GDG- Re: Private Key

[Biggsk at aol.com]

Dave Schultz writes:

>>>>My reply to Greg, as it were, was not to suggest he was  supporting 
Chick's misgivings but rather an eyewitness recollection nearly  40-years later 
does not necessarily make it a good account. Greg is a superb  archivist and in 
no way am I challenging his credibility. I am merely  suggesting Private Key's 
recollection was just that, a recollection of just  one moment in one battle 
of many and not necessarily a fact that would support  anything suggesting 
Wright's brigade crested Cemetery Ridge. As a matter of  fact I have reread it and 
have no clue as to what fact it represents other  than one was under extreme 
fire and had to  retreat.>>>>



And I again bow down to your supreme knowledge of Union artillery in this  
battle and I certainly know who to ask if I ever have any questions along those  
lines.
 
Key's account, in my book and evidently in the book of a few others here,  is 
not nearly as succinct as the first account I posted, which did state that  
Union artillery was taken and that one 3rd GA guy sat on the barrel of one gun  
and popped away with his rifle.  I give more credence to the first account  
in terms of things stated.  Maybe as I dig out more accounts of Wright's  
Brigade from the post-war papers, we might have other accounts that state  similar 
things.  All that I am stating is not to toss them off because they  were 40 
years later - unless they say something like "and in the middle of the  
assault, alien space monkeys came by in silver ships and shot death rays at the  
Yankees," or even as stated in some period newspaper, "Genl. Longstreet  killed!"
 
There are facts that we all know to be irrefutable and we build history  from 
this.   The we have other statements from participants that we  look over and 
see if we can get other accounts from other participants that say  the same 
or similar things.  You have done so much work you know how this  goes.  And I 
would bet that you have found 40 year later Union artillery  accounts that say 
things that sound like they could have been written the day  after Gettysburg 
and some that sounded like too much alcohol in the guy's life,  etc.  Which 
is why we compare things.
 
All my argument is really about is not to toss off something because it was  
40 years later.
 
Greg Biggs