General Scott Part 21

By the same act pensioners who are inmates of the Home may a.s.sign their pension and have the same or any portion thereof paid to a wife, child, or parent if living; otherwise the pension is paid to the treasurer of the Home and held by him in trust for the pensioner, who may, while an inmate, draw upon it for necessary purposes, and receive whatever balance may remain upon his discharge.

In 1851 temporary asylums were established at New Orleans, La., Greenwoods Island, Miss., and Washington, D.C. The one at New Orleans continued about one year. A tract of land was purchased in Mississippi comprising one hundred and ten acres in 1853, and was occupied until 1855. At this date the inmates were removed to a branch asylum near Harrodsburg, Mercer County, Ky. This latter asylum was discontinued in 1858 under the act of March 3, 1857, and the inmates transferred to the Home near Washington, which was established in 1851-'52. This Home is situated about three miles due north of the Capitol of the nation.

At first it comprised two hundred and fifty-six acres of land.

Subsequent acquisitions by purchases have been added, so that now the grounds comprise five hundred acres and three quarters. The largest part of the grounds are woodland, a portion being cultivated for the benefit of the Home, and through it nearly ten miles of graded, macadamized roads have been constructed, winding through the groves of native and foreign selected trees. The park is open to the public at proper hours, and forms a favorite drive and walk for the residents of and visitors to Washington. The princ.i.p.al building for the inmates is of white marble, the south part being called the Scott Building, after the founder of the inst.i.tution, and the addition on the north is called the Sherman Building, after General W.T. Sherman. The old homestead building to the west of and not far from the Scott Building is called the Robert Anderson Building, in commemoration of the early advocacy of and interest in the establishment of the Home by that officer. This building was the home of the first inmates, and has frequently been used as the summer residence of the Presidents. It has been occupied by Presidents Buchanan, Lincoln, Hayes, and Arthur.

There is a building to the east called the King Building, after Benjamin King, U.S.A., who was the surgeon in charge for thirteen years. Brick quarters were erected to the northeast of the Sherman Building in 1883, and, in honor of General Philip H. Sheridan, is named the Sheridan Building. There is a neat chapel built of red sandstone, which was completed in 1871, where religious services, both Protestant and Roman Catholic, are regularly held. The officers in immediate charge of the Home are a governor, a deputy governor, a secretary and treasurer, and a medical officer detailed from the army.

The inmates who are not pensioned receive one dollar a month pocket money, and twenty-five cents a day for such labor as they are detailed for and willing to perform. Some beneficiaries who have families receive a small monthly stipend and reside elsewhere than at the Home.

The whole number of permanent inmates admitted up to September 30, 1892, was 8,086. The number on the rolls January 31, 1893, was 1,196; of these, 824 were present at the Home, some receiving outside a.s.sistance, and some being absent on furlough.

A heroic statue in bronze of Lieutenant-General Winfield Scott, by Launt Thompson, was erected in 1874 on the most commanding point of the grounds. Aside from the artistic finish of the statue, it is a wonderful likeness of the subject. There is also a perfectly designed hospital for the sick and an infirmary for the aged and helpless, which was completed in 1876. No grander or more lasting monument could be erected to perpetuate the memory of the ill.u.s.trious general than the Soldiers' Home near Washington.

General Scott, in his later years, was very impatient of contradiction, but when convinced that he was in error was always ready to acknowledge it. In a diary of Colonel (now General) James Grant Wilson, who was at that time aid-de-camp to General Banks, occurs the following:

"On the morning of the 19th of February, 1864, I spent an hour with Scott at his quarters, Delmonico's, corner Fourteenth Street and Fifth Avenue. During our conversation he mentioned that he was engaged in writing his Memoirs, and that he experienced a great deal of annoyance from his difficulty in obtaining dates relating to events in the southwest. He expressed regret that Gayarre, whom he knew and had met before the war, had not published the third volume of the History of Louisiana, which he [Scott] knew was in ma.n.u.script. I remarked that I thought I had seen the work in three octavo volumes. 'No, you have not seen three volumes. There are only two published, and the first is a small 18mo volume,' was the old gentleman's answer. I further added that it was my impression that I had seen three, when the old soldier settled the matter by saying, 'Your impressions are entirely wrong, colonel.' An hour later I purchased the third volume at a Broadway bookseller's, and sent it to him with the following note:

"'FIFTH AVENUE HOTEL, _February 19, 1864_.

"'MY DEAR GENERAL: I have much pleasure in sending you the third volume of Gayarre's History of Louisiana, which I trust may contain the desired information. Should you wish to refer to the first volume of his work, you will find it at the Astor Library. It is an octavo volume of about five hundred pages, published by Harper & Brothers, of this city. I have the honor to be, general, very truly yours,

(Signed) "'JAS GRANT WILSON,

"'_Col., A.D.C._

"'_Lieutenant-General_ WINFIELD SCOTT.'

