The life, campaigns and battles of General Ulysses S. Grant, comprising a full and authentic account of the famous soldier, from his earliest boyhood to the present time

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Introduction

Theee are crises in the lives of nations when the task of deliverance from calamity or death seems to be committed to the wisdom or valor of one man. The annals of the race are clustered with illustrations of this truth. The history of our Republic affords many examples of such instrumentalities working for its highest good under the inspiration of God.

That great events reveal, if not create, great men, is a recognized truth as palpable as that sun-heat envelops the earth with animal life, and food for its sustenance, and clothes the sphere in beauty for the delight of its master, Man. The law of Irade expressed by the relative words Supply and Demand, works potentially in the moral world. There would be no heroes, saints, or sages, were they not needed. In calmer periods of profound peace and general contentment, soldiers and statesmen seldom appear above the common plane of society ; but when tempests arise, and political wisdom in council, or valiant deeds in the field, are demanded,, competent statesmen and soldiers start into view almost as suddenly and marvelously as Minerva,

" Bursting full armed from the brain of Jove."

The late Civil War afforded a notable example of this truth in the career of the Soldier, the events of which are briefly recorded in this volume. That war came

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upon the nation like lightning from the clouds, and kindled a flame that swept with terrible swiftness over the land like a prairie-fire in the autumn. For a moment the most hopeful feared that all was lost, and that the unnatural conflagration would leave the Eepublic a blackened waste. The civil head of the Government folded his hands, and piously recommended fasting and prayer, while the thunder of active rebellion was bellowing in the southern sky. The Chief of the Armies was almost powerless because of the infirmities of age. The most trusted men in civil and military life were found to be in practical alliance with the conspirators for the overthrow of the Eepublic, that an oligarchy arrayed against the people might build upon its ruins a hideous empire founded upon injustice and stupendous wrong, with an ensign bearing a bold denial of the rights of man.

To the hands of a wise, honest, and righteous citizen the reins of government were soon entrusted. Then the conspirators made war upon the national life. The people were called upon to defend it. Armed men seemed to spring from the earth all over the Free-labor States like the harvest of a dragons'-teeth seed-time. But nearly all were unlearned in the methods of war. Officers and implements had to be created. There were men in abundance, but few wise leaders. Ambitious and even disloyal persons aspired to the high honors of command. Blow after blow was awkwardly given and returned; and a little heavier or more successful one than had yet been struck made many a Young Napoleon in the estimation of the excited people. But "rocket" heroes soon became "sticks," in the pathways of great armies strewn with the terrible evidences of their incompetency.

INTRODUCTION.

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Almost three years of strife passed by. More than a million of loyal men had gone to the field in defense of the national life, and yet that life was in peril. That host of armed patriots was broken into fragments, acting often without concert at widely separated points. The Government and the people were tired of delays, and the almost indecisive warfare of posts, as the struggle had been, in a great degree, up to that time. It was evident to both that proper vigor to secure quick success in efforts to crush the rebellion could only be obtained by committing the supreme control of the armies in the field to one competent commander, and all eyes and hearts were turned toward General Grant, whose convictions as a patriot and whose ability as a leader were then preeminently conspicuous. All over the region westward of the Appalachian ranges of mountains were the evidences of his skill and valor in the destruction or weakening of the power of the public enemy. His captures of men and munitions of war were manifold greater than those of any of his contemporaries. He was a man of few words and abundant deeds, and had shown, on all occasions, not only military genius of a high order, but evidences of sound statesmanship, for he had been often called upon to perform the twofold duties of soldier and civilian in his dealings with the foe. For these reasons he was promoted to Lieutenant-General, and placed in command of all the Armies of the Republic. He was then a few months younger than Washington was when he took command of the Continental Armies.

This appointment thoroughly satisfied the loyal people, and inspirited them with the most buoyant hopes. General Grant had shown a proper appreciation of the ' demands of the crisis. He had no sympathy with a system of warfare which carried the lash of coercion in one

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INTRODUCTION".

hand, and the sugar-plums of persuasion in the other. That had been tried too long for the national good. lie believed the Government to be right, and the rebellion against its authority wrong. He knew that compromise, with honor to the Republic, was impossible, and his plan was to make war with all the terrible intentions of war, as the most speedy and effectual way to crush the rebellion. He knew that such war would be more merciful and humane than its opposite ; that sharp, decisive battles, waged not exclusively for any post, but for the destruction of his adversary's armies, would require fewer lives and less treasure than feeble blows, which would wound but not destroy.

