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GRflflDFATHER'5  TALES 


/NORTH  CAROLINA  HISTORY 


BY 


RICHARD    BEN BURY   CREECY 


.-tro: 


RALEIGH 

HOWARDS  &  BROCGHTON,  PRINTERS 
1901 


..,»,  '£- 


GRANDFATHER'S  TALES 


OF 


/NORTH  CAROLINA  HISTORY 


BY 
RICHARD    BEflBURY    CREECY 


^NDEP^ 

^    LIBRARY     %| 
JAN   16  1302 

£*TAWlS* 


Look  abroad  throughout  the  lUluf'flllU  Hee  Worth  Carolina's  sons  contending 
manfully  for  the  palm  of  honor  and  distinction.  —Gaxton. 


RALEIGH 

HOWARDS  &  BROUGHTON,  PRINTERS 
1901 


Z6/+ 


TO  THE 

YOUTH   OF    NORTH    CAROLINA 

I   DEDICATE  THIS   VOLUME,    WITH   THE   EARNEST   HOPE 

THAT  THEY  WILL  LEARN   FROM   ITS   PAGES 

SOME   LESSONS   OF  PATRIOTISM, 

AND  WILL   BE 
STRENGTHENED  IN  THEIR   LOVE   FOR 

THEIR   NATIVE  STATE 

BY  THESE   MEMORIALS   OF  THE   PAST   THAT   I   HAVE  SOUGHT 
TO  PERPETUATE  FOR    THEIR    BENEFIT. 

THE  AUTHOR. 


Copyrighted  1901,  by 
R.  B  CREECY. 


PREFACE. 

GRANDFATHER'S  TALES  OF  NORTH  CAROLINA  HISTORY 
was  an  inspiration  of  State  love,  and  was  at  first  intended 
for  the  private  instruction  of  my  children  and  grandchil- 
dren. Its  preparation  was  commenced  ten  years  ago,  as 
a  lahor  of  love,  in  the  leisure  time  taken  from  my  regular 
editorial  work.  As  the  work  progressed  we  occasionally 
published  specimen  chapters  of  the  work  in  order  to  ascer- 
tain whether  it  met  the  public  approval.  It  seemed  to 
do  so,  and  some  of  our  friends  expressed  their  approval  in 
ii ratifying  terms  of  commendation. 

Then  we  thought  it  might  be  a  useful  offering  to  the 
pnl »lic  and  to  our  schools  and  perhaps  give  a  new  stimulus 
to  the  State  love  of  the  rising  generation  and  cause  them  to 
know  more  of  their  illustrious  progenitors,  and  to  emulate 
their  virtues  and  their  patriotic  deeds. 

One  boulder  was  in  our  pathway.  It  costs  labor  to  pre- 
pare a  hook  for  publication.  But  wo  were  raised  to  hard 
work  and  were  never  afraid  of  it.  But,  in  addition  lo 
that,  there's  much  expense  in  money  in  getting  a  book  be- 
fore the  public,  and  we  never  had  the  gift  of  money-get- 
ting and  we  were  largely  gifted  with  the  talent  for  getting 
ri«l  of  it,  which  talent,  we  honestly  confess,  we  have  never 
"hid  in  a  napkin,"  but  cultivated  assiduously  by  constant 
practice — that  is  to  say,  when  we  had  it  to  get  rid  of. 
However,  we  have  never  been  an  Elijah  that  the  ravens 
had  to  feed.  So  we  looked  around  to  accomplish  by  our 
wits  what  our  purse  refused  to  do. 


IV  PREFACE. 

Judge  Clark  is  the  head  of  the  "Literary  and  Historical 
Association  of  North  Carolina/'  a  man  of  literary  in- 
stincts, and  being-  a  young  man  himself,  we  thought  he 
would  naturally  be  helpful  to  a  young  man  who  was  knock- 
ing for  admission  into  the  guild  of  letters.  He  responded 
kindly  and  graciously,  and  under  his  direction  we  sent  In 
to  the  next  meeting  of  the  Association  specimens  of  our 
work,  representing  its  leading  features — historical,  bio- 
graphical, legendary  and  poetical — to  be  examined  by  the 
Association.  They  were  referred  to  a  committee  of. which 
Professor  Hill,  of  the  A.  and  M.  College,  was  chairmar. 
The  committee  reported  favorably  and  "commended  and 
recommended  it"  to  the  public  and  the  schools.  Wo 
breathed  easier  and  the  skies  wore  a  more  cerulean  aspect. 

We  had  asked  our  friend,  Judge  H.  G.  Connor,  a  mem- 
ber of  the  House  of  Representatives  of  the  General  Assem- 
bly of  North  Carolina,  that  in  case  the  L.  and  H.  Asso- 
ciation gave  "Grandfather's  Tales"  a  favorable  endorse- 
ment, would  he  introduce  a  resolution  in  the  Legislature 
pledging  the  State  to  take  a  certain  number  of  copies  of 
the  work  when  published  and  to  endorse  it  for  use  in  the 
public  schools  of  Xorth  Carolina,  and  we,  at  the  same 
time,  requested  Professor  Hill  to  hand  over  the  manu- 
scripts to  Judge  Connor,  after  he  had  finished  with  them, 
which  he  did. 

