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 This book is due at the LOUIS R. WILSON LIBRARY on the 
 last date stamped under “Date Due.” If not on hold it may be 
 renewed by bringing it to the library. 
 
 DATE nrT 
 
 DUE KL1 ’ 
 
 DATE ret 
 
 DUE KL1, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 • 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Form No. 513 
 
 
 
 
THE LIFE OF 
 
 Philip Henry Sheridan 
 
 THE DASHING, BRAVE AND SUCCESSFUL 
 
 SOLDIER 
 
 BY 
 
 JOSEPH FAULKNER 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 HURST & CO., Publishers 
 122 Nassau Street 
 
 Copyright, 1888, by HURST & CO. 
 
THE LIFE OF 
 
 GOT. PHILIP HENRY SHERIDAN. 
 
 BIRTH AND BOYHOOD. 
 
 Thirty years and more have passed since Brevet 
 Lieut.-Gen. Winfield Scott, from Army Headquar^ 
 ters at New York, issued, on the 13th of November, 
 1857, a retrospective general order, of which the 
 following was a portion : 
 
 ‘ ‘ VIII. April 28, 1856, Brevet Lieut. -Col. E. J. 
 Steptoe, Ninth Infantry, commanding Companies 
 A, E, F, and I, same regiment, and detachments 
 oi Company E, First Dragoons, and Company I, 
 Third Artillery, in all 200 men, at the Cascades, 
 Washington Territory, repulsed the Indians in 
 their attack on that place. The troops landed 
 under fire, routing and dispersing the enemy at 
 every point, capturing a large number of their 
 mules and destroying all their propjerty. 
 
 “ Second Lieut. Philip H. Sheridan, Fourth In¬ 
 fantry, is especially mentioned for his gallantry.” 
 
 Within ten years from the event thus recorded 
 the young Lieutenant who received this flattering 
 
 1 
 
2 
 
 LIFE OF GENT. SHERIDAN. 
 
 mention had become the renowned hero of Cedar 
 Creek and a Major-General in the regular army, 
 while in due time followed promotion to the grades 
 of Lieutenant-General and General, with the com¬ 
 mand of that army from which, alas, death has 
 now removed him in the fullness of his matured 
 powers. 
 
 The career of Philip Henry Sheridan has a tinge 
 of romance running through its more brilliant 
 phases, and is a vivid illustration of the truth that 
 to the born soldier war is the pledge of renown. 
 The second son of John and Mary Sheridan, who 
 had emigrated from County Cavan, Irland, a few 
 years before his birth, and, after settling in Canada 
 and Albany had drifted westward to Perry County, 
 in Southern Ohio, he was born in the little village 
 of Somerset, in that county, on the 6th of March, 
 1831. He had two brothers, of whom the younger, 
 Lieut.-Col. Michael Y. Sheridan, has long been 
 upon the late general’s staff. A sister, Mary, was 
 married, and is no longer living. The elder brother, 
 John L., has engaged in several employments at 
 the West. 
 
 Somerset was then an exceedingly unpretentious 
 place of perhaps 1200 inhabitants, and has grown 
 but little since. It is a coincidence that the three 
 officers who attained the highest rank in the Union 
 army were all born in Ohio, and the home of Gen¬ 
 eral Sherman was but a few miles from that of Gen¬ 
 eral Sheridan. The lad’s father, who had obtained 
 employment in road building, bettered himself, and 
 eventually took contracts for constructing a part of 
 the National Road from Cumberland to Terre Haute 
 
LIFE OF OEX. SHEMDAIT. S 
 
 and for excavating locks and other portions of the 
 Hocking Valley canal, and for work on the Zanes¬ 
 ville and Maysville turnpike. His labor kept him 
 away from Somerset most of the time, and the chil¬ 
 dren were left to be brought up by their mother in 
 their cottage. In later years her illustrious son pro¬ 
 cured for her a very comfortable home in Somerset, 
 where she lived with John L. and his wife and 
 daughters. There, too, she died, at the age of 87, 
 in June, 1888, during the general’s dangerous ill¬ 
 ness. 
 
 Like the other village boys, Philip Sheridan went 
 to the school of the place, and was taught reading, 
 writing, grammar, arithmetic, and geography. Many 
 apocryphal stories have been told of Sheridan’s boy¬ 
 hood, one of them making him the driver of a water 
 cart in Zanesville. A water cart in that region would 
 have been indeed a novelty then. A more plausible 
 anecdote tells of his once riding a colt barebacked, 
 when his companions expected to see him thrown 
 off, and sticking to his seat with a grit that marked 
 him in renowned rides of later days. 
 
 When about twelve years old, being able to do 
 something toward earning his living, he got a situa¬ 
 tion in the store of John Talbot, in the village, at 
 wages of $2 a month. After working a while there he 
 changed to the store of David Whitehead, where he 
 received $5 a month. His third place was the store 
 of Henry Dittoe ; and by this time, being consider¬ 
 ably older and more useful, he commanded $10 a 
 month. His service for Mr. Dittoe gave a chance, 
 while pushing trade and carrying goods, to see a little 
 of the country beyond the village. 
 
4 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 WEST POINT AND PACIFIC. 
 
 It happened, when he had arrived at the age of 
 sixteen, that there was a vacancy in the cadetship 
 at West Point belonging to the Congressional dis¬ 
 trict in which Somerset is situated. He had always 
 been fond of reading history and biography, and 
 perhaps more particularly the history of wars. A 
 year or two before, the country had become in¬ 
 volved in hostilities with Mexico, and possibly 
 through the years 1846 and 1847 the news of the 
 victories of Taylor and Scott may have given him 
 the desire to lead the life of a soldier. At all 
 events, Congressman Thomas Ritchie, who had the 
 appointment to the vacancy at the Military Acad¬ 
 emy in his control, knew the active young employe 
 of Dittoe, and the lad ventured to apply to him for 
 the appointment. The answer to his request in¬ 
 closed a document directing him to report at West 
 Point for examination June 1 of that year, 1848. 
 Devoting all his available time to his studies, he 
 repaired to the Military Academy at the time 
 appointed, and to his great joy succeeded in passing 
 the entrance examinations. 
 
 The change thus made in the lad’s surroundings 
 and prospective career was as great as it had been 
 sudden. Through the seventeen years of his life he 
 had been accustomed only to his native village and 
 its surroundings, save that during the previous 
 year or more he had occasionally gone, as has been 
 indicated, to Zanesville, about eighteen miles away, 
 or over to Lancaster, General Sherman’s birthplace, 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHEEIDAN. 
 
 5 
 
 distant about sixteen miles. The journey through 
 Pennsylvania and the city of New York was itself a 
 revelation, since never until that time had he even 
 ridden upon a railroad. At West Point he found 
 many companions from the city, and some who had 
 been prepared for the Military Academy from child¬ 
 hood up. He was fortunate in having an industri¬ 
 ous room-mate during the first six months of the 
 course—Cadet Henry W. Slocum, afterward a dis¬ 
 tinguished major-general. Slocum helped him a 
 great deal with his algebra, of which subject, as of 
 geometry, he knew nothing before entering the 
 Academy. Cadet Slocum was aiming at a high 
 standing in his class, and did, in fact, graduate 
 No. 7; Cadet Sheridan was devoting himself to the 
 less ambitious, but even more anxious, problem of 
 simply trying not to be “ found ” deficient at the 
 January examination, which was for him the im¬ 
 mediate necessity. Accordingly, after taps, when 
 lights were to be put out, and everybody was 
 to go to bed, these two room-mates were in the 
 habit of hanging a blanket over the window, re¬ 
 lighting the lamp, and pursuing their studies. At 
 the examination Slocum went far up toward the 
 head of the class, and Sheridan successfully passed 
 his examination and remained in the Academy. 
 
 The years sped away, and acquaintances destined 
 to be renewed under strange circumstances and 
 with curious redistributions of fortune and success 
 were made. In Sheridan’s class, which was to 
 graduate in 1852, there were some names that were 
 to become w T ell known. The highest scholar was 
 Col. T. L. Casey of the Engineers ; Gfen. D. S. Stan- 
 
6 
 
 LIFE OF GETsT. SHEKIDAK. 
 
 ley graduated No. 9 ; Jerome L. Bonaparte, No. 11; 
 the Confederate Gen. Cosby, No. 17: Gen. G. L. 
 Hartsuff, No. 19 ; Gen. C. B. Woods, No. 30 ; Gen. 
 A. V. Kautz, No. 36 ; Gen. George Crook, No. 38. 
 There were 43 graduates in this class, but of course 
 more members earlier in the course. 
 
 But Philip Sheridan was not to graduate with 
 that class. In the fall of 1851, when he had already 
 begun his last year, which would have closed the 
 following June, he had a quarrel with a fellow- 
 cadet, who was an officer in the corps, and being 
 adjudged guilty of a breach of discipline and good 
 conduct, was punished by suspension for a year. 
 On returning to the Academy he joined the succeed¬ 
 ing class, that of 1853. Of this the distinguished 
 James B. McPherson w T as the first scholar, while 
 Gen. J. M. Schofield, who now succeeds Sheridan 
 in command of the army as senior Major-General, 
 graduated No. 7. The gallant Sill, killed at Stone 
 Biver, was No. 3, and Terrell, killed at Perryville, 
 was No. 16 ; Gen. B. O. Tyler was No. 22, and Gen. 
 J. B. Hood No. 44. Sheridan was No. 34 in a class 
 of 52 members, and, five years after entering the 
 Academy, was graduated July 1, 1853, and ap¬ 
 pointed a Brevet Second Lieutenant, being assigned 
 to Company D, First Infantry. 
 
 Then as now the General Begulations gave a three 
 months’ leave of absence to graduated cadets before 
 joining their commands, and when this had exj3ired 
 Lieut. Sheridan reported, Sept. 30, for duty at 
 Newport barracks. With him were ordered to the 
 same garrison, of his class at West Point, Lieuts. 
 Elmer Otis, First Infantry; H. H. Walker, Third ; 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 7 
 
 L. L. Rich, Fifth ; R. R. Ross, Fourth ; W. Craig, 
 Third. Just before Christmas orders were issued 
 from Gen. Scott’s headquarters, directing certain 
 officers, including Lieut. Sheridan, to join their 
 companies in Texas, via Corpus Christi, and a few 
 months later, accordingly, found him at Fort Dun¬ 
 can. On the 20th of May he was transferred to 
 Camp La Pena, where he commanded Company A 
 for a time, relieving Capt. Caldwell, then rejoining 
 his own company at Turkey Creek. The winter 
 was passed at Fort Duncan, and while there he 
 learned of his becoming a full Second Lieutenant in 
 Company D, Fourth Infantry. 
 
 The Fourth Infantry was then serving on the 
 Pacific, and accordingly in May, 1855, Lieut. Sheri¬ 
 dan ‘was ordered to report to Governor’s Island, 
 New York Harbor, to prepare for going with re¬ 
 cruits to Benicia, in the Department of the Pacific, 
 and thence joining his company. His next journey, 
 therefore, carried him to Fort Columbus, where he 
 remained on duty in June and July, and thence he 
 departed for San Francisco. 
 
 The great Northwest was then still little more 
 than a wilderness. The discovery of gold at Sut¬ 
 ter’s mill, in 1848, had rapidly built up California, 
 and that same year the “ County of Oregon,” com¬ 
 prising everthing north of California up to the forty- 
 ninth parallel, received a Territorial government, 
 while in March, 1849, Joseph Lane arrived as its 
 first Governor. Only a year or two before Lieu¬ 
 tenant Sheridan’s arrival the so-called District of 
 Vancouver had been set apart to form Washington 
 Territory, with the Columbia River on the west and 
 
8 
 
 LIFE OF GEFT. SHEKIDAE". 
 
 the forty-sixth parallel on the east, dividing it from 
 Oregon. The same year that he reached this region 
 gold had been found in the Pend d’Oreille or 
 Clark’s River at its junction with the Columbia. 
 Foreseeing the rush which this discovery would pro¬ 
 duce upon lands still belonging to the red men, the 
 Government strengthened its military forces in the 
 region and kept them alert. Governor Stevens of 
 Oregon, on the 9th of June, 1855, made a treaty at 
 Camp Stevens, now Walla Walla City, with the 
 Cayuses, the Walla Wallas, and the Umatillas for 
 the purchase of about 20,000 square miles of land 
 in the gold-bearing region. Ratification by the 
 Washington Government was required in order to 
 make the treaty valid, but without waiting for that 
 gold-seekers spread all over the ceded land and 
 flocked to the Colville mines. The head chief of 
 the Walla Wallas had been reluctant to sign the 
 treaty, and the greed of the whites in seizing the 
 land long before the stipulated price had been paid 
 for it led to bitter hostilities. This animosity ex¬ 
 tended to tribes all along the line of the Columbia. 
 
 Such was the critical period in the history of the 
 far Northwest when Sheridan arrived on the Pacific 
 coast. The first duty assigned to him was that of 
 escorting a topographical party from Sacramento to 
 the Columbia River, in August and September, 1855. 
 The survey was under charge of Lieutenant Wil¬ 
 liamson, and the military party was under Lieu¬ 
 tenant Gibson, while a detachment of the First 
 Dragoons was under Second Lieutenant J. B. Hood. 
 At the Rocky Hills, known as the Three Sisters, in 
 the lava beds, Lieutenant Sheridan took command 
 

 
 I 
 
 l 
 
 1 . 
 
 
 I 
 
 t 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 9 
 
 in place of Lieutenant Hood, who was relieved for 
 other duty. The region was full of elk and deer, 
 and the officers had opportunity of hunting. Care¬ 
 ful scouting, however, was required on account of 
 the troubles with the Indians. 
 
 This duty having been performed, Lieutenant 
 Sheridan was still continued on detached service 
 from his infantry company in order that he might 
 command in an expedition against the Yakimas the 
 same detachment of dragoons which had formed a 
 part of Lieutenant Williamson’s escort. The expe¬ 
 dition started from Camp Yakima, on the north side 
 of the Columbia, opposite The Dalles. Company C, 
 First Dragoons, scouted ahead through a dangerous 
 pass and came out on a branch of the Yakima. 
 There the troops dismounted and advanced, skir¬ 
 mishing. The Indians retreated and the troops en¬ 
 camped at night on the river. On resuming the 
 march the next morning the Indians fired on Lieu¬ 
 tenant Sheridan’s advance as it deployed, conceal¬ 
 ing themselves on the mountain-sides. Little harm, 
 however, was done. 
 
 After the close of this expedition, Lieutenant 
 Sheridan remained at Fort Vancouver until the 
 opening of the spring of 1856 made operations 
 again practicable, when he resumed scouting against 
 the Indians. 
 
 In November of the same year the Indians had 
 attacked the blockhouse at the Middle Cascades, 
 and had the inmates badly whipped and in immi¬ 
 nent danger of being massacred at any moment. A 
 courier was sent flying away to Vancouver, where 
 Sheridan held the fort at that time, calling for 
 
10 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHEKIDAN. 
 
 immediate assistance. Sheridan caused an old- 
 fashioned iron cannon to be placed on board a little 
 steamer, and in a remarkably short space of time 
 was steaming away up the Columbia. Arriving at 
 the Cascades, the cannon was put on shore and 
 taken to a position on the bank of the river in range 
 of the beleaguered blockhouse, which was sur¬ 
 rounded by yelling savages. In the excitement of 
 the moment the gun was placed near the bank and 
 loaded very heavily. The order was given ; a fear¬ 
 ful boom, which crashed and re-echoed throughout 
 the mountains, was heard. The cannon kicked 
 over the bluff and went splashing into the Colum¬ 
 bia, twenty feet below. The artillery was silenced, 
 and Sheridan stood perplexed. His chagrin was 
 turned to joy as he beheld the savages running 
 with all their speed for the mountains, yelling as 
 only savages could. They had never before heard 
 the report of a cannon, and imagined the judgment 
 day had come. Sheridan won his first victory, sav¬ 
 ing the lives of those in the blockhouse and prob¬ 
 ably many others, as one success of the hostiles 
 would have caused a raid down the river. Some of 
 the men said that the Indians did not quit running 
 until they had crossed Snake River, in Idaho. A 
 few years ago the cannon was recovered and taken 
 to Portland, Ore., where it was broken up and cast 
 into more useful form. 
 
 For gallantry in an engagement at the Cascades 
 of Columbia, April 26, 1856, he was specially noted 
 in general orders. In May following he took com¬ 
 mand of the Yokima Reservation, in the coast 
 range of mountains. He then selected a site for a 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 11 
 
 military post in the Seletz Valley. In the spring of 
 1857 he was complimented by General Scott for 
 meritorious conduct in the settlement of difficulties 
 with the Indians at Yokima Bay. In the same 
 year he built a post at Yamhill, W. T. During 
 the following years he was actively engaged against 
 Indians in the mountain ranges. At Grande Ronde 
 Indian reservation he was still in command of his 
 detachment of Company C, First Dragoons, and it 
 was not until the summer of 1857 that he finally 
 joined his own regiment, and was attached to Com¬ 
 pany K, at Fort Yamhill. The post was under 
 command of Capt. D. A. Russell, afterward a 
 division commander in Sheridan’s Army of the Shen¬ 
 andoah, and killed at Winchester. Lieut. Sheri¬ 
 dan was on several occasions in charge of the post 
 during Capt. Russell’s absence. The fatigues and 
 hardships incidental to such a life hardened him 
 until he became as tough as a hickory sapling and 
 hardy as a Northern pine. Friends have heard him 
 tell of living on grasshoppers for days together—a 
 light diet which might fitly train a man for the long 
 cavalry raids which were afterward characteristic of 
 Sheridan’s operations. He once carried his pro¬ 
 visions for two weeks in a blanket rolled across his 
 shoulders. 
 
 THE OUTBREAK OF WAR. 
 
 And now had come the great struggle which was 
 to call officers of the regular army to more moment¬ 
 ous duties. The steady drift of the country toward 
 
12 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHEEIDAN. 
 
 civil war had been watched by the little garrisons 
 on the Pacific coast with straining eyes. One of its 
 earliest effects was felt in the resignation of Southern 
 officers there as elsewhere, following their States as 
 these successfully plunged into the abyss of seces¬ 
 sion. Promotions began to be rapid in the spring 
 of 1861. The modest wish attributed to Lieut. 
 Sheridan was that he might “ get a captaincy out 
 of this thing” before it was over. His wildest 
 dream would hardly have led him to imagine that 
 in so few years he would be raised from the rank of 
 Second Lieutenant to that of Lieutenant-General. 
 
 Yet even of the brief time which was to be 
 adequate for his fame, a fourth part was to pass 
 with few laurels for him. Brig.-Gen. E. V. Sumner 
 was in command of the Department of the Pacific 
 in 1861, with B. C. Drum and D. C. Buell success¬ 
 ively as Assistant Adjutant-Generals. In June, 
 1861, Col. Wright, commanding the District of 
 Oregon, was directed by Gen. Sumner to send to 
 San Francisco seved infantry companies of his com¬ 
 mand. Capt. D. A. Bussell’s company was one of 
 those selected, and the abandonment of Fort Yam¬ 
 hill being ordered, it proceeded to Portland and 
 San Francisco. Lieut. Sheridan was left behind in 
 command of the post, and there remained until 
 September, 1861. Certainly this was not a promis¬ 
 ing start for one whose rise was destined to be so 
 rapid and dazzling. The war had been going on 
 for months ; one great battle had been fought, and 
 men like Grant, McClellan, Sherman, and others 
 who were to be named in history with Sheridan were 
 already Brigadier or Major Generals, while he was 
 
LIFE OF OEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 13 
 
 still hidden away at an obscure place in Oregon. 
 But a change of scene and duty was at hand. He 
 had already received in March his promotion to be 
 First Lieutenant of the Fourth Infantry, and the 
 following May a number of new regiments were or¬ 
 ganized by direction of the President for the regular 
 army. Among these was the Thirteenth Infantry, 
 and by orders dated the 18th of June, Lieut. Sheri¬ 
 dan was commissioned to be Captain in that regi¬ 
 ment, to date from May 14. This promotion took 
 him to St. Louis, the headquarters of the regi¬ 
 ment thus forming. 
 
 We are now at the threshold of the more illustri¬ 
 ous portions of the great soldier’s career, and if we 
 have lingered long upon its earlier stages, this has 
 been because these are less generally known. Arriv¬ 
 ing at St. Louis in-autumn, his first service was the 
 comparatively peaceful one of presiding over a board 
 for auditing claims. Next he received an appoint¬ 
 ment on the staff of Gen. S. R. Curtis, who just at 
 the end of the year received a command of about 
 12,000 men concentrating at Holla, in Missouri, and 
 called the Army of the Southwest. The duty of 
 Capt. Sheridan was to act as chief Quartermaster 
 and Commissary of this force. This was not a very 
 marked advance toward the work of field-fighting, 
 which was the strong point of Sheridan, and, be¬ 
 sides, he had the misfortune, as it may then have 
 appeared, to dissatisfy his commanding officer and 
 to lose his place on his staff, after the ensuing Pea 
 Hidge campaign. As a consequence he was sent to 
 report to the headquarters of Gen. Halleck, who, 
 after the battle of Shiloh, had taken command in 
 
14 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 the field in the advance upon Corinth. It was now 
 April or May of 1862. The war had been going on 
 a year, many great battles having been fought and 
 many officers having already achieved a national 
 renown. But Capt. Sheridan, who was to be 
 known in the history of the war as one of its great¬ 
 est fighters and one of those whose specialty was 
 the command and tactical handling of troops on the 
 field of battle, had not yet taken part in the small¬ 
 est skirmish, and even at Halleck’s headquarters 
 was resuming a Quartermaster’s functions. 
 
 Then, at last, his fortune changed. It chanced 
 that the Governor of Michigan applied to Gen. Hal- 
 leck to furnish him a regular officer to be Colonel 
 of the Second Michigan Cavalry. Gen. Halleck 
 had served in California while Sheridan was on that 
 coast, and knew that that the latter had had com¬ 
 mand of dragoons ; besides, he was at hand and 
 available for any duty. He replied that there hap¬ 
 pened to be at his headquarters, and temporarily on 
 his staff, a proper officer for his purpose, and on 
 the 25th of May, 1862, Capt. Sheridan became Col¬ 
 onel of the Second Michigan Cavalry. 
 
 His active field career began at once. He led his 
 regiment a few days after his appointment to the 
 occupation of Booneville, Miss., and took part in 
 the advance upon the enemy from Corinth to Bald¬ 
 win, having skirmishes at the latter point, and at 
 Blackland and Donaldson’s Cross-roads. Then, 
 put in charge of a cavalry brigade composed of his 
 own regiment and the Second Iowa, he was directed 
 by Gen. Rosecrans to station himself at Booneville, 
 on the Mobile & Ohio Railroad. There he was 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 15 
 
 attacked on the 1st of July, the enemy driving 
 * back his pickets. The fighting was very sharp, 
 and Ool. Sheridan detached a portion of his 
 command under Major K,. A. Alger, Second Mich¬ 
 igan, to take the Blackland road and attack the 
 enemy in the flank and rear. The following ac¬ 
 count of the result is in Gen. Sheridan’s own 
 words: 
 
 “ He went off, and I moved from where I was, 
 near my headquarters tent (I had not discouraged 
 the men by taking down my headquarters), out 
 on the line of battle, just west of the railroad track, 
 in the village of Booneville. The fighting was sharp 
 along the line, and the firing of the enemy seemed 
 to show so much numerical strength I had the great¬ 
 est anxiety to hear from Major Alger. The hour— 
 the time set to hear from him—was up, but there 
 was no cheering, so I ordered the charge on the 
 enemy, which was my part of the arrangement, and 
 just at that moment a locomotive and two platform 
 cars, loaded with bales of hay for the horses of my 
 command, came down the track from the main army 
 in the rear, right into Booneville and just behind 
 the line of battle. As the troops knew I had sent 
 back for reinforcements to help us, I thought if the 
 engineer were made to blow his whistle it would 
 give them'encouragement, so I galloped to him and 
 ordered it to be sounded loudly and continuously. 
 The men heard it and believed the reinforcements 
 had arrived, and I have reason to suppose the enemy 
 thought so too. I never heard such wild cheering 
 as occurred on our part. The enemy broke and ran, 
 
 i 
 
16 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 not only on the road, but all over the country. He 
 was defeated. 
 
 “ Now, to go back to Major Alger. He followed 
 the enemy with his command armed only with 
 sabres and Colt’s six-shooting pistols. The enemy 
 was principally on the Blackland road, and the first 
 thing the Major struck was the Hebei headquarters, 
 which were captured and taken back to a white 
 farmhouse in the rear by a small escort under Lieut. 
 Schuyler of the Second Michigan. The charge was 
 continued into the rear of the enemy as far as Major 
 Alger could go. He was unable to come through to 
 me, as the enemy was too strong, nor did he get 
 near enough for me to hear his cheering, but, singu¬ 
 lar as it may seem, it was at the same time that I 
 made the charge in front, and probably was instru¬ 
 mental in the defeat of the enemy by my small 
 force. The enemy, as I heard afterward by prison¬ 
 ers, thought he was charged by a large force in 
 front and a large force in rear. At all events 
 he broke and ran. 
 
 “ My whole force, as I have said before, was 827 
 men, of which Major Alger’s command numbered 
 about 90. We followed up the enemy rapidly. 
 Major Alger, finding he could not get through, 
 turned back the way he had gone, but only about 
 one-half, or a little less than one-half, returned, and 
 many of those brave fellows came back on the horses 
 of their comrades, riding double, many of them 
 wounded. I remember very well that nearly all had 
 lost their hats. Major Alger did not come back, 
 and for a short time I thought he had been killed, 
 and his command thought so too, but while in pur 
 
ST-fWPT 
 
 
 r - f: jsmJih 'r. ?'. , Mfn (■*••. 
 
 
 y* 4 /, • 
 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 17 
 
 suit of the enemy I had the pleasure and satisfac¬ 
 tion of meeting him. He was dismounted by the 
 limbs of a tree and run over by the enemy, without 
 being noticed in their retreat from my charge in 
 front.’’ 
 
 This combat is interesting to note as being the 
 first in which Sheridan held an independent com¬ 
 mand. The following day, July 2, 1861, Gen. Rose- 
 crans issued a complimentary order, which, barring 
 the exaggerations that were common to both sides 
 at that period of the war and were natural in the 
 necessary absence of exact information, will be read 
 with interest: 
 
 “ General Orders No. 81.—The General com¬ 
 manding announces to his army that on the 1st inst. 
 Col. P. H. Sheridan, Second Michigan Cavalry, 
 with 11 companies of the Second Michigan and 11 
 companies of the second Iowa, was attacked near 
 Booneville by eight regiments of rebel cavalry 
 under Chalmers, and after an eight hours’ fight de¬ 
 feated and drove them back, leaving their dead and 
 wounded on the field. 
 
 “ The coolness, and determination, and fearless 
 gallantry displayed by Col. Sheridan and the offi¬ 
 cers and men of his command in this action deserve 
 the thanks and admiration of the army.” 
 
 Col. Sheridan’s appointment as Brigadier-Gen¬ 
 eral of volunteers dates from July 1, 1862, which, it 
 will be observed, was the day of this fight at Boone¬ 
 ville. His troops had suffered little, if any, loss in 
 
18 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 that affair, and it had brought him a high reward 
 Next he went to Guntown with a flag of truce, then 
 occupied the town of Ripley, and in a subsequent 
 reconnoissance at Guntown, in August, captured 
 several prisoners and 300 animals, following this 
 with a skirmish near Rienzi. 
 
 The autumn of 1863 found Gen. Sheridan still rap¬ 
 idly advancing. He had received the command of a 
 division in Gilbert’s corps of Gen. Buell’s Army of 
 the Ohio, which was resisting Bragg’s advance into 
 Kentucky. In command of this called the Eleventh 
 Division of the Third Corps, he took part in the 
 battle of Chaplin’s Hills, or Perryville, on the 8th 
 of October. In this, his first engagement of impor¬ 
 tance, Sheridan performed good service in covering 
 the right of McCook’s division alone the line of 
 Doctor’s Creek, which flows into Chaplin’s River near 
 Perryville, and distinguished himself for discreet 
 judgment as well as ability to handle troops. The 
 army then marched forward to the relief of Nash¬ 
 ville, and when its command was transferred from 
 Buell to Rosecrans, Sheridan’s division became 
 successively known as the Eleventh and the Third 
 of the Fourteenth Corps and the Third of the 
 Twentieth. 
 
 MURFREESBORO. 
 
 It was under Rosecrans that Gen. Sheridan per¬ 
 haps first gave full evidence of his real genius as 
 a soldier by his conduct in the great battle of Stone 
 River, or Murfreesboro. This prolonged and san- 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 19 
 
 guinary engagement took place on the last day of 
 the year 1862 and the first two days of 1863. Bragg 
 was at Murfreesboro in force. The Union army 
 was drawn up until it reached the west side of 
 Stone River, the left wing consisting of three 
 divisions under Crittenden, the centre of two under 
 Thomas, and the right of three under McCook. 
 These last were the divisions of Sheridan, Davis, 
 and Johnson, which were deployed and carried the 
 line southward across the turnpike that runs from 
 Murfreesboro to Franklin. The left wing rested 
 on Stone River. Bragg’s forces were also nearly 
 all upon the west side of that stream excejyt one 
 division, Breckinridge’s, which was on the east 
 side. Rosecran’s disposition was made for the pur¬ 
 pose of attacking with the left and centre, while 
 the right was simply to hold the enemy’s left in 
 check. But it chanced that Bragg also had a plan 
 for taking the aggressive, and as bold a one as the 
 plan of Rosecrans, it being that of turning the 
 Union right and thus seizing Rosecrans’s line of 
 communications with his base at Nashville. Re¬ 
 garded in the light of this purpose, the Union right 
 was far from well posted. McCook’s corps was 
 placed from right to left in the order of Johnson, 
 Davis, and Sheridan, and while it was somewhat 
 faulty in facing too much to the east while it should 
 have faced more to the south, and was hardly com¬ 
 pact enough to resist attack, the right division, 
 Johnson’s, was almost “in the air,” having, to be 
 sure, one brigade drawn back, and so facing as to 
 partly protect the rear, but still not supported 
 there. As a consequence, while Rosecrans on the 
 
20 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 morning of the great battle jubilantly moved his 
 left across the river with intent to swing it into 
 Murfreesboro, Bragg was diligently pursuing his 
 plan of massing his troops to destroy the Union 
 right. Since his tactics contained the least pre¬ 
 liminary marching, the initiative was practically 
 secured by him, and the first warning of Rosecrans 
 that his own plan had failed was the practical over¬ 
 whelming of Johnson’s division. He promptly 
 retracted his steps in order to save his communica¬ 
 tions by accepting the gage of battle where it had 
 been thrown down. But before he could relieve the 
 hard-pressed right, Davis’s division, in its turn un¬ 
 covered by the overwhelming of Johnson’s, had 
 been forced to give way after nobly resisting several 
 impetuous attacks of Cleburne. 
 
