at could be readily brought about. He had just been
restored, or was about to be, to the actual command of the army,
after having been practically suspended from command a long time
because of his differences with the Secretary of War. He desired
especially to bring the military academy under his command, and
appears to have been assured of President Grant's support in that
regard. General Sherman also wished me to revise the army regulations,
so as to incorporate the theory of relation between the administration
and the command which he and General Grant had maintained as the
true one, but which had generally, if not always, been opposed by
the Secretaries of War and by the chiefs of staff departments.
These were doubtless the principal reasons for General Sherman's
anxiety to have me accept the assignment to West Point. But very
soon after my arrival in the East I found that I was also expected
to preside over a board of review in the case of General Fitz-John
Porter and in that of Surgeon-General William A. Hammond; and that
my junior in rank, Major-General Irvin McDowell, could not be given
a command appropriate to his rank unless it was the division which
I had consented to vacate. Of course I could not but feel complimented
by this indication that my superiors thought me capable of doing
well so many things at once, nor yet could I fail to see that,
after all, my care of West Point had not been considered of so
vital importance, since it would not interfere with the all-important
revision of the army regulations, and the retrial of Porter and
Hammond.

But I had given my consent, though under erroneous impressions as
to reasons and necessity, to what my superiors desired, and hence
determined to keep my thoughts to myself so long as the promises
made by General Sherman were fulfilled. But I had hardly got
settled in the academic chair before I received a great affront
from the Secretary of War, through the adjutant-general of the
army, in direct violation of General Sherman's promise that I should
"be subject to no supervision except by the usual board of visitors
and the general commanding the army." This offensive action arose
not simply from ignorance of General Sherman's promise, of which
the adjutant-general and the Secretary of War had evidently not
been informed, but from culpable ignorance of the academic regulations
on the part of the adjutant-general, and still more culpable
disregard of the inv