The sun. [volume] (Morris, Stevens County, Minn.) 1882-1895, 1885-09-17
ARMY OF THE TENNEssEE.
Cen. sherman Speaks Feelingly upon His
Rec0llections and the Character Of Gen.


Gen. sherman Speaks Feelingly upon His
RecOllections and the Character Of Gen.
Grant.
The eighteenth annual reunion Of the So
eiety oil the Army OF the Tennessee was
held at Chicago Sept. 8.
Gen. William T. Sherman, president oi
the society, was in the chair. On the stage
with him were Gen. Logan and Governors
Oglesby, Marshall, Sherman and Fletcher.
In the body OF the audience were Generals
Belknap, John b. Sanborn, NJ. NJ. Bone,
Clinton B. Fiske, Hickenlooper, Force
and Others. A business meeting
was held during the day, and a
magnificent audience assembled at Gen.
trail Music hall, when the set orations OF
the occasion were delivered. The exercises
were opened with prayer by Bishop Fellows,
who was followed by Gov. Richard j.
Oglesby, who delivered glowing tribute to
the deeds OF the Army Of the Tennessee. He
was followed by Gen. William T. Sherman,
who spoke as follows:
Comrades OF the Army OF the Tennessee:
Again we are assembled in the goodly city
of Chicago, pursuant to the resolution
made at our last reunion OF Aug. 1914,
1884, at Lake Minnetonka. This is our
eighteenth annual reunion. Though twen-
W ctCHVlui years nave tTdilSDIfcu biHCc UUe
close of the war, l need not repeat to you
the trite expression that our ranks are
growing thinner, our hair whiter and that
the eyes which look up to me, and which
once kindled and flushed at the trumpet's S
sound, now seem sad, as though enyying
the fate OF those fine young fellows whose
gay and gallant spirits took their flights
in the glorious days, the memories
OF which we came here to celebrate.
Though war makes the battle field har-
vest, yet in peace, industry invadcs
the m6st sacred premises, taking here the in
nocent babe, there the gentle, loving wife.
again the youth in lusty manhood and the
king on his throne. During the last vaca-
ton death has stricken from our list of
members the very head and front, Gen. U.
s. Grant, the same, who in the cold winter
Of 1861 and 1862, gathered together at
Cairo, ILL.,, the fragments of an army and
led them up the Tennessee river, the creator
and father of the Tennessee. took his final
leave on earth on the morning Of July %,
1885, from Mount McGregor, in plain view
of the historical battle field of Saratoga.
He had finished his lifes work and had be-
queathed to the world his example.
You, however, were at the battles front,
stood by him true and loyal always, and
to his dying day he loved the members Of
the Tennessee above all others by reason
OF their loyalty to him in the darkest days
of his eventful life. Gen. Grant was sent to
command the district OF Memphis. Gen.
Halleck himself being summoned to Wash
ington to
CAST ABOUT FOR A NEW COMMANDER
for the army OF the Tennessee. He offered
the post to a most worthy quartermaster,
who had the good sense to decline, and
himself being compelled to leave, the COM
mand at the West devolved on Gen. Grant,
not by selection, but by virtue of his SUI
perior commission. Thenceforward his
career was ever onward and upward, and
when, on the 4th day ofJuly, 1S63, Vicksburg
surrendered to him, and the mighty Mis-
sissippi went UNIV atched to the sea- the whole
country arose and recognized in him the
agent who was destined to guard and lead
us to final victory and triumph. These
circumstances were all known to you at
the time, were little appreciated and were
In TRUTH the fires designed by Providence
to test the ability, courage and endurance
of him on whom whole epoch in history
was destined to hinge. He always asserted
the most perfect faith in the Justice of our
cause, and always claimed that sooner or
later it must prevail, because the interest
of all mankind demand the existence OF
just such n republic as we had erected,
and that as by tbs the eoneArrfeneeh onnA!cf had nI
fallen upon us, we had only to meet it like
brave men and conquer as a matter Of
course. He always claimed that we must
follow up the rebel armies and compel them
to submit to the authority Of the national
government. He believed in acts, not i'll
words; in a war OF aggression, not OF ma
neuver, and from Belmont to Appomattox
his strategy and tactics were the same, ever
straight to the mark till armed resistance
had ceased and absolute submission to law
full authority was promised. To compare
Grant with Alexander, Hannibal, Napoleon,
or Washington seems to mefolly, for he was
not similar to any one Of them any more
than the period of time in which they ex-
listed resembled ours. Each epoch creates
its own agents, and Gen. Grant more near
ly impersonated the American character of
1861-65 than any other living man. There
fore he will stand as the typical hero OF the
great civil war in America OF the nineteenth
century.
You must all recall that at our meeting at
Cleveland in October 1888, / reported to
you that Gen. Grant had told me that Es
had something special to say to us OF the
Army of the Tennessee in consequence OF
which you elected him the orator for the
next annual meeting at Minnetonka, in Au-
gust 1884. He intended to come, but at
forbade, and we had to choose a substitute.
Again was he chosen for our orator upon
this occasion, and by the record he is still
the orator, but he is now dead and must
speak to US by his substitute, Gen. John B.
Sanborn who has kindly consented to full
fiji the office, and / am well assured that
the special matter he wished to reveal to us
will be fully elaborated, in his Forthcoming
memoirs.
Grant needs no monument to perpetu-
ate the memory of his virtues. His weak
nesses lie buried with his bones but il one
or more monuments are to be erected to
crafty the living, let them be like him,
strong, simple, durable, and in good taste;
better initiate his example, accept the sit
uation, and erect one good monument on
the banks of the Hudson, where he now lies
buried in peace and at rest eternal.
Gen. John b. Sanborn of st. Paul then
delivered the annual address, which was
very long and interesting.