On  the  last  day  of  the  regular  session  of  the  Legislature 
Judge  Connor  introduced  a-  resolution  in  the  House,  en- 
dorsing the  book,  recommending  its  use  in  the  schools 'of 
the  State  and  appropriating  two  hundred  dollars  ($200) 
to  aid  in  its  publication,  and  the  resolution  was  unani- 
mously and  immediately  passed,  both  parties  uniting  in 


PREFACE.  V 

its   passage.     Then   we  breathed   easier,    deeper,    longer, 
broader,  and  every  inspiration  was  a  joy. 

Thanking  my  friends  for  the  kind  words  of  encourage- 
ment and  the  assistance  they  have  given  me  in  the  prepa- 
ration of  this  work,  and  trusting  that  it  may  meet  the 
approval  of  my  countrymen,  I  bid  them  an  affectionate 

adieu. 

R.  B.  CREECY. 
Elizabeth  City,  N.  C.,  Oct.  12,  1901. 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS. 


PAGE. 

Ode        1 

Sir  Walter  Raleigh... 6 

The  Lost  Colony 8 

Beginning  of  a  Nation 1%2 

Legend  of  the  White  Doe 15 

Legend  of  Batz's  Grave 19 

An  Unsettled  Question .' 22 

George  Durant  and  King  Kilcokannan 24 

The  Story  of  William  Drummond 27 

Our  Parliamentary  Genesis 1 81 

Culpepper's  Rebellion 83 

The  Edenton  Tea  Party 85 

John  Harvey iO 

The  Resolutions  of  St   Paul's  Vestry 43 

The  Regulators 45 

The  Tuscarora  Massacre  .. 47 

The  Huguenot  Blood  in  North  Carolina 49 

The  Scotch-Irish  Element  in  our  History 52 

Tom  Brown's  DogTilden... 54 

Teach  and  Potter,  Carolina's  Outlaws 57 

Old-time  Hazing  at  the  University 61 

The  Old-time  Quaker 64 

Thomas  Hart  Benton 67 

Mecklenburg  Declaration  of  Independence 69 

The  Stamp  Party  in  Wilmington 72 

Jimmy  Sutton  and  Admiral  Cockburn 77 

Battle  of  Guilford  Court  House 79 

John  Stanly 82 

Gaston  at  the  University -  84 

The  Last  of  the  Romans.. 88 

Betsy  Dowdy's  Ride . ., 9o 

What  I  Know  About  "  Shocco  "  Jones 96 

Gov  John  M.  Morehead 101 

An  Evening  with  Gaston 104 

Interesting  North  Carolina  History 114 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS.  Vll 

PAGE. 

Pasquotank  River 116 

Gaston  in  the  Convention  of  1835 119 

Gavin  Hogg - 123 

James  Allen 125 

Ethnology 127 

The  Convention  of  1835 130 

Joseph  B  Skinner 132 

Judge  R  R.  Heath 136 

Gen.  William  Gregory 138 

Anecdotes  of  Mr.  Badger 142 

The  Pen  and  the  Sword 146 

The  Giants  of  1840  148 

The  Death  of  William  Gaston 152 

Mammy  Ellen 154 

Henry  W.  Miller 157 

Judge  Thomas  Ruffin     161 

A  Monster  Snake + 163 

Battle  of  Moore's  Creek  Bridge 166 

The  Banker  Pony 169 

Dare  County 172 

Nags  Head 174 

Governor  Swain         178 

I redell,  Shepard,  Ray ner,  Smith,  Shaw 182 

W.  W.  Cherry 186 

The  Ministers  of  God  .   190 

Union  League  and  Ku-Klux  Klan 194 

Western  Scenery 197 

Gen.  J .  Johnston  Pettigrew 200 

Recollections  of  Thomas  S.  Ashe 208 

University  Reminiscences 211 

DeathofDr  Elisha  Mitchell 213 

Among  the  Carolina  Writers 218 

The  Bombardment 222 

Gov.  William  A  Graham 225 

The  Mountain  Grandeur  of  Western  Carolina 228 

Flora  McDonald  230 

The  Black  Flag 234 

Remnants  of  Lo 237 

A  Dread  Time 239 

The  King  of  Birds  and  the  Bravest  of  Beasts ..  .  242 


Vlll  TABLE   OF   CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

Gen.  James  Martin 244 

Charles  R.  Kinney 246 

Mrs.  Rachael  Caldwell 252 

He  Loved  Everything  in  the  State 255 

The  Bureau  Rule  in  1866 260 

The  Capture  of  the  Maple  Leaf 264 

Humors  of  the  Maple  Leaf 266 

WilliamS.  Ashe 268 

The  Charge  at  Gettysburg. 271 

Mrs.  Willie  Jones 273 

Raleigh 277 

Among  Currituck  Ducks  and  Duckers 283 

The  Battle  of  Sawyer's  Lane 286 

Col.  William  L.  Saunders , 289 

Winston-Salem 291 

The  Invasion  of  the  Carpet-bagger . 295 

James  C.  Dobbin 297 

The  New  Century..  .300 


GRANDFATHER'S    TALES. 


CAROLINA,  THE    MOTHER   OF   THE    STATES. 

(AN   IRREGULAR  HISTORICAL  ODE  ) 

AT  THE  gateway  of  our  history, 

Stands  one  whose  fame  is  ours, 

A  gallant  man  and  noble,  our  father  and  our  son ; 

"A  man  to  note  right  well,  as  one 

Who  shot  his  arrows  straightway  at  the  sun. 

His  was  all  the  Xorman's  polish 

And  sobriety  of  grace, 

All  the  Goth's  majestic  figure, 

All  the  Roman's  noble  face, 

And  he  stood  the  tall  exemplar 

Of  a  grand,  historic  race." 

