Cadet William T. Sherman to John Sherman, December 6, 1837

WEST POINT, N.Y., Dec. 6, 1837.

Dear Brother:

In compliance with your request I sent you a paper shortly after the reception of your letter, which I should have answered much sooner had I not been till within a few days past under the impression that it had been done. This excuse is sufficient, I suppose, for my long delay, especially as a letter from me is not very desirable.

I hope that you still have as favorable opinions as ever with respect to your employment,1 for in my opinion a man's success in his profession depends upon the impressions he receives at the beginning; for if these are favorable, most undoubtedly he will endeavor to succeed, and success will be the necessary consequence. You have now been engaged at that employment about a year and must be by this time quite an expert engineer. I would not be much astonished if when I came home I would find you superintendent of some public work. I have not received many letters from home lately; in fact, I am almost too busy to write many, and if I do not answer all their letters immediately upon their reception, they follow my example apparently, which is the cause of it, I presume; but after our examination in January I will endeavor to be a little more punctual and expect the same of my correspondents. At present we are very much engaged in preparing for the examination which takes place immediately after Christmas. I think I will still have about the same standing as I have now in Mathematics and French, but in Drawing I think I will be among the first five. Preparation for the Christmas spree is now all the go. I have joined in with about a dozen others and laid the foundation for a very good dinner costing about three dollars apiece. I wish we could get ahold of some of our western turkeys, chickens, and the like, which cannot be obtained here except at an enormous price, and as money is something to us like teeth, we are obliged to go without. Winter seems to be very reluctant about setting in. The weather at present is more like spring than winter. This time last winter, the river was closed, and we had fine skating, but no doubt it will soon set in with a vengeance, giving us our full share of north winds, which it generally deals out very liberally to the inhabitants of the Highlands. It is now about half-past nine, and we are obliged to go to bed at ten. You must, therefore, allow me to come to a conclusion, wishing you at the same time to give my best love to all the family when you next write home. Do not fail to write soon.

From

Your affectionate brother,

W. T. SHERMAN.

JOHN SHERMAN, Esqr.

_______________

¹ John Sherman was then, at the age of fourteen, junior rodman in an engineer corps, engaged in the improvement of the Muskingham River, Ohio. Particulars of his life will follow in introducing his letters.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, pp. 2-3

Cadet William T. Sherman to John Sherman, September 15, 1838

WEST POINT, N.Y., Sept. 15, 1838.

Dear Brother:

I did go to the salt works, as I proposed when you were at home, and was there three or four days. While there I made arrangements to go with the Misses Clark to a relative of theirs (Mr. Walker), from thence to Beverly; but unfortunately it rained, and we got several duckings before we got to Mr. W.'s (twelve miles), and when there was told it was thirty miles farther. Consequently I was obliged, much against my wish, to relinquish my design of visiting you. After a few days' stay at the salt works, we returned to Lancaster. When I had been home a few days grandma and Taylor1 came down from Mansfield on the way to Dayton. Mother, Lamp,2 and I accompanied them, and had a very fine trip. Lamp and I went to Oxford College to see Phil,3 from there to Cincinnati, where I stayed a couple of days, then returned to Dayton, where I found them all ready to return home. We travelled together until we got to Columbus, where we found Mr. Ewing. Mother and the rest went on home. Phil and I remained until the next day, and then went home in the carriage. My furlough had nearly expired, and I could only stay home two days more, at the end of which time James,4 grandma, and I went to Mansfield, where we found them all well except Mr. Parker, who was not very well. We stopped at Mary's and Uncle John's a few minutes on our way up. From Mansfield I went with Taylor in his buggy to Sandusky on the lake. We stopped all night at Uncle Daniel's, whom I saw for the first time. He is a very fine old man, but I do not think he resembles father (if you recollect him). From Sandusky I went to Buffalo by water, then to Niagara Falls, thence to New York City, where I spent two days with our relatives, then to West Point, where I have been a little more than two weeks studying very hard indeed.

