"Only a glance at these figures is necessary to impress one with the number of those who were unable to stand the long and rapid marches, and fell by the wayside, viz, 9597. The Virginians who have written of the war have often charged the loss of the Maryland campaign to “laggards”. It is unkind to apply such a term to our soldiers, who were as patient, courageous, and chivalrous as any ever marshaled into phalanx. Writers who do so ignore the facts and circumstances that surrounded our troops. Many were just out of the hospitals, and many were crippled by injuries received in battle. They were marching without sufficient food or clothing, with their muskets, ammunition, provisions, and in fact their all, packed on their backs. They struggled along with bleeding feet, tramping rugged mountain roads through a heated season, seeking another opportunity to offer their lives in defense of their people. Such soldiers should not be called “laggards” by their countrymen. Let them have their well-earned honors though the fame of others suffer thereby."
- James Longstreet, quoted from Century Magazine, Vol. 36, No. 2, p. 315
Well said Lieutenant General Longstreet.
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Gen. Longstreet wrote this over 20 years after the war ended. What did he have to say about stragglers during the war?
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