St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1886-02-28
INJURED INNOCENCE.
Gen. Sherman Makes Answer to Gen.
Fry's Recent Structures in
Lengthy Communication.
The Latter Accused Of Trying to Mis-
represent Sherman in Detaohing
the Famous Quotation.
Grant Hounded by Fry and other
HabftuaI Lfbelers for Many
Months in 1S62.
Tecumseh Ayers That He Has Re-
ceived Little Encouragement
From the American Press.
The sherman-Fry Controversy.

ce1Ned Little EncOuragemenI
From the American Press.
The Sherman-Fry Controversy.
New YORK. Feb. 27.-The North Ameri-
can Review for March contains the letter
I from Gen. Sherman which was the basis of
the controversy with Gen. Fry, preceded by
an address which was intended to be de-
/ livered before the Loyal Legion at Cincin-
/ natl, but Gen. Sherman says that the sud-
/ den and unexpected death of Gen. W. ).
Hancock the evening previous, changed the
whole character of the proceedings
To my comrades and friends: Whilst seek
retirement and peace, the newspapers take
great liberties with me as with everybody
l else. They have published that my family
will soon leave St Louis because we are dis
! contented. each paper assigning its own.sepa-
rate reason. There Is no secret about IL. All
my family connections and intentions are
known perfectly by all who have right TO
1 be consulted In the case Ever since the fall
ure OF the Harrison Wire company, ~ st.
Louis, which involved nv son-in-lzw. Capt.
/ Fitch. and which has resulted in the removal
of his family 10 Pittsburg, we have been dis
/ turbed. Three OF my children and seven
/ grand children are now away from home, and
| there remains 70 us only three. OF these. the
T. youngest son. 10 years old, on whom the
I family must soon depend. will graduate at 81.
Louis university in June, lss6,
WANTS TO GO TO YALE
college. and / want him to receive the best
/ possible education. His going 10 New Haven
in September will probably result in the few
/ OF Us left going 10 New York 10 be near him.
! L shall, however, retain al the property j
possess in ST Louis mot much 10 be sure).
but all that l have 20 leave the family when
am laid in BeilafOntaine cemetery. l am
| perfectly content with my neighbors and
friends in ST. Louis, 10 whom am very much
all 49,
| can to make our stay with them agreeable.
| The Fry matter is equally simple when viewed
/ Alright. Last sum er. after Gen. Grants
| funeral, which ! attended, while travelling
between New York, 81. Louis, Minnetonka
| and Chicago. / was collecting materials for
the tribute OF respect 1. rs president, was re-
quested 10 make TO the memory OF Gen.
Grant, our first commander, before the So
ciety of the Army OF the Tennessee at the
meeting at Chicago OF Sept 3. That adj
dress was universally noticed and copied
in all the journals OF the day, aud
was the result of that correspondence.
The special quotation OF Gen. Fry in the
December number of the North American
| Review was not made from that public ad-
dress, but from one of the private
LETTERS OF INQUIRY
addressed 20 Col. Robert y. Scott, who had
been on Gen. Halleck's stan and is now in
charge OF the war records at Washington. OF
/ whom all army officers make frequent In
quiries for scraps OF information. Col. Scott
! Is a personal friend whom i have known
since boyhood, and his father before him, in
/ San Francisco and 4 wrote to him with the
same confidence 1 would TO my own brother
about family matters. / keep no copies of
such letters and write none hastily and care
lessly, and il was only Jan. 2s, two months
| after that. / obtained from Col Scott a copy
OF the correspondence from which Fry had
made his detached quotation. This CORES
pondence presents the whole story better
than / can state IL anew. As socn a.
