| Show FRIENDSHIP What a beautiful thing is friendship I Real genuine friendship wo mean of course Such friendship as bighearted bigminded men entertain for each other Tno friendship which rises above petty jealousies and which plucks envy from its bosom as it would a rank weed from a beautiful flowerbed and casts it forth to die and rot J The friendship which like charity seeks not its own but anothers good I The friendship which can speak nlthnna I uuIuuuLuub MUIUM Ul praise without guie without hypocrisy and without the wheed ling whining tone of the sycophant ana which on occasion can reprove without fear add without auger or arrogance I We are liable to think of friendship such as this as connected con-nected only with ancient times when the world was young and full of truth and fervor fer-vor and devotedness when heart spoke to heart and when interest selfinterest did not as now so frequently frequenty influence all ac tions or teach the lips to smile or heads to I hn bow before unloved shrues simnhr u tht v u thrift might follow fawning Yet occasionally occa-sionally even in times as degenerate tmes as oursthere comes to light friendship which would bo worthy of classic times and which will be remembered by coming generations generatons and classed I cassed as splendid as the lovo of DAVID and JONATHAN Such was the character char-acter of that friendship which existed between GRANT and SHERMAN the two great American soldiers Two letters marked private and confidential ap pear in the latest volume of the War Records that rfiVriil the close iv > lntinn hin ana tho nature of the friendship which ex isted between those two great men GRANTS letter to SHERMAN under date of March 41SC4 and and sent from Nashville Nash-ville tells him of his GRANTS appointment appoint-ment to the thon lately revived office of lieutenantgeneral and of his being sum monad to Washington most likely to be installed in-stalled his now office This however he remarks is not what I started to write I about wrte While I have been eminently successful in this war in at least gaining the confidence of confdence the public no one feels more than I how much of this success is due to the energy skill and energ slol the harmonious putting forth or that energy and L skill of thoSQ whom skll it has been my gcol for tune to have occupying subordinate positions t under me There are many officers to whom these re marks are applicable to a greater or less de gree proportionate to their ability as soldiers but what I want is to express my thanks to you and McPherson as the men to whom above all I others I feel indebted for al whatevar I have had I of success How far your advice and advce sugges tions have been of assistance you know How far your execution whatever has been given you to do entitles you to the reward I am receiv ing you can not know as well as I I feel all of the gratitude this letter would express giving al it the most flattering construction To this SHERMAN replied You do yourself injustice and us too much honor in assigning to us too large a share of the merits which have led to your high advance ments I know you approve the friendship I have ever professed to and you will permit me to continue as heretofore to contnue manifest It on all proper occasions You are now WASHINGTONS legitimate suc lessor and occupy a position of almost dan gerous elevation but if elevaton you can continue as heretofore to be yourself slmnle honest and unpretending will enjoy through life the r respect and love of friends and the homage of millions of human beings that will award you a l large share in argeshareinsccuring to them and their de iccndentsa government of law and stability I repeat you do Gen repeat McPiiEitsoN and myself el too much honor At Belmont you manifested your trat neither neiher of us be Ing near at Donell son also you illustrated Donel Iustrted your whole character I was not near and Gen MCPHERSON was in too subordinate a capacity to influence you Until you had won at Donelson I confess I was almost cowed by the terrible array of an archical elements that flemfnts presented themselves at every point but that Ccr admitted the ray of light which I have followed ever since lght I believe you are as brave patriotic and just as the great prototype WASHINGTON geat WJSfXGTON as un selfish and kindhearted and honest as a man could bo but the chief characteristic charcteristc is the simple faith in success you have always mani fested which I can liken to lken t nothing else than the faith a Christian has in a Savior This faith L gave you victory at Shiloh and Vicksburg Also when you have completed u your last prepara tionsyou go Into battle without prepar hesitaton as at Chattanooga doubt a Chatanoogano no reserves and JJtel you it was this JEtel which made i us act with confl deuce I know that wherever I was wih conf WIS you though of me and i I got in a tight place you wouli I come 1 alive woud My only points of doubt were In your knowl edge of grand strategy and of books of science and history but I confess your common sense seems to have supplied all these In this matter there is no envy man fested by SHERMAN at the promotion of his fellow officer no jealousy nothing but the most generous approval in tho step taken by the government in raising his brother officer to a position of almost dangerous elevation Incidents of this character coming occasionally to light in the experi ence of men in our own day do much to re deem our times and link us with whatever whatver of tho heroic existed in former ages teaching us that our own age is neither barren nor unfruitful in the production of producton grand qualities in human nature |