His  fame  is  ours, 

This  foster-child  of  fame, 

Who  made  his  Queen  and  country 

His  brightest,  noblest  aim. 

Who  dare  challenge  our  heritage 

Of  Walter  Raleigh's  name ! 

His  fame  is  ours. 

As  he  rides  with  knightly  bearing 

Down  the  corridors  of  time 

We  bow  in  homage  to  his  name 

And  claim  him  as  our  own. 

We  weep  at  his  misfortunes, 

We  rejoice  at  his  renown, 

And  at  his  final  ghastly  doom, 

We  place  our  green  forget-me-not 

In  sorrow  on  his  tomb. 

As  I  look  back  through  the  vista 

Of  three  hundred  years  ago, 


GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

My  heart  is  swelled  with  varying  tides — 
Alternate  joy  and  woe — 

I  pause  in  thought  and  sadness  at  those  immortal  men 
Who  perished  at  Roanoke;  but  how,  or  where,  or 

when, 
Will  ne'er  be  known  while  time  endures  to  any  mortal 

men, 
'Till  that  great  day  when  all  shall  see  the  secrets  of 

the  past. 

But  this  sad  thought  comes  to  cheer  us, 
In  this  far-distant  time — 
If  round  the  brow  of  any  land 
We  twine  the  cypress  leaf, 
It  is  lovely  in  its  sadness 
With  its  coronet  of  grief. 
So,  cheer  up,  Carolinians ! 
The  seed,  watered  by  your  tears, 
Has  grown  to  mighty  greatness 
In  all  the  coming  years. 
But  as  I  search  again  our  ample  store 
Of  vast  and  misty  legendary  lore, 
And  view  its  scenes  and  sights  with  pleasure  rife, 
I  find  the  old  kaleidoscope  of  life, 
The  thorns  and  rosebuds  nestling  side  by  side, 
The  bane  and  antidote  of  life  allied ; 
As,  of ttime  at  the  fall  of  some  sad  tear, 
There  stands  a  smile  to  comfort  and  to  cheer. 
And  so  the  fountain  of  our  grand  old  State 
Was  not  all  bitter  waters, 
At  that  time  of  ancient  date. 
The  purple  grape,  the  perfume-laden  air, 
The  weird  music  from  the  mockbird's  note, 
The  willet's  whistle  and  the  gull's  wild  scream 
Wrapped  all  their  senses  in  a  soothing  dream 
When  first  they  anchored  in  old  Occam  s  stream. 
After  God,  the  Father, 
Came  their  country  and  its  Queen ; 
Then  the  pageant  of  possession, 


CAROLINA,  THE   MOTHER    OF  THE   STATES.  3 

A  grand  and  gorgeous  scene. 

The  shout,  the  drum,  the  cannon's  roar 

Resound  from  shore  to  shore, 

And  with  the  loud  acclaim 

Was  mingled  oft  the  virgin   Queen  and  great  Sir 

•Walter's  name. 
They  called  the  land  Virginia, 
Through  its  limitless  domain, 
From  sea  to  sea,  from  North  to  South, 
From  mountain  top  to  plain. 
They  builded,  they  planted, 
They  reared  a  sightly  town; 
They  named  it  after  Raleigh, 
That  man  of  high  renown. 
They  huilt  a  fort,  they  worshipped, 
They  raised  altars  to  our  God. 
All  this,  and  mor*e,  was  done 
On  Carolina's  sod. 

By  the  law  of  cause  and  sequence, 

I  5y  the  ordering  of  the  Fates, 

<  1:irolina  was  the  first-born 

And  the  mother  of  the  States. 

\7irginia  was  her  first  name, 

Her  baptismal  name  at  birth. 

But  at  her  confirmation 

And  renewal  of  her  vow, 

Carolina,  Carolina,  became  her  name  as  now. 

By  the  fiat  of  Omnipotence, 
No  word  or  action  dies, 
But,  borne  up  by  angels 
To  the  chancery  of  the  skies, 
The  recording  angel, 
In  his  justice-seat  on  high, 
Records  it  and  files  it, 
And  with  a  smile  or  sigh, 
'Till  that  great  day  and  dread 


GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

When  earth  and  sea  deliver  up 
Their  living  and  their  dead. 

No  word  or  action  dies, 

'Tis  filed  away  in  heaven, 

Perennial  on  earth, 

And  goes  on  reproducing. 

From  the  moment  of  its  birth. 

The  acorn  which  was  planted 

And  produced  Columbia's  oak, 

Was  the  acorn  that  was  planted 

On  the  island  of  Koanoke. 

That  oak,  now  grown  to  giant  height, 

Which  shadows  all  our  land, 

Was  from  the  acorn  planted 

By  Sir  Walter  Raleigh's  hand. 

That  oak  that's  now  a  giant, 

And  of  all  men  known  "and  spoken, 

Was  planted  first  and  nourished, 

On  the  island  of  Wokoken. 

Jamestown  was  its  first  fruit, 

And  John  Smith's  fame  and  glory 

Was  but  the  early  sequel 

Of  Roanoke's  saddened  story. 

And  pretty  Pocahontas, 

With  her  romance  all  aglow, 

Is  but  the  reproduction 

Of  kind  old  Manteo. 

