The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-08-10
SIDNEY HERBERT'S LETTER.
A DISTURBING ELEMENT IN THE
COMING G. A. r. ENCAMPMENT.

4
Position of COmmander-Gen. Fred
Grants Son a Star Cadet at West
point-He Is One Number Above
cadet SchIey of Savannah-The
letter which Gen. U. S. Grant
wrote in Respect to His Grandson.
The Complaint of an old Retired
PoIitician-The Change in Army
rnifOrms-A Woodworking Ex-
confederate SOIdier-Capt. Harri-
sons Last Contribution to the
public Prints-Other Matters of
General Interest.
pine Crest Villa. Maitland, Fla, Aug.
A-This letter, like several previous
ones. goes from a sick bed, and there
fore does not take UP fresh topics, as
usual. A large number of kindly let
tars have come to me during my illness
that l am still unable to answer, as
cannot handle a pen in correspondence.
hope to be able soon to respond to all
INQUIRIES and other matters connected
with the letters received.
There is to be a lively time in the
Grand Army National Encampment at
Washington, D. c., on Oct. s. Private
Dalzell. so well known to Fame() and
who used to make Gen. Sherman cuss
nearly every time he put himself in
print, seems to be one of the leaders
in movement to make the G. A. R.
partisan organization. Failing in
this. as he probably will do, soldiers
league will no doubt be formed to
fight as we shot," or to follow bay
onets with ballots" This movement is
heartily backed up by the pension
sharks" and has but one real object
in view-and that is 1.-The spoils of
office"
Another disturbing element in the
approaching encampment will be the
election of officers. The candidacy OF
Cen John G. Black, a leading Chicago
Democrat, for commander-in-ch chief Will
be a new feature, as the entrance TO
that high office has always borne TINS
inscription: mo Democrat need apply.
And that was why Gen. Henry w
Slocum of New York didn't get in An
other candidate is Gen. Dan SickleS
T. S. A. (retired, but not retiring,
whose boom starts from st. Louis ana
not from his own New York; home.
Gen. Thomas j. Stewart of Norristown,
Pa, now adjutant general OF the state
is again a conservative candidate,
while Senior Vice Commander-in-Ch Chief
j. McElroy of Washington, the pen
sion agents friend and associate, will
apply for promotion. Politics and pen
sions will figure in the elections as
well as in the proceedings of the en-
campment and there will be "a hot
6time in the old town for few days:
! The item in the Morning News of
July 81, about Gen. Fred Grants son,
u. S. Grant, the third, now at West
Point is good one on the old man..
He stood No. 81 in a class q87D of
forty-one members, and was remarka-
BILE for nothing except being Gen.
Grants son. But ne made up for 1t
after graduating, for he was jumped
over the heads OF all his class end APP
pointed aide-de-camp to Lieut.. Gen.
Sheridan, with the temporary rank of
lieutenant colonel,a thereby acquired
the high-sounded title of Colonel"
Now his son, at present in the grad
uating class is star cadet, being one
number above Julian Larcombe Schley
of savannah, and near the head of his
class For this high position he IS not
indebted to his grandfather's illus
trious name, or his fathers influence,
but to his own push and industry in
striving to reach the head of his class.
When his father wrote an inquiring
letter about how his son was getting
on, the reply was: You needn't worry.
The boy stands higher in everything
than you did in any one thing" JUST
before Gen. u. S. Grant died he wrote
a letter to some future President, that
when this grandson, bearing his name,
was old enough, he asked that he
might be appointed a cadet at West
Point The letter fell into President
McKinley's hands and he promptly
made the desired appointment. Now, as
TO the head of the class. Many of the
tail end" members have won world
wide fame, while some of the head"
members have gone down, like Capt.
Carter, in deep disgrace. Maj. WATSON
is another sad example.
An "Old Retired Politician" in the
New York Mail and Express, COM
plains that prominent Democrats who
have died are not properly honored in
public statues The South, he says,
runs more to soldiers than it does to
politicians. Douglas, Benton and Hen
bricks have monuments, but they were
not erected by the Democratic party.
Gen. Andrew Jackson was a soldier,
like Gen. George H. Thomas, and has
soldiers monument. This writer re-
1ers to the proposed statue OF Gen.
George B. Mcclellan, who was a DEM
ocfauc candidate for President, put
that is also a soldiers monument and
Is to be erected by our Society of the
Army of the Potomac. If this "Old
Retired Politician" will just take hold
OF this monument business little
While, as some of us have done in the
past, he can soon be a Retired Monu-
ment Builder" It's the easiest thing
IN the world to start monument, but
the most hopeful and stoutest hearts
grow weary and Respondent as the
maj work drags it's slow length along.
Inc best monument is that which one
nullds for himself or herself in the
hearts of the people.
The Morning News is quite right in
thinking the ladies will kick against
the change of army uniforms from blue
20 green. 1t will not only give a 'black
eye to our songs and poetry of the
present day, of the blue and the
cray" but the old West Point songs
OF Cadet Grey" and ARMY Blue"
with which thousands of charming wo-
men were or are familiar, are rendered
useless for future graduating classes.
think it was the beautiful and ac-
yCmplished wife of Gen. Winfield Scott,
= >. A., who wrote the famous grad
odung song, one verse and chorus Of
winch is as follows:
AS the grey of the morning is warmed
by the sun,
10 the azure Of Moons brightest hue,
so the morn Of our time ripens fast
to its prime,
no