While Lee was passing the closing years of his life in tranquility,
Grant was entering upon a stormy career in politics. But before he had
any thought of the honors that lay before him he proved himself a
good friend to the South and a really great American. Toward his late
adversaries he maintained that the true policy was "to make friends of
enemies," and by word and deed he earnestly strove to accomplish that
result, never losing an opportunity to protect the people of the South
from humiliation and injustice. Indeed, if he and some of the other
Union commanders had been given complete authority directly after the
war, the South would have been spared much suffering and the nation
would have escaped some of the evils which inflict it to this day. But
Grant's service to the country, as a whole, was far greater than
that which he undertook on behalf of any particular section, for at a
critical moment he held the destiny of the nation in the hollow of his
hand and a word from him would have subjected the people to a military
control from which they might never have recovered.
At the time of Lee's surrender the United States had probably the most
powerful and the most perfectly equipped army in the world. It was
absolutely at Grant's disposal and there were plenty of excuses for
employing it in the field, had he been ambitious for military glory. An
attack on the French in Mexico or the English in Canada would have been
regarded by many people as perfectly justified by their treatment of the
United States during the Civil War. But no idea of perpetuating his own
power or of making his country a military nation entered Grant's mind.
On the contrary, his first thought was to hasten by every possible means
the disbanding of the mighty army which hailed him as its chief.
At the close of the war that army numbered over a million men. Six
months later only 183,000 remained in the service, and in eight months
more the whole force of volunteers had disappeared. No other great
commander in the history of the world ever strove thus to deprive
himself of power, or with a gigantic instrument of war under his control
thought only of peace. Grant was not the greatest military genius of
the ages, or even of his own time, but when, with a million bayonets
responsive to his nod, he uttered the benediction, "Let us have peace,"
he took a place apart among those Americans whose fame will never die.
One great triumphant pageant marked the success of the Union cause
when the returning armies were reviewed by the President in Washington,
cavalry, infantry and artillery by the tens of thousands passing
down Pennsylvania Avenue for two whole days, presenting a magnificent
spectacle never surpassed in the military annals of any land. But the
same spirit which had actuated Grant in refusing to visit Richmond
caused him to shun any part of this historic parade, and those who
expected to see him on a prancing horse at the head of his veteran
troops had little knowledge of his character. He had never made an
exhibition of himself at any time during the war, and though he was
present on this occasion, he kept in the background and few people
caught even a glimpse of him as the well-nigh endless ranks of blue
swept by in proud array.
For a time the work of disbanding the army obliged him to remain at
Washington, but at the first opportunity he started west to revisit
Galena, Georgetown and the scenes of his boyhood days. But, if he hoped
to renew his acquaintance with old friends without public recognition
and acclaim he was speedily disillusioned, for the whole countryside
turned out to welcome him with processions, banners and triumphal
arches, hailing as a hero the man who had lived among them almost
unnoticed and somewhat despised. Many people had already declared that
he would be the next President of the United States, but when some
prophecy of this kind had been repeated to him, he had laughingly
replied that he did not want any political office, though he would like
to be Mayor of Galena long enough to have a sidewalk laid near his home,
and this rumor had reached the town. The first sight that greeted his
eyes, therefore, as he entered Galena was an arch bearing the words
"General, the sidewalk is laid!" and his fellow townsmen straightway
carried him off to inspect this improvement, at the same time showing
him a new house built and furnished by his neighbors for his use and in
which they begged that he would make himself at home.
It was a proud moment for his father and mother when they saw the son
who had once disappointed them so deeply received with such marks of
affection and honored as the greatest man of his day, and their joy
was the most satisfying reward he was ever destined to obtain. But
gratifying as all these kindly attentions were the returning hero was
somewhat relieved to find that Georgetown, which had largely sympathized
with the Confederacy, offered him a less demonstrative welcome.
Nevertheless, even there curiosity and admiration combined to rob him of
all privacy, and he at last decided to avoid the public gaze by slipping
away for one of those long solitary drives which had been his delight
in boyhood days. But the residents of the village toward which he turned
received word of his coming and started a delegation out to meet him
half way. After journeying many miles, however, without seeing any signs
of the cavalcade they were expecting, the procession encountered a dusty
traveler driving a team in a light road wagon, and halting him asked if
he had heard anything of General Grant. "Yes," he reported, "he's on
the way," and clicking to his horses quickly disappeared from view. Then
someone suggested that perhaps the General might not be traveling on
horseback surrounded by his staff and that the dusty traveler who had
reported Grant as on the way looked somewhat like the man himself. But
the solitary stranger "who looked like Grant" was miles away before this
was realized, and when the procession started on his track he was safely
out of reach. Doubtless, the sight of this unpretentious man in citizen
attire was disappointing to many who expected to see a dashing hero in a
gorgeous uniform, but his dislike of all military parade soon came to be
widely known. His hosts at one village, however, were not well informed
of this, for they urged him to prolong his stay with them in order that
he might see and review the local troops which were to assemble in his
honor, but he quickly begged to be excused, remarking that he wished he
might never see a uniform again.
Certainly there was nothing of the conquering hero or even of the
soldier about him when a little later in the course of his duty, he made
a tour of the South in order to report on its general condition, and in
many places he came and went entirely unnoticed. But though the mass of
the people did not know of his presence, he formed an unusually accurate
estimate of their views on public questions. "The citizens of the
Southern States,..." he reported, "are in earnest in wishing to do what
is required by the Government, not humiliating them as citizens, and if
such a course was pointed out they would pursue it in good faith."
