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![]() Subject: Hardtack,Salt Horse and Coffee |
From Chapter IX Page 224 " The Life of Billy Yank" The Common Soldier of The Union. By Mr.Bell Irvin Wiley
1951/1971/1997 Louisiana State University Press At the time this verse was published and throughout the war, except for the period before August 3, 1861, and June 20, 1864, the daily allowance for each Union soldier was: In relative terms this was a generous allowance. It was about one fifth more than that of the British Army,almost twice that of the French, and compared even more favorably with that of the Prussians,Austrians and Russians. It was also more liberal than the official diet of Confederates. The Southerners,after hopefully adopting the old army ration early in the conflict,were forced to repeatedly to cut it, while the Federals in August 1861 effected a substantial increase. Surgeon General Hammond was on firm ground when he boasted after this augmentation that the men in blue had the most abundant food allowance of any soldiers in the world.. .......Researched and Written by Mr.Bell Irvin Wiley |