Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 39.djvu/121

 Review of " From Manassas to Appomattox." 109

to maintain communication between columns that were widely separated in dense forest. General Longstreet, it may be noted, is the first and only soldier in all America, north or south, to accuse the fiercest fighter in either army of a disinclination to join battle.

Again, General Longstreet suggests that the great counter- stroke at Alanassas, Aug. 30, 1862, made by his troops, would have been more efifectice had Jackson aided him with greater energy. What are the facts? General Longstreet's troops, when the counter-stroke was initiated, were perfectly fresh — they had hardly fired a shot. Jackson's men, on the other hand, had been fighting the whole Federal army, just three times their strength, for two days, and were completely exhausted. Does General Longstreet- wish us to believe that any troops in the world, under such conditions, would be capable of delivering a strong counterstroke ? The wonder is that the men found strength to advance at all.

The most astonishing assertion (page 407), however, is that Jackson was at the battle of Sharpsburg only two and a half hours, while he (Longstreet) was there all day. We confess that we read this statement with amazement. The first and the most vigorous attack of the Federals, which began at 5 A. ^L, and which did not cease until after 9 A. M., was repulsed by Jackson. The great counter-stroke delivered by McLaws and Walker was made by Jackson's order, and when that energetic efifort failed to crush the enemy the troops remained in position, not for two and a half hours, but until after nightfall the next day, and during that whole time Stonewall Jackson never left the field. One of his divisions was undoubtedly driven back, and another, which was well-nigh annihilated, was sufifered to withdraw when the attack ceased ; but the general himself re- mained with the re-enforcements, supervising all arrangements and exercising every single function of command. In fact. Gen- eral Longstreet, in his anxiety to disparage his great colleague, contradicts himself. On page 257 he says that General Jackson had an interview with him during the afternoon.

But we are weary of exposing these misstatements. Stone-