Omaha daily bee., 1896-11-28

the outlook was limited in all directions
by the most impenetrabe. forest with it's
bterlacing trees and tangled underground.
The ground upon which the battle was fought
was intersected in every direction by wind
ing rivulets, rugged ravines. and ridges Of
mineral rock. Many excavations had been
made in opening iron-ore beds, leaving
pits bordered by ridges OF earth. Trees had
been felled in a number OF places to furnish
fuel and supply sawmills. The locality
is well described by it's name. It was a
wilderness in the most forbldding sense of
the word
Warrens troops were driven back on a
portion Of his line in front of general head
quarters, stragglers were making their way
to the rear the enemy's shells were begin
ming to fall on the knoll where General
Grant was seated on the stump Of a tree,
and II looked for a while as IL the tide of
battle would sweep over that point of the
field. He rose slowly to his feet, and stood
for time watching the scene. and mingling
the smoke of his cigar with the smoke OF
battle, without making any comment. His
horse was in charge of an orderly just be-
hind the hill, but he evidently had not
thought of mounting An officer ventured
to remark to him, General, wouldn't it he
prudent to move headquarters to the other
side of the Germanna road till the result
Of the present attack is known?" The gen
eral replied very quietly, between the puffs
ter to order up some artillery and defend
the present location" Thereupon a battery
was brought up, and every preparation
made for defense The enemy however,
was checked before he reached the knoll
In this instance, as in many others, the
general was true to the motto of his Scot
fish ancestors of the Grant clan: Stand
fast Craig Ellachie."
While the most critical movements were
Dlapp General mi
perceptible anxiety, but gave his orders and
sent and received communications with a
GOODNESS and dcliberation which made a
marked impression upon those who had been |
brought into contact with him for the first |
time on the field of battle. His speech was |
never hurried and his manner betrayed no
trace of eXcitabilty, or even impatience. He |
never exhibited to better advantage his pc |
culiar ability in moving troops with unpar- |
alleled speed to the critical points on the |
line of battle where they were most needed, |
or rs it was sometimes called, feeding a |
fight" There was a spur on the heel of |
every order he sent. and his subordinates |
were made to realize that In battle 1t is |
the minutes which control events. He said, |
while waiting for Burnsides to get into
position and attack: THE only time l ever
feel impatient is when l give an order for
an important movement of troops in the |
presence of the enemy, and am waiting for
them to reach their destination. Then the
minutes seem like hours"
He rode out to important points of the
line twice during the day, in company with
General Meade and two officers of the staff.
It was noticed that he was visibly affected
by his proximity to the wounded, and es
pecially by the sight of blood. He would
turn his face away from such scenes, and
show by the expression of his countenance
and sometimes by pause in his converse
lion, that he felt most keenly the painful
spectacle presented by the field of battle
some reference was made to the subject
n camp that evening, and the general said
L cannot bear the sight Of suffering. The
1ight after the first days fight at Shiloh
was sitting on the ground, leaning against
| tree, trying to get some sleep. 1t soon
began to rain so hard that | went into a
og house near by to seek shelter; but /
ound the surgeons had taken possession of
t, and were amputating the arms and legs
If the wounded, and blood was flowing in
streams. l could not endure such a scene
md was glad to return to the tree outside.
md sit there till morning in the storm"
thought Of this remark while sitting by his
bedside twenty-one years afterward when
lie, in the last days of his fatal illness, was
himself undergoing supreme physical tor
ure.