The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-06-15
GEN. SHERMAN'S FAREWELL
His Last Official Address to West
Point Graduating Glass.



and General Terry were speaking more than
one of the cadets in the graduating class
looked moist about the eyes, and would un-
doubtedly have shed tears had they not
been young soldiers with a Thousand eyes
upon them. The band played Yankee
Doodle" and then General Sherman came up
smiling. He looked as hearty as ever, and,
as usual, made the speech of the day, though
i was impromptu. 1t was full of
fun and pathos, and the people cried half
the time and then laughed away their tears.
Young gentleman" said the veteran Com
mander-in chief, after the beautiful and ex-
haustive speech of General Cullum, (Which
heard yesterday and hope that you heard,
too, though 1 did not know whether you
could hear it or not and of General Terry,
whom | thank for his address, officially, and
OF Admiral Rodgers, there is not much left
for me to say, for Admiral Rodgers covered
almost the very ground l. should have COW
cred had he not usurped it, General Terry
came in 1861 with big heart and an educat-
ed mind 10 strengthen us in the great work
then before u.s. | am glad ordered him
here, and glad he came though he had some
notion of raising a constitutional question of
authority. As to Rodgers. l knew him when
he was midshipman; when he wore blue
to your coats; and when he carried the little
sword we called frog-sticker.' In Florida
he came ashore in the Everglades, and gave
us valuable assistance. The army aud navy
are brothers. Be brotherly with the navy.
don't intend to take many minutes, as 1
don't usually. In looking at this fine gradu-
atng class even from this distance"
The General paused, and the graduates
pricked up their ears, expecting compli-
ment.
- you look exactly" he continued,
'like the class last year, and the one before
that, and the one of every year since the
class that graduated in. [Laughter.1 l can
see myself and my old classmates. almost, in
your features. 4 can can see mere of -,
and -, and -" mentioning a dozen Of
his old classmates. Il can see old Joe Blank
ster In the spring of 1886 there came here
great, big, stout fellow from Ohio, too. laugh
teri six feet five inches in his stockings.
yard across his shoulders, weighing 260
pounds with hands hard with toll on his
fathers farm. He had hardly ever seen the
inside of an arithmetic, but he had an honest,
manly face, and wore No. 16 shoes, so big
that the shoemakers used to charge him
double price for making them. His parents
were poor farmers in the southwestern part
OF Ohio. In the spring of 1910. just before
we were graduated, Joe's father took i'll
and he had to go home. He was too poor to
have two suits of clothes, so he travelled all
that distance in his cadet uniform, with tine
short tail. 1t was a presidential campaign
year, and he attended great mass meeting,
still clad in his gray uniform. One of the
speakers talked about the tyranny of the
government, the Presidents great white
palace, the golden spoons he ate out of, and
the soft carpets he walked on. He spoke of
that aristocratic place on the North river
where 'wasp-waisted vampires were paid
$50 month and found for doing nothing.
'p1f.t Of lam tcoiA loo FINN fA n
man who stood by him; I'm ore of the
wasp-wasted vampires
His remark was overheard, and he was
boosted up TO the stand. There was shout
as soon as he was seen. The orator was
silenced, and the crowd shouted: If that's a
the verge of dissolution in 1910. l believe
that that incident carried it through the
crisis"
To illustrate the fact that graduation from
West Point did not necessarily make good
man, the General continued: BRYAN P. Til
den was a member of my class. He came
from the best schools of Boston, and at once
led off the class. We were all afraid of him
he knew too much. At the end of the four
years he was about the middle of the class
He had an honorable record till he went
| with the troops to the city of Mexico, and
then he wanted to get rich. He committed
a robbery, and was condemned for murder.
| and the scaffold was erected to hang him on
! just in the nick OF time for him the treaty
was signed. and he escaped. But he lost his
| commission went back to Boston and found
! plenty of lawyers to whitewash him. Laugh
! teri Joe BlankSter could take any of us and
! butt our heads together, and make us behave
ourselves. He was stricken by lightning
wlile in the performance of duty, and now
| lies buried, | believe, in the sands of Flor
| ida Tilden eventually died, and has
a costly monument L beleve-at least he
ought to have. When these men approach
| the gates one will stand ajar but the other
| think will be closed. l love every cadet
that looks like BlaAkster, even to this day.
| love to see you strong and manly. If you
don't love your profession go away quick
| You may, one and all, become heroes. as
Others have before you. | beg you, one and
al, to look upon me kindly, for this NAV be
the last time l shall ever come to West
! Point. at any rate in an official capacity. In
| two short months | shall cheerfully and
willingly resign my commission. | will
| surely come back from time to time if | can
l hope you will accept this beautiful day as
the smile of Providence. Goodbye one and
| ALL"
have heard General Sherman speak on a
great many occasions, but never saw HIM so
deeply affected as he was to-day, when he
| babe Official farewell to West Point. Nearly
| every lady in the assemblage was in tears
| and half the cadets were trying to conceal
| their faces. The band appropriately played
could Lang Syne" and the commencement
exercises were over.
| Editorial in the New York Times.
General Sherman's speech of humorous
and pathetic "reminiscences delivered at West
Point yesterday, acquired a charcter of al
most pure pathos from the occasion, the last
appearance of the speaker, as General of the
\ army. at the Military Academy, which not
one of its graduates has done more to make
| illustrious. 1t is easy to see that the banter
ing tone of the speech was merely refuge
from the expression of feelings which the
veteran could not trust himself fully to utter
General Sherman's rank in military history
as a commander at once of singular daring
and of singular prudence, is as firmly liked