 Then came the turn of Sheridan. Fortunately he 
 had had time to prepare, and with that intuition 
 which distinguished him on later fields, he rapidly 
 changed front so as to form a line at right angles to 
 his former one, and for two hours fought a splendid 
 defensive battle. His line consisted of the brigades 
 of Sill and Roberts, with Shafer’s in reserve. It 
 lay in the edge of a cedar brake. Three batteries 
 swept the approach in front, which was an open 
 cotton-field. The enemy came on exultantly, and 
 was mowed down by a terrible fire from the guns, 
 yet would not go back until within short infantry 
 range, when a tremendous fire from the troops that 
 had been lying in the timber broke up the attack. 
 With soldierly instinct young Sill, Sheridan’s 
 former classmate at West Point, charged out of the 
 woods at the head of his brigade across the field, 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 21 
 
 and hastened the enemy’s retreat, achieving a 
 splendid success at the heavy cost of his own life. 
 Sheridan then sent the brigade of Col. Roberts 
 to charge into the adjoining woods, where his flank 
 was again threatened. Once more he was com¬ 
 pelled to change front, and this time he got his 
 left into close junction with Negley’s division of 
 Thomas’s command, while drawing in the other two 
 brigades so as to cover the rear of the main line. 
 In that position he again sustained the repeated 
 attacks of the enemy until his troops, some of whom 
 had nearly exhausted their ammunition, were com¬ 
 pletely overborne. But he had splendidly sustained 
 his part of the conflict. “It was eleven o’clock,” 
 says one writer, 4 4 when Sheridan’s division, with 
 compact ranks and empty cartridge-boxes, de¬ 
 bouched from the cedar thickets to the open plain 
 stretching along the Murfreesboro turnpike. He 
 had lost 1796 men, and with the cost of their heroic 
 lives had won three hours, which Rosecrans, to 
 whom he now reported, had been using to the best 
 advantage. 44 Here is all that are left,” said he 
 sadly, as he joined his chief. The severity of the 
 battle may be illustrated by the fact that all 
 three of Sheridan’s brigade commanders were 
 killed. 
 
 After Sheridan’s division had at length been 
 swept back, the struggle still went on fiercely, and 
 the memorable firmness of Thomas there, as after¬ 
 ward at Chickamauga, proved of invaluable service. 
 The day closed with both armies still on the field. 
 The succeeding days witnessed less vigorous fight¬ 
 ing, and at last Bragg voluntarily withdrew, leaving 
 
22 LIFE OF GEtf. SIIERIDAIsr. 
 
 Murfreesboro, the prize contended for, in the hands 
 of Rosecrans. 
 
 The following March, Sheridan was engaged at 
 Eagleville, capturing trains and provisions, and 
 pursued Van Dorn from Franklin to Columbia. 
 When the advance of Rosecrans to Tullahoma took 
 place in June, Sheridan’s division led the advance 
 and crossed the Cumberland Mountains and the 
 Tennessee, with combats at Fairfield, Cowan Sta¬ 
 tion, and University, the latter on the mountain 
 top, in a sort of national celebration of July 4,1868, 
 as if in echo of those at Vicksburg and Gettysburg. 
 He had occupied Winchester the day before. 
 
 This fine strategical move, known as the Tulla¬ 
 homa campaign, was followed a few months later 
 by the advance of Rosecrans to Chattanooga, and 
 the disastrous battle at Chickamauga, on the 19th 
 and 20th of September, 1863. The purpose of Rose¬ 
 crans to attack and rout Bragg before occupying 
 Chattanooga was unquestionably sound ; but the 
 manner of putting it into execution proved to be a 
 faulty, and the reinforcement of Bragg by Long- 
 street from Virginia placed Rosecrans in a plight 
 which threatened the ruin of his army. But Thomas 
 again u plucked up drowning honor by the locks,” 
 and saved the Union army from a great disaster. 
 Sheridan’s division was one of those that suffered 
 from a misunderstanding of orders and the rupture 
 of the line at Chickamauga causing the portion of 
 the army to which he was assigned to be driven 
 from the field. During the stubborn resistance 
 which his division offered there, still another of his 
 brigade commanders, Gen. Lytle, was killed. 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 23 
 
 But the chagrin thus suffered was brief. When 
 Thomas received the command of the Army of the 
 Cumberland, whose retreat to the stronghold of 
 Chattanooga he had magnificently covered and in¬ 
 sured, and when Grant, having assumed command 
 at that point, undertook to dislodge Bragg from 
 the heights of Missionary Ridge, in the great battle 
 of Nov. 25, 1863, Sheridan’s command was in the 
 foremost line ascending the heights. He crossed 
 the ridge close by Bragg’s headquarters, and instead 
 of halting pushed on a mile beyond, making fresh 
 captures of artillery and prisoners. Then his tired 
 troops went into bivouac, but wdien the full moon 
 rose bright on the field of victory, at midnight, on 
 Granger’s suggestion Sheridan again advanced as 
 far as Chickamauga Creek, capturing more pris¬ 
 oners and stores. 
 
 After the battle of Chattanooga, Gen. Sheridan 
 took part in operations in East Tennessee, and in 
 January, 1864, was engaged at Dandridge. But the 
 time approached for still larger opportunities for 
 fame and service. Grant had been made Lieuten¬ 
 ant-General, and had transferred the scene of his 
 immediate operations to Virginia. He needed a 
 commander of the cavalry corps of the Army of 
 the Potomac. Halleck asked, “Why not take 
 Sheridan \ ” and Grant replied, “ The very man ! ” 
 Thus a second time Halleck had made a happy sug¬ 
 gestion for Sheridan’s advancement, and it should 
 be remembered to his credit. 
 
 Transferred to his new duties, Sheridan started 
 with his cavalry corps on the great Virginia cam¬ 
 paign which began at the Rapidan and ended at 
 
24 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 Appomattox III tlie Wilderness campaign lie was 
 engaged at Todd’s Tavern, on May 5 and 7, and at 
 the Furnaces on the intervening day. A portion 
 of his cavalry occupied and held for a time Spott- 
 sylvania Court House. Then he made a great swoop 
 in the rear of the enemy, cutting the Virginia 
 Central and Richmond & Fredericksburg railroads. 
 His troops were engaged successively at Beaver Dam, 
 Yellow Tavern, Meadow Bridges, and in the outskirts 
 of Richmond ; then, a fortnight later, near the end 
 of May, at Hanovertown and Totopotomoy Creek, 
 Hawe’s Shop, Metadequin Creek, and Cold Harbor. 
 Early in June he made a long raid to Charlottes¬ 
 ville, lightingat Trevillian Station, Mallory’s Ford, 
 Tunstall, St. Mary’s Church, and Darbytown, re¬ 
 turning to the James River June 28, and then was 
 engaged at Lee’s Mills. 
 
 IN THE SHENANDOAH VALLEY. 
 
 The vigor thus exhibited brought him into high 
 favor with Gen. Grant; and when Early made his 
 famous raid through the Shenandoah Valley to 
 Washington, threatening that city, and then, fall¬ 
 ing back into the valley, stationed himself there as 
 if to hold it, Grant chose Sheridan as the man to 
 take the command there and drive him out. On 
 the 7th of August Sheridan received the command 
 of the middle military division, with a force com¬ 
 posed of a large part' of his own cavalry corps 
 under Torbert, the Sixth Corps under Wright, and 
 
LIFi;. OF GEN. SHERIDAjST. 
 
 25 
 
 a portion of the Nineteenth under Emory, with the 
 Eighth, oftener called the Army of West Virginia, 
 under Crook. This was known as the Army of the 
 Shenandoah. 
 
 With this force he promptly drove Early back 
 from Winchester to Strasburg, with slight skir¬ 
 mishes at Kernstown and Kabletown. The rein¬ 
 forcement of Early’s troops from Lee’s army caused 
 Sheridan in turn to withdraw to Harper’s Ferry. 
 Sheridan knew, however, that before long a demand 
 would be made for the return of these extra troops 
 to Lee, who needed them. Meanwhile he had, in 
 conformity with orders received from Grant, de¬ 
 stroyed all crops and supplies as far as Strasburg. 
 The instructions of Grant had been as follows : 
 
 “ In pushing up the Shenandoah Valley, as it is 
 expected you will have to go, first or last, it is de¬ 
 sirable that nothing should be left to invite the 
 enemy to return. Take all provisions, forage, and 
 stock wanted for the use of your command ; such 
 as can not be consumed, destroy. It is not desirable 
 that buildings should be destroyed—they should 
 rather be protected ; but the x^eople should be in¬ 
 formed that so long as an army can subsist among 
 them recurrences of these raids must be expected, 
 and we are determined to stop them at all hazards.” 
 
 Grant, who had been anxious to force Early back 
 as soon as possible, visited Sheridan to consult with 
 him, but “saw,” says his report, “that there were 
 but two words of instruction necessary. Go in ! ” 
 He added that “the result was such that I have 
 
26 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHEKTDAN. 
 
 never since deemed it necessary to visit Sheridan 
 before giving him orders.” On the 19th of Sep¬ 
 tember, having heard, by his spies, of the previous 
 return of a portion of Early’s forces at Winchester 
 to Lee, Sheridan crossed the Opequan Creek with 
 his army and vigorously attacked the enemy drawn 
 up in front of Winchester. His line was formed 
 with the Nineteenth Corps on the right and the 
 Sixth on the left, and with Crook’s corps in reserve, 
 the cavalry operating on each flank. A fierce open- 
 field battle resulted, during which at one moment 
 Early succeeded in breaking in at the junction of 
 the Sixth and Nineteenth Corps. But the peril was 
 temporary ; and when Crook had been brought up, 
 and the cavalry on the right had come into full 
 play, the enemy was driven completely from the 
 field up the turnpike toward Strasburg. Sheridan 
 at once sent his faipous dispatch: “ We have just 
 sent them whirling through Winchester, and we 
 are after them to-morrow. This army behaved 
 splendidly.” The news caused the greatest excite¬ 
 ment through the North. Grant ordered 200 
 guns to be fired in honor of it, and sent this 
 dispatch: 
 
 “I congratulate you and the army serving under 
 you for the great victory just achieved. It has been 
 most opportune in point of time and effect. It will 
 open again to the Government and to the public 
 the very important line of road from Baltimore to 
 the Ohio, and also the Chesapeake Canal. Better 
 still, it wipes out much of the stain up>on our arms 
 by previous disasters in that locality. May your 
 
LIFE OP GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 27 
 
 good work continue, is now the prayer of all loyal 
 men.” 
 
 President Lincoln also sent a characteristic dis¬ 
 patch : 
 
 ‘‘ Have jlist heard of your great victory. God bless 
 you all, officers and men. Strongly inclined to come 
 up and see you. A. Lincoln.” 
 
 The Union loss was about 5000 men, of whom 
 4300 were killed or wounded ; Early’s was about 
 4000, of whom 2000 were prisoners. As his force 
 was much smaller than Sheridan’s, the loss fell 
 more irreparably upon him. Sheridan also cap¬ 
 tured live guns. For this brilliant victory Gen. 
 Sheridan received promotion to be a Brigadier-Gen¬ 
 eral in the regular army, and we should have noted 
 before that he had been made Major-General of 
 volunteers for his conduct at the battle of Murfrees¬ 
 boro. 
 
 Without pausing to allow his enemy to recover, 
 Sheridan the next day followed him up the turn¬ 
 pike to Strasburg and attacked him on the 23d in 
 his strong works at Fisher’s Hill. The place had 
 been deemed almost impregnable, but Sheridan, by 
 a carefully concealed movement, sent Crook’s com¬ 
 mand to turn the enemy’s left while the main force 
 attacked in front, and the result was a second over¬ 
 whelming defeat for Early. Ho thing could resist 
 the impetuous attack of the Union troojjs under 
 Sheridan’s direction, and once more the enemy was 
 driven up the valley with a loss of 16 guns and 1300 
 
28 
 
 LIFE OF GEtf. SHEaIEAIL 
 
 or 1400 men, while Sheridan lost only about 400. 
 Early wrote to Lee the following account: 
 
 “The enemy’s immense superiority in cavalry 
 and the inefficiency of the greater part of mine has 
 been the cause of all my disasters. In the affair at 
 Fisher’s Hill the cavalry gave way, but it was 
 flanked. This would have been remedied if the 
 troops had remained steady, but a panic seized 
 them at the idea of being flanked, and, without 
 being defeated, they broke, many of them fleeing 
 shamefully. The artillery was not captured by the 
 enemy, but abandoned by the infantry. My troops 
 are very much shattered, the men very much ex¬ 
 hausted, and many of them without shoes.” 
 
 Sheridan continued to follow up Early, until the 
 latter had retreated so far that Sheridan, always 
 wary, no matter how vigorous, determined that he 
 would no longer move away from his base of sup¬ 
 plies, especially as irregular forces were operating 
 against his communications. Accordingly he re¬ 
 turned, burning the valley as he went down. 
 
 “I commenced moving back from Port Republic, 
 Mount Crawford, Bridgewater, and Harrisonburg 
 yesterday morning. The grain and forage in ad¬ 
 vance of these points had previously been destroyed. 
 In moving back to this point the whole country, 
 from the Blue Ridge to the North Mountain, has 
 been made entirely untenable for a Rebel army. I 
 have destroyed over 2000 barns filled with wheat, 
 hay, and farming implements ; over 70 mills filled 
 with flour and wheat ; have driven in front of the 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 29 
 
 army over four herd of stock, and have killed and 
 issued to the troops not less than 3000 sheep. This 
 destruction embraces the Luray Yalley and Little 
 Fort Yalley, as well as the main valley. A large 
 number of horses have been obtained, a proper esti¬ 
 mate of which I can not now make. 
 
 44 Lieut. John It. Meigs, my engineer officer, was 
 murdered beyond Harrisonburg, near Dayton. For 
 this atrocious act all the houses within an area of 
 live miles were burned. Since I came into the val¬ 
 ley from Harper’s Ferry every train, every small 
 party, and every straggler has been bushwhacked 
 by people, many of whom ha ve protection papers 
 from commanders who have been hitherto in the 
 valley. 
 
 4 4 From the vicinity of Harrisonburg over 400 
 wagon-loads of refugees have been sent back to 
 Martinsburg. Most of the people were Dunkers, 
 and had been conscripted. The people here are 
 getting sick of the war. Heretofore they have had 
 no reason to complain, because they have been liv¬ 
 ing in great abundance.” 
 
 Early, however, who had been reinforced, prompt¬ 
 ly followed with cavalry under Rosser, who had 
 been sent by Lee to his aid. Thereupon Sheridan 
 ordered Torbert to halt and 44 whip the rebel cav¬ 
 alry, or get whipped himself,” Torbert chose the 
 former alternative, and Merritt and Custer, at Toni’s 
 Brook, Oct 9, drove back Lomax and Rosser, 
 Merritt capturing five guns and Custer six, with 
 other spoils. Sheridan sent this news to Grant: 44 1 
 directed Torbert to attack at daylight this morning 
 
30 
 
 LIFE OF GElST. SHERIDAN. 
 
 and finish this £ saviour of the valley.’ The enemy, 
 after being charged by onr gallant cavalry, was 
 broken and ran. They were followed by our men 
 on the jump 26 miles through Mount Jackson and 
 across North Fork of the Shenandoah. I deemed 
 it best to make this delay of one day here and set¬ 
 tle this new cavalry general.” 
 
 Having reached Strasburg, Gen. Sheridan posted 
 his army in a strong position just beyond at Cedar 
 Creek, and then proceeded personally, on Oct. 15, 
 to Washington in response to a request from Secre¬ 
 tary Stanton, who wished to consult him. Mean¬ 
 while Early, who had followed the Union forces 
 down the valley, determined to attack them in 
 their camp at Cedar Creek. Aided by a heavy fog 
 in the early morning of the 19tli, he suceeeded in 
 surprising Crook’s command, which was the near¬ 
 est, and by an impetuous attack completely routed 
 it, having fallen upon Thorburn’s division while 
 the men were still asleep in their tents. Gen. 
 Wright, who, as senior officer, was in command, 
 instantly made dispositions to repair the disaster, 
 but the falling back of Crook uncovered the Nine¬ 
 teenth Corps, and, despite its utmost exertions, 
 made its position untenable. The Sixth Corps and 
 the cavalry were got rapidly over to the turnpike, 
 and a desperate struggle ensued to hold that road. 
 Getty’s division, which was directly on the pike, 
 was especially pressed, but held its position with 
 tenacity, finely supported by the cavalry on the 
 other side of the pike. The Union camps, however, 
 were all in the possession of the enemy, some of 
 whom were plundering them. 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 31 
 
 At this juncture Sheridan appeared on the scene. 
 He was on his way back from Washington and had 
 passed the night at Winchester. In the morning 
 the noise of the firing, which was heard even at 
 Harper’s Ferry, convinced him that a battle was 
 going on. About 9 o’clock he mounted his horse 
 to ride to his camp, and he had got a very little 
 way from the town when a stream of fugitives 
 from the field told him of probable disaster. Put¬ 
 ting spurs to his horse he rapidly dashed up the 
 pike to his army, at a distance of 11^ miles from 
 Winchester. As he rode along he called on the 
 fugitives to turn back, and many of them did so. 
 Arriving at the line he was greeted with cheers on 
 every hand, and the news was spread from man to 
 man even where he was not seen. 
 
 Sheridan’s army still held the turnpike and still 
 largely outnumbered the enemy. He therefore at 
 once prepared to resume the offensive, and having 
 his forces well in hand advanced upon the enemy, 
 whose line was somewhat disordered by the morn¬ 
 ing’ s successes, and after a stubborn contest utterly 
 routed it, driving it in the utmost confusion back 
 across Cedar Creek. To such a transformation 
 scene the war perhaps presents no parallel. Early’s 
 loss was about 3000 ; the Union troops lost 6764. 
 
 This battle, with its dramatic features, at once 
 made Sheridan the hero of the day. Poets sang of 
 his ride from Winchester and painters depicted it. 
 Grant wrote that “ turning what had bid fair to be 
 a disaster into glorious victory stamped Sheridan 
 what I always thought him, one of the ablest of 
 generals.” President Lincoln sent this dispatch; 
 
32 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SIIEKIDAN. 
 
 “With great pleasure I tender to you and your 
 brave army the thanks of the nation and my own 
 personal admiration and gratitude for the month’s 
 operations in the Shenandoah Valley, and espec¬ 
 ially for the splendid work of Oct. 19, 1864.” 
 
 Congress passed a vote of thanks to “ Major-Gen. 
 Philip H. Sheridan and to officers and men under 
 his command for the gallantry, military skill, and 
 . courage displayed in the brilliant series of victories 
 achieved by them in the Valley of the Shenandoah, 
 and especially for their services at Cedar Pun, on 
 the 19tli day of October, 1864, which retrieved the 
 fortunes of the day, and thus averted a great disas¬ 
 ter.” The legislatures of New York, Phode Island, 
 and other States also thanked him, while the Presi¬ 
 dent appointed him a Major-General in the army, 
 
 4 ‘ for the personal gallantry, military skill, and 
 just confidence in the courage and patriotism of 
 your troops displayed by you on, the 19th day 
 of October at Cedar Pun, whereby, under the 
 blessing of Providence, your routed army was 
 reorganized, a great national disaster averted, and 
 a brilliant victory achieved over the Pebels for 
 the third time in a pitched battle within thirty 
 days.” 
 
 Early fell back to Newmarket, and there re¬ 
 mained two weeks. In November he moved down 
 as if to attack Sheridan, but evidently thought 
 better of it. Sheridan destroved all the barns and 
 crops in Loudoun County, but there were few other 
 operations until spring, and Early went up to Staun¬ 
 ton for winter quarters, and then nearly all his 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 33 
 
 troops were sent back to Lee at Petersburg. The 
 Sixth Corps had been sent back to Grant. 
 
 On the 27th of February Sheridan moved up the 
 valley with 10,000 cavalry under Merritt, with or¬ 
 ders to destroy the Central Railroad and the canal, 
 to capture Lynchburg if possible, and then to join 
 Sherman in North Carolina or return to Winchester. 
 Finding a remnant of Early’s command at Waynes¬ 
 boro he fell on it and captured nearly the whole of 
 it, guns, wagons, tents, and stores. Incessant rains 
 made terrible roads, but he pushed on, and using 
 his discretion, ended his march by joining Grant at 
 Petersburg after “ destroying the James River and 
 Kanawha Canal and cutting the Gordonsville & 
 Lynchburg, Virginia Central and Richmond & 
 Fredericksburg railroads, and destroying many 
 railroads, canal and road and river bridges and 
 trestlework, and capturing and destroying 60 canal- 
 boats, containing large quantities of Rebel govern¬ 
 ment property, consisting of ordnance and ordnance 
 stores, clothing, camp and garrison equipage, com¬ 
 missary stores and medical supplies, and destroying 
 hundreds of army wagons and ambulances, and sev¬ 
 eral factories, warehouses, tanneries, forges, and 
 workshops, used for the manufacture of and filled 
 with military supplies of the description above 
 enumerated, and capturing 18 battle-flags, 1600 
 prisoners, and 2143 horses and mules.” 
 
 The course taken by Sheridan was fortunate, for 
 it brought him into position for the last grand strug¬ 
 gle of the war. When Grant, at the close of March, 
 1865, began the movements which resulted in the 
 downfall of Petersburg and the capture of Rich- 
 
34 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 mond, Sheridan, placed on the left, piloted the way 
 with his cavalry. His first march brought him to 
 Dinwiddie Court House. The primary aim of Grant 
 was to break the last remaining railroads open to 
 Lee in order to cut off his supplies and force him to 
 surrender. For this purpose the familiar move by the 
 left was once more resorted to, the Second and Fifth 
 Corps forming the infantry column, and Sheridan, 
 with 9000 sabres, making a broader sweep to the 
 west. But after the movement had begun, Grant 
 sent word to Sheridan at Dinwiddie, instead of 
 raiding upon railroads to “ push around the enemy 
 and get on to his right rear,” since, as he said, “I 
 now feel like ending the matter.” As soon as Lee 
 detected Grant’s purpose he gathered up all avail¬ 
 able troops from liis intrenched line and, placing 
 them under the command of Pickett and Johnson, 
 furiously attacked the Fifth Corps at White Oak 
 Ridge and Sheridan at Dinwiddie. The point where 
 the White Oak Road crosses the road from Din¬ 
 widdie to the Southside Railroad is called Five 
 Forks, and this Sheridan had seized. The first ef¬ 
 fort of the Confederate attack had been to drive him 
 out of Five Forks, and his cavalry was sorely 
 pressed ; but, thanks to his tactical skill, he got 
 them in hand on the retreat and placed them safely 
 behind the intrenchments at Dinwiddie. 
 
 It at once became of the highest importance to 
 recapture Five Forks, from which by marching a 
 short distance over the Ford road the Southside 
 Railroad could be reached. Lee, recognizing also 
 the importance of this place, had already concen¬ 
 trated there the divisions of Pickett and Johnson, 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 35 
 
 with the brigades of Wilcox and Wise. Grant, on 
 his part, sent to the aid of Sheridan the Fifth Corps, 
 and placed it under his command. Accordingly 
 Sheridan, on the 1st of April, the day after his re¬ 
 pulse, began to carry out his plan of battle, which 
 was to drive the enemy well within the works at 
 Five Forks with cavalry, making at the same time 
 a heavy demonstration against his right, and then, 
 behind this thick screen of cavalry skirmishers, to 
 secretly move the infantry corps across to a point 
 where it could strike and turn the enemy’s left. 
 At the same time, with that unvarying caution which 
 was as striking a trait as his vigor, he detached a 
 column of cavalry, under Mackenzie, to protect 
 what would become his own right and rear when his 
 line was formed, and this officer, in fact, in execu¬ 
 ting that duty, found a body of the enemy, which 
 he drove back to Petersburg. 
 
 Everything being ready, the infantry was moved 
 by a left wheel, with Ayres’s division as the pivot 
 and Crawford’s, supported by Griffin, as the wheel¬ 
 ing flank. As Sheridan had calculated, it over¬ 
 lapped the Confederate line of parapets, and after 
 a sharp attack, which for a time was left a little 
 doubtful by the disjoining of the infantry divi¬ 
 sions, exposing them to a heavy flank fire from the 
 breastworks, the entire position was splendidly 
 carried. The enemy broke and ran, pursued for 
 miles along the White Oak i;oad by Merritt and 
 Mackenzie, and leaving several thousand prisoners 
 and four guns, with many colors, in the hands of 
 Sheridan, whose loss was less than a thousand men, 
 the greater part of this being in the Fifth Corps. 
 
36 
 
 LIFE OF GE1ST. SHEKIDAK. 
 
 The overthrow of Lee’s right by Sheridan at Five 
 Forks, followed immediately by the carrying of all 
 the outer line of the Petersburg intrenchments, 
 made the instant abandonment of Richmond im¬ 
 perative. The only line of retreat that promised 
 success was that of the Appomattox River. The 
 day after the battle of Five Forks Sheridan moved 
 a few miles over to the Southside Railroad, striking 
 it at Ford’s Station, and that night Lee’s lines at 
 Petersburg and Richmond were virtually aban¬ 
 doned, while the next morning the blowing up of 
 the Confederate iron-clads and the firing of the 
 tobacco warehouses by Ewell’s rear guard gave a 
 token to the Union troops of what was going on. 
 Then began a race for life, Lee retreating on the 
 north side of the Appomatox and Grant pursuing 
 on the south side. The railroad from Richmond 
 to Danville crosses the Southside Railroad running 
 west from Petersburg at Burkesville Junction, 
 which accordingly became a strategic point of 
 supreme importance. Lee marched directly upon 
 it, but was pressed to halt for a day at Amelia 
 Court House until he could get rations and forage, 
 since supplies which he had ordered to be kept 
 there had by mistake been carried on to Richmond, 
 where they perished in the flames. He had reached 
 Amelia Court House on the morning of April 4, 
 and Sheridan the same afternoon planted his cav¬ 
 alry, the Fifth Corps, directly across the railroad at 
 Jetersville, seven miles beyond, being thus between 
 Lee and Burkesville. The next day Meade came 
 up to Jetersville with the Second and Sixth Corps, 
 and meanwhile that morning Sheridan sent a cav- 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN’. 
 
 87 
 
 airy force under Davies still further west, to Paine’s 
 Cross-roads, where it defeated a Confederate force 
 and captured many wagons, five guns, and some 
 prisoners. 
 
 Seeing his path southwestward to Burkesville 
 blocked, Lee on the night of the 5th moved west¬ 
 ward toward Farmville, intending there to recross 
 the Appomattox and reach Lynchburg. At once 
 the Union army was directed on a parallel route 
 from Jetersville, Sheridan leading with the cavalry, 
 the Fifth Corps having been returned to Meade 
 He struck the enemy first near Deatonsville, just 
 north of Jetersville, and gave orders which contem¬ 
 plated successive attacks by divisions along the re¬ 
 treating column, thus forcing it to halt and defend 
 itself. At Sailor’s Creek, near Farmville, he struck 
 the enemy again and captured 400 wagons, 16 guns, 
 and many prisoners, and then he ordered a mounted 
 charge of Stagg’s brigade in order to detain Ewell’s 
 corps until the Union infantry could come up. The 
 Sixth and Second Corps accordingly were engaged 
 in a hot fight, the former in front of Ewell, the 
 latter in his rear, and Sheridan on the flank, the re¬ 
 sult being the rout of the corps, which was the same 
 one that Sheridan had defeated in the Shenandoah 
 Valley. Thousands of prisoners were captured. 
 At Farmville, the next day, Sheridan again at¬ 
 tacked the enemy, capturing prisoners and guns, 
 and at last, on April 9, all was over with the sur¬ 
 render at Aj>pomattox. 
 
38 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 SINCE WAR TIMES. 
 
 When Lee had surrendered, Sheridan was hurried 
 with a cavalry and infantry force into North Caro¬ 
 lina, to Sherman, but was recalled on Johnston’s 
 capitulation to the latter. Next he received com¬ 
 mand of the forces west of the Mississippi, where 
 Gen, Kirby Smith threatened to continue hostilities, 
 but that duty also was quickly ended by Smith’s 
 surrender. Then he had charge of the military 
 division of the Southwest, or of the Gulf, and also of 
 the corps of observation established on the Eio 
 Grande to watch the war in Mexico that resulted in 
 the downfall and death of Maximilian. Ensuing 
 political troubles and riots in New Orleans caused 
 much criticism upon him, but the course he took 
 there received the sanction of Gen. Grant. From 
 the Southwest he was transferred to the Depart¬ 
 ment of the Missouri, Sept. 12, 1867, and conducted 
 the campaign against hostile Indians in the winter 
 of 1868-9, resulting in their defeat and surrender. 
 
 When Gen. Grant was made President, March 4, 
 1869, Lieut.-Gen. Sherman was promoted to be Gen¬ 
 eral in his stead, and Major-Gen. Sheridan to be 
 Lieutenant-General, the law providing that these 
 two grades of General and Lieutenant-General 
 should cease to exist respectively with these in¬ 
 cumbents. The new Lieutenant-General received 
 command of the Military Division in Missouri, with 
 headquarters in Chicago, and afterwards made a 
 visit to Europe. During the Franco-Prussian war 
 of 1870 he was a guest at the headquarters of the 
 King of Prussia and present at the battles of Grave- 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDaN. 
 
