How, Henry Jackson

HENRY JACKSON HOW. Major 19th Mass. Vols. (Infantry), August 3, 1861; killed at Glendale, Va., June 30, 1862. HENRY JACKSON HOW was born in Haverhill, Massachusetts, October 22, 1835. His parents were Phineas and Tryphena (Wheeler) How. He was fitted for college at Phillips Academy, Andover, Massachusetts, where he maintained an honorable standing. His former instructor writes that, in a large class, he ranked among the very first in scholarship, having one of the highest parts assigned him at the final public exhibition. He entered the Class of 1858 at Harvard University, but left during his Freshman year, and returned subsequently to join the Class of 1859. It is said that the death of his mother, which occurred about this time, rendering the old scenes distasteful to him for a season, occasioned this abrupt departure from Cambridge. Although How's college career was not especially brilliant, he was, from the outset, a marked character. The very name by which he was universally known, "Jack How," suggests the individual, bluff, honest, and hearty. Many will remember him well as he appeared in those days, sauntering across the College yard to recitation, always the conspicuous figure of a group, often making boisterous merriment, and joining heartily in the general laughter. He was tall and well proportioned, with broad shoulders, handsome features, curling hair, and beaming eyes, apt to be negligent in dress, and regardless of nice rules of etiquette. Whenever the Class met, whether at the social table or in the lecture-room, his ready wit found full expression. He was the personification of truth and honor, and an ardent admirer of all heroic virtues. Although at times rough, inconsiderate, and even positively rude, there was a deep tenderness in his nature which was touched by the smallest act of kindness; and he liked to be fondled and caressed like some shaggy Newfoundland dog. In many respects he was well fitted to be a social leader, and his tastes naturally inclined that way, rather than to pre-eminence in scholarship. But there was too much of the rough diamond about him to please the fastidious, and he drove the shafts of ridicule so deep that he sometimes made enemies among those who should have been his friends. His faults were those of a frank, impulsive disposition. He was bold and outspoken, and had too much pride to attempt conciliation where he had given offence. A proneness to exaggerate the merits and defects of classmates, want of appreciation of delicate and subtile [sic] traits of character, too great intolerance (if we may use the word) of conceit, affectation, sentiment, and those other weaknesses from which college students are by no means exempt, these were his chief faults. He drew the line boldly between friends and enemies, and while he would always defend the former, he fought the latter to the death. He struck vigorously while the iron was hot, but lacked that quiet, persistent application which commands success. On the whole, his course at Harvard, although by no means a failure, did not seem to do him full justice, and was not, perhaps, a happy one. A singular combination of strength and weakness, a proud and generous nature struggling with adversity, one of strong will and equally strong passions, irregular, fitful, and inconsistent, constantly making good resolutions and often breaking them, Nature's image of a true man, but with feet of clay, - such was " Jack How," as he impressed his friends at college. His character is well illustrated in an extract from a letter written to a classmate by a lady who had the best opportunities of knowing him: "You knew his noble character and great heart, and need not that I should call to mind the many generous and splendid traits that so endeared him to his friends. He was a good son and fond brother. You know how warmly he was attached to his College friends. He never ceased to remember them lovingly, and talked to me often of a half-dozen of them. He couldn't see the future without them, but would end every talk of them with, ' By and by we'll have.... and.... and the others to visit us, and won't I be happy?' You know his enthusiastic defence [sic] of his friends, at all times. He would hear nothing against one whom he called friend. You know, but not half, the deep tenderness of his nature, shown every day of his life. You know his strong affections. You know his earnest, bold, true, upright character, how he stood up for the right, how he kept straight in what he thought was duty, how ready he was to defend the weak. I can't speak of half the fine points we both knew so well. I think he was a true man, in the fullest sense of the word. As to his religious character, you perhaps know as well as I. He had deep religious impressions while at school, and connected himself with the Church; and we who knew him best feel that they never lost their influence over his life, as was particularly shown during the last months of his service for God and man. Many times worldly impressions were strongest with him; but they never destroyed the faith in his heart, I feel convinced. I would not like to have the impression given that he was altogether without religion. Faults he had, of course, but they were buried with him, and they were only the weaknesses of a noble character." It may be added, in reference to this last point, that while at Cambridge most of his warmest friends were among those of strong religious convictions and irreproachable morals. How studied medicine for a short time after leaving college, attending lectures in Boston and Hanover, and then, preferring a more active employment, connected himself with the hatting business in his native town, and was thus occupied when the Rebellion broke out. With the fall of Fort Sumter, a new life was opened before him. Henceforth he