The Shades of the Wilderness A Story of Lee’s Great Stand
By Joseph Alexander Altsheler
A train of wagons and men wound slowly over the hills toward the South in the darkness and rain. In the wagons lay fourteen or fifteen thousand wounded soldiers, but they made little noise as the wheels sank suddenly in the mud or bumped over stones. Although most of them were young, boys or not much more, they had learned to be masters of themselves, and they suffered in silence, save when someone, lost in fever, uttered a groan.
But the chief sound was a blended note made by the wheels turning and the horses’ hoofs sinking in the soft earth. The officers gave but few orders and the cavalrymen who rode on either flank looked solicitously into the wagons now and then to see how their wounded friends fared, though they seldom spoke. They did not mind the darkness because they were used to it, and the rain and the coolness were a relief after three days of the fiercest battle the American continent had ever known, fought on the hottest days the troops could recall.
Thus, Lee’s army drew its long length from the fatal field of Gettysburg, although his valiant brigades did not yet know that the clump of trees upon Cemetery Hill had marked the high tide of the Confederacy. Following the close of the battle, they had lain, all that memorable Fourth of July, facing Meade and challenging him to come on, confident that while the invasion of the North was over, they could beat back once more the invasion of the South.
They had no word of complaint against their great commander, Lee. The faith in him, which was so high, remained unbroken, as it was destined to remain so to the last. But men began to whisper to one another and say if only Jackson had been there. They mourned anew that terrible evening in the Wilderness when Lee had lost his mighty lieutenant, his striking arm, the invincible Stonewall. If the man in the old slouch hat had only been with Lee on Seminary Ridge, it would now be the army of Meade retreating farther into the North, and they would be pursuing. That belief was destined to sink deep in the soul of the South and remain there long after the Confederacy was but a name.
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Joseph Alexander Altsheler
Joseph Alexander Altsheler (April 29, 1862 – June 5, 1919) was an American newspaper reporter, editor and author of popular juvenile historical fiction. He was a prolific writer, producing fifty novels and at least fifty-three short stories. Thirty-two of his novels were part of his seven series:
- The Civil War Series (8 volumes
- The French and Indian War Series (6 volumes)
- The Gold Series (2 volumes)
- The Great West Series (2 volumes)
- The Texan Series (3 volumes)
- The World War Series (3 volumes)
- The Young Trailers Series (8 volumes)
Early life and education
Altsheler was born in Three Springs, Hart County, Kentucky, to Joseph and Louise (née Snoddy) Altsheler. He attended Liberty College in Glasgow, Kentucky, before entering Vanderbilt University.
Career
In 1885, he took a reporter job at the Louisville Courier-Journal and later worked as an editor. He started working for the New York World in 1892, first as the paper’s Hawaiian correspondent and then as the editor of the World’s tri-weekly magazine. Due to a lack of suitable stories, he began writing children’s stories for the magazine.
Personal life
Altsheler married Sarah Boles on May 30, 1888; they had one son, Sidney.
Altsheler and his family were in Germany in 1914 when World War I began, and they were forced to remain there for a time. The hardships the Altshelers endured in returning to the U.S. damaged Altsheler’s health and rendered him semi-invalid until his death. Upon returning to the U.S., he wrote The World War Series of books based on his ordeal.
Death
Altsheler died in New York City on June 5, 1919, aged 57; his obituary appeared in The Evening World on June 6, 1919. His widow, Sarah, died 30 years later. Both are buried at the Cave Hill Cemetery in Louisville, Kentucky.
Bibliography
Although each of the thirty-two novels constitutes an independent story, Altsheler suggested a reading order for each series (i.e., he numbered the volumes). The remaining eighteen novels can be read in any order. [Note, however, that A Knight of Philadelphia was later expanded by adding nineteen chapters and minor tweaks to become Mr. Altsheler’s novel In Hostile Red.]
His short stories are not ordered. However, readers may prefer to read them in the order in which they were published. The short story list below is displayed chronologically, and the publication dates are shown alongside the titles.
All titles below are available in digital format for viewing and downloading from many websites. Some websites allow free access to all 100 titles. There are also several websites where ‘omnibus’ digital editions of Mr. Altsheler’s works are available. Many of his works are in hard copy (i.e., printed) format.
Joseph Alexander Altsheler