 39 
 
 lotte, Beaumont, and Sedan, and afterwards at the 
 headquarters of the German armies at Versailles, 
 witnessing many engagements around Paris during 
 the siege of that city. 
 
 The following letter was sent to Gen. Grant by 
 Sheridan, and well illustrates his keen military 
 criticism, and also the terse, clear, and picturesque 
 style of his correspondence : 
 
 Keims, France, Sept. 13, 1870. 
 
 My Dear Gen. Grant : The capture of the Em¬ 
 peror Napoleon and McMahon’s army at Sedan' on 
 the 1st of September has thrown France into a chaos 
 which even embarrasses the Prussian authorities. 
 It seems to a quiet observer as though Prussia had 
 done too much. Whom to negotiate with ? whom 
 to hold responsible in the final settlement ? are be¬ 
 coming grave questions, and one can not see what 
 will be the result. I was present at the battles of 
 Beaumont, Gravelotte and Sedan, and have had my 
 imagination clipped, in seeing these battles, of 
 many of the errors it had run into in its conceptions 
 of what might be expected of the trained troops of 
 Europe. 
 
 There was about the same percentage of sneaks, or 
 runaways, and the general conditions of the battles 
 were about the same as our own. One thing was 
 especially noticeable—the scattered condition of the 
 men in going into battle and their scattered condi¬ 
 tion while engaged. At Gravelotte, Beaumont and 
 Sedan the men engaged on both sides were so scat¬ 
 tered that it looked like thousands of men engaged 
 in a deadly skirmish without any regard to lines or 
 
40 
 
 LIFE OF GE1ST. SHEKIDAN. 
 
 formation. These battles were of this style of fight¬ 
 ing, commencing at long range, and might be called 
 progressive fighting, closing at night by the French 
 always giving up their position, or being driven 
 from it in this way by the Prussians. The latter 
 had their own strategy up to the Moselle, and it was 
 good and successful. After that river was reached 
 the French made the strategy for the Prussians, and 
 it was more successful than their own. The Prus¬ 
 sian soldiers are very good, brave fellows, all 
 young, scarcely a man over twenty-seven in the first 
 levies. They had gone into each battle with the 
 determination to win. It is especially noticeable 
 also that the Prussians have attacked the French 
 wherever they have found them, let the numbers be 
 great or small, and so far as I have been able to see, 
 though the grand tactics of bringing on the engage¬ 
 ment have been good, yet the battles have been 
 won by the good, square fighting of the men and 
 junior officers. It is true the Prussians have been 
 two to one except in one of the battles before Metz, 
 that of the 16th of August; still the French have 
 had the advantage of very strong positions. 
 
 Generally speaking, the French soldiers have not 
 fought well. It may be because the poor fellows 
 had been discouraged by the trap into which their 
 commander had led them, but I must confess to 
 having seen some of the “tallest” running at 
 Sedan I have ever witnessed, especially on the left 
 of the French position—all attempts to make the 
 men stand seemed to be unavailing. So disgraceful 
 was this that it caused the French cavalry to make 
 three or four gallant but foolish charges, as if it 
 
■ ",v - . ' ' .•»« 
 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 41 
 
 were to show that there was at least some manhood 
 left in a mounted French soldier. 
 
 I am disgusted ; all my boyhood’s fancies of the 
 soldiers of the great Napoleon have been dissi¬ 
 pated ; or else the soldiers of the “ Little Corporal” 
 have lost their elan in the pampered parade soldiers 
 of the “ Man of Destiny.” 
 
 The Prussians will settle, I think, by making 
 the line of the Moselle the German line, taking in 
 Metz and Strasburg, and the expenses of the war. 
 
 I have been most kindly received by the King 
 and Count Bismarck and all the officers at the head¬ 
 quarters of the Prussian army; have seen much of 
 great interest, and especially have been able to ob¬ 
 serve the difference between European battles and 
 those of our own country. I have not found the 
 difference very great, but that difference is to the 
 credit of our own country. There is nothing to be 
 learned here professionally, and it is a satisfaction to 
 learn that such is the case. There is much, how¬ 
 ever, which Europeans could learn from us—the use 
 of rifle-pits—the use of cavalry, which they do not 
 use well; for instance, there is a line of communi¬ 
 cation from here to Germany exposed to the whole 
 of the south of France, with scarcely a soldier on 
 the whole line, and it has never been touched. 
 There are a hundred things in which they are be¬ 
 hind us. The staff departments are poorly organ¬ 
 ized; the quartermaster’s department very wretched, 
 etc. Yery respectfully, your obedient servant, 
 
 P. H. Sheridan, Lieutenant-General. 
 
 P. S.—We go to-morrow with the headquarters 
 of the King to a point about twenty miles from 
 Paris. P. H. S. 
 
42 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 ( 
 
 Another step in his career remained, and this he 
 took in receiving the command of the army when 
 Gen. Sherman was retired nnder the law, as having 
 reached the age of 64. This retirement occurred 
 Feb. 8, 1884, but Gen. Sheridan removed to Wash¬ 
 ington and assumed his duties the autumn previous, 
 as Gen. Sherman desired to anticipate the actual 
 date. This command Lieut-Gen. Sheridan con¬ 
 tinued to exercise actively until the occurrence of 
 the illness which resulted in his death at Nonquitt, 
 Mass., Aug. 5, 1888. During his last illness the 
 Senate passed a bill to make him a full General, 
 and the House concurred June 1, the President 
 signing the bill the same day and sending in his 
 nomination to the Senate. 
 
 Such is the career of a genuine soldier, who rose 
 to the highest grade in the army. Long after vet¬ 
 erans of our day who tell of the prowess of u Little 
 Phil ’ ’ have passed away, his fame will live in his¬ 
 tory, and grow the brighter, too,' since the dramatic 
 elements coupled with his most illustrious achieve¬ 
 ments are such as men in all ages remember and 
 admire. 
 
 THE LA.ST SCENES IN THE LIFE OF THE 
 
 HEROIC SOLDIER. 
 
 The change in the General’s condition occurred 
 suddenly. He was lying partially on one side, and 
 the nurse, one of the Sisters who had been in con¬ 
 stant attendance, did not notice anything untoward. 
 It had been the practice of the physicians to fre^ 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 43 
 
 quently apply the fingers to the pulse, and Dr. 
 O’Reilly usually did so. To his horror on this oc¬ 
 casion he discovered great weakness and frequent 
 intermissions. He summoned his assistant, and the 
 first step taken was to administer ammonia. This 
 powerful stimulant was powerless to produce a 
 change in the heart’s action. Digitalis was then in¬ 
 jected hypodermically. Still the life current cours¬ 
 ing through the artery at the wrist remained weak. 
 Then it grew weaker and weaker. ’ Sinapism was 
 applied to the chest and limbs, and finally the gal¬ 
 vanic battery was brought out, and a current stead¬ 
 ily increasing in strength was directed along the 
 spine and through the chest of the now nearly un¬ 
 conscious form of the pride and joy of the army. 
 
 There were no convulsions, no sighing respira¬ 
 tion, no rolling of the eyes, none indeed of the phy¬ 
 sical signs which attend the departure of the breath 
 from the human body in many cases of death. 
 Until within a few minutes of the end Mrs. Sheri¬ 
 dan was not greatly alarmed, and she expected a 
 reaction from the syncope. Quietly, like a child 
 going to slumber, the gallant soldier fell into the 
 last long sleep. The great heart ceased to beat, and 
 General Phil Sheridan was dead. 
 
 The scene at the bedside was impressive, but was 
 free from any striking incidents. During the first 
 part of the attack General Sheridan did not realize 
 his condition. It would appear as if he became 
 aware of the impending doom before his wife appre¬ 
 ciated the danger. He spoke of his children once 
 in faint tones, and his manner impressed Mrs. Sher¬ 
 idan for the first time with the fact that her hus- 
 
44 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 band was dying. Several family matters were re¬ 
 ferred to, and he spoke the name of his son. “ Little 
 Phil! ” the dying hero whispered, “ Little Phil! ” 
 
 Drs. O’ Reilly and Mathews formally requested a 
 post-mortem examination, being desirous of ascer¬ 
 taining the exact pathological conditions,; but Mrs. 
 Sheridan, after deliberation, declined to accede to 
 the request, as there was no reasonable doubt as to 
 the cause of death, and she did not wish the body 
 of her husband mutilated. 
 
 One of the physicians stated that the valves of 
 the aorta and of the pulmonary artery were degen¬ 
 erated, and that there were atheromatous changes 
 of the valves of the endocardial lining of the heart. 
 The impaired circulation of the blood resul ting from 
 these lesions led to the pulmonary engorgement and 
 the cough of the past. The heart slowly but defi¬ 
 nitely ceased to act. There had been no indications 
 of liver, kidney, or other disease. There was no 
 dropsical swelling of the legs, and the mind had 
 only suffered from sympathy with the bodily weak¬ 
 ness. There had been extreme muscular prostra¬ 
 tion, and this condition had changed for the better 
 slowly. The diet had been restricted because of the 
 tendency of the stomach to reject much food. 
 General Sheridan’s appetite had not been strong, 
 and he had had food much as he desired, except on 
 certain exceptional occasions when his wishes had 
 to be restrained. 
 
 General Sheridan always expressed an aversion to 
 display in a funeral. Of course he did not object to 
 a military demonstration, but nothing resembling a 
 pageant accorded with his tastes. 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 45 
 
 AT THE FUNERAL. 
 
 The funeral day of Sheridan, August 11, was 
 warm, clear, cloudless. St. Matthew’s is a little, 
 irregular, somewhat old-fashioned church in the 
 official part of Washington. A sultry haze seemed 
 to enfold it. Long before the doors opened a cour¬ 
 teous, patient company surrounded them. The 
 little church, oblong, almost square, w T as decked 
 with the military and mourning emblems. 
 
 Crape fluttered from sacred images. Masses of 
 flowers in various forms were piled up under the 
 Virgin’s altar—the shoulder-strap of a general in 
 blue and yellow flowers, an easel with vines, a white 
 cross from the President, palms, clustered bunches 
 of pond-lilies, and a wreath. Before the high altar 
 was a raised platform, draped in black, fringed 
 with white. On this rested a coffin, which seemed 
 very small, covered with black cloth, the handles 
 gilded, draped by an American flag, almost cover¬ 
 ing it—folded and carelessly trailing over the sides. 
 There was a silken sash, emblem of the General’s 
 command. At the head was a draped headquarters 
 flag, such as was carried in war. Around it were 
 tall candles and candelabra in which small candles 
 were burning. On this coffin lay a sword—the glo¬ 
 rious sword of Sheridan. 
 
 Famous people, statesmen, soldiers, sailors, illus¬ 
 trious men with names of world-wide celebrity, 
 Were escorted to the pews by the martial ushers. 
 
 A voluntary, which came from the organ like a 
 wail, and all eyes turned toward a small company, 
 
46 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 slowly led up the central isle. Colonel Michael 
 Sheridan, with the widow of the General leaning on 
 his arm; John Sheridan, another brother, with a 
 striking resemblance to the deceased, portly, spec¬ 
 tacled : General Rucker, and two or three members 
 of the family, all in deep mourning. In front of 
 the coffin were three velveted chairs and pries-dieu. 
 In the center, Mrs. Sheridan, with a brother on each 
 side, knelt in prayer. 
 
 Priests, acolytes, groups of boys, with purple and 
 scarlet trimmings above their white gowns, clus¬ 
 tered around the altar. The church began its 
 sacred offices of repose and intercession. The tall 
 candles around the bier were lighted, and burned 
 freely in the gentle breeze which escaped from the 
 sultry, drowsy sun. The chancel swarmed with 
 clergymen in various stages of authority, and all 
 knelt as, following an uplifted cross, the spare form 
 of the Cardinal, robed in scarlet, wearing the 
 beretta, slowly moved from the sacristy, knelt at 
 the altar, and was escorted to the episcopal 
 throne. 
 
 As His Eminence bent in prayer there was a 
 rustle of interest, as another group moved up the 
 aisle under military escort—the President, Mrs. 
 Cleveland, and Mrs. Folsom. And in presence of 
 an audience representing the statesmanship, the 
 valor, the history, learning and prosperity of the 
 nation, the Church began its solemn and beautiful 
 service for the dead. 
 
 The mass was beautifully sung. It was Schmidt’s 
 mass, one of the simplest in musical composition. 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 47 
 
 cardinal gibbons’s sermon. 
 
 The following is the text of Cardinal Gibbons’s 
 sermon: 
 
 “And Jonathan and Simon took Judas their 
 brother, and buried him in the sepulcher of their 
 fathers, in the city of Modin. And all the people 
 of Israel bewailed him with great lamentation ; and 
 they mourned for him many days, and said : How 
 is the mighty fallen that saved the people of Is¬ 
 rael? ”—I. Mach, ix., 19-21. 
 
 Well might the children of Israel bewail their 
 great captain, who led them so often to battle and 
 to victory. And well may this nation grieve for the 
 loss of the mighty chieftain whose mortal remains 
 now lie before us. In every city and town and vil¬ 
 lage of this country, from the Atlantic to the Paci¬ 
 fic, his name is uttered with sorrow and his great 
 deeds recorded with admiration. 
 
 There is one consoling feature that distinguishes 
 the obsequies of our illustrious hero from those of 
 the great Hebrew leader. He was buried in the 
 midst of war, amid the clashing of arms and sur¬ 
 rounded by the armed hosts of the enemy. Our 
 captain, thank God, is buried amid profound peace, 
 while we are enjoying the blessings of domestic 
 tranquillity and are in friendshix3 with all the 
 world. 
 
 The death of General Sheridan will be lamented 
 not only by the Hortli, but also by the South. I 
 know the Southern people ; I know their chivalry, 
 I know their magnanimity, their warm and affec- 
 
48 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 tionate nature ; and I am sure that the sons of the 
 South, and especially those who fought in the late 
 war, will join in the national lamentation and will 
 lay a garland of mourning on the bier of the great 
 general. They recognize the fact that the nation’s 
 general is dead, and that his death is the nation's 
 loss. 
 
 And this universal sympathy, coming from all 
 sections of the country, irrespective of party lines, 
 is easily accounted for when we consider that under 
 an overruling Providence the war in which General 
 Sheridan took such a conspicuous part has resulted 
 in increased blessings to every State of our common 
 country. 
 
 ‘ ‘ There’s a divinity that shapes our ends, 
 Rough-hew them how we will.” 
 
 And this is true of nations as well as of individs 
 uals. 
 
 What constitutes the great difference between 
 the wars of antiquity and our recent war \ The war 
 of the olden time was followed by subjugation and 
 bondage ; in the train of our great struggle came 
 reconciliation and freedom. Alexander the Great 
 waded through the blood of his fellow-man. By the 
 sword he conquered, and by the sword he kept the 
 vanquished in bondage. Scarcely was he cold in 
 death when his vassals shook off the yoke and his 
 empire was dismembered into fragments. 
 
 The effect of the late war has been to weld to¬ 
 gether the nation still more closely into one cohe¬ 
 sive body. It has removed once for all slavery, the 
 great apple of discord ; it has broken down the wall 
 of separation which divided section from section, 
 

 A BIVOUAC FEAST 
 

 7 *: " w ■ * -Tv : " ■ - ■,; • >■ »■ 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHEKIDAN. 
 
 49 
 
 and exhibits ns more strikingly as one nation, one 
 family, with the same aims and the same aspira¬ 
 tions. The humanity exhibited in onr late struggle 
 contrasted with the cruelties exercised toward the 
 vanquished of former times is an eloquent tribute 
 to the blessings of Christian civilization. 
 
 In surveying the life of Gfeneral Sheridan it seems 
 to me that these were his prominent features and 
 the salient points in his character: Undaunted 
 heroism, combined with gentleness of disposition; 
 strong as a lion in war, gentle as a child in peace ; 
 bold, daring, fearless, undaunted, unhesitating, his 
 courage rising with the danger ; ever fertile in re¬ 
 sources, ever prompt in execution, his rapid move¬ 
 ments never impelled by blind impulse, but ever 
 prompted by a calculating mind. 
 
 I have neither the time nor the ability to dwell 
 upon his military career from the time he left West 
 Point till the close of the war. Let me select one 
 incident which reveals to us his quickness of con¬ 
 ception and readiness of execution. I refer to his 
 famous ride in the valley of Virginia. As he is 
 advancing along the road he sees his routed army 
 rushing pell-mell toward him. Quick as thought— 
 by the glance of his eye, by the power of his word, 
 by the strength of his will—he hurls back that liv¬ 
 ing stream on the enemy and snatches victory from 
 the jaws of defeat. How bold in war, how gentle 
 in peace ! 
 
 On some few occasions in Washington I had the 
 pleasure of meeting General Sheridan socially in 
 private circles. I was forcibly struck by his gentle 
 disposition, his amiable manner, his unassuming 
 
50 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 deportment, his eye beaming with good-natnre, and 
 his voice scarcely raised above a whisper. I said to 
 myself, “ Is this bashful man and retiring citizen 
 the great general of the American army \ Is this 
 the hero of so many battles 
 
 It is true General Sheridan has been charged with 
 being sometimes unnecessarily severe toward the 
 enemy. My conversations with him strongly im¬ 
 pressed me with the groundlessness of a charge 
 which could in no wise be reconciled with the ab¬ 
 horrence which he expressed for the atrocities of 
 war, with his natural aversion to bloodshed, and 
 with the hope he uttered that he would never again 
 be obliged to draw his sword against an enemy. I 
 am persuaded that the sentiments of humanity ever 
 found a congenial home, a secure lodgment in the 
 breast of General Sheridan. Those who are best 
 acquainted with his military career unite in saying 
 that he never needlessly sacrificed human life, and 
 that he loved and cared for his soldiers as a father 
 loves and cares for his children. 
 
 But we must not forget that if the departed hero 
 was a soldier he was too a citizen, and if we wish to 
 know how a man stands as a citizen we must ask 
 ourselves how he stands as a son, a husband, and 
 a father. The parent is the source of the family, the 
 family is the source of the nation. Social life is the 
 reflex of the family life. The stream does not rise 
 above its source. Those who were admitted into the 
 inner circle of General Sheridan’s home need not be 
 told that it was a peaceful and happy one. He was 
 a fond husband and an affectionate father, lovingly 
 devoted to his wife and children. I hope I am not 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 51 
 
 trespassing upon tlie sacred privacy of domestic life 
 when I state that the General’s sickness was accel¬ 
 erated, if not aggravated, by a fatiguing journey 
 which he made in order to be home in time to assist 
 at a domestic celebration in which one of his chil¬ 
 dren was the central figure. 
 
 Above all, General Sheridan was a Christian. He 
 died fortified by the consolations of religion, hav¬ 
 ing his trust in the saving mercies of our Redeemer 
 and a humble hope of a blessed immortality. 
 
 What is life without the hope of immortality? 
 What is life that is bounded by the horizon of the 
 tomb ? Sure, it is not worth living. What is the 
 life even of the antediluvian patriarchs but like the 
 mist which is dispelled by the morning sun ? What 
 would it profit this illustrious hero to go down to 
 his honored grave covered with earthly glory if he 
 had no hope in the eternal glory to come ? It is the 
 hope of eternal life that constitutes at once our 
 dignity and our moral responsibility. 
 
 God has planted in the human breast an irresisti¬ 
 ble desire for immortality. It is born with us and 
 lives and moves with us. It inspires our best and 
 holiest actions. Now, God would not have given 
 us this desire if He did not intend that it should be 
 fully satisfied. He would not have given us this 
 thirst for infinite happiness if He had not intended 
 to assuage it. He never created anything in vain. 
 
 Thanks to God, this universal yearning of the 
 human heart is sanctioned and vindicated by the 
 voice of revelation. 
 
 The inspired Word of God not only proclaims the 
 
52 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 immortality of the soul but also the future resur¬ 
 rection of the body. “ I know,” says the prophet 
 Job, “that my Redeemer liveth, and that on the 
 last day I shall rise out of the earth and in my flesh 
 I shall see my God.” “ Wonder not at this,” says 
 our Saviour, “for the hour cometh when all that 
 are in their graves shall hear the voice of the Son 
 of Man, and they who have done well shall come 
 forth to the resurrection of life, and they that have 
 done ill to the resurrection of judgment.” And the 
 Apostle writes in these comforting words to the 
 Thessalonians: “I would not have you ignorant, 
 brethren, concerning those that are asleep, that ye 
 be not sorrowful like those who have no hope ; for 
 if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even 
 so those who have died in Jesus, God will raise unto 
 himself. Therefore comfort yourself with these 
 words.” 
 
 These are the words of comfort I would address 
 to you, madam, faithful consort of the illustrious 
 dead. This is the olive-branch of peace and hope I 
 would bring you to-day. This is the silver lining of 
 the cloud which hangs over you. We followed you 
 in spirit and with sympathizing hearts as you knelt 
 in prayer at the bed of your dying husband. May 
 the God of all consolation comfort you in this hour 
 of sorrow. May the soul of your husband be 
 this day in peace and his abode in Zion ; may his 
 memory be ever enshrined in the hearts of his 
 countrymen, and may our beloved country, which 
 he has loved and served so well, ever be among the 
 foremost nations of the earth, the favored land of 
 constitutional freedom, strong in the loyalty of its 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SIIEEXDAN. 
 
 53 
 
 patriotic citizens and in the genius and valor of its 
 soldiers till time shall be no more. 
 
 Comrades and companions of the illustrious dead, 
 take hence your great leader, bear him to his last 
 resting-place, carry him gently, lovingly; and 
 though you may not hope to attain his exalted rank 
 you will strive at least to emulate him by the in¬ 
 tegrity of your private life, by your devotion to 
 your country, and by upholding the honor of your 
 military profession. 
 
 The sermon ended, the Cardinal, assuming the 
 elaborate robes of his office, coped and mitred, the 
 cross borne before him and priests holding his 
 train, took his place at the foot of the coffin and 
 read the prayers of the Church in Latin and then in 
 English. 
 
 And while the sweet, entreating voice of the Car¬ 
 dinal voiced these tender offices of the dead, and 
 from the trained company of priests and musicians 
 came the answering entreat}^ that God would be 
 with the dead and have mercy for evermore, through 
 the windows came a quick, instant sound of com¬ 
 mand, the bugle note, the tramp of armed men 
 moving into column, the crash of the muskets as 
 they came heavily to the ground. It was a strange 
 unison—peace and war, repose and action. The 
 Church and the State seemed to blend and to com¬ 
 bine to do honor to the memory of the dead. 
 
 The offices of the Church and the weird, mournful 
 chants rose and fell as the martial notes of prepar¬ 
 ation fell strangely, but not harshly, on the ear. 
 For it was fitting that the bugle notes should be 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHEEIDAN. 
 
 heard in such a ceremony. The last word before 
 the altar had been spoken, and at a signal a body 
 of grizzled, brown soldiers and officers marched 
 np the aisle with firm military stride to the coffin. 
 The. pall bearers formed in line, Sherman and 
 Carlisle leading. 
 
 The grave of Sheridan is on a slope almost imme¬ 
 diately in front of the Arlington mansion, not a 
 hundred paces from the door. Here on the brow of 
 the hill, where you have one of the most beautiful 
 views imaginable, even in picturesque Virginia, 
 Sheridan finds rest. It seems fitting that the spirit 
 of Sheridan should stand forever, as it were, keep¬ 
 ing watch and ward over the Capitol he defended 
 and saved. 
 
 The artillery were massed at the foot of the hill, 
 the guns ready to fire. The infantry drew up in 
 line, extending down the slope. The grave had 
 been covered with rude scantling, which was torn 
 away as the procession advanced. 
 
 Tenderly the coffin was laid in its place. The 
 flag was lovingly removed. The glorious sword of 
 the dead hero, which seemed rusted and worn with 
 service, was reverently taken from the coffin by an 
 aid. Then the company were pressed back while 
 the batteries saluted and the infantry fired three 
 volleys. A bugler, one who had served under Sher¬ 
 idan, came to the grave and played the old bugle 
 notes of “taps.” It was the good-night he had 
 heard as a boy at the military school, as an officer 
 during his whole army life—meaning that the day 
 was ended and that the work was done. As at the 
 grave of Grant, so at the grave of Sheridan, was the 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHEKIDAN. 
 
 55 
 
 same felicitous thought—that the ceremony should 
 end with the old bugle notes. 
 
 In accordance with the wishes of Mrs. Sheridan 
 the funeral was a strictly military affair, and the 
 escort was formed precisely as prescribed by the 
 army regulations for an officer of the rank of the 
 deceased. 
 
 HIS LIFE AT WASHINGTON. 
 
 Gen. Shekidan was not married until nine years 
 after the war, but then began a domestic life whose 
 uninterrupted happiness beautifully rounded his 
 career. He was in the prime of life when he met 
 Miss Irene Rucker, the daughter of Gen. Rucker, 
 who became his wife. Gen. Sheridan first met her 
 at a marriage in army circles, at which she was a 
 bridesmaids, and at once succumbed to her charms. 
 Only those who have been intimate in that domes¬ 
 tic circle can tell of its harmony. The young wife, 
 almost twenty years her famous husband’s junior, 
 had all the pride in his career that the daughter of 
 an army officer, reared to appreciate the triumphs 
 of war, alone could know. 
 
 She came from a family of soldiers, and her 
 father, grandfather and two brothers were all offi¬ 
 cers of high rank in the service. Her father, Major- 
 Gen. Daniel Henry Rucker, a native of Belleville, 
 N. J., entered the army from Michigan as lieutenant 
 of dragoons in 1837, and served distinction on the 
 frontiers, in the Cherokee Nation, at Fort Leaven¬ 
 worth, and in Texas and Mexico. From 1853 to 
 
56 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 1855 he was stationed at Fort Union as depot quar¬ 
 termaster, and it was at this military post that Mrs. 
 Sheridan was born. 
 
 The first three years of Mrs. Sheridan’s infant 
 life were passed at that frontier fort amid the 
 alarms of Indian wars and the discomforts of garri¬ 
 son life. The following year was passed at Detroit, 
 where her father was stationed. From that point 
 he was transferred to Washington. There Mrs. 
 Sheridan passed several years of her early child¬ 
 hood. 
 
 Upon the outbreak of the war, her father having 
 been assigned to duty in the field, and being sur¬ 
 rounded by the turmoils of military concentra¬ 
 tion and movements at the capital, she was placed 
 with her younger sister Sara, who was born at Al¬ 
 buquerque, another frontier post in New Mexico, at 
 the Georgetown (now West Washington) Academy 
 of the Visitation, and remained there until the close 
 of the war. Her father having been ordered to 
 Philadelphia for duty, Miss Pucker and her sister 
 were placed at the School of the Convent of the 
 Sisters of the Holy Child at that city. 
 
 Gen., Sheridan was always a much-sought com¬ 
 panion for a festal gathering. His robust health, 
 his happy home relations, his proud military 
 achievements, have all combined to round out to 
 perfection the genial character of the ideal com¬ 
 mander. 
 
 When he went to Washington after the retire¬ 
 ment of Gen. Sherman, his friends in Chicago were 
 desirous of giving him a testimonial of their friend¬ 
 ship, and subscribed a sufficient sum of money to 
 
I 
 

 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 57 
 
 purchase a comfortable and attractive home. The 
 house selected is situated on the northeast corner 
 of Rhode Island Avenue and Seventeenth Street. 
 
 The office of Lieutenant-General of the Army 
 died with him, as did the office of General of the 
 Army disappear with the retirement of Gen. Sher¬ 
 man. 
 
 In one corner of the large parlor stands a mahog¬ 
 any cabinet tilled with curios and relics repre¬ 
 senting some of the leading facts of the General’s 
 life. The meerschaum pipe that he had smoked 
 throughout the war lies here. It is well colored 
 and its steady use is shown by the burning off of 
 the edge of the bowl. Here are beautiful canes, 
 curiously carved, the gift of many a friend ; there 
 are swords of various shapes and sizes, wrought 
 with gold and with silver , there are canteens, rare 
 coins, beautiful medals and all sorts of souvenirs of 
 the General’s adventurous life. Everything has 
 some historical or personal reminiscence connected 
 with it, and the whole atmosphere speaks of a well- 
 deserved comfort. There are stuffed birds and 
 animals, a magnificent Mexican saddle, with bridle 
 and lariat to match, with a sombrero hung beside 
 it. This was the gift of a friend in Mexico, and its 
 trappings are such that it took years to make it. 
 
 The deep love of Gen. Sheridan for the animal 
 creation is evidenced by the presence in many of 
 the rooms of stuffed animals, which look down 
 from the walls in greeting to the visitor. In the 
 dining-room there are among the china some rare 
 pieces. A pitcher of white and gold has an excel¬ 
 lent picture of Gen. Grant burned in one side and 
 
58 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SIIERIDAN. 
 
 that of Gen. Sheridan on the other. A solid silver 
 dish-tray was given Gen. Sheridan by friends in 
 Chicago. A splendid oil portrait of the General in 
 the parlor represents him in f ull uniform upon the 
 field of battle. 
 
 ANECDOTES AND REMINISCENCES OF THE 
 
 GREAT SOLDIER, 
 
 AS RELATED BY THOSE WHO KNEW HIM AND FOUGHT 
 
 WITH HIM. 
 
 COL. burr’s REMINISCENCES. 
 
 “ Keep the enemy always in sight,” was Grant’s 
 order to Sheridan, as he started him for the Shen¬ 
 andoah Valley in that doubtful battle summer of 
 1864. Well did the great cavalryman follow his 
 chief’s instructions. Sheridan's wonderful powers 
 were first made manifest to the nation in the cam¬ 
 paign which followed his transfer from the “On to 
 Richmond” line to the valley of Virginia. Three 
 years of desperate warfare had been waged, and he 
 had attained the rank of Major-General without the 
 country appreciating his capacity as a commander. 
 It is true he had done some brilliant things. Start¬ 
 ing even as late as 1862, as a commissary on Gen. 
 Halleck’s staff, he was made a Brigadier-General 
 in one month after he was given an opportunity to 
 show his quality. It has been written that ‘ ‘ all the 
 great opportunities of life come to us through an ac- 
 
LIFE OF GEIST. SHEklDAtf. 
 
