Item #3079 Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States. Commandery of the District of Columbia. War Paper 21. A Tribute to Tom; or, The "Servant Question" Among the Volunteers. J. H. Bradford.
Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States. Commandery of the District of Columbia. War Paper 21. A Tribute to Tom; or, The "Servant Question" Among the Volunteers.

Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States. Commandery of the District of Columbia. War Paper 21. A Tribute to Tom; or, The "Servant Question" Among the Volunteers.

[Washington, D.C. ca. 1895]. 16pp., plus illustrated frontispiece. Original printed orange wrappers. Minor chipping and some separations along spine, small abrasion to front wrapper, tiny bookseller label affixed to inner rear wrapper. Good plus. Item #3079

A latter day Civil War memoir written by a Union chaplain named J.H. Bradford, in which he recounts his experiences with a young African American man named Tom. In Bradford's telling, after meeting Tom, a young escaped slave in Louisiana, Tom attached himself to Bradford as his unofficial servant for the remainder of the war. Bradford writes in the opening paragraph that much has been made of the brass and soldiers of the regular Union Army, but that "The colored servants, however, who seemed so essential to the comfort of some persons' lives, have not had their share of recognition for their deeds." Bradford writes of his first encounter with Tom: "When he first came to me he was a slave, 13 or 14 years old; tall, straight, homely, bare-headed and bare-footed, with two articles of clothing on, not counting one suspender." Thereafter, Bradford writes of Tom's reliability, bravery, intelligence, and resourcefulness, as well as the military's benefits for Tom and other escaped slaves: "It was a terrible ordeal for these boys to come out of slavery. Army life afforded them a good transition to freedom. The discipline did them good." Bradford concludes that Union veterans who had the honor of working with helpers like Tom should recognize their contribution to their own success. OCLC records just eight copies.

Price: $850.00