Happy would it have been for the South and for the whole country if
this advice had been followed, but the President and Congress were soon
engaged in a violent struggle over the reconstruction of the seceded
states, and anger, rather than wisdom, ruled the day. In the course
of this quarrel Stanton, the Secretary of War, was removed and Grant,
temporarily appointed in his place (Aug. 12, 1867), held the office
for about five months, thus taking the first step in the long political
career which lay before him.
Ten months later he was elected President of the United States and at
the end of his term (1872) he was reëlected by an overwhelming vote.
Those eight years were years of stress and strain, and his judgment
in surrounding himself with men unworthy of his confidence made bitter
enemies of many of those who had once supported him. He was, however,
intensely loyal by nature and having once made a friend he stuck to him
through thick and thin, making his cause his own and defending him, even
in the face of the facts, against any and all attack. He, accordingly,
assumed a heavy burden of blame that did not rightly rest upon his
shoulders, but in spite of this many people desired to see him again
elected to the presidency and they were sorely disappointed when he
refused to become a candidate. On the whole, he had deserved well of the
country and the people recognized that he had done much to uphold their
honor and dignity, even though he had been too often imposed upon by
unreliable and even dangerous friends.
A long tour around the world followed his retirement from the Presidency
and his reception in the various countries was a magnificent tribute to
his record as a general and a ruler. Meanwhile, an effort was being made
by his friends to secure his nomination for a third Presidential term,
and shortly after he returned home (1880) he was persuaded to enter the
field again. At first he regarded the result with indifference, but as
time wore on he warmed with the enthusiasm of his friends and keenly
desired to secure the honor. But no man had ever been elected three
times to the Presidency and there was a deep-centered prejudice against
breaking this tradition. Grant's candidacy therefore encountered bitter
opposition, and though a large number of his friends held out for him to
the last and almost forced his nomination, General Garfield was finally
selected in his place.
This virtually retired him from politics, and to occupy himself and make
a living he went into business with one of his sons who had associated
himself with certain bankers in Wall Street. Here, however, his
notoriously bad judgment of men and his utter ignorance of the business
world soon brought him to grief, for he and his son left the management
of their firm to the other partners who outrageously imposed upon them
for a time and then left them face to face with ruin and disgrace.
The shock of this disaster fairly staggered Grant, but he bravely met
the situation and stripping himself of every vestige of his property,
including the swords that had been presented him and the gifts bestowed
by foreign nations, strove to pay his debts. But, though reduced to
penury, he was able to prove his entire innocence of the rascality of
his partners and the general verdict of the country acquitted him of any
dishonorable act.
To earn sufficient money for his family in their dire necessity he then
began to write the story of his military life and campaigns, but in the
midst of this employment he was stricken with a most painful disease
which incapacitated him for work and left him well-nigh helpless. At
this crisis Congress came to his rescue by restoring him to his former
rank in the army, with sufficient pay to meet his immediate needs.
Then, to the amazement of his physicians, he rallied, and, though still
suffering intensely and greatly enfeebled, he at once recommenced work
upon his book.
From that time forward his one thought was to live long enough to
complete this task, and to it he devoted himself with almost superhuman
courage and persistence, in the hope of being able to provide for
his wife and family after he had gone. Indeed, in this daily struggle
against disease and death he showed, not only all the qualities that
had made him invincible in the field, but also the higher qualities of
patience and unselfishness with which he had not been fully credited.
Uncomplaining and considerate of everyone but himself, he looked death
steadily in the face and wrote on day after day while the whole nation,
lost in admiration of his dauntless courage, watched at his bedside with
tender solicitude.
At last, on July 23, 1885, the pencil slipped from his fingers. But
his heroic task was done and no monument which has been or ever will
be erected to his memory will serve as will those pages to insure him
immortality, for "Grant's Memoirs," modest as the man himself, have
become a part of the literature of the world.
Authorities
The following is a partial list of the authorities relied upon in the
text:
Grant's Personal Memoirs; Recollections and Letters of General Robert E.
Lee (Captain R. E. Lee); Life of Robert E. Lee (Fitzhugh Lee); Robert
E. Lee--Memoirs of His Military and Personal History (Long); Military
History of U. S. Grant (Badeau); Grant in Peace (Badeau); R. E. Lee--The
Southerner (Page); Robert E. Lee (Trent); Robert E. Lee and the Southern
Confederacy (White); McClelland's Own Story; Stonewall Jackson and the
American Civil War (Henderson); The Story of the Civil War (Ropes);
The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government (Davis); History of
the United States (1850-1877 Rhodes); The Campaign of Chancellorsville
(Bigelow); Personal Memoirs (Sheridan); Memoirs of General Sherman;
Reminiscences of Carl Shurz; From Manassas to Appomattox (Longstreet);
Abraham Lincoln--A History (Nicolay and Hay); The Army Under Pope
(Ropes); The Antietam and Fredericksburg (Palfrey); The Virginia
Campaign of 1864 and 1865 (Humphreys); Chncellorsville (Doubleday); Life
and Letters of Robert E. Lee (Jones); Ulysses S. Grant (Wister); Ulysses
S. Grant (Garland); Campaigning with Grant (Porter); Autobiography of O.
O. Howard.