Gen. Fry's article appeared Gen. Grants
friends called my attention 10 il and my
letter book or memory returning no express
sion OF opinion so positive rs that used. L
naturally requested the editor 10 ascertain
from Gen. Fry the source OF his quotation
that i might explain or ascertain who had
revealed my private letters. Gen. Fry's
| answer was evasive. calling on Gen. Sherman
70 deny the words aud the sentiment before
he would
sussTASTIATE HIS STATEMENT.
again called Oh him and appealed to the
war department, all without success, gener-
| ally explaining 10 correspondents that i
/ thought il impossible that could have used
! that particular form OF expression and be-
heved Gen. Fry had a malicious motive. I
received. too late. a notice by roundabout
way from a gentleman OF Cincinnati that Fry
was cunuingly setting a trap 10 catch me,
and il was not until Jan. 29 that Col. Scott
I himself first revealed 10 me the actual source
OF this mIschievous paragraph. Detached
| and used as a text Tor sermon il was a :
clear a forgery as was ever perpetrat ed
| Taking my letter TO Col. Scott's IN its integ-
rity though manifesty never meant for pub
LEGATION, / contended that IL is eminently
consistent with my constant friendship for
Gen. Grant from Shiloh to the day we depos-
tied his remains i'm the tomb a. riverside
The date, Sept. 6, 1856, is prior 10 the publi-
cation of Grants Memoirs, in which, on page
| $50, he positively records that his position at
Corinth, June, lS62. had become $50 unbear-
able that he had resolved TO go to the rear,
| and was dissuaded by Gen. Sherman, or,
quoting mis- own words, Il then
OBTAINED PERMISSION
TO leave the department. but Gen. Sherman
| happened 10 call on me as / was about start
Ing and urged me so IT Ongiy not TO think of
going that concludeu To remain. Gen. Sher-
man, in his memoirs, 1919, states the same
fact with the further addition that he learned
OF Gen. Grants purpose to 20 back TO ST.
Louis from Gen. Halieck himself and rode To
Gen. Grants camp for the very purpose of
| dissuading him from committing the fatal
mistake. Now IL is a matter OF notoriety that
from February 10 July. ls52, Gen. Grant was
under a cloud. bounded by the newspapers
and By a clique OF officers OF whom Fry was
one until rs he himself says. his position be-
I came ''unbearable." and during ali that time
Gen. Sherman was his steadfGst friend and
discovered in him those pure. unSelfsh, manly
qualities which afterward yielded such
precious fruits TO our country aud 10 man.
kind. Can IL then be wondered at. after
twenty-fUur years, that Gen. Sherman should
be little surprised that the habitual nbeler
of Gen. Grant (see his published volume.
1854, the army under Buell. should attempt
to assume the character OF Grants panegyrist
at his expense. There Is not a member OF
the supreme court, OF congress or any law
who viii
CONSENT To THE PUBLICATION
of the manuscript without the privilege of
revising the proof" and, moreover, Provost
Marshal Gen. Fry knows thBt in the trial by
court martial OF the humb!est private soldier,
the testimony of each witness is subject 10
revision" befo.e becoming a part OF the
record. Yet he obtains from a connding
friend a private letter, publishes IL 10 the
world. gsrbled, and makes il a text for a ser
mon TO Gen. Sherman. and when politely
asked for the source of his quotation, answers
cooliy: Better let the case rest where it is. -
II he thinks be has achieved q cheap news
paper victory over Gen. Sherman, he is wei
come. The man who got of with my over
coat NAV keep IL. for have bought a new
one. Now, my friends, i want to direct your
attention TO all there is in the case, much
ado about nothing" At the date Of that
letter. Sept. 3, there was TO be meeting of
the Society of the Army OF the Tennessee at
Chicago, Sept. and 10, 1855. Geu. Sherman
was at Lake Miunetonka- and being sum-
moned by the family Of Gen. Grant at his
death, July %. 1855, went to Mt McGregor
and remained till his body was entombed.
Aug. 5. 1885. Compelled TO travel from New
York TO St. Louis, 10
LAKE NINNEroSKA,
10 Chicago and 81. Louis, back again TO Chi
cago for the army meeting, he was forced 10
collect material for his address ION the
wing" That address was the result Of this
correspondence. and il has been universally
! go