New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-10-08

correctness in the use or language Du' diSo 'i"'
there might have been introduced into the doom
that temperatures Of judgment In when IL -
so wofully lacking. There would nave peeh
no loss in the vgOr Of the defence Hehe'ai
Rovnton i'm a few pages without descending
once to an undignified plane, does more TO dah-
age General Grant than Dom Piatt with all
his yituperative expectations. lie supplies III
his brief account of Thomas's death the one
touch Of pathOs in the book and in manner
which cannot fall as long as it is read. TO stir
deep indignation at the treatment when the
hero received during and after the war. the
pathos is increased by the reflection that Cen
eral Boynton himself, who loved his hero alive
and reveres his memory dead, was an innocent
agent in innicting the blow which caused his
great heart to break.
After Grant became President Thomas went
TO San Francisco in command Of the Military d.
vision of the Pacific On arrival at his post.
when he relieved General Halleck, the latter
gave him a reception. at which he told him the
details Of two attempts made to relieve MN by
General Grant at Nashville just before his
great victory. Hallecks recital found its way
through a correspondent, who overheard it. into
an Eastern newspaper. General Logan, tearing
that it might be construed to indicate that he
on President Grant to tell the story Of Nashville
to General Boynton. then the Washington cor
respondent Of THE Cincinnati Gazette. The
statement was written out and submitted to
President Grant who then decided TO supple
ment it with the dispatches relating to the af-
fair He ordered General Badeau his military
secretary to furnish the dispatches TO the cor
respondent. To proceed in the words of General
Beynton:
General Badeau pretended to comply with the
order. and gave THE Gazette" correspondent what
he assured him the complete oilcal history
of the contemplated removal and all the dlspa,ches
relating to It, Its publication attracted wide a'ic
ton since up to that time the war RECORDS mad
remained. in large degree. a sealed , n1Oh rne
story furnished. was credable in hish deSt td
with it. Two weeks later. however; the CORE CORE
spondent who had published 1t received le ,
in san Francisco asking whether everything sup
piled from the White House had been printed ana
omissions. Immediate inquiry was mace OF zen
era Badeau He insisted that he had given eVe cry
thing needed to make the story complete ana 'ha'
letter quoting this emphatic assurance was
time for reply the press dispatches announced
The story of what happened is a starting or
Seeing that there had been deliberate
the White House Of the strongest sch ppoyn
that II could not have been by accldehl ne pcSai'.
Indignant TO a degree that he had never shown
inc Of deem wrong to a state of high tension; This
condition was still further ntensied by He ~
published dispatches. which he deemed rasi ,,,
unjust. Thus aroused. ana thus suIrtn y! rv ~
emotions. he sat down TO write t9e h iu' stbered
Nashville An officer Of his stan n"t hi "a in his
nrivate room at work. An hour later ne hal iallsn
in the midst of his work He dd not ressn
had done its work, and General Thomas was ueau'
Mr. Hughes is much more anxious than Colo
mel Patt to give his readers complete picture
Of his hero Instead of the contempt Win WhCn
the latter so openly treats pride OF ahceSu!
that he refuses or at least fails, even 10 tell US
who the parents of General Thomas were, the
former exhibits all the old Virginian reverence
We are carried back at the beginning OF MS
book to the Norman chronicers mention oil a
'Jeanyille" at the battle OF Hastings ana next
nro,ided with stories Of the border feudS ana
cattle raids of the "Johnstones'' of Annandale.
This would have been denounced as weak pre-
tension" if not a something worse by Coiohei
Piatt to whom the Purtans OF the North were
selfish and illiberal bigots merely ana the cav
alters of the South dishonest adventurers MI
Hughes is gentle elegant. scholarly In his WIFI
ing. and seldom charges the authors OF General
Iohnston's misfortunes with anything worse
than being i'll informed partial 10 those
who were sustained at his cost by the Confed-
crate Governments lie has written an admir-
able book. out of an abundance Of admiration
and affection guided by discretion AMI iauitiess
taste-one which will serve the best cnds OF
critical biography by winning increased respect
for it's hero.