spirit and a habit of hard work with, his
friends say, no fault but a habit that is almost impracticable of
seeing for himself almost everything he is himself held responsible
for. If he has a weakness of that sort he has a rare opportunity to
indulge it to the full extent of his personal resources. He certainly
dispatches business rapidly, decides the controverted points quickly
and has a clear eye for the field before him. His record is a good
one. When the war of the States came on he was a New York lawyer--his
home is at Rochester. Near the close of the war he was wounded on the
Weldon road, along which Grant was extending his left wing to envelop
Petersburg. He was struck by a musket ball almost an inch from the
end of the nose, and the course of it was through the bones of the
face under the right eye, passing out under the right ear. He was
"shot through the head," and suffered intensely for a long time,
but maintained his physical vitality and mental energy. His face
is but slightly marked by this dreadful wound. He has been a hard
student all his life, and is an accomplished soldier, as well as
an experienced lawyer. His judicial services in court-martials have
been highly estimated. Altogether he is well equipped for executing
the various duties of his position. He will "hold the fort in good
shape." In an adjacent room, Assistant Adjutant-General Strong, son
of the ex-mayor of New York, a young man of much experience in the
national guard and a sharp shooter, sticks to business with zeal and
knowledge, and in a very few days established a reputation as a helper.

So much has been said in disparagement of the "sons of somebodies"
that it is a pleasure to put in evidence the cleverness and intelligent
industry of Captain Strong, late of the 69th New York, and of Captain
Coudert, of New York.

General Merritt took possession of the palace of the governor-general,
overlooking the river, a commodious establishment, with a pretentious
gate on the street, a front yard full of shrubbery and rustling with
trees, a drive for carriages and doors for their occupants at the side
and a porte cochere, as the general said with a twinkle of his eye, for
the steam launch which was a perquisite of the Governor. The commanding
general of the Philippine expedition enjoyed the life on the river,
along which boats were constantly passing, carrying country supplies
to the city and returning. The capacity of canoes to convey fruit