Omaha daily bee., 1897-01-02


main road. which made It almost impass-
able, so that the parity turned out to the
right into side road The intention was to
take the same route-by which the cavalry
had advanced. but IL was difficult to tell
one road from another.
The night was dark, the dust was thick,
the guide who was directing the party be-
came confused, and IL was uncertain whether
4 we were going I'M the right direction or
riding into the lines OF the enemy. The
guide for a time was suspected OF treachery,
| but he was innocent OF such a charge, and
had only lost his bearings. Colonel Com
| stock rode on In advance, and hearing the
sound OF marching columns not far off on
| our right, came back with this news, and 1t
was decided to return to the Brock road.
General Grant at first demurrcd when 1t
was proposed to turn back, and urged the
| guide to try and find some crossroad leading
TO the Brock road, to avoid retracing our
steps. This was an instance of his marked
aversion TO turning back, which amounted
almost to superstition He often put him
| SELF TO the greatest personal inconvenience
to avoid 1t. When he found he was not
| travelling in the direction he intended to
| take, he would try all sorts of crosscuts, ford
streams, and jump any number OF fences to
| reach another road rather than go back and
take fresh start II he had been in the
| place of the famous apprentice boy who wan
dered away from London, he would never
| have been thrice mayor Of that city, for with
| him Bow bells would have appealed to deaf
ears when they chimcd out, Turn again,
| Wilmington" The enemy who encountered
him never failed to feel the effect of this
| inborn prejudice against turning back.
However, a slight retrograde movement
| became absolutely necessary in the present
instance and the general yielded to the
torce or circumstances An orderly wG6
stationed at the fork of the roads to indicate
| the right direction to Warren's troops when
| they should reach that point, and our party
| proceeded to Todd's tavern reaching there
nft mid I,try
| ward that Anderson's uongstreets) corps
| had been marching parallel with us, and at
n distance of less than a mile, that the
apprehension felt was well founded.
When Hancock's headquarters were
reached the party remained with him for
some time, awaiting the arrival of the head
| OF Warrens troops. Hancock's wound re-
| ceived at Gettysburg had not thoroughly
| healed, and he suffered such inconvenience
| IRON 1t when in the saddle that he had ap-
| piled for permission to ride in a spring am
| bulance while on the march and when his
| troops were not in action. He was reclin-
| ing upon one of the seats of the ambulance
conversing with General Grant, who had
| dismounted and was sitting on the ground
| with his back against a tree, whiting a
| stick when the sound of firing broke forth
directly In front. Hancock sprang up, seized
his sword, which was lying near him,
buckled II around his waist and cried: my
| lOlS6! my morse! Ine scene was intensely
dramatic, and recalled vividly to the by
ISLANDERS the cry of Richard III on the field
or Bosworth. Grant listened moment
| without changing his position ceasing
his whiting, and then remarked: "They
are not ighting the firing is all on one
side. 1t takes two sides to start a fight"
| In few minutes the firing died away and
| 1t was found that the enemy was not ad-
vancing The incident fairly illustrates the
| contrast in the temperaments of these two
distinguished soldiers.
Sheridan had been sent for by Meade to
come to his headquarters and when he
arrived, between IL and 12 o'clock that morn
| ing, very acrimonious dispute took place
| between the two generals. Meade was pos
| sessed Of an eXctable temper, which, under
| irritating circums tanCes, became almost un-
governable. He had worked himself into a
| towering passion regarding the delays
| counCered in the forward movement, and
when Sheridan appeared went at him ham
mer and tongs, accusing him of blunders,
and charging him with not having made
| proper disposition of his troops, and letting
the cavalry block the advance of the in
| fantry.
Sheridan was equally fiery, and, smarting
| under the belief that he was unjustly
treated. all the hotspur in his nature was
| aroused. He insisted that Meade had
| created the trouble by countermanding his
| (Sheridan's) orders. and that ii was this act
| which had resulted in mixing up his troops
| with the infantry, exposing one cavalry
| division to great danger, aud rendering in
| effectual all his combinations regarding the
| movements of the cavalry corps Sheridan
| declared with great warmth that he would
| not command the cavalry any longer under
| such conditions, and said If he could have
matters his own way he would concentrate
| all the cavalry, move out in force against
| Stuarts command, and whip 1t. His Ian
| guage throughout was highly spced and
| conspicuously italicized with expletives.
General Meade came over to General
| Grants tent Immediately after and related
| the interview to him. The excitement of the
one was in singular contrast with the calm
ness of the other. When Meade repeated
the remarks made by Sheridan that he
| could move out with his cavalry and whip
Stuart, General Grant quietly observed;
| Did Sheridan say that? Well, he generally
| knows what he is talking about Let him
| start right out and do it," By l o'clock
| Sheridan had received his orders In writing
| from Meade for the movement. Early the
| next morning he started upon his famous
| raid to the vicinity of Richmond in rear OF
the enemy's army, and made good his word
After the interview Just mentioned the
general-in-chief talked for some time with
officers OF the staff about the results of the
battle of the previous days. He said in this
connection: "All things in this world
1 w
Wilderness l could not keep from thinking
| of the first fight / ever saw-the battle of
| Palo Alto. AS / Looked at the long line of
| battle consisting of 5000 men, | felt that
| General Taylor had such fearful response
| blity resting upon him that l wondered
| how he ever had the nerve to assume it; 4;
| and when after the fight, the casualties were
| reported and the losses ascertained to be
| nearly sixty in killed, wounded, and missing,
| the engagement assumed magnitude in my
| eyes, which was positively startling. When
| the news OF the victory reached the states,
| the windows in every household were illumi-
mated and it was largely instrumental in
| making General Taylor president of the
| United States. Now. such an affair would
scarcely be deemed important enough to re-
port to headquarters" He little thought at
| that moment that the battles then in progress
would be chiefly instrumental in making the
commander himself president OF the United
| States.
While Generals Grant and Meade were
| talking with General Johnson by the camp
| fire, a dispatch came in from Hancock say
| ing, II have finished up Johnson, and am
now going into EARLY" General Grant
| passed this dispatch around, but did not
| read 1t aloud, as usual, out of consideration
| for Johnson's feelings Soon after came
another report that Hancock had taken 1000
prisoners; then another that he had turned
| his captured guns upon the enemy and made
/