"Called on Scott soon after my arrival from New Orleans (early in October, 1864), and had a very pleasant interview. Almost the first thing he said was thanking me most kindly for the third volume of Gayarre's History, and apologizing for his mistake. Told me his Memoirs were completed and in press; that he had closed them abruptly, as he was fearful that his end was near, during the early part of the summer--about June, I think he said."

General Scott's health continuing bad, he was conveyed in a quartermaster's boat from New York to West Point by General Stewart Van Vliet, accompanied by several personal friends. He died at the West Point Hotel a few minutes after eleven o'clock, May 29, 1866.

The last words which he spoke were to his coachman: "Peter, take good care of my horse." He was buried, in accordance with his oft-expressed wish, in the West Point Cemetery; on June 1st, his remains being accompanied to the grave by some of the most ill.u.s.trious men of the country, including General Grant and Admiral Farragut. The horse mentioned above was a splendid animal, seventeen hands high and finely formed. The last time that General Scott mounted him was in the latter part of 1859, which he did with the aid of a stepladder, for the purpose of having an equestrian portrait painted for the State of Virginia. The war coming on, the picture pa.s.sed into possession of the Mercantile Library of New York.

The author received a letter from the late Rutherford B. Hayes in January, 1892, in which he said: "On my Southern tour in 1877 I repeated two or three times something like this, purporting to be quoted from General Scott: 'When the war is over and peace restored, there will be no difficulty in restoring harmonious and friendly relations between the soldiers of the sections. The great trouble will be to restore and keep the peace between the non-belligerent combatants of the war.' I did not hear the remark of General Scott. My recollection is that I heard it from General Rosecrans." ...

On submitting President Hayes's letter to General Rosecrans, he made the following statement: "I heard that story about General Scott from General Charles P. Stone. General Stone was on the staff of General Scott. At the beginning of the war, in the spring of 1861, he was directed to organize the militia of the District of Columbia, and was present when the following occurred, as he told me personally.

Shortly after the fall of Sumter and the President's call for troops, Secretaries Seward, Chase, and Cameron came to General Scott's residence in Washington one evening and found him at the dinner table.

One of them said: 'General, our duties as members of the Cabinet make it very desirable for us to have some idea of what the probable range and course of the war will be, that we may guide ourselves accordingly. We have therefore come to you to get your judgment on the situation.' On the general's invitation, they sat down at his dinner table, and he went on to explain his idea of how the war would progress from year to year. While he was talking, Mr. Seward seemed to be somewhat impatient, and put in several little interruptions, but finally subsided and allowed General Scott to proceed. The general gave an outline of a war probably lasting from three and one half to four years, but resulting in favor of the Union.

"On the general's announcement of his opinion that the Union would triumph, Mr. Seward, rubbing his hands, inquired, 'Well, general, then the troubles of the Federal Government will be at an end.' To which General Scott replied, 'No, gentlemen, for a long time thereafter it will require the exercise of the full powers of the Federal Government to restrain the fury of the noncombatants.'"

To a young army officer he gave the following advice: "You are now beginning life; you are ignorant of society and of yourself. You appear to be industrious and studious enough to fit yourself for high exploits in your profession, and your next object should be to make yourself a perfect man of the world. To do that you must carefully observe well-bred men. You must also learn to converse and to express your thoughts in proper language. You must make acquaintances among the best people, and take care always to be respectful to old persons and to ladies." General Scott was always extremely gallant and courteous to ladies and greatly enjoyed the society of intelligent and refined women. As stated in the early part of this work, General Scott had been an industrious student of the law, and the knowledge thus acquired was of great service to him throughout his eventful career.

He was well read in the standard English authors--Shakespeare, Milton, Addison, Pope, Johnson, Goldsmith, Dryden, Hume, Gibbon, and the early English novelists. He was a constant reader of the best foreign and American periodicals and the leading newspapers of the day. He was of the opinion that wars would never cease, and therefore took little interest in peace societies.

He held the opinion that the study of the higher mathematics had a tendency to lessen the ability to move armies in the field, yet expressed regret that he had not in his youth given more study to the subject. He was very fond of whist, but was quite irritated when he was beaten and generally had a ready excuse for his defeat. On one occasion he was playing a very close game, in the midst of which he left the table to expectorate in the fireplace. He lost the game and said to one of the party, "Young gentleman, do you know why I lost that game?" "No, sir," was the response. "It was because I got up to spit." Scott was also a good chess player.

He used tobacco somewhat excessively until the close of the Mexican War, after which time he renounced its use entirely. He was exceedingly vain of his accomplishments as a cook and specially prided himself on the knowledge of how to make good bread. He spent several days in instructing the cook at Cozzens' Hotel, West Point, in this art, and did not desist until the bread was made according to his standard. He had a great aversion to dining alone, and rather than do so would cheerfully pay for the meal of any pleasant friend whom he would invite to dine with him. General Scott openly professed himself a Christian and was a regular attendant at the services of the Episcopal Church. He was broad and liberal in his views and condemned no man who differed with him in religious opinion. He usually carried a large, stout, gold-headed cane, and after entering his pew would rest both hands on its head and bow his head, praying in silence. It was difficult for him to kneel on account of his size. He scrupulously joined with the greatest decorum and seriousness in all the services of the church, responding in a distinct, loud voice.

