USA > Pennsylvania > Montgomery County > Lives of the eminent dead and biographical notices of prominent living citizens of Montgomery County, Pa. > Part 47
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Having such a record and such a commander, the regiment was quickly recruited by new men and the re-enlistment of battle-scarred veterans. On the expiration of the furlough of thirty days, there- fore, the regiment rendezvoused at Annapolis, Maryland, where, in the absence of Burnside, the corps, to the number of twenty thou-
*Of Hartranft's gallantry and ability as a commander during these East Tennessee operations, a distinguished Massachusetts officer says: "At Knoxville his management and actions seemed to me equal, if not superior, to any other officer; and this is saying much, where all did so well. I regard Colonel Hartranft as entirely competent to com- mand a brigade, division, or even corps."
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GOVERNOR JOHN F. HARTRANFT.
sand men, was assigned to Colonel Hartranft, to whom all new regi- ments were ordered to report, and to whose supervision was com- mitted the work of equipment and reorganization. This was high but deserved honor to a man who, from the neglect of the govern- ment or his own native modesty, had at times, though but a Colo- nel, been acting during important battles as a Major General.
At last the crisis of the war had come. Fresh from the triumphs. of Donelson and Vicksburg, Grant was placed at the head of the. whole military force of the Union, and in person assumed the com- mand of the Army of the Potomac. Burnside's Ninth Corps, to which Hartranft's command was attached, was about half composed of raw troops, many of the men never having been in a battle. This, independent force, though not recorded as an integral part of that great invading army, was placed between Hancock's Second and Warren's Fifth Corps, on the Rapidan, and advancing down the. peninsula encountered Lee for the first time on the 6th of May in the battle of the Wilderness. Here our men had to attack a con- cealed foe, who were fighting in Indian fashion. Consequently, as in the case of Braddock and Washington a century before, military rules of attack and defence were often set aside or disregarded. An illustration occurred during this murderous battle where the fight- ing on our part was at constant disadvantage.
Commanding a brigade, Hartranft was acting under Wilcox, and being ordered to attack the unseen enemy, he perceived the impos- sibility of accomplishing anything to repay the sacrifice of life. Con- sequently he conveyed his views to Burnside, who seeing the reason: of his subordinate's suggestion, countermanded the attack with thanks to Colonel H. During this battle Hartranft was everywhere in the front, seeming to needlessly expose himself to the enemy's. fire. On being expostulated with for his temerity, he replied that he thought it necessary to give courage to his raw troops.
About this time-nearly two years after he had won his promo- tion at Antietam bridge-his star of Brigadier General was received. At the battle of Spottsylvania, which happened a few days later,. when Hancock's corps had swept like a tornado over the rebel ad- vance, it became the duty of Hartranft's brigade to checkmate large- reinforcements which the enemy threw on that part of the line. This involved desperate fighting, always at a disadvantage, and his. losses were heavy in killed, wounded, and a few prisoners taken by the enemy. In these two encounters the Fifty-first lost nearly two- hundred men in killed, wounded, and missing.
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GOVERNOR JOHN F. HARTRANFT.
Never were the horrors of war more aggravated than here, where hostile armies faced each other in a wilderness, daily entrenching, and as often advancing with the unburied dead and the wounded lying between to fill the air with pestilence and doleful groans. The details of this advance, as described in the History of the Fifty-first Regiment, are sickening in the extreme, there being according to that authority nearly sixty thousand sick and wounded lying at one time in hospitals near Fredericksburg.
