The south-western. [volume] (Shreveport, La.) 1852-1870, 1867-05-08
A Sketch of Major General P. R. Cleburne

II GAGGCu VI I1dJUI OCAClesl = -. O1opu1A
From the Land We Love, for April.
Patrick R. Cleburne deserves a prominen
place among the great heroes who have illus
trated Southern heroism and Southern history
| His name brings thrill Of the heart to every
true son Of the South, just as his presenc,
brought success wherever he moved on tht
! field of battle.
| "CIeburne is here :" meant that all wa
well. Where he was, no masses of the enemy
could break bis lines no matter how fearfu
the odds. When he led a column, lis onslaught
was irresistible and never failed to carry ths
| opposing lines save at one point only, ant
there is the grave of the StoneHa of tbt
Western army and his devoted division.
It is not the intention of the writer of this
article to give history of P r. Cleburne'
life previous to the beginning of the past war
for of that he is ignorant in the main Z; nor o
the achievements Of Major General T. K. Gle
burne during the war; for that is part of the
history of the short-]ived Southern ConfederacJ
written in the stricken hearts OF all her mourn
ing >. sons and daughters. But we propose tt
give to the world some few incidents in the
! life of this remarkable man, that might be
otherwise consigned to undeserved oblivion
yet which give indications of character, tina
may be considered of interest sufficient tc
merit a place among the chronicles OF the
Land We Love.
General Cleburne was rather above than un
der the medium height perhaps five feet ter
or eleven inches-sparely made, growing thin
ner as the war progressed, with the constant
wear of mind and body increasingly restless
He had a gray eye of very changetu' expires
sion, sometimes as cold and dead as that OF &
fish, yet when excited, it flashed like broad
sword. His hair, tina was originally black
became very grey before the close of the war
and being closely cropped, it stood above his
forehead in bristly individuality. High cheek
bones, with thin lower visage, rather sallow
eet7 PIE xionz with hnt little beard, and remark
ably large ears with long limbs and heavy
emphatic stepsi in walking, he was not one who
in appearance or manners would have graced
the boudoir OF the ballroom. He could have
been but little over forty years old, at the
time of his death. His accent would at any
time have betrayed his nativity, but when Civ
ing emphatic orders on the field, the harsh
rolling of his rs was sometimes startling. MOI
one Of his soldiers but can recall the peculiar
intonation given to his command Forward
MAR-R- c-n!" the first word being syllabled
with remarkable distinctness, while the latter
was given with the broadcast brogue imagin'
able Nor can we forget his truly Irish rem,
deling (bar-r-r-'D of the word "barrel y
when lecturing bis class Of officers on the
rife, its parts, uses, etc. The loss of two
front teeth (carried away by a minnie ball al
the battle of Richmond, Kentucky,) gave his
voice kissing sound, when speaking hurriedly
or angrily, that was peculiarly unpleasant
Habitually thoughtful and grave, he was con-
sdered cold and repelant in manner by those
who only met him in his official capacity; but
to his intimate friends, he was genial and
! pleasant in conversation with, at times, a rea
sparkling of Irish wit and humor that woulc
bring the hearty laugh from auditors, respon
sive to his rather grim smile.
The writer recalls a broad laugh of Genera
C.'s at a wittcism of his always warm friene
and admirer, Lieutenant General W. j. Hardee
Owing to General C.'s methodcal habits ane
military precision Of movements, his division
was always last of "Hardee's Corps" to ar
rive on the dril-Ge]d, for which reason Genera
Hardee gave him the soubriquet of {" the late
General Cleburne.'
While General Joseph E. Johnston's army
lay at Dalton, Georgia, and Cleburne's division
occupied the advance at Tunnel Hill, the wri
ter was on one occasion at "divsion head
quarters,' in familiar conversation with Gen
G. and one of his staff, when he General c..
CHANGED to make some very appropos quotation
from wcl-known poet On an expression o
surprise that he should be so familiar with
what, we supposed, he considered very use
less branch of literature, he rather thought
fully remarked !: "All my knowledge of this
character of reading was acquired during a
six or eight months confinement in the large
hospital near Gravesend, England
In reply to the Interrogation, rather ex-
pressed in our faces than spoken, he went on
to say:
Like a good many others of my unfor'
tunate countrymen, after crossing the channe
to better my fortune I found that more difficult
than l had imagined, so I was compelled te
accept the dernier resort and join the British
army, when ! was about twenty-five years
old.'' He here added good deal Of informa
ton relative to the English army, its drills dis
cipline, etc., that cannot be recalled to mind
but Of himself he said Il was at one time
promoted, for good conduct, to the rank O
corporal. I was prouder of that corporal's
commission than that of major general. But
disgracefuI to tell, I was cashiered and reduced
to the ranks
Of course, we expressed the utmost anxiety
to know the cause of his disgrace. With pre-
tended reluctance, and with the remark thai
his experience might prove OF benefit to us, .
lie related the circumstance, as follows
"My regiment had been ordered out te
drill WITH KNAPsAcKs-(he then enumerated
1 the various articles that the army regulations
required to be kept in the knapsack, from
overcoat to backing brush.) AS | had beer
unwel for several days, I disked very mucl
to carry through fatiguing drill knapsacl
weighing from twenty to twenty-five pounds
so thought would substitute my pillow fol
the usual contents, and went thus upon drill
What was my CONSERVATION while drilling tt
hear the command, INSPECTION
There was no help for it; the pillow wa
found, and was corporal no longer"
He afterwards went on to state of his earle
army life, that, "from exposure during in
clement weather, was afflicted with severe
rheumatism, which amounted to paralysis o
one side and it was while in this condition
| I Al. Nod +,