The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1893-04-15
GENERAL KIRBY SMITH.
Stirring Incidents in His Eventful Life
Recalled by 2 Friend.

most about General Kirby Smith
as a man and as soldier is Col
onel Wright Schaumburg OF this
city, says the New Orleans Times
Democrat. Colonel Schaumburg
was Inspector General on General
Smiths staff during the war. Cen
eral Smith was very fond of him,
and made him Lieutenant Col
onel when Schaumburg was only
20 years of age. Said Colonel
Schaumburg in speaking OF the
dead General:
"His death comes as a shock to
me in way that Icannot describe.
/ admired General Smith beyond
any other man that / knew in the
world. AS a man nothing perhaps
was more remarkable in his char
acter than his absolute and un-
swerving integrity and honesty.
Next to that came his attachment
to his wife and family. His love
for his wife was something touch
ing. Up to the very moment OF
his death his wife was his sweet
heart in every sense of the word,
as he seemed to retain every sense
of that boyish exuberance of feeling
and Jealous love for her.
"His marriage with his wife was
quite romance in itself. 1t came
about in this way, and the story
will show something of the charac-
ter of the man. Going up to the
first battle of Manassas with his
troops on the train he heard the
firing. He was under orders to 60
to a certain point, but, as all great
men and great geniuses do in the
moment Of danger, he ran the peril
of disregarding those orders. he
dismounted his troops from the
train, attacked the enemy ON the
right flank, and saved the day. 1t
was a bold and dashing thing to do,
but it was an emergency, and ne
rose gloriously to it. 1t was at that
battle in his famous charge that he
was wounded, the ball going right
through him from shoulder to
shoulder. 1t was only by miracle
that he escaped death, and that
miracle was in a large measure his
wife, who at that time was not yet
his wife. -,
General Smith used to like to
tell of how his faithful horse stood
over him neighing and whinnying
and licking his wound, till the sol
diers came ard carried him off the
| field for dead. l will tell you some
thing more about that horse direct
lly. General Smith was taken te
Iynchburg wounded, and Miss Sci
den tenderly nursed him back tc
health and strength, tending him
night and day. He married tha'
woman, and if ever a man loved {
woman truly and devotedly Kirby
Smith loved his wife.
TT is not generally known fact
but a fact nevertheless that | car
personally attest to, that Genera
Smith was sent by Jefferson Davis
into the West under these peculla
circumstances: jeff Davis callee
Smith to him one day and told hin
to take charge of the Western
country, both in civic and militia
ry capacity. After President Dayl
had explained to Smith what h
wanted him to do, the latter said t.
him very plainly that there was NJ
constitutional right to justify hin
in doing what Davis wanted hin
to. Davis replied that he knew 1T
and that it was for that reason tina
he had called upon Smith. He salt
that it was trying time and tina
it would have to be done desplt
| the law. Thereupon General Smlt
accepted the position and becam
absolute viceroy of that part OF tn
country. He called the Cover
nors of the different States togethe
and told them what he was goln
to do, and that if they had any
thing to say against it to say
right there and then. They reptile
lust as he had himself, that thei
was no law to justify him, where
: upon General Smith explained
them that he was aware OF this, bu
that as matters stood it was nece'
sary to act without law. Thel
was no further objections advance
by the Governors and Gener'
Smith became absolutely in contrt
of the country.
= "It was under these circun
y stances that the man showed hin
| ielf. There, with absolute powe
political and pecuniary, | have see
him hoeing with his own hands J
little patch of ground in order
raise delicacies for his invalid vii
In 1864 in Shreveport he sold b }
horse to buy food and clothes !
his family. He sold that horse
k. Tom Rhett, that horse that vi
dearer to him than anything el
in the world besides his wife al
family, just as every old cavair
mans old war horse is; sold IN
horse that had licked his woun
and whinnied over him on the Of
tlefield of Manassas; sold II Z
81 ut n