WOODSTOCK RACES.



Lowell and Pennington commanding brigades, particularly -dis-
tinguished themselves .     M.y. My losses in this engagement
will not exceed sixty killed and wounded, which is astonishing
when compared with the results. The First division returned
to Woodstock and camped for the night, the Third returned
about six miles and camped for the night."
   Thus ended "Woodstock Races," the first pitched battle in
which the Third division took part under Custer's command.
As always, before and after, he and Merritt were in close ri-
valry as to distance and results, but Ouster was just a little
ahead. The completeness of the victory was owing to two
things, the open ground, and the vicious cavalry school in which
Rosser and his command had been reared. All through the
Virginia campaign, the Confederate cavalry displayed the same
taste for fire-arms, and the same distaste and contempt for the
sabre as a weapon. In the West the case was even worse, for
the cavalry in that vicinity abandoned their sabres entirely,
and trusted to nothing but fire-arms. Out in the woods, this
method of warfare is possible, but on a plain suicidal. The
only place in Virginia besides the Valley, where open fields
exist, adapted for mounted cavalry fighting, is around Brandy
Station, where the sabre had always proved triumphant. Ros-
ser, in common with most of the Confederate officers, distrusted
the sabre, which was rarely used by the Confederate cavalry
after Stuart's death, and not enough during his life.
    Custer, on the other hand, was never Imore in his element
than in a sabre charge, and the same thing was true of the
whole of the First and Third divisions, especially the former.
Cuister's influence soon gave the same taste to the latter, and
they became excessively fond of rapid mounted work, wherein
pistol, carbine and sabre were used, one with the other, with
the happiest effect. The moral impetus of that day of charges
never left the Third division. Henceforth they became imbued
with a certain contempt for the Confederate cavalry. They had
found the certain way to drive it in confusion. It never after-



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