The sunny South. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1875-1907, February 01, 1878, Image 5

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Battles Around Atlanta SIXTH PAPER. The McPherson Memorial. BY SIDNEY HERBERT. The paper which preceded this gave a fall and graphic account of the circumstances con nected with the death of Major General James Birdseye McPherson, U. S. A., who fell in the sanguinary “Battle of Atlanta,” and the present paper will be devoted to a sketch of his military career, and the honors which have been paid to his memory, especially the “McPherson Memo rial'’ recently erected on the spot where he fell. Gen. McPherson was born in Clyde, Ohio, Nov. 14, 1828, and was the eldest of four chil dren. Although never what is termed “a bril liant youth,” he possessed rare native genius, and quietly won his way in his educational progress with little apparent effort. He entered West Point Military Academy July 1, 184D, and graduated July 1, 185:3, standing first in rank in a class of fifty-two, including such distinguished soldiers as Lieut. Gen. J. B Hood, Lieut. Gen. Phil Sheridan, Gens. Schofield, (It. O.) Tyler, Vincent,Terrill, Sweitzer, (Thos.) Wilson, Lowe, Chambliss, Dye, (B. F.) Smith, Pelouze, Cham bers, and others. Gen. George Bell, Chief Commissary on Gen. Iiuger's staff, and Col. John G. Chandler, Chief Quartermaster, were also classmates of Gen. McPherson, and from Col. Chandler I learn that while a cadet he was distinguished for the same purity and nobleness of character and sterling qualities of mind which gave him such popu larity and success in his later years. Quietly pursuing his studies, and holding his place at the head of his class, he excited no jealousies, made no enemies, and formed no evil associa tions, but was esteemed and loved by all for his purity of character. Graduating with such high distinction, Cadet j McP herson was made Brevet Second Lieutenant j of the Engineer Corps, and served for a time as | Assistant Instructor of Engineering at the i Academy. December 18th, 18:14, as Second j Lieutenant of Engineers, he was engaged on the defences of New York harbor, and in 1858 he i was on duty in San Francisco, as First Lieuten- ' ant of Engineers. May 1 Ith, 1801, he declined j a Captaincy in the 1'Jth Infantry, and in August ; following, was made Captain in the Engineer Corps, and in November, a Lieut-Colouel on Gen. Halleck’s staff. In the spring of 1802 he became Chief Engi neer on Gen. Grant's staff, soon reaching the rank of Colonel, and then that of Biigadier j General of Volunteers, and Superintendent of j Military Railroads in the District of Tennessee. | October 8th, 1802, he was made a Major General, and commanded the Second Division of th 13th j Army Corps, at which time he commenced his j active military career in the field as a com- | mander ol troops, and won additional prestige bv eiery forward movement of Grant’s Y’icks- I burg campaign. For his gallant services he was 1 promoted to the command of the 17th Corps, and j the District of Vicksburg, where he remained j from July, 180”, till March, 18(4, having been made a Brigadier General of the regular army j in August, 1803. In March, 1801 he was placed in command of the Army of the Tennessee, which was composed of the 15th, lOiii and 17th Corps, and joined Sherman in his great “ March to the Sea.” No officer iu the army rendered more valuable ser vice to his Commanding General than did Gen. McPherson wlriie serving with Grant and Sher- j man, and his career from Fort Douelson to At- j lanta was everywhere marked by brilliant ; achievements and honorable warfare. Of his death before Atlanta the previous paper gave an | account, and I will only add here the testimony j of his old commander, Lieut. Gea. Grant, as to | his military genius and spotless character, in recommending him for promotion : “ He has been with me in every battle since the com mencement of the" war, “except Belmont. At Forts Henry and Donelson, Shiloh, and the siege of Corinth, as a staff officer and Engineer, his services were conspicuous and highly meri torious. At the second battle of Coiinth, his i skill as a soldier was displayed in successfully 1 carrying reinforcements to the besieged garri- ! son when the enemy was between him and the 1 point to be reached. In the advance through ; Central Mississippi, Gen. McPherson com- j manded one wing of the army with all the abil ity possible to show, he having the lead in the | advance, and the rear in retiring. “In the campaign and siege terminating will the fall of Vicksburg, Gen. McPherson has filled a conspicuous part. At the Battle of Port Gib- sou it was under his direction that the enemy was driven, late in the afternoon, from a posi tion they had succeeded in holding all day against an obstinate attack. * * * In the Assault of the 22 1 of May [1863] on the