Georgia
Company C at Gettysburg town May 3 and 4. Our company
encamped this weekend at the Longstreet Monument on
The Great Battlefield for our traditional Spring event
with the National Park Service. 

The event began bright and early Saturday morning as
troops assembled to form camp and prepare for our
demonstrations of loading and firing muskets. Capt.
Van Buskirk arrived in advance of the company on
Friday and reported to have spent a restful evening. 
On hand Saturday were our First Sergeant Mike Ferry,
Second Sergeant Rick Sasor, Corporals Art Mallette and
Jonathan Sasor, Privates John Locus, Billy Rengle,
Kevin Kehoe, and Yours Truly. Miss Michale Hewitt was
in attendance as well, and we were joined by Jason Louder
and Colonel Gerry Meyers was detached from headquarters as an
observer.

The park visitors were quite appreciative of our
demonstrations and a good number came into camp to
talk, ask questions and record photographic images. 
We set off some sharp volleys and the crowd gave a
generous round of applause. After returning to camp,
Capt. Van Buskirk stayed behind to converse with some
of the visitors, explaining aspects of a soldier's
life and providing a history of the 44th Georgia.

Now around midday, the weather cleared, and it being a
Spring morning with a warming sun that encouraged the
foliage to continue its bloom, the 44th became
susceptible to the effects of none other than Cupid
himself. The boys took a respite from military
matters to engage in matters of the heart - marriage
to be exact. Mrs. Alan Fleckner a local woman arranged 
to have her wedding vows exchanged before family and friends at
the amphitheater near our camp. She asked if an honor
guard from the 44th would come over and add a military
flourish to her nuptials. A true Southern gentleman,
our Captain could not refuse such a heartfelt request.
He appointed a squad and ordered swords be
distributed to us. We practiced drawing swords and
forming an arch under which the new Mr. and Mrs. Alan Fleckner
would exit the ceremony. 

Now there is something to be said about entrusting a
sword to a private, even temporarily. It is more than
unnatural; it is a contradiction. Like lions lying
down with lambs, expecting a foot soldier to maintain
decorum with an officer's sword latched to his belt is
a paradox only the Good Lord has the power to
reconcile. I was immediately overcome with desires of
command: I wanted to reprimand someone for having a
rusty musket, or second-guess a superior's order under
my breath. I wanted to return a salute, order someone
to fetch more firewood, march out of step. I wanted
to sleep on a cot. Such are the vagaries haunting the
mind of the conscript when tempted with authority!

The bride the soon to be Mrs. Fleckner arrived for the
festivities on a horse-drawn carriage of white with gold trim.
She wore a cream colored gown and carried a bouquet of purple flowers. 
The groom wore the uniform of a CSA surgeon,
sporting a green sash, in real life is a very fine surgeon. 
The wedding of course was a tender and touching affair. 
At the conclusion, we formed two lines and smartly drew 
our swords to create the archway for the happy couple's exit. 
It went quite well and the family and friends there seemed
very appreciative. 

We retuned to camp and performed our second loading
and firing demonstration of the day. We went through
the drill with care and precision, much to the
approval of the small gathering that stopped by to
watch. 

Back at camp, Pvt. Kehoe began to conjure up dinner. 
With victuals that he brought and others that were
donated, the private produced a very tasty stew-like
meal consisting of sausages, potatoes, onion, corn,
and a variety of other items too lengthy to list in
detail. Under his guidance, Yours Truly was helped
through the mechanics of producing an apple cake for
desert. All in all, the private treated us to mighty
good eats.

While this was going on, a squad was assigned to show
presence at the Visitors' Center to parlay with the
public and answer questions from the curious. Upon
their return, we were informed that a local lady
merchant had offered Sgt. Sasor a position to model
wares from her store. It was never fully determined
exactly what he was being asked to model, which gave
rise to wide speculation ranging from dandy suits and
haberdashery to yokes for canal mules. Either way,
the sergeant seemed smitten by the idea. This only
made the boys even keener to hurl fashion invectives
designed to let out some of the hot air that was
quickly filling the Sergeant's ego. These did not
work.

By nightfall, most of the company departed for their
lodgings, but a few of us stayed until darkness
covered the whole campground. We sat feeding wood to
the fire and talking low, not wanting to give in to
the tiredness that was calling us to sleep. There was
some rain that evening, but not enough to dampen
anyone's outlook.

On Sunday we reported back to camp amid clear skies
and mild temperatures. A few troops reported to
medical, but we still had sufficient numbers to add a
third firing demonstration by mid morning. This time,
the boys held a contest to see who could get off three
rounds the fastest when given the order to fire at
will. There was no clear winner and nobody contested.
There were a few visitors to camp and some light
chatter the rest of the morning. Around noon, we
broke camp. After storing our gear, the troops
gathered at the campsite for a rousing rendition of
"The Buddy Song." It was sung with gusto, if not
off-key.

Sir, the 44th always has a good time when out at
Gettysburg. The weekend's activities provided fodder
for many fine memories. We look forward to our next
visit there in July for the 145th anniversary
re-enactment.

Submitted with My Compliments,

Pvt. Mike Lordi

 

May 6, 2008