But  why  drop  the  name  Virginia 
And  give  it  to  another  ? 
It  was  the  sweet  baptismal  name 
Of  our  dear  old  mother ; 
Her's  by  right  of  first  discovery, 
Her's  by  the  loud  acclaim, 
Her's  by  the  primal  title, 
When  that  battle  flag  unfurled 
Proclaimed  the  land  Virginia, 


CAROLINA,  THE   MOTHER  OF  THE   STATES. 

And  challenged  all  the  world 
To  dispute  it,  face  to  face, 
As  the- rightful,  just  possession 
Of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race. 

Why  drop  the  name  Virginia 

And  take  another  name  ? 

'Tis  the  same  old  tender  tale, 

The  old  maternal  love, 

The  same, 

That  weeps  when  others  smile, 

And  pours  out  tears  like  water 

At  the  happy  bridal 

Of  her  first-born  lovely  daughter. 

It  was  in  part  her  bridal  dowry 

She  gave  young  Virginia  with, 

When  with  heart  and  hand  united, 

She  married  Captain  Smith. 

Virginia  grew  to  greatness, 

She  bore  her  mother's  name  , 

Who,  true  to  all  her  children, 

Speaks  no  word  of  blame ; 

But  sometimes  with  maternal  pride 

She  whispers,  soft  and  tame, 

Virginia  has  no  fault, 

If  fault  it  be, 

But  avarice  of  fame. 

But  avarice,  my  daughter, 

Becomes  a  noxious  weed 

When  you  feed  on  other's  laurels 

In  your  avaricious  greed. 

So  lift  up  your  heads,  my  countrymen, 
And  with  uncovered  brow, 
Before  the  great  Eternal  One, 
Make  this  your  sacred  vow, 

"Carolina,  Carolina,  heaven's  blessings  attend  her! 
While  \v<>  live  wo  will  cherish,  protect  and  defend 
her." 


6  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

SIR  W ALTER    RALEIGH. 

At  the  gateway  of  our  history  stands  Walter  Raleigh's  name, 
A  gem  of  purest  lustre  in  our  coronet  of  fame 

IF  YOU  wore  asked  the  question,  which  one  of  the  Uni- 
ted States  you  loved  best,  you  would  say  North  Carolina. 
You  would  say  so  because  it  is  the  home  of  your  parents, 
and  of  your  forefathers  since  it  was  first  settled,  and  be- 
cause their  graves  are  here. 

North  Carolina  is  sometimes  called  the  "Old  North 
State,"  because  it  was  the  first  settled  of  the  Carolinas, 
and  when  a  part  of  it  was  taken  off  for  convenience,  that 
part  was  called  South  Carolina,  and  the  old  part  was 
called  North  Carolina,  or  the  "Old  North  State." 

During  the  late  unhappy  war  between  the  States  it  was 
sometimes  called  the  "Tar-heel  State,"  because  tar  was 
made  in  the  State,  and  because  in  battle  the  soldiers  of 
North  Carolina  stuck  to  their  bloodv  work  as  if  they  had 
tar  on  their  heels,  and  when  General  Lee  said,  "God  bless 
the  Tar-heel  boys,"  they  took  the  name. 

You  all  know  something  about  the  State;  but  I  know 
you  would  like  to  know  more  about  it,  and  I  will  try  to 
let  you  know  more,  if  you  will  keep  still  and  listen  to  the 
tales  I  will  tell  you  about  it. 

The  first  public  man  whose  name  is  connected  with 
North  Carolina  history  is  Sir  Walter  Ealeigh.  He  was 
an  English  nobleman,  and  his  life  is  full  of  interest.  He 
lived  about  three  hundred  years  ago,  in  the  most  famous 
period  of  English  history,  and  he  was  the  foremost  man 
of  his  time.  As  a  writer,  he  was  the  companion  of  Shake- 
speare. As  a  soldier,  he  was  the  companion  of  Howard. 
As  a  statesman,  he  was  the  companion  of  Bacon.  As  an 
adviser,  he  was  the  nearest  to  Queen  Elizabeth's  distin- 
guished company. 

Do  you  know  what  gave  Ealeigh  his  start  in  the  world 
when  he  was  a  young  man  ?  It  was  simply  a  little  piece 
of  politeness. 

He  was  passing  down  a  street  in  London  dressed  in  a 


SIR  WALTER   RALEIGH. 


SIR   WALTER   RALEIGH.  7 

stylish  scarlet  cloak.  The  Queen,  with  her  attendants, 
was  walking  down  the  same  street,  and  when  near  Raleigh 
she  stopped  at  a  muddy  place  in  her  way.  Raleigh  ran  up, 
took  off  his  scarlet  cloak  and  threw  it  over  the  mud  for 
the  Queen  to  walk  on. 

This  act  of  politeness  made  him  a  great  favorite  with 
the  Queen,  and  she  bestowed  many  favors  upon  him. 
Among  other  favors,  she  gave  him  the  right  to  make  dis- 
coveries in  America,  and  gave  him  the  lands  which  he 
might  discover  which  were  not  owned  by  Christian  people. 

Raleigh  sent  out  persons  to  explore  the  country.  The 
land  they  first  discovered  was  Roanoke  Island,  and  they 
examined  the  country  on  the  waters  of  Albemarle  and 
Pamplico  Sounds. 

The  world  is  full  of  changes  for  the  better  and  for  the 
worse,  and  after  Queen  Elizabeth's  death  the  good  for- 
tune of  Raleigh  changed  for  the  worse. 

