Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1897-08-27

ter and antecedents upon which to
rest prophecy Of his future re-
nown. Yet from absolute obscur.
Ilty, in a single year by his own
acts, he rose above all the generals
IN the Western Union Armies, and
from an unknown clerk in cOnn
try store, in three years he made
himself the most conspicuous mill.
tary figure in the whole world; a
SolcieT commanding larger armies
aud infinitely more powerful in de
Sfructive force than the armies of
Alexander, Cesar, ami Napoleon
combined. After all the trurSt
pS, chOmeters to measure milltar,
genlus are the Standarls taken
from the enemy. Yet all soldiers
known how much there is in war,
especially AS applied to officers, of
what we call luck; and it can not
be denied that, in 80 ne respects.
Grants career furnishes rem ark
able Illus ration OF this truth.
HIS fame began with DOnelson;
yet the completeness OF his victory
there as equally 10 his credit aud
to the di,cTedit of the enemy, for,
had StOnewail Jackson command
ed in place OF Backuer, no one be-
lieves that Donaldson would not
have been either evacuated or de-
Tended.
Moreover, had Shiloh been
Grants first battle it would have
been his last; for it it was the rep
utatlon of Donaldson that carried
him over the disater at SbilOh, a.
com mander, who, knowing he Is
liable to be attacked by an equal
If not superior toe before reinforce
mentS shall reach him, aud yet
who neglects to intrench, and
thereby suffers terrible aud un-
necessary loss In repuising the
enemy, could hardly trust to such
victory for promotion or even for
justification. But General Smith
was too Old and i'll to be ambitious
f)r the highest cOmmand-Sher.
man, Sheridan, Mcpherson, aud
Logan were yet undi> tinguished-
aud Washburn, who had the ear of
the President, insisted that Grant,
so far as he could Judge, was after
all the best General we had. Yet,
had the result at Shiloh been VIII 1t
it might have been under a more |
vigllant commander, it would have
inspired such confidence both in
the country and army that a year
and a quarter would not have
elapsed between Shiloh and Vicks-
burg.
For in that year, with over two
huudred thousand men in the
Western armies, the best equipped |
aud as brave as any commander
could q sire, We nad accompliShe |
nothing. The men, as always, did
good fighting at COrinth and Iuka,
bat seemingly 10 no purpose. The
pre- SIS OF The cOuutry blamed the
Government for failure in the field,
aud demanded the appointment OF
competent commanders, and ill.,
sisted that the army should gol
ahead and conquer the Rebellion.
The Western farmers knew their
boys would fight if they had a
chance, aud via If ably mand
ed But the government did not
know whom TO trust. and dare not
Command the army TO advance.
But Grant feared the guns that
lined the shore at Vlcksburg.
Precious months were spent III
trying to dig that canal, that
hoated the troops past the bat
teIies. Finally, the country talked
so loud anO threatenlngIS that be
was compelled to either resign or
get behind Vlcksburg in some way
On the first trial he found he could
pass the city with his transports.
n might have done so months be-
fore. hannibal, Frederick, or
Napoleon would have invested
Vlcksburg in 1862.
Thus, IN the summer of 1853 and
the winter following, while Lee
was driving Mcclellan from before
Richmond, dt feating Pope at Ma
nassas, and Burnside at Frederlcks-
burg, aud was even threatening
Washington itself, Grant was ac.
compIishing nothing to relieve the
gloom that was setting over the
country. Up TO this time, at any
rate, he bad not exhibited to the
country the really great military
, talents which Sherman, McPher-
son, and Logan, bis ab.est generals,
could already see that he possess
ed. But when, against the advice