Evening journal., 1890-04-21
MRS. GRANTS MEMOIRS.
The Courtship Of the Hero OF
Appomattox.
HIS VERY ROMANTIC PROPOSAL.

Her First Meeting with Iieut. Grant.
Love Letters Written on Drums Heads
Captured from the Mexicana-rfer so,d,ar
Lover-Happy Times In the white House.
| NEW YORK, April 2f-The World pub-
| fishes an interview with Mrs. Z. S. Grant
IN which she referred at length to the rem
iniscences she is preparing.
II have been working on my book SONS
time, but it is purely a family volume that
| want for the children, . said Mrs. Grant
| had no idea Of publishing it. Our hons
life has been so broken that / feel the chill
dren know little about 1t except what they
| learn from print. II was to enlighten them
correct some errors and add new material
that began this work My people were
| born In Pennsylvania and made the iourney
to Missouri when that section Of territory
was known as the American Wilderness
| They went down the Ohio on hatboats The
trip from Shawneetown to St. Louis was
made by carriage. My father had pretty
place There were plenty OF negroes to wait
on us, numerous cattle and horses and ia
| my girlish fancy the farm seemed to be
| boundless.
She Meets Lieut.. Grant.
81 lived in sunny Missouri when nv
brother went TO West Point and when he
brought Lieut.. Grant home to spend ths
holidays. We had many family frolics ia
those days, about which my sons are wholly
| ignorant There was no selfish secrecy
about any of them. We all shared them
parents, brothers and L and the servants
enJoyedthe part as much as any Of us.
In those days was jealously guarded, and
never moved ten feet from the house with
| outmy brother or a servant. One summea
day we were going TO a morning wedding,
| and Lieut. Grant was also invited Ha
came for ns on horseback and asked nv
| brothers permission to drive me in ex-
change for his saddle, to which he gladly
consented. The day was beautiful, the
roads We're little heavy from previous
rain, but the sun shone in splendor We.
had to cross little bridge that spanned
rayine and when we reached il was sur.
| prised and a little concerned 20 find tha
gulch swollen, a most unusual thing, the
water reaching TO the bridge
A Romantic Proposal
Il noticed, too, that Lieut.. Grant was
very quiet and that the high water bothered
me. asked several times If he Thought IA
dangerous to cross and told him would ge
! back rather than take any risk III assured
me, IN his brief way, that il was perfectly
safe and In my heart / relied on him.
/ Now, II anything happens remember shall
cling TO you, no matter what you say to tha
contrary He said all right and we wera
over the planl1s in less than minute Then
his mood changed, he became more social.
and IN asking me TO be his wife used my
threat as a theme.
Her Father Objected.
Il n
Grant asked me TO set the day ! wanted to
be engaged and told him it would be much
nicer than getting married. a sentiment ha
did not approve We were very quiet al
the house that evening and neither said
word Of the secret
After supper he went back to the regi-
ment and few days later Gen. TAYLOR sene
him 70 CHmp Salubrity, in Louisiana. He
was too sly t3 ask father so he waited till
he was stationed and wrote to him. Father
never answered the letter. was his favor
ite daughter and he thought army life
would nor suit me-
Besidcs, he said, you are too young
and TIE hay is too poor. He hasn't any
thing 20 glve you.
Il r9se in my wrath and said was poor,
too, and hadn't anything to give him.
Her soldier Lover.
"'lhe next year he came back on a leave
Of absence and can remember just how he
looked as he rode up in his new uniform.
Father was going 70 Washington on busi-
ness and we were all on the front porch
kissing him good-by and stuffing his pockets
with notes of what he was to buy. Lieut..
Grant asked for my hand, and he, in hurry
to get off, consented.
MY soldier lover was in and about
Mexico for four years, including the wars
And he wrote to youY'
| 'Yes, regularly. Every mail brought me-
letter"
"Real love lettersg"
Every one of them full of sweet moth
i ings love and war and now and then soma
/ pressed leaves and flowers Some were
written on drum heads captured from the
Mexicans, and Others on sheets Of foolscap,
| folded and sealed with red waters read
each one every day until the next one came.
and then laid il away in a little box.
have them all, but don't think shall Qua
them in my book unless it is to be kent i'm
the family They are too sacred for public
print.
Happiness af the white House.
'At the close Of the Mexican war wa
were married. went off to the army with
him. For while we were at Detrt6t and
in 1851 he went TO California. A few DAYS
iauer rred was born. In 1853 my husband
resigned. Father gave me a little farm
near home and we settled down to house
keeping. During the rebellion / was al
ways as near the general as it was safe to
be- Whenever he was in camp staff of
ficer came for us. Sometimes Nellie was
with me, but baby Jesse always As said
before, our family life was a series of inter
ruptions, and it is to cement it that am
writing my book. And then the public
lifel | wish / could reproduce one hun
dredth part of the bright compisnies we
had together, but my memory is so treach-
erous.
There were countless evenings in tho
generals library with a few gentlemen, and
l the privileged guest, when such men
as Conkling, Blaine, Oglesby, Nye, Howe,
Anthony, and Jones, of Nevada, gathered
round table and broke lances.
Mere Keepsake.
81 don't make any pretense as a writer.
| 7 an, inst fnfffnp down thinCs as / vrOufd