James  I,  King  of  England,  succeeded  Elizabeth.  He 
was  weak-minded,  credulous,  and  easily  influenced.  The 
flatterers  that  were  around  him  did  not  like  Raleigh  be- 
cause he  had  been  the  favorite  of  the  late  Queen,  and  they 
determined  that  he  should  not  be  the  favorite  of  King 
James. 

They  brought  accusations  against  Raleigh.  They  made 
the  King  believe  that  he  was  not  faithful  to  his  King  and 
country.  Raleigh  had  been  engaged  in  war  with  Spain, 
and  they  made  the  King  believe  that  he  loved  Spain  more 
than  England,  and  that  he  had  betrayed  his  country. 

King  James  believed  these  charges,  and  Sir  Walter 
Raleigh  was  arrested,  imprisoned  for  twelve  years,  tried  for 
treason  and  condemned  to  be  beheaded,  which  was  done  in 
the  year  1618.  The  judge  was  a  cor  nipt  tool  of  the 
King,  and  used  his  office  against  Raleigh. 

He  died  as  he  lived,  a  brave,  faithful,  Christian  man, 
and  his  memory  is  dear  to  North  Carolina  and  to  the  Eng- 
lish people. 


GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


THE    LOST    COLONY. 

Darkness  there  and  nothing  more 

Dreaming  dreams  no  mortal  ever  dared  to  dream  before. 

Let  my  heart  be  still  a  moment,  and  this  mystery  explore 

— Fee's  Raven. 

SIR  WALTER  RALEIGH  laid  out  $200,000  to  make  a 
settlement  on  Eoanoke  Island.  He  sent  out  four  separate 
expeditions.  All  came  to  the  same  island,  and  all  failed 
to  make  a  permanent  settlement. 

He  first  sent  out  Captain  Philip  Amacjas  and  Captain 
Arthur  Barlowe  in  two  vessels.  They  landed  at  Ballast 
Point  on  Roanoke  Island,  remained  some  days,  and  while 
here  examined  Albemarle  and  Pamplico  Sounds,  and 
Roanoke,  Chowan  and  Scuppernong  rivers.  They  re- 
turned to  England  and  gave  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  and  the 
Queen  of  England  a  very  favorable  account  of  the  country 
they  had  discovered. 

They  carried  back  with  them  on  their  '-eturn  sornr>  pro- 
ducts of  the  country  and  two  Indians,  one  named  Manteo 
and  the  other  Wanchese. 

That  was  in  the  year  1584,  and  was  the  first  time  that 
any  white  man  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race,  to  which  race 
you  belong,  ever  put  his  foot  on  America. 

He  soon  sent  over  another  expedition  of  some  ships 
loaded  with  settlers. 

They  reached  Roanoke  Island,  and  soon  began  to  build 
and  make  preparation  for  a  permanent  settlement.  They 
called  their  place  of  building  the  City  of  Raleigh,  and  the 
remains  of  it  are  seen  at  this  day. 

An  old  fort  is  still  plainly  to  be  seen  on  the  lands  of 
Walter  Dough.  It  was  probably  built  to  afford  a  defence 
to  the  settlers  against  the  attacks  of  hostile  Indians. 

They  soon  got  into  trouble  with  the  Indians,  and  all 
except  fifteen  men  returned  home  to  England. 

Raleigh  had  set  his  heart  upon  establishing  a  colony  at 
Roanoke  Island.  After  awhile  he  sent  out  another  col- 
ony of  one  hundred  and  fifty  men,  women  and  children. 


THE    LOST   COLONY.  9 

They  were  provided  with  farming  utensils,  stock,  provis- 
ions and  vegetable  seeds,  and  Raleigh  thought  he  would 
now  certainly  succeed. 

This  colony  was  under  the  lead  of  Governor  White.  He 
had  with  him  everything  that  was  necessary  for  a  complete 
society.  He  was  accompanied  by  men  of  learning,  men 
of  skill,  men  of  science,  and  a  pious  clergyman  of  the 
English  Church.  A  Christian  community  to  whom  the 
ordinances  of  our  holy  religion  were  administered. 

When  the  colony  of  Governor  White  reached  Roanoke 
Island,  iheir  first  thouerht  was  of  the  fifteen  men  that  the 
last  colony  had  left  there. 

All  that  they  could  find  of  them  were  the  bleaching  bones 
of  a  white  man  scattered  on  the  ground.  The  fort  in  which 
they  lived  was  there.  It  was  unoccupied,  and  wild  deer 
were  feeding  on  the  deserted  grounds.  They  had  evi- 
dently been  killed  by  the  Indians. 

The  new  colony  of  Governor  White  soon  commenced  the 
work  of  settlement  on  the  island  where  so  much  trouble  had 
overtaken  the  other  colonies.  Soon  after  their  arrival, 
Virginia  Dare,  daughter  of  Eleanor  Dare,  and  grand- 
daughter of  Governor  White,  was  born.  She  was  the 
first  child  of  our  race  born  in  America. 

The  colony  found  the  Indians  unfriendly  to  them,  and 
they  proposed  to  White  to  return  to  England  and  bring  out 
more  persons,  in  order  to  strengthen  their  power.  He  left 
for  England  with  fifty  of  the  men.  Before  leaving,  it 
was  agreed  between  them  that  if  the  colony  should  be 
compelled  to  leave  the  island  they  should  go  to  Croatan, 
where  the  Indians  were  more  friendly  to  them.  And  if 
they  left,  they  should  write  on  a  tree  in  plain  letters  the 
name  CROAT  \\  and  if  their  leaving  was  caused  by  any 
trouble  with  the  Indians,  they  should  make  a  plain  cross- 
mark  over  the  word. 