With these views, and with rare wisdom and sagacity in his choice of men to help him, the Lieutenant-General organized his armies, and planned his campaigns ; and, with the spirit of his declaration on the sanguinary field of Spottsylvania Court-House, — " I propose to fight it out on this line if it takes all summer," he made war, and ended the rebellion. He is one of the most silent-tongued of men, yet in his noble character and wondrous deeds there is an eloquence that thrills the feelings, and wins the hearts of the loyal people, by whom he is more honored and beloved than any other living citizen.

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LIST OF CONTENTS.

Introduction.

Chapter I. — Grant's Early Days. PAOB 3

Birth and birth-place — Name, and how he obtained it — Where he was educated — "What is the meaning of Can't?" — The horse trade — He fights to defend the name of Washington 13

Chapter II. — At West Point

When admitted and by whose influence — Advancing through the classes — What he learned each year — His graduation — His classmates — Pertinacity of character — " Comr any Grant" 20

Chapter III. — Enters the Army

Mexican War — Brevet Second-Lientennnt of Infantry — Employed on the Missouri frontier — Ordered to Texas — Fully commissioned — Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma — Rio Grande — Monterey — Vera Cruz — Molino del Rey — Chapultepec — Brevets-First-Lieutenant — Mentioned in official reports — Regimental companions.. . 30

Chapter IV. — Subsequent Services and Resignation

Civil life — Oregon — Captain — Resigns the United States Service — Fanner and cord-wood dealer — Engages in the leather trade — Knows more of tanning leather than of politics — Value of good leather 41

Chapter V. — Tuy Rebellion. — Grant Volunteers and becomes a Brigadier-General

Staff and mustering officer in Illinois— Energy — Colonel of the 21st Illinois Volunteers — Services in Missouri— Brigadier-General of Volunteers — Comparative table of Generals appointed on the same day, and how employed on January 1, 1861 45

Chapter VI — Post and District Commander. — Belmont

Commander at Cairo — Forces increased — Value of Cairo — Occupation of Paducah and Smitliland, Kentucky — Proclamation — Unpretending style of dress — Constantly smoking — Correspondence with General Polk — Victory at Fredericktown— Belmont— Bravery of his troops— Letter to his father — His appreciation of his vommaud — Care for the wounded 49

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CnAPTER VII. — District or Cairo. — Grand Reconnoissance.

District extended — Assumes command — Composition of staff — Forces further increased — Issues an order against picket-shooting — Spies to be looked after — Reconnoissance in force into Western Kentucky — Manning the gunboats 59

Chapter VIII. — Forts Henry and Donelson. — Value of tiie Feint

His command brigaded — The start — Advance upon and occupation of Fort Henry — Treatment of prisoners — Commander of three divisions — Movement upon Fort Donelson — Investment and battles — Rebel sorties — Correspondence with General Btickner — An " unconditional surrender" demanded — " I propose to move immediately upon your works" — Victory — " The Union flag floats over Fort Donelson" — Value of the victory — Major-General of Volunteers — General Halleck's announcement of the success — A spirited incident 66

Chapter IX. — District op West Tennessee

A new district formed — General Grant in command — Congratulatory order for recent victories — Clarksville taken — Martial law in Tennessee — Marauding and plunder prohibited — Advance up the Tennessee River — Sword presentation — Expeditionary movements — The rebel commanders opposed to Grant — The Mississippi blockade 79

Chapter X. — Pittsburg Landing or Siiiloii

Positions of the belligerent forces — General A. S. Johnston's address to his command — The commanding officers of both armies — Preliminary skirmishing — Rebel plans — "The first day's struggle"— Bravery of General Grant — Driven back but not* defeated — Re-enforcements — "The second day's battle"— The result, Victory—The news received in New York — Excitement throughout the North — Thanks of the War Department — Salute of one hundred guns — General Grant wounded — Correspondence with General Beauregard — Reconnoissance— Evidences of a hasty retreat of the rebels— General Halleck at Pittsburg Landing— His thanks to General Grant 86

