Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1886-08-27
GENERAL GRANT.
An Artists iniscence and Impressions
Written for the Free Press by N. 4. Harris
hOru.1


troduced by mis- under secretary who had
arranged with him to sit to me. The first
thing which struck me was his flushed
face, which suggested the stories | had
heard of his hard drinking his calm al
most stony expression the whteness of
his thin lips contrasted against the high
color of his face, the peculiar shape of the
back of his head which formed almost an
acute angle, the perpendicular: line of
which ran nearly straight down to his
coat collar behind-the whole contour
calling to mind forcibly his memorable
words at Fort Donelson and during the
Virginia campaign; 81 propose to move
| Immediately Oh yonr works ~ 81 propose
to fight it out on this line if it takes all
summer!' During his sittings his calm,
strong almost stolid expression was varied
only on one occasion, but sometimes his
face lost its flushed appearance. He told
me that this was unnatural and that he
felt strangely when it was strongest.
think it must have been due to intense
mental concentration us observed after
his hours of attention to business had
passed it died away, but If he was called
again for an interview 1t suddenly return
ed, giving him the appearance of blush
I ing like a school girl.
| | never saw any indication that the
president drank more than glass or two
of stimulant with or before his dinner,
and did not know that he did even that :;
but an incident happened which gave me
the impression that he did So Strange to
say, though habtually having the calm
manner before referred to, he was exceed
ingly quick in his movements. Calling
to mind the constant instruction of the
regular army drill master make your
motion quickly, then pause and steady
yourself for the next notion" This habit
of action, so constantly dinned into the
mind, gives to the regular army officer and
soldier Il jerky manner, The general
would dart across the room sometimes
with his head and upper part of his body
far i'll advance of his feet apparently at
the risk of falling headlong. This man
ner of walking sometimes and his flushed
face no doubt gave rise to those descript-
ions of him by immaginative reporters
who accused him of being intoxicated.
This popularity would be very marked if
he got in haste-in danger Of being late
for an appointment, which he always
kept with great fidelity and eXactness He
never failed to appear at the time he APP
pointed for sitting. This systematic
habit of mind and his almost intuitive
mastery of mathematics probably had
lllUCn 10 90 WITH MS success. Inns, &C
cOmpanied with his stubborn, unyielding
nature, kept his plans up to the mark i'll
execution
In view of the financial disaster which
saddened his last days his remarks con
corning his son, Col. Fred, are interesting,
as well as showing that his ideas were
soundly Democratic and in favor of the
industrial development of society, char
acterizing true Democracy rather than the
militant, aggressive formation of society
characterizing Democracy. We were
talking over the war and subsequent
events, and made the remark that my
life had probably been radically different
from what it would have been had | &C
cepted an offer made by Mr. Stanton, of a
commission in the regular army, at the
close of the war, but that did not think
army life III time of peace was very agree
fme Of var cihther he added that atr he
thought did best not to remain in tie
army that military profession did not
develop the best qualities of a man and
he should advise his son Fred to resign
and engage in some civil pursuit. My
work was done in the library back of the
president. private reception room. An
incident happened one day which brings
out the unofficial name by which the
president was known by nearly all about
the executive mansion except his own
family. was working alone just before
dinner time and servant came in with
what seemed to be glass of whiskey and
pitcher of ice water On seeing me she
appeared confused and exclaimed oh |
thought there was nobody here but the
old man. This name was used by those
about the White House very much as
the English use The Grand Old man"
referring to Mr. Gladstone
The respect which everyb body exhibited
for the general was entirely spontaneous
natural, toward those of a superior mental
capacity. His mastery of mathematics,
before referred to, was almost intuitive
and OF the difficult mathematical prob
lens constantly arising there he would
give correct solution by mental calcula
ton before others could cipher them out
on paper. The many bitter attacks on
him in The press, the danger that some
hot headed partizan might take it into his
head to be the avenger of his imaginary
wrongs, the tragic death of Lincoln and
the assaults on members of his cabinet,
must have impressed him that assassina-
ton was one of the contingencies when
ever II could in an overwhelming degree
serve the interests of either foreign foes or
domestic traitors. AS sitting after sit
ting passed and did not succeed in arous-
ing by ordinary conversation the fire
which | knew burned within and which
probably flashed forth only on great oc-
caslons, was beginning to despair of
getting any thing more than still life |
portrait. One day after studying him in !
oilcHCe dlllOSt lHt eullTe SltUlnB Wnlle he
sat and smoked the inevitable cigar, |
jumped eXcitedly on my feet and pulled |
out from my hip pocket what might have |
appeared to be revolver. He quickly |
took the cigar out of his mouth and turn |
ed on me keen searching look which |
Immediately copied into the portrait My |
revolver was large black stump" which |
crayon artists use in shading Seven |
years later, in 1879, drew II portrait of
him in Dublin Ireland, which he present
ed to the Lord Mayor at the time the free
dom of the city was conferred upon him.
The general had grown younger in APP
pearance during the seven years Of relax /
alton from the cares of public life; the
red flushed appearance to his face no
longer appeared the vice like compression !
of his thin lips had relaxed, the under
one being fuller and showing some color
and his preoccupied almost stolid express
sion had given place to greater mobility
of countenance. found the general an
intelligent critic of my work.
During his public life the impression
was quite general even among those not