The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-11-15
GENERAL SCOTS VANITY.
Entertaining Gossip Regarding the Doughty
Old Warriors Self-Interest

General E. D.. Reyes, then a newly-commis-
stoned lieutenant. joined the staff of General
Scott in 1888, and the best stories in his new
book. Fifty Years Observation of Men and
Events" are Of that illustrious soldier.
There can be no doubt that the General was
vain of rnany things, and especially so OF his
person. For that there was good reason, since /
was oftened sickened by hearing persons Of all
degree remind him of his stature and symmetry,
but he was never offended. He referred to it
himself on all occasions, and sometimes under
strange circumstance, as In the following exam
pie which l heard him relate several times. 1t
was, l think, in the year 1S30-the General was
always infinitely particular in naming the exact
date of every event he described-when travel
ing in the northern part of Ohio he stopped
at a country store where they sold liquor
by the glass. He had on a common travelling
cap and a plain overcOat that concealed his but
tens. The landlord having stepped ont, he went
behind the counter on which the glasses stood to
a desk, and was busy writing a note, when a
farmer came in and called out, give me a glass
of rum today" The General Strengthened up,
and turning full upon the man, he exclaimed:
did you ever know a man six feet four and a
quarter inches tall to sell rum toddyF" He told
me that when he received his first commission
in the army, which was that of captain, he i'm
mediately ordered a new suit of unifoFm-sword,
sash, ap-everything complete, and had it car
ried into the largest room in the house, in the
diagonal corners of which he placed two looking
glasses. Then he cleared away all the furniture
let in as much light as possible, put on his new
uniform, and strutted back and forth between
the mirrors for two hours. But" said he, 'if
any man had seen me 1 should have proceeded
at once to put him to death"
The Generals vanity was by no means con
fined to his personal appearance.
One day | was reading TO him newspaper ar
ticle in praise of Henry Clay. The writer de-
seribes the distinguished Kentuckian as a man
of commanding presence, with a lofty forehead
and a large, loose mouth. He referred also to
several other nowne orators-Burke Mira
beau and Patrick Henry-whose mouths were Of
extraordinary size, and he concludes his article
mouths" A great men have large mouths!"
exclaimed the General; why, my mouth is not
three-fouPths the size it should be for my bulkr
An incident connected with the troubles be-
tween the United States and Canada, growing
out of the Caroline" affair, presents Gen. Scott
in a grotesque but characteristic attitude. 1t
was reported that an American vessel, the Bar
celona, was to be fred upon from IA British bat
terry as she passed through the Niagara river.
Having heard the rumor, the General dressed
himself in full uniform and repaired to a point
on the shore which was directly opposite the
English guns. There, by chance, he fegnd an
old oak that had been blown down. The tree
was but slightly inclined, and was lying almost
parallel with the stream, and the bright sun en-
abled us to see clearly the English soldiers on
the opposite shore. AS the vessel approached
the General clambered upon the old oak, the
trunk of which was six or eight feet in diameter
and bare Of limbs thirty or forty feet from the
upturned roots. He appeared taller than befor9,
and as he strobe to and fro on ms high
wooden walk, his cooked has looked higher,
and his plumes spread wider than
ever. Selling the moment when the prov of
the Barcelona was directly opposite us, he faced