command fell on the field, including Colonel Murchison and Major Henderson, of the 8th Regiment. They held the position and saved the day.
On the 10th of June following, General Clingman repulsed an attack on the lines of Petersburg, and on the evening following, held his position against the attack of two army corps (the 9th and 18th) commanded by Generals Burnside and Smith, numbering in the aggregate 43,000 men. Three brigades on his right gave way early in the engagement, but he held his position until 11 o'clock, p. m., when the engagement ceased--and Petersburg was saved.
On the 19th of August, following, an attack was made on the enemy's lines on the Weldon railroad, near Petersburg, by which 2,100 prisoners were taken, and many killed and wounded. In this affair General Clingman received so severe a wound that he was for several months kept out of the field, and was only able to join his command a few days prior to Johnson's surrender.
When the war closed (8th
April, 1866,*
* The Supreme Court of the
United States in case of U. S. v. Kiem in January, 1872, decided the beginning
of the civil war was on April 19, 1861, date of proclamation as to blockade, and
the end was April 8, 1866, date of President's proclamation declaring the war at
an end.
) General Clingman, like many others, was left desolate
and depressed in mind, wounded and exhausted in body, and utterly impoverished;
yet he was ever ready to aid in building up the waste places of his country, and
to repair as far as possible the desolations of internecine strife. He was
elected a member of the Convention of 1875, and was vigilant and active in the
cause of the people.
These are rapid and unsatisfactory sketches of the public services rendered his country by General Clingman.
In his private life, he is exemplary and consistent. He is a member of the Episcopal Church, an admirer of its tenets, and an observer of its ordinances.
Though his fame rests on his long and important service as a statesman and his gallantry as a soldier, yet he has not neglected the pursuits of literature and of science. His able defence of religion, and its support by science, gained him "golden opinions from all sorts of men," both North and South; he has in various publications demonstrated to the country and to the world the capabilities and advantages of Western Carolina--its healthful climate and prolific soil. Many have been induced by his descriptions to seek a home with us, bringing wealth, talent, and industry. He has made important contributions to the science of geology and mineralogy. His articles on these subjects have appeared in Silliman's and other journals, and rank with those of Dana, Guyot, Shepard, and other savans of the age. He has presented much and varied information as to mountains of North Carolina, which he has explored in person, and in compliment of such exertions his name has been worthily bestowed on one of its highest peaks.
General Clingman, as our readers may know, has never married. His busy life and active services in the cause of his country have denied him that pleasure. But he is far from underestimating female society, and is a great admirer of grace, beauty and intelligence.
No one possessing his warmth of friendship for his own sex can be indifferent to the charms of the other. As a friend, General Clingman is frank, sincere and faithful, and this is reciprocated deeply by those who knew him best. No one that I know ever maintained such a hold on the affections of the people. The citizens of his district possess such unbounded confidence in his judgment and integrity that they followed him in whatever course he has pursued. For more than 15 years (with exception of one Congress,) he was elected by their
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