Show ECCENTRICITY OF JACKSON He Would Not Talk to a Comrade But Would Tall to Himself From the Century Magazine All persons who saw much of General Gen-eral Stonewall Jackson remarked his taciturnity and self abstraction I once rode with him during an entire day and I now recall the trip as one of the most lonesome I ever made It was in the summer of 1862 shortly after McClellan had changed his base to the James river and was securely resting under the shelter of his gunboats gun-boats at Harrisons Landing Jacksons command recently from the mountains moun-tains had been withdrawn to a more healthful encampment a few miles north of Richmond but General Lee with the bulk of the army was still fronting the enemy Early one morning morn-ing while doing duty at Jacksons headquarters I was told to get my horse and accompany the general on a ride As we quietly jogged along the road I endeavored to draw him into conversation about the incidents connected con-nected with the terrible seven days battle we had just fought but failing to elicit anything more than short negative or halfaffirmative responses I changed the subject to general topics the weather etc Still meeting with no beter success I relapsed into silence determined not again to talk unless Invited to do so For hours we continued down the road at a fox trot or rapid walk without a word being spoken The prolonged silence was growing oppressive to me when I noticed not-iced him muttering as if talking to someone < he had in mindprobably arguing ar-guing a strategy As the debated point grew in Interest the muttering became louder and more frequent He was evidently jn hot dispute with an imaginary person upon a subject I about which they differed widely Dummy had apparently laid down some proposition which to the generals gener-als mode of reasoning was clearly untenable un-tenable He therefore replied No sir No sir in a loud voice I and with a gesture of impatient dissent dis-sent The physical exertion seemed to arouse ar-ouse him from his reverie Dummy vanished instanter and turning to me I with an odd expression of countenance Jackson remarked That Is a handsome cottage over there pointing to a farmhouse we were thteen passing Immediately afterward putting spurs to his horse he went clattering down the road at a 240 gait leaving I me to bring up In the rear Not another an-other word was spoken until we reached reach-ed General Lees headquarters whither whith-er we were bound |