MILITARY HISTORY OF THE SOUTHWEST 1989

Volume 19, No. 2, Fall 1989

Table of Contents

"Recent Trends in War," by Martin Blumenson, pp. 109-120

Abstract: Both the purpose and practice of war have changed in modern times. The Westphalian system limited warfare to combatants and to limited areas. Modern war includes non-combatants and unlimited areas. Political and military leaders need more than ever to look for non-violent solutions to political disputes.
Key Words: Westphalian system, total war, conventional war, twentieth-century war

"The Elm Creek Raid, 1864: State and Confederate Defense and Response," by David P. Smith, pp. 120-136

Abstract: Frontier defense against Texas Indians during the Civil War was two-tiered: Confederate and state. Problems caused by overlapping command structures necessitated many organizational changes throughout the war. The Comanche Elm Creek Raid in north Texas showed how poor the Texas defenses were.
Key Words: Texas, Young County, frontier, Comanches, Civil War

"Reading Between the Lines: Another Look at Officers' Wives in the Post-Civil War Frontier Army," by Shirley Leckie, pp. 137-160.

Abstract: Adjustment to frontier army life was difficult for many middle-class army wives. Different women experienced different problems in establishing homes and trying to adhere to the idea of "true womanhood." The army made little accommodation for wives, and they had to improvise to survive on isolated, destitute, frontier posts.
Key Words: Women, frontier, army wives, post-Civil War

"'Bully for Flournoy's Regiment, We Are Some Punkins, You'll Bet': The Civil War Letters of Virgil Sullivan Rabb, Captain, Company 'I,' Sixteenth Texas Infantry, C.S.A.," Part One, edited by Thomas W. Cutrer, pp. 161-190

Abstract: Letters from a Texas Confederate in Walker's Texas Division describe army life, food eaten and desired, soldiers' health, and other details about camp life in the Trans-Mississippi Department, but little about actual fighting. Part One covers the period from June 1862 to February 1864.
Key Words: Sixteenth Texas Infantry, Walker's Texas Division, Civil War, camp life