Your affectionate brother,

W. T. SHERMAN.

_______________

¹ His eldest brother, afterwards called Charles.

² A younger brother, Lampson.

³ Philemon Ewing, eldest son of Hon. Thomas Ewing.

⁴ Still another brother.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, pp. 4-5

Cadet William T. Sherman to John Sherman, October 15, 1838

WEST POINT, N.Y., Oct. 15, 1838.

Dear Brother:

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

I suppose that by this time you have become quite an expert engineer, — much better acquainted with "Jacob staffs," chains, compasses, etc., than you used to be with Euclid and Virgil; and I hope to hear from you soon that you have become highly pleased with your occupation.

*          *          *          *          *           *           *           *           *           *

I presume that you will not be able to work all winter, on account of the cold, and during this time no doubt you will go home; and if you are detained there by the weather, which will probably be the case, I would advise you to continue your study of the mathematics or whatever else may be connected with your business. You must write to me soon, and tell me all about your campaign or trip, and what particular office you fill in the company, etc., etc.

Excuse the shortness of this.

Your affectionate brother,

W. T. SHERMAN.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, pp. 5-6

Cadet William T. Sherman to John Sherman, January 9, 1839

MILITARY ACADEMY,        

WEST POINT, Jan. 9, 1839.

Dear Brother:

I am now writing upon the risk of your not receiving this, for I hear that you are engaged in speculating in salt, and are waiting for the river to rise to take a load down to Cincinnati. Are you doing this on borrowed capital or not? Or does it interfere in the least with your duties as engineer? If it does, I would advise you not to engage in it at any rate, even if you can make a fortune by it; for a reputation for a strict and rigid compliance to one's duties, whatever they may be, is far more valuable than a dozen loads of salt. If, however, you do engage in it, of course I wish you success, a pleasant trip to Cincinnati, and hope you will make a long stay, for Lampson's sake.

I suppose you know that we have two examinations here every year, one in January and the other in June. At the latter a number of gentlemen from all parts of the United States attend by invitation of the Secretary of War, and of course we all endeavor to be well prepared in our studies, both for our own good and that the persons (always influential) may carry off a good opinion of the Institution. The course of studies we are engaged in this year has always had the reputation of being the most difficult of the four, and that justly; therefore to be prepared for the coming June examination I expect to be very studious and busy, and if between this time and then I be not very regular in my correspondence, you may know what to attribute it to and excuse it.

Your affectionate brother,

W. T. SHERMAN.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, pp. 6-7

Cadet William T. Sherman to John Sherman, April 13, 1839

MILITARY ACADEMY, WEST POINT, N.Y., April 13, 1839.

Dear Brother:

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

It appears that although you were pleased with Cincinnati as a city, you were not with the visit, taken all in all. From this I judge that your speculations did not turn out as well as expected. You must not be astonished if I say that if such be the case I am glad of it, because, had you succeeded, your attention would have been turned from your present business, with your success in which so many are interested. I presume by this time you must be nearly done with the works on the Muskingum. Those dams and locks of which you have spoken will no doubt be some of the finest specimens of workmanship in Ohio, and the more I think of it, the more I regret that I did not go and see them last summer. By the arrangement I suppose steamboats will be able to go up as far as Zanesville. I presume you have heard of these Maine difficulties before now. All is now calm in that quarter, the troops having been withdrawn from the disputed territory by both parties, and as far as our Government is concerned the thing is in a fair way of being amicably adjusted, but doubts are entertained with regard to the course which England will adopt. All anxiously await the return of the steamship Great Western which carried out the news, and as the time of her usual return has passed by several days, it is supposed that the time of her departure from England had been delayed in order to receive the news by the ship Liverpool, that left New York about eight or ten days after her; and as among the latter were the proceedings of Congress and the President's message, there is every reason to expect by this vessel some decisive news, and if they are ready for war, I think we will soon be. For my part, there is no nation that I would prefer being at variance with than the British, in this case more especially as our cause is plainly right and just. If anything occurs soon, I will write again or send the paper containing it. . . .