determined to be a soldier. He raised a company in Haverhill, composed of one hundred and twenty-five, - one of the first, if not the very first, organized in Massachusetts under President Lincoln's proclamation, - and was unanimously chosen Captain. A prominent citizen of his town says, that from the first the fullest confidence was felt in his capacity as an officer, and that he never in the least lost his popularity, nor did he retain it by compromising his dignity. There were numerous delays before the company could be accepted by government; and it was not until the last of June that Captain How was ordered with his command to Fort Warren, Boston Harbor, where he ranked as senior officer in the Fourteenth Massachusetts Volunteers. He conducted himself with marked ability; but after the arrival of the Colonel to take command of the regiment, an unfortunate controversy arose, and Captain How was superseded. A letter written to Governor Andrew soon after this sets forth at length Captain How's own defence [sic], and seems completely to exonerate him from blame. Were it not for the personal nature of the discussion, the letter might be quoted at length. The conclusion is as follows: - "The substance of all this is just this. I was senior captain of the Fourteenth Regiment; I was at the head of a splendid company, and was considered the best officer in the regiment. This is not what I say, but what others say. I only say I did just what I thought was right, and just as well as I knew how. Now I am removed. It is unjust and wrong. So says every soldier and civilian who knows me. "I enlisted as a private, but was chosen captain. If those whose opinion is worth anything should tell me that I had shown myself a poor officer, I would enlist as private again; but until then, if I should take position lower than I previously held, I should show a lack of pride unbecoming a soldier... "Now all in one word. I want to be major of one of the regiments now forming. It is a position that I have earned by hard work, as captain of the first new company raised in this State, and as the subject of misfortunes for which I am in no degree responsible. " It is a position that I know-I can fill as well as many who are now of that rank. If the recommendation of the citizens of Haverhill would have any weight, it is at my service. Except those who had not the patriotism to enlist as soldiers, and are now working for position, every man will be willing to trust the reputation of the town with me. I want to try to fill this position; and if I fail, I will take a musket with zeal. I shall place on file the recommendation of several military men who know me well, and have volunteered their assistance. If there is still a place vacant, I hope my claim will not be overlooked." This letter, bold and almost presumptuous in its tone, pleased Governor Andrew so much, by its manly earnestness, that he at once ordered Captain How to the command of the camp where the Nineteenth Massachusetts Regiment was in process of formation; and before the Nineteenth left the State, How was commissioned as its Major. Major How fully redeemed his pledges to the State, and justified the expectations of his friends. Soon after the arrival of the Nineteenth Regiment at the seat of war, the affair at Ball's Bluff gave him an opportunity of distinguishing himself, General Lander, with whom he became an especial favorite, was wounded in this engagement. Major How earnestly pleaded for permission to lead a charge on the Rebels with the few men of the Nineteenth who were at hand; and when permission was finally given, he dashed upon them gallantly, and captured the only prisoners taken during that affair. Official reports and newspaper accounts alike gave him the highest praise. It is said that he received four balls through his clothes, and it seemed almost miraculous that he escaped injury. He gave promise of rising speedily in the service. He was the model of an officer, - cool, courageous, and withal kind and generous. A letter, written by one who had good opportunity of judging, states that the humblest private never asked a reasonable favor at Major How's hands which was not readily granted, and adds: "It is no disparagement of our other excellent officers to say that none of them possessed so much of the old chivalric spirit we so much admire in the olden times." The following extract is from another writer: - "His personal appearance was in an unusual degree commanding. He made a brief visit to Washington last autumn (I861), and when there attracted much attention, being regarded as one of the finest forms that were to be seen on Pennsylvania Avenue, at that time a place where military men of all ranks were frequently seen. His conversation and correspondence gave evidence of his being guided by a true patriotic spirit, and that he was accustomed to reflection upon the stirring events in which he was taking a part. At an early day, in a letter to a friend, he said, 'The more I think of it (the war), the more I am convinced that it is to be no short or trivial war. Who is to say when we have fought enough? The South seems to be animated by the same feelings that prompted the heroes of the Revolution. They are fighting for liberty, they think; and if they think so, it is the same as if they really were. They seem to believe their cause a just one. Many a brave man must bite the dust before we have peace again. War is a sad thing, after all. I pity the friends who stay at home to mourn, more than those who go to die. I am ready to die in this cause. From the first, I gave myself wholly to it.' In another letter at a later time he says, 'I did not come to this war hastily: I counted the cost.' From what is known of him, it appears plain that he grew more and more into the spirit of earnestness, and that a clear comprehension of