Chapter XI. — Movement and Siege op Corinth

Preliminary movements— Three armies combined— The "Grand Army of the Teunessee" — How composed — Outcry against General Grant — Mr. Washburne defends him in Congress — General Halleck retains him, and appoints him second in command — He superintends the movements in the field— Gradual evacuation of Corinth— Approach of the parallels— Advance of the whole army with General Giant at the head — Occupation of Corinth— Interesting details — Pursuit of the enemy 97

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PASS

Chapter XII.— Tub Department op West Tennessee.— Memphis

His command further increased — Difficulty with regard to Memphis — Stringent orders — Guerilla warfare — Aiding the rebels — General Grant strikes at the root of the evil— The negroes put to useful employment — Tb.3 Act of Congress obeyed— Confiscation not wholesale plunder — Skulkers to be drafted— Quiet restored. Ill

Chapter XIII. — Iuka — Corinth and the Hatchie

Approach of the rebels — Battle of Iuka — His combinations — The result — Change of head-quarters and why — Rebel advance upon Corinth — Disposition of his forces — Attack upon Corinth — The 'epulse — The rebels brought between two tires— Grant's strategy — Victory — The President's congratulations 120

Chapter XIV. — Department op the Tennessee. — Discipline. — Trade

The new command — Reorganization of the forces — The army to move light — Cavalry expeditions — Head-quarters removed to La Grange, Tennessee — Discipline — Marauding to be severely punished, and how — Departmental staff — Contraband camp established — A regiment assessed to pay for plundering — Trade regulations — Punishment for violation of the same — Why General Grant would not appoint traders 132

Chapter XV. — Advance into Mississippi. — A Retrospect. The previous efforts to take Vicksburg and their failures 14.G

Chapter XVI.— Grant's First Movements towards Vicksburg. The expedition by way of Delta, Mississippi — Its success — Advance to and occupation of Holly Springs — Arrival at Oxford, moving towards Jackson, Mississippi — Surrender of Holly Springs — The result — 'Die guilty party — Brave defence of other posts — Investigation — punishment and reward 151

Chapter XVII. — Commander of Four Army Corps.— Sherman's Expedition.

Constitution of the 13th, 15th, lGth and 17th Army Corps— Start of General Sherman's expedition— Stringent order — Landing of _ the forces 5>I

Chapter XVIIL— Sherman's Attack upon Vicksburo.— Arkansas

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Advance of the right wing of the Army of the Tennessee — The assault upon the works— Their strength— The charge upon the heights — Change in the command — The capture of Arkansas

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Chapter XIX. — Discipline.— Guerillas.

Disaffection of the 109th Illinois Volunteers— Court of Inquiry- Disgraceful dismissal of disloyal officers — Cavalry operations — General Grant's order concerning negro trooos 110

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Head-quarters established at Young's Point — The rebel position — Reopening of the Williams Canal — Important order — Reconnoitring expeditions 114

Chapter XXI. — The Queen op the "West and Ixdianola.

Eunning the batteries — Colonel Ellet's operations — loss of the two vessels 173

Chapter XXII. — The Lake Providence Canal. 182

Chapter XXIII. — The Yazoo Pass Expedition.

Dangers of the trip — Blockade of the Tallahatchie — Diversion of the rebel forces - 184

Chapter XXI V. — The Steele's Bayou Expedition.

Personal reconnoissance — Dangerous position of the expeditionary vessels — Opportune arrival of General Sherman's troops 190

Chapter XXV. — The Health of the Army.

Surgeon-General Hammond's inquiries — General Grant's replies — "No army in better condition" 198

Chapter XXVI. — Overland Movements. — Running the Batteries.

Admiral Farragut's arrival at Vicksburg via Port Hudson — Two rams run by the Vicksburg batteries — The march to New Carthage and Perkins's Plantation — Porter's fleet passes Vicksburg — Passage of the transports 201

Chapter XXVII. — Grierson's Expedition.

Dash of the cavalry — Feints — The Southern Railroad destroyed — Immense destruction of rebel government property — Arrival at Baton Rouge — General Grant's report 20-1

Chapter XXVIII. — Other Preliminary Movements. — Attack upon Grand Gulf.