Your affectionate brother,

W. T. SHERMAN.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, pp. 7-8

Cadet William T. Sherman to John Sherman, August 31, 1839

MILITARY ACADEMY,        

WEST POINT, N.Y., Aug. 31, 1839.

Dear Brother:

The encampment (my last) is now over, and we are once more in barracks and to-morrow will commence our studies, commencing with Civil Engineering. This year's course of study is by far the most important of the four, as well as the most interesting, embracing as it does Engineering both Civil and Military, the construction of fortifications as well as the manner of attacking and defending them, Mineralogy and Geology, Rhetoric, Moral Philosophy, International and Common Law, Artillery and Infantry Tactics, as well as many other minor studies, which the scientific officer requires. When these shall have been completed, and the next nine months shall have passed away, we will receive diplomas and commissions in the army, and I hope a furlough along with them. Of course we look forward with no common pleasure to so fruitful a time as that; indeed, every circumstance which marks its approach is duly celebrated and remembered; instance, the last night of our last encampment.

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, pp. 8-9

Cadet William T. Sherman to John Sherman, January 14, 1840

MILITARY ACADEMY,        

WEST POINT, N.Y., Jan. 14, 1840.

My Dear Brother:

The examination is just over; the result is favorable toward me, as usual. In Engineering I am fourth in my class, in Geology and Rhetoric and Moral Philosophy each sixth; as to demerits I have also a respectable number, about one hundred. The studies and exercises will be for the remainder of the academic year exclusively military and important, and will engage us sufficiently to make the time pass pleasantly and rapidly. You may well suppose that we are all anxious for the arrival of June; the thoughts of graduation, the freedom from academic labors and restraints, already engross our minds and form the subjects of all our conversations and talks. Already have we given directions for a class ring, for graduating trunks, for swords, epaulettes, hats, chapeaux, and feathers, and in a couple of months the military tailor will be here from the city to take our measures for uniform dress and undress coats, cit's clothes, pants, etc., etc. Thus you see that by adding things of this nature, which will  constantly keep the future before our minds, we break in upon and enliven our otherwise monotonous life.

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

What have you been doing all winter? Studying, or nothing? I am beginning to think that engineering is not the thing it is cracked up to be. It does not give constant employment to the engineer, who cannot, therefore, rely upon a sure and constant reward for his labors. His duties, whilst engaged, are exceedingly laborious and irksome, or of the other equally disagreeable extreme; beside these, the prosecution of the different improvements depends upon the States within which they lie, and there is but little doubt that the policy of most of the State governments will soon change in reference to their internal works, to paying more and borrowing less, and allow the improvements to grow with their wealth and population. By examining the public records you will see that the State debts are truly enormous, and if they attempt to pay them, they will undoubtedly stop all expenditures which are not absolutely necessary. I noticed in yesterday's paper that the governor of Pennsylvania vetoed six or seven bills granting money for different purposes, and returned them to the Legislature, assigning as a reason the absolute necessity of paying the debts. I have mentioned these things to you that you may reflect, while there is still time, of the propriety of selecting means to be resorted to in case of necessity. What more naturally suggests itself than a farm? Who can be more independent, more honest and honorable, who more sure of a full reward for his labor, who can bestow more benefits on his fellow-beings, and consequently be more happy, than an American farmer? If by any means you may be able to get some land in Ohio, Iowa, or Wisconsin, you should do so by all means, and more especially if it is partially improved. I do not mean for the purpose of speculation, but to make use of yourself.

*          *          *           *           *          *           *           *           *           *

Give my love to all the family, and oblige me by writing soon.

Your affectionate brother,

W. T. SHERMAN.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, pp. 9-11

Cadet William T. Sherman to John Sherman, March 7, 1840

MILITARY ACADEMY, WEST POINT, N.Y., March 7, 1840.

