I’ll Pass for Your Comrade
Although written for what the dustcover says is a “young audience,” this book takes a unique aspect of history to the next level for public consumption. It focuses on women who disguised themselves as men and fought on both sides of the war. Silvey presents a well-researched book that anyone interested in the war would find fascinating. The bibliography and references are excellent and thorough. Readers will appreciate the photos and illustrations. Instead of a dry academic tome, Silvery introduces us to such brave heroes as Loreta Janeta Velazquez. Velazquez shared her insights about the First Battle of Bull Run in her book, The Woman in Battle. “At noon the battle was at its fiercest, and the scene was grand beyond description. …The red dust from the parched and sun dried roads arose in every direction, while the smoke from the artillery and musketry slowly floated aloft in huge, fantastic columns… It was a sight never to be forgotten, — one of those magnificent spectacles that cannot be imagined… I would not have missed it for the wealth of the world, and was more than repaid for all that I had undergone, and all the risks to my person and my womanly reputation that I incurred, in being not only a spectator, but an actor, in such a sublime, living drama.” Her eloquence is impressive. Loretta marched into war as Confederate officer Lt. Harry T. Buford with an elaborate disguise. After her husband was send to Richmond, Loreta dressed in his clothes and visited a tailor who made two Confederate uniforms for her. The tailor measured her and assumed she was a young boy. She got wire-net shields that hid her shape. She next got an undergarment of silk held in place by suspenders. She strapped a band around the undershirts that made her waist look larger. A barber cut her hair short. She stained her face for a tanned look and then added a false mustache. Silvey even gives us two engravings of Loretta depicting her before and after her disguise. Women had to be ever aware of how they walked, talked, spoke, masculine mannerisms, marched, spit, even how to handle menstruation — and all without being detected. The photos and personal stories of these brave ladies cry out for recognition from the grave. A look into their faces reveals determination seldom seen or even recognized. These ladies are American heroes. The chapters explain the women’s reasons for becoming soldiers, daily life for these special soldiers, and follows them after the war and the trouble some had getting their pensions. This is an easy but though- provoking book that should be savored by all family members. It might even be the spark that promotes an interest in the reality of the war in our younger females. Reviewer: George Khoury is an adjunct professor at University of Central Florida. He will present a workshop this summer at the Civil War Preservation Trust's Teacher Institute. He has taught the war from a Southern perspective and is the winner of six National Endowment for the Humanities History grants. |
Illustrated, notes, references, 99 pp., 2008. Clarion Books 215 Park Ave. S, New York, NY 10003, $17 plus shipping.