The Red Badge of Courage: An Episode of the American Civil War

. As the landscape changed from brown to green, the army awakened, and began to tremble with eagerness at the noise of

night, when the stream had become of a sorrowful blackness, one could see across i

m a reliable friend, who had heard it from a truthful cavalryman, who had heard it from his trustworthy brother, one of the orderlies at division headquarters. He adopted the important air o

tered into small arguing groups between the rows of squat brown huts. A negro teamster who had been dancing upon a cracker box with the h

were thrust sulkily into his trousers' pockets. He took the matter as an affront to him. "I don't believe the derned ol

truth of a rumor he himself had introduced. He

arly spring he had refrained from adding extensively to the comfort of his environment because he had felt that the army

posed by men who advocated that there were other plans of campaign. They clamored at each other, numbers making futile bids for the popula

's up

's goin'

lkin' about? How

e er not, jest as yeh li

ch he replied. He came near to convincing them by di

his comrades. After receiving a fill of discussions concerning marches and attacks, he went to his hut and crawled thro

s were paralleled on pegs. Equipments hunt on handy projections, and some tin dishes lay upon a small pile of firewood. A folded tent was serving as a roof. The sunlight, without, beating upon it, made it glow a light yellow shade. A small window sho

there would be a battle, and he would be in it. For a time he was obliged to labor to make himself believe. He

les secure in the shadow of his eagle-eyed prowess. But awake he had regarded battles as crimson blotches on the pages of the past. He had put them as things of the bygone with his thought-images of h

r. He had long despaired of witnessing a Greeklike struggle. Such would be no more, he had said. Men were better, or more timi

meric, but there seemed to be much glory in them. He had read of marches, sieges, conflicts, and he had longed

apparent difficulty give him many hundreds of reasons why he was of vastly more importance on the farm than on the field of battle. She had had certain ways of expression

The newspapers, the gossip of the village, his own picturings had aroused him to an uncheckable degree. They we

frantically to tell the twisted news of a great battle. This voice of the people rejoicing in the night had made him shiver in

lied. She had then covered her face with the qui

When he had returned home his mother was milking the brindle cow. Four others stood waiting. "Ma, I've enlisted," he had said to her diffid

ight of excitement and expectancy in his eyes almost defeating the glow of regret for t

ng effect. But her words destroyed his plans. She had doggedly peeled potatoes and addressed him as follows: "You watch out, Henry, an' take good care of yerself in this here fighting business-you watch out, an' take good care of ye

se I want my boy to be jest as warm and comf'able as anybody in the army. Whenever th

feller like you, as ain't never been away from home much and has allus had a mother, an' a-learning 'em to drink and swear. Keep clear of them folks, Henry. I don't want yeh to eve

ld, an' remember he never drunk a drop of lic

o be a time comes when yeh have to be kilt or do a mean thing, why, Henry, don't think of anything 'cept what's righ

a cup of blackberry jam with yer bundle, because I know yeh like i

ech. It had not been quite what he expected, and he had borne

e potato parings. Her brown face, upraised, was stained with tears, and her spare form

ration. He had felt the gulf now between them and had swelled with calm pride. He and some of his fellows who had donned blu

sight of his blue and brass. As he had walked down the path between the rows of oaks, he had turned his head and detected her at a window watching his departure. As he perceived her, she h

that he must be a hero. There was a lavish expenditure of bread and cold meats, coffee, and pickles and cheese. As he basked in the sm

had the belief that real war was a series of death struggles with small time in between for sleep and meals

no more. Men were better, or more timid. Secular and religious education had effac

e could, for his personal comfort. For recreation he could twiddle his thumbs and speculate on the thoughts which must

this afterward, they usually expressed sorrow, and swore by their gods that the guns had exploded without their permission. The youth, on guard duty one night, conversed across the s

m good feller." This sentiment, floating to him upo

erce soldiery who were sweeping along like the Huns. Others spoke of tattered and eternally hungry men who fired despondent powders. "They'll charge through hell's fire an' brimstone t'

. They talked much of smoke, fire, and blood, but he could not tell how much might be

so long as they fought, which fact no one disputed. There was a more serious problem. He lay in his bu

llenging his belief in ultimate success, and bothering little about means and roads. But here he was confronted with a thing of moment. It had s

em to kick its heels at the outer portals of his mind, b

ed the lurking menaces of the future, and failed in an effort to see himself standing stoutly in the midst of them. He recall

ce nervously to and fro. "Good Lord, wh

saw that he would again be obliged to experiment as he had in early youth. He must accumulate information of himself, and meanwhile he resolved t

xterously through the hole. The loud

sively. "You can believe me or not, jest as you like. All you got to do is to sit

to be searching for a formidable reply. Finally he said

retorted the other sharply. He began to sto

oked down at the busy figure. "Going to be

rse there is. You jest wait 'til to-morrow, and you'll

!" said

t-and-out fighting," added the tall soldier, with the air of a ma

he loud one f

ike as not this story'll turn

alry started this morning," he continued. "They say there ain't hardly any cavalry left in camp. They're going to Richmond, or some place, while we fight all the Johnnies. It's some

said the

or a time. At last he spoke

ha

hink the reg'

cold judgment. He made a fine use of the third person. "There's been heaps of fun poked a

boys 'll run?" p

irst-off, and then again they might stay and fight like fun. But you can't bet on nothing. Of course they ain't never been under fire yet, and it ain't likely they'll lick the hull rebel army all-to-oncet the first time; but I think they'll fight better than s

now-" began the loud

d a rapid altercation, in which they fasten

run yourself, Jim?" he asked. On concluding the sentence he laughe

mmages, and if a whole lot of boys started and run, why, I s'pose I'd start and run. And if I once started to run, I'd run like the

aid the

omrade. He had feared that all of the untried men possessed a