Press enter after choosing selection

Gen. Grant "interviewed"--his Opinion Of The France Prussian War

Gen. Grant "interviewed"--his Opinion Of The France Prussian War image
Parent Issue
Day
23
Month
September
Year
1870
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

TLe views ot Qoiioral Grant on the jooni?u:t of tho European wil aro soice' tliing vhioh all tin' World bu an Ínter 1 in kuowing. Tliu enterprise of tte 1 Tiuis vir.B exhihitrd, during the Inte riêitof Ihh Ezcelleocy, by obtaioiog, nt ! Bümo leogth, tlie Generáis opinión of niaf'er.i ou tha lthtuisb frontier. T.io Qeneral, in rexpocttu to a ques! tion as to bit opinión of matters betweeu Franc) and Pruína, niJ tbiit neither party undntaoda war u bc uuderst&udá 1 1;. Hero tbo roportor of the Timn ver.tured to fiMi'rt a cordial indurxeiueut of tbe reraat k of bis Kseelleney. "Permil me, General," saiJ Mr. Seanomon, "'to ask yon t puint out what you conceive to tie tbe chiel bluider cf tbc samnaigna thus far 't" "i'i niicü," caid tho General, ho llghted a fn eh öignr, "mude it hluudor ia oommencing war upon a people of equal 8Ízo and stn ugtli. Tlie truo way to uiuke war to aiways have three '.o your enomy's one. An iliuttratiuu of tlie fet w;m priven at Shiloh. Tha enumy there was wiiliiu n third ss largo a- my owu force. iltuco, tbo dia:ister wbicb befell me." "Uut, Gonerni," said tho reporter, "have you no faitb in miinocuvricg orin stratey, whtreby iaferiority in point of Dumbers can Le ïtjuuüzud by supuriority of brains ï" "None whatever. Shormao played tliat out in liis ta:irch to tbe wca. Ton see, the Confederaoy waa only a sbell, and tbat is wby hti met with such euc ces. He had no opposition My own experienoe prove ttiia. Id 11 cases wliere 1 attompted ny of these tiewfanglcd oporations, I yint btatcn " Hcre Mr. (,'olí'ix, aith u very sweet smilo, iiiquirod a8 to what thu General thoupht sluiuld be done by Napoleon. "My idoa," paid the General, "is tliat ho sbould get Butler and Jiauka to comm-ind aruiy corps in the Prussiari forefg. Tben ho should conscript ever}' Freneh man that can Cfirry a musket, and send hiui in. PruKÍa has ouly 30,000,001) iuhabitauts while Franco h;8 -40,000.000 Tbis is a clear diff-'rence d favor of Franco of 10,000,000. JSTow let Napoleon keep nummering away at tbe Prussituia f it takea all mmmer. I ara of tliü. opinión that the superior autivity of the Frencb, aided by tbeir obusepot, their elnn tbeir traditioos, and tbeir superior navy, wil) onahlo thera to kil! a PrasaiaD as often as thoy oan a Frencbmsn. Henoe it ia a clear omsh that if Napoleon hainmera awuy tül ill tlie Prussians are killed off; be wíl] have 10,000,000 left. In other words, bis cafs tail i tlie longest." "What is your opinión of Napoleon personally ?" asked Mr. Joaeph !edill "He is a great man. He sinokes always and nover saye anythiog. Ha was once in bumble eirenmatnnoes. Ile was never, however, in tho bide business, excepi perhaps so fur aa hiding himttii' is concerned." Ilero General Pent broke into uproarious laughter. He afterward romiirked to tho reporter that he was hired to laush at Graot'a jokes ; and, he ad'led, bc Sattered himself that he wai doing a very extessive business ou a very limited capital. Gf-ncr.il Grant pufi'.;d stoically until Deut had finished laugbing, and he resutned : "Napoleon is my model. I havostood befoio hi porti ait by the liour, trving 'o mould my countenuDce iuto the atony inexpressiveness that cbara(iterizo hil. I am not certuin but that I shifll imita'e bis coupd'e'ate. He ros'e from ohscurity to be a president. So tlid I. He rowe froin president to emperór ; and if I don't followsuit it will be because Congress took the trump out of my haud when it reduced theanny." "Wel!, now, General, teil us what you tïiïnk of the Pruisiaus," t-aid Mr. Greenobaum. "I'.'on't like 'etn," he renponded, enten tiously. "Why'not, your Excellency ?" "Wel!, I dou't. They want office too much. Why, I have had more than a bundred thousnnd applicatiocs from Dutchmen for office, whose only recom ineodation was tbat tbty 'fought mit Sigel.' As voters, I have no objaotiou to tbem. Duriug the war thcy stole everj tbing, so that a ua'ive had no otisuce." The General procoeded to eoniinent on Prusoiau stnitegy He did not like it he said. They were in too mueh of a hurry. Here, now, in les than a moulh thcy have bardly a tnillion men iu the fit-ld, which was a shorter time, ho giiid, than he rt-quired to move his army lrom Fort Heury to Douelsui - u diitaoee of only thirty miles. This eelerity, he ronmrked is destructivo of uil precedent. Tho PrtwfiaJM have gono farther in ten days thau he went iu ten months wbi moving on Richmond. He further thought the Pruesian mova u blunder. In place of going toward Pnris by way of Metz tbey o;igbt to cross the Jsmes Kiver aud go round by way ot Petersburg. There 18 ntith er dignity uor seneo iu thia way of ruh iug straight st Paris with a big arniy. Tlio Pruwiao leaders ought to hold ou and see wbo ie going to be the next President. TIiÍn makiug war for war's cake. was not, in his opioioo, the true principie ot warfaro. All wars shouid havo tbe high aud beautiful objoct of relurniog tho men of one's parly to C-'oMgress, and tbe eleotion oí one's candidato to tho Presidenoy. At tbis moment it wan annonnced ihat lunch was ready, aud tbu party broke up.

Article

Subjects
Old News
Michigan Argus