It’s a blisteringly hot humid Georgia day, and the civil war is in full swing. It’s August 13, 1862 I’m Jebidiah, I’m 14 and my father signed me up for this war. We used to have a plantation and a normal happy life, but when the confederacy asked for every able bodied man in the reseeded states to join the confederacy my father sighed himself and me up. Our plantation was taken by the bank 3 weeks ago thirteen days before my father was shot. It is not easy being in this war. We march from dawn past dusk, we are low on everything ammunition, gun powder, rations, uniforms, I don’t even have good shoes, the soles are worn out in some places my sock sticks out. Most of the time the only food is the occasional squirrel or rabbit. I have wanted to leave since day one but they kill deserters and I have no place to go. I do not believe in the cause yet I still fight for it.


We plan to march tomorrow; I am not completely sure where were going but I have heard talk that we are reinforcing a bunker just off the Mississippi. General Lee has our unit marching across two states to get to the battle front. I hardly have enough energy to wake up in the morning let alone march for days. The rations (if we get any) are rotten meat or moldy or rock hard bread, and the little food that is caught or snared is kept by the hunter. The other solders think I’m useless they all hate me whether its just because they can or if its because I don’t support the cause, is lost to me. Tonight we camp tommarow we march.


Its noon on the 9th day of marching and we have made some progress but it’s still a few days march from here but we have put a good dent in it. A large man with fiery red hair just caught a rabbit. The man seemed proud of his kill this perplexed me; why would a 350 pound man be proud of killing a 15 pound rabbit, it doesn’t make sense. I followed this red haired man until he sat down and started a fire to cook the rabbit on. Once it was cooked and he started eating it another man approached him and demanded a piece of the rabbit. The large man refused so the smaller man hit him and while they were skirmishing, I snuck over to the where the rabbit was hanging over the fire like a stuck pig and grabbed it and ran away to indulge in my stolen spoils. Precisely after I took my first bite I heard a gunshot followed by an anguished scream from the larger man. The smaller man expecting to find a succulent meal waiting for him hollered a horrid profanity.


After marching several more days we arrived at the battle. It was a blood bath the Yankees had a fleet of at least seventy five boats all with artillery planted on them. They were bombing the Confederacy fort and my battalion. There was a labyrinth of trenches on the beach surrounding the base. At least half of the trenches closest to the river had been taken over by the Union. After running through what seemed like a mile of trenches we reached the fire fight. The second I stood up to murder a man I had never met, the man next to me let out a horrific scream of agony. Many had been hit too I could tell by that sickening noise of a gunshot followed by the wet slapping noise the bullets made as they entered the body. I took cover by ducking in the trenches so I could reload. I stood up and took my shot, I hit the man square in the face it took off his entire jaw. it was the most gruesome disfigurement I had seen in the war so far. Again I ducked down to reload; when I stood up to take my shot I felt an agonizing burning sensation my back. I feel to my knees I turned around with blood pouring from my mouth, back and stomach only to see the scrawny man who had shot the large man. He was grinning a smile with crooked yellow and brown teeth, he must have seen me eating my spoils. As I fell to the ground on a sandy beach on the Mississippi I couldn’t help but think I’m better off this way.