1/6/2024 0 Comments Ulysses s grant book“hat another man might tell about General Grant was nothing, while what General Grant should tell about himself with his own pen was a totally different thing,” īut in May 1884, circumstances in Grant’s life changed dramatically, forcing him to reconsider his decision. “ had no confidence in his ability to write well,” Twain later explained, “whereas I and everybody else in the world excepting himself are aware that he possesses an admirable literary gift and style.” Grant’s insights were also unique. “It is all in Badeau,” Grant told another would-be literary suitor, putting a preemptory end to all memoir discussions. Grant written by his former aide, Brigadier General Adam Badeau, with Grant’s full cooperation. Anything he had to say had already been included in a three-volume Military History of Ulysses S. He had no interest in revisiting his past. Twain, ever fascinated by Grant’s stories, tossed a suggestion on the table: Grant should write some of those stories down in a memoir. Over a lunch of baked beans, bacon, and coffee, the three men quickly took care of business, and the remaining conversation centered on personal matters. In tow was another of Twain’s great friends, the literary critic William Dean Howells, who was hoping to enlist Grant’s aid on a small political matter. The former president had retired to a quiet business life, but he still had political connections. On an early March afternoon in 1882, novelist Mark Twain paid a visit to the Wall Street office of his old friend, Ulysses S. It may serve a purpose in restoring harmony.” In its first two years alone, his Memoirs earned $450,000 in royalties, and since its initial publication, the book has never been out of print. “As it is the dedication is to those we fought against as well as those we fought with. “The troops engaged on both sides are yet living,” Grant explained to his son Fred, who questioned the dedication. Grant dedicated his memoirs to “the American soldier and sailor”-both Northern and Southern. Grant appeared in two volumes, the first of which came out in December 1885. He opened his eyes, looked at his family and appeared to fall into a gentle sleep, dying at 8:08 a.m. On the morning of Thursday, July 23, 1885, doctors told family members to gather around Grant’s bedside. “e put aside his pencil and said there was nothing more to do,” Mark Twain recounted. “I pray God however that may be spared to complete the necessary work upon my book.” Finally, on July 20, 1885-after eleven months, two volumes, 1,231 pages, and 291,000 words-Grant finished. McGregor alive,” he confessed to his wife Julia. Many visitors made the trek up the mountain to pay their last respects to the dying. McGregor hoping that the milder climate would ease his discomfort and prolong his life. In mid-June doctors relocated Grant from midtown Manhattan to a mountaintop resort north of Albany, the Balmoral Hotel located atop Mount. Grant continued to write his memoirs through the spring of 1885. While friends and colleagues did what they could to secure his financial position, Adam Badeau attempted to blackmail Grant, trying to obtain more money for his work in exchange for quelling rumors that he, Badeau, was the actual author of Grant’s memoirs. Grant suffered bouts of despondency and an almost total collapse of his health in March 1885. He continued to write while his former military secretary Adam Badeau and his son Fred supported him with research, fact checking and editing. Seeing his doctor sometime in mid-October, he learned he had throat cancer. That summer Grant experienced growing throat discomfort. Although he had been offered a contract by The Century, Grant eventually contracted to publish his memoirs with Twain’s publishing company, Charles Webster & Co. Enjoying the experience Grant set out to write his memoirs. While he had previously demurred when asked by Mark Twain to write his memoirs, needing money, Grant agreed to write four articles about the war for The Century Magazine. Grant’s life changed dramatically when a Ponzi scheme run by two of his partners in the Wall Street brokerage firm Grant & Ward collapsed harming many investors including the Grant family, which was left destitute.
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