Books: Little Phil Sheridan

SHERIDAN — Joseph Hergesheimer — Houghton Mifflin ($4).

By & large, best soldiers of the Confederacy were Gentlemen; best soldiers of the Union were not. Philip Henry Sheridan's only articles of gentility were contained in his officer's commission. His Irish immigrant father was a laborer, rose to be foreman and small contractor. Sheridan wanted to be a soldier; when he wangled an appointment to West Point he worked desperately hard to get in, desperately hard to get through. A funny-looking little fellow, with a big head, long arms, short bowlegs, he resented personal...

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