By the early days of June Grant had fought his way down to Cold Harbor, where another terrible sacrifice of precious lives was ren- dered for the salvation of the country. Here Hartranft's brigade was ordered to charge and take a line of works, which was accom- plished. At this battle the lamented Colonel Schall gave his life for the Union, as did also Captain Bisbing and many other noble Mont- gomery county men. On the 16th of June Grant's army crossed the James. The extent to which Hartranft's brigade had been used ap- pears when by June 18th out of one hundred and five officers sixty- five were dead, crippled, or injured; of eighteen hundred non-com- missioned officers and privates, seven hundred and thirty had been killed, wounded, or struck from the rolls for disability. This sounds bravely when reported to the credit of the commanding General, but which seems a melancholy recital when the precious lives are con- sidered. After crossing the river General Hartranft was wounded in the arm by a bullet. The losses of his brigade in all these opera- tions just described were very severe; but now, having arrived before Petersburg, which was prepared for a siege, his force was placed to cover the engineers and workmen while excavating the celebrated mine, which was sprung and exploded on July 30th. In order to cover this secret movement his men were kept almost constantly firing at the enemy night and day for nearly six weeks previous, and losing several daily from constant exposure. During the fruitless assault that followed the exploded mine, Colonel Bolton was a sec- ond time wounded in the cheek, and one of Hartranft's orderlies was killed while sitting between the General's knees, as also another (Wood) who was standing by his side.
On the 18th of August General Warren's corps captured the track of the Weldon railroad near Petersburg. The next day, or rather in the night, the rebel General Mahone, being ordered to retake it, broke through our line, and Hartranft's brigade was ordered to re- inforce the point attacked. This he successfully did, repulsing the enemy, during which his horse was killed under him and a staff offi-
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GOVERNOR JOHN F. HARTRANFT.
cer beside him wounded, losing his horse also. Time and space will not permit full details of the early autumn operations. Suffice it to state that Hartranft participated in the battles of Ream's Sta- tion, Poplar Springs, and Hatcher's Run. By the commencement of winter his brigade, though reinforced with three new regiments, had been reduced from three thousand effective men in May to less than one thousand in November.
About the Ist of December, therefore, General Hartranft was as- signed to the command of six new Pennsylvania regiments of one * year men. These new troops he at once set about organizing into a division, which was designated the Third Division of the Ninth Corps. With these raw troops he soon won the brightest chaplet that crowns his military career, as we shall proceed to narrate.
Through the winter months of 1864-5, the two armies lay en- trenched within a few yards of each other, watching, as it were, for a weak place in the armor of either. The rebels, finding resources failing them, and seeing that it was only a question of time that must soon be decided against them, concluded to break through our line in front of its base of supplies. Accordingly, before day on the 25th of March, they made an assault on Fort Steadman, and such was the suddenness and impetuosity of their charge that our men were captured or driven out, the enemy advancing their front beyond our line and taking possession of some rifle-pits abandoned by our soldiers. This was the status at four o'clock in the morn- ing, when Hartranft, who was lodging about a mile away, hearing an unusual noise, arose and learned that Steadman, situated near the Appomattox, was taken. Hastily forming his regiments to re- sist the rebel advance most effectually, he soon received orders from General Parke, who was in command of the Army of the Potomac that day, to retake the fort without delay. Reinforcements, with the aid of the reserve artillery of the Ninth Corps, having arrived and been placed in position just as Hartranft had set his subordi- nates in motion, orders came to suspend the attack until the arrival of the Fifth Corps. Feeling assured of success, however, and fear- ful that he might not be able to communicate with his entire line in time to countermand the attack, General Hartranft determined to advance immediately to the assault, which he did, leading the at- tack himself. There were no troops in this charge except his own division and those of the First Division, Ninth Corps, that had occu- pied the line. The enemy, not expecting the tables to be so soon turned upon them, were driven back after a stout resistance with
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GOVERNOR JOHN F. HARTRANFT.