Affair at Nanconnah — General Banks's movements from Baton Rouge — The army at Hard Times — Naval attack upon Grand Gulf — Running the batteries 210

Chapter XXIX. — The Landing at Bruinsburg and Advance. Marching light — The bivouac — Rapid movements — The march. ... 212

Chapter XXX. — The Battle of Thompson's Hill or Port Gibson — The Evacuation of Grand Gulf.

Skirmishing — The fight — General Grant on the field — The enemy driven — The pursuit — General Grant occupies Grand Gulf — His entire disregard of danger 216

Contents

Chapter XXXI. — Outside Operations.

Corwyn's cavalry expedition — Sherman's feint on the Yazoo — General Banks to co-operate 223

Chapter XXXII. — The Advance towards Jackson. — Battle op Raymond.

Chapter I. Grant's Early Dats

If, as has been said, "success is the test of merit,'' then indeed has the subject of this biography fairlyearned the warmest encomiums, and the sincerest respect and admiration, not only of his fellow-countrymen, but of the entire world. Rising from humble life by rapid yet regular grades of promotion, to the highest military position within the gift of the Republic, his personal history is one which, like that of the "Father of his Country," can never fail to attract the deepest interest of the people who now, and through all time to come, shall enjoy the rich fruits of his labors, his skill, and his patriotism. " Deeds, not words," seems to have been the motto of this grave, unassuming, and reticent man, who cheerfully accepts any responsibility which his superiors see fit to lay upon him, and gives to the work in hand all the best energies of his mind, and all the unwearied devotion of a patriot soldier. " Posterity delights in detail;" and, both in the present and future time, throughout the length and breadth of the land which he has so largely contributed to save intact from the attacks of treason, the slightest event connected with the life, character, and career of the General of the armies of the United States, can not fail to have an absorbing interest to readers of every class and every age.

Gen. Ulysses S. Grant is descended from an ancient and worthy Connecticut family, the immigrant ancestor oi which was Matthew Grant, who came over from England in 1G30, in the ship " Mary and John," and with his fellow-passengers founded the town of Dorchester (now South Boston), Mass. In 1G36 he was one of the company who settled the town of "Windsor, Connecticut, and was an active and prominent citizen, being a notable land surveyor, a faithful and remarkably conscientious townclerk and an influential member of the Church. His great-grandson, Noah Grant, located at Tolland, Conn., and his son Noah removed to Coventry, about 1750, and was a Captain in the Crown Point Expedition of 1755, in which he and his brother Solomon were killed. His son, Noah General Grant's grandfather, was a lieutenant of militia at the battle of Lexington, in 1776, and served in the Continental Army during the entire Revolutionary War. He removed from Coventry to Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, about 1787, and there married, as his second wife, Rachel Kelley, in 1791. His son by this second marriage, Jesse "Root Grant, the father of the hero, was born in Westmoreland County, in 1794, from whence, when he was five years of age, the family removed to what is now Columbiana County, Ohio ; and again, when he was ten years old, to Deerfield, Portage County, in the "Western Reserve. His father dying the next year, 1805, the family became somewhat scattered; and during tin' War of 1812 Jesse, with his mother and the younger children, removed to Maysville, Kentucky ; the northern part of Ohio being unsafe for women and children,

HIS EARLY DAYS. 15

on account of the dangers from the British and their Indian allies. In 1815, being then of age, he established himself at Ravenna, Ohio, in the tanning business, to which he had served a full apprenticeship. Driven from thence in 1820 by the prevalence of the fever and ague, he removed to Point Pleasant, Clermont County, Ohio, on the Ohio River, twenty-five miles above Cincinnati ; and there, in June of the same year, he married Hannah, daughter of John Simpson, who, some three years previous had removed thither from Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. Of good family, domestic in her habits, cheerful in disposition, and possessing great firmness and steadiness of character, as well as being a consistent member of the Methodist Church, she was well fitted to be the mother of children, and to influence their lives in the right and noblest direction.

