The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 66, July 1962 - April, 1963 Page: 321

Book Reviews

County. She has done her work so well that all future historians
of the county will be indebted to her.
RALPH STEEN
Stephen F. Austin State College
A Seth Eastman Sketchbook, 1848-1849. Introduction by Lois
Burkhalter. Austin (Published for the Marion Koogler Mc-
Nay Institute, San Antonio, by the University of Texas
Press), 1961. Pp. xxvi+68. Illustrations. $7.50.
Seth Eastman always will be remembered as an able and gifted
artist-soldier. It would be difficult to separate one career from the
other. As an artist, he left behind a series of sketches, which in
many instances form the only authentic graphic record of the
area which he sketched. As a soldier, he rose to the rank of
brigadier general and was commanding officer at various frontier
posts.
On a journey down the Mississippi River and then into Texas,
Eastman carried a leather-bound sketchbook in which he sketched
as he went. He made delicate recordings of the bends in the river,
river shanties and moss-covered trees along the banks. The 136
delicate pencil drawings mirror the peace, quiet, and solitude that
was all about him. All of his sketches portray an unhurried way
of life in peaceful surroundings. Perhaps the greatest charm of
his creation lies in the gentle manner of his presentation.
Although most of the pencil sketches are very delicate and
pale, they remain clear and concise. Each stroke of the pencil is
clearly that of a master. The introduction to the volume of
sketches was written by Lois Burkhalter of the McNay Art Insti-
tute in San Antonio. Writing with feeling and understanding
about Seth Eastman, she reflects on the sketches as works of art
as well as historical documents with sharply sketched realistic
detail.
In the introduction there is also a portion of the original
"Journal of a march from the River Leona Texas to San Antonio
(go miles) thence to Laredo on the Rio Grand (170 miles) in
August, 1849-Capt. S. Eastman, 1st. Inf. in command of I Co. 1.
Inf." There are also finely sketched maps of the two marches.
The manuscript journal is now in the hands of Paul Adams of

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