GRIFFIS
GRIFFIS
army. Upon the recommendation of Grant and
Buruside he was for his action iu tliis battle
made brigadier general of volunteers. He com-
manded a brigade at North Anna, Tolopotomy,
Bethesda Church and Cold Harbor, and com-
manded two brigades in the assault on the
enemy's works in front of Petersburg, June 16,
1804, seizing one mile of intrenchments and cap-
turing a stand of colors, four field pieces, 1500
stand of arms, a quantity of ammmiition and one
thousand prisoners. On not receiving support he
was obliged to fall back. He then engaged in
the battle of the Mine, the battle on the Wilder-
ness road at Poplar Springs church, and tliat at
Hatcher's Run. He commanded the line near
the Jerusalem Pike, AprU 1, 1865, and under
orders attacked the enemy's picket line and
swept it for a mile, capturing eight officers and
241 men, when he received orders to witlidraw
his troops and he joined in the attack on the main
works a mile distant. This difficult feat -was
accomplished and with Hartranft on his right
and Curtin on his left he led the charge over the
abatis and the parapets, seized the works, cap-
tured the guns and hundreds of prisoners, and
held the town. The news of this assault deter-
mined President Davis to evacuate Richmond
and for this action General Griffin was brevetted
major general of volunteers. With his division
he followed the fleeing Confederates and was a
part of the military cordon that encompassed
Lee's army and compelled its surrender. He
was mustered out of the volunteer service, Aug.
24, 1865. He was never wounded and never lost
a dajs duty from sickness, although he had
seven bullet holes in his clothing, had two horses
killed and five wounded imder him in action, had
half his men killed or wounded at second Bull
Run, one-thJrd at Fredericksburg, and one-fifth
at Antietam. He declined an appointment in
the regular service ; was a representative in the
New Hampshire legislatm-e, 1867-69; speaker of
the house, 1868-69; and was chairman of the
Republican state convention of 1868. In 1887
and 1888 he was commander of the Massachusetts
commandery of the Military Order of the Loyal
Legion of the United States. He became exten-
sively interested in land and railroad enterprises
in Texas and devoted much time to historical
literary work. He died in Keene, N.H., Jan. 14,
1902.
GRIFFIS, William Elliot, author, was born in Pliiladelpliia, Pa., Sept. 17. 1843; son of Capt. John L. and Anna Maria (Hess) Griffis; grandson of Captain Griffis, a lifelong navigator; and a descendant maternally from Quaker ancestors who settled in America previous to the Revolu- tion, became "Free Quakers." and were officers in the Continental army. His father was a sea
captain and later in life a coal merchant. Ha
attended the public schools of Philadelphia, 1849-
59, and engaged in business, 18.59-65. In 1863 ha
served three months as color corporal in company
A, 44th Pennsylvania militia, during Lee's in-
vasion. He was graduated from Rutgers college
in 1869 and after a
year of travel in Eu-
rope he studied theol-
ogy in the Seminary
of the Reformed
church. New Bruns-
wick, and in Septem-
ber, 1870, he was
appointed b}- the gov-
ernment of Japan to
proceed to the prov-
ince of Echizen and
organize there an
American system of
education. He lived - , -. ^ — ^
during 1871 in the city /J»^ cCCc-o^Jr^ff^^
of Fukui, in Echizen,
observing the feudal system of Jaiian in operation and making a study of that subject for the pur- pose of treating Japanese feudalism in a volume. On the abolition of feudalism by the Mikado's edict, he made a winter's journey across Japan and in 1873-74 taught chemistry and physics in the Imperial university in Tokio. After his return to the United States in 1874 he lectured for several years on Japan and the Japanese. In 1875 he entered Union theological seminary and was graduated in June, 1877. He was domine or pastor of the First Reformed church, Schenec- tady, N.Y., 1877-86, and pastor of the Shawmut Congregational church, Boston, Mass., 1886-93. He taught mental science at Union college in 1883. He was married to Katliarine Lyra, daughter of Prof. Irving Staunton of Union, and in 1891 with his wife attended the International Congregational council in London as delegate. He became pastor of the First Congregational Church of Christ, Ithaca, N.Y., in 1893. He received the honorary degree of D.D. froni Union in 1884 and that of L.H.D. from Rutgers in 1899. He was elected one of the four American mem- bers of the Netherlandish society of letters of Leyden. He visited Europe in 1869, 1891, 1893, 1895 and 1898, in the latter year witnessing the coronation of Wilhelmina, Queen of the Nether- lands. His published writings include : The New Japan Series of Bfadiiif/ and Spelling Books (5 vols., 1873); The. Yokohama Guide: The Tokio Guide: Map of Tokio, with Notes Historical and Explanatory (1874); The Mikado's Empire (1876, 6th ed., 1898); Japanese Fairy World (1880); Asiatic History (1881); Corea, the Hermit Nation (1883, 3d ed., 1898); Corea, Without and Within (1885, 2d ed.,
