Clarke courier. [volume] (Berryville, Va.) 1869-1997, 1899-01-11
SIONEWALL JACKSON.
r~oract from the Lectures of DIR
Hunter Mcclure

4
recently heard some of the first sol.
uiers ana military students of Eng
land declare that within the ms, two
h"nhred }ears the English-speaking
race mas produced but five soldiers
"i the first rank-M Marlborough,
Washington. Wellington. Robert Lee
ana Nionewall jackson. heard
them declare that Jackson's cam
paign IN the Shenandoah Valley. in
which you. and YOU. and Won. and
myself IN my subordinate place. fol
lowed this Immortal. Was the finest
specimen of strategy and tactics nf
which the world has any record: that
Ia tins series of marches and battles
there WAS never Llunder committed
by jackson; thar this campaign i'm
the valley was superior to either of
those made by Napoleon in lta!v.-
One British officer who teaches STRAIT
egy ~ a great European college. told
me that he used this campaign a. -
model OF strategy and tactics anu
dw+lt upon II for several months i'm
ms lectures: that It was taught for
months of each session iu the schools
ct Germany. and that Won Moltke.
'be great StHtegist. declared that j.
~a> wlthoat a rival IN the world :
history. Thi- same British officer
told ne that he haG ridden az horse
tack over the battle fields Of the Val
ley and carefully studied the stratr-
gy and tactics there displayed bv
jackson. lie had followed him 10
Richmond. where he lOlued with .e-
III the campaign against Met Clellan
ia S62; that he hau followed his
detour around Pope-his manage
ment of his troops at Manassas: that
he had studied his environment of
liarper's Ferry and It's capture, his
part of the fight at Sharpsburg, and
his flank movement around Hooker,
/ and that he had never blundered
"lndeed," he added. jackson seemed
to me (him) inspired" Another
British soldier told me that for its
numbers the Army of Northern Nir-
gnia had more force and power than
any other army that ever existed.
High as is the estimate of the deeds
of the Second Corps of the Army of
Northern Virginia, heard these
opinions with IA new elation, for
knew they presented the verdict of
impartial history; the verdict that
posterity will stamp with its approx
al; verdict-in itself such a tribute
to valor and virtue, devotion and
truth-as shall serve to inspire, exalt
and ennOble our children and our
children's children to the remotest
generations.
You will not be surprised to hear
of my telling them that of these five,
thus overtopping all the rest, three
were born in the State of Virginia;
nor wonder that reverently remem-
Der that two of them lie side by side
in Lexington while one is sleeping by
the great river, there TO sleep till
time shall be no more-three conse
Grating in death the soil of Virginia,
as in life .hey stamped their mother
State AS the native home of men who
living as they lived, shall be fit to go
on quest for the Holy Grail.
And now hope may be able to
tell you what evidences of this ac-
credited greatness what warrant for
the justness of this verdict, and
others with me, saw in the quiet OF
the camp and in the rush of battle
and how ! saw with my eyes, and
stand here to declare, that his great
ness vanished not nor faded, but the
brighter shone, when the shadows OF
evening we're falling aud the dark
ness of death gathered round
IN seeking to define Jackson's place
in history ] sccept Lord Wolseiey's
definition of great commander. He
declares in effect that the marks OF
this rare character are: First of ALL
the power-tbe instinct, the lnspira-
tion-tO devine the condition aud the
purposes of yonr enemy. Secondly,
the genins that ID strategy instantly
devises the combinations most likely
to defeat those purposes. Thirdly,
the physical and moral courage-the
! absolute GOLF 20 alionea thar 70 L 80 h 4.