[solemn trumpet music]
- Narrator: In 1862, I found myself
in the Confederate hospitals.
Pneumonia, typhoid, and camp fevers occupied every bed.
The surgeon said, "Stay away.
"The southern air is full of contagion,
and contagion and sympathy do not go well together."
This led me to the idea of northern military hospitals.
I went to Washington, directly to the president.
He asked how many men Wisconsin had in the field.
I replied, "About 50,000."
He said, "That means she has about 20,000 left."
The president said, "An order granting a hospital
in your state has been issued."
I wept for joy.
I heard him say goodbye, and I was gone.
Cordelia Harvey,
wife of Wisconsin governor Louis Harvey, 1864.
[dreamy music]