Chapter 18

Abstract: At the end of the battle, Henry and Wilson go to find water because Wilson thinks there is a stream near by. They do not find a stream though. When they are walking back, they see two officers coming towards them on horseback. The walk kind of slowly past the general and another officer. They overhear them talking about the enemy coming up and charging them. They talk about regiment they could do without for a offensive. The officer says that they would be fine without the 304th regiment because they are 'mule drivers' which is not a compliment. The general says to send them up to the front lines. The general says that they probably won't make it back. Henry and Wilson then run and tell the rest of their company what they heard except the part about the mule drivers. They were extremely angry over what they heard. When they get back, their lieutenant is mad at first, but not when he finds out the news they have to say. He is kind of excited while the other soldiers are not really. Instead, they just kind of face the facts and are ready for their command. At the end of the chapter, one soldier says "We'll git swallowed."

Response: If I were Henry or Wilson, I would be pretty mad about what the other officer said. Maybe it will motivate them to fight even hard in order to prove them wrong. The general does not really take sending them lightly. He seems kind of sad because he knows that a lot of them will die. The general knows that he has to send the men to battle, but he does not really take the task easily. He does not knowing that the men are people, and he is kind of controlling what happens to them and whether or not they die in battle.