The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-10-09
Won srEUBgN's SERVICES.
John Fiske Lightly sketches the
Famous Germans Career.
From the October AtIantic Monthln.

From the October atlantic Monthly.
OF all the foreign officers who served IN
| der Washington during the war for indie
| pendence, the Baron Won Steuben was in
many respects the most important Mem
Der of a noble family which for five centu-
ries had been distinguished in the local
annals of Magdeburg, Steuben was one of
| the best educated and most experienced
soldiers Of Germany. His grandfather, an
| able theologia1, was we'll known as the
author Of critical treatise on the New
| Testament. His uncle, an eminent mathe-
matician, had been the Inventor of a new
| system of tortificaton His faith ar had seen
| nall a century Of honorable service in the
| corps of engineers. He had himself held
| the rank of first lieutenant at the begin
ming of the seven years war, and after
excellent service in the battles of Prague,
| R0ssbach and Kunersdorf ne was raised to
position on the staff of Frederick the
Great. At the end Of the war, whom the
thrifty king reduced mis- army, and Blucher,
| with other officers after wards famous, left
| the service, Steuben retired to private life
with the honorary rank OF general of the
| Gree Of Swabia. For more than ton years
ne was grand marshal TO the Prince of
Hohehzollern- Hechingen. Thea he went
| travelling about h lrope, until in the spri e
! of l777 he arrived in Paris, and became
| acquai ted with Franklin and Beau
| marchals
The American alliance was already Sc
cretly conte nplated by the French minis
try, and the astute Vergenne3, knowing
| that the chief defect of our ARMIES lay in
| their want OF organization and discipline.
saw in the scientific German soldier most
| efficient instrument for remedying the evil.
| After much hesitation Steuben was per-
suaded to undertake the task. That his ar
| rival upon tue scene might excite no heart
| burning among the American officers, the
| honorary rank which he had held in Ger
many was translated by Vergennes into
toe rank Of lieutenant general, which the
| Americans would at once recognize as more
eminent than any position existing in their
| own army, except that of the commander
| in-chief
Knowing no English, Steuben took with
him as secretary aud interpreter the youth
| ful Pierre Duponceau, afterward famous as
q lawyer, and still more famous as a philol-
ogist One day on shipboard this gay
young Frenchman laid a wager that he
would kiss the first yankee glrl he should
meet on landing. So as they came ashore
Mt Portsmouth on frosty December day,
be gravely stepped up to a pretty New
Hampshire maiden who was passing by.
and told her that before leaving his native
land TO fight for American freedom he had
taken VOW to ask, in earnest Of victory, a
kiss from the first lady ne should meet. The
prayer of chivalry found favor in the ewes
OF the fair Puritan, and the token of sue
cess was granted.
Throu hout the war Steuhen pro we'd no
less faithful than capable. He came to feel
a genuine love for his adopted country, and
after the war was over, retiring to the
romantic wood and near Oriskany, where
SO many families of German lineage were
already settled, and where the ate of New
York presented him with farm of 16, 900
acres in acknowledgment of his services, he
lived the quiet life Of a country gentleman
until his death in 1874. A little village
some twelve miles north Of the site of old
Fort Stanwix still bears his name and
marks the position of his estate.
After mis- interview with congress Steuben
repaired at once to Valley Forge, where
Washington was not slow in recognizing
his ability; nor was Steuben, on the other
hand, at loss to perceive, i'll the ragged
AID motley army which he passed in re-
view, the existence of soldierly qualities
which needed nothing as much as training
Disregarding the English prejudice which
looked upoA the drilling of soldiers as
work fit only for sergeants, he took musket
in hand and showed what was to be done
Alert and untiring, he worked from
morning till night in showing the
men how to advance, retreat. or change
front without falling into disorder-how to
perform. in short, al tie rapid and accu-
rate movements for which the Prussian
army had become so famous 1t was a
revelation to the American troops. Cen
erals, colonies and ca Jtains we're fred by
the coutagion of his example and his ire
inendous enthusiasm, and for several months
the camp was converted into huge train
ing sch Jol, in which masters aud pupils
worked with incesSant and furious energy.
Steuben was struck with the quickness
with which the common soldiers learned
their lessons.
He had q harmless choleric temper. which
was part of his overlooking vigor, and
sometimes when drilling an awkward
squad, he would exhaust his stock Of French
I'D German oaths, and shout for his aide to
come and curse the blockheads in Engl sh
''Niens, mon ami Walker" he would say,
"viens, mon bon ami. Sacre-bue-G Ott-
verdam de glucherie of desc badauts
Je re puis plus; / can curse dem
no more!n Yet in an incredibly
short time, as he afterward wrote,
these awkward fellows had acquired mill
tary air, had learned how 20 carry their
arms, and knew how to form into column,
delloy and execute maneuvers with pre-
cision. In May, IFS, after three mon, hs OF
such work, Sleuoen was appointed inspector
general Of the army, with tho raak and pay
OF major ge leral. The refo ms whicl he
introduced were So far-reaching that after
a year oy we're said 70 have saved more
ia ~ Soo,QQ0 Frsaah Hyrss 10 this United
Slaiea.