GENERAL JOHN BRECKINRIDGE CASTLEMAN By Ella Hutchison Ellwanger It is a rare honor to any man to live to see a statue erected to himself, and history may be ransacked for a counterpart of the profound admiration that moved a city to so honor a man while he still dwelt among them. The equestrian statue, a heroic one in bronze and one and a half times life size, modeled by that famous sculptor, Mr. R. Hinton Perry, of New York, at a cost of upward of $15,000, was erected by It "Marse" Henry Watterson will be interesting: "I regret that the delay in completing the pedestal for the equestrian statute of Gen, John Breckinridge Castleman will deny me the pleasure and honor of making the promised address on the occasion of its public dedication. Engagements entered into long ago and imperative in character take me abroad the last of the present month, and so I must leave another to deliver the word fittingly to commemorate an event so interesting, picturesque and striking. "To me it would have been a most grate the people of Louisville, Kentucky, ful task. Gen. Castleman and I are life-long in grateful recognition of General John Breckinridge Castleman's many years of public service. stands on an immense granite base, and faces the entrance to Cherokee Park. The artist has caught the General in his most characteristic attitude, mounted on his black mare "Carolina." The dedication services were imposing and the addresses by noted Southerners glowed with praise and tribute for the military and civic hero. The speakers marched to the entrance to Cherokee Park accompanied by a detail of Louisville mounted police, and the First Regiment of the Kentucky National friends. We served together in the field and were fellow exiles in a foreign land, he barred from returning-perhaps the only American who was ever thus signalized. To have been rescued from death by Lincoln, banished by Andrew Johnson, welcomed home by Grant; having worn the gray in perilous enterprises, finally to have worn the blue with distinction, retired from the army of the United States a general officer, is a record shared, I am sure, by none other. Yet his chief claim upon us is that of the citizen and neighbor, who through a generation has given great energies and talents to civil duties the most important and useful, commending himself as an official and endearing himself as a man. "Thirty years ago, in the State Capitol at Frankfort before a great concourse of Guard attended by its drum and people, Gov. J. Proctor Knott presented trumpet corps. Beside the many famous people present there were many who sent letters to the Statue Commission. This one from Gen. Castleman a sword, and concluding his address said: 'I am, sir, presenting to you this sword in testimony of my high appreciation of the wonderful service you have rendered to the Commonwealth, of your aid in my administration of public affairs during the most troubled experiences in the State's history, and as a token of my admiration and love for you as a friend.' "These words express now a universal sentiment." Gen. W. B. Haldeman, editor of the Louisville Times, wired this message: "I regret extremely that I will be denied the pleasure of being present at the unveiling of the Castleman statue tomorrow. It was a happy thought of Charles F. Grainger to thus pay a greatly deserved honor to the first citizen of Louisville during his lifetime. No honor could be paid Gen. John Breckinridge Castleman by his fellow Kentuckians that he does not eminently deserve." Ex-Gov. James E. Campbell, of Ohio, forwarded this letter: "I am unable adequately to express my regret that, in the short time intervening, I cannot rearrange important engagements already made so that I could be present on that occasion and testify to my high regard and warm friendship for that gallant soldier, true patriot, faithful husband, fond father, high-toned Kentuckian and Christian citizen. To me he stands out, more than any one else, as distinctly a true type of the 'old school'-a genuine antebellum Southern gentleman. He has ever been all of that, not only in fact, but in appearance; for he has always looked and acted the veritable patrician. "I know of no episode in all history so touching as that of the Grand Army encampment at Louisville in 1895 when, with John B. Castleman as the leader, the Confederate soldiers of Louisville welcomed that great body of Union veterans to the finest possible exhibition of your gracious and far-famed hospitality. It was my good fortune on that occasion to be a guest in his house with Justice John M. Harlan, Senator Joseph C. S. Blackburn, Governor J. Proctor Knott and Colonel Henry B. Car rington. The six of us (including the host) were equally divided between those who had marched under the Stars and Stripes and those who had followed the 'Bonnie Blue Flag,' but literally once more loving brethren in heart, thought and hopes. "While sojourning at this exalted fireside I had the privilege of intimately inspecting the private life of Gen. Castleman and his family, than which none could be more beautiful or inspiring. Surrounded by his high-bred wife, his beautiful daughters and his stalwart sons, he was, in my opinion, more to be envied than any man I had ever known. "Therefore, in the most heartfelt manner I join his friends and comrades in spirit as they dedicate this loving tribute to him; and appreciate the pride they must justly feel in having erected so well-merited a testimonial." At the conclusion of the unveiling exercises the committees and the speakers and many friends from home and several States called on Gen. Castleman at his modest bungalow in beautiful Castlewood to congratulate him and inform him that the ceremonies which attended the unveiling of the statue had been commensurate with the dignity of the historic occasion. If you ask, "Why all this?" they will tell you: "We do it as a tribute to his public services and personal worth; because he has given generously of his time, means and ability to the upbuilding of Louisville; finding no task too onerous, no personal sacrifice too great, no duty too exacting." A SHORT SKETCH OF HIS CAREER. The life that has called forth such honor was begun on June 30th, 1842, at "Castleton," the home of |