My Dear Brother:

I acknowledged the receipt of your last in my letter to mother, since which time I have been waiting in hopes that something might turn up to write you about; but although the river has opened, and is alive with steamboats and sloops, still West Point appears as dull as ever; in fact, the only visitors we have had so far have been tailors, shoemakers, etc., etc., who prowl about us, knowing our inexperience and the necessity we are under of getting a full supply of clothing at their prices. The snow has entirely disappeared, and for the past three weeks the weather has been beautiful, and reminds me very much of sugar-making times at home, and I have no doubt, if your weather has been as fine as ours here, your farmers have not been idle in their camps. An evening at old Mr. Buchanan's or Wilson's sugar-camp would be great.

I presume the idea of your studying law has been decided upon by Mr. Reese and Taylor, so that it would be rather impertinent for me to object in the least; but for my part, it would be my last choice. Everybody studies law nowadays, and to be a lawyer without being exceedingly eminent — which it is to be hoped you will be some day — is not a sufficient equivalent for their risks and immense study and labor. However, if you decide upon anything, you should immediately commence to carry it into execution. As to me, I am already provided for. As soon as I graduate I am entitled by law to a commission in the army, and from my standing in the class to a choice of corps. To be stationed in the east or west, to be in the artillery, infantry, or dragoons, depends entirely on my choice. This choice will be, unless war breaks out with England, the Fifth Regiment of Infantry, because it is stationed on the northwest frontier, a country which I have always felt a strong inclination to see; and if it meets my ideas, formed from descriptions of travellers and officers, it must be the finest spot on this continent. Also it is probable that the Indians will break out again, in which case I should have an opportunity of seeing some active service. Should war, however, be the consequence of this Maine difficulty, I should prefer the artillery, for the reason that it is stationed east of the mountains, which would be the seat of war, and it is an arm of service which I would prefer in a war against a civilized people. But as there is scarce a possibility of this, I have concluded to go to the west, and have accordingly ordered an infantry uniform. Whether I remain in the army for life or not is doubtful; but one thing is certain, — that I will never study another profession. Should I resign, it would be to turn farmer, if ever I can raise enough to buy a good farm in Iowa. If I can spare money when I am at the city of New York, I intend to get one of Colt's patent rifles to shoot ten times in succession as fast as you can cock and pull the trigger. They cost from $40 to $60, more than, I fear, I can spare. I have been very well indeed all winter.

Your affectionate brother,

W. T. SHERMAN.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, pp. 11-12

General William T. Sherman to Senator John Sherman, April 1, 1888

NEW YORK,                

Fifth Avenue Hotel, April 1, 1888.

Dear Brother: . . . This morning at breakfast I received a note from Gen. B. F. Butler, asking me to say when he could see me. I supposed it was about a son of his nephew George and Rose Eytinge, about whom I had written him two months ago. After breakfast I went to the office and found that he was in Room 1, on the ground floor, so I went there. He was alone, and asked me to be seated. I commenced to speak of his grand-nephew, when he said that was not the reason of his call. He then took up the conversation, and said that the country was in real danger, revealed by the death of the Chief Justice, that there was a purpose clearly revealed for the old rebels to capture the Supreme Court, as shown by the appointment of Lamar and the equal certainty of Waite being succeeded by a Copperhead or out and out rebel; that in the next four years Miller and Bradley would create vacancies to be filled in like manner, thus giving the majority in that court to a party which fought to destroy the Government, thereby giving those we beat in battle the sacred fruits of victory. That is a real danger.

Affectionately yours,

W. T. SHERMAN.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, p. 378

Senator John Sherman to General William T. Sherman, November 9, 1889

1319 K ST., WASHINGTON, D.C.,        

Nov. 9, 1889.

Dear Brother: . . . The coming session of Congress is to be an important one, not in a political sense but in a business sense. The tariff, commercial relations with American States, and differences with Canada are likely to occupy a good deal of time, and in all of these I shall have to take a part. What is worse, we will have the distribution of many offices. Harrison holds on to this dangerous power, and is likely to distribute it during his entire term. If so, he will not have another. Cleveland did the same and lost. A President should, within the first few months of his term, fill all the most important appointments, and then he may hope to recover from the effect before his term closes. But I suppose you are not interested in these things, and I begin to regard myself as a spectator rather than an actor. It is not at all likely that I shall ever seek or accept an office again. . . .

