The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1909-08-09
VETERAN TALKS
ABOUT FORREST
Salt Lake Resident, a Federal
Lieutenant, Describes Real
Character of Confederate.
OFTEN SHOT HIS OWN MEN
SERVICES TO STARS AND BARS
SAID TO BE oVERRATED.

In the following contribution, a Salt
rsker who was a lieutenant Of Illinois
cavalry iu the civil war. gives an in
tsr7stfr- character sketch Of the Con-
fe7arata General Forrest. incidentally
h. mentions the late Colonel Robert @.
Irgar-rU. who, he says, never wanted
10 hunt anybody and was so kind
hearted he would rather surrender than
tight The article below was inspired
by fl recent narrative about Forrest
which The Herald printed in the Sun
day edition,
tn The Salt Lake Herald.-Sir:-
Nothing is more gratifying 10 the hearts
Of ola soldiers than to see the need Of
iusf praise awarded to one of their
numa=r no matter whether that one
NAV have been a staunch comrade or
q stout opponent. But the facts Of his
tory should never be falsifed under
any greteXt whatsoever.
That was very readable article pub
Gshei in The Herald recently eulogiz-
ing tie Confederate General Forrest
but as a matter of history it won't do
at all For example the writer says
that Grants right wing at DonelsOn
was driven back by Forrest At Donel-
SON the COnfedeTates had but a single
regiment of cavalry, Forests. Grants
right wing was Netherlands division.
three strong brigades, and these were
driven back by the stronger brigades
of Pillows Confederate division. For
rest with his little command may have
been somewhere on the edge of the
scramble. but the real fight was be-
tween Pillow and McClernand. Like
wise IL was the brigades of Lew wal
IsCes division that drove Pillow, and
Forrest If he was there, and Buckner,
who had come on the ground, back into
their works the same afternoon. It IS
true Forrest was not minded to sur
render at DOnelsOn. So neither were
Floyd or Pillow. The former, with his
own brigade of Virginians, crossed the
river on steamer that came down the
river just before daylight, and Pillow
took good care to be along with his
staff Forrest, with his command, made
a getaway by fordiug a mile or two of
backwater between Wallace's right and
the river, breaking the ice as they ad-
vanced. 1t was meritOriOus feat and
exactly in line with one pulled off by
Grimes and Hasbrouck Davis at Har-
per's Ferry six months later.
Skill of Forrest.
As to Forests skill as a soldier. he
nlmeeL described 1t in a few brief
words: War means fight and fight
means KILL and so far as could ever
be learned, this was all that he ever
knew OF .ried to learn of the science of
war. Hr' was possessed of audacity and
courage without limit and he was
killer from Killerville. That with his
own hand, as stated, he killed thirty
two men during the war, there is no
reason to doubt, but the most, if not ali
Of them, We're men of his own COM
msnd. No man ever struggled from a
fight within range of Forests pistole
and lived. He trained all his subordi-
nate commanders along the same lines.
and if any failed to live up to their
training they found short shrift.
That he was insubordinate and impa-
tent of the control of his superiors, is
quite believable. Certain it is that he
nearly always operated when he had
independent command, and as a rule
he was opposed by incompetent COM
mauders who contributed their mite to
swell his reputation. 1t was an easy
trick for anybody to capture Bob In
gersou and everything that he COM