White  returned  to  England,  and,  on  account  of  the  dis- 
turbance of  the  country  by  the  war  with  Spain,  he  was 
not  able  to  return  to  Roanoke  Island  in  two  years. 

After  two  years  he  returned  to  the  island  and  could 


io  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

not  find  any  of  the  colony  that  he  left  there.  They  were 
all  gone,  and  he  could  find  nothing  of  them  at  the  city  of 
Raleigh  where  he  had  left  them. 

Near  the  shore  he  found  a  tree  with  the  letters  C  R  O 
plainly  cut  on  it,  and  not  far  off  he  found  another  tree 
with  the  letters  CROAT  AN  cut  on  "it.  There  was  no  cross- 
mark  on  the  tree.  So  he  thought  they  were  all  safe  at 
Croatan,  and  he  made  preparations  to  go  there. 

He  went  on  board  his  vessels  to  make  sail  for  Croatan, 
but  a  storm  came  on  which  prevented  his  leaving,  and  his 
provisions  were  nearly  exhausted. 

So  he  concluded  he  would  first  go  to  the  West  Indies  to 
get  a  new  supply  of  provisions  and  make  some  repairs  to 
his  vessels. 

But  he  was  compelled  by  stress  of  weather  to  abandon 
the  intention  of  going  to  the  West  Indies,  and  directed  his 
course  to  England. 

This  was  the  last  attempt  to  sustain  an  English  colony 
on  Roanoke  Island.  White's  colony  was  never  heard  of 
again,  and  their  fate  will  always  be  a  mystery. 

There  have  been  several  opinions  of  what  became  of 
them,  but  all  is  mystery,  and  nothing  is  certain.  They  are 
merely  the  opinions  of  persons  feeling  in  the  dark  for 
what  can  never  be  positively  known. 

Some  are  of  the  opinion  that  they  went  to  Croatan,  and, 
after  years  of  hardship  and  despair  of  ever  seeing  their 
English  friends  and  kindred  again,  they  intermarried  with 
the  Indians  and  fell  back  into  their  savage  mode  of  life. 

This  opinion  can  hardly  be  correct,  because  there  were 
nearly  an  hundred  men,  women  and  children  of  the  colony, 
and  some  of  them  would  have  kept  the  blood  pure  in  their 
families. 

Another  reason  to  prove  that  they  were  not  absorbed 
and  mixed  with  the  Indian  race,  is  that  North  Carolina 
was  settled  by  the  white  race  on  Albemarle  Sound  only 
sixty  years  from  the  time  of  the  lost  colony. 

Some  of  them  would  have  been  found  living  among  the 
Indians  when  the  white  settlers  came  to  Albemarle  Sound. 


THE    LOST   COLONY.  II 

When  the  settlers  came  to  Albemarle  from  Virginia, 
Virginia  Dare  would  not  have  been  much  over  sixty  years 
old,  if  she  had  been  living. 

If  a  number  of  white  people  had  been  living  at  the 
lower  end  of  Albemarle  Sound,  the  Indians  living  at  the 
other  end  of  the  Sound  would  have  known  it,  and  would 
have  let  the  new  comers  of  the  same  color  know  of  it. 

The  Indian  tribes  were  migratory,  and  knew  each  other 
who  were  distant.  The  Indians  on  Roanoke  Island  knew 
the  Indians  who  lived  on  Chesapeake  Bay  and  on  James 
River. 

It  is  not  possible,  then,  that  a  race  of  men  entirely  differ- 
ent in  color  could  have  lived  among  the  Indians  of  Croatan 
without  being  known  to  the  Indians  of  Albemarlo  Sound. 

Another  opinion  is  that  White's  colony  went  to  Croatan, 
and  then  moved  highej*  up  Albemarle  Sound  and  settled 
among  the  Teopom  Indians  in  Perquimnns  County  and 
kept  themselves  apart  from  the  Indians. 

This  opinion  is  formed  from  this  circumstance: 

The  names  of  the  settlers  who  came  to  Roanoke  Island 
with  Governor  White  are  known,  and  it  is  a  little  surpris- 
ing that  many  of  the  same  names  have  been  well-known 
names  among  the  people  living  in  the  Yeopom  neighbor- 
hood of  Perquimans  County.  The  same  names  are  known 
there  to  this  day. 

This  is  a  strong  circumstance.  Many  historical  facts 
are  traced  to  the  names  of  families. 

It  is  commonly  believed  that  two  of  the  brothers  of 
Oliver  Cromwell  came  to  Halifax  County,  in  ^N"orth  Caro- 
lina, after  the  restoration  of  the  English  monarchy,  to  nvoid 
punishment  in  England. 

They  changed  their  names  to  Crowell,  but  their  first 
names  were  the  same  with  the  Cromwells  of  England  for 
many  generations,  and  this,  with  other  circumstances, 
caused  them  to  be  taken  for  Cromwell's  brothers. 

But  the  lost  colony  could  not  have  settled  in  Per- 
quimans. 

When  the  settlements  were  made  on  Albemarle  Sound 


12  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

from  Virginia,  if  there  had  been  a  colony  of  English  peo- 
ple there  when  they  came,  it  would  have  been  mentioned 
in  the  records  of  that  time  relating  to  the  Albemarle  set- 
tlement. 

What,  then,  became  of  the  lost  colony  about  which  there 
has  been  so  much  unsatisfied  curiosity  ? 

