Brownlow's Knoxville Whig. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1866-1869, 1868-03-18
rhe EarIr LIfe Of General GRANT.

From letters Of General Grants father to the New York
Ledger.
Work in the tannery was something
which Ulysses never fancied. He would
avoid Il whenever he could by driving the
team, or by going TO get load Of passen-
gers. and hiring boy to work in his stead.
He would rather do anything else under
the sun than work in a tannery. We lived
in a sort Of hollow, and the village was on
the hill When / said to him 1--WE shall
have 70 90 to grinding bark, he would get
right up without saying word, and start
straight for the village, and get load TO
haul, or passengers TO carry, or something
or other TO do, ami hire a boy to come and
grind the bark.
One day wo wee short of hands, and /
told him be would have TO go into the beam
room and help me. He had never worked
in the bsam-room any. The beam-room is
40 called because in il the hides are worked
over beams when the flesh and hair are
taken of with knives after they are taken
out Of the lime.vat. He came along and
went TO work remarking, however -
Father, this tanning is not the kind of
work like. III work at il though, If you
wish me 70, until / arm one and twenty but
you may depend upon it, III never work a
day at Il after that" l said TO him ''No
| don't want you 70 work at il now, if you
d ont like IL, and mean TO stick 10 IT,
want you 10 be at work at whatever Won
like and intend 10 follow. Now what do
yen think you would like7" He replied
that he would like 10 be farmer down
the-riFer trader or get an education
had no farm except the one which my
wife inherited, and that was rented out /
had no idea OF letting him be down the
river trader / had money, but I required
IL IN my business, for il took capital TO car
~ that on, ] could not not withdraw enough
70 educate him without Gripping my bust
ness. thought Of West Point so / said 10
him, " How would you like West Point
You know the education is free there, aud
government supports the cadets First
rate said he
immediately wrote to Mr.. Morris, one
Of our Senators in Congress, from Ohio,
and asked him il he knew Of any vacancy
at West Point the appointment to which he
could control. he replied promptly That
there was q vacancy from our Congressional
district. This surprised me, for / knew
that there had been an appointment 20 ill
that vacancy year before. IL turned out,
however, that the young man who had been
appointed had failed to pass the examina-
man, kept II q secret and did not let his Bon
return % the noighborhood, but placed him
40 the private military school of Captain
Partridge After spending six months &C
that school the young man made another
attempt to enter West Point but failed q
second time 10 pass the examination. Tins
young man failed, not from n want OF talent
but because be did not apply himself to
study. he entered the army as a volunteer
after the war broke out, and persisted IN the
war whether at the hand of the enemy or
by an accident was never known, his body
having been found in q river into which he
had fallen from a bridge. His mother be-
came and remains devoted friend OF Gen
eral Grant She has always watched his
career with the deepest interest
Our Representative in Congress AT that
time was the Hon. Thomas J.. Manner l
wrote right on to him stating that Senator
Morris had informed me that there was
vacancy, and requesting him to appoint
Ulysses Ny letter reached him on the
nightof the Sd Of March on the next day,
tho 18th, bis term Of Office expired. he
knew Ulysses, and was glad to have an op-
portunity 10 appoint such Boy, after the
bad luck which had attended his previous
appointment; so he made the appointment
at once. A days delay in the mail that
carried my letter would have made some
difference in the history of one man, II not
Of the country. Ulysses was entirely IN.
prepared by any previous study, pursued
with special reference 90 fitting for West
Point, but he got through the examination
and was admitted. ] never saw him While
AZ West Point except on the occasion OF
ono visit, which he made 10 his homo during
the furlough at the end Of his second year
II was taid of him that while there nc was
not one who took pains TO make hlhlsel
popular, hut that all the boys liked him l
believe hs went by tho name Of Uncle
Sam on account of his initials, l. p.
A supsrstitious person might almost think
there was something Providentlal ABOUT
these significant initials being struck on TO
him. for they were not given TO him at ms
christening. When the question arose after
birth whhe ne should be called, his mother
and enc OF his aunts proposed Aloerts Tor
Albert Gallatin another aunt proposed
Theodore his grandfather proposed Hiram
because he thought that was \ handsome
name. His grandmother-gran oy
courtesy-that is his mothers step mothei
was . great student of histoTy-and haa
an enthusiastic admiration for the ancient
commander, Ulysses and she urged that
the babe should be named Ulysses ! SCI
onded that, and he was christened Hiram
Ulysses, but he was always called by the
latter name, which he himself preferred
when he got old enough to know about IT.
But Mr.. Hamer, knowing Mrs. Grant
nRme was Simpson, and that we had son
named Simpson, some how got the matter
8 little mixed in making the nomination,
and sent the name in Ulysses S. Grant IN
stead Of Hiram Ulysses Grant Ny son
tried ia vain, aftorward, 70 get il set right
By the authorities and / suppose he is now
content with his name rs il stands.
Mr.. Hamer, who appointed him, was
afterwards a General in the Mexican war,
and somewhat distinguished himself at
Worterev he was taken sick m Mexico,
and Grant, then lieutenant took care OF
him. and finally closed his eyes IN death.
-, q Call Of