n or W.F. Smith should be put in command of that
army. Both the Secretary of War and Gen. Halleck said 'Gen.
W.F. Smith would be the best person to try'. The President,
the Secretary of War and Gen Halleck agree with you in
thinking that it would be on the whole much better to select
him."

* * * * *

Series I Vol. XXXI Page 457 Official Records Union and Confederate
Armies. (War of the Rebellion)]

I cannot close this sketch without repeating in part my personal
testimony to the strength and elevation of General Smith's character.
He was blessed by a singularly clear, orderly and comprehensive mind,
and was most industrious and persistent in its use. Somewhat phlegmatic
and deliberate in temperament and manner, he gave the impression
occasionally that he was lacking in push and energy, but such was not
the case in fact. During his services on the Rio Grande he suffered, as
previously related, a malarial attack from which it is now evident he
never entirely recovered. Under exposure to the summer sun, he was for
the rest of his life liable to a recurrence of the symptoms especially
those pertaining to the head, and this may have made him more or less
irascible at times. Military habits are at best not calculated to
develop a mild and patient behavior, nor to beget a spirit of
resignation to unjust or arbitrary treatment, especially if it comes
from higher authority, and is not merited.

General Smith was the last man to lay claim to a saint-like character,
but according to those who knew him best he possessed a just and even a
charitable disposition, which made him fair towards his equals and most
considerate towards his subordinates. He was, however, above all
things, logical, and as a close student of his profession, he
invariably followed the established principles of the military art to
their legitimate conclusions. In the presence of great military
problems and responsibilities such as those with which he had to deal
at Chattanooga, he became absorbed and reticent if not austere and had
but little to say except to those with whom it was his duty to talk.
There the solution was so clearly his own that no one thought of
disputing it with him till years afterwards. But in the conduct of
operations against Lee, there were so many roads open, so many
commanders in the field, and so many plans of operations suggested, so
many considerations to be observed that