 59 
 
 eident.” Sheridan’s career would seem to prove 
 the truth cu this saying. He was appointed Colonel 
 of the Second Michigan Cavalry without his knowl¬ 
 edge. Coming from Ohio, he had naturally expected 
 a regiment of volunteers from his own State, but 
 the authorities turned a deaf ear to his appeals, and 
 it remained for Michigan to start the great General 
 on his remarkable career. Only the day after his 
 appointment he took command of the organization 
 of which I had the honor to be a member. None of 
 the veterans of the old Second Michigan will ever 
 forget his first appearance on dress parade. He 
 was anything but the typical hero ; small in stature, 
 with short legs and broad shoulders, he appeared a 
 singular figure to the thousand men who faced him 
 on that May day in 1862 when he for the first time 
 gave an order to the regiment. 
 
 Gordon Granger had been our Colonel, and in 
 some respects he was an ideal soldier, but the new 
 commander was so small in stature that the boys at 
 once began discussing his powers with a sort of du¬ 
 bious shake of the head. Two days later he moved 
 with his regiment in Col. Elliott’s brigade for a 
 raid upon Booneville. This was the first successful 
 raid of the war on the Union side, and accomplished 
 a great deal in the way of tearing up the Mobile 
 & Ohio Railroad and destroying war supplies at 
 this vantage-point on that line of railway. During 
 this episode every officer and man of the Second 
 Michigan Cavalry was taught a wholesome respect 
 for the fighting quality of the new Colonel, whom 
 they named “ Little Phil.” 
 
 The occupation of Corinth compelled the Union 
 
60 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHEKIDAN. 
 
 forces to extreme vigilance, as the enemy was in 
 force and still held the railroad arteries, of which 
 the Mobile &r Ohio road was the most important. 
 Gen. Gordon Granger, who had made the Second 
 Michigan Cavalry as its first Colonel the efficient 
 organization that Sheridan found it to be, was in 
 command of Halleck’s cavalry division. It con¬ 
 sisted of two brigades, of which the second was 
 formed of the Second Iowa, Col. Elliott, and the 
 Second Michigan, Col. Sheridan. On the 28th of 
 May, 1862, this brigade, by a circuitous route, was 
 sent to strike the railroad at some point thirty or 
 forty miles below Corinth. After a sharp skirmish 
 at Booneville, the Confederate cavalry was driven 
 out and the place captured. A large quantity of 
 small arms, artillery, ammunition, a large number 
 of cars, locomotives, etc., besides nearly 3000 sick, 
 wounded and convalescent soldiers were taken. 
 The depot was burned, the road cut and destroyed 
 in several places, and the brigade returned unmo¬ 
 lested to Farmington. A sharp fight occurred on 
 the 4th of June, near Booneville, in which Sheridan 
 participated with his command. Again on the 6th 
 he encountered a regiment of Confederate cavalry 
 and drove it back with loss into a large body of 
 infantry. Again at other dates up to the last of 
 June Sheridan was actively engaged. • 
 
 All this was but the prelude to his first action, 
 but it serves to show the quality of the man. He 
 was soon assigned to the command of the Second 
 Brigade, and on the 28th of June established his 
 headquarters at Booneville. 
 
 On the 1st of July a Confederate cavalry force, 
 
LIFE OF GE1ST. SHEKIDAN. 
 
 61 
 
 under command of General Chalmers, advanced 
 from the South upon the post. The attack began 
 early in the morning upon a picket of the Second 
 Michigan, under Lieut. Scranton. They fell back 
 slowly to the point of intersection of a second road, 
 where a second company, under Capt. Campbell, 
 was stationed. The fight began in earnest, a nat¬ 
 ural barricade was found, and, under cover, the 
 advancing enemy was brought to a halt. The con¬ 
 test became stubborn and the fighting superb, but 
 finding the Confederates gaining ground, three 
 more companies were sent to the point, under com¬ 
 mand of Capt. Campbell, also of the Second 
 Michigan. 
 
 Confident now, Chalmers deployed two regi¬ 
 ments on the right of the road, thus overlapping 
 the Union front so far that by merely curving the 
 wings inward the whole force would have been sur¬ 
 rounded. Sheridan quickly sent word to Capt. 
 Campbell to hold the ground at all hazards until 
 reinforced, but, if pushed beyond endurance to fall 
 back slowly. Col. Hatch, of the Second Iowa, was 
 then sent to support him, with orders to charge 
 wherever he could best strike the enemy. In the 
 open field, meanwhile, the gray-coated horsemen, 
 in well-closed ranks, waited until the skirmishers 
 had driven the Michigan troops well together; 
 then, with shouts, they swept down, each man 
 eager to be first in the capture. Ordered to reserve 
 their fire until the enemy was within twenty-five or 
 thirty yards’ range, the Union men obeyed. On 
 came the solid Confederate battalions. A storm of 
 bullets withered the first line and was the reply to 
 
62 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHEKIDAN. 
 
 an order for surrender. Others followed, for the 
 smallness of the force was, to some extent, made up 
 by their possession of Colt’s revolving rifles, which 
 carried five shots without reloading. These men 
 were good marksmen also. So well were the rifles 
 used that the charge was stayed. Again the Con¬ 
 federates closed up their lines and swept back on 
 the flank of the struggling Wolverines. Still fight¬ 
 ing inch by inch, the later fell slowly back, keeping 
 at bay the overwhelming enemy. Again Chalmers 
 charged in line with loud yells as of assured vic¬ 
 tory. The Union men, having no time to reload, 
 used their guns as clubs to ward off their over¬ 
 confident enemies. It was a desperate moment. 
 But again Sheridan sent in another timely supply 
 of men from his slender line. The combat had 
 lasted from daylight, and it was now afternoon, 
 Chalmers made a wide sweep and came in on the 
 left of the Union camp, almost within gun-shot of 
 the tents. There was no sign of the reinforcements 
 by rail for which Sheridan had asked. Still he had 
 no thought of giving up. But the young soldier’s 
 resources were wofully slender for either valor 
 or strategy. Meagre as they were they sufficed 
 him. While 2000 Confederates were besetting the 
 400 men on the Blackland road, and 2000 more were 
 swinging into line at the very gates of the camp on 
 the east, Sheridan hurried to the tent of Capt. 
 Alger, who was lying sick with camp-fever. He was 
 asked to take charge of a desperate venture, and 
 readily agreed to do his share in the crisis. 
 
 Sheridan had parked his wagon train on the low 
 ground to the west and north of the town, and pre- 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 63 
 
 pared for a last desperate stand. Besides this, he 
 had hurried two companies in line, one from the 
 Second Michigan and one from the Second Iowa. 
 There were ninety-two men in all in this little band, 
 which he intrusted to Capt. Alger. To better in¬ 
 spire them with the spirit of rivalry, he had taken 
 one company from each regiment in his command 
 instead of taking both companies from the same 
 regiment. When Alger was mounted, Sheridan di¬ 
 rected him to move off to the right and strike the 
 enemy in the rear. He spoke privately of the des¬ 
 perate risks to be taken, and indicated the exact 
 moment at which he should strike the foe. Alger 
 was to leave Booneville by a wood road running 
 westward, moving until he reached a point in a cov¬ 
 ered lane where an old negro would be found to 
 guide him to the point of attack. Sheridan’s in¬ 
 structions were so minute, and he showed such per¬ 
 fect familiarity with the country, that he inspired 
 confidence in the officer to whom he had intrusted 
 this dangerous errand. 
 
 This early incident aptly illustrated his power as 
 a soldier and commander. Short as had been Sheri¬ 
 dan’ s stay in Booneville, he knew more of the coun¬ 
 try than the rebels themselves. He always made it 
 his first duty to memorize every foot of the territory 
 that he might be called upon to defend or contest. 
 Hapoloen and all great or capable commanders have 
 had this faculty. Sheridan had not been twenty- 
 four hours at Booneville before he had mapped in 
 his mind every road, lane, farm, hill, or natural 
 impediment that might play an important part in 
 action. It was to a visit to the neighborhood of 
 
64 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHEEIDAN. 
 
 Waterloo, long before he confronted Napoleon, that 
 Wellington owed his escape from the French after 
 his defeat at Qnatre Bras. Given equal numbers 
 in combat, the man who knows the topography best 
 is almost certain to win the battle. Sheridan knew 
 his map by heart. He knew the character of the 
 people and the nature of all surroundings. The at¬ 
 tack he was now called upon to resist found him 
 equipped with everything except men that the craft 
 and energy of a leader could command. He had 
 also a trusty scout who lived in the neighborhood— 
 a light complexioned, long-haired Mississippian, 
 with a keen eye and cadaverous form. Reticent 
 and modest, this partisan had the confidence of 
 both oificers and men. To him was intrusted the 
 conduct of the u forlorn hope ” to the negro’s ren¬ 
 dezvous. Nothing was left to chance. Capt. Alger 
 knew that the salvation of the whole command de¬ 
 pended upon his courage, activity and vigor. Per¬ 
 haps it was just as well that the men did not appre- 
 ciaee the madness of their undertaking. It takes 
 more than ordinary courage for ninety-two men to 
 assault 4000, especially when, as in this case, every 
 chance was against them. They were to traverse 
 an unknown country by divers roads, through deep 
 woods, and were to meet, at the end of the march 
 an overwhelming enemy, in the midst of a treach¬ 
 erous population. As the men moved oil Sheridan 
 said to Capt. Alger: 
 
 “ Don’t dismount your men in any event! Don’t 
 deploy them, or you will show the enemy the weak¬ 
 ness of your force. Charge in column, and, if pos¬ 
 sible, come through and join me. When you make 
 
CONFEDERATE GUN AT MOUNT JACKSON. 
 
• " • . ;r :; -} ■'$ 
 
 / 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 65 
 
 the assault, shout and make all the noise possible ! 
 When I hear you I will strike them in front. I 
 have carefully gauged the time, and whether I 
 hear from you or not, in one hour I shall charge 
 them.” 
 
 In all these directions the quality of the man as 
 a commander is clearly seen. They outline his 
 ready brain as a silhouette does the lines of face and 
 head. Every instruction was obeyed, and the for¬ 
 lorn hope reached the rear of the enemy. “ For¬ 
 ward, men ! ’ 5 Capt. Alger commands. 
 
 It was an audacious move. In a scant column of 
 fours the daring troopers trotted on up the Black- 
 land road to a point where no attack was expected. 
 Chalmers’s headquarters were reached and captured. 
 Capt. Schuyler, of the Second Iowa, was left to look 
 after those captured there and to watch the left of 
 the road. Alger dashed on. Sheridan was watch¬ 
 ing, strained and anxious. The onset was not heard. 
 It was too far for the voices of such a handful to 
 span with sound. 
 
 When the hand pointed to the last moment of the 
 hour, Sheridan prepared for the charge. Just as 
 he moved out a train came down the road and drew 
 into Booneville, sounding its shrill whistle as a warn¬ 
 ing and a welcome to those who were in the battle. 
 Every one in the Union lines knew that Sheridan 
 had sent for reinforcements, and the arrival of the 
 train filled the struggling soldiers with a new hope. 
 They began to cheer, and the train-men joined with 
 a will. Sheridan made prompt use of the timely 
 incident. He sent word to the engineer to keep up 
 whistling, and to the train hands to cheer and make 
 
66 
 
 LIFE OF GEH. SHEEIDAFT. 
 
 such clatter as would imply fresh men. The civil¬ 
 ians took the hint. There was a pandemonium of 
 yells and huzzas. At this moment Sheridan swung 
 his tired battalions into line. The men caught the 
 inspiration of their commander and felt with him 
 the responsibilities of the moment. Half a mile in 
 front of them were the gray masses, moving in and 
 out in busy preparation for the final onset. 
 
 The scene on both sides was a spirited one, but 
 there was no time for reflection. Sheridan is in 
 front. He shouts to his troops, “ Forward ! ” The 
 squadrons sweep across the fields in close order. 
 As they draw near, dropping shots from the Con¬ 
 federate artillery and carbines empty a saddle here 
 and there. Still on they go. ~No one has thought 
 for anything but the enemy. The excitement of 
 the charge thrills every nerve. The lust of battle 
 shines in every eye. They draw closer and closer 
 to the foe. Each bluecoat singles out his man, and 
 with a crash as of meeting waters, and a yell as of 
 contending demons, the two forces come together. 
 The Confederate line wavers and then breaks before 
 the force of that charge. At this moment Alger’s 
 handful, like a missile loosed from a catapult, was 
 flung upon the enemy. This unexpected attack 
 threw them into great confusion. The uproar of 
 Sheridan’s charge drowned the shouts of Alger’s 
 men. Their danger became great. The “ forlorn 
 hope” had achieved its task, but now itself was in 
 a desperate scramble with flying Confederates. Be- 
 youd the reach of aid from Sheridan, it was in a 
 running fight with the enemy, who, as they broke 
 to the rear, tried to punish the Alger force for its 
 
LIEE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 67 
 
 temerity. In the melee each side sought to do all 
 the damage it could to the other, while getting out 
 of danger itself. Our little command were rushing 
 to the rear with as much speed as their enemy. 
 They had emptied their revolvers into a confused 
 inass of Confederates, which they had driven off by 
 the roadside. Ammunition was gone, and they 
 plied the sabre unsparingly. 
 
 The Confederates were in point of numbers vastly 
 superior. But they pushed off the field fighting as 
 they ran. Alger himself rode side by side with a 
 Confederate, each emptying his revolver without 
 doing any injury. As Alger had finished his last 
 shot he was carried, partly by the antics of his 
 horse and partly by the rush of those about him, 
 beyond his own men and into the timber, where the 
 enemy were also seeking shelter. His unmanage¬ 
 able horse ran until a limb tore the luckless rider 
 from his saddle, breaking his ribs as he swung 
 violently against the tree. He had barely strength 
 to parry a vicious blow from a flying cavalryman as 
 he fell into the thick underbrush, unconscious. 
 How long he lay he never knew. When he recovered 
 consciousness all was quiet about him. The Con¬ 
 federates had disappeared and so had his command. 
 He dragged himself from his shelter, crawled to the 
 road, and had entered an open field when the clatter 
 of horses’ hoofs reached his ears. He thought it 
 might be the enemy and concealed himself. But 
 they were from the Second Iowa. Sherman had 
 sent them out to seek him, though it was thought 
 that he had been killed. They put him on a horse 
 and returned to camp. It was after dark when 
 
t38 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 Sheridan greeted him with 4 4 Old fellow, you have 
 done well.” Capt. Alger lost more than half of 
 his command, and the Confederates were many 
 more men short from the effects of Sheridan’s first 
 charge. For this day’s work Sheridan was made a 
 brigadier, and Alger gained a majority. The com¬ 
 mander had never received his commission nor been 
 mustered in as Colonel. Gov. Blair had 4 4 ap¬ 
 pointed” him, and accidentally delayed the for¬ 
 warding of his commission on his own return to 
 Lansing, Mich. 
 
 The campaign won for Sheridan full recognition 
 and the respect also of the enemy. Gen. Kose- 
 crans, in a general order, said : 
 
 4 4 The coolness, determination, and fearless gal¬ 
 lantry displayed by Col. Sheridan and the officers 
 and men of his command deserve the thanks and 
 admiration of the army.” 
 
 Sheridan had 728 men; Chalmers, 4700; the 
 fighting lasted eight hours; our losses numbered 
 41 killed, wounded, and missing, and the enemy, 
 carrying off its wounded, left 65 dead on the field. 
 Gen. Halleck from Corinth asked for Sheridan’s 
 promotion. 
 
 The fight in itself was comparatively a small 
 affair ; in its conduct and results it was of mag¬ 
 nifying importance. It created a commander, it 
 gave him his first chance, it taught the men in com¬ 
 mand and the country at large that a new force had 
 arrived. It showed every quality of command. 
 Skilful handling of troops, nerve and audacity to 
 the outmost, that superb mental map-making which 
 a successful soldier must possess, which Grant with 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 69 
 
 Sherman and Thomas had, McClellan missed in part, 
 and Halleck never possessed ; and it also gave evi¬ 
 dence on a small scale of that same strategetical 
 power which Five Forks exhibited on such a larger 
 one. 
 
 The battle of Booneville made him a Brigadier- 
 General, but no great opportunity arose for him to 
 show his mettle. After his promotion he was 
 assigned to an infantry command, and his appear¬ 
 ance again in battle was on October 8, 1862, at 
 Perryville, Ky. Jackson, whom he had fought 
 with as a cadet at West Point and been suspended 
 for a time, had been killed. Bosseau was in trouble 
 when Sheridan moved his division up, struck the 
 enemy hard and saved the day. He then moved 
 with the army to Hash ville and became a signifi¬ 
 cant division commander in the reorganized Army 
 of the Cumberland under Bosecrans. Stone Biver 
 was his next battle, at the close of the year, Dec. 
 31. Here his work was so well done that he received 
 the warm commendations of his superiors. The 
 Tullahoma campaign, from July to September, 1863, 
 then followed, to end at Chickamauga. Here 
 Sheridan had his second wrestle with Cheatham and 
 won the applause of the defeated army for his 
 brilliant share in the engagement where he reformed 
 his division after the rout and returned to the field. 
 Missionary Bidge in 1864, and the two days of 
 picturesque battles which £>receded it, found Sheri¬ 
 dan, with Grant, Sherman, Thomas and Hooker, a 
 central figure of that wonderful series of battles 
 which ended in the defeat of Bragg’s army. 
 
 Grant’s fame was now at its full tide. He was 
 
70 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 called East and made Lieutenant-General. He 
 wanted a cavalryman. His mind instinctively 
 sought out Sheridan, the greatest trooper in the 
 world’s history. When he crossed the Rapidan, in 
 April, 1864, as commander of all of the cavalry of 
 the Army of the Potomac, he had his first real op¬ 
 portunity to show how well he knew the arts and 
 chances of war. He covered the flank’s advance 
 and communications through all the terrible days 
 of May, June and July. His bold swing to the rear 
 of the Confederate army after the Wilderness and 
 march for Richmond was a great movement both 
 in conception and accomplishment. He reached 
 within seven miles of Richmond without a serious 
 battle, save Yellow Tavern, where J. E. B. Stuart, 
 the great Southern rough-rider, was killed by the 
 Fifth Michigan cavalry. Early’ s advance on Wash¬ 
 ington, August, 1864, sent Sheridan to the Shen¬ 
 andoah Yalley. At first he only commanded the 
 cavalry, but finally he was given all the forces, and 
 in 1864, for the first time in his career, he became 
 commander of an army and a central and pictur¬ 
 esque figure of war. His wonderful fight with Early 
 at Winchester, whereby personal daring he snatched 
 victory from the jaws of defeat, is easily recalled. 
 Then followed Cedar Creek and Fisher’s Hill, and a 
 broken and shattered Confederate army attested the 
 force of his blows and the fulness of his prowess as 
 a commander of men on the field. A grateful 
 nation passed its resolution of thanks, and he stood 
 out in the front rank among the great soldiers of 
 the world. The early days of spring found him 
 back with Grant. The great valley he had left a 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 71 
 
 barren plain, without a hostile force of importance 
 in it. After Meade crashed through Lee’s lines at 
 Petersburg, Sheridan become the remorseless demon 
 of pursuit to the retreating Confederates. 
 
 The battle of Five Forks was perhaps the most 
 ingeniously conceived and most skilfully executed 
 engagement that was ever fought on this continent. 
 It matched in secretiveness and shrewdness the 
 cleverest efforts of Napoleon, and showed also much 
 of that soldier’s broadness of intellect and capacity 
 for great occasions. 
 
 It was the one opportunity that was necessary to 
 give Sheridan full scope for his genius as a com¬ 
 mander of men in the field. Well did he make use 
 of it, and his matchless tactics and splendid bear¬ 
 ing at Five Forks made clear his title to the Lieu¬ 
 tenant-Generalship which came only a few years 
 since. The world has given its estimate of this bat¬ 
 tle and the pursuit of Lee, but Grant speaks of it 
 in detail thus : 
 
 “ It took the humble Ohio lad more than four 
 years, in the white heat of war, to make these facts 
 clear to his countrymen and the authorities in con¬ 
 trol of the Government and its armies. He was not 
 a typical hero in appearance. His size was against 
 him. Restless, full of the combative quality, not 
 politic in language, somewhat reticent, half stub¬ 
 born and fond of hazardous enterprises, he was the 
 embodiment of heroism, dash and impulse. Then 
 he had the power of inspiring all about him, and 
 imparting to others the very confidence he felt him¬ 
 self. Yet he seemingly commanded only those 
 qualities which show the wide difference between 
 
72 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 the habitual impulses of the brilliant corps com¬ 
 mander and the cool thinking of a chief in the art, 
 as well as in the onset, of war.” 
 
 At the very outset of his career, just after he was 
 appointed colonel of cavalry, and while on the 
 way with his regiment to join Gen. Gordon Granger, 
 he met the future commander of the armies. But 
 the impression he created on that occasion was not 
 a favorable one. In fact, Grant tells us that it was 
 bad, and relates the incident in these words: 
 
 “ Sheridan’s pursuit of Lee was perfect in its 
 generalship and energy.” Gen. Grant paid this 
 fitting tribute to the soldier whose brilliant career 
 is here recorded. “ As a soldier, as a commander 
 of troops, as a man capable of doing all that is pos¬ 
 sible with any number of men, there is no man living 
 greater than Sheridan. He belongs to the very 
 first rank of soldiers, not only of our country, but 
 of the world. I rank Sheridan with Napoleon and 
 Frederick and the great commanders in history. 
 No man ever had such a faculty of finding out 
 things as Sheridan, or of knowing all about the en¬ 
 emy. Then he had that magnetic quality of sway¬ 
 ing men which I wish I had—a rare quality in a 
 general. I don’t think any one can give Sheridan 
 too high praise. 
 
 “We met at a railway station. I had never seen 
 Sheridan but once before. He was then commissary 
 at Halleck’s headquarters during the march towards 
 Corinth. Although he belonged to the Fourth In¬ 
 fantry, my old regiment, I had no acquaintance 
 with him, for he graduated ten years after I had 
 left West Point. I knew I had sent a regiment of 
 
THE CONFEDERATE SPY IN CAAIP. 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 73 
 
 cavalry to join Granger, but I had not indicated the 
 Second Michigan, of which Sheridan had recently 
 been made the Colonel. I really did not wish that 
 regiment to leave. As we met for the second time 
 in our lives, I spoke to him about his going. He 
 said he would rather go than stay, or some similar 
 brusque and rough remark that annoyed me. I 
 don’t think he could have said anything that would 
 have made a worse impression upon me. But I 
 subsequently watched his career and saw how much 
 there was in him. When I came East and took 
 command I looked around for a cavalry commander. 
 While standing in front of the White House talk¬ 
 ing to Mr. Lincoln and Gen. Halleck, I said I 
 wanted the best man I could find for a cavalry com¬ 
 mander. 1 Then,’ said Halleck, ‘ why not take Phil 
 Sheridan \ 4 Well,’ I said, 4 1 was going to say 
 
 Phil Sheridan.’ So Sheridan was sent for and he 
 came, but very much disgusted. He was just about 
 to have a corps, and he did not know why we 
 wanted him East, whether it was to discipline him 
 or not.” 
 
 The country had not yet become interested in 
 Sheridan, as Grant had. He was still practically 
 unknown outside the immediate army in which he 
 served when called from the West. His great fight 
 with Cheatham at Stone River, his second struggle 
 with the same general at Chickamauga, and his 
 good deeds at Missionary Ridge had, it is true, at¬ 
 tracted the attention of military men. But he was 
 only at the threshold of his fame when Grant sent 
 him across the Rapidan as his chief of cavalry in 
 1864. The troopers had now become a positive 
 
74 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 power in army operations, yet their new leader was 
 only considered a “rough rider” by the country— 
 capable of great things with a small force and rapid 
 movement. The series of brilliant cavalry opera¬ 
 tions which led to his transfer to the Shenandoah 
 was all lost to the public ear in the din of the 
 greater army movements that were going on around 
 him. He was sent to the Yalley of Virginia by an 
 accident, as a cavalryman, not as a great com¬ 
 mander, but his deeds soon carried him to supreme 
 command, and he fought several great battles. Yet 
 he did not reach the summit of his fame until the 
 final act which destroyed Lee’s army. In the clos¬ 
 ing hours of the Rebellion Sheridan became the 
 vivid omen of defeat to the broken soldier in gray. 
 Grant called him from the Shenandoah, and when 
 he reached him on the last days of February, 1865, 
 with his 10,000 troopers, the lines were closing 
 around the fated Confederacy. Sheridan became 
 to Grant what Murat was to Yapoleon. After 
 Meade’s forces crashed through Lee’s lines at 
 Petersburg and the Southern commander moved 
 south to join Johnston, Sheridan’s great work began. 
 
 The falling army against which his firm and fate¬ 
 ful operations were now directed was simply a 
 vitalized desperation. It was at the mercy of time. 
 It had hopes, but they were only a pathetic dis¬ 
 belief in the inevitable. The swift stroke of the 
 Federal cavalry was everywhere. It flashed upon 
 the Confederate flanks, laughed past its front, and 
 then it picked up the stragglers. It was the mate¬ 
 rialized sneer of Fate at the hopelessness of further 
 opposition. 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 75 
 
 The lines were closing, and there were gaps 
 through which the hoof-beats of the horses were 
 heard and the sabres of the troopers fell. Every 
 time they advanced farther and more recklessly, 
 until the doomed army knew that the great cordon 
 which was to crush it was closing more and more 
 tightly around it. The daring of the Confederates 
 was simply an attempt to postpone the inevitable ; 
 but it was a striking illustration of their discipline 
 and the confidence reposed in their commander. 
 The cavalry had whirled through the Shenandoah 
 —a cyclone of war—and had left a ruined country 
 and a scattered and dispirited remnant of an army. 
 It had throttled the last hope at Five Forks. Sheri¬ 
 dan, the dashing cavalry officer, the masterly leader 
 of men in battle, here proved himself a perfect 
 tactician on the field and in the face of a ^ghting 
 army. The whole of his movements won m an 
 applauding world the recognition of his powers as a 
 great commanding general. From that point it 
 was little more than a series of running skir¬ 
 mishes, some of them desperate, all of them evi¬ 
 dences of American grit; for, though sore, weary, 
 and starving, the remnants of Lee’s once great 
 army would sometimes turn and sting with terrible 
 power their relentless pursuers. But Union troop¬ 
 ers harassed them at every turn. The infantry 
 drove their already dejected forces into disorder. 
 The great cordon closed around them like an im¬ 
 mense barn-door, and the main army swung on the 
 veterans of Lee. Like a host of beating flails win¬ 
 dowing the grain, every avenue was. closed by the 
 Federal troopers. They had overrun all the roads 
 
76 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 of supplies and left them barren. Wherever the 
 Confederacy looked expectantly for some new path 
 of escape or succor, Sheridan was there like a 
 whirlwind of death and defeat. Across fields, down 
 highways, through by-paths and on every road, in 
 the storm and terror of Five Forks, on the road 
 below Appomattox, this great cavalryman and 
 wonderful soldier was leading the advance or strik¬ 
 ing the flank of the enemy with an energy born of 
 the mighty power of a great brain well schooled in 
 the best element of the art and vigor of war. 
 
 Finally, on a beautiful April morning in 1869, as 
 the sun rose over the hills and vales of a region that 
 had # never yet felt the cruel footfall of war, Sheri¬ 
 dan’s cavalry swung into line for the last charge. 
 The sound of those horses’ hoofs on the road be¬ 
 yond Gordon’s advance was the final menace to the 
 expiring Confederacy. 
 
 The night of the 8th of April closed upon a day 
 of hard work and exciting events. By a forced and 
 rapid march Sheridan had thrust his cavalry in front 
 of the retreating Confederate army. The night be¬ 
 fore the surrender Custer had enveloped A ppomattox 
 station, capturing three heavily laden railway trains 
 of supplies, twenty-five pieces of artillery, two hun¬ 
 dred wagons, and many prisoners. After this stroke 
 the cavalrymen stood to horse all night. The gray 
 of the morning was just yielding to the stronger 
 light of full day when they were ordered to move 
 forward. As they emerged from the woods and 
 advanced upon the plains beyond they could see 
 the army of Lee cut off from further retreat. It 
 was a sight at once grand and thrilling when the 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 77 
 
 horsemen moved forward to the final attack. Gor¬ 
 don made a final attempt to destroy the line of cav¬ 
 alry which appeared with sabres glistening in the 
 spring sun, the trophies of war mingling with bat¬ 
 tle-flags of the Union commander. Behind Sheri¬ 
 dan’s cavalry long lines of infantry under Ord, 
 Griffin, and Gibbon were waiting to gather the 
 sheaves of war which Sheridan’s troopers had 
 secured. The last fight was a short one, and the 
 white flag of truce from Gordon’s headquarters an¬ 
 nounced the final surrender. Sheridan rode into the 
 Confederate lines to receive the praises of his chief 
 and the applause of his country for his brilliant 
 work. It was a fitting end to the closing hours of 
 the great struggle, that his fame as a soldier should 
 be completed only with the final breaking up, which 
 his generalship and energy had done so much to 
 hasten. t 
 
 Gen. Sheridan’s part in the surrender of Lee was 
 very significant. He was not in good humor on 
 that April morning and was disposed to doubt the 
 sincerity of the Confederate commanders. He 
 fumed and fretted when his charge was stayed by 
 the flag of truce. 
 
 gov. Gordon’s reminiscences. 
 
 Gen. Gordon, now Governor of Georgia, tells this 
 story of Sheridan at Appomattox: 
 
 A cavalry officer came to me from Sheridan with 
 a flag of truce. He was a handsome fellow and 
 v?ry polite. Saluting, he said : 
 
 “ ‘ Is this Gen. Gordon ? I am the bearer of Gen. 
 
78 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHEEIDAN. 
 
 Sheridan’s compliments, and he demands your un¬ 
 conditional surrender.’ 
 
 “‘Well, Colonel’ (or whatever I saw his rank 
 was), I answered, ‘ you will please return my com¬ 
 pliments to Gen. Sheridan and say that I shall not 
 surrender.’ 
 
 “‘Then,’ he said, ‘you will be annihilated in 
 half an hour. We have you completely sur¬ 
 rounded.’ 
 
 “ ‘Very well, sir,’ I replied, ‘I am probably as 
 well aware of my situation as you are, but that is 
 my answer.’ 
 
