National Republican., 1880-10-07
TnE sOLDTER srArEsMdM

My Prcat.grandEtthor, / must tell you, was
a tosty old gcnt!emnn, aud entertained pecu-
liar notions on Affairs Of state. Ho was intol-
Grant of public opinion and much given to
having thugs his own way. THE people Of
tho village IN which he lived natfored him
into the sincere belief that he was born u
statesman. General Winfield Scott Hancock 3
grent-grandlather and my great. grandfather
lived IN the same village, were ncar and dear
friends, and would meet Of nm evening at the
inn where the present Han ock was horu,
drink their toddy, of which both were fond,
and discuss affairs of state
General liancocks great.grandfather and
mine were very much alike. They were
tcsiy, arislocratic aud fussv. The generals
venerable ancestor was also full Of conceit
aud firmly believed he was born a statesman.
and that some one of his descendants would
one day occupy tho White House. My OBJ.
ject in stating these facts is to make it per-
fectly clear that statesmanship ran in both
onr families. Indeed, our grandfathcrs and
fathers inherited pcculiaritics very much
alike, and they descended naturally to the
general and myself.
We entered West Point together, and were
remarkable for our size and good looks and
VIC had so many admirers among tho ladies
that 1t excited the envy Of our classmates. l
was a little taller aud litto stronger than
NY C''FNluNNN' anu, NS u WfeNllNfs COUIN uOOl
him. When 1t came to the matter of ward
robe Cadet Hancock was moro than match
for mo- He could put on more good clothes
than any other cadet at the Point and it took
him longer to dress.
When the call for evening parade was
sounded Cadet Hancock was certain to he
late. and would be seen emerging from his
quarters and hnrrying across the grounds ad.
iusting his belt or pulling on pair If tight.
~ ~,
dct Hancock all the moro because of his cx-
quisitc dress. As dancer hc was superb.
That he was seldom at Bennie Havens' fro.
licking is to his credit.
Thanks to kind Providence, Professor Ma
han and other instructors, VIZ both graduated
| on scale of high responsibility and turned
our backs on West Point. Cadet Hancock
went into the infantry, took to the Dragons,
preferring to do my soldering on horseback
or Cadet Hancock's career from that time M
TO the day he was nominated for president of
the United States you can get accounts as nu-
mcrous rs they are conflicting IN tho romRnces
recently written by Professor John w. Furney
| and ether novelists. How my old classmate
survives the lavish use of soft soap these pro-
fessors ply him with Is q mystery to me. Aud
then little Mullott offers to be the architect OF
my old classmates political fortunes. and to
build mansard roof big enough 20 hold the
/
oral excluded. Mullett always was benov-
! olont little man.
If my old classmato would kick Professor
| Fornoy and his soap-tub into the North river
and drive Mullett from Governors island with
his dogs he would do n sensible thing.
retired from the army and went into pri-
vate ifo year or so befo tho late unpleas.
antness. NV old classmatc, as you all know
went into tho war early, took our erring
brothers by the name of the neck aud thrashed
them and killed them in the most lively way
The strangest part of it is that the moro he
thrashed and killed them the better they
liked it and liked him. To appreciate this
truly submissive spirit YOU must be perfectly
familiar with the high reli ious feeling
which rules among tho chivalrous young gen.
temen Of the south. 1t is uncharitable to say
It is the offspring of that base spirit which
controls the actions of an animal whose af,
fection for his master Is increased in proper
ton to the number of kicks and cuffs he gets
They, | mean the whipped cOnfeds, bur
rah for Hancock, liberty and the conslitu
tion-Of course they do. They did not like
carpet.bag government and bayonet rule
of course thoy didn't. Innocent lambs a,
| they were, they wanted and they have got
solid south aud the power to have thing
their own way. 1t will be in turn for thes,
| hgh-toned southern gentlemen to hold VI
| their hands and declare before God and maj
| that they never whipped Il "nigger;" neve
| sold "niggcr," nor advocated government
with human slavery for its cornerstone
They didn't want the id Yankees med
ding in their domestic affairs. That WAS all
| there was of 1t.
When we graduated my old cassmato tippe,
the scale at 1Si pounds. His fighting weigh
when the uuplcasantness began was 239. Tha
will account for the heavy way he had of sit
| ting down upon our erriug brothers generally
| An old army friend tells me that ut tho fgh
| at Williamsburg Hancock sat down so hcayl
| upon the stOmachs of two robust rebels II
uniform that they were afflicted with
chronic bellyache, of which they were finally
| cured on hearing tho news from Cincinnati
that the man who had caused them all thei
suffering had been nominated for president o
| tho United States.
/ am informed by the same very rollabl,
| authority that my now distinguished class
mate did at Garuett's farm, on the south sidt
of the Chickahominy, and while Fitz.Joh,
Porter was fighting the battle of Gaines hill
on tho north side, sit down with the pressure
of cotton-press on the stomach of tina
famous wind instrument Maiur-Gemeral Bol
Toombs, and so compressed him that he bcgau
| seriously to think OF his hereafter, and wa!
not heard to utter prOianc word for mOrI
than two weeks.
And now the redoubtablo Toombs comes tC
the front and cOudescends to say in letter Il
a friend in this city that he has no particular
objection to Hancock personally; that if Gen.
| eral Cobb had been Us active in sending lin
re endorsements rs he was in providing fol
his belly he would have knocked the stuflinl
out Of Hancock ut Garnett's farm, cut Nc
Clclan's army in two and sent Porter whriul
back on Washington 10 tell the story Of hi
misfortune to his black republican mas. crs
Robert must have been IN cheerful MOOD
when ie wrote his letter. for he says he is uO
Il c izeu OF the United States aud is ID
glad of il. lie has no vote, aud does moi
want one. He was and Is for Grant aud Oul
empire, that being the surest way of putting
an end to this mongrol concern misnamed u
republic. "Our people," says Robert, with
refreshing coolness, must put up with Han.
cock. For the purpose they want him he will
do, perhaps, as well, if not better than any
general who fought on the other side"
| Yes" continues Robert, "'Our people have
got possession of the capitol, and, with Han.
cock in the White House, we could and would
drive the black republican thieves inso the
Potomac"
must do my windy old friend tho justice
to say that he has hearty contempt for shams
never conccals his thoughts in obscure Ian
guagc aud has an ugly way OF telling more
"uHpleasaut truth" than any man IN the south
| lie doubtless moro than any other southern
man expresses the real convictions aud senii
ments Of the south to day You cannot mis-
take his language.
SOMETHING ABOUT srATEsMA NsHIP,
I 1t is AN accepted fact that there is no exact
standard by which sttfesmumship can b,
weighed. But between slurcsmauship and