Excerpt from The Long Arm of Lee or the History of the Artillery of the Army of Northern Virginia, Vol. 1: With a Brief Account of the Confederate Bureau of Ordnance

This work has been written in my first year as Com mandant of the Corps of Cadets of the Virginia tary Institute. Its writing, therefore, has been attended by many interruptions incident to my military and academic duties. Convinced that the Field Artillery of the Army of Northern Virginia has received too little attention on the part of the historian, I have for years projected such a work as this. In fact, writers on the Civil War have almost as if intentionally ignored the subject, referring but casually to the gunner's part in the great tragedy. Their failure to discuss this subject has no doubt been due to a feeling of uncertainty whenever they sought to enter upon what they conceived to be a more or less special domain. Nor was this senti ment uncommon to the participants themselves. The reports of the various commanders engaged in the war are generally vague in matters pertaining to the artil lery. Not failing in tribute to the gunners, they have failed to record any definite information concerning the artillery.

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