Affectionately yours,

JOHN SHERMAN.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, pp. 378-9

General William T. Sherman to Senator John Sherman, November 12, 1889

NEW YORK, Νον. 12, 1889.

Dear Brother: . . . I was very glad to receive your full letter of November 9th, to hear that you are safely back at your Washington home, and take the recent election so philosophically. I wanted Foraker to succeed, because he was one of my young soldiers. He cannot be suppressed, and will turn up again. I think you are also wise in your conclusion to retire gracefully at the end of your present term. To be a President for four years is not much of an honor, but to have been senator continuously from 1861 to 1892 - less the four years as Secretary of the Treasury - is an honor. Webster and Clay are better known to the world than Polk and Pierce. As to myself, I continue pretty much as always in universal demand for soldiers' meetings, college commencements, and such like things - always with a promise that I will not be called on to speak, which is always broken worse still, generally exaggerated by reporters. . . .

Affectionately,

W. T. SHERMAN.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, pp. 379-80

Senator John Sherman to General William T. Sherman, July 21, 1890

SENATE CHAMBER,            

WASHINGTON, D.C., July 21, 1890.

Dear Brother: . . . You are living the life proper for your position and services, — everywhere welcome, all you say and do applauded, and secure in a competence and independent in all things. I will deliver your message¹ to Edmunds, but you will not probably find him at Burlington, August 20th. We are to have important questions before us, but I mean to act not as a laborer but as an umpire. I am for peace at home and abroad, and if I cannot do much that is actively good I will try and prevent harm, and if possible will tranquilly glide down the rest of the road of life, enjoying all I can and helping those who deserve help.

Affectionately yours,

JOHN SHERMAN.

_______________

¹ Hoping to meet Mr. Edmunds at Burlington, Vt., at that date.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, p. 380

General William T. Sherman to Senator John Sherman, July 22, 1890

NEW YORK, July 22, 1890.

Dear Brother: I was gratified by the general tone and spirit of your letter of yesterday, just received. You surely in the past have achieved as much success in civil affairs as my most partial friends claim for me in military affairs. It is now demonstrated that with universal suffrage and the organization of political parties no man of supreme ability can be President, and that our President with only four years is only a chip on the surface. Not a single person has been President in our time without having been, in his own judgment, the most abused, if not the most miserable, man in the whole community. Your experience has simply been with nominating conventions. It would have been tenfold worse had you succeeded in obtaining the nomination and election.

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

I had a letter from General Alger yesterday, asking me to ride in the procession at Boston, August 12th, in full uniform, to which I answered No with an emphasis. I will attend as a delegate from Missouri, as a private, and will not form in any procession, horseback or otherwise. It is cruel to march old veterans five miles, like a circus, under a mid-day sun for the gratification of a Boston audience. . . .

Affectionately yours,

W. T. SHERMAN.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, pp. 380-1

General William T. Sherman to Senator John Sherman, Tuesday, February 3, 1891

NEW YORK, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 1891.

Dear Brother: I am drifting along in the old rut in good strength, attending to about four dinners a week at public or private houses, and generally wind up for gossip at the Union League Club. Last night, discussing the effect of Mr. Windom's death and funeral, several prominent gentlemen remarked that Windom's fine speech just preceding his death was in line with yours on the silver question in the Senate, and also with a carefully prepared interview with you by George Alfred Townsend, which I had not seen. I have ordered of my book-man the New York "Sun" of Sunday, February 1st, which contains the interview.

You sent me a copy of your bill in pamphlet form, which was begged from me, and as others naturally apply for copies I wish you would have your secretary send me a dozen, that I may distribute them.

All well here and send love.