Hiram Ulysses, the eldest child of this worthy couple, both of whom have happily been spared to witness and participate in his fame, was born on the 27th of April, 1822. Among the various anecdotes which, now that he is famous, have been brought to light concerning his earlier years, is this : That once, when he was but two years old, his father " took him in his arms and carried him through the village on some public occasion, and a young man wished to try the effect of the report of a pistol upon him. Mr. Grant consented, though, as he said, the child had never seen a gun or pistol in his life. The hand of the baby was accordingly put on the lock and pressed there quietly, until the pistol was discharged with a loud report. The little fellow exhibited no alarm, neither winking nor dodging, but presently pushed the pistol away, asking, in a childish way, that it be again fixed. From his father's statement, we learn that the boy's first and " ruling passion," almost from the time he could go alone, was for horses. "When only seven and a half years old, he took advantage of his fathers absence from home fur a day, to harness up a three-year-old colt, which, though accustomed to the saddle, had never before had a collar on; and hitching him to a sled, spent the day in hauling brush. By the time he was eight and a half years old, he was a regular driver, hauling wood for his father, and at ten years of age was intrusted with the charge of a pair of horses, with which he drove forty miles, to Cincinnati, and brought back a load of passengers alone. He was always " on hand " when a traveling show or circus came along, was always ready to ride the pony, when the "ring-master" offered the boys in the audience the chance ; and, in his father's words, " whatever he undertook to ride he rode," and nothing could shake him off. He early began to break horses himself, and developed a wonderful faculty for teaching them to pace, — a knack which would have given him plenty of work from the neighbors, if he had not considered it rather degrading to do it for money, and refused to accommodate them.

An anecdote is related by his father, in his contributions to the New York Ledger, which is remarkably characteristic of the determined " grit," as well as of the faculty of adaptation to circumstances, which has since been noticed in his son as a general. Mr. Grant, who had a contract for building the Brown County jail, had need of a number of logs, some fourteen feet in length ; and Ulysses, then in his twelfth year, volunteered to drive team until the logs were hauled, if his father would purchase a certain horse which he thought an excellent match for another which he then owned. This he did, and hired a man to go along with the boy; but, after a few days' trial, the man reported that there was no use in his watching the boy or the team, for the lad could manage it as well, if not

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better, than he could. A few days passed, and Mr. Grant accidentally discovered that the boy loaded the logs into the wagon, by himself, with no assistance but such as he got from the new horse. Surprised and incredulous, he inquired into the process of the apparently impossible feat, and the boy quietly, and in a "matter-of-fact" way, explained that, taking advantage of a large sugar-tree which had been felled, so that it lay aslant, one end resting on the ground and the other elevated, he had hitched the horse to the end of a hewn log, and drawn it up on the sugar-tree, until the end projected far enough over to allow of his backing the wagon under it ; then, when he had hauled up three, which made his "load," in this manner, he backed the hind part of the wagon under them, hitched the horse — a strong animal — in front by means of a long chain extending over the whole length of the wagon-box, and pulled them over, one after another, into the wagon. And thus . he worked for seven months, until the job was completed.

As an example of his self-possession, it is related that, in driving a couple of lady passengers, in a two-horse wagon, across a creek in which the water was higher than he had expected, and finding suddenly that the horses were swimming, and the water up level with the wagonbottom, the ladies were much alarmed, and began to scream, when Ulysses, who was on the front seat, looking coolly over his shoulder, quietly said, " Don't speak — / will take you through safe" — and he did. In these incidents of his boyish days we see a gleam of the same spirit that led him, in after-years, when the whole country were looking on, to say, " I propose to fight it out on this line, if it takes all summer ! "

The first book that Ulysses read, when he was some seven years old, was a "Life of George Washington."

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At scliool he was a fair but not a remarkable scholar — developing a special interest only in mathematics.

As a boy he seems to have been as modest, retiring, and reticent as he has been in his subsequent career; yet he always manifested a proper amount of confidence in his ability to do any thing which was to be expected of a boy of his size and years. Among boys he was regarded as a leader ; yet, without forwardness, he rather sought the company of older persons.

It is needless to repeat here the well-known story of the exceeding difficulty which he experienced in his school-days, in learning the meaning of the word "can't;" and it is pretty certain that he never has learned it, even to this day !

His disposition was peaceable, yet would stand no imposition upon what he considered his rights; and when forced into a corner could fight as well as any one. The current story of his "flogging a captain" is, on his own authority, untrue ; and it is said by those who know him well, that he never had a personal controversy in his life. Profanity was a vice which he was peculiarly free from, both in boyhood and in his subsequent military career.

