GENERAL THADDEUS H. STANTON.

 

            HE was a major when I knew him first. He made his headquarters at Salt Lake City during the years that Major General Alex. McDowell McCook was stationed at Fort Douglas. He had all the elements of a great soldier; he was a perfectly equipped great citizen. When he reached Salt Lake he bore the name of "Crook's fighting paymaster."

            That came from the fact that during all the years that General Crook was fighting the Indians on the frontier, whenever a fight was on, it was Stanton's fashion to forget that he was paymaster, and taking a gun went into the ranks with the regular infantry and fought so long as any Indians were in sight. Of course the soldiers all swore by him. He did not do it because he loved fighting, but he had a theory that if in a fight with Indians, other things being about equal, the white man can hold up steady for a few minutes, the red man will give way; and his presence in a company, his presence and words of cheer, and the absence of all fear on his part, were calculated to hold the men up into the fight, when otherwise a panic might have come upon them.

            His general bearing was that of a light-hearted, jovial, kindly man. Only a few of us knew how fine a scholar and profound a thinker he was, or how intense was his patriotism.

            When stationed in Salt Lake he made frequent journeys to all the military stations in this intermountain region, to pay off the soldiers. Once he went to Fort Washakie in northern Wyoming in midwinter. From the railroad station at some point in Wyoming- -Rawlins, I believe the trip was by stage some 100 miles, and the thermometer showed over 30 degrees below zero.

            When he reached the fort the officers all exerted themselves to minister to him and make him comfortable. When at last he had been served with a hot meal and was fairly warmed

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through, some of the officers asked him if he had not nearly perished in the intense cold.

            He assured them that while the air was a little bracing and might have seemed really cold to boys -- there were several young lieutenants stationed there -- it was just wholesome to a veteran. This bantering went on until some of the young officers told him that he was born before the real tough stock of Americans had appeared; that old chaps like himself had not the constitution to stand a real endurance test. To this Stanton replied that it would be easy to demonstrate that right then. At Washakie there is a big hot spring, the waters of which below the spring are caught in a pool; so Stanton proposed that they all go clown and take a bath in the spring. Half a dozen of them accepted and disrobed as Stanton did, went into the pool, then out, naked, following Stanton, left the water and lay down on a snow bank close by, and repeated this three or four times. It is the wonder of the world that it did not kill them all. When the young officers got warm enough to talk, they admitted that possibly a few tough men might have been born before the stalwart age came in.

            When here the major always dressed in plain clothes or undress uniform, except when it was pay day at Fort Douglas. Then he was always in full uniform and on such days, while he had on that uniform, no persuasion could induce him to enter a saloon.

            With him the army of the United States represented the glory of the republic, the flag it bore was a standard so sacred that all those in whose immediate custody it was entrusted should always, when on duty, show that their lives were consecrated to its defense- "their lives, their fortunes and sacred honor." His loyalty was something beautiful to see. The president of the United States was his commander-in-chief, and if any one in his presence had aught to say in criticism of him, Stanton would walk away.

            But he was just as loyal to friends. When Mr. Cleveland was elected president, he sent a gentleman to Utah with an appointment as surveyor general of the territory. He was a

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finely educated and accomplished gentleman, a kindly man withal and on his arrival at Salt Lake wanted to be on good terms with all the people. But he evidently had never been west and he brought with him a somewhat narrow provincialism.

            He was met on his arrival by Mr. Barratt, a prominent Democrat, who naturally invited him to the Alta club and introduced him to the gentlemen there. The call lasted perhaps forty minutes, when Mr. Barratt escorted him to his hotel. On the street the new surveyor general suddenly turned to Mr. Barratt and with mingled surprise and gratification, said : "Barratt, do you know that from that hasty visit I would judge that 60 per cent of those gentlemen in the club, in intelligence, would average very well with the men of Illinois."

            Barratt, himself an old Baltimore thoroughbred, left him at the hotel and then went to find Stanton.

            To him he recounted what the new federal appointee had said.