Your affectionate brother,

W. T. SHERMAN.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, pp. 381-2

Diary of George Templeton Strong: February 2, 1860

After dinner with Ellie to No. 24, where I left her, and then seeing a glow in the southern sky over the roof of the Union Place Hotel, I started in pursuit of the fire. I dog-trotted to Grand Street before I found it. A great tenement house in Elm Street near Grand burning fiercely. Scores of families had been turned out of it into the icy streets and bitter weather. Celtic and Teutonic fathers and mothers were rushing about through the dense crowd in quest of missing children. A quiet, respectable German was looking for his two (the elder "was eight years old and could take care of himself, but the younger had only nine months and couldn’t well do so”). I thought of poor little Johnny frightened and unprotected in a strange scene of uproar and dark night and the glare of conflagration and piercing cold, and of Babbins, and tried to help the man but without success. There were stories current in the crowd of lives lost in the burning house; some said thirty, others two. The latter statement probably nearer the truth. Steam fire engines are a new element in our conflagrations and an effective one, contributing to the tout ensemble a column of smoke and sparks, and a low shuddering, throbbing bass note, more impressive than the clank of the old-fashioned machines. . . .

There is a Speaker at last. Sherman withdrew, and the Republicans elected Pennington of New Jersey (Bill Pennington’s father), who seems a very fit man for the place. Reading Agassiz’s Essay on Classification. Rather hard reading for anyone not thoroughly learned in a score of -ologies. But I can see and appreciate its general scope and hold it to be a very profound and valuable book.

SOURCE: Allan Nevins and Milton Halset Thomas, Editors, Diary of George Templeton Strong, Vol. 3, p. 6

General William T. Sherman to Senator John Sherman, June 26, 1887

NEW YORK, FIFTH AVENUE, June 26, 1887.

Dear Brother: I have just returned from Saratoga and Lake George, and am now arranging for Providence, R.I., where on the Fourth of July there is to be inaugurated an equestrian statue of General Burnside. I was always one of Burnside's personal friends, but after the battle of Chattanooga or Missionary Ridge, and after I had forced my Army of the Tennessee to march by land 450 miles in October, November, 1863, from Memphis to Chattanooga, General Grant, finding the Fourth Corps General Gordon Granger — moving too slow, called on me to go to his relief at Knoxville, which I did effectually and conclusively. Burnside in Knoxville reporting to Mr. Lincoln direct, treated his siege as a question of supplies, viz., that his supplies would be exhausted about December 3d, when want would compel him to surrender. I was therefore forced to march my already weary Army of the Tennessee near 136 miles in four days, or be held responsible for the terrible consequences of his surrender. I forced my men at twenty-six miles a day, and when I got to Knoxville I found inside a fine pen of cattle, and was invited to dine with Burnside at a dinner with a roast turkey, tablecloth, knives, forks, and spoons, which I had not seen for years. My Memoirs described the literal truth, but Burnside's friends thought it hard on him, and now I shall go to the dedication of his monument to apologize for telling the truth. Others may orate, I will not. I will simply assert a personal friendship. Burnside was not a combative man. He was kind, good, and patriotic, as you saw him in the Senate, but he did not come up to the occasion. In war we must use all forces, and now when we look back we recognize the qualities of each. Burnside was a good man, but he was not a war soldier.

The New York papers make out that you and I differ. Of course, we all differ. I stand by the authorities. . . . Mr. Cleveland is President, so recognized by Congress, Supreme Court, and the world. Now, by the Fifth Article of War, made the law before you were born, every officer of the Army of the United States who speaks disrespectfully of the President of the United States becomes a felon the same as one who has committed murder, felony, forgery, treason, or any crime, and could be punished at the discretion of a court-martial. I am still an officer of the army, and cannot violate this law. Of course I know Drum, the Adjutant-General. He has no sympathy with the army which fought. He was a non-combatant. He never captured a flag, and values it only at its commercial value. He did not think of the blood and torture of battle; nor can Endicott, the Secretary of War, or Mr. Cleveland. . . . Still, in Republics majorities govern, and since only one in sixteen go to war, non-combatants always govern. The soldier who fights must take a back seat and apologize for his vehemence in action. Grant had to apologize, Sheridan to shelter himself behind his most proper orders to devastate the Valley of the Shenandoah, and Sherman to be abused and assailed for the accidental burning of Columbia in the day of Republican rule. . . . In 1861-65 we fought for union and right. The soldiers restored to Congress full power, and returned to their civil vocations. Congress surrendered the country to the non-combatants, and now it is questionable whether Lincoln or Jeff Davis was the Union man. Jeff now says he never meant war. He thought that they would be allowed to do as they pleased without war. Lincoln was the assailant, Davis only on the "defensive-offensive."

