ng my administration,
and I had the pleasure of meeting him on numerous occasions.

At an immense reunion of volunteer soldiers from Northern Illinois,
Michigan, and Wisconsin, which was held in Aurora, I, as Governor
of the State, was invited to make the first address. General
Sheridan was invited to be present and take part in this celebration,
and he came down from Chicago, accompanied by his wife. I met them
at Aurora. We rode in the same carriage, at the rear of the
procession, to the fair grounds, a mile or so distant from the
city. The day was hot, and as we entered a dense grove, on the
road, the soldiers halted for a breathing spell, and while at rest
many of them went to a well near by for water. It was observed by
some of the soldiers that General Sheridan remained in the carriage,
and they immediately surrounded us. He greeted all cordially and
good-naturedly, being very fond of soldiers who had fought on the
Union side of the great struggle between the North and the South.
What immediately followed pleased Mrs. Sheridan and those who were
near, and amused Sheridan himself. A big Irish soldier-boy got
hold of Sheridan's hand and pulled him out of the carriage. Being
of small stature, General Sheridan was at the mercy of the stalwart
Irishman, who dealt with him in a very rough way, slapping him on
the back with great force, and with as much earnestness exclaiming:
"Boys, this is the damnedest, bravest little Mick in America!"

As is well known now, the operations of General Sheridan in the
Shenandoah Valley and the region of Richmond called forth the
plaudits of the Nation and the commendation of his superiors. His
victories had much to do with bringing the Civil War to a close.
He was conscious of the power and value of the cavalry arm of the
army. In discussing his great achievements he made the remarkable
statement that with a force of five or ten thousand cavalrymen,
will organized, he could run over an army of almost any size.
Whether this be true or not, it remains that General Grant had
implicit confidence in Sheridan's ability to command the cavalry
forces in a manner superior to any other officer in the Union Army.

It was on the suggestion of Grant that Sheridan was brought from
the West to take command of the cavalry. After coming East, he
was presented to President Lincoln. The President scrutinized him
closely. He did not appear to be the officer recommended to him
by Grant as t