The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-03-02
HIS BRILLIANT ARMY RECORD
GOOD SERVICE IN THE CIVIL WAR
AND ON THE PLAINS.
His Part i'm Establishing the Marion
Soldiers HOme-NOtes of In
dianians at the Capital.
stan Correspondence of the Journal.


eighth term in the House. No other In
seven terms save the late William s. Hol-
man, who by forty years of congressional
service made record that never has been
equaled in the State. The public careers Of
few other Indianians have surpassed in
length or variety of experience that of
Major Steele, which began with his enlist
ment in the Union army at the opening of
the civil war forty-two years ago. AS
youth of twenty-five he was commanding
regiment at Chickamauga. and this regi-
ment. the One-hundred-a nd-first Indiana,
was the last body OF Union troops to retire
from that bloody field of battle On Sher-
mans memorable march to the sea he was
known of the most daring leaders
of the attachments of scouts and foragers
which found the paths and furnished the
provisions for a great army moving
through a hostile country. In one volume
of the Records of the Rebellion appears
official order of commentator, which
has probably never before been publicly re-
ferred to. wherein a characteristic incident
is related. The major and a company of
foragers unsuspectingly ventured into the
very heart of large body of the enemy.
a
by thousands of Confederate troops they
came suddenly on an outpost of the enemy.
Realizing the situation and the certainty
of capture if an alarm were raised, the
major and his 81 all company of Indiana
soldiers pretended to be body of Con-
federates until they were enabled to APP
proach close enough to thrust their wea-
pons in the faces of the guards, take them
behind their captors and carried them into
the Union camp. gaining the cover of the
woods within sight of the enemy.
Major Steele participated in the grand
review at Washington and returned to
Marion with the intention of entering bust
ness or resumng the practice of law, which
he had carried on for just ten days at
Hartford City when Sumter was fired on
and the doors of his office were closed for
good. He was offered commission as
lieutenant in the regular army accepted
the tender and with his young bride start
ed on the journey to the Arizona frontier
by way of the Isthmus of Panama to San
Francisco and thence by stage months
Journey to Fort Grant Here, and at other
posts throughout the West and South,
Major Steele spent ten years. His frontier
service was performed at time when out
Steele herself saw engagements between
bands of hostile Indians in which scalps
were taken. 1t was during his frontier
service that Major Steele hunted bunaloeS
and wild horses, on one occasion capturing
a small herd of the former. which he pre-
scented to General Grant who turned them
loose on his Missouri farm. While General
Grant was absent on his tour around the
world the man he had left in charge of his
farm invited a party of friends to join him
in a buffalo hunt, and before the festivities
N q
a number of valuable horses, had been
killed.
Major Steele's last station as regular
army officer was at Indianapolis, where he
strengthened attachment for the In
diana State capital, which was, perhaps,
in part responsible for his very effective
efforts in behalf of the army post site APP
preparation when that was up in the House
recently. When he had completed ten
signed his commission, and, still a young
man, returned to Marion and engaged in
pork packing. In this venture he was sig
nally. successful.
Something in the blood, perhaps. for
Major Steele's father, Col. Asbury Steele,
was for many years active in the Repub-
lican politics Of northern Indiana, led him
into the race for the Republican congress
Grant county was then a part. in 1878. He
was defeated, but entered the race for the
nomination i'm q new district 10 which
Grant county had been transferred. i'm 1880.
After a sharp struggle he was nominated
and entered on a notable career in Con-
gress. The district was gerrymandered
against him, but he was twice successful
in overcoming substantial Democratic ma
jorities against popular opponents. 1t was
during this period that his skill as poll
cfa tod Sf1fa Wi
Against A. n. Martin in 1888 he made one
of the most creditabe races of his entire
career, but the district had been still
further gerrymandered against him and
he was defeated by narrow margin. On
his retirement from Congress Major Steele
established and became the first president
of the First National Bank in Marion and
for the next six years was active in the
business affairs of that thriving city. Dur
| ing his first period of service in Congress
he had been successful in establishing at
Marion a branch of the National Soldiers
| Home, the largest public institution ever
located in the State Two things In con-
nection with the location or this home
make the achievement nOtable-firSt, the
bill was pushed through Democratic
House and. second II was the first meas
ure providing for the establishment OF a
| national soldiers home in which the loca-
ton was fixed. The bill provided that the
institution should be established in Grant
county, Indiana. In 1890 Major Steele was
! elected a member of the board of mana
gers of the National Soldiers Home. of
which there are now eight branches scat
tered from Togus, Me-. to Santa Monica.
CAL housing "a 00c disabled Union vet
| Grams. Major Steele has been active i'm his
| relation 10 this board and has had much
| influence in the development of this great
| system of institutions for which there is
no parallel in any other country in the
world
| President Harrison appointed Major
steele the first Governor of Oklahoma.
The Territory was to be organized, and
| the task demanded "A man of iron will.
courage and executive ability. The period
during which he served as Governor was
one OF turmoil and contention, for code
of laws was to be adopted. the territorial
| capital and the various territorial institu-
tions were to be located, and there were
| times when conditions in the Territory. ow-
| On civil: At the end of two years
| tranquility had been restored. system of
| government was in peaceful operation. in
| Guiding provisions for public education
| more generous than had ever before been
mace by a territorial government. Gov
| ernor Steele insisted that the public lands
| should. until their value became greater,
| be leased rather than sold. This system is
still in operation. the lands retained are
becoming more valuable year by year and
| in the reports of the department of educa-
| ton of the Territory reference is annually
made to Governor Steele's important serv-
ice TO public education in the Territory.
| An evidence OF the esteem In which he was