The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-09-28
SCHOFIBLD 70 RETIRE.
The Title of Lieutenant Cen
eral Will Be Extinct
Tomorrow.

WASHINGTON, Sept. 2S, 1S95.-The
rank of Lieutenant General of the Army
expires with the retirement at noon to-
morrow of John McAllister Schofield, he
then having attained the age limit of
64 years. This title was revived in favor
of General Schofield by a special act Of
Congress last February, and had pre-
yiously been bestowed but three times
on Grant, Sherman and Sheridan. By
reason of this extinction of title, Major
General Miles, as senior officer of that
rank, will probably become the Major
General Commanding the Army; but the
retirement will not, as is usual in such
cases, promote any junior officer
General Schofield was born In Chau-
tauCua county, New York, in 1881. He
was appointed a cadet at West Point
from Illinois in 1S49. being graduated four
years later. number in the class with
phil Sheridan and General James Nc
Pherson, and assigned to duty at Fort
Moultrie, S. c., as brevet second ieuten-
ant of artillery. From 1856 to 1860 he was
assistant professor of natural and ex-
perimental philosophy at the military
academy, having in the meantime been
made a full hedged lieutenant and was
subsequently professor of physics at the
Western University at St., Louis. At
the outbreak of the war he was detailed
as mastering officer for the State of
Missouri and commissioned Major of the
First Missouri Volunteers.
RISE IN THE ARMY.
In May, 1861, he became captain of the
First Artillery and a few months later
Chief of Staff to General Lyon. taking
part in the engagements at Dug Spring,
Curran Postoffice and Wilson's Creek.
at the last named General Lyon being
killed In November of that year he
was made Brigadier-G of Missouri
Volunteers. In April, 1868, he attained
the rank of Major General of Yolun-
teers and was assigned early in the fol-
lowing year to command the army of
the OHIO, which formed the LETT wing
of Sherman's army, and participated in
the famous march to the sea and Its nu-
merous battles. In November, 1884, he
was made BriSa Sadier-Genera in the regu-
lar army, ana shortly after Breyet Ma
1or General, commanding the Depart
ment of North Carolina, where his SER
vices in the war ended.
WENT TO MEXICO.
In 1865 General Schofield was sent on a
special diplomatic mission to France in
connection with the establishment of the
Maximillian Government in Mexico. The
result was an understanding between the
two countries that the French should
soil. On returning from Europe he COM
manded the Department of the Poto,
mac until June, 1868 when he entered
the cabinet of President Johnson as Sec
retary of War, retaining that portfolio
until March IA, 1869, when he was made
Major General, and placed in command
of the Department of the Missouri and
later of the Division of the Pacific.
SERVICES ELSEWHERE.
1t was during his command Of the
Pacific division (which he held until 1879
that he was sent by President Grant
on a special mission to the Hawaiian
Islands in search of information, the
question of annexation being then un-
der consideration While his report has
probably adopted P s sscretary of zh tbs
Government to be against the control
Of the Islands by any. foreign power
luton of the last Congress
General sehoed Was spPerlgstsndend{ p lsts lent
commanded various departments until
1888 when he succeeded Lieutenant Gen
eral Sheridan as Major General COM
manding the army,