My  opinion  is  that  they  were  murdered  by  the  Indians. 
The  Indian  character  for  cruelty  favors  that  opinion. 
The  hostility  of  race  favors  it.  The  Indians  of  Roanoke 
Island  were  unfriendly  to  the  whites.  The  Croatan  In- 
dians were  supposed  to  be  friendly  to  tlue  whites.  But 
they  were  only  a  few  miles  from  Roanoke  Island,  and 
were  in  sympathy  with  those  Indian  tribes. 


BEGINNING  OF   A    NATION. 

SCRAPS  OF   ANTIQUARIAN   LORE    OF    SIR  WALTER  RALEIGH'S    COLONY. 

IN  1865  there  were  discovered  in  the  British  Museum 
original  drawings  of  the  Indians  that  were  seen  by  Sir 
Walter  Raleigh's  colony  on  Roanoke  Island,  tombs  of  the 
Indian  Chiefs  and  a  map  of  the  country,  as  seen  by  the 
colonists.  These  drawings  were  made  by  John  White, 
who  came  to  Roanoke  Island  as  an  artist  with  the  first  col- 
ony and  was  afterwards  sent  out  as  Governor  with  the 
second  colony,  and  who  was  the  grandfather  of  Virginia 
Dare,  the  first  Anglo-Saxon  born  in  America.  They  are 
now  preserved  with  great  care  in  the  Grenville  collection 
of  American  antiquities  in  the  British  Museum,  and  were 
first  2;iven  to  the  public,  with  Dermission  of  the  managers 
of  the  Museum,  by  John  Eggleston  in  1882. 

White  appears  to  have  been  no  mean  artist.  ITis  -ketch 
of  the  tombs  of  the  Indian  Chiefs  (the  Westminster  Abbey 
of  the  savages)  would  do  no  discredit  to  art  in  our  time. 
It  is  probable  that  some  such  sepulchre  may  yet  be  found 


BEGINNING    OF    A    NATION.  13 

on  Roanoke  Island,  if  proper  diligence  were  used  in  the 
examination. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  no  likeness  is  extant,  so  far  as 
we  know,  of  old  Manteo,  the  friend  of  the  whites,  constant 
through  all  their  trials,  the  first  Indian  admitted  by  bap- 
tism within  the  pale  of  the  Christian  Church,  admitted 
under  the  adopted  title  bv  baptism  of  "Lord  of  "Roanoke." 
One  so  distinguished  by  title  and  by  baptism  surely  awa- 
kened curiosity  at  the  court  of  Elizabeth,  to  which  he  was 
carried  on  the  return  voyage  of  some  of  the  colonists,  and 
that  public  curiosity  must  have  placed  his  face  on  the 
artist's  canvas.  It  may  yet  be  found.  The  drawings 
of  White  were  unknown  for  nearly  three  hundred  years. 

The  map  executed  bv  White  has  adopted  the  names  of 
some  localities  which  have  come  down'  to  our  time. 
"Roanoke"  is  evidently  our  Roanoke  Island,  as  appears 
from  the  name  and  the  location.  "Chawanoke"  is  evidently 
intended  for  our  Chowan,  from  its  location  on  the  map 
high  up  the  broad  waters.  "Pasquotac,"  lower  down  on 
the  map,  must  be  intended  for  our  corrupt  spelling  of  Pas- 
quotank.  "Uattrask"  is  our  Hatteras,  "Wococon"  would 
be  our  Wiccakon  Creek,  of  Hertford  County,  but  its  local- 
ity in  the  sounds  below  Roanoke  Island  would  not  seem 
to  indicate  it  "Croatan"  preserves  its  name  and  locality 
through  all  time.  "Weapomeoc,"  from  its  locality,  might 
be  Yeopim,  with  some  reach  of  the  imagination.  "Etar- 
ivtnac"  and  "Naueaqoe"  and  "Menteo"  and  "Paquippe" 
and  "Raguiac,"  and  some  others,  are  prominent  names 
on  White's  map  which  have  faded  from  the  memories  of 
men. 

The  map  of  White  is  profusely  illustrated  with  the  finny 
monsters  of  the  deep.  Whales,  and  porpoise,  and  sharks, 
and  devil-fish,  and  flying-fish  abound. 

But  the  most  curious  of  the  drawings  of  White  is  the 
mode  of  sepulture  of  the  magnate  savages,  chiefs  of  the 
tribe  and  dignitaries  of  the  land.  In  his  own  description 
it  is: 

"The  tombe  of  ther  Cherounes  or  chiefe  personages, 


14  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

their  flesh  clene  taken  of  from  the  bones  save  the  skynn  and 
heare  of  theire  heads,  which  flesh  is  dried  and  enfolded 
in  matts  laid  at  theire  feete,  their  bones  also  being  made 
dry  ar  covered  with  deare  skins  not  altering  their  formie 
or  proportion.  With  theire  Kywash,  which  is  an  Image 
of  wOode  keeping  the  deade." 

The  descriptive  drawing  of  the  Indian  mode  of  dis- 
posing of  their  dead,  is  altogether  singular  to  us.  After 
arranging  the  bodies  as  mentioned  by  White,  they  are 
placed  under  a  canopy  with  their  heads  downward  and 
their  feet  confined  in  mats  and  a  wood  idol  placed  beside 
them,  as  if  in  protection  of  the  sacred  deposit. 

