You slowly walk back into your house shocked at the title of the paper.
"What's wrong John?" your wife asks you. You toss the paper across the table as you sit down.
"O God! This is impossible...," she says about ready to cry.
You cut her off before she can go any farther," Of course it happened. Youv'e heard the talk of town. The South has been angry for years now, and it just happened to explode." You try not to look at the paper but you just can't get the title out of your head. "Rebels Attack Fort Sumter!" You have only lived hear about two years. You left Ireland to get a good life and you wonder if this will affect you although you know it will.
As you lay in bed that night thoughts race around in your head. You think of joining but try to confence yourself you can't, but you remember something. America has saved your life. During the famine in Ireland, America sent aid over saving many lives. You make your decision.
The next day you tell your wife of your desicion, and she opposes strongly, but you calmly tell her you must do it. Several days later you see a recruiting officer on the street giving a speech of how wonderful and heroic this war is going to be. You join the others signing up for this all Irish brigade.