Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 07.djvu/130

122 Major and Assistant Adjutant-General. June 6th, 1862.

It is said that after General Grant had finished reading Sherman's book on the late war, he remarked that before reading that book he had imagined that he had taken some part in the war, but that he had now discovered that he was mistaken. So we of Jackson's corps had supposed that we did a little towards the repulse of the Federals in their attack on our lines on the 30th of August, 1862, at Manassas, and we would still be laboring under that delusion but for the kindly information from General Longstreet, that his artillery did the whole work.

For the sake of some of our Northern brethren whose eyes may fall upon this article, I could well wish that some other than General Longstreet had made this discovery, as, since that gentleman has gotten on the right side in politics, anything that we poor Southerners may say in contradiction of his promulgations is set down at the North as a "Rebel lie." But I propose that what I am