Early on the morning of July 1, 1888, four men and two women stood on the crown of East Cemetery Hill. One of the men was pointing toward the northeast. "We rushed up that slope, and had a hand-to-hand fight right here where these guns are; some of our boys got as far as the road back there, but it was no use. We did our best, but we were driven back … all who were still alive."
Close by stood a group of Pennsylvania veterans, who, overhearing this, "looked at each other, and then, as if of one mind, moved forward until they closed in on the party of six."
"We heard you say you rushed up that slope," said one of the Pennsylvanians, "well the only men who reached the top, other than the men who defended it, were the 'Louisiana Tigers'!"
Fred Ober, a smallish man of wiry frame, his hair and goatee flecked with gray, looked up and said, "We are four of those 'Tigers,' sah!"
The
New Orleans Times Pickayune of July 5th, records: "The veterans made a forward dash, and such a shaking of hands was never seen atop of East Cemetery Hill. The wife and daughter of one of the 'Tigers' (Oder) participated in the handshaking, and laughed, and blushed at the earnestness with which the Northern veterans welcomed the representatives of the most desperate fighters the South ever produced."
Frederick A. Ober was the chosen spokesman for the group, which also included John J. Wax, Thomas Higgins, and L. J. Cordes. When asked why so few Southerners had come, he told the Yanks that he didn't think the South knew much about the reunion until it was too late to make plans to attend. Word of Sickles' invitation had only reached the Tigers' veterans' association some three weeks before. The organization telegraphed Sickles, and he sent them the details of where and when. At a special meeting, those four men, the only ones who could go on such short notice, were deputed to represent all the surviving "Tigers." Their instructions were "to say that if defenders of the stars and stripes were needed, the Louisiana 'Tigers' were and would always be ready to furnish their full quota."
The four Louisianans were among the earliest Confederates to arrive, and they were given much attention. "The news jumped quickly from point to point that the 'Johnnies' had come," and they were fairly mobbed by welcoming Yanks, who besieged them for their cards and autographs. Their cards consisted of "a square bit of bristol board, on the face of which was engraved in colors the battle flag of the Army of Northern Virginia. Under the flag were the words 'Louisiana Tigers,' and 'Here we are again!'" Souvenir hunters scooped them up as quickly as they appeared.
Tom Higgins, who had been in weakened health for some time, lamented he would have to return to his hotel to rest. Immediately, several of the Northern veterans offered their services, and, lashing poles to an ordinary straight chair, constructed a litter, and carried him all over the battlefield so he wouldn't miss anything. The party was wined and dined everywhere they went.
The above is condensed mainly from
The New Orleans Times Pickayune of July 5; an article expanded in the Chicago
Daily Inter-Ocean of July 7. Much more, including an account of the Louisiana Tigers during the battle, appear in the St. Louis
Republic, July 2, 1888. Pdfs of all three articles are attached below.
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