Membership applications were sent recently to HQ  for  Daryl
Cooke   and   Scott   Summerfield.    Daryl's   great  great
grandfather Brigadier General John Rogers Cooke commanded  a
brigade in Heth's Division of the Third Corps of the Army of
Northern Virginia.  General Cooke was the brother  of  Flora
Cooke  Stuart  (Mrs.   J.   E.   B.).   Scott Summerfield is
descended from John Wesley Noe of Company H, 60th  Tennessee
Mounted  Infantry.   It  may  take  a while to receive their
membership certificates and hold an induction ceremony,  but
that  is  a  formality.   We welcome Daryl and Scott as Camp
members now.                                                

We received a note from Frank Bahen stating that he is going
out  of  the country for several years on an assignment.  He
requested inactive status, but there is no provision in  the
SCV  for  such.  We wish the best for Frank as he embarks on
this phase of his life.                                     

Our Chaplain Henry Langford is home form  the  hospital  and
says he hopes to be with us soon.                           

We  are  indeed  fortunate  to have Ed Bearss, retired chief
historian of the National Park  Service,  as  our  scheduled
speaker for our December 7 Christmas banquet at the Westwood
Club.  Anyone who has heard  Ed  speak  wants  to  hear  him
again.  If you haven't heard him you're in for a real treat.
Ed combines an encyclopedic knowledge  of  American  history
with  a dynamic delivery style that will hold your interest.
If you blindfolded Ed and flew him to any historic  site  in
America,  he  could identify it and proceed to tell you more
about what happened there than anybody.                     

We have received  a  thank  you  letter  from  Julie  Krick,
President  of  Richmond  Battlefields  Association  for  the
contribution made with funds generated by the Ukrop's Golden
Gift  Certificates.   We  were  one of three camps listed as
donors in a recent flag conservation newsletter sent out  by
the Museum of the Confederacy.                              

The recent commissioning ceremony in Norfolk of USS Virginia
(SSN 774), brings to mind the most  famous  warship  of  all
with that name, CSS Virginia, a participant in the battle of
ironclads  which  changed  naval   warfare   forever.    The
Confederacy's  ship  is  often called Merrimac, because that
was its U.  S.  Navy name before the Confederacy  seized  it
and  converted  it  into  an  ironclad.  Seeing CSS Virginia
called by its old name in print today causes a written salvo
to  be fired at the offending publication, pointing out that
by that line of fallacious reasoning the United States Coast
Guard  ship  Eagle  should  be called Horst Wessel, its name
until seized from Germany by America at the end of World War
Two.  It's interesting that several Confederate officers who
had served in the U.  S.  Navy before The War  continued  to
call  the  Confederate ironclad Merrimac.  At least they had
an excuse.  One would have hoped that  Virginia  authorities
would  have  had  better sense than to misname the tunnel in
the tidewater area Monitor-Merrimac.  Oh, well.             

				Walter Tucker

(The New) ROMA'S RESTAURANT 
8330 STAPLES MILL RD.
LOCATED IN "THE SHOPS AT STAPLES MILL"
TURN LEFT AT FIRST STOPLIGHT NORTH OF
THE WISTAR SHOPPING CENTER

DINNER- SOCIAL 6:00 PM

WILLIAM POTTER

William "Bill" Potter, author of  The  Boy's  Guide  to  the
Historical  Adventures  of  G.  A.  Henty and The Letters of
Stonewall Jackson to His Wife, spoke to the Camp  about  the
May  5,  1862  vicious battle of Williamsburg which involved
30,000 soldiers.  Colonial Williamsburg's  emphasis  of  the
colonial  and Revolutionary War periods has obscured the War
Between the States battle.  The first full length  study  of
the battle appeared in 1997.                                

Bill  pointed  out  that  "Prince"  John  Magruder  with his
penchant for the theatrical was the right man in  the  right
place  manning  the  Yorktown  line  and  leading  the  over
cautious George Brinton McClellan into believing that he was
facing   an  enormous  force  with  many  artillery  pieces.
Confederate General Joseph Eggleston  Johnson,  always  back
pedaling,  withdrew from the Yorktown line and established a
second line before Williamsburg.                            

