The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1902-12-21
An English Estimate of Jackson.
(FFom The nashville Amerlcan.)

NLAOlu tue NdSNNlllc Americana
1t has been left to an Englishman to write
the best history OF StonewaA Jackson's campaign
and to record what may be termed perhaps the
most intelligent and judicial estimate OF Jackson
as military commander and strategst The
author OF this work is Colonel Henderson OF
the British army, a trained and educated soldier
ana student OF military science. There recently
appeared in the London Spectator a review of
Colonel Hendersons military life of the great
soldier and the following extracts from this re-
view are furnished the Charlotte Observer by
Ogden (. Edwards who adds "A few wears
ago ! was the guest OF the royal engineers at
Aldershot, and in the after-dinner chat I was
told that Stonewall Jaokson's campaigns were
studied by them as giving the best examples of
modern strategy. In this notice OF Colonel
Hendersons highly Interesting ard instructive
book, the work OF an accomplished military critic
and analyst who is without the bias OF an
American seetonaist or partisan, the Spectator
says
The man lives and moves in its pages events
are grouped about him on the truest prin-
clples OF art so that they neither blot him out
nor are themselves invisible And though the
whole book is vocal with drums and tramplines
and the roar OF immense combats the sound that
fingers last IN the readers ears as he unwnsly
closes its pages is the calm, steady voice OF the
extraordinary soldier OF whose brilliance war
allowed but CLEAN to escape before it killed him.
"a tAS SlNlA wal though us lcaQ was
and sank deep, did not touch the bottom of
Jackson's capacity as a commander it merely
limited at profundity OF genius which il Is idle
10 attempt TO tathom now. As full OF surprises
as Wellington, as full OF resources as Napoleon.
more brilliant than Grant, sounder' to use the
modern label, than Lee, it is mere fascinating
speculation to guess how he might have aston
ished the world and guided the war had he
welded powers as great theirs. Fate never
dealt a more paralyzing blow at history than
when she slew Jackson at the edge OF the Chan
cellorsville wood by the bullet Of one OF the men
who loved him. Gould have directed events
wrote Lee to him on the battlefield, I would have
chosen Tor the good OF the country to be disabled
in your stead.
"Great-hearted Lee How few men hav. .x-
listed from whom sentence like that can be taken
as the literal conclusion Of their minds Both
the nobility Of his soul, which urged him to
write 1t, and the keenness OF his military saga
city, which compelled him 10 mean It. are meas
ures OF Jaeksons human and professional great
ness.
Few Of those who have been fascinated bv ne
pages but would be surprised to learn that within
them lies a compendium not only 10 Iaokson's
me- but also OF his art the art of war The very
excellence OF the narrators art itself has con.
tributed 10 this result Scientific criticism has
been so little obtruded, even when most r1nIr,.
upon the biography that the reader, being Tree 10
choose, has usually selected what appealed IN hin,
most, and this even with soldiers has been nrob.
ably but rarely the professional lessons con.
tanned in the book Yet these Constitute lis chief
value as the verve and pathos OF the story Of
Jackson himself constitute its beauty
The American civil war was a triumph for
the educated, as compared with the natural
soldier In the mind OF the average man verv
HAY and very false idea OF guerilladom attaches
TO the eombatant armies, more especially to that
OF the South, the more scientifically handled ~
the two. No doubt Moltke's sheer al armed
mobs, probably the only silly thing he said h
all his life has contributed largely to this result
but the facts are exactly the reverse. In no
armies that ever took the field was the standard
OF general education so high, and the standard
~ military intelligence was commensurate. coli /
onel Henderson notes constantly how oleverIv !
the soldiers foretold future operations how, |
quickly they grasped the significance Of those
actually in progress of sudden movements. Of so- !
parently meaningless orders 1t is tribut. - |
lssk'en 10 ssy that he deceived them NOR. of,.r
than any general they had But though srisrs |
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