fortifi cations of Vicksburg, and during the entire siege, Gen. McPherson and his command took unfading laurels. He is one of the ablest engi neers, and most skillful generals. I would respectfully, but urgently, recommend his pro motion to the position of Brigadier General in the Regular Army. ” The desired promotion was granted in Au- ! gust, and in October a medal of honor was awarded Gen. McPherson, by the officers of the corps he commanded, as a recognition of the skill and courage with which he had led them during the “Campaign and Siege of Y’ickslmrg.” After the death of Gen. McPherson, Gen. Grant bore additional testimojy to his rare skill and high character, in a letter to his venerable grandmother, in which he said: “I am glad to know the relatives of the lamented Maj. Gen. McPherson are aware of the more than friend ship existing between him and myself. A nation grieves at the loss of one so dear to our nation’s cause. It is a selfish grief, because the nation had more to expect from him than from almost any one living. * * * I knew him weii- To know him was to love him. It may be some consolation t_> you, his aged grand mother, to know that every officer and every soldier who served under your grandson felt the highest reverence for his patriotism, his zeal, bis great, almost unequalled, ability, his amia bility, and all the manly virtues that can adorn a commander. Your bereavement is great, but cannot exceed mine.” THE MCPHERSON MEMORIAE. Although the “Battle of Atlanta" occurred nearly fourteen years ago, there has been little difficulty in identifying and marking the spot where Gen. McPuerson fell. The prompt ac tion of Inspector General Strong and Gen. Hick- enlooper, and the later efforts of Gen. Poe, of the Engineer Corps, have resulted in designating the locality beyond a doubt. With this official as surance of its identity, backed by other proof of an uumistakable character, the officers of Gen. Huger's headquarters in this city, have recently marked the spot by a “Memorial” both durable and appropriate. Several mouths ago, one of the officers con nected with the Department of the South, conceived the idea ot procuring some kind of a suitable memorial, to mark the spot where Gen. McPherson was killed. Consulta tion with his brother officers, strengthened him in this view, as they cheerfully promised to give a liberal pecuniary support to the plan pro posed. The land was first secured of Mr. Brown, the owner, with a right of way for a new street from the main road, which made all fu- y ture operations easy and successful. The War V? Department at Washington, promptly appro- priated a twenty-four pound iron cannon, and also a sufficient number of old gun-barrels to form a fence around the proposed monument. Gen. F. D. Callender, cf the Ordnance Depart ment, who is at present Commandant at the Au gusta Arsenal, kindly offered to do the necessa ry mechanical work as his share of the expense, the officers here paying the freight on the arti cles from Augusta. A block of Stone Moun tain granite (Gen. McPherson’s command ap proached Atlanta by way of Stone Mountain) was prepared as a base, and it is worthy of men tion that this block of granite was put in posi tion to receive the cannon, by Mr. Win. Rosser, who was a confederate soldier under Gen. ‘Stonewall” Jackson. In due time the work kindly remembering her. We all feel extreme- } (since deceased) that when the Confederates ly gratified at the mark of honor and respect I evacuated Vicksburg, he went to Gen. McPher- reccntly shown our beloved General in Atlanta. *’ | son, then in command of the District, and stated Shortly after this I received a letter from Mrs. j to him that they did not have enough wagons F. A. Tnttle, who for seventeen years has been I to move their effects. “Major Orme,” replied a near neighbor of Mrs. McPherson, in which i the General, with a cordial sincerity in his she acknowledged the receipt of the paper and j manner, “you shall have all the wagons you letter, and enclosed me a formal expression of j need from our supply; don’t be uneasy about thanks from Mrs. McPherson, which is pnb-j that matter.” I refer to this incident, Dim lished below, and gave me some interesting facts about the family (which are also published with the letter), of which I then knew nothing. Writing of a photograph of the “Memorial” which I sent to her, Mrs. Tuttle says: “I took it over to the old lady, and heard her thanks for your kindness, as she wept over the treasured gift. was completed, McPherson’s Avenue opened to | Anything that has reference to ‘James’ is of the main road, and the public iuvited to visit the 1 great value to her, as he washer cherished idol. ■ I can see that she is failirg daily, and will no doubt soon join those dear ones gone before, for the circle of her once happy home has been rudely desolated—many good and noble ones