Reviews

Army Life in a Black Regiment by Thomas Wentworth Higginson

grandma_debby's review against another edition

I read this (and placed it on my Panama shelf) because Uncle Charley, whose letters I'm publishing, mentioned, when on steamship to Cuba, that the ship was sailing near where Col. Higginson trained the black regiment, and the book was "worth reading." I found it so, a century later. Col. Higginson's appreciation for the men, and concern for their well-being, is evident. He was interested in their culture, impressed by their ability to grow from slaves to well-disciplined soldiers. He tells how the grandmother of "a family of brothers in the regiment" escaped from slavery with 22 of her children and grandchildren, and comments that, "my young lieutenants did not have to teach the principles of courage to this woman's grandchildren." The history lives when told from such a personal perspective, and these clues to Col. Higginson's own personality add to the interest. The author is a gentleman whom I suspect Uncle Charley would have enjoyed meeting in person--and I feel the same, especially after learning that Col. Higginson later sponsored the publication of Emily Dickinson's poetry--and that side of his personality shows in an entire chapter devoted to Negro spirituals which he carefully transcribed and annotated.

shellys's review against another edition

4.0

From a one of many letters written at the conclusion of the Civil War:
"No one can possibly be so weary of reading of the wrongs done by Government toward the colored soldiers as am I of writing about them. This is my only excuse for intruding on your columns again."

Written by the white officer of one of the first regiments of escaped slaves, this first hand account of Army life is filled with the ideas of the time. Yet, the officer is learning to respect his men and to see the injustice of attitudes and actions. I'm thankful this was preserved.