The Washington herald., 1916-02-15
HISTORY BUILDERS.
Before They Became Famous.
Written Expressly for The Washington Herald.
BY DR.. E. j. EDWARDS,

General A. I. Chetiain. who was a
distinguished officer in the Union army,
was appointed United States consul at
| Brussels by General Grant soon after the
| latter was first inaugurated as president
of the United States. A warm friendship
! had for years been maintained between
| Chetlain and Grant. Both were in busi-
ness in Galena, Ill, when the civil war
| began: both took active part in recruit
ing the first company raised in Galena.
! The captaincy OF that company was Of
fered to Grant. principally because he
had served in the army as captain, hav-
| ing been graduated at West Point. Grant
| declined the offer of the captsincy and
! Chetlain was elected. The drillmaster
however. of this company was U. 6.
Grant, the former captain in the United
States army. He accompanied the COM
pany to Springfield. where II was assign
ed to the Twelfth Illinois regiment OF
, which General Chetlain became lieuten-
ant-colonel, and was afterwards promot-
ed until he became a major-general OF
| volunteers.
| General Chetlain possessed an almost in
exhaustible fund of anecdotes associated
with Captain Grant when he was a clerk
| in his fathers leather store In Galena.
and afterward when he aided in recruit
| ing the first Galena company and taught
it the manual of arms and the tactics.
l once spent an entire afternoon with
General Chetlain and listened with inter
| est to the anecdotes which he told OF
Grant and those days when the e>Icap-
tain drilled the Galena company and
went with 1t to Springfield.
81 never shall forget" said General
Chetlain, IAN incident which occurred
just before our company reached the rail-
road station at Galena, where the cars
were to be taken to Springfield. The
train had not been backed into the sta.
| ton and while the company was waiting
/ for It, some one suggested that the Rev
John II. Vincent, who afterward gained
distinction as a bishop In the Methodist
church and who was the originator of the
/ Chautauqua assembly-be asked to say a
few words to the departing soldiers.
thought the idea good one and I asked
Mr.. Vincent to speak to the men. Al
knew him, for he was pastor of the Meth.
odist church at Galena. the church which
Grant and his family attended.
He mounted a box, the soldiers were
drawn up In line, / was facing the com
pany. While Mr.. Vincent was speaking
looked up and down the line and a
last discovered Captain Grant standing
behind the company, listening intentl!
to Mr. Vincent's words. Captain Gran
wore an old army overcoat which he hac
used in the Mexican war and he carried
a carpetbag. He stood erect immovable
like true soldier. and II occurred to M
that the clergyman was addressing SOM
parts of his remarks directly to Captain
Grant.
''The address ended, the train backeC
into the station and the company enteret
the cars, Captain Grant being the las
man to do so. Long afterward, re
called the incident and it reminded me o
how little We could known hat the fu
ture has in store for US. The ministe
who was to become one of the eminen
men of his profession and the soldie
who was to be. four years later, recog
niZed as the great soldier of the North
ern armies, stood there face to face
neither dreaming what the future had IL
store for him.
Tomorrow DR.. Edwards will tell Of "!
Notable Instance of Tact"
Copyright, 1915. by Z. J. Edwards. All rights rs