spot. Recently, in company with Rev. J. T. Left- wich, D. ])., pastor of the Central Presbyterian Church, I paid a visit to this once battle-scar red locality. Along the main road, as we near ed the place, could still be seen the earthworks used by the Confederate forces, iu defense of Atlanta, in July, 18(4. The numerous wood- crowned ridges in that vicinity, suggested to a military man, that contending armies meeting there, would be likely to do bloody work for connection, as it shows the humane manner in which Gen. McPherson treated his prisoners of war, and conducted his millitary opeations, thereby securing the tributes of respect that have been so freely laid upon his grave by Southern soldiers. In calling attention to the thoughtless action of some ignorant persons who had removed several of the gun-barrels from the fence around j the “Memorial,” the Atlanta Duly Tribune of! Dec. 11, 1877, said: “Some thoughtless persons, j with the idea that these barrels cau be used : again, have taken a few out of the fence and j having passed from it up to a higher life and a carried them oft’. This action is likely to create — .— .. j. . . i—l . , i i > „ . > '/at , 1. / ' . .. .. .. ,, ., 1 , , . , . ** i • , .. r. ,, n 1 . ,.' u n T. i, n /l 1 □ , I , , ( / 1 \ fit more enduring home in heaven. Of the Gener al, words of ours are almost needless, as every one, North and South, gives him the same high character, and his memory will ever live in his brave and gallant deeds. Thanks to you for vour interest in his aged mother, from one who each other. When we reached the spot, the i has known the family for the past seventeen morning sun was shining with genial warmth, and it was near;the hour at which Gen. Mc Pherson fell. Nature has made it a lovely place, and now that art has placed there its memorial to chivalry, its attractions will draw many vis itors in that direction. Mingledwith an under growth of oak and maple, many waving pine trees throw th'ir shade over the open space years." Tne following are the facts sent me by Mrs. Tuttle, and the letter of .Mrs. McPherson, which form an editorial in the Sunday Herald, (United Service Edition), of Washington, D. C., Nov. 4, 1877: “General McPherson’s venerable mother, now residing at the old homestead in Clyde, Ohio, is ia. her seventy-third year, and has long within which the ‘Memorial’ stands. The en- j been a widow. All her children except a daugh- closed lot is about ten ieei square, and is sur- rouuded by a neatly ornamented iron fence, the pickets being single gun-barrels with spear head tops, and the corner-posts composed of a cluster of gun-barrels surmounted with a coni cal-shaped ornament. This fence is placed up on a solid stone foundation, and is painted black, as is also the cannon and presents a ve ry handsome appearance. In the center of the lot is a granite b .se, ss in > fi • feet squ re an 1 eighteen inches high, from the center of which rises the grim ‘twenty-four-pounder,’. in the mouth of which is a cannon ball. The hill-side road, along which Gen. McPherson was riding ter, Mrs. Frederick Vandercook, of Angola, In diana, have died within the past thirteen years, leaving her quite lonely in her old age. Gon. J. B. McPherson was her oldest child, and was killed in the battle of Atlanta, July 22, 1864. The second son. Colonel Russell B. McPherson, who died in February last, was well known in Washington, having held important positions during the war on the military railroads, and since that time was in the detective service. L iter still he was post-master at Clyde. William H. McPherson, the youngest son, who married a Miss Mattie Andrews, of New York, was kicked by it horse in 1871, and died The McPherson Memorial, Atlanta, Ga. when killed, passes within two or three feet of the enclosure, while the more traveled road, which crosses it at this point, is some twenty or thirty feet distant. On the side of the granite base, fronting this latter road are the raised let ters— ‘McPherson’— no other inscription being deemed necessary. The sloping nature of the ground upon which the ‘Memorial’ is erected (it being on the side of a hill) somewhat mars the perfection of the work, but iu other respects the tribute is one soon after. This gentleman left a son named after General McPherson, who is the only male representative of the McPhersons now living, and around this child the hopes and affections of the venerable and stricken grandmother are tenderly centered. It is to he hoped that he will grow up a useful and honored youth and attain a manhood that shall add even additional honor and fame to the revered name which has been bestowed upon him. Mrs. F. A. Tuttle, of Clyde, writes that Gen. that reflects great credit upon the officers, who , McPuerson was the idol of his mother's heart, have so appropriately, and iu such an enduring manner marked the spot where