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A Story by Young Patriot the War for Independence Joseph Plumb Martin was one of the original settlers, who was enlisted to militia and then joined the army. Like many others, he didnt feel a strong desire to serve as a soldier of Continental Army. Partially, he did it under the influence of his friends, partially under the influence of his grandparents. But the main issue was, like for many others, the point that when those who engaged to serve during the war enlisted, they were promised a hundred acres of land, each, which was to be in their or the adjoining states. So his willing to have his own house decided the matter for him.
Those who enlisted to serve were promised a lot of things which were supposed to make their life comfortable and partly compensate the horrors of war. All soldiers were to receive monthly payment, enough clothes for different seasons of the year, food and beverages enough to survive and not suffer from hunger, as well as medicine and medical treatment. Instead of that, the life of soldiers in Continental Army turned out to be a permanent struggle with starvation, nakedness, diseases, cold, discomfort and danger. Here I endured hardships sufficient to kill half a dozen horses. Let the reader only consider for a moment and he will still be satisfied if not sickened. In the cold month of November, without provisions, without clothing, not a scrap of either shoes or stockings to my feet or legs Those shortages appeared because the Government had no experience in providing all necessary things under conditions of war.
In addition, Congress didnt have enough money to pay for the materials and transport, necessary to provide the army with everything that soldiers needed and expected. Except for physical suffering the soldiers experienced, one more problem occurred with their psychological conditions. As Joseph Martin describes, the majority of soldiers who joined the army with the militia, exactly as he did, were not ready for the horrors of war. Fighting the enemy is the great scarecrow to people unacquainted with the duties of an army. To see the fire and smoke, to hear the din of cannon and musketry and the whistling of shot, they cannot bear the sight or hearing this, he says. All those people were not ready for the sufferings that they encountered.
But, all those hardships didnt make people run and hide. Martin describes all these problems as the part of the army life, unpleasant and severe. But he and other people around him didnt regard it as the reason to leave the army and come back home. They realized and obeyed the necessity to serve, to gain a victory for their country, no matter what hardships they may meet.
Martin describes all his thoughts and reflections on the point, with all his doubts and conclusions, and it makes the story extremely remarkable, because historical books and documents dont focus on what is going on in soldiers minds. Martin describes the death of the people he lived with and the possibility of being killed at any moment, the dangers of war, the pictures of horrors and sufferings, but besides the descriptions, there are a lot of reflections. The sergeant then came down and had not gone half a rod from the foot of the staff when he was cut in two by a cannon shot. This caused me some serious reflection at the time. He was killed! Martin is a young man who doesnt want to die, but he is ready to do it for the victory like thousands of young patriots around him.
He doesnt complain, describing the hardships and sufferings, he just gives the facts, and this makes the reader see the picture by the readers own eyes, feel oneself a part of historical events. This book highlights the events that have reached different historical books, from a quite different perspective. A life of Continental soldier is described in simple and sincere words, and it makes details of the story extremely vivid and picturesque. As the author tells about all events from his angle of vision, the story seems to be extremely emotional. Story is remarkable by the one of the thousands typical experiences of a Continental soldier described in it.
The author showed the atmosphere of war from inside, we see it by the eyes of numerous soldiers that fight, kill and die every day. This book may serve as an addition to historical documents for those who are anxious to obtain true information about the War for Independence and understand the life of an ordinary soldier.
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Research essay sample on War For Independence Horrors Of War
