The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-05-25
AN HOUR WITH GENERAL GRANT.
His Views Upon Mea and Measures.

at washington, IeCbuNlJ Eptub an III Jut
studio of the Maine artist Simmons, in CONVEX
sation with General Grant, and gives an iute-
resting statement OF the opinions expressed by
him upon linen and measures" Some people
will doubt whether the General would unbosom
himself go fully to a stranger when he is habitu-
ally 30 reticent; but we give the story as we
find it. The writer says:-
The General, who was dressed in a plain
black civilian suit had hardly removed his nat
from his head before he took cigQr from his
pocket, lighted it. and began to puff out wreaths
of smoke. 81 am breaking off from smoking
remarked Grant. 'When | was in the field |
smoked eighteen or twenty cigars day, but
now i smoke only nne or tenl"
The conversation turned TO the Virginia
campaigns OF 1864 and 1865. 81 notice." re-
marked General Grant, THAT Mr.. Swinton has
published a history Of the campaigns in the
Old Dominion, in which he takes the ground
that gained nothing, but on the contrary, lost
many valuable lives uselessly by moving my
army from the Rapidan direct towards Hlch-
mond, rather than by taking it around Dy water
10 the Peninsula, as Mcclellan did. This" Oh
served the General, ''is revival OF the exploded
theory (reerring TO the Mcclellan policy of
subduing the Rebellion by peace measures.
halt a million troops might have been Kept
within sight of Washington till doomsday, and
the Rebellion would have hourlshed more and
more vigorously day by day. Fighting, hard
knocks only could have accomplished the worG.
The r. bellion must be overcome, If overcome at
all, by force; its resources destroyed, its fight
ing material obliterated, before peace could be
''There were but two failures in the Virginia
campaign OF 1864 which ought to have been sue
cesses, said Grant," and those were the failure
to capture Petersburg when we crossed the
James and afterwards at tue mine explosion.
Butt added Grant "It was all for the best that
we failed in those two instances, for, had we
succeeded at either time Lee would have at
once been obliged to abandon Richmond, and
would have been able to secure safe retreat
INTO the interior of the South, where he would
have prolonged the contest for years. Our
failures then and the determination OF the Rebels
to hold on to their Capital, gave us time to eX-
tend our left south ward, to bring up Sherman
from Georgia, and thereby made it impossible
for Lee TO escape"
In reply to question as 10 whether he was
not surprised az the suddenness OF the col
lapse OF tbe Rebellion, Grant said that he was,
although he had always supposed that when 1t
would break down it would 90 all at once. ~
thought, however" he remarked, "that l! would
hold out another season, and am not sure, " he
added, but that 1t would have been better for
the country if it had. There were some parts OF
the country where our armies had never trod,
particularly Texas, which needed to feel the
bllehting effects of war to bring their people to
realizing sense of the enormity of their crime,
and the necessity Of a thorough repentance. |
ind" said he, chat those parts of the South
which have not ielt the war, and particularly
those which have been within our lines, and
have therefore escaped the Rebel conscrlption
and taxes, are much less disposed to accept the
situation in good faith than those portions
WulCu nave uGGu literally ONGTTun WlJD IRE ana
sword.n
Referring to the temper of the Southern
people, he remarked that they are much less
disposed now to bring themselves TO the proper
frame OF mind than they were one year since.
"a year ago." said he, "they were willing to do
anything; now they regard themselves as mas
tiers of the situation. Some of the Rebel gene
rails, he added, "are behaving nobly, and doing
all they can 70 induce the people TO throw aside
their old prejudices, and to conform their course
to the changed condition of things. Johnston
and Dick Taylor, particularly, are exercising a
good influence; but" he added, "Lee is behaving
badly. He IS conducting himselfvery differently
from what had reason, from what he said at
the time OF the surrender, to suppose he would.
No man at the South is capable of exercising a
tenth part of the influence for good that he is,
but instead OF using it he Is setting an example
of forced acquiescence so grudging and perni-
ciOus in its effects as to be hardly realized"
THE men who were in the Rebel armies"
said Grant, "acquiesce in the result much better
than those who stayed at home. The women
are particularly bitter against the Union and
Union men. OF course" he added, ''there is
some bitterness OF feeling among all classes,
but am satisfied 1t would soon die out if their
leading men had not somehow got the idea that
treason, after all, was not very bad, and chat
the Southern cause as they phrase it, will
yet triumph, not III war, but in politics. In my
Judgment" said Grant, ''the tone OF certain men
and certain papers al the North is such as to do
incaCulable mischief in maxim" the late Rebels
believe that they are Just as much entitled to
uS ever, anu Illdl IL IueN Will Only SIalu DIV
what they are pleased to call their rights,
they will have help from the North. This"
significantly added Grant, sis only PLAYING over
again the inciDent stages OF the Rebellion"
lie was confident that the large majority Of
the Southern people would smother their resent
ment and become good citizens, if these mis-.
chiel-makers at the North 1.-THE CoDperheads)
would only let them alone. For himself, if he
had the poSer, the hrsJ thing he would do
would be to seize the New York Nelcs and kin
dred sheets, which are giving the South SO
dangerous an idea of their own position and
''riehts.n
Troops said General Grant, "must be kept
IN all the princpal points IN the South for some
time TO come. This will be necessary 10 reuress
the turbulence of class OF the South very dan
gerous TO all well-dispoSed persons and also to
protect the rights OF the freedmen, who are looked
upon with deep hatred by very large proper
ton CT the people am in favor however, he
added, "ot not retaining our volunteers for this
duty, because they very naturally think that
they fulfilled their engagement one year sincen
Grant spoke in high terms OF Sherman Sheri-
dan, Howard, and other Generals and referred
10 our Mexican difficulties, forcbly adding that
he believed the French invasion of Mexico a
part OF the Rebellion, and he should have been
glad to have seen detachment of our army
sent there one year since. He would engage
that Sheridan, with plenty of arms, and 1000
American troops, and q goOdly number of
American officers, would, with the aid OF tine
Mexicans clean Maximiliau out of Mexico in
six months.
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