The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-11-10

to effect a divorce from the old govern
ment and TO set UP for themselves a re-
public with that peculiar institution, hu-
man slavery. guaranteed for all time. With
us there was wide division of sentiment,
and many a worthy citizen could not be
made to see that the success of the South
meant the wreck and ruin Of what prom
ised to be the grandest republic. the most
enlightened and powerful nation on the
face of the globe. What made the task
of that God-given. heaven-inspired Presi-
dent phenomenal In magnitude and difficult
ty was the fact that. strong and skillful as
was the army that menaced the capital
from the front, there was another enemy
equally strong in point OF numbers and
skillful In argument, debate and intrigue,
that sorely hampered his herculean task
attacking him from the rear. The war
was not fortnight old before the hiss Of
the Copperhead was heard throughout the
land. Only one man before him in the his
tory Of our national life had had to encoun-
ter such widespread. insidious, treacherous
opposition at the hands Of the very people
he was so grandly serving. and only that
man. George Washington. was great
enough. strong enough, to rise superior to
every personal slight. congressional cabal
or political calumny and subordinate ev-
erything, as later did our immortal Lin
coin, to the glorious end in view-the estab-
lishment and maintenance Of that govern
ment Of the people, by the people and for
the people that should not perish from the
face Of the earth.
But the rugged features had already be-
gun to take on a shade of anxiety. The
lines were digging farther in about the
somber eyes, and the broad, humorous
mouth by the time the tall, gaunt Presi-
dent, in the abnormally tall top hat-the
fashion of the day-took tc driving out to
Kalorama in the August evenings, Mr..
Secretary Seward dwarfing at his side-to
take the air and look at the one Western
brigade Of all the commands then being
nodded by General Mcclellan into what
was to become the grand Army of the Po-
tomac. While at first Massachusetts, New
York, and even Pennsylvania had been
represented in the huge command assigned
to Fred Benton's general, with one excep-
ton all Eastern regiments were transferred
to other divisions as more Badgers arrived,
and finally, when the first frosts of Octo-
Der had turned the Virginia shores to fire,
and, strongly intrenched, the Union army
covered the long front from Alexandria TO
beyond the Chain Bridge, it was as a bril-
gade of four strong. stalwart regiments,
three from Wisconsin and one from Indi-
ana, not an Eastern or middle State being
represented in their array. that this COM
pact command was designated, OF all 9TH
ers, to encamp upon the beautiful Airing
ton estate. and the general and his staff
were directed to occupy as headquarters
the fine old mansion, long the seat of
famous family. The Badger brigadier gen.
eral moved in and took possession Of the
homestead OF his old-time friend and asso-
ciate in the corps Of engineers, when, as
junior officers, they were building Fort
Monroe, and four thousand men of the
West pitched their white tents on the lands
Of Virginia's knightly soldier-Robert E.
Lee.
ITO be Continued Tomorrow