one of their most trusted and beloved comrades fell. While Major J. li. McGiuness Chief Ordnance Officer, has superintended the work, he was generous ly aided by Gen. Thomas H. Huger, command ing the Department; Gen. Chauncey McK ;e- ver, Adjutant General; Gen. George Bell, Chief for in him were all the elements of a noble youth and a true manhood. Since his death i false impression, unless an end is put to it at once. The barrels are useless for shooting pur- ; poses, and it is au act of desecration to remove , them for any purpose whatever. Gen. McPher son was a Federal officer, it is true, and this ! •Memorial’ was erected by his brother officers of lien. Roger's headquarters in this city, yet j there is not, we believe, a Confederate officer in j the South who does not honor the name of this I gallant and lamented knightly soldier. * * * | No thoughtless person should remove any more j of the gun-barrels from the fence surrounding the monument, as there are not wanting those ! who, should this practice continue, will put a wrong and base construction upon the act.” Iu copying the article on the “McPuerson Memorial,” the Fremont, Ohio, Journal, said: j “Gen. McPuerson was one of the men that made the world better for having lived in it.” The Macon, Ga., Telegraph and Messenger concludes a sketch of the “Memorial ” thus tenderly: “ This is all. On that hill-side, shut in on every hand ! by tall pines and sombre oaks, but open to the blue sky, is the spot where fell one of the brav- i ! est and most chivalrous men who fought in the ; | late war. Though, not of our sunny clime, he j j was, notwithstanding, an American; and as j such, whether he wore the blue or the gray, we j must still feel proud of his valor, and mourn his j | untimely death.” The Savannah Morning Sews ; | closes a similar sketch with this complimentary 1 paragraph: “ The whole design of the • Memori- | i al ’ is appropriate, and reflects great credit upon the officers who have thus honored one of their j | most deserving and gallant fallen comrades, j Throughout all the land, wherever McPherson’s name and fame are known, this act wilt be ten derly appreciated, for he was a knightly soldier, without fear and without reproach.” Gen. Joseph E. Johnston, the great Confeder- ! ate commander, in a recent letter to me, lays : this graceful tribute upon the grave of the Fed- | eral officer whose rare military skill had so suc- ! cessfuily matched his own superb genius on j closely contested fields: “I had no personal ac- j quaintance with Gen. McPherson, but regard : ; him as an able and gallant soldier, who had few j ! equals in the service to which he belonged. I believe, also, from the testimony of friends who knew him well, that he was a gentleman of very estimable personal character.” Gen. John M. \ Schofield, now commanding the Department of 1 West Point, New York -including the Military Academy—closes his letter to me with these pa- 1 triotic and noble sentiments: “The officers of • Gen. Huger‘a Headquarters have done a most ! praiseworthy act in so appropriately marking the spot where fell one of the most gallant and noble of American soldiers. Even the passions of civil strife could not conceal the chivalrous character of McPherson from those who were iiicu. hit. enemies, many of whom shared ju. re grets at his untimely loss. Now that we are all friends and brothers again, I am sure that all will alike hold sacred the spot where Mcl’uer- son died.” But the most appropriate and tender tribute (and one that fully confirms Gen. Schofield’s statement that the Confederates shared the regrets of the Federals at the death of McPher son), comes from an old ante helium comrade. Gen. E. P. Alexander, who was Chief of Artil- j lery on Longstreet staff, and one of the most i valued officers in the Confederate service, writes I me in this deeply impressive manner: | “I have been greatly interested and pleased in reading your account of the ‘ Memorial’ erected to the gallant McPherson on the spot where he fell. Though so far from his home, and in the heart of what was then an enemy’s country, there are not wanting either those who knew of him and admired and respected him, or those who knew of him and loved him. While the Confederate Army recognized him as perhaps their most dangerous foe, yet his nobility and purity of character were so well known and admired that there was no little regret in out ranks at his sad fate. I knew him well and loved him very warmly. He was my last com manding officer in the old army before the war. We were stationed at that time in San Fran- this aged widowed parent has had many be- j cisco, and when, in April, ,1861, I felt called on to reavements, but not all combined have weighed so heavily upon her sorrowing heart as the loss of this promising and loving son, who died on the field of battle, honored alike by friend and by