 “ ‘ You don’t mean that! ’ he exclaimed. 
 
 “ ‘Yes, I do, sir,’ I said, ‘the only thing I pro¬ 
 pose to say is what I have already said through my 
 staff officer—that a flag of truce is in existence be¬ 
 tween Gen. Lee and Gen. Grant. I was not going 
 to surrender, because I knew it was coming. I 
 was not going to let Sheridan capture me in that 
 way.” 
 
 “ ‘Then you will be annihilated,’ he said, and 
 rode away. 
 
 “While I had been sitting there, waiting, the 
 firing had almost ceased. The infantry on my 
 flanks had not changed their position much, as 
 they had been moving up very slowly. I was firing 
 artillery at the time, so as to check them. In a few 
 minutes Sheridan himself came up with his staff. 
 He was riding an immense black horse. I will 
 never* forget how he looked with his short legs 
 sticking out on either side. We had very much 
 the same sort of parley as had occurred between 
 the other officer and myself. Indeed the language 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 79 
 
 was almost a literal repetition. Finally I said to 
 him: 4 General, I hardly think that it is worth 
 
 while for ns to jiarley. I have made np my mind 
 not to surrender, and I shall accept any conse¬ 
 quences that may follow this determination. I 
 wish simply to give you the information which was 
 sent me by Gen. Lee. All I know is that there is a 
 flag of truce in existence, and I only know the bare 
 fact.’ 
 
 44 4 Did you say that you have a letter from Gen. 
 Lee ? ’ he asked. 
 
 44 1 handed him the letter, 
 
 4 4 He looked it over and said : 4 1 suppose, then, 
 that the only thing we can do is to cease firing.’ 
 
 4 4 4 1 think so,’ I replied. 
 
 44 He then said to me: 4 If you will withdraw 
 your forces to a certain place, I will withdraw mine, 
 and wint to see what happens.’ 
 
 44 We got down off our horses, and taking a seat 
 on the grass talked there for some time. In the 
 mean time I had forgotten that early in the morn¬ 
 ing I had detached a force to go back and over on 
 the brow of a hill to prevent the cavalry from com¬ 
 ing around between Longstreet and myself. While 
 we were sitting on the grass I heard a roll of mus¬ 
 ketry, and looking over to where the force had been 
 placed saw it firing into some cavalry that had rid¬ 
 den down in that direction. 
 
 4 4 4 Sir, what does this mean % ’ cried Sheridan. 
 
 4 4 4 1 am very sorry about it,’ I replied, as I ex¬ 
 plained the circumstances, and he and I each sent 
 an officer over to the hill to stop the firing. 
 
 “I saved Sheridan’s life that morning beyond 
 
80 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 question. One of my sharpshooters was a sour sort 
 of fellow, and his only idea was that when he saw 
 a blue coat it was his duty to shoot at it. I had 
 the sharpshooters around me when Sheridan came 
 up with the flag of truce, and I saw this fellow draw 
 his gun. ‘ What do you mean ? 5 I cried, ‘ this is a 
 flag of truce.’ He did not pay the slightest atten¬ 
 tion to me,, and was just about firing when I knocked 
 up his gun and it went off, over Sheridan’s head. 
 ‘Let him stay on his own side, General,’ he mut¬ 
 tered. 
 
 “ Gen. Sheridan and I sat on the ground, close to 
 the brick house where Lee and Grant met, in the 
 orchard. I had passed the house in the morning. 
 We chaffed each other a little in the course of the 
 conversation, Sheridan saying: ‘ I believe I had 
 the pleasure of meeting you before.’ I replied that 
 we had had some little acquaintance in the Valley 
 of Virginia. He turned the thread of the conversa¬ 
 tion to some guns he had received in the valley. 
 Sheridan had captured nearly all of Early’s artil¬ 
 lery and some more had been sent to him from 
 Richmond. Some wag had written with chalk on 
 one of those guns: ‘ Respectfully consigned to 
 
 Major-Gen. Sheridan through Early.’ Sheridan 
 had heard of this, and he was very much amused 
 at it; but whether he ever saw such words upon a 
 gun I do not know. When he was through with 
 his story I suggested that I also had two guns 
 which I could consign to him, and with the more 
 grace because they had come from him that very 
 morning. 
 
 “ Sheridan came with a full staff and remained 
 
\ 
 
 / 
 
 > l' 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 81 
 
 with me about an hour and a half. My recollection 
 is that we stayed at that place until we received 
 information that Gen. Lee and Gen. Grant had 
 agreed. 55 
 
 INCIDENTS IN HIS LIFE. 
 
 One of the most interesting periods of Gen. 
 Sheridan’s life is that of his early boyhood. A 
 gentleman who played a very important part in the 
 early life of the General relates the following 
 story. He knew Sheridan as a boy, and his contri¬ 
 bution to the soldier’s life is interesting : 
 
 “ Phil Sheridan was born at Somerset, 0., and 
 he spent his boyhood there. His father was a 
 teamster, and brought goods from Zanesville and 
 Lancaster to the little merchants of Somerset. I 
 can remember him very well as a toddler, and when 
 he got a little older he was employed by a firm 
 of general merchants named Fink & Ditto. Fink 
 was a great big, burly fellow, who did all the 
 rough work, and Ditto was a little, sedate man, 
 and wore gold spectacles, and they were both old 
 line Whigs. Phil’s duty was to open the store 
 and sweep out, and he did it well. He had a 
 brother, Patrick, who was a clerk in the store, 
 but summer and winter little Phil was at the store 
 bright and early. He was liked universally and 
 always spoken of as a most polite little fellow. 
 Well, the member of Congress from that district 
 was old Tom Ritchie, a man well known as having 
 lots of good sense, but little education. I used to 
 
82 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 write Ms letters for him, for he was a farmer and 
 said he did not have time to write. One day he 
 came into my office with about fifty letters in his 
 hand. He threw them down on my desk and said : 
 ‘ I have opened only one of these, but I know what 
 they are all about. These people all want their sons 
 appointed to West Point, and I am about to make 
 one friend and forty-nine enemies.’ I looked at 
 him for a moment and said I would tell him how he 
 could avoid making any enemies. When he asked 
 how, I said : ‘ Send Phil Sheridan to West Point.’ 
 The idea seemed to strike the old man in the right 
 spot, and he gave me the blanks to fill out at once. 
 I did it, and that is how Phil’s name came up as a 
 candidate. I myself mailed the indorsement, and 
 then took a petition and went around the town to 
 get the merchants to sign it in Phil’s favor. The 
 first place I went to was Fink & Ditto’s. Ditto was 
 over his books as usual, and when I told him what 
 I wanted he glared over his gold spectacles and said 
 it would do no good, because Ritchie was a Demo¬ 
 crat. Some days after this I was sitting in my 
 office with my back to the door, when suddenly I 
 heard some one right behind me. I had not heard 
 him enter, but it was Phil. 4 Do you think I will 
 get appointed ? ’ The little fellow looked so hand¬ 
 some and so anxious that I told him that if he 
 would keep a secret I would tell him something. 
 He promised, and I told him I had a private advice 
 that he had been appointed. You should have 
 seen that boy. He fairly jumped and howled with 
 delight. His was not the only pleasure, for every 
 one in Somerset knew and liked the little chap, and 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 83 
 
 the appointment pleased them all. He went np for 
 examination, and went through it as he did every¬ 
 thing else. I have watched his career all through 
 life, and there is just one little incident that shows 
 the man. Everybody remembers when Early had 
 driven Banks out of the valley and repulsed every¬ 
 body who attempted to go up there. Grant got 
 very tired of it, and sent word to Lincoln to send 
 him some one to cope with Early. In a few days 
 he received the following letter: ‘ I send you a 
 
 man. There is not much of him, but he is the man 
 
 / 
 
 you want.’ That man was Phil Sheridan, and the 
 way he hammered Early’s forces is a matter of his¬ 
 tory. As a boy he was bright, polite, generous, 
 and universally liked, and this is the story of the 
 true way he got into his military career.” 
 
 TOTALLY DEVOID OF FEAR. 
 
 The following little sample of the daring courage 
 of Gen. Sheridan is told by a friend who knew him 
 well: “At the close of the civil war, where he was 
 the riglit-hand man of Grant, he did not stand par¬ 
 leying about old constitutional fooleries which had 
 been overthrown by the side which made the war ; 
 he did the truly valorous moral work of that war. 
 He went to Louisiana, where there were murderers 
 by hosts. He stopped at the principal hotel. A 
 fellow jumped upon a table and told his fellow lu¬ 
 natics and blatherskites that he was going to kill 
 Sheridan in a few minutes. Somebody went up to 
 Sheridan’s room and gave that information. 
 /Well,’’ said Sheridan, “let’s go down and take a 
 look at him.” He walked down into the rotunda 
 
84 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 of the St. Charles Hotel, where the man was still 
 going on. Sheridan, surrounded by these murder¬ 
 ers, looked calmly up at the fellow, whose attention 
 was presently called to the man he had just de¬ 
 scribed as among the crows and kites. The fellow 
 hopped down from his place, ran his head into the 
 crowd, fell down the back steps, and that was the 
 end of the matter. This fellow was wanting to run 
 for the Senate or the Governorship, or Congress or 
 something. 
 
 SHERIDAN AT CEDAR CREEK. 
 
 Representative McKinley, of Ohio, who was a 
 major in the Union army, in talking of Gen. Sheridan 
 recently, vividly recalled the incidents when he led 
 the great charge after the disastrous defeat at 
 Cedar Creek. 
 
 U I was on Gen. Crook’s staff,” he said, “ and 
 was posting some artillery under orders I had from 
 him, when Gen. Sheridan and his staff came riding 
 along the pike. Sheridan had just came back from 
 Washington, where he had received his commission 
 as a major-general, and he knew nothing of the 
 disaster that had overtaken us. He asked me where 
 Gen. Crook, was and I conducted him to headquar¬ 
 ters. The two generals retired a short distance 
 and engaged in close conversation. Then Sheridan 
 decided that an immediate advance should be made 
 and the camps from which we had been driven be 
 recaptured. 
 
 “ It was suggested that Gen. Sheridan should first 
 ride down the line, so that his presence might en¬ 
 courage the troops, and that they might know that 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 85 
 
 the General was once more among them. He had 
 on a new overcoat, such as we all wore, and this he 
 took off and handed to an orderly. Then a pair of 
 Major-General’s epaulets were fastened upon his 
 shoulders, and in the full uniform of his rank at 
 the head of his staff he went dashing down the line. 
 What a scene that was ! I never expect to witness 
 such another. The huzzas and shouts were deaf¬ 
 ening. His presence was as effective as two full 
 army corps. Sheridan said but little. Pointing to 
 our enemy’s tents from which we had been driven, 
 he said: 
 
 ‘ c ‘ Hoys, those tents are ours ; we will sleep in 
 them to-night, will we not ? ” 
 
 “ A shout, 4 That we will! 5 was the answer, and 
 a charge was made such as no power on earth could 
 have stayed. Sheridan looked the ideal soldier and 
 he had that peculiar power of inspiring every one 
 about him with his own confidence, as well as to 
 hold the love and affection of his men.” 
 
 THE ROSSER EPISODE. 
 
 On the 4th of May, 1887, the Times of Winches¬ 
 ter, Va., published the following letter fron Gen. 
 Thomas L. Rosser, who had served with honor as 
 a cavalry officer in the Confederate army, to Major 
 Holmes Conrad, of Winchester : 
 
 “ My Dear Major : I have seen it reported re-« 
 cently in the newspapers that Gen. P. H. Sheridan, 
 U.S.A., contemplates at an early day another ride 
 up the Shenandoah Talley. I had hoped that our 
 beautiful valley would never again be desecrated by 
 his footprints. Cold, cruel and brutal must be the 
 
86 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 character of this soldier who fondly cherishes mem¬ 
 ories of the wild, wanton waste and desolation 
 which his barbarous torch spread through the val¬ 
 ley, laying in ashes the beautiful and happy homes 
 of innocent women, young and helpless children 
 and aged men, and who over these ruins boasted 
 that ‘ now a crow cannot fly over this valley with¬ 
 out carrying its rations.’ Gen. Sheridan has done 
 nothing since the war to atone for his barbarism 
 during the war. We have not forgotten that dur¬ 
 ing his reign in New Orleans, he asked that our 
 fellow-citizens of Louisiana might be proclaimed 
 banditti in order that he might set the dogs of war 
 on them. I have forgiven the brave men of the 
 Union armies whom I met in honorable battle, and 
 who Anally triumphed over us in the great struggle. 
 Among them I can now name many of my warmest 
 and truest and most prized friends. They are good 
 and true to me and think none the less of us for 
 having fought them. Indeed, they esteem him 
 highest among us who fought them the hardest. 
 Sheridan is not one of this kind, and never accorded 
 to us that peace which Grant proclaimed. I now 
 say to you, my dear major, and to our gallant com¬ 
 rades who are now in the valley, that I hope you 
 will allow this man to make his triumphant ride up 
 the valley in peace, but have him go like the miser¬ 
 able crow, carrying his rations with him. 
 
 “ Yours truly, 
 
 “Thos. L. Bosser.” 
 
 This letter caused a great sensation, as it was 
 written at the very time when Massachusetts sol- 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 87 
 
 diers were being entertained in Richmond, and was 
 a rare instance of a Southern man of high standing 
 waving the bloody shirt. The leading newspapers 
 North and South denounced Gen. Rosser’s letter. 
 
 Gen. Sheridan had this to say of it: 
 
 ‘ ‘ Rosser has not forgot the whaling I gave him 
 in the valley, and I am not surprised that he loses 
 his temper when he recalls it. Occasionally Rosser 
 would come across small detachments of our troops 
 and would swoop down on them. Finally it was 
 reported to me that Gen. Rosser had captured my 
 pack-train. This made me mad. Halting the entire 
 army right in the road, I galloped to the rear de¬ 
 termined to settle Rosser. I found the train was 
 not captured, but was coming in considerably scat¬ 
 tered and broken up. I told Torbert I wanted 
 Rosser cleaned out, and that if he could not do it I 
 would take his division and do it myself. I con¬ 
 cluded that I would remain and see the work per¬ 
 formed, and so informed Torbert. The following 
 morning Torbert went after Rosser, whose brigade 
 was struck with an impetuosity that caused it to 
 scatter. We stripped the enemy of everything they 
 had captured ; all their guns except one, which sub¬ 
 sequently fell into our hands, and all their baggage, 
 including the personal effects of Rosser. It was a 
 regular frolic for our boys. Torbert pursued 
 Rosser a distance of twenty-five miles. He did not 
 trouble me further.” 
 
 LITTLE PHIL IN BOSTON. 
 
 On the first day of February, 1888, Little Phil 
 visited Boston and held the town a willing captive. 
 
88 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 It was his first visit to the Hub after succeeding Gen. 
 Hancock as Commander-in-Chief of the military 
 order of the Loyal Legion. The town unbent itself 
 and made every effort to render his stay pleasant. 
 He was dined as often as he could eat, and the 
 Governor, his wife, the legislators, Mayor, city gov¬ 
 ernment, the military, the Back Bay aristocrat, 
 the merchant, the Arab and the public school boy 
 united to do him honor. The fact, of course, was 
 that his name was brought into the list of possible 
 Republican Presidential candidates, and the more 
 that Gen. Sheridan was talked of as a candidate 
 for President the more loudly echoed the expres¬ 
 sions all the country over in his favor. 
 
 From the first, however, Sheridan was prompt to 
 discourage the idea of putting him forward for 
 Presidential honors. On the 19th of February the 
 Washington agent of the Associated Press sought 
 an interview with Gen. Sheridan for the purpose of 
 ascertaining whether he would made an authorita¬ 
 tive statement regarding his alleged candidacy. 
 The soldier said he had never looked upon the news¬ 
 paper articles with reference to the matter as any¬ 
 thing more than the usual shooting around in the 
 woods which had once or twice before in Presidential 
 years brought his name up in that connection. “ I 
 never,” he said, “ have had the Presidential bee in 
 my bonnet, and I don’t intend to have it, for there 
 is nothing that would induce me to leave the pro¬ 
 fession in which nearly forty years of my life 
 have been spent to enter upon a civil career. So 
 all talk about my being a Presidential candidate 
 may as well end. I would not accept, no, not 
 
HUNTEfi 
 
 
 BURNSIDE 
 
 M?CLELLAN 
 
 FREMONT. 
 
 *±Q OKE« 
 
LIFE OF GEN". SHERIDAN. 
 
 89 
 
 under any circumstances. I do not want that or 
 any other civil office.” 
 
 And so, still true to his first love, leal to the pro¬ 
 fession of arms, he chid away the ambition which, 
 whispering at the portals of most men’s ears, 
 would have lured them to the pursuit of the bubble 
 of civic renown. 
 
 A BRAVE AND DASHING SOLDIER. 
 
 Gen. Daniel Butterfield, an old companion-in- 
 arms of Gen. Sheridan, spoke of him as follows : 
 “We had always been warm personal friends, and I 
 have been very fond of him as a man outside of my 
 warm admiration for his soldierly characteristics. 
 He was a great soldier, a fighting soldier. As a 
 leader he has never had a superior, in my judg¬ 
 ment, in any army, at any time. I remember very 
 vividly my first meeting with Gen. Sheridan. It 
 was in the Chattanooga campaign, after the battle 
 of Chickamauga, and I went out with the two corps 
 which were sent from the Army of the Potomac. 
 In the battle in front of Mission Ridge, when Sheri¬ 
 dan led his division beyond the rifle-pits at the 
 base and to the top of the ridge, being ordered only 
 to take the rifle-pits, he first attracted Gen. Grant’s 
 notice as a leader. Grant had known him before 
 the war, but the exhibition of Sheridan’s peculiar 
 bold dashing qualities as a soldier brought him into 
 great prominence on that occasion. 
 
 “ The night after the battle I met Sheridan again, 
 and the strong, positive nature of the man made 
 a 7 lasting impression on me. Sheridan had come 
 up in front of Mission Ridge with his division, 
 
90 
 
 LIFE OF GEE". SHERIDAN. 
 
 and I was with the advance of Gen. Osterhaus’s 
 division and Cruft’s with Gen. Hooker on the 
 crest of the Ridge and at the enemy’s left. 
 The converging of our two lines at right angles 
 corralled, so to speak, a very large number of 
 prisoners. Gen. Sheridan was much delighted with 
 the situation, and vigorously pushed out with his 
 division to pursue the retreating forces. Operations 
 were suspended for the night when darkness came, 
 and along about 10 o’clock I rode by accident 
 through Gen. Sheridan’s bivouac. I found him in 
 front of a camp-fire pacing to and fro in a very 
 earnest way, and he seemed rather displeased at 
 something. 4 General, you don’t seem very much 
 gratified after such a grand success as you have had 
 to-day,’ I remarked. ‘What’s the trouble?’ His 
 reply was characteristic of the man, and showed his 
 dissatisfaction and impatience because darkness had 
 prevented his vigorous forward movement. 
 
 'We were in Italy together after the Franco- 
 Prussian war,” continued Gen. Butterfield, “and 
 his stories and recollection of past campaigns were 
 exceedingly interesting and very vivid. It is to be 
 regretted if these incidents of the war have not been 
 written out by him or under his direction. The last 
 time we were together was at the obsequies of the 
 late Gen. Paez a few weeks ago. Gen. Sheridan 
 put his hand on my shoulder and said : 4 My dear 
 fellow, I begin to realize that I’m not as strong and 
 as tough as I used to be,’ and then he asked if I 
 thought it wise for him to ride in an open carriage. 
 We took a closed carriage, and the troop of First 
 Hussars were detailed as a special escort for us. 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 91 
 
 They were handsomely mounted, a fine-looking 
 body of men. Gen. Sheridan looked at them very 
 carefully, his eye sparkled with delight, and he said, 
 turning to me : 4 Butterfield, how I would like to be 
 twenty-five years old and be one of those boys! ’ 
 
 44 During our ride I referred to the earnest desire 
 many of his old comrades in arms had to see him 
 made President. He said': 4 It would be very foolish 
 in me, and aside from that it would kill me in sixty 
 days. I know myself and my nature and the 
 situation well enough to know that.’ His was an 
 earnest, truthful nature : there was no deceit in 
 him.” 
 
 BUFFALO BILL FOUGHT WITH HIM. 
 
 Buffalo Bill said, when asked if he knew Gen. 
 Sheridan : 44 1 know him well as an able and gallant 
 officer and a true gentleman. He was like Gen. 
 Boulanger, in that he inspired enthusiasm in all his 
 men, and had their confidence and respect to an 
 extent rarely witnessed. There was a certain ro¬ 
 mantic dash about him that made soldiers take a 
 personal pride in being under his command, and you 
 will hear men say proudly, 4 1 was with Phil Sheri¬ 
 dan.’ and then relate instances of his soldierly 
 qualities. He was a tower of strength to our army 
 during the war, which was weaker in able cavalry 
 officers than the Confederate army. It, however, 
 had no cavalry commander who was the equal of 
 Sheridan. Personally, he was a man whom every¬ 
 body loved who met him. He was genial and com¬ 
 panionable. He had a remarkable memory, and, 
 although he never posed as a book-worm, was well- 
 
92 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 read, possessing a rare knowledge of military litera¬ 
 ture. He could write a great book on the art of 
 war. With me lie will always be associated with 
 the pleasantest memories.” 
 
 gen. sherman’s estimate. 
 
 Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman stated: “I 
 have frequently given my estimate of Gen. Sheri¬ 
 dan—and the world knows what it is—what I 
 thought of his great abilities as a soldier and of his 
 character as a man. Sheridan’s place in history 
 has long been established. His deeds and achieve¬ 
 ments, with those of Grant, Logan and other great 
 commanders of the civil war, are familiar house¬ 
 hold words throughout the land.” 
 
 CHAUNCEY M. DEPEW’S RECOLLECTIONS. 
 
 Chauncey M. Depew said recently : “ I did not 
 know Gen. Sheridan intimately, and I do not know 
 as I could give an estimate of his character that 
 would be of any value. Gen. Grant once told me, 
 however, in the course of a conversation, that he 
 regarded Gen. Sheridan as the greatest soldier of 
 the war, and that he did not think Sheridan’s supe¬ 
 rior as a field officer could be found in the world. 
 Gen. Grant was certainly capable of judging such 
 matters, and his opinion of Sheridan will probably 
 be accepted by the country at iarge. I have met 
 Gen. Sheridan a good many times at dinners and 
 other places. My acquaintance with him was very 
 friendly and pleasant. I found in him a jolly, un¬ 
 affected man, full of good stories himself and fond 
 of hearing them from others. He was in no sense a 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 93 
 
 partisan, and I believe he took very little interest 
 in politics. I think it doubtful if he voted at all 
 of late years. We are more than ever forcibly re¬ 
 minded that the heroes of the war are fast disap¬ 
 pearing from view, and that we are going rapidly 
 into an age that has no actual recollection of that 
 great conflict. Sherman and Rosecrans are about 
 the only ones left among the more prominent com¬ 
 manders on the Union side. All of the comman¬ 
 ders of the Army of the Potomac and Army of the 
 Cumberland are gone. Three-fourths of the voting 
 population of the country have become voters since 
 the war closed, and one-third of our voters were 
 born since that memorable conflict began. It is 
 hard for me to realize it, but to the majority of our 
 people the war is simply a history, they have no 
 actual recollection of it. It is remarkable, too, the 
 ignorance of the younger generation of the events 
 oi the war—where the great battles were fought, 
 who commanded, etc. They know as little about 
 it as they do of the Mexican war and the Revolu¬ 
 tion. ” 
 
 OTHER TRIBUTES TO THE SOLDIER. 
 
 Major-Gen. Daniel E. Sickles said: “ He was a 
 great soldier. Gen. Grant told me he regarded 
 Sheridan as the greatest soldier of his time. Yon 
 Moltke, with whom he spent some time at head¬ 
 quarters during the Franco-Prussian war as his 
 guest, had a very high opinion of him. Among the 
 most serious mistakes made by the Emperor Napo¬ 
 leon III. was when he refused to receive Gen. Sheri¬ 
 dan at headquarters, saying he didn’t want any 
 
94 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 foreign officers there. Sheridan’s sympathies were 
 naturally with the French, I think, and the Empe¬ 
 ror would have got many precious hints from him. 
 Sheridan would have told him how to operate on 
 the German communications, which the French 
 never knew how to cut or disturb. 
 
 “ Sheridan’s character impressed itself readily 
 upon his command. He gave to his men an intrep¬ 
 idity, a confidence, an audacity like his own, which 
 enabled him to get a great deal more work out of 
 ten thousand than another commander would get 
 from twenty thousand. His presence with a com¬ 
 mand fairly doubled its strength. And it may be 
 said of Sheridan, as well as of Sherman and Grant, 
 that, apart from their military genius, much of 
 their success was due to their unbounded confi¬ 
 dence in volunteer soldiers. That confidence was 
 reciprocated by the soldiers and made them invin¬ 
 cible. His military career was remarkable. He 
 was a humble lieutenant when the war began, and 
 in four years he carved his way with his sword to 
 the position of, perhaps the most brilliant of all the 
 commanders. Of course, in saying this, I detract 
 nothing from the reputation of Sherman and Han¬ 
 cock, whose genius was equally great with Sheri¬ 
 dan’s, but of a different temperament. Sheridan’s 
 peculiar genius was shown most most forcibly at 
 Winchester and Five Forks. Those two combats 
 mark him as a tactician and leader of the highest 
 order. 
 
 “ Sheridan’s character as a soldier is summed np 
 in one of his famous phrases at Five Forks—‘ Push 
 things l ’ M 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 95 
 
 SOLDIER AND CITIZEN. 
 
 GENERAL SCOFIELD’S LOVING WORDS. 
 
 “ I deeply regret the loss the army has sustained, 
 and I have lost a very dear comrade and lifelong 
 friend. Sheridan and I were at West Point together. 
 He entered the Academy in 1848, and I came the fol¬ 
 lowing year. We graduated in the same class, how¬ 
 ever, in 1853, as did also General James B. McPher¬ 
 son, who was killed in 1864 at Atlanta while re¬ 
 pulsing a sortie. John B. Hood, who rose to the 
 rank of a general in the Confederate service, was 
 likewise a fellow-classmate of ours. 
 
 “ All four of us were warm friends through all our 
 lives. For Sheridan I always entertained a deep 
 affection, a sentiment I knew he returned Me Pher- 
 son cherished the same feelings for Sheridan and 
 myself as we did for him. Though Hood was on the 
 other side we, who remained in the service of the 
 United States government, only regretted that his 
 different ideas of duty had separated us from a 
 pleasant comrade. 
 
 “ Regarding General Sheridan’s military career, I 
 do not know that I can say anything to add to his 
 fame. Both Grant and Sherman have taken occa¬ 
 sion in their memoirs to speak of Sheridan in the 
 highest terms, and I consider the estimates of these 
 two chief commanders are just, and their praise 
 well deserved. Grant knew Sheridan best, and his 
 tribute to his gallant subordinate is one of the many 
 touches which have revealed to us the true char- 
 
96 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 acter and generous nature of tlie greatest soldier of 
 his time. To Sherman my dead friend was best 
 known as a young officer, full of dash and vigor, yet 
 he saw enough of him to known that Philip H. 
 Sheridan was no common soldier. 
 
 “ To me Sheridan was always the beau ideal of a 
 true soldier and a really great commander. He is 
 one of the few American officers who attained high 
 and responsible rank through his natural force of 
 character and his military genius. He was a 
 marked man, even at West Point, for he displayed 
 at that early stage of his military life the same 
 sterling qualities which subsequently made him a 
 prominent character in our national history. 
 
 “As a cadet he was noticeable among his fellows 
 for devotion to drill and the routine of study. Ho 
 lesson was distasteful to him, no branch was slighted 
 or neglected. He took great pleasure in the practi¬ 
 cal studies and was as fond of the manual of arms 
 as the handling of field guns. In the riding school 
 and the cavalry evolutions Sheridan was in his ele¬ 
 ment, for he loved horses. In the saddle he was at 
 home, and he became a proficient swordsman. 
 While learning the duties of a soldier Sheridan was 
 invariably cheerful and light-hearted, being fond of 
 mischief at times, though he never overstepped the 
 rules of discipline. He and I were chums, and our 
 friendship was never marred or shaken in after¬ 
 years. As I remember him he was a young man 
 whom everybody at the Point liked, and he was a 
 favorite with the professors. 
 
 “ Sheridan was a very impulsive man, and rather 
 quick, if not hasty, in his anger. It was his nature 
 
.LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 97 
 
 and not his fault, for he could not help it, though 
 he always strove to overcome the defect. But how¬ 
 ever quick and hasty he might be, he was always 
 ready and prompt to make the most generous 
 amends. While he was in command of a division 
 in the West he was very harsh one day in the treat¬ 
 ment of an unfortunate Colonel who was in tempo¬ 
 rary command of a brigade. Sheridan fell into a 
 fierce rage, and in his hot anger used language 
 which the Colonel felt compelled to resent, being 
 as passionate a man as Sheridan. The moment he 
 uttered his words of resentment Sheridan’s anger 
 
 cooled off as suddenly as it had risen. On the 
 
 «/ 
 
 instant he held out his hand to the astonished 
 Colonel, saying, “ You are right, and I am wrong. 
 I beg your pardon ! ” 
 
 “From that day Sheridan had no better friend 
 than this Colonel, who never forgot the incident or 
 the lesson, though he himself rose to the rank of a 
 general. 
 
 I was not present in the Shenandoah Valley dur- 
 Sheridan’s famous campaign, but I have had the 
 scenes in the battles of Winchester and Cedar Creek 
 vividly described to me by competent eye-witnesses. 
 From these descriptions I became convinced that 
 those important victories were not only gained by 
 his military skill, but were due in a great measure 
 to his soldierly qualities and his personal magne¬ 
 tism and electrical influence over his troops. 
 
 “ Every officer I have ever met, whatever rank 
 they might have held, who served under Sheridan 
 in the West or the East, have shown by their lan¬ 
 guage that they honored and loved him. That is 
 
98 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 something you cannot say of every man who wore 
 the shoulder-straps of a general. 
 
