The Valentine Democrat. [volume] (Valentine, Cherry Co., Neb.) 1896-1898, 1896-04-16
TIL BATTLE-FIELDS
OLD SOLDIERS TALK OVER
ARMY EXPERIENCES.
The Blue and the Gray Review Incidents
of the Late War;, and in q Graphic and
Interesting Manner Tell OF Camp, March
and Battle-Thrilling Incidents.
Grant and the Private.

eran soldier and editor. "Particularly is
anything relating to u great leader,
Grant, interesting and eagerly sought
for by soldiers who followed him and
by the Americans who are at
this time, more than ever before, study
ing his life as the shadow of a war
cloud passes by"
Continuing, he said: Before the war
[ ran the river as steamboating was
known in the early days. My first ac-
Quaintance with the greatest military
genius Of modern times began while
engaged in that business. between 1851
and 1861. During one season | was
running as second clerk on the steamer
Fanny Harris. We ran into Galena,
seven miles up Fever River, then a nav
igable stream. Galena was at that time
a distributing point, as well as the cen
ter of the lead industry. Among it's
wholesale firms vas that of Grant &
Son, leather, saddlery and harness deal
erS, and among their employees was the
future general of our armies. He was
then shipping clerk. AS mud clerk it
was my duty to check up all shipments
as the goods were hauled to the leyees
on drayS, and receipt for the same to
the shipper. [. S. Grant was the clerk
To whom the boy clerk receipted for
Grant & Sons shipments. Remember
ing him, as | do now, as only one of
many business men with whom 1 came
in contact, my impression is not as dis
tinct as it is of the General whom l
last met at Washington in 1866. My
impression is that the last time 1 saw
him in Galena he had a mustache, not
the full beard familiar to the men of
Vicksburg, Chattanooga and Peters
burg.
when the war opened we all went
our ways, and the name of Grant at
Belmont awakened no respOnse in the
mind of the cub pilot on the Mississippi.
connecting the fighting Colonel with
the saddlery business at Galena. Our
chief pilot, Tom Burns, had raised a
company at Galena, composed princi-
pally of liver men, pilots, engineers,
mates and rOuStabOuts, and his name
was greater than Grants among the
river men who had not yet caught the
war fever.
I'm February, 1864, 1 was detailed
from the West to the War Department
for special service. Grant had made a
great name as a fighter and a winner of
battles. There was much discussion
among the detailed men as to his prob
able success in handling the Army of
the Potomac. 1t was claimed by the
Eastern men that he had fought only
second-rate military men in the West;
when he met Lee he would fail, as 9TH
er promising generals had failed. We
Western men in the War Department
maintained that he would whip Lee, as
he had Johnston, Beauregard, Bragg
and Pemberton; or, failing, it would
be because he did not have his Western
troops to back him.
Il saw Grant at City Point in 1864.
after the repulse at Petersburg, and
one or twice at Washington during the
months following. 1t was not until af-
ter the fall of Richmond and the sur
render of Johnston that I met the Ga
lena man to speak with him.
1T will be remembered that after the
assassination of President Lincoln men
held their breath, wondering what
would be the outcome. All eyes were
turned upon Grant. The volunteers es-
innate of the loyalty and patriotism of
Andy Johnson in that crisis was not
high. Had the threatened differences
come to a choice between Johnson and
Grant, the army would assuredly have
followed Grant, andno one will question
that Grant would have done what he
deemed best for the Union. 1t was at
this time that l resumed my %acquaint-
ance with Grant.
MANY Wal Department employees
lunched at a little oyster house on G
street, just off Seventeenth. We dined
in a very democratic manner, standing
ut a tall counter and eating half a dozen
raw and drinking a cup of coffee. Ig-
noring the high-priced and heightened
restaurants, Gen. Grant sauntered over
from his headquarters in the Winsor
Building, and standing at the counter
finished his half-dozen like the rest of
us. took a cigar and walked around the
block for exercise. l was dressed in a
~private's uniform, and knew the far
apartness of a boy in the ranks and a
lieutenant general, but presuming on
the fact that the war was over. and
upon the common interest we had in
old times in Galena, l one day took nv
stand alongside the General, and dur
.ng a pause in the lunch introduced my
self. At once General Grant was a
shipping clerk i'll Galena, and as eager
% know the fate of river captains,
clerks and pilots, mutual acquaint-
ances, as 1 was willing to communicate
what l knew of them. We chatted for
fully half an hour, discussing the
changes that the war had made in the
circle of u acquaintance, and the
changes that had already come, or
would come, to the West and to the
commerce of the Mississippi.
Il saw the General often after that
during the two years of my stay in
Washington. but never again spoke
with hin, Tho foot of hiS Ian1ocro+ ii.