the loss of many killed and about three thousand prisoners, and the fort retaken. The victory was complete, our line restored, and the rebels set about arranging for their final evacuation of Petersburg .and Richmond. This famous assault, partly with new recruits, if we except the sweeping charge of Hancock at Spottsylvania, was perhaps the most brilliant achievement of this celebrated siege. The action was the crisis of Hartranft's military career, as also of the war .of the rebellion. Had he failed he would have been ruined, for .technically and strictly he was leading a charge on countermanded orders, and success was all that made it a personal victory. Were it not that a higher authority teaches the doctrine of a Providence our subject's imagination might well conceive, like Napoleon, that 'he was born under the guidance of an inevitable and lucky star. But of this hereafter. The government was not so remiss in recog- nizing his courage and capacity as previously, and very soon he re- .ceived the following official correspondence, which speaks for itself:
HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE POTOMAC, March 27th, 1865. To Major General J. G. Parke, commanding Ninth Army Corps :
General-The commanding General directs me to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of this date recommending Brigadier Gen- eral Hartranft, United States volunteers, for the brevet of Major General of volunteers for his conspicuous gallantry in recapturing Fort Steadman during the action of the 25th instant, as well as for his industry and efficiency in organizing and disciplining his divi- sion, composed of new regiments. In reply I am directed to in- form you that before the receipt of your letter a recommendation to the same effect had been made by the commanding General to Lieu- tenant General Grant, to which a response was received that his nomination had been made to the Secretary of War, and a tele- graphic answer returned that the appointment should be made. Since then the commanding General is informed by telegraph that Brigadier General Hartranft is brevetted Major General, and the appointment has been forwarded by mail. Your recommendation, however, has been forwarded to complete the record.
I am, General, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
GEORGE D. RUGGLES, A. A. G.
HEADQUARTERS NINTH ARMY CORPS,
March 28th, 1865.
Brevet Major General J. F. Hartranft, commanding Third Division : General-The commanding General instructs me to transmit here- with a copy of communication from the commanding General of the Army of the Potomac, of yesterday's date, which will explain itself.
He bids me say, however, in connection therewith, that such prompt recognition of your services on the 25th instant by the President, the Lieutenant General, and Major General command-
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GOVERNOR JOHN F. HARTRANFT.
ing this army, affords him the greatest pleasure, and he begs you will accept his hearty congratulations on your well deserved pro- motion.
I am, General, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
P. M. LYDIG, brevet Lieutenant Colonel and A. A. G.
Just a week after this achievement, on the 2d of April, General Grant concluded to give the coup de grace to the siege of Petersburg, and ordered an assault all along the line. In this attack General Hartranft commanded the Third Division of the Ninth Corps, and all of his old brigade except the Fifty-first Regiment, which covered: the ground previously occupied by the entire brigade. The divi- sion advanced to their part of the work with the resolute bravery of men who had just honestly earned green laurels, and after tearing: away the abattis leaped over the ditch and poured into the outer works of the rebels, which they held at great loss, only to find a. still stronger line in the rear. Here both sides slept on their arms, and awaited the next day. In the early morning, Colonel Bolton,. of Wilcox's command, being on the qui vive, ordered his skirmishers; to advance towards the city and "feel for the enemy," when it was found that they were evacuating the town. Thus the commands of" Wilcox and Hartranft were in Petersburg by early dawn. The Gen -- eral, with his division, pursued the retreating enemy as far as Not- taway Court House.
The war ending soon after, General Hartranft was detailed under- the order of President Johnson to guard the assassins of President: Lincoln during their trial and execution. He was shortly after mus -- tered out of the volunteer force with his troops, but the government, desiring to retain his valuable services as a military man, conferred! upon him unasked the rank and appointment of Colonel of the- Thirty-fourth Regular Infantry, then stationed in Kentucky, which position the General declined. A biography, issued at Harrisburg- in 1875, by Singerly & Co., in summing up a sketch of him, says : "Of the many civilians who entered the army but few displayed an. equal aptitude for military affairs; and for personal bravery in ac- tion, or skill in handling troops, none achieved a more splendid or- a more enduring fame." To this eulogy we add the remark that: Hartranft evidently never entered the army or endured the carnage: and demoralization of war because he had a taste for such unnatu- ral employment, but simply because war is a means to a salutary end. -a remedy for and against greater evils.
The uniform modesty and unaffected patriotism of John F. Hart- ranft drew all eyes to him at the end of the war for civil employ -
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GOVERNOR JOHN F. HARTRANFT.