foe. It is not strange, therefore, that she ute recently paid to the memory of her gallant- son by the officers of General Roger’s staff iu Atlanta, Georgia, as shown by the following let ter from her : Clyde, Ohio, October 3, 1877. Major Sidney Herbert, Kimball House, Atlanta, Ga.: Dear Sir Your letter and papers were duly received, and in return be pleased to accept my Commissary; Oil J. G. Chandler,iChief Quarter- . should appreciate and l»o grateful for the trib- rnaster; Lieut. Col. J. F. Head, Medical Direc- 1 ’’ ' ’ ‘ * ’ 11 i tor; Maj. W. B. Rochester, Chief Paymaster; Maj. N. Vedder, Paymaster; and Lieut. W. B. Wheeler, Aid-de-Camp. To Mr. Brown, the owner of the land, is also due credit for his lib eral action in promoting this tribute to a gallant Federal soldier. And I am sure that no true Confederate soldier will ever visit the spot with out a feeliug of respect for the brave and chival rous‘fallen hero’ whose bright military career ended so suddenly within the seclusion and quiet of those woods. Like the late Gen. Al bert Sidney Johnston, be was ‘a knightly sol dier, without fear and without reproach.’ Now that Peace has spread her gentle wings over all the land, and the true soldiers and patriotic people of both sections meet again in cordial and hearty fellowship, it is safe to predict that the ‘McPherson Memorial’ will be visited by thou sands of persons, whose object will be a higher and purer one, than mere idle curiosity. With in rifle and cannon shot of this now quiet and secluded rural retreat, on 22d of July, 1864, thousands of the bravest and best soldiers of both armies tell, in attacking or defending At lanta. With Gen. Hood and Gen. Hardee in front, and Gen. Wheeler and his dashing cav alry in the rear, the Army of the Tennessee, with its gallant commander dead ere the blood- dy conflict had fairly commenced, fought with terrible desperation and great loss, and against an enemy resolute and determined and pre pared to defend their city at all hazards. GENERAL m’i'HEBSON’s MOTHER. Soon after the publication of my first article in regard to the “McPherson Memorial,” I learned that the venerable mother of the Gen eral was still living in the old family mansion at Clyde, Sandusky county, Ohio, a small but thriving town, seventeen miles from Sandusky, seventy-five from Cleveland, and thirty-eight from Toledo. I immediately forwarded a copy of the Sunny South containing the article, and a letter ex plaining the matter more fully to her, to the post-master of Clyde, with a request to deliver them to Mrs. McPherson, if she was in Clyde. A reply came in a few days from Mrs. F. A. Per- in, post-mistress, who wrote : “Mrs. McPherson is still living, and your letter and paper were delivered to her. Although I have not yet seen her, I know she feels grateful to you, for thus resign and cast my fortunes ovith my native State, I remember very vividly the interview in which I gave him my resignation. He fully appreciated the long and desperate war which was about to ensue, and the terrible fighting j and slaughter which must result, and he also ! predicted the eventual crushing of the South ; under the overwhelming forces and resources ot‘ j the North. He urged me strongly, as a personal ' friend, to take advantage of the rare opportun ity that I had to keep out of the whole contest, saying that I could not be called on to fight my ' own people, but would be left, probably the ■ ranking Engineer officer on the Pacific coast, heartfelt thanks for your kind remembrance of with an excellent opportunity to make a reputa me. I also desire, through you, to assure Gen. linger and ihe officers of his stall' (especially Major McGinness) who have so generously erected a “Memorial” to my much-loved son, James Birdseye McPherson, who was killed on the spot where the “Memorial” stands, that a mother’s prayers and blessing attend them in acknowledgment of the discharge of this »acred duty. James was a noble and good boy, and his death, although occurring in the service of his country, has made my declining years lone ly and sad; still, at all times, I am ready to say “God’s will, not mine, be done.” This recent testimonial to my gallant son affords me sincere gratification, and I trust that the lives of the comrades who have thus remembered him—so long after he has passed away from earth—may be to the close eminently noble and honored. This tribute of their regard for a brother officer tells me they are worthy the distinguished po sition, which they already occupy in the service. Very respectfully, yours, Mrs. Cynthia McPherson. TRIBUTES OF RESPECT. The “McPherson Memorial” has attracted much attention throughout the entire country, and called forth the highest commendation from the official millitary journals of New York and Washington. The Daily Graphic of New York, of Oct. 24, 1877 contained a very fine illustra