THE BATTLE OF HOOK'S FARM

Category: The Battle Of Hook's Farm

AND now, having given all the exact science of our war game, having told
something of the development of this warfare, let me here set out the
particulars of an exemplary game. And suddenly your author changes. He
changes into what perhaps he might have been--under different
circumstances. His inky fingers become large, manly hands, his drooping
scholastic back stiffens, his elbows go out, his etiolated complexion
corrugates and darkens, his moustaches increase and grow and spread, and
curl up horribly; a large, red scar, a sabre cut, grows lurid over one
eye. He expands--all over he expands. He clears his throat startlingly,
lugs at the still growing ends of his moustache, and says, with just a
faint and fading doubt in his voice as to whether he can do it, "Yas,
Sir!"

Now for a while you listen to General H. G. W., of the Blue Army. You
hear tales of victory. The photographs of the battlefields are by a
woman war-correspondent, A. C. W., a daring ornament of her sex. I
vanish. I vanish, but I will return. Here, then, is the story of the
battle of Hook's Farm.

"The affair of Hook's Farm was one of those brisk little things that
did so much to build up my early reputation. I did remarkably well,
though perhaps it is not my function to say so. The enemy was slightly
stronger, both in cavalry and infantry, than myself [Footnote: A slight
but pardonable error on the part of the gallant gentleman. The forces
were exactly equal.]; he had the choice of position, and opened the
ball. Nevertheless I routed him. I had with me a compact little force of
3 guns, 48 infantry, and 25 horse. My instructions were to clear up the
country to the east of Firely Church.

"We came very speedily into touch. I discovered the enemy advancing upon
Hook's Farm and Firely Church, evidently with the intention of holding
those two positions and giving me a warm welcome. I have by me a
photograph or so of the battlefield and also a little sketch I used upon
the field. They will give the intelligent reader a far better idea of
the encounter than any so-called 'fine writing' can do.

"The original advance of the enemy was through the open country behind
Firely Church and Hook's Farm; I sighted him between the points marked
A A and B B, and his force was divided into two columns, with very
little cover or possibility of communication between them if once the
intervening ground was under fire. I reckoned about 22 to his left and
50 or 60 to his right. [Footnote: Here again the gallant gentleman
errs; this time he magnifies.] Evidently he meant to seize both Firely
Church and Hook's Farm, get his guns into action, and pound my little
force to pieces while it was still practically in the open. He could
reach both these admirable positions before I could hope to get a man
there. There was no effective cover whatever upon my right that would
have permitted an advance up to the church, and so I decided to
concentrate my whole force in a rush upon Hook's Farm, while I staved
off his left with gun fire. I do not believe any strategist whatever
could have bettered that scheme. My guns were at the points marked D C
E, each with five horsemen, and I deployed my infantry in a line between
D and E. The rest of my cavalry I ordered to advance on Hook's Farm from
C. I have shown by arrows on the sketch the course I proposed for my
guns. The gun E was to go straight for its assigned position, and get
into action at once. C was not to risk capture or being put out of
action; its exact position was to be determined by Red's rapidity in
getting up to the farm, and it was to halt and get to work directly it
saw any chance of effective fire.


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