St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-02-14
one or two more witnesses, the commit
tee returned to st. Paul on the 7:10 Wis
cODSin Central train.
QUESTIONS OF PRIVILEGE.
Gen. Sherman's Son Warns Up a
NeWSDaDer.

| NEW YORK, Feb. 13.-With evident
agitation, Gen. Sherman's son, P.
Tecumseh, at O:3O o'clock this morning,
left the family home at IS West Sew
enty-first street and hurriedly walked
around the corner to the telegraph
Office which is used as headquarters by
the reporters and correspondents who
constantly await news of the generals
condition. P. T. Sherman carried IN his
hand copy of the New York Times.
and as he entered the telegraph office
with obvious excitement he called about
him the waiting reporters. lie is
| said to have hotly arraigned the
Times reporter, who, he stated, had on
Thursday evening vainly sought pri-
vate interview with the family. Mr..
| Sherman then called attention to this,
which was printed in the paper he held
in his hand and which he spread out
upon desk:
1.-The administering of extreme unction to
! Gen. Sherman by a Roman Catholic priest
caused comment yesterday among the
friends of the stricken soldier, and raised
| several questions bearing on Gen. Shermans
religious opinions and attitude toward the
| Roman Catholic church. General surprise
| W
the sacrament. and it was the opinion among
those who had long known the general that
he was not fully conscious of the fact that
| the rites were being administered. The
cords binding the church to the sick man
were not drawn during the early
| progress of the Illness nor were they
| visible to those in attendance outside of
the very immediate family. So far as could
| be learned, it was not until very late Wednes-
| day night that priest was summoned TO the
| sick chamber There must have been pre-
| vious understanding of some kind, because
the priest came promptly when sent for, de-
| spite the lateness of the hour. The clergyman
| chosen was Rev. Father Matthew A. Taylor,
| pastor of the Roman Catholic Church of the
| Blessed Sacrament in West Seyenty-first
| street Although there were dozen persons
in front of and in the immediate vicinity OF
| the house NO rs West Sevehty-fir greet,
nobody notified him as he entered, and it
was not until he emerged about O'Clock a.
| m. that his presence was known. 1T was
| then stated that he had been in the house
| two hours.
''His departure was not without its coinci-
| dence. Some time before he left Gen. Sher-
mans condition changed for the worse, and
a message was quickly sent TO bring Senator
John Sherman, who has never been even
| church. The senator had gone to
| spend the night at the house of his niece,
Mrs Colgate Hoyt. in Fifth avenue. few
| minutes before Senator Shermans carriage
|
front door was quietly opened and ont
stepped Father Taylor. He walked hurriedly
along Seventy-first street to Tenth avenue,
and spoke not amiably to those who
the condition .of the general You'll have
| to get that at the house, he said. He de-
| clined TO state what had occurred during his
| visit and refused to be interviewed. BY The
| testimony Of some of those in the room at
the time, Gen. Sherman was not conscious
| of what was occurring, and did not
notice the priest or recognize those
around him. He was choking and coughing,
and his breathing was hard and quick. His
condition was seemingly desperate, ana ne
was not able to swallow. 1t was under
| these circumstances that the extreme
JUNCTION was said to have been offered:
That this was the condition of
| on his appearance in the street at a few min.
| utes after IL o'clock, said: II Administered
! extreme unetion to Gen. Sherman at the re-
| quest OF the family. 1t is not Thought that
| he will live longer than few minutes"
| MIR. Sherman's vehement objection
was to what he construed to be state
ment in the above article IN the Times,
that Rev. Father Matthew A. Taylor
was admitted quietly into the house
Wednesday night before the arrival of
| Senator Sherman. was absolutely
denied by Mr.. Sherman, who de-
clared that the priest was admitted
| by Senator Sherman, as the rest of the
| family feared to leave the generals bed
| side. Then Mr.. Sherman went on to
| give his version of the administering of
extreme functions by Father Byrnes,
| and the reason for 1t. He declared that
| the priest was called in at the request
| of the family for consolation, as
Extreme unction was administered to
| the general by Father Byrnes, also at
the request of the family. 1t was true
| that Gen. Sherman was gaSpiDg for
| breath at the time, and might not have
| been conscious of what was going OH
| about him. Mr.. Sherman declared
| positively that his father was not a
| Roman Catholic, and had neither asked
they had perfect right to do.
| for nor consented to receive extreme
unction. Gen. Sherman's children had
asked the priest to administer the last
rites of the Roman Catholic church to
their father, and it had been done.
| There had been no secreSy about it
whatever. Tonight Senator John
! Sherman has sent to the Times this let
| Ter:
Gentlemen: paragraph in your paper
this morning gives very erroneous view of
| an incident in Gen. Sherman's sick chamber,
which wounds the sensitive feelings of his
children now in deep distress, which, under
4
| correct. Your reporter intimates that
| advantage was taken of my temp
| orary absence to introduce Catholic priest
| into Gen. Shermans chamber TO administer
| the right of extreme untion to the sick man
| in the nature Of claim that he was Catho-
| lie. 1t is well known that his family have
| been reared by their mother, a de-
voted Catholic. in her faith, and now
| cling to it. 1t is equally well known
| that Gen. Sherman. and myself as well as all
| my mothers children are by inheritance, ed
ucation and connection, Christians but not
| Catholics, and this has been openly avowed
| on all proper occasions by Gen. sherman;
| but he is too good a Christian and too good
| man to deny to his children the
| consolation OF their religion. He
| was insensible at the time and apparently at
| the verge of death, but if he had been well
| and in the full exercise of his faculties he
| would not have denied to them the consola-
| ton of the prayers and religious observances
| for their father of any class or de-
nomination of Christian priests or
| preachers. Certainly if I had been
present would, at the request of the family,
| appeal TO the Almighty for the life here and
| hereafter of my brother, whether called
| PRAYER Or extreme unction and whether ut
| tered by priest or a preacher, or any other
good man who believed what he spoke, and
| had an honest faith in his creed.
| hear that your reporter uttered threat to
| obtain information, which / cannot believe
| you would for moment tolerate. We all
| need charity for our frailties but l can feel
| none for any one who would wound those
already ID distress. Very truly yours.
JOHN SHERMAN.