 “ How I wish Philip H. Sheridan could have been 
 longer spared to his country and to the army, for he 
 was a great man, a faithful public servant and a sol¬ 
 dier of heroic mould. American history will record 
 his services as those of a man who always sought to 
 do his duty wherever he found it, and will speak of 
 him as his career deserves. 
 
 Gen. Crook said : 
 
 4 4 General Sheridan and I were classmates at 
 West Point. He came there a somewhat raw coun¬ 
 try youth, like the most of us, and I cannot recall 
 anything that in those days marked him as proba¬ 
 bly destined for an extrordinary career of any kind. 
 I would say that he appreciated his good fortune in 
 having obtained a nomination to a cadetship, and 
 realized the necessity of hard study and a clean 
 record to take him through his classes to the de¬ 
 sired commission. He stood well with his fellow 
 cadets, though possessing none of that brilliancy 
 that goes to the making of the pets or idols of the 
 corps. He was a quiet, civil, little fellow, indus* 
 trious at his lessons, attentive at his recitations, 
 and careful in the many little things that go to the 
 fixing of a cadet’s standing for obedience and disci¬ 
 pline. After graduation we were members of the 
 same regiment, but I really saw little of him till 
 the war was well advanced. Concerning his quali¬ 
 ties as a commander I am not presumptuous enough 
 to suppose that I can add anything to the much 
 that has been said, and on the whole well said, of 
 him, both as a leader of cavalry and as an inde- 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 99 
 
 pendent commander. Popular opinion has associ¬ 
 ated his name with that of Grant and Sherman as 
 the pre-eminent soldiers on the Federal side of the 
 civil war, and this opinion has been confirmed by 
 those at home and abroad who have made the art of 
 war a study. He was liked in the service by all 
 ranks and at all times, both as a man and an officer, 
 and that to my mind is as good an evidence as could 
 be of his manly and soldierly qualities. His name 
 is a bright one on the roll of the army of the United 
 States, and I believe that he earned and deserved 
 all the fame and fortune that came to him. He made 
 his own way in the profession, and so far as I know 
 he never stood in the light of any of his comrades.’’ 
 
 General W. S. Rosecrans said: “When I took 
 command of the small Army of the Mississippi 
 Sheridan was colonel of a Michigan regiment in 
 that army. I knew him well and watched his ca¬ 
 reer closely. He was a hard fighter, stubborn and 
 unyielding. At Booneville he won his first star, 
 and at Stone River another, and so on, and every 
 success that has come to him has been earned. 
 With all his stubbornness and dash he was prudent, 
 cautious, a good provider for his army, and was 
 always careful to know the topography of the 
 country in which he was operating. And then he 
 was prompt to take his troops into action under 
 heavy firing. There are many men who do unpleas¬ 
 ant things, even though a duty, hesitatingly. They 
 wait and consider and doubt. Sheridan, on the in¬ 
 stant, went straight for the mark; no delays, no 
 doubts. He was indeed a great general, and the 
 country will deeply mourn his loss.” 
 
100 
 
 LIFE OF UEN. slIEAlDAxf. 
 
 Representative Spinola, of New York, said : “ I 
 
 first met Sheridan in 1862, in the Army of the Po¬ 
 tomac. He was then in charge of the cavalry forces, 
 and his qualities as a soldier endeared him to every 
 man in the rank and file of the army. He was 
 looked up to with the highest degree of respect by 
 everybody as one of the first fighters in the army. 
 Since the war my connection with General Sheridan 
 was purely social, and it has always been very pleas¬ 
 ant. It could not have been otherwise, owing to 
 his genial qualities and the fact that he followed 
 the dictates of a great big generous heart.” 
 
 Inspector-General Baird, who was graduated from 
 the West Point Academy three years before Gene¬ 
 ral Sheridan, and who from the first years of the 
 war was intimately associated with him in the army, 
 expressed the opinion that General Sheridan was 
 fully the equal of any soldier in history. 
 
 Senator Reagan of Texas, Postmaster-General of 
 the Confederacy, said : “I think the country has 
 lost a very able officer.” 
 
 Major-General C. M. Wilcox, who commanded 
 a division in A. P. Hill’s corps, Army of Northern 
 Virginia, said: “The only time I met Sheridan 
 during the war was at Appomattox, when General 
 Gordon and myself received him with a flag of truce. 
 He came to our line to inquire whether it were true 
 that negotiations were pending for Lee’s surrender. 
 To Gordon’s affirmative answer, he said, ‘Well, 
 then, let us draw off our forces, that not another 
 man may be hurt,’ which was done.” 
 
 Representative Wheeler, of Alabama, said the 
 first time he met Sheridan was under a flag of truce 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 101 
 
 in 1862. “ He told me,” said General Wheeler, 
 
 4 4 all about his promotion, and expressed his deter¬ 
 mination to deserve it. In the course of that inter¬ 
 view I was struck by the strength of purpose ex¬ 
 hibited by him.” 
 
 Representative Forney of Alabama said : 44 I was 
 opposed to him at Appomattox. There he rendered 
 greater service than any other man. On the 7th we 
 had whipped them (the Union forces), but he came 
 around us on the 8th and forced us to surrender, 
 for otherwise we would have reached Lynchburg, 
 and securing fresh supplies would have been able to 
 have held out. He turned our right and forced us 
 to evacuate the work at Petersburg Five Forks. 
 He captured the last railroad and forced us to 
 leave. He was afterward in our rear and finally in 
 our front. Altogether as a lieutenant under Gene¬ 
 ral Grant he had no superior and there could have 
 been no better.” 
 
 Representative Chandler of Georgia, who was a 
 colonel in the Confederate army, said he regarded 
 General Sheridan as a very gallant man and a supe¬ 
 rior military chieftain. Certainly he was a very 
 distinguished soldier, a man of unquestionably sol¬ 
 dierly qualities, and as conscientious as any man. 
 
 Secretary Endicott said: 44 General Sheridan’s 
 death is a great loss to the army and this depart¬ 
 ment. I mean as a practical, energetic man of 
 affairs. He had a wide experience, gathered during 
 an active military life. He knew and understood 
 all conditions of army life in all parts of the country, 
 and of the people with whom our soldiers have to 
 deal, including the Indians, in whom he took pecu- 
 
102 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 liar interest. He was wise and sagacious, and Ms 
 judgment was marked by readiness in decision and 
 guided by shrewd common sense. He had so long 
 held high command, and had been attended by such 
 success, that he felt a confidence in his administra¬ 
 tion of affairs which was rarely at fault. I always 
 found him most reasonable and ready to look at all 
 sides of a question, and for a man of such impulses 
 most open to conviction. As a soldier he, of course, 
 stands quite by himself, differing with a marked 
 and intense individuality from all our distinguished 
 soldiers. As a cavalry soldier he was preeminent. 
 The rapidity of his movements, the energy with 
 which he inspired officers and men, his unerring in¬ 
 stincts on the battle-field led necessarily to great 
 success, that was well deserved. He was very in¬ 
 teresting and entertaining in social intercourse: he 
 had a fund of anecdote, a variety of information 
 that often was very instructive. His experiences 
 in Europe, when he accompanied the German army 
 to France in 1870, were varied and very interesting. 
 
 Secretary Fairchild said that he had become ac¬ 
 quainted with General Sheridan since his arrival in 
 Washington, and had taken a great liking to him 
 from the first. 
 
 Postmaster General Dickinson said : “He was a 
 great general, and had the simplicity of manners 
 which always accompanies true greatness. Fie at¬ 
 tached men to him with an affection in which there 
 was something of peculiar tenderness. FTo man 
 was more universally loved, and the places that 
 knew him and all at the capital will miss him 
 sadly.” 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 103 
 
 All the leading Senators and members of Congress 
 spoke in terms of admiration for General Sheridan 
 as a soldier and as a man, those who had long 
 known him extolling him highly and all echoing 
 the sentiment of sorrow for his death. 
 
 CLASSMATES’ RECOLLECTIONS. 
 
 BLOWS WITH A COMRADE WHICH COST HIM ONE 
 
 YEAR’S SUSPENSION. 
 
 “ General Sheridan and myself were classmates 
 at West Point in 1849,” said Assistant Adjutant 
 General Thomas M. Vincent, “ and among other 
 members of that class was W. R. Terrill, killed at the 
 battle of Perryville, Ky., October 8, 1862, who was 
 indirectly the cause of General Sheridan’s being set 
 back a year in his class at the Academy. During 
 the first encampment of the cadets in 1849, Sheri¬ 
 dan, A. V. Kautz—now colonel of the Eighth 
 Infantry—and myself were tent-makers for two 
 months, and naturally were brought into very close 
 communication. There were fifty-two members in 
 our class, which graduated in 1853, General Sheri¬ 
 dan standing 34. 
 
 u While at West Point he was always known for 
 his diffidence, and in after-life he was never ob¬ 
 trusive, no matter what the conditions or circum¬ 
 stances might be. He was always sociable, however, 
 and a great favorite in circles in which he mingled. 
 After he located permanently at Washington, Kautz, 
 Sheridan and myself were always very friendly, 
 
104 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 from the fact that we were all Buckeyes, and tlie 
 General was always well disposed toward any one 
 from liis native State.” 
 
 Brigadier-General Thomas H. Rogers, command¬ 
 ing the department of Dakota, was at West Point 
 at the same time with General Sheridan, but was 
 two classes lower, as he did not enter the Academy 
 until 1851. 
 
 “ I remember as well as if it happened to-day,” 
 said the General, “the difficulty between Cadet 
 Phil Sheridan and Cadet Corporal W. B. Terrill, 
 who was a native of Virginia. He was considerably 
 larger and taller than Sheridan, but both were noted 
 among the cadets as being very game fellows. They 
 had words between them about some matter, I don’t 
 recall exactly what it was, but it culminated in 
 Sheridan striking the Virginian as the parade roll 
 was being called for dinner and the battalion was 
 drawn up in line. 
 
 “When the trouble broke out, caused by some 
 remark of Terrill’s, without hesitation as to conse¬ 
 quences, Sheridan retaliated with a blow, but this 
 was as far as the difficulty went. Both cadets were 
 separated, and Sheridan was placed in arrest for his 
 infraction of discipline. That blow cost him one 
 year’s suspension, and he was sent home to his resi¬ 
 dence in Ohio. There was no effort made by either 
 of the principals to come together and settle the 
 difficulty with another fight, and afterward they 
 became good friends. 
 
 “His qualities, dash, and impetuosity endeared 
 him to General Grant, who always spoke of him in 
 the highest terms as a brave officer, and one in whom 
 
CAP-TUBE OF LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN. 
 
Life of gen. sheeldan. 
 
 105 
 
 lie had the most implicit confidence. Sheridan 
 possessed personal magnetism which made him the 
 idol of his command, and his impulsiveness was in 
 direct contrast with the phlegmatic temperament of 
 Grant, who was beloved by his troops for his plain, 
 unassuming manners. Undoubtedly General Sheri¬ 
 dan was one of the greatest generals that ever 
 lived.” 
 
 HIS CHICAGO FKIENDS. 
 
 MANY VIEWS OF HIS KEMAEKABLE EXCELLENCES— 
 BUT ONE VOICE OF PEAISE. 
 
 The number of old soldiers in Chicago who served 
 under Sheridan in the days when he made his 
 brilliant record is comparatively few. Sheridan’s 
 soldiers, with a few exceptions, were recruited from 
 Hew York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and other east¬ 
 ern States. Among those now residing in Chicago 
 who saw service by the side of “Little Phil” is 
 General A. C. McClurg, who served as assistant 
 adjutant of the Twenty-second Army corps under 
 General McCook. 
 
 General McClurg said : “ If asked what seemed 
 
 to constitute his distinguishing characteristic I 
 should say that it was his faculty of always hold¬ 
 ing himself in readiness for action. And yet he 
 would impress a new comer as being precisely the 
 opposite. He looked anything but a hard-working 
 officer. He always acted as if he was a man with 
 plenty of leisure, without any of the cares and re¬ 
 sponsibilities of life to mar his serenity. The fact 
 
106 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 was that he always knew the exact situation, down 
 to the finest detail. He had the faculty of doing 
 everything through his subordinates, and had then? 
 in hand so well that mistakes never happened.’’ 
 
 “I first met Sheridan,” said General L. P. Brad* 
 ley, “in the country around Nashville. He was 
 one of the most painstaking commanders I ever 
 knew. He never risked a life unless the risk was 
 absolutely necessary. In war his foresight was won¬ 
 derful. Great good sense was his distinguishing 
 characteristic. He was always occupied in caring 
 for his troops, and to this care he owed the effi- 
 ciency of his command. 
 
 “I remember, at a dinner which was given to him 
 by the Loyal Legion on March 6, 1882, how he 
 then said: ‘ People think I am rash and reckless. 
 
 I say that there never was an officer more prudent 
 than I. I encamped my men well, watched their 
 rations and comforts, and when we fought the 
 enemy I gave them the confidence of victory from 
 my knowledge of the enemy and my confidence in 
 the men.’ I indorse every word of what he said 
 then. Such was Sheridan in war.” 
 
 Alexander E. Stevenson was Inspector-General on 
 General Sheridan’s staff from December, 1862, till 
 November, 1863. His position enabled him to ob¬ 
 serve closely the methods of Sheridan during two 
 of the most critical periods of his military career, 
 the battles of Stone River and Chickamauga. 
 
 u General Sheridan’s foresight and extraordinary 
 energy were what made him great as a commander,” 
 said General Stevenson. I don’t suppose there ever 
 was a general with greater power of electrifying 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SIIEKIDAN. 
 
 107 
 
 his men. In camp lie was a most modest man, 
 quiet, unassuming, and easy of approach. But let 
 something go wrong when his division was moving, 
 and the contrast was astonishing. Profanity was 
 the climax of Sheridan’s enthusiasm in great crises, 
 and it always carried its point. His men became 
 like himself, irresistible. Their remarkable affec¬ 
 tion for him is proof that he never was brutal.” 
 
 Among his old Chicago friends “ Little Phil ” is 
 membered as one of the worst presiding officers 
 ever seen in a deliberative body. This was a rare 
 tribute to the man’s modesty. He was so shy, re¬ 
 tiring and modest that the faces of those who knew 
 him well were enough to put him out and embarrass 
 him greatly. 
 
 General Sheridan loved to see a close finish on 
 the turf. He attended every meeting at Wash¬ 
 ington Park except the last one, and was always 
 present on Derby day. He liked to go into the 
 judges’ stand, and on several occasions he acted as 
 a judge to the entire satisfaction of everybody. He 
 was president of the Washington Park Club. 
 
 HOW THE GREAT SOLDIER FOUGHT THE 
 BATTLE OF FIVE FORKS. 
 
 The crowning point in Sheridan’s brilliant mili- 
 taiy career was the battle of Five Forks. There his 
 signal victory forced the retreat of Lee and his army 
 from their intrenched positions around Richmond 
 and Petersburg, and was followed by the surrender 
 of Appomattox and the end of the civil war. 
 
103 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 Five Forks was a position on the extreme right of 
 Lee’s defensive line, and somewhat detached from 
 it. Its strategic value was incalculable in impor¬ 
 tance, since the loss of it would at once leave the 
 Army of Northern Virginia open to attack ux>on 
 its lines of communication ; and thus the precipi 
 tate retreat of that army from its strongly fortified 
 places would become unavoidable. The spot takes 
 its name from the fact that it is the point where the 
 Dinwiddie, Scott’s, the White Oak, Ford’s Church, 
 and another road concentrate. It had been occu¬ 
 pied by Pickett’s infantry and all the cavalry of 
 Lee’s army. While it was indispensable to Lee, it 
 had already been recognized by Grant as of equal 
 importance to him in his offensive movements then 
 to begin. 
 
 It was on March 29, 1865, after an extended in¬ 
 terview at City Point with President Lincoln, that 
 Gen. Grant moved his headquarters to the centre of 
 his line in front of Petersburg. His forces were at 
 this time disposed as follows, from right to left: 
 Weitzel in front of Richmond, north of the James 
 River; Parke and Wright holding the works in 
 front of Petersburg; Ord extending south to the 
 intersection of the Vaughn road and Hatcher’s Hun ; 
 Humphrey’s left reaching beyond Dabney’s saw¬ 
 mill ; Warren on the extreme left, and covering the 
 front as far as the intersection of the Vaughn road 
 and the Boydton plank road; while Sheridan, with 
 the whole cavalry corps, was at Dinwiddie Court 
 House. The weather was very cloudy, and as the 
 day drew to a close rain began to fall. During that 
 night and the next day the storm continued with 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 109 
 
 but little interruption. The ground was soft, and 
 the rain soon soaked it into greater softness, so that 
 by the evening of the 30th the whole country be¬ 
 came, as it were, one vast bed of mushy quicksand, 
 in which the horses of the cavalry and artillery 
 sank almost to their bellies. 
 
 This condition was, in a measure, favorable to the 
 Confederates, as it enabled them to secure more 
 time to complete all their preparations to receive an 
 attack which was inevitable, and, therefore, the 
 more successfully to resist it. The roads had be¬ 
 come streams of water, and it was with extreme 
 difficulty that the artillery and trains of Grant’s 
 forces could move upon them. It was this situation 
 of the roads that had prevented Gen. Grant from 
 sending a corps of infantry to reinforce Sheridan on 
 the 30th, and when the latter rode into Grant’s 
 headquarters on the morning of that day he so in¬ 
 formed him. 
 
 From the inception of the movement, Sheridan 
 understood its importance as bearing on the ter¬ 
 mination of the war, and gave no thought to him¬ 
 self. No hardship or effort was too great for him 
 to undergo. He was here, there, and everywhere 
 about the held of the coming battle, his keen mili¬ 
 tary eye and sound judgment ever on the alert. 
 Gen. Grant told him at the interview in his tent 
 that he wished him to feel the enemy’s strength 
 next day, and, if possible, to seize Five Forks. As 
 the two generals sat together the rain continued to 
 pour in torrents. u General,” said Sheridan as he 
 rose to go, “I will execute your plans tomorrow 
 
110 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 though the elements and all the powers of the Con¬ 
 federacy stand in the way.” 
 
 The weather continued cloudy and rainy on the 
 31st, and Sheridan reported to Grant that the Con¬ 
 federates had been busily engaged intrenching at 
 Five Forks and to the west of that point for the 
 distance of a mile ; and it was evident that a deter¬ 
 mined effort would be made there by Lee to pro¬ 
 tect his right ffank. Gen. Grant, anticipating an 
 attack upon his left, held by Warren, had cau¬ 
 tioned the latter to be on his guard against it. An 
 advance of the Fifth Corps on the White Oak road 
 developed a strong force occupying it, and before 
 going very far this corps met with a determined and 
 vigorous resistance which brought it to a halt. The 
 fighting which ensued was fast and furious, and 
 reflected great credit on the contending troops. 
 Gen. Warren distinguished himself by his coolness 
 and gallantry, and evinced in many ways those fine 
 soldierly qualities of which he was undoubtedly 
 possessed. In the mean time Sheridan, in accord¬ 
 ance with his instructions of the day before, had 
 moved upon Five Forks, and had encountered a lit¬ 
 tle north of Dinwiddie Court House a strong force 
 of infantry and cavalry. This day, Sheridan has 
 often said jocularly, was the liveliest day of his life, 
 as he had to fight infantry and cavalry with cavalry 
 alone. 
 
 The conditions of the problem did not, however, 
 daunt his intrepid spirit. Sheridan never seemed 
 so well pleased as when fighting under difficulties. 
 His martial faculties then had full play, and he 
 revelled in the task of surmounting and overcoming 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 Ill 
 
 the odds against him. On this occasion he hurled 
 his cavalry against the Confederate infantry, with 
 undaunted heart, and when confronted at impor¬ 
 tant points by the enemy’s cavalry, equally as in¬ 
 trepid as his own, he met it with an onset that was 
 almost invincible. He informed a staff officer of 
 Grant’s who had been sent to observe his move¬ 
 ments, that he was concentrating his forces on the 
 high ground just north of Dinwiddle, and that he 
 would hold that position. At the same time he 
 requested the staff officer to go to Gen. Grant and 
 urge him to send up the Sixth Army Corps. He 
 specified this corps because it had been with him in 
 the Shenandoah Yalley and understood his meth¬ 
 ods of fighting. He was informed that the position 
 occupied by the Sixth Corps precluded its being 
 sent to his assistance, but that the Fifth Corps 
 would reach him by daylight the next morning. 
 This was a busy night. Staff officers were rushing 
 about all night, carrying orders from one head¬ 
 quarters to another, getting information, and hur¬ 
 rying up the movements of the troops that were to 
 take part in this supreme effort to destroy Lee’s 
 army and bring the long war to a close. 
 
 Gen. Warren, who had accompanied Crawford’s 
 division of his corps, reached and reported in per¬ 
 son to Sheridan at 11 a.m. In less than one hour 
 afterward Gen. Babcock of Grant’s staff arrived 
 and said to Sheridan : “ Gen. Grant directs me to 
 
 say to you that if in your judgment the Fifth Corps 
 would do better under one of the division com¬ 
 manders, you are authorized to relieve Gen. War¬ 
 ren, and order him to report to him (Grant) at 
 
112 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 headquarters. ” The reason was nothing more than 
 a belief, prevailing at Grant’s headquarters, that 
 Warren was not sufficiently energetic and aggres¬ 
 sive. It was most unjust to Warren, who had sig¬ 
 nalized his loyalty, his courage, and his ability on 
 the Gettysburg battlefield. Sheridan’s only reply 
 to Babcock, when he received this order, was that 
 he hoped such a step would not become neces¬ 
 sary. 
 
 The Confederate earthworks ran along the White 
 Oak road, and were something over a mile and a 
 half in length, with a southerly line at right angles 
 with the main line, extending about three hundred 
 yards from it. Sheridan had dismounted his cav¬ 
 alry in front of these earthworks, and had directed 
 Warren to attack the angle by wheeling to the 
 left, and to sweep down by a westward movement 
 and come in the rear of the enemy’s intrenched 
 position. As soon as the cavalry should hear the 
 firing of Warren’s infantry, it was to make a vigor¬ 
 ous assault upon the Confederate front. When all 
 had been arranged, Sheridan awaited the attack of 
 the Fifth Corps, but, for some unexplained reason, 
 the movement was slow, and the formation for it 
 seemed to be delayed and to drag. It was then 
 that the ardent nature of this consummate soldier 
 became impatient, aiid he appeared to be consumed 
 with anxiety. Those who have been led by his¬ 
 torians to believe that Sheridan was of a rash, im¬ 
 petuous nature—a man governed wholly by his 
 impulses—have been misinformed. The truth is 
 that he was impetuous only where impetuosity was 
 needed. He was never rash in any military move- 
 
BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 
 
* 
 
 A 
 
 
 
 
 ■ 
 
 i 
 
 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHEBIDAK. 
 
 113 
 
 men!. He felt tlie importance of prompt action at 
 this stage of the battle, and in every possible way 
 appealed for it ; he dismounted from his horse and 
 walked to and fro, with knit brow and troubled 
 mien ; he seemed overwhelmed by the tardiness of 
 his subordinates. He understood the consequences 
 of delays in their bearing on the fate of armies, and 
 he knew how dangerous they are. No wonder, 
 then, that on this occasion he was so deeply 
 troubled. 
 
 It was not until 4 o’clock that the troops got into 
 position and everything was in readiness for the 
 assault on Pickett’s line. When a staff officer rode 
 up to Sheridan to report the position of the com¬ 
 mand, he found him standing with one arm thrown 
 across his saddle, in no pleasant frame of mind. 
 “ Everything is ready, you say?” answered Sheri¬ 
 dan eagerly. u Thank God ! It may be too late ! 
 Order them forward at once, and w r e’ll take our 
 chances and win, come what may.” Saying this, 
 he sprang into the saddle. 
 
 Very soon after the men of Ayres’s division en¬ 
 countered a heavy fire on their left and were forced 
 to change their course to a more westward direc¬ 
 tion. Moving rapidly forward through a dense 
 wood and over the soft boggy ground, they re¬ 
 ceived a severe shock from the angle, and fell back 
 in great confusion. This was the moment when 
 Sheridan rose to the full significance of the situa¬ 
 tion. Dashing into the midst of the broken and 
 dismayed lines, he cried out: ‘ 4 Where is my battle 
 flag 1 ” Seizing the staff, he wrenched it from the 
 hand of the sergeant who carried it, and waving the 
 
114 
 
 LIFE OF GEX. SHEEIDAN. 
 
 crimson and white standard above his head he 
 cheered and encouraged the men. The whizzing of 
 bullets and bursting of shells was terrific. The 
 battle flag was riddled ; the sergeant who had borne 
 it was killed ; staff officers were wounded, and 
 many horses were knocked down. Nothing daunt¬ 
 ed by this leaden storm, Sheridan galloped from 
 point to point of the line, waving his standard, 
 threatening, exhorting, swearing, beseeching the 
 men to stand firm and hurl back the foe. He was 
 the very impersonation of courage ; the incarnation 
 of battle. His example was infectious. Ayres and 
 his officers shared with him the exposure and the 
 effort. The veterans of the ranks soon reformed 
 their lines, and with wild cheers rushed forward 
 and carried the earthworks. Sweeping the way 
 clear before them, they killed, captured, or put to 
 flight every man in their way. That day Sheridan 
 rode Hienzi, the gallant horse that had been pre¬ 
 sented to him by the people of Michigan. Arriving 
 near the angle, Sheridan spurred him on, and with 
 a bound he landed his rider again in the midst of 
 victory and a long line of prisoners, who, having 
 thrown down their arms, were seeking safety behind 
 their breastworks. Gen. Horace Porter, who was 
 present, states that ‘ ‘ some of these prisoners called 
 out: 4 Whar do you want us all to go % ’ Then 
 Sheridan’s rage turned to humor, and he had a 
 running talk with the Johnnies as they filed past: 
 ‘Go right over there,’ he cried, pointing to the 
 rear, ‘get right along now. Drop your guns, you’ll 
 never need them any more. You’ll be safe over 
 there. Are there any more of you ? We w r ant 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 115 
 
 every one of you fellows.’ ” Nearly 1500 were 
 captured at the angle. 
 
 While these decisive movements were taking 
 place on the right, the cavalry in front, under Mer¬ 
 ritt, Custer, and Devin, had gallantly gone over the 
 earthworks, and, promptly carrying out Sheridan’s 
 order, had captured a battery of artillery, many 
 prisoners, a*id swept away everything that opposed 
 them in their terrible outslaught. After the seizure 
 of the angle, Gen. Sheridan made his way to the 
 westward of the Fort road, and here again threw all 
 the energy of his nature into the effort to destroy 
 finally the forces of Pickett. He relieved Warren 
 of his command and placed Griffin in the head of 
 the Fifth Corps, and expecting that Lee would at¬ 
 tack him on the following morning with fresh 
 troops, he busily engaged in collecting together his 
 detached commands and strengthening his posi¬ 
 tion. 
 
 As Gen. Horace Porter, who witnessed the strug¬ 
 gle in all its details, says : u Sheridan had that day 
 fought one of the most interesting technical battles 
 of the war, almost perfect in conception, brilliant in 
 execution, strikingly dramatic in its incidents, and 
 productive of immensely important results.” The 
 immediate effect was to determine Grant to order 
 an advance along his entire front on the following 
 day. Lee, recognizing the extent of the disaster, 
 was forced to call Longstreet to the south side of 
 the James, and to make dispositions for the retreat 
 of his shattered and demoralized troops. The suc¬ 
 cessful assault of Grant’s columns on the following 
 day, the desperate resistance of Lee, and the retreat 
 
116 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 and final surrender of the Army of Northern Vir¬ 
 ginia at Appomattox, were the legitimate outcome 
 
 of this marvellous victory of Sheridan at Five 
 Forks. 
 
 ME. PLUMB’S REMINISCENCE OF THE GEN¬ 
 ERAL. 
 
 Senator Plumb said : “Ialways think of Sheri¬ 
 dan in connection with one conversation I had with 
 him. 
 
 44 4 General,’ said I, 4 you were in the West before 
 you came East. What was your opinion of the 
 Army of the Potomac ? You remember it was 
 criticised about that time as not doing its share of 
 the work. ’ 
 
 4 4 4 Oh, the Army of the Potomac was all right,’ 
 said Sheridan. 4 The trouble was the commanders 
 never went out to lick anybody, but always thought 
 first of keeping from getting licked.’ 
 
 44 Sheridan came East when the cavalry of the 
 Army of the Potomac was not in good condition, 
 and Grant gave him the task of reorganizing it and 
 raising its efficiency. He had worked away some 
 time when Meade sent him over the Rappahannock 
 on a reconnoissance. Sheridan came back and in 
 making his verbal report referred to a brush he had 
 with Stuart’s cavalry. 
 
 44 ‘Never mind Stuart,’ said Meade, interrupting, 
 4 he will do about as he pleases anyhow. Go on and 
 tell me what you discovered about Lee’s forces.’ 
 
 44 Tliat made Sheridan mad, and lie retorted: 4 1 
 can thrash Stuart any day.’ 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 117 
 
 Meade repeated the remark to Grant, who quer¬ 
 ied : ‘ Why didn’t you tell him to do it ? ’ 
 
 “ Not long after, sure enough, Sheridan got an 
 order to cross the river, engage Stuart, and clean 
 him out. 
 
 “ ‘I knew I could whip him,’ said Sheridan, ‘if 
 I could only get him where he could not fall back 
 on Lee’s infantry. So I thought the matter over, 
 and to draw him on started straight for Eichmond. 
 We moved fast, and Stuart dogged us right at our 
 heels. We kept on a second day straight for 
 Eichmond, and the next morning found Stuart in 
 front of us just where we wanted him. He had 
 marched all night and got around us. Then I rode 
 him down. I mashed his command and broke up 
 his divisions and regiments and brigades, and the 
 poor fellow himself was killed there. Eight there, 
 Senator, I resisted the greatest temptation of my 
 life. There lay Eichmond before us, and there was 
 nothing to keep us from going in. It would have 
 cost five or six hundred lives, and I could not have 
 held the place, of course. But I knew that the 
 moment it was learned at the North that a Union 
 army was in Eichmond, then every bell would ring, 
 and I should have been the hero of the hour. I 
 could have gone in and burned and killed right and 
 left. But I had learned this thing—that our men 
 knew what they were about. I had seen them come 
 out of d fight in which only a handful were killed, 
 discontented, mad clear through, because they 
 knew an opportunity had been lost, or a sacrifice, 
 small as it was, had been needlessly made ; and I 
 had seen them come out good-natured, enthusiastic, 
 
118 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHEEIDAN. 
 
 and spoiling for more, when they had left the ground 
 so thickly covered with dead that you could have 
 crossed it on the bodies alone. They realized that, 
 notwithstanding the terrible sacrifice, the object 
 gained had been worth it. They would have fol¬ 
 lowed me, but they would have known as well as I 
 that the sacrifice was for no permanent advantage.’ 
 
