The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1904-01-22

d
They did not fear surprise, be-
cause they knew that jackson had
thought of all possible surprises
and had the order at tongues end
to turn what was intended as such
into another opportunity to snatch
a victory for Southern arms. None
save a powerful genius, not only
known to be brave, but known also
to be pre- eminently resourceful
could have led whole armies on
long night marches, through swol
len streams, oyer rocky noun
tains, in dust or in snow, with
every man save him alone ignorant
of where they were going or for
what purpose and have preserved
mistaken the integrity of the
army's moral. 1t was knowledge
that gave him power. He was a
profound student of all the arts
and theories of war; the technique,
the tactics, the strategies. During
the ten years he was instructor at
the Virginia Military Institute he
studied the great campaigns of
history. His disciplined intellect
had absorbed and distilled the mil
itary lore of the ages and made the
wisdom of the past his wisdom.
He was no copyist, no military
plagiarist, if it may be so ex-
pressed. His theories and meth
DDS we're his own, evolved from
his own mind, illumined by his
own genius. He had the power of
concentrated thought, of abstract
consideration. His mind was ana
tytic. He could tear down and
dissect. 1t was also synthetic. He
could build up. La the very high
est degree he possessed imagina-
ton, the essence of genius, and
that imagination restrained by iron
will was driven boldly into the in
tricacies of war and war waging.
He had studied in detail the meth
DDS of the masters, had noted the
results of operations, the effect of
stroke and counter stroke, had
tested them all by his own concep-
tions and measured his conceptions
by them. He was profoundly pre-
pared for that struggle in whose
Righteousness he believed so in
tensely. Herein | repeat lay the
secret of his ascendancy over the
hearts and lives of his men. From
all that | have read of jackson, ]
doubt if he possessed in any great
degree that quality which we call
personal magnetism. His features
and form were not especially at
tractive.
When he captured Harper's Fer
ry he rodeinto the citadel and SO
anxious were the Union soldiers to
see him that they lined the sides Of
the roadway. Many of them IN
covered as he passed and he inva-
riably returned the salute. One Of
them had an echo of response all
around him when he exclaimed,
"Well, boys, he amt much to look
at, but if we'd had him, W o
wouldn't have been caught in this
trap
He possessed but little sense of
humor, or rather but little faculty
for it, was silent, at times taciturn,
and always almost morbidly reti-
cent. 1t is related that upon one
occasion particular friend of his
into some OF his plans and |
kept pressing for jackson to d.
vulge his intentions to him. Finally
Jackson said to him "Well, doc
tor, can you keep a secret, "and the
loctor eagerly responded that Of
course he could. ''Well, so can |,
sir, said the general and rode
away. 1t was his equipped men
.ality that spoke, his disciplined
Intellect. 1t was knowledge speak
ng in modest and calm assurance,
saying 81 am power; follow me- Y
Of course he possessed moral
courage and physical bravery un-
United. He feared neither man
lor devil. Much is said in history
# his religious devotion. Some