River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1884-02-14
THE REBEL GENERALS.
The Great Majority orthe Leaders OF
the Southern Armies Dead-Pres-
ent Occupations ofthe Remainder
"Reminiscences OF West Pointer.


"reminiscences OF a West Pointer.
From the Boston Advertiser.
Washington, Dec. S.-Twenty years
ago the north kept in mind the leading
generals of the rebel side, and discussed
their merits with as much interest as
was shown with the leaders OF its own
armies. Many of them had been prom
inent in the regular army before the
war. Some we're connected with north
efn families. "What has become OF
these menu" I asked of an old Wes'
Pointer and brilliant general officer
the other day. He thought a
minute. "Why, the majority
of them are lead" was the reply.
Then he went on to take up SOHO OF
of those historic names. With many of
their owners he had served in Mexico
and in India wars without number.
Eyes. the greater part of these men are
dead, muCh larger proportion than OF
our northern Generals. Alter the
war most of them broke down. The
fact was the rebels suffered more than
We did. They had harder time in the
field, lived poorly, and were disposed
TO disease than our men. Lee, Anderson,
Bragg, Magruder, Breckenridge, Hood,
Forest, Price. Pemberton, Dick Taylor,
Pillow, Floyd, Hardee and Ewell were
among them. The majority had been
in the regular army. They went,
with the South for State pride
and in part because they We're
frozen out. l shall not for
get Anderson. He was captain in the
dragons out in Utah. When his resig-
nation was accepted and he went away
from the rest of US, the tears were III
his eyes,. Il am going back to South
Carolina to raise hogs and hominy until
the war IS over he said, II will never
fight the old flag" But in month the
tide was too strong for him. They made
him Military Governor of Charleston
and Corps commander in Lees army.
He died of a broken heart right after
the war. Lee never waited to resign,
but, like Johnston, he was made to feel
that the Northern officers dIstrustec
him. 1t was so with Johnston. In 1861
he was Quartermaster General, bat old
Simon Cameron transacted all his bus
mess with subordinate officers. At last
| Johnston went to him. "Mr. Secretary,
he said, ''you pay no attention to me-"
mo" was the reply; 'you are Vir-
ginian, and sympathizo with
| the rebels i do not answered John
ston, but shall resign, rather than be
| ignored 1t is not because | have any
desire to join the SOUTH Yet in three
months he had drifted into general
commission in Dixie. Johnston IS an
| old man now, not less than 20. Bragg
| died several years ago, at his home IN
North Carolina. | knew him IN the
Mexican war. He was captain OF Artil-
lery then, and one Of the bravest men
l ~. DIT ho
and his men hated him. At Monterey
some of them hid lighted six-ounce
shell under his bed. The explosion
| blew Bragg 100 feet and wrecked the
| tent, but he was not hurt. And yet they
| had a sort of pride. During the whole
war his old battery carried Bragg g Arul-
| lety, on its guidons. Some of the volun-
teers were mad about it, but in vain.
| Magruder died ten years ago.
| Forrest, the murderer of negro
prisoners at Fort Pillow, lived only a
| little while after the surrender. So 1t
was with Ewell, Lees bravest lieuten-
ant, who rode strapped to his saddle IN
every compaign after the first Bull Run,
where he lost leg He was breveted
for bravery at Cherubusco, There was
Hardee lie was Lieutenant Colonel of
| Dragons at SO, but he went south with
| the rest. After the war Re started the
| first orange plantation in Florida, and
died there three or four years ago. Price
| is dead So is Dick TAYLOR. Taylor was
Jefferson Davis brother.in-law. and
made Lieutenant General on that ac-
count. Pemberton lived out the remains
CT his DAYS at Philadelphia. He never re-
covered from ais surrender to Grant at
yicksburg. OF the few Northern men
who joined the rebels, he was one, but
his wife was Southern, and
carried him over. Another case was
Roswell Ripley, of Ohio. He was West
Point graduate, and dad well IN Mexico.
! His wife was South Carolina woman,
| That was the secret of his choice. Dur
ing the war he commanded Fort Sumter
and defended it bravely. | am told that
! he and Quincy A. Gilmore were boys
| together in the same neighborhood IN
! Ohio. If that was SO, they must have
| thought of it W hen Gilmore sat down on
| Morris Island to shell Ripley out of
| Sumter. Floyd, Buehanan's secretary
| of war never came to the surface after
| his midnight desertion 4 Fort Donel-
son. Pillow, his comrade In that trip,
lived on his plantation in Tennessee
! few years after hostilities ceased. he
| had been major-general in the Next
can war, and did creditable service
/ L
| Folks law partner, aud got the appoint
ment that way. The pluckiest man in
the war was George Pickett.
He was young Second Lieutenant just
from the ACADEMY in 1916, and was as
signed to a department in Washington
Territory of which old Gen. Harvey was
in command. We we're quarreling then
over the boundary. Harvey put Pickett
on San Juan Island, which connects Pu-
get Sound He cid it against an Eng
lish squadron, and it has never been
lost. Pickett commanded division at
Gettysburg under Longstreet. His as
sault of the third day was the greatest
charge Of the fight. His men fought
with mine about our guns. We drove
them back, but Pickett came nefrer WIN
ming that fight than it is pleasant to
think Of Yes, he is dead.
'Of those who are alive. Beauregard
and Jubal Early are managers of the
Louisiana lottery. They get $4,000
each, and so great is the feeling still ex-
listing in the South over their generals,
that one of the lottery managers told
me the other day that their names were
worth more to the company than their
salaries. Both of them were West
Pointers and artillery officers, but Beau
regard never was soldier. lie IS a
dapper Creole gentleman, and the
Louisianians swear by him. Early
| fought we'll. Longstreet comes to Wash
ington occasionally. lie is United
States Marshal in Georgia, but his mag
nifcent physique is showing the effects
his wounds. In Mexico he and Grant
were Lieutenants in the same regi-
ments. After the war Grant induced
him to join the Republican party. He
has been under ban in the South ever
since, but never without the consolation
of good Office. / only remember one
other prominent rebel who is Re-
publican. McLaws was reconstructed
and is postmaster at Savannah. Lee
used to say of McLaws' division that it
was always ready for a fight. A good
many of them have drifted into politics
on the other side. Joseph Wheeler,
weight 10Y pounds, and the best cavalry
officer, next to Stuart, in rebeldom, IS
member of Congrt IS from Alabama; M.
G.. Butler and Wade Hampton represent
South Carolina in the Senate. Butler
lost his right leg at Brandy Station In
1868, where Wade Hamplon's son was
killed. Hampton was one Of the
richest men IN the State. He raised,
armed and equipped, at bis own
expense, the Hampton Legion and q
regiment of cavalry and artillery; Ma
hone came to the front in the asst cam
paign about Richmond and is senator;
Johnston has been in congress; Sena-
tor Morgan of Alabama, rose from the
ranks to be brigadier general; in fact OF
the ten congressman from that state,
nine we're in the rebel army; SO with all
but one of the Arkansas delegation;
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