The Piety of "Stonewall" Jackson: Part Six: Time Steward

Dabney describes a typical day for Jackson in his pre-war days in Lexington (pp. 119-120):

1. Dawn: “He always rose at dawn; and his first occupation was secret prayer, followed, if the weather permitted, by a solitary walk.”

2. 7:00 am: “His family prayers were at seven o’clock, summer and winter…” Everyone in this household was required to be present, “[b]ut the absence of no one was allowed to delay the service.” Breakfast followed.

3. 8:00 am: First class at VMI.

4. 11:00 am: Classes end at VMI. Jackson returns to his study through to lunch time. “The first book which engaged his attention was the Bible, which was not merely read, but studied as a daily lesson.”

5. Afternoon (lunch to supper): “the interval was occupied by his garden, farm, or church duties.”

6. Evening: “The evening was devoted first to the mental review of the studies of the day, made without a book, and then to literary reading or conversation, until ten o’clock, P.M., when he retired.” In reading material, he “never chose works of fiction, but the classic historians and poets of the English tongue.”