Honesty of thought and speech were also traits of his youth, which have strengthened with his growth, and which are now seen to underlie his whole character. A popular, and probably a true, story which was current among his companions, was concerning a horse trade in which he was once engaged. It appears that when he was about twelve years of age, his father sent him to purchase a horse of a farmer, named Ralston, who resided some short distance in the country. The elder Grant wanted the horse, but still desired to get it as cheaply as possible. Before starting, the old gentleman impressed upon young Grant's mind that fact in these words:

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"Ulysses, when you see Mr. Ealston, tell him I have sent you to buy his horse, and offer him fifty dollars for it. If he will not take that, offer him fifty-five dollars; and rather than you should come away without the horse, you had better give him sixty dollars."

Off started the boy, and in due course of time arrived at Ealston's farm-house. He had carefully studied over in his mind his father's instructions, and of course intended to do as his parent had told him. Mr. Ralston, however, threw him off his balance, by putting the following direct but natural question to him :

" How much did your father tell you to give for him ?"

Young Ulysses had always had it impressed upon his mind by his mother, that the truth must be spoken at all times, and therefore he replied:

" Why, father told me to offer you fifty dollars at first ; and if that would not do, to give you fifty-five dollars ; and rather than come away without the horse I was to pay sixty dollars."

Of course, Ealston could not sell the horse for less than sixty dollars.

" I am sorry for that," returned Grant, ." for, on looking at the horse, I have determined not to give more than fifty dollars for it, although father said I might give sixty. You may take fifty if you like, or you may keep the horse."

Ulysses rode the horse home !

Industrious by nature, he nevertheless was strongly prejudiced against working in his father's tannery; and his father, seeing this, wisely gave him a choice of business. The boy expressed a preference for being either a farmer, a down-the-river trader, or for getting a better education than he had hitherto been able to obtain at the schools in his native place. Mr. Grant's circumstances, however, did not permit of his aiding his son in any of these directions, and finally proposed West Point as offering an opportunity for a free education, at the expense of the government. This exactly suited his son ; and, through the friendly offices of Senator Thomas Morris, an appointment to West Point was presented to Ulysses by the Hon. Thomas L. Hamer, then Eepresentatiye of Grant's own district. The happy recipient, unprepared as he was by a previous course of special study, went to West Point, passed his examination, and commenced his military career, July 1st, 1839. At the Academy he was studious, and, although taking no especial pains to make himself popular, was a general favorite among his comrades. Among them he was familiarly called " Uncle Sam," from his initials " U. S.," which, by the way, were thrust upon him accidentally, and in this wise: He had been duly christened Hiram Ulysses, being always called by the latter name, according to his own preference, when he got to be old enough. But Mr. Hamer, when making the nomination for the cadetship at West Point, having a recollection that Mrs. Grant's maiden name was Simpson, got it a little "mixed," and sent in the name as Ulysses Simpson Grant. The young cadet afterward endeavored to have it set right by the proper authorities, but failed, and has since remained content with it as it is.

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Chapter II. At .west Point

When" the young cadet entered the "West Point Institution, he had to submit to a thorough physical and mental examination, to see whether he was fit to enter upon the life of a soldier, and was possessed of the proper mental talents, to make him competent to be trained as an officer. He passed the examination successfully and was admitted into the fourth class, where his studies consisted of mathematics, English grammar, including etymological and rhetorical exercises, composition, declamation, geography of the United States, French, and the use of small arms. In the camp — for the cadets have to live part of the summer months in tents as if on the field — he ranked as a private of the battalion, and had to submit to all the inconveniences that privates in camp have to suffer.

During the year 1840 he was advanced into the third class of the West Point Academy. Here he ranked as corporal in the cadet battalion, and his studies consisted of higher mathematics, French, drawing, and the duties of a cavalry soldier. In this last study he received practical instruction for sixteen weeks, so as to make him a good horseman. He progressed steadily, but not rapidly. He however did not fall back from any advance he had made, and if he only gained one seat at a time, he held on to that,- with the intention of never again going below the cadet sitting next lower in his class.