The Lancaster gazette. (Lancaster, Ohio) 1846-1852, 1848-10-06
: WHOLE NO. 1902
rta From the Philadelphis Nsv,.
A Pleasant Incident .-A young Sol
dier from TaylOr's Army.

a bCssa'ant huCsNcSa-"~A young SOhs
dier from TayIOr's Army.
At a meeting Of the Rough and Ready
Club of, one Of the Philsdelphia city
wards held on Tuesday evening last, af-
ter the business had been transacted and
an adjournment about 10 take place, q
Pa!e-faced youth, apparently about nine
teen years Of age. aud stranger to sll
present, asked permission oft Presi-
dent to say few words about General
Taylor. His request was Of course gran.
ted. There was profound silence in tho
meeting when he arose, and with some
trepldation, apologized for asking to be
heard. He said he had reasons to know
Gen. Taylor; he knew him as q man and
a soldier. He had been in his army
seventeen months. and portion Of that
time, when he was sick and exhausted
by long marches, and ready to die. he
found warm hearted friend and protec.
tor in General Zachary Taylor. Gen
tlemen. (said hey am but nineteen
years odd am stranger here, and new
er attempted to speak in public. But |
have read in some of the papers attacks
upon Gen. Taylor's character as man
charging him with Inhumanity and
cruelty, and ! want 10 say bluntly that
such charges are false-false from begin
ing TO end. no matter who utters them
| have seen cruelty and iuhumanity on
the part of subordinate officers to their
men-inhuman punishment inflicted for
slight offences, but nerer in tie presence
Of Gen. Taylor, who was always a kind
father and protector TO the poor soldier
and whom every honest soldier in his
army loved. No man of honor who ev-
er served under him will charge him with
cruelty either to his own troops or to
the enemy. | was with him at Fort
Brown-marched with him at Point lsa-
bel-was in the battles of Palo Alto,
Resaca and Monterey. After the cap
ture of Matamoras. instead of using one
ofthe houses in the city as his quarters
he gave them all up to the sick, wounded
and suffering soldiers, and slept in his
tent on bed that was not more than
four inches above the mud and water
that surrounded il"
The speaker related many interesting
incidents connected with the movements
Of the army, illustrating the bepevolence
of Gen. Taylor. and the perfect conf
dence of the troops in the goodness Of
his heart. and his skill as commander.
"He made us all feel as ifevery man was
! double and had twice the strength we
! really possessed, and could do twice as
much as any other army in the world.
He was always the FIRST to meet danger,
E and used to tell us to wa,ch him close and
never run hH he ran. But he never ran
/, from the enemy; he never turned away
j from suffering soldier without doing
all that he could to relieve and cheer
D him. On the march to Ceralvo. (contin.
:. ued the youth my strength gave out,
and had it not been for Gen. Taylor,
: might have been left upon the road to
die or be murdered. But he saw me
:, and knew from my looks that | was ex
I hausted. He took me up, and sat me on
!. his o,0n mule. and IrOde NTH him in Ma
e tcay for seceral days. He saved my
life then, and am ready to give him ev
cry drop of my blood, whenever be
wants soldier.
l. "At one time we were almost out o
n provisions. We had nothing to eat bul
! musty biscuit and slushed maggoty pork
n An officer went toGen. Taylor and com
/, planned that he could not eat such food
swell, sir said the General, come anC
/, take your dinners with me- The invi
If talion was gladly accepted, and the off
l. Ger, anticipating first rate dinner, dres
e sed himself up. and went to the quarter
, of the General, but instead of finding
J. regular dinner table filed with delica
If cies, he saw the General sitting before
N fire toast,ng piecc of tile same old sluSh
Ts ed pork on a stick, and that, with sum
J. mus;y biscuit and little bean soup
d made the dinner for himself and the dis
at appointed officer, who expected to din
k on roast beef and plum pudding. Th
is gentleman didn't eat any more dinner
n with Gen. Taylor
IN 1he young soldier continued MS "
is teresiing narrative about twelve minutes
SO his bright eye often flashing with indg
n nation when speaking of the SANDER
r with which Gen. Taylor is assailed. an
re his voice trembling with emotions ofgraI
itude aud affection in the relation of th
10 benevolent acts of the noble hero and pa
J. triot. We need not say he was frequentl
y. interrupted by the hearty applause {
q the meeting At the conclusion of hi
n remarks, the President, having asce'
= tanned from the stranger his name, an
Q nounced to the audience that the youn,
is man who had addressed them was Sc,
1t gcdnt Ed,oard Sherman Of Massdchasett
n Mr.. Sherman was elected by acclamS
l. tion an honorary member of the Club.
: T'rule MOdpSfY