The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1915-01-09
lee and JACKSON
GUIDE T0IBR|T|sA
Southern Leaders Had Superior
Tactics, Says English Officer:
THEIR METHODS % ADOPTED.

lHtIk mtlHUuS ADOPTED.
War Correspondents Frequently Refer
to Great American Civil War In Do.
scribins Present Day strussIes-wis.
>. dom Of Following southerners' Elk.
ample Il Demonstrated.
London.-There Is nothing more no.
dceable In the writings by the present
British war correspondents than the
frequent references to- the American
civil war and the tactics employed by
the great leaders who directed it, par
tfcularly Robert f. Lee and "Stone.
wall" Jackson.
British officers always have paid es.
pectaI attention to the American civil
war. but according to well informed
military men it was the battles of the
Franco-Prussian war which were con-
sidered best to repay study by British
soldiers until the publication. about if
teen years ago. OF "stonewau jackson
and the American Civil War;" by the
late Colonel G. e. r. Henderson of the
British army, with an introduction BY
Field Marshal Viscount Wolseley.
The two volumes Of this work are
quite familiar in the army examining
schools Of London. 1t is studied closely
by officers Of all ranks, as is shown in
the following estimation of its effects
on British tactics. which was recently
given in an interview, by Colonel VIII
Ioughby Werner, latezof the Rife bri-
gade, fellow professor at Sandhurst
of Colonel Henderson and later on the
headquarters staff during the Boer war:
II know Colonel Henderson we'll, and
for the three years prior to the Boer
war we were both professors at Sand.
hurst. he of military history at the
Staff college and l Of military topog.
raphy and reconnaissance
I'VE often discussed questions of
troop leading and the best way of
handling men under modern rife fire.
Before this. for many years. it had
been the system of Our staff college
to accept the methods sOf tie German
armies In the war 81 1870 as the be-
ginning and end Of all modern tactics.
| had been audacious enough. when
student at the Staff college in 1882,
to disbelieve this. and then had found
few supporters. So l was delighted
when one day Colonel Henderson told
me that be had formed very similar
opinions. adding that he believed there
was infinitely more to be learned from
the great civil war In America than
from the -Prussian war. and
Colonel Henderson spoke from an un.
rivalled knowledge and close study of
the campaigns in the United States.
1.-The accuracy Of Henderson's views
was demonstrated on many occasions
during the BOer war. with the result
that the whole of our British infantry
since has adopted methods for devel.
oping rifle fire and OF extended forma.
lions whereby the greatest possible
amount of protection Is obtained for
those engaged in the firing line. CON-
bined with the maximum fire effect.
which was the basis alike of the light
division work in the PeninsuIar and Of
much of the successful fighting In the
American civil war
According to all accounts, the Ger
mans today adhere to their dense for
nations In the attack. as In 1870. and
it is notorious how their attacks have
been consistently met and repulsed by
our British soldiers. fighting on more
intelligent lines. The relative amount
of execution thus attained will be
known accurately only when the losses
on both sides are reckoned up (of1icers
at the front assert that it Is as much as
eight to one,. but it can be said safely
that, save when overwhelmed by mum.
bers. the British methods have proved
their superiority over those Of Ger
many.
1T Is no exaggeraton to say that
Colonel Henderson's book Is viewed by
all educated British officers as one OF
the very finest works on military art
in his Own autobiography be writes:
'Henderson's delightful and instructive
work on "Stonewail" Jackson and the
American civil warl recommend to all
our officers. They would find it's we'll
told story as intensely interesting as
its teaching is sound and full of useful
advice to Englishmen Of today
Pew people nowadays know that In
1862 Wolse,ey. then a lieutenant COLO
mel on the stat In Canada. obtained
leave Of absence on private affairs and
unknown to his chiefs succeeded in
joining Lees army 'as a spectator. OF
course). Here it was that be met sew
eral Of the famous soldiers of those
days and among them 'Stonewall' Jack
son. of whom he writes, What q hero
and yet how simple and humble mind
ed man!
comparing Jackson with bis great
chief. Lee, be says. Both were great
soldiers. yet neither had any (,othiike
delight in war What a lesson for the
destroyers of Rheims!
1T was my honor to serve on Lord
Wolseley's staff on active service and
to have seen good deaf of him during
his latter days. and repeatedly have
heard him talk with enthusiasm Of the