The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1908-06-27
SOME NEW STORIES ABOUT GENERAL
GRANT.

eral Grant have recently been pub
lished In the New York Tribune
The writer, James B. Morrow, through
an interview with Gen. Fred D
Grant, the great Civil War leader:
son, brings out the following story:
Have you personal recollection, u
l asked the son, 'of the farm which
your father owned near St. Louis p
'I remember it very distinctly, u
General Grant replied. Indeed, my
memory begins with the transfer oi
my father from the military post in
Detroit to Sackett's Harbor. He had
returned from the Mexican War and
was an officer in the 4th Infantry.
"When my father was ordered to
California my mother and were to
live in St. Louis until he established
a home and sent for us. But his pay
was small, -four was twenty-five cents
a pound, and we remained with my
grandfather. While playing on the
long porch at White Haven, the home
of my mothers family, late In the
summer of 1854, a man drove up in a
buggy. Just as he was throwing the
laprobe over the dashboard colored
woman ran out and said: "It's Mr..
Grant" And so it was, but I did
not know him. He had resigned his
commission because he couldn't sup
port his family if he stayed in the
army.
"My mother had a farm, about a
hundred acres, I suppose, and my
father, who was an industrious and
stirring man, built a log house, cut
ting the trees and hewing them him
self. The house was afterwards
moved to park in St. Louis. Now,
bear in mind that my father, had grad
uated from West; Point, and had served
in the Mexican War, and had been
an officer In the United States
Army, yet he sacrificed his career,
as he thought, and took up his work
in the wilderness, that he might have
home of his own and not be under OBJ
legations to Mr.. Dent, his father-in.
law"
81 have heard that he hauled cord
wood to St. Louis and sold it in the
streets"
Eyes, both cordwood and short
timbers for use in coal mines. He
chopped the wood and timbers him
self, that he might get a little ready
money. But farming was his princi-
pal occupation, and his crops were
large and better than were his neigh
bors." During the four;years he liv-
ed in the country he suffered from
ague, an obstinate and debilitating
form of malaria, and so, with my
mother S consent, he traded the farm
for a cottage in St. Louisa very
comfortable house, with plenty of
GEqHpd and gQQd QQpsdi maBvs q vslE fEuitdi uitdFeess
of collecting rents and selling real es-
tate, but he was not fitted for an un-
dertaking of that character. The
country had just gone through COM
mercial panic, and my father couldn't
be harsh and turn persons behind in
their rent out of their homes and into
the street. He would have been the
last man in the world to press or
threaten debtor. Altho he scarcely
made more than a living, if he did
so well as that, we children saw no
indications of hard times in our fam
ily. My mother had three slaves,
two women, and man, gifts from
her father, and they lived with us.
"My other grandfather, Jesse R.
Grant, was then living in Covington,
XIV. He owned tanneries at Ports
mouth, on the Ohio River; had a
large leather store at Galena, in Illi-
nois, branch store at La Crosse, in
Wisconsin, and, think, another
store somewhere in Ohio. My Mis-
souri, grandfather-and he owned All
estate of many hundred acres himself
thought my Ohio or Kentucky
grandfather rich man. old Grant,
| / once heard him say, must be worth
$15o, ,ooo,' Anyway, my Grandfa-
ther Grant was advancing in years
and wanted to distribute his property.
1t was arranged that my father and
his two brothers should manage the
tanneries and stores, each to be paid
500 a month for his services, and
place the profits of the business in q
trust fund for their three sisters
| When the accumulated profits amount
ed to the value of the tanneries and
stores the brothers were to have the
physical property and the sisters the
income from the money in trust.
1--WE moved to Galena and took {
good house. The three slaves, O
course, were left behind, because II
linois was free State. It has beef
said that my father was poor and tina
he was failure in the leather bust
ness at Galena. His achievements a.
a soldier and his election to the Pres
idency caused the world to draw a vi
olent, altho friendly, contrast betweei
his life in Missouri and Illinois ant
his career on the battlefield and ii
Washington. AS a matter of fact
the Grants were very well situated II
Galena. Our home was large enougl
for us and for our relatives, many c
whom came from a distance as visit
ors. We had dinner parties, and m
parents, in turn, were guests of tn
principal families. My mother,
know, kept two servants.
"I recall that / was disgusted be
cause couldn't go barefooted hk
other boys, and that, instead OF
hickory shirt and one suspender,
had to wear a waist, which buttor
ed to my short trousers. My fathe
) bought us a good many toys and
had the fastest sled in town, and th
. only one that was made in Chicago
Father spent his evenings at hon
and read newspapers, magazines, an
books to the family. Frequently
E would go to Wisconsin, Minnesot