The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1891-02-26

self an unwilling commander. Looking
at his field" say Messrs Nicolay and Hay
in their Life of Lincoln, F" with a purely
professional eye the disproportion between
the magnitude of his task and the inme-
diate means for its accomplishment OPP
pressed him like nightmare"
His impatient temper soon set his rather
sarcastic tongue in most injudicious action.
Secretary Cameron came in person to lis
ten to his complaints and asked what he
wanted.
"Sixty thousand men at once, and 200, 900
before we are DONE" was his reply.
1t is definitely recorded that for once in
his life Simon Cameron was shut up.
When he repeated this to Adjt Gen. Lo
renzo Thomas he added: sherman is
crazy. He wants 100000 men sent to Ken
lucky" The next day it was in the papers
that the secretary thought Gen. Sherman
cra2y-a newspaper correspondent was
present to hear the remark. And every
word that Sherman said to Cameron was
in print within week. In another week
Gen. Sherman was "releved and ordered
to report at St. Lous"-to Gen. Halleck.
Shiloh and ViclisburG.
One OF the most fortunate things that
happened to Sherman and the Union cause
was the order for him to report to Grant
at Paducah. He had started out with the
same disposition as other generals, who
| were destined to become gigantic failures,
| to magnify the difficulties in the way and
take dscouraginG view of his own re-
| sources. In Grant he found man who
| was always ready to act with what mate
rails were at hand, who from the first
was looking at his front rather than his
rear. Sherman was man who could profit
| BY the contact, and doubtless to this fact
more than any other is due his final tri-
| umph as one of the great leaders of the
| war.
He was at Paducah when Fort Henry
and Fort Donaldson were taken. On the
lCth Of March, by order OF Halleck, he en-
barked his division at Paducah and at
| Fort lrcnry reported to Gen. G. +. Smith,
by whose orders he joined Grant at Pitts
burg Landing.
At the battle of Shiloh Sherman com
manded his division. For the second time
he had an opportunity to take part in Il
great battle and in command Of three or
| four times rs many men as he led at Bull
Run.
On the 18th of April Gen. Halleck ar
| rived at Pittsburg Landing and assumed
personal command. Commanding his
| division with the right, Sherman was a
witness to lIaleck's illustration of the art
of war as laid down in the books by adj
vancing an army of over 100000 men, by
regular siege methods, on Corinth, place
| of no especial natural strength and de-
Tended only by dirt and about $1,000 Con-
| federates. Grant knew that the siege Of
Corinth was farce, but Sherman, who
was full of impulse and still had great
deal to learn, spoke of it as "a victory as
brilliant and important as any recorded in
| history"
Then came the operations about Vicks-
burg and on the Yazoo river. Sherman
command consisted of four divisions. He
attacked the Confederate Qualifications
above the Chickasaw bayou and WIS driven
back. having lost 1000 men to Confeder-
ate loss of 200.
His failure in Kentucky had bean fol-
| lowed by his failure Mt Vicksburs, and he
was neither trusted by the people nor by
the administration. McClerrand assumed
command Of Sherman's armY, except two
divisions, and Sherman issued IL farewell