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, p. 374-6

Senator John Sherman to General William T. Sherman, September 3, 1887

MANSFIELD, OHIO, Sept. 3, 1887.

Dear Brother: Your letter of the 27th came as I was starting for the Ohio Fair. From thence I went to Lancaster, and found all well. . . My trip to the Pacific over the Canadian Railroad was a great success. We travelled 7000 miles without fatigue, accident, or detention. We stopped over at the chief points of interest, such as Toronto, Montreal, Sudbury, Port Arthur, Winnipeg, Calgary, Banff, Donald, Glacier House, Vancouver, Victoria, Seattle, and Tacoma, and yet made the round trip within the four weeks allowed. We did not go to Alaska, because of the fogs and for want of time. The trip was very instructive, giving me an inside view of many questions that may be important in the future. The country did not impress me as a desirable acquisition, though it would not be a bad one. The people are hardy and industrious. If they had free commercial intercourse with the United States, their farms, forests, and mines would become more valuable, but at the expense of the manufactures. If the population of Mexico and Canada were homogeneous with ours, the union of the three countries would make the whole the most powerful nation in the world. I am not so sure but this would be a good thing to do. . . .

Affectionately yours,

JOHN SHERMAN.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, p. 376-7

General William T. Sherman to Senator John Sherman, September 6, 1887

NEW YORK, Sept. 6, 1887.

Dear Brother: I am sorry you lost the trip to Alaska, but it will give you an excuse for making it at some future time. I have never been there, and feel little curiosity about it. My judgment at present is that we want no more territory. If we could take in the territory of Ontario it would make a good State, but the vast hyperborean region of the North would embarrass us with inchoate States and Territories without a corresponding revenue. I am dead opposed to any more of Mexico. All the northern part is desert, like the worst parts of Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. Further south the population is mixed Spanish and Indian, who never can be harmonized with our race. Eight millions of such people would endanger our institutions. We have already enough disturbing influences.

Affectionately yours,

W. T. SHERMAN.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, p. 377

General William T. Sherman to Senator John Sherman, October 1887

Dear Brother: I am perfectly content to have retired when I did, as the present régime makes Sheridan's command of the army a farce. The army is drifting back into the same old condition, when Jeff Davis was Secretary of War, when secretaries and other clerks gave military orders to General Scott and those under him. In case of a new war, army commanders will be hampered just as we were in 1861.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, p. 377-8

Senator John Sherman to General William T. Sherman, January 16, 1885

[January 16, 1885.]

. . . My re-election to the Senate for the fifth time is unprecedented in the history of Ohio, and for this I am indebted to the difficulty of selecting from among younger men of equal claims and calibre. . . .

I also feel that it is the highest point of my political life, for if I live to the end of my term I shall be seventy years old. I have had enough of the contentions of political life and wish now to take a tranquil and moderate course, which, indeed, is the best for the country, now that we have no great, exciting questions to decide. The view expressed in my speech (a well-printed copy of which I will try to send you) is my sincere view of the situation. The dangers before us are election frauds and labor difficulties. These will be local at the beginning, but may involve the whole country.

SOURCE: Rachel Sherman Thorndike, Editor, The Sherman Letters: Correspondence Between General and Senator Sherman from 1837 to 1891, p. 366-7