Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1885-12-14
9allg gress and 9akotaian
GRANT ON LOGAN.
The First Meeting of the Two Men
who Becnme Fast Eriends.

--
The First Meeting Of the Two Men
who Became a Friends.
General Grant, in his Personal Mem
oirs,'' wrote on his first meeting with
General Logan:
The ten regiments which had volun-
tered IN the state service for thirty
days, it will be remembered, bad done
80 with q pledge TO GO into the national
service if called upon within that time.
When they volunteered the government
had only called for ninety day enlist,
mcnts. Men were called DOW for three
years or the war. They felt that this
change of period released them from the
obligation of revolunteering. When |
was appointed colonel the twenty first
regiment was still in the state service.
About the time they were to be mustered
into the United States service, such OF
them as would go, two members of con-
gress from the Acknowledgement and
Logan--appeared at the capital and /
was introduced to them. l had never
seen either of them before, but l had
read a great deal about them, and par
ticularly about Logan, In the newspa-
pers. Logan had been elected te con-
gress from the southern district of the
state, where he had 1900 majority over
his republican competitor. His district
had been settled by people originally
from the southern states, and at the
breaking ont OF secession they sympa-
hlzed with the south. Al the first out
break of the war some of them joined
the southern army; many others were
preparing to go; others rode over the
country at night denounclng the union,
and made 1T as necessary to guard rail-
road bridges over which national troops
had to pass in southern Illinois as it was
in Kentucky or any of the border slave
states. Logab's popularity IN this dis
trict was unbounded. He knew almost
enough of the people by their christian
names to form an ordinary con
gressional district. AS he went in
politics his district was sure to 90
The republican papers had been demand
ing that be should where
he stood On the questions which at that
time epgrossed the whole public
thought. Some were very bitter in
their denunciations of his silence. Lo-
gan was not q man to be coerced into an
utterance by threats. He did, however,
come out in a speech before the ad-
lournment of the special session of con-
gress which was convened by the presi-
dent soon after his Inauguration, and an
nounced his undying loyalty and de-
votion to the union. But l had not han
pened to see that speech, 80 that when |
first met Logan my Impressions were
those formed from reading denuncla-
tiops of him. McClernard on the other
hand, had early taken strong grounds
for the maintenance of the union, and
had been praised accordingly by tie re-
publican papers. The gentleman who
presented these two members of con.
gress asked me if / would have any OBJ
j~ections to their addressing nv
regiment. [ hesitated a little
before answering. It was
but a few days before the time set for
mastering into the United States
service such of the men as we're willing
to volunteer for three years or the war.
l had some doubts as to the effect a
speech from Logan might have, but as
he was with McClernand, whose senti.
ments on the all absorbing questions of
the day were well known. 1 gave nv
consent. McClernand spoke first and
Logan followed in a speech which he
has hardly eqnalled since for force and
%eloquence. 1t breathed loyalty and de-
votion to the union, which inspired-my
men to such b point that they would
have volunteered to remain in the army
as long as an enemy of the country CON
tlnued to bear arms against it They
entered the United States service all
most to a man.
General Logan went to his part of the
state and gave his attention TO raising
troope. The very men who at frat made
it necessary to guard the roads in south
ern Illinois became the defenders OF the
union. Logan entered the service as a
colonel of q regiment, and rapidly rose
to the rank of major general. His dis
trict which had promised at first to give
much trouble to the government, filled
every call made upon it for troops with
out resorting to the draft. There was
no call made when there were not more
than were asked for. That congressional
district stands credited at the war de-
partment to-day with furnishing more
men for the army than it was called on
to supply.