He was impatient with persons who could not recollect or did not know of dates and events which were conspicuous in his life. He was asked at one time the date of the battle of Chippewa. He answered blandly, "July 5, 1814." Turning to a friend, he remarked, "There is fame for you." The same party inquired in what State he was born. He answered, "Virginia." "Ah," said the questioner, "I thought you were a native of Connecticut." This left him in a bad humor for the remainder of the evening. The editor of this series has said of him: "General Scott was a man of true courage--personally, morally, and religiously brave. He was in manner, a.s.sociation, and feeling courtly and chivalrous. He was always equal to the danger--great on great occasions. His unswerving loyalty and patriotism were always conspicuous, and of such a lofty character that had circ.u.mstances rendered the sacrifice necessary he would have unhesitatingly followed the glorious example of the Swiss hero of Sempach, who gave his life to his country six hundred years ago.... He was too stately in his manners and too exacting in his discipline--that power which Carnot calls 'the glory of the soldier and the strength of armies.' A brief anecdote will ill.u.s.trate the strictness of his discipline. While on duty he always required officers to be dressed according to their rank in the minutest particular. The general's headquarters in Mexico comprised two rooms, one opening into the other. In the rear room General Scott slept. One night after the general had retired a member of his staff wanted some water. The evening was warm and the hour late, being past midnight. The officer rose to go in his shirt sleeves. He was cautioned against the experiment as a dangerous one, for if Scott caught him in his quarters with his coat off he would punish him. The officer said he would risk it--that the general was asleep, and he would make no noise. He opened the door softly and went on tiptoe to the water pitcher. He had no time to drink before he heard the tinkle of the bell, and the sentinel outside the door entered. 'Take this man to the guardhouse,' was the brief order, and the coatless captain spent the night on a hard plank under guard."[E] He did not conceal his opinions of men or measures, and hence he very often gave offense. It should be borne in mind that the public men of the age when General Scott came on the stage, both military and civil, were as a rule dignified, formal, and to some extent dogmatic. They held themselves with great dignity, and their magnetism was the result of their commanding abilities and high character, and they did not rely for popularity upon the methods of modern times.

[Footnote E: Wilson's Sketches of Ill.u.s.trious Soldiers: New York, 1874.]

General Grant, in mentioning General Scott's Mexican campaign, says: "Both the strategy and tactics displayed by General Scott in the various engagements of August 20, 1847, were faultless, as I look upon them now after the lapse of so many years." And further: "General Scott enjoys the rare distinction of having held high and successful command in two wars, which were a full generation apart. In 1847 he commanded, in Mexico, the sons of those officers who aided in his brilliantly successful campaign against the British on the borders of Canada in 1814." Daniel Webster, in a speech delivered in the United States Senate February 20, 1848, said: "I understand, sir, that, there is a report from General Scott, a man who has performed the most brilliant campaign on recent military record, a man who has warred against the enemy, warred against the climate, warred against a thousand unpropitious circ.u.mstances, and has carried the flag of his country to the capital of the enemy--honorably, proudly, humanely--to his own permanent honor and the great military credit of his country.

And where is he? At Pueblo--at Pueblo, undergoing an inquiry before his inferiors in rank, and other persons without military rank, while the high powers he has exercised and executed with so much distinction are transferred to another--I do not say to one unworthy of them, but to one inferior in rank, station, and experience to himself." No more fitting close to this sketch of his life can be given than to quote the words of his friend, General Wilson: "He has bequeathed to his country a name pure and unspotted--a name than which the republic has few indeed that shine with a brighter l.u.s.ter, and a name that will go down to future generations with those of the greatest captains of the nineteenth century."

THE END.

The Great Commanders Series.

Edited by General James Grant Wilson.

Admiral Farragut.

By Captain A.T. MAHAN, U.S.N.

General Taylor.

By General O.O. HOWARD, U.S.A.

General Jackson. By JAMES PARTON.

General Greene.

By Captain FRANCIS V. GREENE, U.S.A.

General J.E. Johnston.

By ROBERT M. HUGHES, of Virginia.

General Thomas.

By HENRY COPPER, LL.D.

General Scott.

By General MARCUS J. WRIGHT.

_IN PREPARATION_

General Washington.

By General BRADLEY T. JOHNSON.

General Sherman.

By General MANNING F. FORCE.

General Grant.

By General JAMES GRANT WILSON.

Admiral Porter.

By JAMES R. SOLEY, late a.s.sist. Sec. of Navy.