Personal Narrative: A Soldier's War

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The Yankees formed us up into a wagon train, planning to take us to City Point. On the way there, I thought about the Union prisons, which is where I was headed. I read from the newspapers that the prisons were filled to their limits with soldiers and most soldiers didn’t even live because they froze to death, had chills and fevers (which killed them), or they starved to death because of the terrible food. I hope what I read was not true because Ma, Sarah and Sam really needed me alive, not dead. To take my mind off of everything that had happened, I started to read my book of psalms out loud. While I read, Private Turner (I found out his name because his fellow soldiers called him that when he told them he caught me) asked me who was I talking to. …show more content…

Private Turner stated that when the war ended and the colored were free, he would learn to read. I replied and said that he shouldn’t be so sure that the Yankees will win. I went back to reading my book of psalms, but Private Turner interrupted me again by saying, “You really readin’ that? You ain’t got it by heart?” I bragged to him that I could read anything; just to make him feel bad. Then, I did something I regretted. I told him that I knew every capital of every state and country, when I really didn’t When he asked me the capital of South Carolina, I just guessed Fort