.ment. Accordingly the Republicans of Montgomery county urged This claims for Auditor General at the convention that assembled at Harrisburg on the 17th of September, 1865, which were recognized, and on the second ballot he was unanimously nominated, being elected by twenty-two thousand six hundred and sixty majority at the ensuing election. His long tour of duty in the army, and the frequently manifested hostility of his original party friends to the administration charged with the prosecution of the war, had de- tached him from them, and yet his prudent reserve had not incurred the rancor that often arises when a man shifts his political ground. Still the Democracy watched his administration of the finances with Argus eyes. But the simple honesty of purpose that had carried him through the war without reproach, enabled him to close his first term with the report that, in connection with Governor Geary and the Legislature, the State debt had already been reduced several millions. In 1869, when the time for the nomination of a Gover- nor drew near, there was considerable dissatisfaction among Geary's friends, growing out of his crooked mode of making appointments, but still more at his supposed sympathy with the temperance move- ment, and numbers urged Hartranft to be an active competitor with him for the Gubernatorial nomination. But the latter, feeling that ยท so gallant a soldier as Geary deserved a renomination, refused to contest the matter, and Geary had the customary renomination and election. In 1871 Hartranft had then filled the post of Auditor General so fully to the acceptance of his party that he was renomi- nated almost by acclamation. It was admitted that during his sec- ond term he had drawn before the light of day some parties who had been evading State taxes, and were about to realize large sums which belonged to the Commonwealth. Through a legislative mud - dle and executive interference, and finally by judicial decisions, he was frustrated in his purpose. Although there was a relentless cla- mor raised against him by the opposite party, alleging corruption and nearly every possible offence, he was so fully vindicated in the judgment of his party as to obtain on the 9th of April, 1872, the Gubernatorial nomination on the first ballot.
But a nomination was not an election. He had to run the gaunt- let of public opinion, with Forney's Press and a number of influen- tial newspapers against him, as also the Greeley anti-Grant defec- tion. Yet he was elected over Buckalew by the very large plurality of thirty-five thousand six hundred and twenty-seven, and an abso- lute majority of thirty-four thousand four hundred and seventy-
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GOVERNOR JOHN F. HARTRANFT.
seven. Here again it would seem that this plain, unassuming man. was under some inevitable power or force that compelled success .. It is hardly germain to our design to refer to the interior forces that produced this result. Suffice it to say that the party of the Gover -- nor-elect had secured at its recent national convention the hidden power that for some time to come seemed to determine the politics- of the Commonwealth.
He was inaugurated on the 22d of January, 1873, by a resplend- ent pageant composed of military and civic bodies, and his address was a State paper of great ability. With the exception of a brief" reference to the usury laws, and recommending a repeal of the same, his suggestions were eminently wise and patriotic. He drew par- ticular attention to the then growing evil of special legislation or enactments for private ends, and of which he said, "I cannot con- demn this even in language too strong." He also advised that the pardoning power be lodged with a board, as has since been done. True to his ancestry, who were pious German refugees to America for the sake of conscience, the Governor opens and closes his first inaugural, as in fact all his subsequent papers of the kind, with a recognition of the Divine power that rules the world, and confess- ing his dependence upon Him for direction and success. True also to his generous sympathy for the humble, while the pageant to his- honor was in progress, he stole aside to take by the hand a large- number of soldiers' orphans who had gathered at Harrisburg on the- occasion.
Governor Hartranft entered upon the responsible duties of his . great office with that patriotic concern for the public welfare that had always distinguished him. Cautious, prudent, and reticent, he set about selecting his assistants and subordinates, knowing that for what they should do he would be responsible. And here his in- stinctive knowledge of human nature and clear perception of other men's motives and secret springs of action, have served him just as. they did in exigencies while directing army movements in the field .. For Secretary of the Commonwealth he chose Colonel Matthew S .. Quay, of Beaver county, a man of great intellectual attainments ; for Attorney General, Hon. Samuel E. Dimmick, of Wayne county, a gentleman of large experience; and for private secretary, Colonel A .. Wilson Norris, of Philadelphia. These were all men of character and ability, showing very clearly that the new Governor meant to avail himself of the best men of his party, representing also the dif- ferent localities of the State.
5II
GOVERNOR JOHN F. HARTRANFT.
