The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-01-13
BOOK REVIEW AND
MAGAZINE NOTES

heart OF a lion and the courage OF q mar
tyr. He fell nprtally wounded In the
fight near Kelly's Ford, with the battle
cry on his lips and tho light OF victory
beatning from his eye
Colonel Taylor. In estimating the battle
os Charlottesville. MS Lce's greatest vic.
tory. considers II 10 a dearly-bougft VIC
tory, because OF the irreparable loss there
to the South by the death Of General
Stonewall Jackson. whom he considers
"the thunderbolt Of war. as Robert Eh
Lee was Its Jove."
Tho account given by Colonel Taylor OF
the battle OF Gettysburg Is very full. and
| is evidently written with tho ciearest light
| on the subject. and the s!ncerest desire
| to bring out OF much discussion. just what
| Is entirely correct. From this point Of
! visw. It can be thoroughly commanded to
! the reader.
In referring to the death OF Stuart on
May IL. 1854. no estimates II az tho most
serious and tho snddcst loss sustained by
psiga.
The account OF the surrender mt APP
rou,atto1 and the return OF General Lee
stter II to Richmond, where his family
then lived at No. 707 East Franklin Stroet
occupies many pages toward the close OF
the book, and bears thorough evidence Of
having been the Impressions received on
the spot by an eyewitness Of one OF the
greatest tragedies OF hi8tory. Some per-
sonal letters, written from Cartersville
and Lexington by General Lee add a
sequel to the chapter finished by tho sur
render.
The book makes its appearance at the
near approach of January 10th, and the
Ce1phyu of al fu
judicial in tone throughout. end written
with the candor and sincerity that must
render 1t acceptable to the people OF all
sections of the United States.
THE FIRST IRoN-cLAD NAVAL EN-
GAGEMENT IN THE WORLD. BY
70. v. White, of Portsmouth, Va.
Mr.. Whites book is history of facts
of the great naval battle between the
Merrmac- Virginia, c.. S. N. and the
Ericsson Monitor u. S. N. which took
place in Hampton Roads. March sth and
9th, 1852.
AS preliminary to what the outhor
considers an intelligent study of his SUBJ
ject, he gives the history OF the Merri-
mac, from the time she was placed in
commission in 1855. to the time when on
April 10, 1861, she was dismantled and
burned to the water line by tho COM
mand of the Federal authorities, who
then evacuated Norfolk and Portsmouth.
Va. After mature consideration, the au-
thor says. the Confederate authorities de-
termined to raise tho Merrimac and upon
her hull construct powerful battery for
the protection of Norfolk harbor, and
the mouth; of James River. Upon plans
supplied by Virginian. the work of
construction proceeded until Its compile
ton He then gives the dimensions OF
the reconstructed iron-clad and mentions
the change OF name. which made her af-
forwards known as the Virginia. also
the fact that he held tho position Of as
sistant engineer on the vessel.
He describes the stirring events OF
March s. 1852. and the sinking of the
United States battleships Cumberland and
Congress by the Virginia on that day.
The letter OF the Washington cores
pondent. showing the impression made
throughout the North by the daring OF
the Virginia and the skill with which
she was handled, is introduced by Mr.. |
White, who further introduces the testi-
mony of an eyewitness to the battle, who
was within the Federal lines at Old Point
and who said: cat shutdown of Saturday
night there was nothing to dispute the
empire Of the seas with the Virginia, and /
had n land attack been made by Ma
fate would have been! The st. Lawrence !
and the Minnesota aground and helpless.
the Roanoke with a broken shaft-these
were our defenses by sea: while on land
we were doing all possible to resist a
night invasion, but who could hope that
these would have much efficiency! The
heavens were aflame with the burning
Congress-. The hotel was crowded with i
fugihves. and private hospitality was
taxed to the utmost. The heavy night
hung dark the hills and waters DER, but
the night was not half 80 heavy as our
hearts, nor so dark as our prospects,"
The account given by the same eye-
witness Of the duel between the Virginia
and the Monitor on Sunday, March 9th,
Is considered by Mr.. White to be mis-
written history. He gives the account in
full and then corrects It by his own state
ments. This Is what he says:
we caught and did run into the Moni-
tor and came near running her under
water, not that we struck her exactly Mt
right-angle but with our starboard bow
drove against her with a determination
OF sending her to the bottom. and so
near did we come to accomplishing our
object that from the ramming and tho
shot Of our rifle gun that blinded her
commander. she Withdrew to shoal wa-
'iSfAA Iio Hh1iiirsooi neVer aStAn 10
offer or to accept battle with the Virginia.
I wish to emphasize tho facts Just related
OF the purposed collision with the Monitor
and our desire to repeat It and of her
from the field. and her re- i
fusal then or thereafter to engage in bat
Ito with the ViraLa'
Mr.. White reooslnts the improvements
made to the Virginia after March 9, 1862,
and tells OF how she went down to Old
Point and offered battle to the Monitor
and the Vanderbilt without success, also