McClellan, never a  believer  in  leading  from  the  front,
remained  at  Yorktown.   Without  maps  and yielding to his
propensity for sorting out things,  Little  Mac  sent  three
incompetent  corps  commanders against the Confederates.  On
the  afternoon  of  May  4  Stoneman's  Yankee  cavalry  was
resisted  by  the  Confederate  rear  guard.  Johnston asked
General  Longstreet  to  take  command  of  the  troops   in
Williamsburg.   Longstreet  sent  troops  to  the redans and
redoubts.                                                   

Fighting Joe Hooker was on the Union  left,  displaying  his
talent  for  bold  plans  and  cautious execution.  He had a
contrasting   combination   of   audacity,   caution,    and
vacillation.   He  did fight, which is more than can be said
of other Yankee commanders.                                 

The  Confederates  captured  a  Yankee  flag  on  which  was
emblazoned  'To  Hell  or  Richmond." Phil Kearny stabilized
Hooker's line.  Confederate cavalry blocked the Yankees  all
over the field, especially on the right.                    

Yankees occupied 11 redans after being informed by a runaway
slave that several were unoccupied.  George Armstrong Custer
captured an empty redoubt.                                  

Winfield Scott Hancock's artillery fired into Fort Magruder.
Jubal Early's troops attacked Hancock.  General  Edwin  Vose
Sumner,  in  overall command, refused to send reinforcements
to Hancock, who lost 126 men and was ordered  to  return  to
Union lines.                                                

After the fighting, each side, with few exceptions, occupied
essentially the  same  ground  that  it  had  before.   Both
claimed  victory.   The  Confederacy  achieved  its  goal of
blunting the Union advance.                                 

Sumner remained confused throughout the  battle.   McClellan
late  in  the day heard that something big was happening and
finally came to the scene.  Ambrose  Powell  Hill  performed
well and was elevated to Division command.                  

This  battle  has been described as a blunder that ought not
to have happened.                                           

                         Walter Dunn Tucker

2003-2004 CAMP OFFICERS
LONGSTREET CAMP #1247

Commander: Harry Boyd                 741-2060
1st. Lt. Cmdr.: Taylor Cowardin       356-9625
2nd Lt. Cmdr.: Michael Kidd	      270-9651
Adjutant/Treasurer: Walter Tucker     360-7247
Quartermaster: R. Preston Nuttall     276-8977
Chaplain: Henry V. Langford           340-8948

PUBLICATIONS

Webmaster: Gary F. Cowardin           262-0534
War Horse:  David P. George           353-8392

The following is a cumulative listing of contributors to the
upkeep  of  “The  Old  War  Horse” for the period July, 2004
through  the  current  month. As you  know,  our  cumulative
listing starts in July of each year.                        

Lloyd Brooks
Phil Cheatham
Brian Cowardin
Gary Cowardin*
Taylor Cowardin
Ron Cowardin
Raymond Crews
Chris Jewett
Jack Kane*
Michael Kidd
Frank Marks
Joe Moschetti
Richard Mountcastle
Bill Setzer
Austin Thomas
Walter Tucker*
David Ware
Hugh Williams

Legend:                                  
* - Multiple contributions               
§ - Visitor Donation                     

Thanks to all of you for your great support! We're off to
 a running start in the new fiscal year!

The Civil War Preservation Trust Society  is  attempting  to
save  approximately  665 acres of land at the White Oak Road
Battlefield.  This is an important piece of  the  Petersburg
Battlefield  and  once it is lost to developers, then a very
important part of the last campaign of the Army of  Northern
Virginia is lost forever.                                   

NASCAR  was  recently petitioned by the National Association
of Minority Race Fans to have the Confederate  flag  removed
or  replaced  by either an American flag or a NASCAR flag at
the Atlanta Motor Speedway.  NASCAR has refused to  issue  a
statement directing its fans to do so.                      

The  Virginia Division of the SCV is reporting that the 1862
headquarters  of  General  J.E.B.   Stuart,  known  as   the
Timberlake Farms, is set to be destroyed and replaced with a
new  shopping  mall.   The  area  in  question  is  at   the
intersection of U.S.  301 and Atlee Road in Hanover County. 

Finally,  the  national  SCV  Office  is  holding  a General
Executive Council meeting in Concord, NC on  December  18th.
Concord  is  just north of Charlotte off of I-85 and Highway
49.                                                         

			Michael Kidd
			2nd Lt. Commander

The Christmas Banquet will be held again this  year  at  The
Westwood  Racquet  Club on Tuesday, December 7th starting at
6:00 PM.                                                    

Our guest speaker will be Ed Bearss, retired Chief Historian
of the National Park Service.  Ed is a world-renowned expert
on the War Between the States, and we are  indeed  fortunate
to have him with us at our Christmas celebration this year. 