As the Governor was not apparently a man of great mental force and self-will, he was supposed by many to be deficient in moral and political firmness, and that he would be the sport of cliques and rings. Many predictions were therefore made that he would fail of public expectation. But in this the prophets were greatly at fault. The little patronage he had to dispense was judiciously bestowed, always remembering the due claims of soldiers, who with himself had contributed to preserve the Union.
Being installed, his counsellors appointed, and the few adminis- trative offices in his gift filled, the legislation of the winter began. Now the question arose, Will the Governor attempt to throttle the- hydra of special legislation, according to the declarations of his in- augural? They did not have long to wait. At the assembling of the Legislature of 1874 eighty-two vetoes of private bills were re- turned in one day, which had passed the previous Legislature on the log-rolling principle. This pretty much cleared the legislative halls of the lobby, or "Third House." A number of other bills, how- ever, partly of a public nature, such as relief voted to the citizens of Somerset and permission to the Pennsylvania railroad to indefinitely increase their capital, were also returned.
But his firmness was to be tried in another direction. Monetary, social and corporate abrasion were creating permanent discontent among the employes of great mining and transportation companies all over the State. When a nation is prosperous, and the people well fed, clothed, and happy, it is an easy task to fill its executive chair. Hartranft's mettle was to be sorely tried in this respect. At. Susquehanna Depot, the employes, not being paid their wages, re- sorted to force and violence. The civil arm seeming powerless, the military was called out. The Governor, being temporarily absent, was appealed to not to send troops, when he responded by telegraph. as follows: "As an individual I may sympathize with your people in their misfortunes in not receiving prompt payment of their dues, but as the chief executive officer of the State I cannot allow credit- ors, however meritorious their claims may be, to forcibly seize the property of their debtors and hold it without due process of law ; much less can I allow them to take and hold illegal possession of a great highway and punish the innocent public either as passengers or transporters for the default of a corporation with which they have. no concern. My duty is not to make nor criticise the laws, but to execute them ; and that duty I must discharge without fear or favor.""
These were eminently wise and judicious words, and had the de-
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GOVERNOR JOHN F. HARTRANFT.
sired effect in quieting the men and inducing them to seek civil remedies.
On his accession to power, apprehensive that a general jail de- livery would be expected of him, he took occasion to urge legal pro- vision for dividing the duties and responsibilities involved in the exercise of the pardoning power. Pending the provision for such a board by the new Constitution, during his first year, he interposed but forty-five pardons against seventy-one by his immediate prede- cessor, and fewer in a single year than any Governor since 1790.
His annual message of 1874 reiterates most of the objects set forth in his inaugural, but gives special prominence to our great public school system, which he warmly espouses. He asks that separate confinement be provided for insane convicts and prisoners. The prevailing monetary revulsion subjected private banks and savings institutions to a review, and he wisely objects that "the paying of interest on deposits by such institutions is liable to great abuse and danger to the people." Looking to the welfare of the unendowed masses, he urges that new guards be provided against fraudulent in- surance companies and against needy debtors divesting themselves of the benefit of the exemption laws. In this latter recommenda- tion the Governor is in advance of both our legislators and judiciary in the benevolent desire to preserve what was really intended to be a civil and political franchise. His appeal for legislation to save somewhat of our disappearing forests is timely and judicious.
We come now to narrate one of the most important acts of As- sembly during Governor Hartranft's first term, and describe one of the leading issues that entered into his re-election to the second, which was then pending. And here he must be judged by the or- dinary considerations and motives that influence public men. In order to present the case properly we must go back to the last year of Geary's administration, and state that the license question, which had been for many years a shuttle-cock between the two great par- ties of the State, had been temporarily settled or remanded to the people by the Republican party enacting the " Local Option Law," which, by its own limitation, was to run three years at least. This act had Governor Geary's approval, and Hartranft came into office non-committal one way or the other. At the next election, in 1873, however, by the manipulation of the primaries, a large majority of legislators of both parties, unsuspected by the local optionists, were elected in favor of rescinding the law, and the repealing bill went through the House on a rush almost without consideration. When
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