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Book Reviews197 caused enormous excitement at the time. It was actually a series of skirmishes and does not appear to have any effect upon the military situation" (p. 84) . It is surprising that a man of some miUtary experience finds nothing worth while in the swift marches of Jackson's "foot cavalry," and that eccentric commander 's intelUgent use of interior Unes, his iron security, and his cool courage in the face of converging Union columns. While there is a danger of magnifying the Valley campaign out of all proportion to other contemporary events, never before has it been disposed of thus summarily. The chapter on Gettysburg is the longest and perhaps the best of the book, and contains a terrain appreciation well worm reading. But as Grant was not at Gettysburg, the author seems obUged to have Utde good to say of any of die senior officers on either side, although, perversely, he tries to scrape some of the mud off Longstreet. Lee's attack of 2 July, usually best classified as "piece-meal and uncoordinated," Colonel McCormick labels as "Napoleon's famous maneuver at Friedland, with which, of course, Lee was entirely famiUar " (p. 156). The inference is that the obUque order of battle was still valid in an age of increased ranges of small arms and artillery, a very debatable point, and the historical paraUel would be enhanced by reference to Frederick at Leufhen, or even to Epaminondas at Leuctra, rather than to Napoleon at Friedland. Nevertheless, Gettysburg is one of the Colonel's favorite batdes, and he gives it thorough treatment. Most of the points of issue in this work are, naturally, matters of opinion. If the author feels that Butler and Banks were better generals than Reynolds and Hancock—well, after all, it's his book. There are a few errors of fact, such as saying (p. 63) that Joe Johnston was to continue to win victories after First Bull Run, or caUing McClellan an artilleryman (p. 116), but none of tiiem is very important. The outstanding feature of tìiis book, and perhaps a reason for the stiff price, is the cartography; there are twenty-one fine fold-in maps by Axel Kellstrom. Movements of troops and detailed tactical positions are shown in color, and the presentation of the topography is excellent. The text itself does not exploit the fine maps. It cannot be said that The War Without Grant adds anything new to Civil War history, nor is it a particularly clear and concise presentation of the conflict . The old Civil War hand, already knowing the facts, will be interested in Colonel McCormick's opinions even though he may agree witih few of them. For the miUtary historian, this work will not displace Steele or Wood and Edmonds. Arthur P. Wade West Point, New York. Stonewall Jackson and the Old Stonewall Brigade. By John Esten Cooke. Edited by Richard Barksdale Harwell. (Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press. 1954. Pp. 76. $3.50.) john esten Cooke (1830-1886) produced over thirty volumes, seven of which were based upon his Civil War experiences. He Uved to see his books attain 198CIVIL WAR history considerable popularity and a measure of critical acclaim, but today his works are almost forgotten. His biographies of Stonewall Jackson and Robert E. Lee are useful for their first-hand accounts of miUtary operations. His best novels are The Virginia Comedians (1854), a treatment of WilUamsburg before the Revolution, and Surry of Eagle's Nest (1866), a romance of the Civil War. Three months before Jackson's death, Captain Esten Cooke contributed the first of a series of poems and sketches to a Richmond weekly, The Southern Illustrated News. Three articles appeared under the tide "Stonewall Jackson, and the Old Stonewall Brigade." They are addressed to patriotic Confederates and contain "all Ûie dash and passion and hero worship that marked Cooke's wartime reporting," Mr. HarweU asserts. Cooke's sketches of Jackson and his men contain more eulogy than historical reporting. From the opening sentence, "Greatest of Generals is General StonewaU Jackson," to his rhetorical conclusion, Cooke embellishes his subject with language intended to inspire, language suggesting the birth of a legend. The...

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