tion of the “Memorial,” taken from a photo graph, and Frank Leslie's Illustrated Xewspaper, of Jan. 26, 1878, published a picture of it, taken from an excellent pencil sketch made by Mr. Horace Bradley of this city. Gen. McPherson was possessed of a high sense of honor, and scorned to stoop to petty revenges, or to assert his conquering power by harsh treatment of those whom the misfortunes of war brought under his control. Captain J. Wilson Ballard, of this city, who was himself a gallant and trusty Confederate soldier, informs me that he was told by Major Richard Orme, tion and gain promotion, while he and all the older officers would be called to the East to bear their parts iu the war. I little imagined at the time that the very friend who warned me so calmly and soberly, would himself be a victim of the terrible struggle which he predicted; but in recalling the conversation since, I have often thought that, in picturing the risks and chances of a long and bitter war, some presentment of his own sad fate may have arisen in his mind. The warning was lost upon me, for at that time my sole apprehension was that the war might be ever before I could get home; but he, poor fellow, fell while bravely meeting the very perils and dangers which he urged me to avoid.” THE EQUESTRIAN STATUE. In the “Clyde News” department of the Fre mont, Ohio, Journal, December 28, 1877, the following reference was made to the “McPherson Memorial,” and to the proposed monument in Clyde : “Since our last, we have seen a beauti ful photograph finished in India ink [by Mrs. M. S. Oliver,] of the ‘Memorial’ erected at At lanta, Georgia, in honor of General James B. McPuerson, by the officers of General Iiuger’s staff. The picture was sent to Mrs. Cynthia McPherson, his mother, by Major Sidney Her bert, whose able article [copied from the Sunny South] appeared a few numbers back in the Journal, and, no doubt, was read with pleasure by the many friends of McPherson, as it was a high and worthy tribute to our own brave fallen hero, whose body lies here in our cemetery with only the base of a monument erected over the spot. “Surely, something should bo done in the matter. The money contributed some years ago went to the “Society of the Army of the Ten nessee,” or their agent, with the understanding that a monnment was to be erected on the base, placed there by the Directors for that purpose ; but it has gone to Washington, D. C. Strangers coming here, ask where is the McPherson Mon ument, and stand and look at the bare founda tion, on the elevation near his old home, with surprise. In the Atlanta Daily Tribune we have seen some very high testimonials to General McPherson's skill and ability as an officer, from distinguished Southern Generals, whose cause was not his cause, but who houored and loved him.” On receiving the paper containing the above complaint, I addressed a letter to a distinguish ed officer ot the Lotted States Army, whose high official position enables him to speak ad visedly and intelligently in regard to the matter, and this is his reply, so far as it refers to a pub lic discussion : “I feel sure of one thing, that the change to which you refer in vour letter, was judiciously made, aside from the fact that without aid from Congress to the extent of $25, 000 upon the un derstanding that the statue should be erected in Washington, D. C., it would have been many years before it could have been erected any where. The people of Clyde have a foundation laid for a monument which represents the en tire amount of all the money they ever sub scribed, and can, if they wish, pr.t a statue, or any other style of monument, upon that foun dation. In time, I think, the Society of the Army of the Tennessee will probably help them.” At the meeting of the S icietv of the Army of the Tennessee, held at Des Moines, Iowa, in 1875, General A. Hickenlooper, in behalf of the McPherson monument committee, of which he was chairman, made a report, from which I have taken the following extracts that bear upon this subject and explain the action of the Soci ety in changing the location of the monument: “It will be observed that the sum of $1, 500, pledged by the Clyde Association, has been dropped from our report, for the reason that af ter making every eff >rt in our power, we have utterly failed in having this sum paid over, or placed in any available shape. “While this failure still left us enough to complete the statue as originally contemplated, it seemed to render hopeless the task of raising the additional sum necessary for the base, which, to be in keeping with the character of the statue, should beof granite, costing between $15, 000 and $20, 000. “At this juncture, General W. W. Belknap, S 'cretary ot War, expressed the opinion that upon a proper presentation of the facts, Con gress might be induced to set aside a public square aud erect a suitable