Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1912-12-06

Colonel r. Preston Chew, VIII
delivered the principal address a
the unwilling of Stonewall Jack
son statue June 10, Lexington
Va, was a graduate at the V
NJ. l. in 1861. AS pupil he hat
been in close contact with Pro
fessor T. ]. Jackson several ses
sious and in the shock of battl,
ttlie gallant Chew snst 1ined TIL
immortal Stonewal1 Jackson il
his unparalleled military Achieve
ments. until the last battle
Therefore, Colonel Chew was vel
qualified to review the record Of
the wonderful success Of Stone.
wall Jackson IN his brief military
career. That Colonel Chew &C.
quilted his task with credit and
honor is the opinion of Confeder.
ate veterans who enjoyed the
pleasure of hearing him.
In the spring of 1861, Chew or.
gained an artillery company,
known as Horse Artillery" all
cannoneers being mounted, and
he was made captain and assign
ed to General Ashby's Brigade for
duty by General Stonewall Jack
son, who commended him for gal
liant service. Later Gen. Jack
son recommended Captain Chew
for promotion to ma jor of Horse
Artillery, and in 1864 was promo
ted 10 lieutenant-colonel, COM
handing Stuart'S Horse Artillery
comprising five batteries.
When Stonewall Jackson sue
coded in defeating the Federal
armies in the Shenandoah Valley
in the spring of 1862 with II, 900
soldiers against 10000 Federal
soldiers under command of Cen
erals Banks, Fremont, Shields
and Milroy, General Jackson said
to Hon. Alexa nder Boteler that
if he had 10000 infantry, with
Ashby's cavalry and Chew's Bat
terry, he would march through
the Northern States.
Following are several testimon-
ials from Confederate officers who
were aligned with Colonel Chew
on the firing line, and the records
of these heroic soldiers are we'll
known:
A letter from General Thomas
T. Munford to a member of
Chew's Battery says:
I was four years a cavalry
officer in the Confederate army.
| have no enemies to punish, but
l owe much to my comrades who
supported me amid a peculiar
career. The noblest and among
the most splendid cavalry officers
Virginia ever gave to the field
was General Turner Ashby. l
was under him and the senior
colonel of his command, and at
his death succeeded him at Cross
Keys, and commanded his brigade
until Beverly Robertson, a West
Pointer, was assigned to the COM
mand. "Chew's Battery" was
Ashbv's pet, and it was under
the gallant Chew, as much Ash
by's right arm as Ashby was the
right arm of Stonewall Jackson,
and no man or men in his whole
command and in his whole career,
did more to bring out his glory.
l don't believe any army ever had
better battery of horse artillery
than Captain Preston Chew in
the campaign of 1862. Chew had
the dash, and he was educated as
a soldier at the Virginia Military
Institute under Jackson, and was
greatly admired by Jackson. 1
know this personally, as 1 was
with Jackson at the V. M. l as
the adjutant of the corps of ca
diets when he acted as command
ant, and knew him we'll. / have
tented with him asleep in the
same bed with him. l mention
this simply to show that l had an
opportunity of knowing his
opinion of Chew's Horse Artil-
lery. He told me he never knew
a better battery more than once.
! say this to YOU to show you
that l know what / am talking
and writing about. Having serv'
ed with that battery all through
the Valley campaign of 1862
and had it under my immediate
command during the Maryland
campaign of 1862, can speak O
| it as a comrade should love to
1t was ever ready and always
equal to all demands with half /;
chance. / often think of my as
sociations with Chew's splendit
battery of Ashby's command
Gallant Ashby ! Yes, superl
chhv U1oriouS hatferv. haf