The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-06-13
A TALK WITH SHERMAN.
What the Old General Thinks the
Next War VIII be Like.
From he Cincinnati Comn,erclal. Gasette.

From the Cincinnati Commercial Gazette.
Gen. Sherman asked Capt. Mattox,
''do you think if there was another war
that as good material would offer itself as
in the last war-material like Grant, Sher
man, Thomas, and others"
why, certainly" replied the General,
there are as many good men in the army
now as there was when the war broke out,
and they'll make as good generals, too.
What they want is the opportunity. That
Is what makes men great Why in '6l out
of 1000 officers of the army there wasn't
one who would put his hand on Grants
shoulder and say, Here's the greatest gen
eral of the war They didn't know then.
1t takes the opportunity to bring men out.
There is the making Of as great generals
now in the army as there was then. There
always will be men who will come to the
front in time of great emergency, and there
always was
The next war" said Gen. Sherman later,
in answer to a question from Capt W. G..
Smith, will be a terrible slaughter. Men
won't be able to come together and fight.
These machine guns are terrible things,
and with them war will be as bloody as a
big slaughter house. War won't be fought
over again as it was in '61-'65, and in 70
across the water These were hand TO
= =
close to one another, and physical strength
and proves counted for a good deal, but
in the next war all that will be changed.
Then it will be slaughter with these ter
rible machines that fire thousands of bullets
in a minute or So
General asked an inQuisitive young
man, do you think that the strong robust
young fellows from the country made bet
ter soldiers than the young men from the
cityf
1.-THE late war; replied the general,
demonstrated the fact that the boys from
the city could stand more fatigue and hard
ship and marching than the country boys.
The boys from the country were stronger
always, but they were used to a regular
life, and when they got into the army the
irregularity of the life, its hardship and
exposure, weakened and finally killed many
a strong young farmer boy, while the boys
from the cities, being used to irregular
hours, irregular living, and unmethOdical
ways of life, could stand any amount of
hardship without going under. This was
proved by the war. | saw it proved in
many cases myself. Young city chaps
were tougher in every way. They weren't
so strong physically as the country BOYS
but then they could stand the irregularity'
of army life better. -
IF there's ever a war in this country
again CnInk bne greatest army VIII be
made up of the railway men. In the first
place they are strong physically in the
second place they have learned obedience.
and have learned to obey all orders without
questioning them. This wasn't so i'm the
late war, for then men had to be taught
obedience, and their lessons were bitter
ones sometimes. But as | was saying. the
railway men will make a grand army.
They, above all other things, are Injured to
life of irregularity They are used to
fatigue and the hardships of long hours
of work without rest. This irregularity of
life, which all railroad men know is a fact.
more than anything else will make
them the best soldiers in the world, but
hope they will never be called upon to
shoulder gum"