A Victorious Union
Oliver Optic
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THE BLUE AND THE GRAY--AFLOAT
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TAKEN BY THE ENEMY WITHIN THE ENEMY'S LINES ON THE BLOCKADE STAND BY THE UNION FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT A VICTORIOUS UNION
THE BLUE AND THE GRAY--ON LAND
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BROTHER AGAINST BROTHER IN THE SADDLE (In Press) A LIEUTENANT AT EIGHTEEN (In Press) (Other volumes in preparation)
Any Volume Sold Separately.Lee and Shepard Publishers Boston
"Christy leaped upon the rail." Page 181.]
The
BLUE AND THE GRAY
Series
By Oliver Optic
A VICTORIOUS UNION
_The Blue and the Gray Series_
A VICTORIOUS UNION
by OLIVER OPTIC
Author of"The Army And Navy Series" "Young America Abroad,First And Second Series" "The Great Western Series""The Woodville Stories" "The Starry Flag Series""The Boat-Club Stories" "The Onward and Upward Series""The Yacht-Club Series" "The Lake Shore Series""The Riverdale Stories" "The Boat-Builder Series""Taken by the Enemy" "Within the Enemy's Lines""On the Blockade" "Stand By the Union""Fighting for the Right" "A Missing Million""A Millionaire at Sixteen" "A Young Knight-Errant" "Strange Sights Abroad" etc.
BOSTON
LEE AND SHEPARD Publishers 10 Milk Street
1894
Copyright, 1893, by Lee and Shepard _All Rights Reserved_
A Victorious Union
Type-Setting and Electrotyping by C. J. Peters & Son, Boston S. J. Parkhill & Co., Printers, Boston
To My Friend
FRANK L. HARRIS
Who came from the cold of the Arctic regions, where he was a member of the Hayes expedition, and went into the heat of the War of the Rebellion, serving as a Naval officer until the end of the strife,
To whom I am greatly indebted for much valuable information relating to his profession,
This Book
Is Gratefully Dedicated.
PREFACE
"A VICTORIOUS UNION" is the sixth and last of "The Blue and the GraySeries." While the volume is not intended to be a connected historicalnarrative of the particular period of the War of the Rebellion in whichits scenes are laid, the incidents accurately conform to the facts,and especially to the spirit, of the eventful years in which they areplaced, as recorded in the chronicles of the great struggle, and as theyexist in the memory of the writer. It is more than thirty years sincethe war began, and thousands upon thousands of the active participantsin the strife as soldiers and sailors, including nearly all the greatcommanders, have passed on to their eternal reward. Thousands uponthousands of men and women have been born and reached their maturitysince the most tremendous war of modern times ended in A VictoriousUnion. The knowledge of the stirring events of those four years ofconflict, and of the patriotic spirit which inspired and underlaidthem, has come, or will come, to at least one-half the populationof this vast nation of sixty-five millions from the printed page orthrough the listening ear. The other moiety, more or less, either aschildren or adults, lived in the period of action, saw the gatheringbattalions, and heard or read the daily reports from the ensanguinedbattle-fields.
In some of the States that remained loyal to the Union throughout thelong struggle, a military parade had been regarded by many as somethingvery much in the nature of a circus display, as "fuss and feathers,"such as tickled the vanity of both officer and private. Militaryorganizations, except in our small regular army, were disparaged andridiculed. When the war came, the Northern people were unprepared forit to a very great degree. The change of public opinion was as suddenas the mighty event was precipitate. Then the soldier became the mostprominent and honored member of the community, and existing militarybodies became the nucleus of the armies that were to fight the battlesof the Republic.
During the last thirty years the military spirit has been kept alive asa constituent element of patriotism itself. The love of country has beendiligently fostered and nurtured in the young, and public opinion hasbeen voiced and energized in the statutes of many States, and in theeducational machinery of many municipalities. Over vast numbers ofschoolhouses in our land floats the American flag, the symbol of theUnion and the principles that underlie it.
The flag, the banner now of a reunited nation, means something more thanthe sentiment of loyalty to the Union as the home of freedom; for itimplies the duty of defending the honor of that flag, the representativeidea of all we hold dear in Fatherland. In the East and the West aconsiderable proportion of the high schools make military tactics a partof their educational course. Companies, battalions, and regiments ofyoung men in their teens parade the streets of some of our cities,showing in what manner the military spirit is kept alive, and, at thesame time, how the flag floating over our educational institutions,which means so much more than ever before to our people, is to bedefended and perpetuated in the future.
The author of the six volumes of "The Blue and the Gray Series," as wellas of "The Army and Navy Series," the latter begun in the heat of thewar thirty years ago, earnestly believes in keeping active in the mindsof the young the spirit of patriotism. In the present volume, as inthose which have preceded it, he has endeavored to present to hisreaders, not only a hero who is brave, skilful, and ready to give hislife for his country, but one who is unselfishly patriotic; one who isnot fighting for promotion and prize-money, but to save the Union inwhose integrity and necessity he believes as the safeguard and substanceof American liberty.
Peace has reigned in our land for nearly thirty years, and theasperities of a relentless war have been supplanted by better and morebrotherly relations between the North and the South. The writer wouldnot print a word that would disturb these improving conditions; and ifhe has erred at all in picturing the intercourse between Americans asenemies, he has made sure to do so in the interests of justice andmagnanimity on both sides.
In the series of which this volume is the last, the author has confinedhis narrative of adventures to the navy. It has been suggested to himthat another series, relating exclusively to incidents in the army,should follow. After forty years of labor in this particular field, andhaving already exhausted the threescore and ten of human life, he cannotbe assured that he will live long enough to complete such a series,though still in excellent health; but he intends to make a beginningof the work as soon as other engagements will permit.
William T. Adams.
Dorchester, March 16, 1893.
