Evening journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1888-1932, 1912-08-26
NEW NEWS OF YESTERDAY
The Great General Who
Hated Washington City
By Holland

One afternoon Of October. 1888.
was strolling through Jackson square.
Washington, with friend when sud
denly General William T. Sherman
appeared from behind the shrubbery
which concealed a bend In one Of the
walks which crossed the park diagon
ally Sherman seemed perfectly
happy. He stopped two or three times
and looked at some Of the trees whose
foliage was receiving the first tint of
the coming frosts He seemed inter-
ested in the botanical names upon
painted tags which had been attached
to the trees
said to my friend that General
Sherman seemed greatly attached TO
Washington and that | presumed he
would make the capital his home
after he retired from the army, as IL
was expected he would do the follow
mo" was the reply, Sherman will
leave Washington just as soon as he
can after he has been retired as head
of the army"
"Why?" | asked.
"He doesn't like Washington He
has an unconquerable dislike of the
whole atmosphere of the place. He
has a good many warm friends here.
but he has been convinced ever'since
the beginning of the civil war that
there is something about the atmos-
phere Of Washington and its political
life which tends to impair the intel
lectual and moral qualities of every
one who stays for any length of time
in the national capital.
General Sherman. a year ago,
went to Cleveland 10 be present at
the unwilling of the Garfield memoir
ial statue On his way back he ac-
companied a party from New York.
including two men who had served as
cabinet officers under Garfield.
Sherman was. as always. very
chatty and companionable. One of
the members OF the party asked him
If he intended to make Washington
his home after he was placed upon the
retired list.
mot If ! know myself was Gen
eral Shermans prompt answer. L
think / should either suffocate or
shrivel away If we're compelled to
live permanently in Washington I
don't know what II is that causes a
man TO become calloused morally and
TO some extent intellectually, who
lives for many years in Washington.
H'l will tell you what ] have de-
cided to do after I have been placed
upon the retired list Just as quickly
as can pack my goods ] shall ship
them to st Louis. I shall go there
10 live. And the instant I leave Wash
lngton for good, ! shall feel better
than I have felt at any time since
have been here in command OF the
army
why. General. said one of the
/ party. your brother John has lived
| in Washington twenty-five years, and
you don't mean to say that his ability
or moral insight has been affected?
MY brother john was Sherfnan's
answer, would. ! think. have been a
stronger man intellectually IL he had
stayed at home in Ohio. although
know that his service has been very
valuable to the people of the United
States. And 7 sometimes think John
Sherman would have been a happier
man II he had not accepted public
Office OF a kind which compels him
70 live In Washington. He certainly
would have been ignorant of the sell
fishness. the faithlessness, the ieal-
ousy and the ambitions which are
passions that predominant at the cap
ital'"
A year later General Sherman die
exactly as my friend said he woul,
do He quilted Washington as sooi
as possible after he was retired ant
went to St. Louis Some years later
for family reasons. he removed 4
New York Il was very rarely tina
he visited Washington after he wa
retired, and then only when he coul
not get out of going.
Copyright 1912, by z J. Edwards
All rights reserved)
Tomorrow Mr. Edwards will tell {
John Sherman's First Meeting Wit
General Grant"