The following ramblings are representative of nothing but my own opinion; therefore, they are only worthy of consideration within that context, and I hope no one reads them (or reads into them), any more than that.

With that disclaimer out of the way, I believe that my experience with the message boards is probably similar to that of others who find themselves here out of curiosity, necessity, resourcefulness, sheer luck – and on occasion – pure desperation. Typically, we come looking for answers or leads. As often as not, it seems we come looking for one man – or a single family – or, in my case, an individual regiment.

We appear to come here when we're not sure where to start, or when we've run into a dead end once our other leads have grown cold.

I’m not a professional historian, an aspiring author, nor a distinguished professor. I have never published a book on Civil War history – although I’ve read quite a number. I’m not a re-enactor/living historian. I’m utterly unqualified as a legal scholar. I’m certainly not an expert on arms and accoutrements, and I know next to nothing about period textiles, photography, uniforms or flags. In other words, I’m a rank amateur, and not an expert at much of anything.

But, I am interested in learning about all those things, and more.

That’s why, when I first stumbled across the message boards years ago (out of sheer luck, by the way), I thought I’d struck gold. I had company in my fumbling and stumbling around in the darkness.

Then, there were others, (including you) whom I’ve bumped into in the dark who were happy to shine a light on a topic of interest, and share what they knew or had learned, or pointed me in a direction that I could further explore on my own.

So, at long last, to FINALLY get around to answering your question: What little I know about Confederate military law (or civil law for that matter), I’ve learned on my own. I’ve never had a class on it or been formally instructed on the topic. I’ve taught myself to read the transcripts of various courts martial or probate records that pertained to my research, I’ve checked out books that related to a particular legal topic at hand, I’ve “Googled” and I’ve asked questions in a lot of places, including here … a lot of questions.

Through the years, I’ve enjoyed the answers shared in these forums. But I’ve never completely counted on them alone. I’ve come to learn that it’s ultimately up to me what to take away from the experience. I always follow up the advice and counsel I’ve gotten here with MY OWN research. By doing so, I’ve independently verified that more often than not, I’ve gotten some solid, valuable and reliable information from real experts on these message boards. Frankly, I’ve also received some tidbits that I’d consider less reliable. Had I not checked on these things myself, I could have unknowingly perpetuated them as fact.

After 25 years of conducting such research, I only now feel qualified to discuss the activities, campaigns, camaraderie, and circumstances that pertain to a single Confederate regiment. Insomuch as military law dictated their actions and numbers, I finally feel somewhat confident in my own understanding of its application/implications.

But, I owe that minimal level of understanding to the trails that were pointed out to me by people with MUCH more knowledge of that particular landscape. Much as I owe what I now understand about flags and arms to those who've devoted themselves to those topics.

I rather doubt this is the sort of input you were seeking, and that I've veered off the path, and need a real expert to guide me back to it, as usual.