the nature of the struggle in all its bearings was being developed in his mind." But the career of Major How was a short one. He went forth in the summer campaign of 1862 with the fresh and joyous army of McClellan, on their march to Richmond; but when that army returned to Washington, baffled and disheartened, he was not with them. On the 3oth of June, while engaged in battle before Richmond, he received a musket-ball in the breast, and fell mortally wounded. It was late in the afternoon, and his regiment was about to make a charge upon the enemy. He walked several steps towards the rear, and insisted upon going farther, but was taken on a blanket to a place of safety. He lived about two hours, during which time "he had full command of his mind. One of his personal friends, Dr. E. G. Frothingham, Jr., thus describes the scene - "He shared with his men their victories: he now shares with a large portion of his regiment a soldier's grave. Colonel Hinks, who was wounded at the same time, was brought to the side of the Major. With one hand clasped in that of his valued friend, Captain Merritt, he left a few messages for his relatives and friends, and as his last words said, 'I know I must die. I am willing to die in so good a cause. Let me be wrapped in the flag presented me by my friends in Haverhill, and if possible let me be buried at home, and passed away as quietly as an infant." Lieutenant-Colonel (afterwards Colonel) A. F. Devereux of the Nineteenth Massachusetts, says: "A braver man never trod than Major How. It is not enough to say that he was brave. Many are that: but he was most unusually cool, brave, and gallant; I think, nay, I know, I never met quite his equal. His last words as they moved him were, ' Let me die here in the field of battle; it is more glorious so.' He has left behind an enduring fame and many a kind and endearing remembrance.' The death of Major How made a profound sensation in the community. Although a subordinate officer among hundreds who held far more responsible commands, he had attracted such attention as does not often fall to the lot of a regimental major. In the neighborhood where he was best known, his devotion to the country afforded a conspicuous example; and, dying, as he did, in the darkest and most perilous moment of the war, he left a name to encourage the timid and wavering. His native town did honor to his memory. A series of eloquent resolutions were adopted by his fellow-citizens, which tendered to the family of the deceased their heartfelt sympathy, and requested his battle sword as a legacy to the town of Haverhill, to be suspended over the speaker's desk in the Town Hall, and to be labelled "The battle sword of Major Henry Jackson How, who fell in front of Richmond while gloriously defending the Constitution and flag of his country." With the following clear analysis of his character, this brief memoir may well be closed:" It is hard to put on paper anything like a true picture of Jackson, How, and quite impossible to find any single epithet to describe him. His character afforded such a singular variety, that you never seemed to reach the end of it, but were constantly meeting with surprises, and the more frequently the longer and the better you knew him. My chum and I, in admiration of his looks as much as anything, were fond of comparing him to a lion; and now, as I look back upon him, I think the adjective 'lion-hearted' expresses most nearly what he was. To the traditional generosity of the lion he added, as we all know, and as the world knows since his death, more than the lion's courage. " A man's ideal picture of his friend is often an unconscious reflection of his own best self, and in the only letter I have from How, written in the winter vacation of our Sophomore year, there is an illustration of this: I have received three letters from our friend..... Isn't he a noble fellow! " The courage of a man with the gentleness of a woman." This is Mrs. Somebody's ideal of a man. Is it not literally true of him? If not, I never saw the person to whom it could be applied. He is certainly very brave, (you know courage was my "favorite virtue,") and as certainly he is beautifully gentle.' "It was Jack's great ambition as an undergraduate to excel in all athletic and manly sports. It almost broke his heart, - I write it seriously, - when he was judged not strong enough for a place in the picked crew of the ' Harvard.' He could have borne almost anything better than that. " As to his mental ability, it was naturally great. He took no pains to acquire scholarship, and probably hated the Tabular View as much as any man in the Class. The curriculum he cared most for was the Delta. But for all that he was not indifferent to the humanities, and was passionately fond of certain favorite books. 'Shirley' he used to read through regularly once a term, and he would pore over a deep passage of Tennyson or Wordsworth with an avidity that would have won him signal Commencement honors had it been turned in another direction. But the trait that most distinguished Jack was unquestionably his quick sense of the ludicrous. By all odds he was the best humorist we had. I was next him alphabetically, and the tedium of the recitation-room was brightened for four years by his drollery. I remember he used always to write his name in his text-books with an interrogation mark thus, 'How?' He despised cant and affectation. For false sentiment and all nonsense of that sort he had no pity..... But his wit was of the evanescent sort that could not have been recorded and cannot be called back again. To appreciate it, one should hear it from his own lips, and they, alas! are stilled forever. Chivalrous, kind, unselfish, many of us loved him well. His gallant death was the very one he would have chosen for himself. By it the land has lost one of her noblemen."