You  simply cannot miss this opportunity to meet Ed and help
us introduce him to the wonderful fellowship that  we  enjoy
as Compatriots of Longstreet Camp.                          

Further  details  will  be found on the attached reservation
form.                                                       

"The Young Soldier and His General"

(The following depicts an actual event.  At Second Manassas,
after   desperate  fighting  along  an  unfinished  railroad
embankment, Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson's men, reinforced  by
the  arrival  of  Longstreet's  Corps, have driven the enemy
from the field.)                                            

That night, around a campfire, Hunter McGuire recounted  for
the  General which commanders and acquaintances were lost in
the battle.  The list was long.                             

"Colonels Neff, Botts and Forno are dead," said  the  Doctor
grimly.   "Generals  Trimble,  Field  and Ewell are severely
wounded.  Ewell has lost a leg."                            

Thomas (Stonewall) listened in silence, expressionless,  his
eyes  glowing  as  he  stared  at  the fire.  For reasons he
didn't understand, he had a gift for war.  When the Heavenly
Father's  work  required him to lead men into battle, it was
like an intoxicating tonic to him.  But afterward  came  the
reckoning.  Always afterward came the reckoning over friends
and comrades whom God had willed to die.  It never failed to
sober him.  High indeed was the price of performing the work
of the Almighty.                                            

"And I'm afraid young William Preston is mortally  wounded,"
added the Doctor.  "He won't make it through the night."    

Willie  was the 18-year-old son of J.T.L.  Preston, Thomas's
comrade from VMI.  Thomas had watched Willie grow up and had
made  him  an  aide,  but  the boy insisted on rejoining his
unit,  the  Liberty  Hall  Volunteers,  just  prior  to  the
heaviest fighting.  The news hit Thomas hard.               

"What.!?   Then  why  are  you  not  with him?" demanded the
General, springing up from his log seat.   His  eyes  glowed
like  cobalt  and  his facial muscles twitched as he clamped
down hard on the doctor's  shoulder.   "Why  did  you  leave
him?"                                                       

"There.are  so  many,  General," said the Doctor, wincing in
discomfort.  "There's.just nothing I can do.   We  have  won
this  battle  by  the  hardest  kind  of  fighting."  Thomas
reflected a moment and loosened his grip.  "No, no,  Doctor,
we have won it by the blessing of Almighty God."            

He turned and walked away.  He was losing control and wanted
to be alone.  He didn't want his officers to see  the  tears
forming  in  his  eyes.   Out  beyond the circle of light he
walked, out along the railroad embankment where his men  had
fought so hard, and where so many had fallen.  How much more
killing, he  wondered.   How  long  before  the  mission  of
killing that God had given him would be done and he could be
with Anna and their expected  child?   How  long  before  he
could  enjoy the creation of life rather than the heartbreak
of so much death?                                           

Suddenly he halted, almost stumbling over a  form  lying  in
the  dark.   It was a young soldier, maybe twenty, alone and
struggling to drag himself up onto the embankment.          

"Why.Sir!" exclaimed Thomas,  stooping  down  with  concern.
"Are you wounded?"                                          

"Ye.yes,  Gen'ral,  it's  my leg," said the boy, recognizing
his commander and fighting  not  to  show  pain.   "But.tell
me.have we whupped 'em?"                                    

"Yessir, we have, sir!  What regiment are you?"              

"The  4th  Virginia.your  ol' brigade.from the Valley.  I've
been wounded four times, General.but never so bad as this. I
hope I'll soon be able to.to follow you agin."              

Thomas  placed  a hand to the boy's feverish head.  "You are
worthy of the old brigade, son, and with God's blessing, you
shall  return to it!...Doctor!!  Doctor McGuire!  Come here!
And bring a stretcher!"                                     

Soon the Doctor and an aide  were  at  their  side.   Thomas
glared  at  his  medical  officer and pointed to the wounded
boy.                                                        

"God willing, this man shall be saved!  You will take him to
the rear and attend to him personally!"                     

They  lifted the boy onto the stretcher.  He tried to speak,
but sobs choked off the words as tears ran  down  his  ashen
cheeks.  He and his general looked at each other in silence.
No words were necessary.                                    

			Preston Nuttall