The Newberry herald. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1865-1884, 1865-10-18
NUMBER 48.

time for enjoyment even. At West Point he
studied conscientiously, avoidingal higher oc-
cupations a; in Mexico lie betook himself to
hard aghting and at Lexington his whole
soul became absorbed in the performance Of
his humdrum duties, and the earnest endeav-
our to disco7er>the will Of his Maker and con- .
form to that will in all things. q
The students laughed at the silent and awk-
ward professor, who found enjoyment appa-
rcntly in nothing but religious exercises and
hard work; but they could not unders tand
the 'great thoughts' and certain joys which
the taciturn soldier derived from his religion.
WeIdo not venture, here, to state the ex-
act religious views Of this eminent man. He
has Oeen called fatalst from his ultra indiff.
erenee to danger; fatalism, proper, is an. al.
surdity. That he held the Presbyterian visVss
Of predestination is certain but to discover
and perform the will of God, without regard
to that Or any other dogma, was his "neat
and drink" With him, his religion was his
life. 1t was the broad foundation Of all his
thoughts and words and deeds. lie seemed
to live, consciously, under the eye. of God.
and to shape all his actions with reference to
the divine approval He had no time to think
whether this or that in his character his ac-
tioDs, or his utterances, was conventional
or not-pieased or dsplcased his fellow-men,
Am conforming my life to- sthe will of God 2
o,J oil
only question.
From this profound and controlling piety
sprung his virtues, his peculiarities, his true
greatness. Contemplating the profound sig
nifcsnce of his position as an immortal soul,
tarrying for reason only uponaearth, and
destined by its conduct here, to shape for all
eternity its own veal or woe, all other things
became poor and inconsiderable in his eyes
what men thought of him, how he appeared
in society, what dress he wore, what food he
cat what worldly enjoymcnts he neglected.
or what worldly honours he missed or secu-
red. Something Of the old spirit Of the Man
of Tarsus was in :he heart of jackson, who
had his meditations and his work, and could
afford to neglect the aurple and the feasting.
and endure all things for the faith that was in
him.
It was impossible not to respect q map of
such elevation of character. But many
things even grow beautiful in Jackson when
he became better known, and made men love
him He was man Of great kindness, of an
extraordinary sweetness of temper, tender
hearted, easily moved to pity, and all pure
emotions. He was simple and unosteptatious
in his manner and habits He cared not
what be ate, and would sleep in fence cor
ner us willingly as in bed. His old coatwas
covered with dust collected. from the battle
fields of many regions, as he slept upon the
earth, in rude bivouae, after the hard fought
day. All this cndeared him sto his ssoldiers,
at whose camp-fires he would stop to. talk in
the friendly fashion Of the officers Of ofNapoleon.
and whose rations he would frequently. share.
The sight of his faded coat sid cadet cap, was
the sign to cheer, and "Old Jack was per-
sonally adored, as in his military capacity ho
was regarded by his men as the greatest of
leaders. His manner was stiff ard his voice
curt, but his smile was one of extraordinary
sweetness. A lady declared it 'angelic.". It
was certainly the most friendly imaginable,
and charmed all who conversed with him.
Even his pcculari;es became sources ofpep.
ularity, and cndcarcd him to bis troops. It
was said of SuwarroT that his men mimicked
him, gave him nicknames, and adored him.
1t Eas the same vita Jackson. His troops
laughed at his dingy old uniform, his csP
fitting forward on his nose, his awkward
strides, his distracted air, and christening him
"Old Jack" made him their first and greatest
of 1avorites. There was ono pccutiarity of
the individual, however, which they regarded
with something like superstition. We refer
to the singular position he had of raising his
hands aloft, and tten suddenly letting the arm
fall at his side On many occasions he made
this strange gesture as his veterans moved
slowly before him, advancing to the charge.
At such moments his face would be raised to
heaven, his eyes closed, and his lips would
move evidently in prayer. The same gesture
was observed in him at Charlottesville while
gazing st the body of ono of his old command.
lie was plainly praying, with his hand uplif-
ted, for the welfare Of tbe-dead map's soul,
jackson died before he reached the age Of
forty, and had but two years of life for the
display CT bis great faculties. But the period
was long enough. In that contracted space
oftimc he accomplished enough to- render his
name and fame immortal. Few human beings
ever equaled him il the great art of making
war-fewer still in purity Ct heart and life
1t was nature almost altogether lovely which
lay under the faded uniform Of the great SOL
der. No stain ofirsincerity, o. rneanness, OF
vail-gloriousncss marred a character which
combined the oQieSt virtues Of the gentle
man, the soldier, and the Christian.
IL sleeps now, cold to praise OF blame; but
s poor writer proud to have touched his hand