The times., 1899-03-26
ROSTER OF GREAT
SOLDIERS FADING
Few Living General Officers of
the Civil War.
Martial Actors Who Have Passed
Into History.
Not Many Left to Mark the Deeds of
Glory Accomplished Thirty
Six Years Ago.

One by one the heroes of the North and
South who participated in the civil war
nave passed away. The dividing line be-
tween life and eternity for these seems to
be vanishing as certainly and as surely as
the one bearing the name. of Mason and
Dixon that separated the North from the
South, and the great majority OF those who
fought and suffered for their respective
causes now bivouac ''in flames eternal
camping ground" From the lakes to tho
gulf and from the rock bound coast of
Maine to the Golden Gate OF California
their bones are scattered, silent testimo-
nials to their love of their ca2se and flag.
In the great National and Confederate
cemeteries all over the country, there are
many graves indicated only by numbers.
Here thousands of soldiers who died fight
ing for their cause were hastily sent to
their last resting places unnamed and un-
sung The majority of these unknown he.
roes were the privates of the two armies
Yet the privates were not the only soldiers
who fell in battle. During the civil war
there were 1872 general officers, who were
either killed in battle or died from wounds
or disease contracted in line of duty. The
number of Confederate generals left on tbs
field after the sound OF retreat was 70
IL general. lieutenant generals.
major generals and Sc brigadier gem
erals. The Federal loss was not so large.
although the number of brave and brilliant
commanders who sacrificed their lives for
the preservation OF the Union seem in these
comparative times OF peace to be astound-
ing Ten major generals and thirty-nins
hrigadier generals either died en- the battle
field or of wounds. Among the generals
killed during the war on the Federal side
were John F. Reynolds, Mcpherson Mans
field. Lyon, Sedgwick and Stevens. Ths
South lost in actual battle Albert Sidney
Johnston Jackson. Stuart. Polk. Hill.
Rhodes. Fender. Cleburle, Garnett, MeCui-
loeh. Zollicoffer and W. Z. Jones.
AT the close of the war the regular and
volunteer army rolls of the United States
bore the names Of 3s1 generals. Add to
this list the names of the general officers
who either resigned or were mustered out
during the war makes the number who
lived to witness the termination OF the re-
bellion fully 400. IL is estimated that not
| more than one-fourth of these generals
are living today. But as one runs off on
mis- fingers the number of the living he is
forcibly reminded that the great majority
OF the heroes of the civil war are dead
and gone All the really great actors on
both sides have disappeared with the ex-
ception OF General Schofeld, of the Union
army. and General Longstreet. of the Con-
federacy. Grant, Sherman, Sheridan
Rosecrans, Hooker, Buell.. Butler, Banks,
Dix. Hancock Logan. Warren Humphreys.
Candy. Hunter. Pope. Ord and Crook. live
no more except in memory. The names OF
| many OF the brayest and most brilliant
| commanders nf
| longer spoken of except with reverence
The great commander Lee, and Joseph E.
Johnston, Beauregard, Kirby Smith Bragg.
! Hood. Early, Ewell. d. H. Hill, Anderson,
Taylor. Price, Breckenridge, Hardee. Ma
hone. Ransom. Cheatham Hoke. Pickett.
Wilcox, Field, Forrest, 'Stonewall'
jackson and 4 host of other heroes
have passed away. On the Confed-
crate side, however, number of men who
| played prominent parts in the rebellion are
still before the public eye. Little Fight
| ing Joe" Wheeler. whose gallant conduct
| before Santiago, in the war with Spain,
and Fitzhugh Lee. his indomitable
courage in caring for the interests of the
American people at Havana while that
place was under the rule OF the fallen
Spaniards, are as much beloved by the
| Yankees" at the present day as they were
hated by them during the civil war.
Gen. NJ. c. Butler. of the Confederacy,
| IS now major general in the United States
| Volunteer Army: Bate >Cockrell Morgan.
and Pettus are in the United States SEN
ate, and James A. Walker is in the House
OF Representatives. Besides these among
| the distinguished Confederates still living.
are Lieut.. Gems. Wade Hampton. Stephen
D. Lee, S. B. Buckner and Alexander p.
Stewart; Major Generals French. Gordon.
Heth. Lomax, Curtis. Lee, Maury. Polig-
| nae, ROsser. and Churchill. and Brig Gems
| Armstrong, Wright. Hunter. Johnson,
| Pryor, Ransom, Shelly and Cosby.
| On the Union side there are still living
q number OF men who, while il cannot be
said stood first in the line of principal ac-
tors, were still soldiers who received the
| plaudits of the people for gallant deeds
performed. The greatest soldier of today
Nelson a. Miles, is perhaps the most dis
| tinguished veteran OF the Union forces
Major Gems. Merritt and Brooke are still
in active service.
! Many of the veteran generals served in
the United States Regular Army with less
| er rank until they were debarred by age
Among the names of the retired officers
which are carried on the army register are
| many distinguished veterans such as
Schofield, Sickles. Howard Wright Parke.
| Getty. Stanley. Wilcox, Baird. MeCook,
| Thomas ]. Wood Fitz John Porter Ruger,
Carr. Long. Wheaton, Forsyth. Hatch,
| Comstock, Grierson. Carlin, Palmer, Baldy.
Smith, Averell. Dana. William D. Whipple.
and others The retired list contains e63
| officers of all grades, over 600 of whom
participated in the civil war. The veterans
are all rapidly approaching the age OF
| siXty-four, and in about ten more years
| there will not remain single veteran of
| the civil war in active service with the
| regular army.
At the termination of the rebellion the
| majority of the general officers returned to
| civil life but number were given COM
| missions in the regular standing army.
when it was reorganiZed upon a peace
| basis. Officers too, of lower grade were
also given commissions in the permanent
organization. and it may be said that the
entire force at that time was differed by
| the soldiers of the civil war.
AS the general officers have gradually
passed away so have the lesser lights
The army register of 1898 discloses the fact
that there remained but i57 officers in the
| regular army before the beginning of hos
tilities with Spain. This is only about one
fifth OF the entire number. Ten years ago
| two-thlrds OF the officers had seen service
in the civil war. 1t Is estimated by COM
petent authority that in five years time the
number of these veterans will fall below
100. and it is safe to say that at the ter
mination of the first decade of the twen-
tieth century not a single name OF Union
soldier will be carried on the regular army
roll
A Familiar sorrow.
(From the New York SUM-
Thers are really deeper lows in life than try-