 “That,” continued Senator Plumb, “exhibits 
 the man and the commander. He aimed to win and 
 keep the confidence of his men, and he did it. He 
 fought for results and not for glory.” 
 
 A companion in arms relates the following : 
 
 After the battle of Cedar Creek, President Lin¬ 
 coln and Secretary Stanton agreed that Sheridan 
 should receive some special recognition for the great 
 exploit. They promoted him to be a Major-General 
 in the regular army, and when the commission was 
 made out the President decided that it should be 
 sent to the General, who still lay near Cedar Creek, 
 by an unusual messenger. I was selected for this 
 agreeable duty. 
 
 From Washington to Harper’s Ferry I went by 
 rail, bnt there it was necessary to have an escort. 
 Starting early in the morning and riding all day 
 with no other interruptions than were caused by the 
 occasional appearance of Mosby’s cavalry here and 
 there on our flank, it was about ten at night before 
 we reached the General’s stopping-place. He had 
 gone to bed, but was waked up to receive the im¬ 
 portant document. The speeches on the occasion 
 w^ere brief, but they were to the purpose. Sheridan 
 was not displeased with the transaction. 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 119 
 
 The next morning the General took me on foot 
 through his camp, and as we went among the regi¬ 
 ments and brigades, and greeted old acquaintances 
 on every hand, I was everywhere struck with the 
 manifestations of personal attachment to Sheridan. 
 I had not seen anything like it in either of our great 
 armies. Grant, Sherman, Thomas, all moved among 
 their troops with every sign of respect and con- 
 lidence on the part of the men ; but in Sheridan’s 
 camp it was quite different. They seemed to regard 
 him more as a boy regards the father he believes in, 
 relies on, and loves, than as soldiers are wont to re¬ 
 gard their commander. Finally, as we were com¬ 
 pleting our morning’s tour and had got nearly back 
 to headquarters, I said to him : “ General, how is 
 this % These men seem to have a special affection 
 for you, more than I have ever seen displayed to¬ 
 ward any other officer. What is the reason ? ” 
 
 ‘ ‘ Well, ’ ’ said he, ‘ 4 I think I can tell you. I 
 always fight the front rank myself. I was long ago 
 convinced that it would not do for a commanding 
 general to stay in the rear of the troops and carry 
 on a battle with paper orders, as they do in the 
 Army of the Potomac. These men all know that 
 where it is hottest, there I am, and they like it, and 
 that is the reason they like me.” 
 
 THE GENERAL’S LONGEST SPEECH. 
 
 AN ADDRESS TO VETERANS THAT WENT TO THEIR 
 
 HEARTS. 
 
 The longest speech ever delivered by General 
 Sheridan was made at the Creston reunion of the 
 
120 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHEEIDAN. 
 
 veterans of Southwest Iowa and Northwest Mis¬ 
 souri. There were at least ten thousand veterans 
 present, in addition to thousands of other persons. 
 The enthusiasm for Sheridan was overwhelming, 
 and contrary to custom he had at last yielded to the 
 importunities of the veterans and made a speech 
 that went direct to every old soldier’s heart. It was 
 wholly impromptu and characteristic, and was as 
 follows: 
 
 “Comrades :—I came here to-day to see you and 
 talk with you and shake hands with you, while Colo¬ 
 nel Carr and others, you know, came here to make 
 eloquent addresses for you to listen to. I think he 
 has been too eulogistic of me in his remarks. It is 
 true that I fought in almost everybody’s army from 
 Pea Ridge to Apx>omattox, and although I fought 
 with cavalry and infantry and on every line of opera¬ 
 tion, and always had to change and take new men 
 on new lines, I was very successful. I went through 
 all the grades they had in the volunteer service, and 
 then I commenced and went through all the grades 
 in the regular service, and the date of every commis¬ 
 sion that I have is the date of a battle. 
 
 “ Now I want to say to you, comrades, that I am in¬ 
 debted to the private in the ranks for all this credit 
 that has come to me. [Applause, long and con¬ 
 tinued.] He was the man who did the fighting, and 
 the man who carried the musket is the greatest hero 
 of the war in my opinion. I was nothing but an 
 agent; I knew how to take care of men. I knew 
 what a soldier was worth, and I knew how to study 
 the country so as to put him in right ; I knew how 
 to put him in a battle when one occurred, but I was 
 

 
 
 BATTLE OF CHAPIN'S FARM. 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 121 
 
 simply the agent to take care of him, and he did the 
 work. Now, comrades, these are common-sense 
 things, and I can’t say them in very flowery lan¬ 
 guage, but they are true, nevertheless, and they are 
 true not of me alone, but of everybody else. It is 
 to the common soldier that we are indebted for any 
 credit to us. 
 
 “ Now, I am glad to see you here to-day, gentle¬ 
 men, and I am glad to be with you on his occasion. 
 There are many men here to-day who served in the 
 field with me, and it is a great pleasure to me to 
 find them out, and they have been very kindly in 
 their remarks to me. While they were with me I 
 certainly did all I could for them. I often lay 
 ‘ awake planning for their welfare, and I never killed 
 a man unnecessarily. One great trouble with men 
 who command troops is that they kill men unneces¬ 
 sarily. You may kill as many men as you choose 
 if you give them an equivalent for the loss Men 
 do not like to be killed for nothing; they do not 
 like to have their heads rammed against a stone wall 
 unless for some good results. These are points I 
 made during the war. Whenever I took men into 
 a battle I gave them victory as the result of the 
 engagement, and that was always satisfactory. ” 
 
 GEN. SHERIDAN WAS LASSOED. 
 
 According to Col. Archer Mason, Gen. Sheridan 
 once had his life saved in an odd way. Col. Mason’s 
 regiment was once giving the General a reception 
 at the California Theatre. Sheridan was standing 
 
122 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 in the wings, peeping out beside the curtain at the 
 audience, when he suddenly pointed to one of the 
 musicians, and asked Mason : 
 
 “ Isn’t that man named Blyth 1 ” 
 
 On being told that he was, he asked to have him 
 brought up on the stage at once. After a cordial 
 greeting, which almost wrung the musician’s hand 
 off, Sheridan said : 
 
 “I have good reason to remember Mr. Blyth, for 
 he saved my life for me once. It was when I was a 
 young cavalry officer, fighting the Indians. Blyth 
 was a private in my troop. One day we were hav¬ 
 ing a hand-to-ha'nd set-to with the Indians, and one 
 of the red devils had just shot at me with a revolver. 
 I had my sabre very close to his neck when another 
 Indian threw his lasso around my neck, and in 
 another instance I would have been trampled under 
 the feet of the horses. But Blyth, who was close 
 beside me, cut the rope with his sabre and saved my 
 life.” 
 
 SHERIDAN’S FIRST VICTORY. 
 
 In Whitelaw Reid’s “Ohio in the War” there 
 are several good stories about Sheridan’s boyhood. 
 One how he pluckily stuck on a vicious horse when 
 only five years of age, and rode it after excellent 
 horsemen had failed. 
 
 This was Sheridan’s first victory. 
 
 Another time Patrick McNanly, Sheridan’s school 
 teacher at Somerset, tried to punish Phil because 
 some boy had thrown a bucket of water over him. 
 
LIEE OF GEN. SHEKIDAN. 
 
 123 
 
 Phil ran home, the teacher chasing him until Phil’s 
 dog Rover treed the teacher and kept him there. 
 McNanly begged Phil to call off the dog, for it was 
 bitter cold, but the boy would not. Mr. Sheridan 
 came out, and as Phil said he had not thrown any 
 water, the dog was not called off until the teacher 
 had promised not to 4 4 lick ’ ’ Phil. 
 
 This was the first surrender to Sheridan. 
 
 A good sample of the way Sheridan had of dealing 
 with refractory 4 4 natives ’ ’ during the war is told by 
 Colonel JNewhall. It occurred at Prince Edward’s 
 Court House. A Southern farmer was asked if he 
 had seen any of Lee’s troops about that day. He 
 growled out that he could give no information. 
 
 44 How far is it to Buffalo River ? ” 
 
 44 Sir, I don’t know.” 
 
 4 4 The devil you don’t! How long have you lived 
 here ?” 
 
 44 All my life.” 
 
 44 Very well, sir, it is time you did know. Cap¬ 
 tain, put this gentleman in charge of a guard, and 
 when we move walk him down to Buffalo River and 
 show it to him.” 
 
 That evening 44 this gentleman” tramped five 
 miles away from home to look at a river which was 
 as familiar to him as his own family. 
 
124 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 PERSONAL JOTTINGS. 
 
 A gentleman who knew Sheridan well in his 
 fighting days gives the following pen-picture of 
 him: 
 
 “ Sheridan looks the fighter in every one of his 
 scant inches, in every fiber of his sturdy frame, and 
 every feature of his florid face and compact, power¬ 
 ful looking head. Yet there was more than the mere 
 fighter look. The head and face wear an unmis¬ 
 takable expression of intellectual vigor. Sheridan 
 looks like a ruler of men : like the man who could, 
 as he did, make a scattered army cohere into a 
 victorious phalanx and throw it like an avalanche 
 on a flying foe. He is not more than five feet six 
 inches in height, while the breadth of his shoulders 
 and the depth of his chest are very great. His 
 hands and feet are small. The light ivory-handled 
 riding-whip, which is Sheridan’s inseparable com¬ 
 panion, was in his hand. Sheridan’s face is unmis¬ 
 takably Irish in expression. It is slightly oval in 
 outline, well knit and compact in feature. The 
 lower jaw is long and powerful, coming down on 
 each side to a square, firm chin. The mouth, 
 draped by a mustache of moderate size, is a strong, 
 straight and rather mobile feature. The nose is one 
 of the fighting sort, small at the root, wide at the 
 nostrils and rather aquiline in form. The head of 
 ‘ Cavalry Sheridan ’ is quite up to his reputation. It 
 is long, moderately high, quite broad, very compact, 
 with a good back head and base brain. The large pro¬ 
 portion of it is forward of the ears, though. You see 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 125 
 
 that this is a man of resources, not over confident, but 
 quite self-possessed, firm to the last degree, with 
 convictions which once taken last a lifetime. Sheri¬ 
 dan’s eyes are among the best, if not the very best, 
 features of his remarkable face. These are of a 
 warm, gray hue, which soften with a wonderful 
 kindness or flash with a consuming fire. The wrath 
 of this man must be terrific, while humor is, on the 
 other hand, as much a part of his nature. The 
 forehead is good, broad, not high, and the percep- 
 tives well developed and the eyebrows arched into 
 the shape which is seen in antique sculpture, but so 
 seldom visible in modern countenances. 
 
 “ General Sheridan entered battle with a fixed 
 resolve not to come out of it except as a conqueror, 
 and the man who fights in this spirit is the least 
 likely of all men to be injured. He fights with a 
 resolution to win or die ; and therefore fights, as 
 the saying is, ‘the very darndest that is in him.’ 
 He will win—at least the chances are ninety-nine to 
 one in his favor—if the forces be anything like equal 
 and the opposing commander not actuated by a 
 similar resolve. In the courage of desperation there 
 may be found a shield for its own rashness ; and in 
 proof thereof let us cite the fact that General Phil 
 Sheridan has never received so much as a scratch 
 during all the battles in which his personal daring 
 has been so prominent.” 
 
126 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 MAECH, CAMP, AND FIELD. 
 
 A WAE CORRESPONDENT’S ESTIMATE AND RECOL¬ 
 LECTIONS OF GENERAL PHILIP SHERIDAN. 
 
 General Sheridan will undoubtedly be considered 
 a picturesque figure by future writers of American 
 history. Occupying a subordinate position during 
 the first year of the civil war, he suddenly became 
 prominent as a dashing and successful cavalry 
 officer. The opportunity for displaying his genius 
 came at last, and he instantly grasped it. In the 
 West his fame was on a par with that of Sherman, 
 Thomas and Logan, and when Grant rose to the 
 rank of lieutenant-general and assumed the com¬ 
 mand of all the federal armies in the field, he brought 
 Sheridan with him to the East and assigned him to 
 the command of the cavalry corps in the Army of 
 the Potomac. It was and always had been the 
 largest body of horsemen on either side of the 
 struggle. 
 
 On the Peninsula, in 1862, when McClellan made 
 his advance upon Eichmond, the cavalry were dis¬ 
 tributed by divisions to the several infantry corps, 
 and though they made many important raids upon 
 the rear lines of the Confederates, they played no 
 important part in the general engagements of that 
 year. Pleasonton and Kilpatrick and Dahlgren 
 and Torbert and Wilson were brave and intelligent 
 officers, but they did not possess that rare faculty 
 for handling twenty or thirty thousand horsemen 
 which Sheridan so signally displayed. 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 127 
 
 When the cavalry were consolidated by Hooker 
 and placed as a separate corps under the command 
 of Pleasonton their value as an aggressive weapon 
 was increased. At the battle of Brandy Plains, 
 between the Rappahannock River and Culpepper, 
 Pleasonton defeated and crippled Jeb Stuart, and 
 he inflicted great loss on Lee by the destruction of 
 Confederate ammunition and supply trains during 
 the second invasion of Pennsylvania. The cavalry 
 also took a prominent part on the last day of Get¬ 
 tysburg. 
 
 SHERIDAN AS A TACTICIAN. 
 
 But it was reserved for Sheridan to show the 
 military student that large masses of cavalry could 
 be as successfully handled in battles for the posses¬ 
 sion of mountain passes and amid dense forests as 
 they had been in the open field by Murat and other 
 great European sabreurs . 
 
 The services rendered by Sheridan during the 
 overland campaign of 1864 in forcing Lee to make 
 frequent changes of front, and his thorough protec¬ 
 tion of Grant’s flanks and lines of communication 
 were sufficient to give him fame. Still it was 
 reserved for him to show that, though a great 
 cavalry leader, he could handle with equal facility 
 large bodies of infantry. 
 
 Twice had Lee successfully called “check!” on 
 the commanders of the Army of the Potomac by 
 crossing over into Maryland and Pennsylvania, and 
 though the battles of Antietam and Gettysburg 
 greatly crippled him, the Confederate leader had 
 for a time relieved Richmond from direct assault. 
 Counting upon Washington bureau influences he 
 
128 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHEKIDAN. 
 
 made a third attempt in this direction during 1864, 
 and drove Hunter out of the Shenandoah Yalley. 
 Instead of changing front and releasing his grip 
 upon Richmond, Grant ordered Sheridan to the 
 Yalley with 12,000 sabers and the Sixth and Nine¬ 
 teenth Army corps, which, with General Crook’s 
 old Kanawha corps, gave him a complete army. 
 The Shenandoah campaign forms one of the most 
 brilliant episodes of the war, for when his hand was 
 ready Sheridan fought Jubal Early at Winchester, 
 which doubled him up, and subsequently almost 
 annihilated him at Cedar Creek. 
 
 When the curtain was rung up for the last act in 
 this tremendous war Sheridan came back to Grant’s 
 side at Petersburg, and he fought the battle of Five 
 Forks so brilliantly that it practically ended the 
 struggle. 
 
 Briefly told, this is the record of Sheridan, and 
 it was natural that he should stand beside Grant 
 and Sherman when a grateful people rewarded its 
 servants. 
 
 IMPULSIVE BUT GENEKOUS. 
 
 General Sheridan was one of those impulsive men 
 who often create enemies without intent. To his 
 officers he was stern and exacting, and, when ex¬ 
 cited, was apt to be harsh and inconsiderate in his 
 treatment of subordinates. But in his cooler mo¬ 
 ments Sheridan would make amends, his apologies 
 being all the sweeter because unexpected, and some¬ 
 times not deserved. 
 
 Courage and dash always won Sheridan’s heart, 
 and he held Wilson and Torbert and Custer, his 
 division generals, in warm esteem. After a bold 
 
SURRENDER OF LEE, 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 129 
 
 movement his words of praise came like a hot tor¬ 
 rent from his lips, causing the cheek of the recip¬ 
 ient to flush and glow. With his men, the rank 
 and file, “ Little Phil,” as they loved to call him, 
 was kind and thoughtful. He took especial pains 
 to see that they were well clothed and well fed, and 
 while in the field he did not recklessly throw his 
 troops upon the enemy, but keeping his forces in 
 hand dealt terrible blows. When he put his men 
 into battle he expected them to fight and compelled 
 them to do so, never hesitating to share their 
 dangers in leading them on in person. 
 
 A CHARACTERISTIC INCIDENT. 
 
 On one occasion a brigade commander failed in 
 completely executing a movement in the general 
 plan of an engagement. Perceiving the error at a 
 glance, Sheridan galloped over and straightened the 
 line, meanwhile hurling angry words upon the head 
 of the unfortunate commander. Seeing that part of 
 the movement in successful progress, Sheridan gal¬ 
 loped away to another part of the field. The brig¬ 
 ade, smarting under the reproof given their leader, 
 performed prodigies of valor and covered themselves 
 with glory. The following day Sheridan rode over 
 to the brigade as it stood under arms. Raising his 
 hat to the Brigadier, he shouted : 
 
 “ Men of the Third brigade ! To your bravery we 
 owe much of the success of yesterday. As soldiers, 
 I thank you and your General, and shall hereafter 
 know that I can always rely ux3on the old Third 
 brigade.” 
 
 Amid the wild cheers of the men “ Little Phil” 
 
130 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 disapjjeared, but there were no more devoted fol¬ 
 lowers of Sheridan than this happy brigadier 
 and his gratified command. The incident had a 
 Napoleonic touch about it which reminded the 
 writer of McClellan in his best days. 
 
 SEVERE BUT KIND. 
 
 General Sheridan, like all impulsive men, had an 
 extremely kind heart. Stern in discipline, he was 
 merciless in treating military crimes. One day he 
 had just ordered a group of foragers to be severely 
 punished, and was riding down a side road when he 
 noticed a trooper lying on the grass under a fence. 
 
 “ What’s the matter, my man?” he asked, rein¬ 
 ing in his horse. 
 
 “I got wounded out on the picket line, General,” 
 replied the soldier, c ‘ and am trying to get to the 
 hospital.” 
 
 “ Slow work on foot,” remarked Sheridan. 
 “ Where’s your horse % ” 
 
 u Killed under me when I got hit,” was the terse 
 reply. 
 
 Directing some of his orderlies to dismount the 
 General saw the wounded man placed on the saddle 
 behind one of them and ordered him to convey his 
 charge to the nearest surgeon. Many instances of 
 this kind could be related. 
 
 HIS APPEARANCE IN BATTLE. 
 
 In action Sheridan was an extraordinarv man. 
 
 «/ 
 
 It was his habit to select a rising bit of ground, 
 which enabled him to view the greater part of his 
 lines. Sitting there in the saddle, like a carved 
 statue, his eye would watch everything, and if a 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 131 
 
 critical moment occurred lie instantly galloped to 
 the scene, and by his presence restored confidence 
 among his men. It was a grand sight to see him 
 ride swiftly along the lines just before a charge 
 began, and raise the enthusiasm of his troops to 
 fever heat. Then his cheek glowed with excite¬ 
 ment, his eye grew bright and there was a magnetic 
 influence about him which extended itself to every 
 saber and musket bearer in the ranks. At such 
 moments he seemed transformed, and it was no 
 wonder that his troops afterward moved with steadi¬ 
 ness and determination into the vortex of flame that 
 awaited them. 
 
 At the battle of Winchester, when the old Sixth 
 corps crossed the field in magnificent array to 
 pierce Early’s center and so carry the day, Sheri¬ 
 dan rode along their flanks and cried out: 
 
 “ Men of the Sixth, our victory to-day depends 
 upon you ! ” 
 
 These electrical words passed from mouth to 
 mouth, and animated by the confidence of their 
 leader the men of the Roman cross carried their 
 tattered colors forward and clean through the Con¬ 
 federate center. Then Early was “sent whirling 
 through Winchester,” as Sheridan epigrammati- 
 cally expressed it in his despatches. 
 
 SHERIDAN AND WRIGHT. 
 
 At Cedar Creek, when he made his historic ride 
 from Winchester, Sheridan found the lines reform¬ 
 ing under Wright for another assault. Satisfying 
 himself that the lines of battle were correct, he 
 dashed along the front of his army and encouraged 
 
132 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 his men by his visible presence. Then he sent 
 them forward, and by one fell stroke ended the 
 Shenandoah campaign. 
 
 WHAT CONSTITUTES A GREAT GENERAL. 
 
 Two qualities are necessary to make a great gen¬ 
 eral. He must know not only how to fight, but 
 when to fight, and he should always aim at produc¬ 
 ing permanent results. In our civil war many 
 really good commanders could fight when the oc¬ 
 casion arose, but they often fought without prepar- 
 tion or not at the proper moment. Besides, they 
 were content to win the battle without following it 
 up and with another blow emphasize the first by 
 permanently disabling their antagonist. McClellan, 
 having defeated Lee at Antietam, was content to 
 let the Army of Northern Virginia slip through his 
 fingers and escape across the Potomac to recuperate. 
 At Gettysburg Meade was satisfied with whipping 
 Lee on Culp’s Hill, and permitted the Confederate 
 leader to make good his retreat into the Shenandoah 
 Valley. * ' f V 
 
 Sheridan, like Grant and Sherman, was made of 
 different stuff, for when he entered the valley he 
 made up his mind to render that convenient field of 
 operations forever useless to the Confederacy. 
 
 When Grant was preparing for his overland cam¬ 
 paign he recruited the Army of the Potomac by 
 emptying the fortifications around Washington. 
 This was contrary to the ideas of Secretary Stanton, 
 who insisted that the national capital must be 
 guarded against the flank attacks of Lee. 
 
 “ Once I get started,” replied Grant, “ there will 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 133 
 
 be no flank movements, for I will keep Lee too 
 busy.” 
 
 SHERIDAN’S PERMANENT BLOWS. 
 
 This was Grant’s plan, and it was also Sherman’s, 
 so when Sheridan found himself on an independent 
 line he decided to inflict a crushing blow. A good 
 deal of harsh criticism has been made on Sheridan’s 
 devastation of the Shenandoah Valley as unneces¬ 
 sary and cruel. But, as Sherman has very aptly 
 said, “ War is always cruel,” and in this case Sheri¬ 
 dan’s cruelty was in reality kindness. 
 
 He advanced up the valley in August, 1864, very 
 leisurely, allowing Early to fall back as leisurely. 
 His object was twofold. He wanted to examine the 
 topography of the valley and allow the luxuriant 
 wheat crop to ripen. Having accomplished this, 
 he gave Early time to reap and stack the whe % at, 
 and then in September descended upon his lines 
 like a whirlwind. Pie thrashed Early soundly and 
 destroyed the garnered wheat by fire, and in some 
 instances destroyed barns and buildings. By 
 smashing Early he weakened Lee, and by destroy¬ 
 ing the wheat crop deprived the Confederate leader 
 of his anticipated supplies. 
 
 These were permanent results. The Shenandoah 
 was closed as a line for menacing operations, and 
 Sheridan’s campaign narrowed the boundaries for 
 both Lee and J ohnston. The battles of Winchester 
 and Cedar Creek were brilliant victories, but they 
 were chiefly valuable because their effects were felt 
 long after the smoke of cannon and musket had 
 disappeared. As a strategic movement, his valley 
 campaign stands on a par with Sherman’s march to 
 
134 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN, 
 
 the sea and Grant’s line of circumvallation around 
 Lee. The three fitted together and ended the war. 
 
 Regarding the charge of cruelty in devastating 
 the valley, it need only be said that Napoleon did 
 likewise, and so did Wellington, and so did Fred¬ 
 erick the Great. Real generals are like surgeons, 
 for they must not shrink from giving pain if they 
 wish to make their operations successful. McClel¬ 
 lan sought to save the lives of his soldiers by 
 besieging an inferior force at Yorktown, and lost 
 more men by disease than he could have sacrificed 
 by direct assault. 
 
 That was what made Sheridan a great general. 
 
 A true soldier, a born tactician, and a man who 
 knew just when to fight, Sheridan won imperish¬ 
 able renown, and his name will forever shine 
 brightly on the pages of American history. Though 
 richly rewarded by his country, he deserved it by 
 faithful service and the display of high military 
 genius. 
 
 SHERIDAN’S DETERMINATION. 
 
 In speaking one day of Sheridan General Grant 
 said: ‘‘When Sheridan arrived from his raid 
 around Lee I gave him his orders. They were to 
 move on the left and attack Lee. If the movement 
 succeeded he was to advance ; if it failed he was to 
 make his way into North Carolina and join Sher¬ 
 man. When Sheridan read this part he was, I saw, 
 disappointed. His countenance fell. He had just 
 made a long march, a severe march, and now the 
 idea of another march into North Carolina would 
 disconcert any commander—even Sheridan. He, 
 however, said nothing. I said : 
 
XIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. L 135 
 
 “ ‘ Sheridan, although I have provided for your 
 retreat into North Carolina in the event of failure, 
 I have no idea that you will fail, no idea that you 
 will go to Carolina. I mean to end this business 
 right here.’ 
 
 “ Sheridan’s eyes lit up, and he said with enthu¬ 
 siasm : 
 
 4 ‘ 4 That’s the talk. Let us end the business 
 here.’ 
 
 “But, of course, I had to think of the loyal 
 North, and if we failed in striking Lee it would 
 have satisfied the North for Sheridan to go to the 
 Carolinas. The movement, however, succeeded, for 
 my next news from Sheridan was the battle of Five 
 Forks, one of the finest battles in the war.” 
 
 “ There was no time in the war,” said General 
 Grant on another day, ‘ £ when it was more critical 
 than after the battle of Five Forks, when Lee aban¬ 
 doned Richmond. Sheridan led the pursuit of Lee. 
 He went after him almost with the force of volition, 
 and the country owes him a great debt of gratitude 
 for the manner in which he attacked that retreat. 
 It was one of the incomparable things in the war. 
 
 “The pursuing army was in three parts, under 
 Generals Meade, Ord and Sheridan. I was with 
 Ord’s command. One day I got word from Sheri¬ 
 dan saying that it was most important that I should 
 go at once to his headquarters, as Meade had given 
 his part of the army orders to move in such a man¬ 
 ner that Lee might break through and escape. I 
 reached Sheridan at midnight. He was very anx¬ 
 ious. Meade had given him orders to move on the 
 right flank and cover Richmond. This Sheridan 
 
136 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 thought would open the door for Lee to escape 
 toward Johnston. Meade’s fear was that by uncov¬ 
 ering Richmond Lee would get into our rear and 
 trouble our communications. Sheridan’s idea was 
 to move on the left flank, swing between Lee and 
 the road to Johnston, leave Richmond and our rear 
 to take care of themselves and press Lee and attack 
 him wherever he could be found. Meade’s view 
 was that of an engineer. His theory secured the 
 safety of our army, the safety of Richmond and all 
 the triumphs of the campaign, but at the same time 
 it left the door open for Lee. 
 
 AT SAILOR CREEK. 
 
 “ My judgment coincided with Sheridan’s. The 
 question was not the occupation of Richmond, but 
 the destruction of the army. I told Meade that 
 Richmond was only a collection of houses, while 
 Lee was an active force injuring the country. I 
 did not want Richmond so much as I wanted Lee. 
 I changed Meade’s orders, and he went to work in 
 the most loyal manner. The movement threw us 
 between Lee and the Carolinas. The next morning, 
 when Meade’s force came up, Sheridan attacked 
 Lee. This is known as the battle of Sailor Creek. 
 When I came on the field and found what a rout he 
 had made of the Confederates and that prisoners 
 were coming in by shoals, I saw there was no more 
 fighting left in that army, and the responsibility of 
 any further destruction of life must be on their 
 shoulders, not mine, and I resolved to write to Lee, 
 asking for his surrender.” 
 
 STONE RIVER. 
 
 “ Speaking of Rosecrans’ army,” said General 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 137 
 
 Grant, “ Sheridan’s command at the battle of Stone 
 River was, from all I can learn about it, a wonder¬ 
 ful bit of fighting. It showed what a great general 
 can do even when in a subordinate command, for I 
 believe Sheridan in that battle saved Rosecrans’ 
 army. 
 
 “ Mission Ridge,” remarked General Grant, u al¬ 
 though a great victory, would have ended in the 
 destruction of Bragg but for our mistake in not 
 knowing the ground. Sheridan showed his genius 
 in that battle, and to him I owe the capture of most 
 of the prisoners that were taken. Although com¬ 
 manding a division only, he saw in the crisis of the 
 engagement that it was necessary to advance be¬ 
 yond the point indicated in his orders. He saw 
 that I could not know on account of my ignorance 
 of the ground, and with the instinct of military 
 genius pushed ahead. If others had followed his 
 example we should have had Bragg’s army.” 
 
 HOW SHERIDAN ENDED THE WAR. 
 
 THE UNFLAGGING PURSUIT OF LEE WHICH TER¬ 
 MINATED IN VICTORY AT APPOMATTOX. 
 
 In liis volume “ With General Sheridan in Lee’s 
 Last Campaign,” Colonel F. H. Newhall, a staff 
 officer, tells in the chapter entitled “The Pursuit 
 of Lee” how Sheridan ended the war. 
 
 “On Aprils, 1865, General Sheridan sent a dis¬ 
 patch to General Grant reporting his move on 
 Appomattox Depot and saying; “We will perhaps 
 
138 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 finish the job in the morning. I do not think Lee 
 means to surrender until compelled to.” 
 
