Year: 1878

Gen. Grant is talking very freely to a Herald reporter. He speaks as follows of the Wilder ness campaign and of Butler as general and patriot:

 do not hope to give you the generals ex- act words, although as far as memory serves I do so- remember, for instance, asking the general why he had not invested Richmond as he had invested Vicksburg and starved out Lee:-''Such a movement" said the general, ''would have involved moving my army from the Rapidan to Lynchburg. considered the plan with great care before Imade the Wilder ness move. thought of massing the army of the Potomac in movable columns, giving the men twelve days rations, and throwing myself between Lee and his communications. If had made this movement succeSSfuly-f had been as fortunate as was when l threw my army between Pemberton and Joe John son the war would have been over year soon- CT. l am not sure that it was not the best thing to have done; it certainly was the plan 1 should have preferred. If 1 had failed, how ever, it would have been very serious for the country, and I did not dare the risk. What deterred me, however, was the fact that was new to the army, did not have it in hand, and did not know what I could do with the gene ralso or men. If it had been six months later, when 1 had the army in hand, and knew what a splendid army ie was and what officers and men were capable of doing, and could have had Sherman and Sheridan to assist in the movement, 1 would not have hesitated for a moment"

 By the way" said the general 'there is one point about the campaign in the Wilder ness worth remembering. My critics say that threw away 100, 900 men in that campaign. This has been repeated so often that it will ho hictnrU NOW m tnfal lOccpC about thirty-nine thousand, in all. Badeau's book will have the figures, but that is about the figure and those losses do not mean kill ed, but the number of effective men taken from my army by death, wounds, capture, and desertion, That movement cost me 39, 900 men, but do not forget what it cost Lee. Remember that Lee had to fight as much as did. He had the advantage of be- ing on the defensive, which is always an ad- vantage, and 1 had to attack and attack, but every blow 1 struck weakened him, and when at last he was forced into Richmond it was far different army from that which menaced Washington and invaded Maryland and Penn sylvania. Itwas no longer an invading army. The Wilderness campaign was necessary to the destruction of the southern confederacy.

 'I have always regretted the censurc that unwittingly came upon Butler in that cam paign, and my report was the cause l said the general was bottled up, and used the phrase without meaning to annoy the general or give hIs enemies weapon. like Butler, and have always found him not only as all the world knows a man of great ability, but a patriotic man, and man of courage, honor and sincere convictions. Butler lacked the technical experience of a military education, and it is very possible to be man of high parts and not be great general Butler as general was full of enterprise and resources and a brave man. If 1 had given him two corps commanders like Adelbert Ames, or Schofeld, or..Mackenzie, or a dozen 1 could mention, he would have made a fine campaign on the James and helped materially in my plans. have always been sorry did not do so. Butler is a man it is fashion to abuse but he is man who has done the country great service and who is worthy of its gratitude"