The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1885-10-01
HOW LINCOLN STOPPED CRITI-
CISMS.

General Porter contributes an inter-
esting paper on 'sLincoln and Grant
to The CENTURY for October, from which
we quote the following characteristic
anecdote: ''Grant's successes brought
with them the usual number of iealousies
and rivalries. Political generals had
their advocates in Washington to plead
their cause, while Grant stood without
friends at court. His detractors gathered
at times great deal of strength in their
efforts to supplant him with general of
their own choosing, and Lincoln was
beset by many delegation who insisted
that nothing would harmonic matters in
the West but Grants removal. This
nagging continued even after his great
triumph at Vicksburg.
"Lincoln always enjoyed telling the
General, after the two had become
personally intimate, how the crossroads
wiseacres had criticised his campaigns.
One day, after dwelling for some time GA
this subject he said to Grant: After
Vicksburg I thought it was about time
to shut down on this sort of thing. So
one day, when delegation came to see
me and had spent half az hour trying to
show me the fatal mistake you had made
in paroling -Pernberton's army, and in
sisted that the rebels would violate their
paroles and in less than mouth confront
you again in the ranks, and have to be
whipped all over again, / thought /
should get rid of them best by telling
them story about Sykes's dog. "Have
youever heard about Sykes's yellow dog?"
said to the spokesman of the delegation.
He said he hadn't. swell, must tell
you about him, said 1. "Sykes had a
yellow dog he set great store by, but
there were lot of small boys around the
village, and that's always bad thing
for dogs, you know. These boys didn't
share Sykes's views, and they were not
disposed to let the dog have fair show.
Even Sykes had to admit that the dog
was getting unpopular; in fact it was soon
seen that prejudice was growing up
against that dog threatened to wreck all
his future prospects in life. The boys
after meditating how they could get the
best of him, finally fixed up a cartridge
with long fuse, put the cartridge in a
piece of meat, dropped the meat in the
road in front of Sykess door. ana then
perched themselves on fence good
distance off with the end of the fuse in
their hands. Then they whistled for the
dog. When he came out he scented the
bait, and bolted the meat cartridge and
all The boys touched off the fuse with
cigar, and in about second report
came from that dog that sounded like a
small of thunder. Sykes came bouncing
out of the house, and yelled:
'"."What's up! Anything busted?'
'"'"There was no reply except smoker
from the small boys roosting on the
fence, but as Sykes looked up he saw the
whole air filled with pieces of yellow dog.
He picked up the biggest piece he could
find, portion of the back with part of
the tail still hanging to it, and after turn
ing it around and looking it over he said,
We'll, I guess he'll never be much &C
count agaia-as dog And I guess
Pemberton's forces will never be much
account again-as an army"
"'The delegation began looking around
for their hats before had quite got to
the end of my story, and I was never
bothered any more after that about
superseding the commander of the Army
of the Tennessee. :"