The Portland daily press., 1898-07-23
OUR ELDERLY GENERALS.
A Few Com parisons and Suggestions
(Journal of Commerce. }


This is an old mems war so far as the
army is concerned. When the Civil wal
broke out Lee, the two Johnstons, Coop.
er and perhaps one or two other men of
years and rank, joined the Confederacy
for most of these officers were from the
went into service in the national armies
but with rare exceptions 1t was the cap.
taips and lieutenants of the regular army
who became the generals of the Civil
war, and the civilians who were appoint
ed to military command were usually
young men. Most Of the general and
field officers of what is known as "the
old army" were deemed physically una
vailahle, and their names are not known
to generation that remembers well the
names of scores of military commanders
who in 1861 were company officers, or, if
in civil life ct the time, were just begin.
ming their business or professional ca.
reers.
In 1851 tho patriarohs of the United
States army were Sumner. aged GA, and
Mansfield, aged IS. The latter was killed
Antietam; the former, soon after Fred.
ericksburg. was relieved from service in
the field at his own request. Ormsby Mo.
Knight Mitchell was SO when the war be-
gan, Hooker AZ, Meade 46, Thomas Is.
Mcdowell, Ord and Buell. 43, Sherman
Al, Grant and Pope SO, Han
cock and Burnside 81, Logan and McCIel-
nv, MoD oT.I
dan 80 and Merritt 25.
Most of the general officers of the pres.
ent army were the generals and coloneis
of the regular army; few Of these are un-
der 90 years of age The four original
major generals Of volunteers appointed
from civil life, achieved high rank in the
Civilsswar A man who was only 81 whom
that war closed would now be 80, SO that
these commanders are over that age, for
the youngest OF them, General Wheeler.
was 29 at the end of the war. General
Sswe1l declined his appointment, prefer
ring to remain in the Senate, and the
President added to this list Butler of
South Carolina and Keifer of Ohio, both
81; these men were not thirty years old
when the Civil war closed, and both of
them had distinguished themselves in
that struggle.
Dandolo took Constantinople at so Or
over, and Won Moltke was over 70 at the
time of the Franco German war. Several
other German officers were we'll over CO.
but these must be regarded as exceptional
cases. Napoleon ana Wellington were
about 45 at Waterloo, and most of Napo-
Icons generals were young men. Our
officers in the Revolution were generally
young, but SO were the leaders of civil
life; the active period of life seemed then
to begin and close earlier than now
S cott and Taylor were past middle life
in the war with Mexico. After As d man
is liable to develop physical weaknesses
that interfere with campaigning, and a
man of SO does not generally take the
chances that man of 80 does, and in
war many chances must be taken. r.
General Snafter is to be criticized at ali
however, it is for being too aggressi ve
and not for being too cautious. We do
not criticise the general, but if he were
to be criticised it would be for fauJt of
youth and not for a fault of age. But ba
j oevr so, weighs over 300 pounds. and
ON account of a trouble with his legs 10
unable for days at time to stand. He
is now trying to direct the siege of Sart;
ago from his cot three miles back fro,,,
the front General Wheeler is g. ana
WAS carried forward to the tightinp ha
fore Santiago on a litter. but against tho
protests of the surgeons he insisted nn
mounting his horse when he reached tho
front General Young, also over 60. has
been inyalided homo because he cannot not