Evening journal., 1914-07-06
New News Of Yesterday
A Civil War Opinion Of
the Great Confederate
Leaders
By HOLLAND.

Ot the great military leaders who
were in command Of the armies OF
the Confederacy there was none. not
even Gen. Lee, around whom greater
interest, a sort Of romantic interest,
centered in New York and in New
England than around Gen. James
LongstreeL Not even did the daring
and dazzling exploits Of stonewall
Jackson so strongly identify any Con-
federate commander as did the re-
ports of the great achievements OF
Gen. LOngsireet.
In this interest ] shared in boy
hood days and / often hoped that it
time to see Gen. Longstreet The
opportunity came in the spring Of
1853. Gen. LOngstreet had two years
earlier returned from Constantine
pie. having been appointed minister
to Turkey by President Hayes.
One of the early acts of President
James A. Garfield was the appoint
ment of Gen Longstreet as United
States marshal for the Georgia dis
trict and it was an open secret at
the time that President Garfield made
the appointment that il gave him es-
pecial qualification to do that, since
Longstreet was a Confederate COM
mander for whom Gen. Garfield,
when he was himself in command in
Tennessee, entertained great admira-
tion and for whom he had later the
highest personal respect
was invited while on visit TO At
lanta in the spring OF 1883 TO call
upon Gen Longstreet, personal
friend Of both of us having arranged
the interview.
am somewhat asionished when
met Gen. Longstreet In the war days
what purported to be likenesses Of
Gen. Longstreet were frequently
printed in the illustrated papers Of
the North and | gained my impress
sion of his personal appearance
through these. lie was always pic
tured with a long. heavy beard, so
heavy that IL seemed TO cover almost
all OF his face excepting his nose,
eyes. and forehead But when | met
him there was nothing of that kind.
He wore a beard only on his cheeks,
and / observed that It was iron gray
in color His complexion was ruddy,
although J had heard that in war
days he was OF sallow complexion.
There was an unmistakable CLEAN of
intelligence, the reflection of an acute
intellect. in his eyes and his smile
was as charming as any that | have
ever seen upon the lips of man.
Gen. Longstreet seemed TO be much
faaN N.I NH toll auf
tainly in New England, and very like
ly i'm other parts of the North. he
was esteemed greatly for his soldierly
achievements at the time of the Civil
War, and that my recollection of those
days embraced much that had heard
Of him.
Finding that he was interested in
these references TO the war days
ventured To tell him that Gen Joseph
y. Johnston had said to me year OF
two earlier, at time when he was a
member of Congress. that he was
convinced after Nicksburg and Get
tysburg that those battles had de.
termined the issue of the war.at least
from the military point Of view, and
that Gen. Johnston also said that he
believed that almost all of the ADLER
military leaders OF the South were
privately of that opinion.
''l think Gen. Johnston was well
within the truth when he made that
statement TO you" Gen. Longstreet
replied "He was speaking as mil
itary man. and from that point OF
view Vicksburg which opened the
Mississippi River to unrestricted
Federal operations-and Gettysburg
which shattered the supreme aggres-
sive movement Of the Confederate
armies of the East, foreshadowed the
termination of the war from the point
of view of military science. After the
close of the war am certain that
there was informal personal and al.
most tacit agreement among the mil
itary leaders of the South that Vicks
burg and Gettysburg marked the
beginning Of the end. Yes, Gen. John
ston was right"
Copyright. 1914. by +. ]. Edwards
All rights reserved.
| Tomorro,v AIR Edwards will tell %