            Stanton listened and then said : 'This is serious, Barratt, I must think it over." He took the first conveyance for Fort Douglas and told General McCook. 'You are sure he said it, Stanton?" said McCook. Then he made a brief oration, made up in great part of compound adjectives. Finally he said : "Next Thursday is Jackson day. It is only fair to pay our respects to this new federal officer. I will give a reception on that day and invite the gentleman to attend. I will invite a few others to make everything agreeable. Sit down and help me make out the list."

            The reception was set for 10 a. m. and a good many carriage loads of gentlemen were there on the hour. General McCook and all his officers, in full uniform, received them and made them welcome.

            The general had brewed one of his famous punches. Those McCook punches -- besides being wonderful to the palate -- were loaded down with character. They looked innocent as lambs and harmless as doves on the surface, but in their depths lay coiled serpents as potential as cobras. Of course the first thing was to drink the health of the president ; then to the memory

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of the hero of New Orleans ; then to the army of the United States ; then to the flag ; then to the governor of the territory.

            Evidently the new surveyor general had never found any such beverage before and this was not only wonderful, but free. Within fifteen minutes he volunteered to make a speech. It was cheered vociferously and he made another. Then his health was proposed and drunk with irrepressible enthusiasm and so he made a third speech which broke down party lines and Democrats and Republicans were all brothers.

            In forty-five minutes after his arrival he was asleep under the table and the expression on Stanton's face was something delicious to see. Mr. Barratt acknowledged his obligation to him.

            When the Kaiser's brother, in his journey around the world, reached Salt Lake, he stopped off for a clay's rest. His attendants were a count and a baron. I think that Stanton had received a request from Washington to make their visit as pleasant as possible. As a representative of the army he met them and did what he could for them. The prince had a cold, and Stanton had Dr. Allen or Dr. Hamilton visit him and advise him not to go out in the night air.

            Thereupon, when the prince was disposed of, Stanton took the count and baron to the Alta club. The gentlemen of the club did what they could to make the night pleasant for the distinguished guests. About 2 a. m. the major escorted them back to the hotel. It was cold and sloppy weather, I think in February. It had stormed during the evening, a half rain half snow down-pour, and the sidewalk was slippery and far from dry. Reaching the hotel the major said the count insisted on sitting down on the sidewalk and as he did so he remarked : "I haf been der vurld around und like Salt Lake I finds nottings."

            With a proper expression of sorrow the major told me of it the next day, and admitted that it was bad, but added that it was impossible to do the great German empire and emperor too much honor when their representatives came to this country.

            The above gives a faint idea of the joyous side of General

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Stanton's character. There was a boyish side to him which never grew old, but his inner nature was that of a hero and statesman. Could more than one recent candidate for president have heard him for half an hour discuss the principles upon which this government of ours was founded, the vital points which were to outline what should be, with proper limitations, beyond which neither legislators nor executives might go : how representatives were but to execute the people's will and how they were to be checked if they attempted either experiments or usurpations beyond that : how the civil power must always dominate up to the point of actual war : how until that point should be reached both the army and navy were as much subject to the civil authority as the humblest citizen; how patriotism did more to make a man a good citizen than all the schools, and love for the flag was not only a duty but an inspiration: those candidates would no longer advocate some things which they have advocated.

            He went from Salt Lake to Denver and finally was stationed in Washington, D. C. as assistant paymaster general, and with the coming of the Spanish- American war became paymaster-general.

            The work he performed then was marvelous. He had the regular and volunteer armies to look after, a thousand stations from Porto Rico to the Philippines to take care of and keep in order, and when his work was critically analyzed, not one error on his part was found.

            He was retired shortly after the war closed, and a little later died. He visited Salt Lake some half year previous to his death. He was the same Stanton, though he had aged much, and it was clear that he had not long to live.

            There was all the old exquisite humor, the same joyous personality ; the same old love for friends ; the same clear instinct of right and wrong ; the same devotion to native land ; the same reverence for the flag the same invincible, irrepressible spirit, the same high heroic soul. He lived the perfect citizen and soldier, and if his spirit was questioned in the beyond, he was able to answer: ''It was a little rough down there at times, but if you will look, you will find that my books every night showed an exact balance."