 “ As Lee was compelled to surrender next morn¬ 
 ing, this is the last dispatch General Sheridan found 
 it necessary to write. All through the campaign 
 he had been urging on the whole army by word and 
 example, and now he was to see his hopes realized. 
 From the morning that we saw him riding out of 
 his camp below Petersburg until this hour he had 
 never doubted for a moment that a crowning victory 
 would attend our arms should the whole force be 
 put vigorously in and the opening success thor¬ 
 oughly followed up. Looking back at what he 
 wrote to General Grant, we may see how from the 
 first he did not hesitate to commit himself to the 
 defeat and capture of Lee, and how he boldly 
 avowed his belief in entire success, shouldering, as 
 it were, the responsibility of the undertaking, and 
 rendering himself liable to the severest criticism if 
 failure had ensued. 
 
 “ As early as the 31st of March, in the mud at 
 Dinwiddie Court House, he wrote: 4 If the ground 
 would permit, I believe I could, with the Sixth corps, 
 turn the enemy’s left flank (at Five Forks) or cut 
 up their lines,’ and we have seen how he made good 
 this declaration with the Fifth corps the next day, 
 and when this was done how he promptly moved 
 against the flank of Lee’s main line at Petersburg 
 without waiting for orders. From the Namozine 
 road, on April 4, two days before the decisive battle 
 of Sailors’ Creek, he wrote: 4 If we press on we 
 will no doubt get the whole army.’ ” 
 
 “At Jetersville the next afternoon he said in his 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 139 
 
 dispatch (to Grant): 4 1 wish you were here your¬ 
 self. I feel confident of capturing the Army of 
 Northern Virginia if we exert ourselves. I see no 
 escape for Lee.’ Then, as the enemy staggered 
 back from the blow he dealt them at Sailors’ Creek, 
 Sheridan wrote, ‘If the thing is pressed I think 
 Lee will surrender.’ 
 
 “ At sunrise and at dark that day he had three 
 times renewed these confident and urgent messages. 
 ‘ I will move on Appomattox Court House. Should 
 we not intercept the enemy and he be forced into 
 Lynchburg siirrender there is beyond question.’ 
 
 “If it is possible push on your troops. We may 
 have handsome results in the morning.’ 
 
 “ ‘ If General Gibbon and the Fifth Army corps 
 can get up to-night we will perhaps finish the job 
 in the morning. I do not think Lee means to sur¬ 
 render until compelled to do so.’ 
 
 LEE NOT READY TO YIELD. 
 
 u On the day before General Lee had written to 
 General Grant, 1 To be frank, I do not consider that 
 the emergency has arisen to call for the surrender 
 of this army.’ If it had not arisen it was because 
 of the open road to Danville. 
 
 ‘ c Although General Sheridan knew very well 
 that the remnant of Lee’s army confronted him on 
 the road to Appomattox Court House and would 
 try to break through to the railroad at sunrise, he 
 never thought of abandoning his position there, 
 even if the infantry (General Gibbon and Fifth 
 corps) could not get up. As it was, it pattered by 
 our headquarters at daybreak on April 9, 1865, and 
 
140 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 with it came General Ord, who would control the 
 infantry. General Sheridan started to look after 
 the cavalry, who were already skirmishing briskly 
 with the advancing enemy. Their infantry out¬ 
 numbered the cavalry and they knew they were 
 fighting for a point that must be gained or all 
 would be lost. They must prevent the closing of 
 the Danville road. 
 
 “ For a little while the cavalry held their ground 
 under General Crook, but when Sheridan came up 
 he sent word to Generals Ord and Griffin to hurry 
 on and ordered Crook to fall back slowly and not 
 sacrifice his men by trying to check the heavy 
 force attacking him. 
 
 4 ‘General Merritt was now ordered to get his 
 divisions mounted and move round the right of 
 our infantry line, and Crook, as he retired, was 
 instructed to give way in the same direction. Gib¬ 
 bon, with the Twenty-fourth corps ; Griffin, with 
 the Fifth and a division of colored troops belonging 
 to General Ord’s command, were ensconced among 
 the trees silently waiting for orders to advance. On 
 the extreme left General Davies was skirmishing 
 with some rebel cavalry, and Mackenzie was out 
 there somewhere stealing round to their flank. 
 Apparently we were deserting the field as if we had 
 accepted the situation and would now permit Gen¬ 
 eral Lee to pass on unmolested. 
 
 “ Seeing our troopers march off by the flank, 
 apparently giving up the fight for the road and 
 opening a way of retreat, Lee’s men yelled and 
 quickened their pace and doubled their fire. They 
 would get away after all, they thought, for Sheri- 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN, 
 
 141 
 
 dan’s cavalry alone couldn’t hope to stop them, and 
 evidently we had no other troops at hand. 
 
 ONE ROAD OF ESCAPE. 
 
 “ Appomattox Depot gained, their troubles 
 would be at an end, for thence the road to Danville 
 is straight; at last they would have cast us behind 
 them and we might catch them if we could. Fast 
 walkers they, and not much encumbered with 
 impedimenta , they could laugh at our heavily 
 loaded infantry, and if they should ever join John¬ 
 ston—well, wonderful things would happen then ; 
 so they gave us their best yell and pressed on 
 faster. But not far ; for the sound of their peculiar 
 cheer had hardly entered the woods before the long 
 line of our infantry emerged and burst upon their 
 astonished sight. They staggered back and their 
 whole line wavered as if each particular man was 
 terror-struck. They didn’t even fire, palsied as 
 they were by surprise, but rolled back like a reced¬ 
 ing wave. Then our troops advanced, saving their 
 cheers for the end of the Rebellion, which everybody 
 felt must soon be reached. 
 
 “ The undulating lines of the infantry, now rising 
 the crest of a knoll, now dipping into a valley or 
 ravine, pressed on grandly across the open, for here, 
 at last, we were out of the woods in the beautiful, 
 clear fields, and if the Rebellion should crumble 
 here all who fought against it might see it fall. 
 The cavalry on the right trotted out in advance of 
 the infantry line and made ready to take the enemy 
 in flank if he should stand to fight or dash at his 
 train, which now were in full view beyond Appo- 
 
142 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 mattox Court House. At the head of the horse¬ 
 men rode Custer, of the golden locks, the broad 
 sombrero turned up from his broad, bronzed face, 
 the ends of his crimson cravat floating over his 
 shoulders, gold galore spangling his jacket-sleeves, 
 a pistol in his boot, jangling spurs on his heels and 
 a ponderous claymore swinging at his side—a wild 
 daredevil of a general and a prince of advance 
 guards, quick to see and to act. 
 
 THE SURRENDER. 
 
 “ As he is about to strike a final blow for the good 
 cause, his hand is stayed and his great sword drops 
 back again into the scabbard, for out from the 
 enemy’s lines comes a rider ‘bound on bound,’ 
 bearing a white flag of truce to ask time to consum¬ 
 mate surrender. 
 
 “ General Sheridan is just behind and word is sent 
 to him at once. The wild cheers of the men have 
 passed the good news to him and he meets the mes¬ 
 senger half-way. The General notifies General Ord, 
 and the whole line is halted in the crest overlooking 
 Appomattox Court House and the valley beyond, 
 in which lies the broken army of Northern Virginia. 
 
 “ General Sheridan, confiding in the flag of truce, 
 rode out in front of his cavalry and struck across 
 toward Appomattox Court House, which was about 
 the center of the position our troops held at halting. 
 He had hardly gone a hundred yards when some 
 rebel troops in front of him suddenly fired on his 
 little party. Luckily they aimed badly and nobody 
 was hurt, and the General and his stafl, supposing 
 some mistake was at the bottom of this eccentric 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 143 
 
 proceeding, waved their caps and made other 
 friendly signals only to be answered by another 
 volley, happily as ineffectual as the first. Then 
 galloping away they found shelter behind a hill, 
 and Major Allen, of our staff, rode rapidly into the 
 enemy’s lines, on the flank of this dangerous party, 
 and demanded to know the cause of this violation 
 of the flag. A general in command, who evidently 
 supposed himself to be General Taylor in Mexico, 
 replied that South Carolinians never surrendered, 
 and declined to receive any order to suspend hostil¬ 
 ities. Custer hearing this firing promptly moved 
 out to look into it. Meanwhile, Generals Sheridan 
 wended his way to the Court House, where he was 
 met by the Confederate Generals Gordon and Wil¬ 
 cox on neutral ground. Just as they began to talk 
 firing was heard again where the South Carolinians 
 were. General Gordon ordered a staff officer to 
 find out what it meant. 
 
 “ ‘ Never mind,’ said Sheridan. C I know what it 
 is. Let them fight it out.’ 
 
 “ In a moment all was quiet, and the last angry 
 shot had been fired from the war-worn lines, which 
 now awaited the result of the negotiations for sur¬ 
 render. 
 
 4 4 General Sheridan said he was anxious to avoid 
 further loss of life, but he must have some assurance 
 that the proposition to surrender was bona fide and 
 not a makeshift to gain time and advantage. He 
 sent the dispatch of General Lee asking for an inter¬ 
 view to General Grant, who was met by the mes¬ 
 senger, five or six miles away on the main road, 
 hurrying to meet Sheridan. 
 
144 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 44 As Grant rode up to the Court House Generals 
 Ord and Sheridan met him. 
 
 4 4 4 How are you, Sheridan?’ said Grant on dis¬ 
 mounting. To which in a quiet manner Sheridan 
 replied : 
 
 44 4 First rate, thank you ; how are you?’ 
 
 44 4 Is General Lee up there ? ’ 
 
 “ 4 Yes.’ 
 
 44 4 Well, then, we’ll go up.’ 
 
 Phil Sheridan had ended the war. 
 
 SHERIDAN’S LETTERS ABOUT WINCHESTER. 
 
 Col. Herbert E. Hill, of the Eighth Vermont, who 
 has published magazine articles on the campaign in 
 the Shenandoah Valley, received the following au¬ 
 tograph letters from Gen. Sheridan corroborating 
 his statements: 
 
 Chicago, Oct. 17, 1887. 
 Col. Herbert E. Hill, Boston, Mass.: 
 
 Between 6 and 7 o’ clock on Monday, Oct. 19, the 
 officer on picket at Winchester reported to me, 
 while I was in bed at the house of Col. Edwards, the 
 commanding officer, the sound of scattering artillery 
 shots. These I supposed to be made by Grover’s 
 division of the Nineteenth Corps, which was to have 
 made a reconnaissance that morning. My black 
 horse Winchester was saddled, as well as the horses 
 of my staff officers, and we started about 8 o’ clock, 
 passing through the main street of Winchester. 
 
 On reaching the southern suburbs of the town the 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN, 
 
 145 
 
 sound of artillery indicated a battle to me unmistak¬ 
 ably. We walked leisurely until we reached Mill 
 Creek, half a mile or so from the town, trying to 
 determine by the sound whether the firing was com¬ 
 ing towards us or receding, and after crossing Mill 
 Creek and rising a little bluff on the south side, we 
 saw the heads of the troops retreating coming rap¬ 
 idly to the rear. I at once ordered a halt, directed 
 that the train be stopped and parked at Mill Creek, 
 and sent orders that the brigade in garrison at 
 Winchester be stretched across the country and all 
 stragglers stopped. Then, taking twenty men from 
 the escort I rode rapidly on, as nearly parallel to the 
 valley pike as the crowd of stragglers would permit, 
 until I struck Getty’s division of the Sixth Corps, 
 three-quarters of a mile north of Middletown, reach¬ 
 ing there a little before 10 o’clock a.m. I rode 
 my black horse Winchester until just before the 
 final attack at 4 o’clock in the afternoon, when I 
 changed to my gray horse, which I rode until the 
 battle was over. 
 
 P. H. Sheridan, 
 
 Lieutenant-General United States Army. 
 
 Chicago, Oct. 18, 1887. 
 Col. Herbert E. Hill, Boston, Mass.: 
 
 The enemy captured from our troops in the morn¬ 
 ing twenty-four pieces of artillery. These were re¬ 
 captured, and twenty-four more from the enemy 
 in the afternoon, making forty-eight pieces. Ten 
 battle-flags were also captured from the enemy. 
 The black horse Winchester died Oct. 2, 1878, and 
 is set up on exhibition at the Military Institute, 
 
146 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 Governor’s Island. The gray horse was burned up 
 in the Chicago fire, Oct. 9, 1871. 
 
 P. H. Sheridan, 
 
 Lieutenant-General United States Army. 
 
 SHERIDAN’S LAST VISIT TO WEST POINT. 
 
 In speaking of Sheridan, one of the Congress¬ 
 ional Board of Visitors to West Point relates the 
 following: 
 
 General Sheridan, hale and hearty, was moving 
 about over the smooth green sward and well-kept 
 drives at West Point amid all the glory of booming 
 cannon and rows of polished steel with which a 
 military post welcomes a general commanding. As 
 Sheridan stood before the semi-circle of slender, 
 erect young cadets to hand over to them the pile of 
 diplomas which summed up their four years of hard 
 work and exacting drill, his thoughts evidently 
 went back to the time when he, too, stood upon the 
 threshold of his military career with nothing but 
 his second lieutenant’s commission and his academic 
 training. In the unassuming little speech which he 
 made to the cadets before the superintendent began 
 to call up the graduates to receive their diplomas 
 from the General’s hands, Sheridan laid bare the 
 secret of his own military success. 
 
 “Gentlemen,” said he, “I’ll tell you how it all 
 came about. It was all due to two things. When 
 I went out from under the shadow of these trees, as 
 you are doing to-day, I resolved that I would make 
 
147 
 
 * LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 myself the best second lieutenant in „*ie army. 
 Whatever I took up, even if it were the simplest of 
 duties, I tried to do it better than it had ever been 
 done before by others. No matter if you are hidden 
 in an obscure post, never content yourself with 
 doing your second best, however unimportant the 
 occasion. In the second place, I always looked out 
 for the common soldier. Make the men in the 
 ranks feel that you are devoting days of care and 
 thought to their comfort and safety. Trust your 
 reputation to the private, let him speak for you, 
 and in the battle and on the march he will never 
 let your military fame suffer by his cowardice or 
 negligence. Keep these two things in view, and, 
 with your West Point training, success is assured 
 to you.” 
 
 SHERIDAN’S RIDE. 
 
 BY THOMAS BUCHANAN READ. 
 
 Up from the South at break of day, 
 
 Bringing to Winchester fresh dismay, 
 
 The affrighted air with a shudder bore, 
 
 Like a herald in haste to the chieftain’s door, 
 The terrible grumble and rumble and roar, 
 Telling the battle was on once more, 
 
 And Sheridan twenty miles away! 
 
 And wider still those billows of war 
 Thundered along the horizon’s bar, 
 
 And louder yet into Winchester rolled 
 The roar of that red sea uncontrolled, 
 Making the blood of the listener cold 
 As he thought of the stake in that fiery fray, 
 And Sheridan twenty miles away! 
 
148 
 
 LIFE OF GEN. SHEKIDAN. 
 
 But there is a road from Winchester town 
 A good, broad highway leading down; 
 
 And there through the flush of the morning light 
 A steed as black as the steeds of night 
 Was seen to pass with eagle flight. 
 
 As if he knew the terrible need, 
 
 He stretched away with his utmost speed; 
 
 Hill rose and fell, but his heart was gay 
 With Sheridan fifteen miles away! 
 
 Still sprang from those swift hoofs thundering south, 
 
 The dust like smoke from the cannon’s mouth. 
 
 Or the trail of a comet sweeping faster and faster, 
 Foreboding to traitors the doom of disaster; 
 
 The heart of the steed and the heart of the master 
 Were beating like prisoners assaulting their walls, 
 Impatient to be where the battle-field calls ; 
 
 Every nerve of the charger was strained to full play 
 With Sheridan only ten miles away! 
 
 Under his spurning feet the road 
 Like an arrowy Alpine river flowed, 
 
 And the landscape sped away behind 
 Like an ocean flying before the wind; 
 
 And the steed like a bark fed with furnace ire 
 Swept on with his wild eyes full of fire. 
 
 But lo! he is nearing his heart’s desire, 
 
 He is snuffing the smoke of the burning fray, 
 
 With Sheridan only five miles away! 
 
 The first that the General saw were the groups 
 Of stragglers; and then the retreating troops. 
 
 What was done—what to do? a glance told him both; 
 Then striking his spurs with a terrible oath, 
 
 He dashed down the line ’mid a shower of huzzas, 
 
 And the wave of retreat checked its course there, because 
 The sight of the master compelled it to pause. 
 
 With foam and with dust the black charger was gray, 
 
 By the flash of his eye and his red nostril’s play, 
 
LIFE OF GEN. SHERIDAN. 
 
 He seemed to the whole great army to say, 
 “ I’ve brought you Sheridan, all the way 
 From Winchester town to save the day.” 
 
 Hurrah, hurrah, for Sheridan! 
 
 Hurrah, hurrah, for horse and man! 
 
 And when their statues are placed on high, 
 Under the dome of the Union sky, 
 
 The American soldier’s temple of fame— 
 There with the glorious General’s name 
 Be it said in letters both bold and bright, 
 
 “ Here is the steed that saved the day 
 By carrying Sheridan into the fight, 
 
 From Winchester, twenty miles away.” 
 
 / 
 
 THE END. 
 
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 including the new method of making cider with¬ 
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 dealers, druggists, manufacturers, farmers, med¬ 
 ical men, the household, confectioners, hunters, 
 trappers, perfumers, artists, &c. Many of the re¬ 
 cipes have been advertised and sold at sums rang¬ 
 ing from 25 cents to $500; and there are many 
 new and highly valuable recipes never before pub¬ 
 lished. 
 
 PARLOR PASTIMES; or, Whole 
 
 Art Of Amusing.— A new work, by Prof. 
 Raymond, on magic, conjuring, legerdemain, and 
 prestidigitation. It is a complete expose of the 
 Wizard’s Art. No trick or illusion of importance 
 Is left unnoticed; and the instructions and expla¬ 
 nations are so simple and exhaustive that a child 
 «ould perform the tricks. A study of this inter¬ 
 esting work would make any one thoroughly ex¬ 
 pert in amusing either a public or private audience. 
 
 THE HORSE-OWNER’8 GUIDE: 
 
 f ind Complete Horse-doctor.— The 
 
 est Work on the horse eVer published. It should 
 lie in the hands of every one who owns, works, or 
 cares for a horse. It is a book that is heeded,— 
 simple, concise, comprehensive, reliable, and prac¬ 
 tical,-- giving the fullest and best information on 
 all matters that relate to this useful animal. 
 
 THE TAXILERMIST’S GUIDE.— A 
 
 complete instructer in the art of collecting, pre¬ 
 paring, mounting, and preserving all kinds of an¬ 
 imals, birds, fishes, reptiles, and insects. Adapted 
 for the use of amateurs, travelers, and practical 
 workers. A number of the best recipes are given, 
 es used by the best taxidermists, for articles used 
 in the preservation and the setting up of animals. 
 Illustrated. 
 
 TheAMERICAN BUSINESS-MAM, 
 & Bookkeeper’s Practical Guide. 
 
 A complete guiue to all kinds and forms of com¬ 
 mercial and mercantile transactions, including a 
 dictionary of all the terms and technicalities used 
 in commerce and in business houses. Correct 
 legal forms are given of bills, deeds, notes, drafts, 
 cheques, agreements, receipts, rontracts.and other 
 instruments of writing constantly necessary to all. 
 
 PANTO- 
 r I o r 
 
 __.._.._als. ancLTableaux, it also 
 
 eeutams hlty tableaux Vivauts, or Animated Pic- 
 tnrea Persons who have never seen any of these 
 things acted can easily arrange and perform them. 
 Ter shurch fairs, school exhibitions, and parlor 
 entertainments, they are just the thing, being 
 easily produced and giving excellent opportunities 
 for both yowag and eld to participate. 
 
 
 READY-MADE AUTOGRAPH- 
 
 ALBUM VERSES) expressive of almost 
 every human feeling and sentiment, such as Lova, 
 Friendship, Eespect, Admiration, Good Wishes, 
 &c., including a great number of acrostics fay 
 proper names, all entirely original. Here all may 
 find something to write at once eloquent and ap- 
 propriate, to suit every phase of feeling, sentiment, 
 or humor. 
 
 HOW TO WRITE A LETTER.—A 
 
 complete letter-writer for ladies and gentlemen. 
 It tells how to write a letter upon any subject out 
 of the writer’s “ own head.” It also contains the 
 “Art of Kapid Writing” by the abbreviation of 
 longhand, and a “Dictionary of Abbreviations.” 
 This book contains all the points and features that 
 are in other letter-writers, with very much that is 
 new, original, and very important, and which can 
 not be ■‘bund in any other book. 
 
 HOW TO WRITE SHORTHAND, 
 
 Without a teacher.— A practical element¬ 
 ary guide to Stenographic Writing and Deporting. 
 A boy of twelve can by this method learn in a 
 week what it would take an adult a year to le^ja 
 by any other method. t 
 
 COMMON COMPLAINTS, aND 
 
 HOW TO CURE THEM.— By M; i jAFAY- 
 
 et-pb Byrn, M.D. As a book of ready remedies 
 for the ordinary ills of life, this book should be in 
 the hands of every person who is liable to an acci¬ 
 dent or subject to a disease. It tells what to do 
 and how to do it in the plainest possible inarmeP. 
 
 THE PRACTICAL MAGICIAN: 
 
 and.Ventriloquist’s Guide. Bva se¬ 
 ries ot systematic lessons the learner is conducted 
 through the whole field of magic, conjuring, and 
 legerdemain. There are also given complete in¬ 
 structions for acquiring the art of ventriloquism. 
 The instructions are so very simple and practical 
 that no one can fail to acquire this amusing ait, 
 and become a proficient ventriloquist and polyph- 
 onist. Illustrated. 
 
 TRICKS AND DIVERSIONS WITH 
 
 CARDS. —An entirely new work, containing 
 all the tricks and deceptions with cards ever in¬ 
 vented, including the latest tricks of the most cel¬ 
 ebrated conjurers magicians, and prestidigitators, 
 popularly explained, simplified, and adapted for 
 home amusements and social entertainments. To 
 lovers of the marvelous and ingenious this book, 
 will be a perpetual source of delight. Handsomely 
 illustrated. 
 
 The HUNTER’S AND TRAPPER’S 
 
 COMPLETE .CMIDE.- A practical man' 
 ual of instruction in the art of hunting, trapping, 
 and fishing. The instructions will enable any one 
 to become thoroughly expert in the sports and 
 pastimes of the river, field, or forest. Illustrated. 
 
 OFFENBACH’ 
 
 OUT A- 
 
 arc given, 
 
 cuts and diagrams, making the art so simple that 
 the most ignorant can become expert in it. 
 
 PERSONAL BEAUTY? or, the Whole 
 
 Art ot Attaining Bodily Vigor, Physical Develop¬ 
 ment, Beauty, ot Feature, and Symmetry of Form. 
 With the Science of Dressing with Taste, Ele¬ 
 gance, and Economy. Illustrated. 
 
 THE AMATEUR PAINTER.-A man¬ 
 ual of instructions in the arts of painting, varnish¬ 
 ing, and gilding, with plain rules for the practice 
 of every department of house and sign paio<9*%C 
 
 PRICE TWENTY-FIVE CENTS EACH. 
 
 Address HURST & CO,, 122 Nassau Street, New York* 
 
MAGNET HANDBOOKS. 
 
 PRICE TWENTY-FIVE CENTS EACH. 
 
 BOOK 
 find 
 
 lessor _ _ 
 
 cheapness, this work is superior to any published. 
 Hot only does it contrfn a vast number of reliable 
 
 f nd practical recipes and processes relating to the 
 ne arts, trades, and general manufactures, but it 
 gives full and explicit instructions for acquiring 
 and successfully practising numerous arts and pro¬ 
 fessions, such as Eiectrotyping and Electroplating, 
 making and working an Electric Telegraph, Mono¬ 
 chromatic and Crayon Painting, Vitremaine, and 
 many others of equal value and importance. 
 
 A SCIENTIFIC TREATISE ON 
 Stammering and Stuttering, and 
 Jt8 cure-— We have here this dimeult subject 
 treated so intelligently and plainly that any person 
 interested can read and learn the causes of the 
 peculiar and distressing impediments in his 
 speech. It thoroughly explains the different 
 causes that produce stammering, and then pro¬ 
 ceeds to make plain the means of cure, so that any 
 person with a determination to succeed, by follow¬ 
 ing the instructions given, can cure himself of this 
 most unhappy affliction, and at no expense but 
 the cost of the book. 
 
 THE REAL SECRET ART AND 
 
 _i happy wives, and bachelors become happy 
 
 husbands, m a brief space of time and by easy 
 methods. Also containing complete directions for 
 declaring intentions, accepting vows, and retain¬ 
 ing affections, both before and after marriage. 
 
 CHOICE VERSES FOR VALEN- 
 
 ' selected 
 
 VV.BVO 11) ' 1 ’ 1 1 V (l II I VI UU „ WVUVU, ...A, D.l.W, goldf'll, 
 
 end diamond wedding anniversaries; bouquet and 
 birthday presentations, autograph-album verses 
 and acrostics, and a variety of verses and poems 
 adapted to social anniversaries and rejoicings. 
 
 THE AMERICAN REFERENCE* 
 
 BOOK.— A manual of facts, containing a chron¬ 
 ological history of the United States; the public 
 lands; everything about the constitution, debts, 
 revenues, productions, wealth, population, rail¬ 
 roads, exemption, interest, insolvent and assign¬ 
 ment statutes of the United States, &c. 
 
 KEY TO COMPOSITION: or,How 
 
 to Write a Bt)Ok.— A complete guide to au¬ 
 thorship,and practical instructer in all kinds of lit¬ 
 erary labor. As an aid and instructer to those who 
 ftesire to follow literary pursuits permanently for 
 vofit, or to those who write for recreation and 
 ieasure, this book is indispensable. 
 
 i GYMNASTICS WITHOUT A 
 
 TEACHER.— This book plainly explains to 
 you how to go about learning all the popular 
 branches of gymnastics, Every man and boy 
 ought to learn the different exercises described in 
 this book, if he wishes to live a healthy life, and 
 preserve a sound and vigorous body, a sharp eye, 
 and simple limbs. 
 
 FORTUNE-TELLINC MADE EASY 
 
 r.the Dreamer’s Sure Culde.—’This 
 
 look will tell you about your destiny, your pros¬ 
 pective marriage, your business prospects, your 
 %ve-affairs. The book is a perfect oracle of fate. 
 
 ft 
 
 tongue, in fifteen easy 
 accent, grammar, and pronunciation. 
 
 INCIDENTS OF AMERICAN 
 
 CAMP-LIFE.— A collection of tragic, pathet¬ 
 ic, and humorous events, which actually occurred 
 faring the late civil war. 
 
 OUR KNOWLEPQE-BOX) or, old 
 
 eret* and new dueovenea _ 
 
 THE 
 
 COOK-_ 
 
 teaches plainly ,, , , _ 
 
 carve every kind of fish, fowl, meat, game, and 
 vegetable. Also, how to preserve fruits and vege¬ 
 tables, and how to mako pastry. 
 
 THE FAMILY, CYCLOPEDIA.-A 
 
 complete and practical domestic manual for all 
 classes. This valuable and comprehensive work is 
 needed in every house. 
 
 tions, blows, stops, and guards. By Ned Donellt, 
 Professor of Boxing to tne London Athletic Club. 
 
 THE ART OF BEAUTIFYING AND 
 reserving the Hair; or, How to 
 Jake the Hair Crow.— This is the only 
 exhaustive scientific work on the hair published. 
 
 HAWTHORNE’S COMIC AND 
 TRAGIC DIALOGUES.— Including many 
 of the most affecting, amusing, and spirited diar 
 logues ever written,— affording opportunities foJ 
 the display of every different quality of action, 
 voice, and delivery,— suitable for schools, ucade* 
 mies, anniversaries, and parlor presentations. 
 
 HAWTHORNE’S JUVENsL 
 SPEAKER AND READER.— Prepan 
 expressly and carefully for the use of young chil¬ 
 dren. Containing a large number of pieces, some 
 simple enough to please infants, while all are sura 
 to delight and improve children of every age. 
 
 HAWTHORNE’S TRAGIC RE- 
 
 CITER. — Containing the very best pieces ever 
 written expressive of Love, Hate, Fear, Huge, Ke- 
 venge, Jealousy, and the other most melting, stir¬ 
 ring, and startling passions of the human heart. 
 
 HAWTHORNE’S COMIC RECITER 
 
 Filled with the liveliest, jolliest, laughter-provok¬ 
 ing stories, lectures, and other humorous pieces. 
 
 Hawthorne’s Book of Ready¬ 
 made Speeches on all subjects tliat can 
 occur, whether on serious, sentimental, or humor¬ 
 ous occasions. Including speeches and replies 
 at dinners, receptions, festivals, political meetings, 
 military reviews, firemen’s gatherings, and indsed 
 wherever and whenever any party, large or small, 
 is gathered to dine, to mourn, to congratulate, or 
 ■ to rejoice. Appended to which are forms of all 
 kinds of resolutions, &c., with a great number ol 
 sentiments and toasts. 
 
 , Theatricals at Home: or, Plays 
 
 for the Parlor. Plainly teaching how to dress, 
 make up, study, and perform at private theatrical 
 parties. To which are added how to arrange an<C 
 display tableaux vivants, shadow pantomimes, 
 drawing-room magic, acting charades, conun. 
 drums, enigmas, &c., with explanatory engravings: 
 
 Snip, Snap, Snorum, and nearly 
 
 one hundred other parlor games, such as juvenile 
 card-games, games of forfeits, games of action, • 
 games with pen and pencil. Including many new 
 and all the old favorite amusements calculated to 
 make home happy and set the youngsters scream¬ 
 ing wild with innocent delight 
 
 The Art of Canning, Pickling, and 
 
 smoking the various kinds of Meat, I isIi, and 
 Game. Also, how to preserve and keep, fresh and 
 full of flavor, fruits, berries, and vegetables. To 
 which is added complete directions for making 
 candies and choice confections. 
 
 , Fishing with Hook and Line.—TU* 
 
 book gives plain and full directions for catching 
 all the different kinds of fish found in American 
 waters; the proper Season for fishing for 
 and the bait, tackle, <tc., to be used. 
 
 Honest Abe’s Jc kps.—A cotleotton d 
 authentic jokes aaa squibs eTAbrahem fehreolas