Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 14.djvu/457

 A Visit to Beauvoir. 451

received from him a very kind reply, in which the Professor said that he was now too old and infirm to make new experiments, and that, besides, he had lost their original memoranda and calculations.

He spoke with commendable pride of what progress the Confede- racy had made in creating material of war, until at the end of the struggle the best powder in the world was made at the Confederate mill under charge of General Rains. He said that while a prisoner at Fortress Monroe he was told that the powder which produced the best results in firing at iron plates was some of this powder captured from the Confederates.

He talked freely, and in the most interesting manner, of the causes, progress, and results of the war, and, while fully accepting its logi- cal results, he seems profoundly anxious that our children should be taught the truth, and that our people should not forget or ignore the great fundamental principles for which we fought. As for allowing the war to be called " The Rebellion" and our Confederate people " Rebels," he heartily repudiated and condemned it. " A sovereign cannot rebel," he said, " and sovereign States could not be in rebel- lion. You might as well say Germany rebelled against France, or that France (as she was beaten in the contest) rebelled against Ger- many."

He said that once in the hurry of writing he had spoken of it as " the civil war," but had never used that misnomer again.

He spoke of many of our generals and of the inside history of some of our great battles and campaigns, telling some things of great interest and historic value, which I do not feel at liberty to publish now.

After speaking in the most exalted terms of Lee and Jackson, their mutual confidence in each other, and their prompt co-operation, he said: "They supplemented each other, and, together, with any fair opportunity, they were absolutely invincible." He defended Jack- son against the statement made by some of his warmest admirers (even Dr. Dabney in his biography) that he was not fully himself in failing to force the passage of White Oak swamp to go to the help of A. P. Hill at Frazier's Farm. He said that he thought that a careful study of the topography would show that Franklin's position was the real obstacle to Jackson's crossing.

He spoke warmly of the magnificent fight which A. P. Hill, after- wards supported by Longstreet, made that day — a battle which he witnessed — and told some interesting incidents concerning it.

Early in the day he met General Lee near the front, and at once