The weekly intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1891-1901, 1897-02-20
General 10 o. Shelby.

In the uealn OF GeneTdl JO W. ohoIDJ
Missouri lost one of her foremost citI
zens, the South one of the greatest o
its military representatives, n TIT
country at large an attractive and ad
mIrable character. lie was one OF The
few remaining links that connect thC
stormy period of war of Il generation
ago, when great men and great armies
Struggled for the mastery, with thu
peaceful and commonplace condition
of things today. He was Il typica
southerner, IL gentleman by birth, edu
cation and ASSOCIATION, and MS brilliant
and successful a cavalry commander as
the war produced.
General Shelby will not, of course,
occupy in history as prominent n posi-
ton us the great masters of the art Of
war, who led the southern armies SC
often 10 battle and victory, but he vii
easily rank as a cavalry leader with
Stuart, Morgan and Forrest, if, indeed,
he does not take place above them al
in the end. He labored under the dis
advantage of serving during most oi
the war in the west-west of the Mis-
sissippi rive.', and was tins SO far
removed from the center of military
operations that at first his brilliant
achievements did not attract the atten-
ton of the confederate authorities But
later his merits found recognition-his
reputation reached Richmond-and it
was conceded hat he was not only n
dashing cavalry leader, but n soldier,
an organizer, u general, in the highest
sense of the term. 1t would have been
better for the confederate cause if tins
concession and recognition had come
sooner.
General Shelby's strong points, in a
military sense, were rapidity of move
ment, impetuosity of attack and a fierce
determination 10 drive the enemy at
every cost and hazard. His command
always went flying light. He bad no
patience with wagon trains, and never
used them except to carry his ammuni-
ton. He marched rapidly, therefore,
and the enemy was generally at fault
as to bis whereabouts. Almost from
the moment a fight began 1t was a roar
and a charge. He never fought on the
defensive. He always attacked, and
continued to attack so %furiously that
the enemy was frequently demoralized
before he was beaten. 1t Is not re-
corded that he ever lost a fight-that
is, when he was in command.
Personally General Shelby was an
inspiration 10 his troop-in the camp,
on the march and on the field. If he
was ever hungry or tired or dispirited
be gave no sign of it. He was always
alert and active; saw to everything
himself. knew every man in his COM
mand, and joked with the humblest as
Familiarity as with a staff officer. Where
the firing was hottest on the battlefield,
there Shelby was sure to be, and his
voice, clear as a bugle call, was heard
ordering the charge or encouraging
the men to closer battle.
He was an original man. How and
when and where he formed his cam
paigns and battles no one ever knew.
But he formed them, and they stood
the test of experiment. He was never
at a loss what to do for a moment. His
decision, under the most critical cir
cumstances, was as clear and prompt
as If he had been considering that par
matter for hours. His theories
Of war were intuitiye, and in the main
correct, though they did not always
with West Point and the
teaching of the books. On that account
General Giant said he was the most
dangerous military man in the west TO
with. His nature was two-fold.
While the sternest of soldiers and the
strlctest of dispiplinarians, he was the
most sympathetic Of men. All his life
he did kind acts in a rough way-the
-oughness being assumed 10 hide the
Sindness of his heart.
AS the war drew to a close and the
situation became more desperate, Shell
oy became more and more an impor-
ant factor. After the confederate
east of the Mississippi had sur
-endered, he was in favor of presenting
! firm front to the enemy west OF the
'iyer and lighting through Texas to the
Rio Grande, ii need be, IN order to
yain the most favorable terme for the
Iouth. He held his division firm in the
MIDST of the universal Generalization.
lie forced General Kirby Smith to turn
he command of the department over
O General Bucknsr. But Ruekner
allied him, and others failed him, and
DON his division was the last vestige of
he confederacy. He escorted Generals
Price aud Magruder and Gov
,rnors Reynolds, Allen and Murrah out
Vt the country and landed them safely
within the French lipes in Mexico.
The marching of his command, organ
zed and armed, into and through
was simply an act Of invasion;
3ut Shelby took the responsibility and
t 80 boldly and 30 well that both the
governments admired his
outrage and treated him as a friend.