The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1883-11-02
Sherman's sorrow.

WASHINGTON CITY, Nov. z. speaking of
Gen SheIman's retirement from the army
and Washington society gentleman of this
city who has known the family long and
well, says the sorrow of the generals life has
BEEN his sons entrance into the Roman
Catholic priesthood. This is the skeleton
in Gen. Sherman's household. Gen.
Sherman is a warm hearted affection
ate man, particularly fond of his chill
dren He had expected to see his son have a
brilliant career at the bar, and the announce
ment of his intention to enter monastery as
member of the order of Jesus was great
blow to him This son, the eldest, lad been
educated hcre in Washington for the bar,
and afterwards was. graduated at the Yale
Law college, and had entered the law Office
of Judge Reber in st. Louis But Mrs
Glen. Sherman is deyout Catholic Her
name is familiar at Rome, and she
for many years has been the custo-
dian in this country of Peters pence.
Shortly before his death tho late Plus k
sent to her rosary and a crucifix of solid
gold and in the crucifix is set fragment of
the true cross" Her home is always the
h quarters of the dignitaries of the Catho-
ne church, and she is consulted upon all
Sherman, il is scarcely necessary to say, is
not Catholic. He is said to have never
been inside Catholic church for years until
his daughter was married in one, The deter
mination of Thomas Ewing Sherman. theeld-
est son, to enter the church was due of course
to his mothers influence, and Gen Sherman
did not know the fact till just before it was
about to be accomplished. There was a
rtrmor at the time that young Sherman en-
tered the church because of the marriage Of
his cousin to Don Cameron. This, however,
the family positively deny. The son, to
spare his fathers feelings at this change in
his career, wrote letter for publication,
which contained the following:
My father, you know, is not Catholic,
and therefore the step am taking seems as
startling and strange to him as l have no
doubt it does to you, my dear SIR, go without
bis approval, sanction, or consent, and in di-
rect opposition to his wishes. He had formed
other plans for me, which are now defeated,
and had hopes and expectations which are
dashed to the ground Thave, in conclusion,
request to naake, and l make it not
only to you, but to all our friends
and relatives TO whom you may see
fit to show this letter or to communicate its
contents 1t is this: Feeling painfully aware
that have grieved my father, | beg my
friends and his, of whatever religion they
may be, to spare him inquiries or comment,
of any sort, for anything OF the kind would
be iil-tiIned and inappropriate.p
Thomas E. Sherman is a young man of
good ability. Not many months ago he de
hyered a lecture at Loyola college, Bal
timore In defense of the Spanish
inquisition. Young Sherman was Sc
Jealous for his faith that he insinuated
that the Spanish Catholics were less crue
than the New England Puritans, and he
fatty asserted that the founders of Plymouth
and Salem burned people at the stake anG
INDUCED in other horrible butcheries which
the inquisition did notn--a statement which
Young Sherman, with little research int,
some very recent literature, might have found
to be wholly untrue The lecture shows tina
The young man viii certainly display tn
family zeal in the cause of the Jesiits whicl
he has espouSed.
But the sharp difference in religious mat
tiers seems to have caused no estrangement il
family noted for its domestic virtues No
long since some southern paper accused Gen
Sherman of applying the torch to a factor.
in South Carolina and monastery. Mrs
Gen. Sherman herself published card il
which she indignantly said: II say tina
Gen. Sherman never was guilty of blasphem,
or profanity, and the men knew when theJ
published that article that he had never ap
piled the torch 70 building" Gen. Sher
man has six children. Miss Lizzie, unmar
ried, and is the constant attendant of he
mother, and is probably the stay of the fam
lily circle Minnie. the second daughter,
married to Mr.. Fitch. of st. Louis It wa
to her that the khedive gave the wonderfu
diamond necklace which was so long a whit
elephant to the Sherman family. Two of he
five children were buried last summer
Thomas Ewing Sherman, the Catholic priest
is the eldest son. Leonora is Mrs. Thackers
Of Philadelphia. Rachel is the younges
girl, now young woman