ed much firmness, and was "_the
only man in the Yankee army who was not badly beaten_." He showed me, on
a plan, the exact position of the two armies, and also the field of
operations of the renowned guerillas, Morgan and Forrest.

Colonel Grenfell called again, and I arranged to visit the outposts
with him on Tuesday. He spoke to me in high terms of Bragg, Polk,
Hardee, and Cleburne; but he described some of the others as "political"
generals, and others as good fighters, but illiterate and somewhat
addicted to liquor. He deplored the effect of politics upon military
affairs as very injurious in the Confederate army, though not so bad as
it is in the Northern.

At 2 P.M. I travelled in the cars to Wartrace in company with General
Bragg and the Bishop of Georgia. We were put into a baggage-car, and the
General and the Bishop were the only persons provided with seats.
Although the distance from Shelbyville to Wartrace is only eight miles,
we were one hour and ten minutes in effecting the _trajet_, in such a
miserable and dangerous state were the rails. On arriving at Wartrace we
were entertained by Major-General Cleburne. This officer gave me his
history. He is the son of a doctor at or near Ballincolig. At the age of
seventeen he ran away from home, and enlisted in Her Majesty's 41st
Regiment of foot, in which he served three years as private and
corporal. He then bought his discharge, and emigrated to Arkansas, where
he studied law, and, eschewing politics, he got a good practice as a
lawyer. At the outbreak of the war he was elected captain of his
company, then colonel of his regiment, and has since, by his
distinguished services in all the western campaigns, been appointed to
the command of a division (10,000 men)--the highest military rank which
has been attained by a foreigner in the Confederate service. He told me
that he ascribed his advancement mainly to the useful lessons which he
had learnt in the ranks of the British army, and he pointed with a laugh
to his general's white facings, which he said his 41st experience
enabled him to keep cleaner than any other Confederate general.[42] He
is now thirty-five years of age; but, his hair having turned grey, he
looks older. Generals Bragg and Hardee both spoke to me of him in terms
of the highest praise, and said that he had risen entirely by his own
personal merit.

At 5 P.M. I was present at a great open-air preaching at General Wood's
camp. Bishop Elliott preac