The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-08-05

ness Of his intellect that he could transact the
most important affairs when the storm os battle
was raging at its height.
His soul was the hor:e of hope sustained and
cheered by the certainties of his mind and the
power of his faith His was the mathematical
genius of great general, rather than of great
soldier. By this endowment he proved himself
equal to the unexpected, and that with the pre-
cision o. a seer. THE race is not to the swift,
nor the battle to the strong" because the unex-
pected happens to every man. The grandest
campaigns are often defeats. the most brilliant
plans are unconsummated, the most wished-for
opportunities are unreaized, because baffied by
the unexpected at the very moment of expected
fuhlnent. But he appeared greatest In the
presence of the unforeseen. Then came an in
spiration as restless as the march of whlrlwlnd,
as when on the second night of the battle of the
Wilderness, when he changed the entire front of
the line Of battle, and quietly said in response to
messenger, 'if Lee is in my rear am IN his. "
In the history of great general there come
supreme moments, when long matured plans are
to be coLsummated and long deferred hopes are TO
be realized. Some men can work up to that
point and excite the admiration of mankind by
the care and push whereWith they move toward
the objective. but fail in the crucial moment
The preparations of this wonderful man rarely
excited the applause of the people, because the
workings of his maSterfu mind were hidden be-
meath the silence of his lips; but when the su-
preme moment came there. came also an intel
lectual elevation, an uplifting Of the whole being
a transformation of the SILENT thoughtful gen.
eral which surprised his foes and astonished his
friends. He eliminated at the crisis. He was
at his best when most needed. He responded in
an emergency
He is one of the few men in history who did
more than was expected Some men excite great
expectation by the brilliancy of their prepara.
tions; but this quiet, meditatve, undemon-
strative man exceeded all expectations by doing
more than he had promised and by doing
what all others had failed to DO. Others had
done their best with a conscientiousneSs worthy
of all praise; they had worked up to their max
mum strength and accomplished much; they had
contributed largely to the final victory, and shall
receive we'll of their country. 1t was no fault of
theirs If nature had not endowed them for the
ultimate achievement But this man, pre-
eminent by the happy combination of both ma
ture and Providence, rose superior IN the Su-
preme moment, forced all things to do his bid
ding, and, like another Joshua. could have
commanded the sun and moon to stand still to
illuminate his final pathway TO victory. His
latent resources seemed inexnaustbe. Was
Fort Doueson esteemed impregnable? 1t yielded
to his command for immediate and ''uncondi-
tional surrender" Did Vicksburg defy his sixth
plan of capture! His seventh plan was success.
Did Richmond hurl defiance at all previous at
tempts9 His final effort was a triumph, and
over the doomed capital of the Confederacy
triumphantly foated the flag of the Union.
Such were his untold hidden resources of
adaptation, ever unfolding to meet the demand
of new situations, that he would have proved
himself equal to any position of trust and to any
emergency that might arise
When he rose to the supreme command the
Nation demanded one dominant spirit, mighty
to grasp, powerful to inspire. The country was
one, the rebellion was one, and the armies of the
Union should be one; and the general who could
mold, control. inspire az army a million
strong and make them think, feel and fight as
one man, the desire uf the Republic Such
one was he around whose bier a Nation weeps
to-day. To be everywhere present at once by
his spirit and orders was in him realized fact
His laconic order was: "All strike together"
He impaired to all his own spirit and all things
became possible to his faith The Nation felt
her mighty change, and the rebellion went
down beneath the power OF one master mind
He was the loglcian of war. He conquered by
logic He reasoned out his victories. In all the
annals of war there is no such splendid reason
ing on the certainty of results. Others have
conquered by the superiority of material force,
but hs: by the superiority Of mind over mind.
Alas. Alas! that he can no longer think for us.
To-day you are filled with the glory of his
military triumphs. You recalling Belmont,
and Henry and Donelson, and Shiloh and
Nicksburg and Chattanooga, and Richmond
You are calling him the greatest of soldiers; and
you do we'll. But do not degrade him to the
empire and for glory. Lift him up to a higher
pedestal, around which shall forever stand
justice and liberty, and peace, and law, and
order and civilization and religion, with
chaplets in their hands wherewith to crown him
He fought for the right; TO end the war; he con-
quered a peace lie hated war. He looked upon
it as CHASTITY monster whose march is to the
music of the widows sghs and the orphans cry.
He loved peace and pursued it. BLESSED are
the peacemakers. for they shall be called the
London speech in 1877, he said: although a
soldier by education and profession, / have
never felt any sort of fondness for war, aud
have never advocated it except as a means of
peace" This was the energy of mis- courage.
He would not waste life and treasure to gain
advantages, while the means were left to the
enemy to regain them He understood the ne
cessty of sacrifice to achieve a greater advant-
age He surrendered the lesser to obtain the
greater He was not Indifferent to the precious
ness of human life. Did he expose his troops?
He protected them by shortening the time Of
the war and the greater vigor Of his attacks. His
was the arithemetic of blood. Some Quintus
Fabius Maximus would have sacrificed hun
dred thousand more men and $3.50 000 600 more
treasure by the slownesS of his movements and
the feebleness of his efforts. How can | save
my country and prevent the greater etfusion of
blOod! was the supreme question; and his SUI
preme answer was by an energy that knows
no defeat" Thus he reasoned; and to day the
people bless him.
Such is the character of the true conqueror
Only such live in the grateful recollections of
mankind. Away with heroes without humanity.
They may force our respect and seduce our al
InlFalloH Out tney can never WIN our love. Goa
planted goodness in man as the
image of Himself. Greatness should
spring from goodness. This is the price
of hearts. Away with your Alexanders,
and CAESARS. and Tamerlanes! Let them be to
our Christian civilization what the gigantic
monsters of a departed period are in geological
history-types of an inferior age. In the oncom-
ing centuries, mankind will honor only those
who drew the sword in defense of human rights
and in support of the constitutional authority
Then, all hail Mt. Vernon! Then, al hail Mt.
McGregor,
From this better nature and higher mission as
warrior sprank his conduct toward the van
Quished. He had no hatred in his heart His
heart was as tender a woman's. He was not
vindictive. His holy evangel to the Nation was
'Let us have peace Hence, toward the close
of the war, those who had fought against him
saw that there was no safety but in the arms os
the conqueror. In his dying chamber he grasped
the hand of him whose sword was the first he had