The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1881-05-24
STANTON AND THE PRETTY
VIR0INIAN.

O0CA IN TIC carly eiAticS pui H.
tional var office was one place under
Secretary Cameron. and quite another
under his successor. Secretary Stanton
But then the character of any place
is the man in it. Nor was the
metxmorphosis greater in the field than
in the Washington apartment where
sat the civil engineer Of the military.
Mr.. Cameron had learned the Office
keepers trade for times of peace. He
measured all sorts of business by the
conventional ''red tape" By no other
system of measurement could his Of
fetal latitude aud longitude tie
definitely ascertained. With his
portfolio of public affairs he efiectual
" 'took the veil" and withdrew from
public gaze. Witnesses are still on
the stand vino testify that three days
was about the average time consumed
in whipping ones card into his clois-
ter, and that seven other good days
we're not an exceptional waste for
reaching him in person. Men whose
time was wealth and vitality to the
country rode a thousand miles for
hasty interview with the secretary of
war then, often, rode hack with
missions upfnlflled, and, like Saul.
rather than Paul. in spirit-.breath-
ing out threateniDgs."
When Mr.. Stanton had stepped into
Mr.. Cameron's ''old shoes" he found
that thew did not fit him, and straight
way he put on a pair that did. He
dearly ruined the card-writers call
ing at the capital; he abolished the
card system of business; he pulled
down the wall Of partition between
the people and his official presence
he converted the old war cloisier into
a very useful cloak-room; he set his
high desk into the centre of large
room, himself on high stool behind it.
and as the clock called of a certain
hour of the dav he was ready for callers.
without previous herald as to who
they were. The outer door opened,
and the throng passed in single file
before the desk.
The great war secretary was an iron
man in his mental makeup. To some
he seemed a hard. austere, pitiiess
man. 1t was simply that in his
chariot justice rode at the fore Of
mercy. To an eminent Hin. is friend
Of Mr.. Lincoln and himself ne once
said:
"The president has placed me here
in command Of the fighting resources
of the country, and while | remain
here l shall command. owe a
responsibility to the country to main
tain discipline within the army; l
am trying to keep faith with my
country, my honor and my judg-
ment. l have no forgiveness, no
new lease of authority over soldiers
for any man one found in the wrcng
or lacking in the elements of leader
ship. Your client and Mr.. Lincolns
friend. Col. -, may be very
serviceable to your party 10 time of
peace, but he has shown himself in
competent at the head of his regi-
ment: he must 60, this is no party
affair.""
And his conduct ran close to this
line always. On one other occasion
this friend stood in the daily row OF
applicants for favors, FACILITATING as
they approached the judgmen: stool,
and marked the marvellous rapidity |
with which Mr.. Stanton disposed of a |
hanaEsd S ssse Is Ills fsqssas "a farmer me-;
reads the faces of his own few and
kline. To him whose cause
kept company with justice his rapid
words were vet toned to the mel
lowness of affection. At a glance he
detected the mere politician, the self
seeker, the army shyster; such he or
dered to make speedy exodus from his
presence, and he uttered the CON-
mand in gruff and contemptuous
tones.
On this occasion said friend was
the specially favored observer of a
rather romantic episode for so stern
and practical a stage as the war
office-proof again that Venus has
her camp as well as Mars. He
variation of the cold war
needle from the pole of strict business
He saw the iron secretary melted, and
his action moulded counter to his
Judgment. A women did it: she
disclosed his kinship to our common
rail humanity. ID
just in advance of nv informant. K
vaiting within the line whose high
md low get their grists ground as at +,
he country mill-in the order of the I
,oming-stood and marked time a CAV I
md jaunty little woman-a bright I
lack eyed yonng lady-a bewitcbine Z
sample Of southern girls at G
Z, from one of the valleys of '
Virginia. q
He felt wonder as to what might q
e her mission, long before she neared q
he god of war; in fact he rather &
Oped, no matter what the burden Of =
er errand. that she would win. .
md when che stood at last before the v
Ugh desk. and, through single tear. u
} fitting it seemed made to order.
niled upward into the face of the f.
nv friend stood close beside il
sr. an involuntary but not an un- 81
iIling listener to her story and M. ",
tanton's reception Of her petition. ",
GOOD Mr.. Secretary" the girl
gan, in a tone sweet even to its te
UGH of tremor, "my only brother 50
confined in Capitol prison. IIju
went seen him for more than three "a,
ars; love him dearly; l want to at
into the prison and see him and fe
Try him some little things from
me and our old mother; IN touch VI
thing there. and speai In poho.lv