Virginia clash gave taste of horror to come

On June 10, 1861, some of the first blood was spilled by Northern and Southern armies. At the Battle of Big Bethel in coastal Virginia, it was perhaps the first time the two sides realized how brutal war can really be. According to a new book, "Battle of Big Bethel: Crucial Clash in Early Civil War Virginia," the soldiers, many of them raw recruits, "soon realized the terrible force with which a lead ball can strike, flying from a rifled musket at 950 feet per second. One survivor said it felt like 'being hit by a club, followed by scalding water.'" • Article