base, providing we would place the statue thereon. “The extensive changes and improvements made in Washington during the past few years, have undoubtedly made it the most beautiful city in the country, and it stands to-day, as it properly should, the representative city of America, and as such, appears to be the most appropriate place for a monument to McPherson. “While this is a radical change in our origi nal programme, it is one which appeared to be fully justified by the facts above recited, and which we hope will meet with the hearty approv al of the Members of the Society. “One of the public squares, to be designated ‘McPuerson Square,’ has been set aside, and an appropriation of $25, 000 secured with which to erect the base,” The report, of which these extracts were a part, was received and spread upon the Min utes of the Society, by a vote of the members present, at that meeting. At a subsequent meeting of the S icietv, held in Washington, D. C., October 18'.k, 1876, soma criticisms were made upon the action of the monument com mittee ia selecting that city as the place in which to to locate the statue, and the records show the following defensG of the committee . “General Hickenlooper, replying, explained the position of his committee, and its various actions in the premises, and read an extract from the report of his committee, made to the Society last year, in which it was stated, that being unable to get from the Clyde Association what it had pledged to his committee, the orig inal plan had to be abandoned, for want of means to carry it out. The money needed for a proper base for the statue, was provided by the government, as heretofore expl lined, and these causes compelled the change. Iu making a foundation at Clyde, before the change was deci led upon, about as much money had been expended there as had been received from their Association. ” The records also show that Col. Bush, in view of the criticisms above referred to, said : “Any money contributed by the Clyde people, and used elsewhere, ought to be refunded to them.” To this, General Hickenlooper, for his commit tee, answered that they not only intended to do so, but to go farther iu aiding the Clyde As sociation, iu case it should build a monument upon the foundation now laid in that city, and the committee had so notified the Association.” There does not seem to be any j ust cause for complaint on the part of the people of Clyde, if the above records be true. Iu due time, no doubt, a handsome monument will be placed upon the base already laid near the grave of Gen. McPherson, and the home of his vener able and honored mother. The ‘Equestrian Statute’ in McPherson Square, at Washington will stand a Nation’s tribute to one of her grand est and truest soldiers -grand in that nobility of soul and purity of purpose that challenged the full admiration and esteem eveu of the brave and chivalrous foemen with whom he so often crossed swords in deadly conflict. The ‘Memo rial’ near Atlanta marks the spot where the he ro fell, and the ‘McPherson Barracks,’ the mili tary post in the city, will tver keep in remem brance here the name and fame of one who, although he came with an invading host, was •sans fear, sans reproach, unsheathing iu all his conflicts an unstained sword. Nor are the above named all the high honors which have been be stowed upon Gen. McPherson’s memory. One of the forts on the Yurginia side of the Potomac River, opposite Washington City, is called ‘Fort McPherson,’ while in far off Nebraska Territory there is still another ‘Fort McPherson.’ A steamer plying on the Pacific coast, between military stations where he served before the war, also bears his honored name. Truly can the poet say, of this lamented soldier, that he sleeps in death •With all his country's honors blest.’ Kimball House, Jan., 1878. A case of hydrophobia was cured in Defianoe Ohio by the use of chloroform. Justice T. C. Bay ton of Gloucester County, Va., sentences rogues to thirty lashes—fifteen on the spot and the balance several days afterwards After the first dose they leave the country. In King G urge County, Va., a widower and an old bachelor each obtained a license to marry the same lady. As usual the lady elected the widower. The Chesapeake and Ohio R. R. will be sold in Richmond V i.. about the first of April. Hon. W. H. N. Smith of Raleigh N. C. has been appointed chief Justice of the Supreme Court, vice R M. Pearson deceased. 20.000 young salmon have been placed iu Cape Fear River, near Greensboro, N. C. 7.000 acres ot land have been purchased on the Richmond and Danville R. R. by a Philadel phia Emigntion society. James Mi. Quistley, near Greensboro. N. C. aged 80 years killed three turkeys at one shot recently. R v. G orge Mullen of Bristol England is preaching in Salem Va. The S ate Grange of South Carolina meets in Charleston ou the 5.h. of February.