The  conjurer,  as  drawn  by  White,  an  official  character 
amom?  the  Indians  of  Roanoke  Island,  is  a  grotesque 
looking  fellow,  a  dancing,  gay,  pantomimic  character, 
altogether  out  of  keeping  with  our  conceptions  of  the  grav- 
ity of  one  who  deals  with  the  mysterious  and  the  super- 
natural. The  conjurer,  as  drawn  by  White,  must  have 
placed  or  broken  the  spell  of  conjuration  by  the  aid  of  the 
terpsichorean  art. 

The  priest  and  the  doctor,  the  medicine  man  and  the 
minister  in  holy  offices  among  the  Indians  of  the  Island, 
as  drawn  bv  White,  is  a  different  looking  character  from 
the  lively  conjurer,  although  their  offices  were  kindred.  His 
dress  resembles  the  Roman  toga,  a  tunic  extending  below 
the  thighs.  Grave,  demure,  serious,  and  solemn-looking, 
he  evidently  was  fully  impressed  with,  or  affected  to  be 
impressed  with,  the  importance  of  his  solemn  office.  He 
was  evidently  a  man  of  sorrows  and  acouainted  with 
grief,  and  the  transports  of  beatitude  did  not  enter  into  his 
conceptions  of  the  dark,  mysterious  unknown. 

Wyngino's  wife,  the  King  of  the  tribe,  or  one  of  them, 
for  polygamy  was  part  of  the  Mormonatic  faith  of  the 
Indians  of  Roanoke,  as  drawn  by  White,  is  attired  in 
short  tights  that  stop  above  the  knee.  She  is  a  comely- 
looking  maiden  and  was  drawn  by  White,  with  arms  folded 
over  her  shoulders,  with  calves  crossed,  with  head  and  arms 
ornamented  with  jewels  of  bead  work,  probably  obtained 


LEGEND   OF  THE   WHITE   DOE.  15 

from  the  colonists,  and,  from  appearance,  is  not  unadapted 
to  awaken  the  King's  love. 

The  village  of  Secotan,  which  was  on  the  Island,  we 
believe,  is  also  drawn  by  White.  The  houses  are  not  the 
wigwams  of  our  youthful  conception,  but  are  built  in  sim- 
ple stvle,  all  alike,  resembling  somewhat  the  round-top, 
huge  tobacco  wagons  of  Granville  County,  some  nestling  in 
shade,  some  out,  some  located  in  pairs,  some  without  ref- 
erence to  order  or  design,  not  laid  off  in  streets,  built  irreg- 
ularly. To  give  artistic  effect,  wre  suppose,  White,  in  his 
drawing  of  the  village  Secotan,  scatters  Indians  about, 
generally  grouping  in  pairs,  one  with  the  emblematic  bow 
and  arrow,  some  around  a  camp  fire.  The  houses  are 
without  chimneys  or  smoke  valves,  but  seem  to  have  abun- 
dant ventilation. 

This  was  the  Roanoke  Island  of  the  aborigines.  Men  of 
Roanoke,  you  have  a  goodly  heritage  and  tread  consecrated 
ground.  You  are  at  the  fountain  of  a  great  stream  that 
has  gone  on  widening  and  deepening  until  it  has  become 
the  master  work  of  the  great  Anglo-Saxon  race,  a  race  be- 
yond compare  among  the  sons  of  men,  a  race  without 
whose  record  the  history  of  the  world  would  be  incomplete. 


LEGEND   OF   THE    WHITE    DOE. 

Across  the  twilight  of  the  ages  past 
A  spectral  figure  moves  vague,  undefined  ; 
And  where  it  goes  a  shade  comes  o'er  the  mind, 
As  't  were  some  picture  overcast 

IN  THE  earlv  part  of  the  seventeenth  century,  that  is, 
about  the  year  1615,  or  1620,  the  Indian  hunters  who 
lived  on  Roanoke  Island  were  greatly  excited  by  seeing 
a  milk-white  doe  among  the  herd  of  deer  that  were  then 
commonly  found  on  the  island. 

It  attracted  the  attention  of  the  hunters  because  it  was 


1 6  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

the  most  beautiful  one  of  all  the  herd,  because  it  was  the 
fleetest,  and  because  the  most  skilful  marksmen  had  never 
been  able  to  kill  it  with  an  arrow.  Okisco,  a  noted  hunter, 
who  lived  among  the  Chawanooke  tribe,  was  sent  for,  and 
he  drew  his  bow  upon  the  beautiful  white  doe,  but  he  never 
could  do  her  harm. 

She  came  to  be  well  known  to  the  Indian  hunters  of 
Roanoke  Island,  and  was  often  found  on  the  situation  of 
the  old  city  of  Raleigh,  apart  from  the  herd  of  deer,  with 
her  sad  face  toward  the  east.  Again  and  again  she  was 
hunted,  but  all  the  arrows  aimed  at  her  life  fell  harmless 
beside  her.  She  bounded  over  the  sand-hills  with  the 
swiftness  of  the  winds  and  always  turned  in  the  direction 
of  Croatan. 

Hunting:  parties  of  Indians  were  made  UD  to  entrap  her 
by  stationing  themselves  along  the  tracks  of  her  flight, 
which  had  become  known  to  the  hunters  by  her  always  tak- 
ing the  same  course.  But  all  their  efforts  were  without 
avail.  The  swift  white  doe  seemed  to  have  a  charmed  life, 
or  to  be  under  the  protection  of  some  Divine  power. 
Everyone  now  talked  of  the  white  doe,  and  everyone  had 
his  own  opinion  about  her.  The  braves,  the  squaws,  and  the 
papooses  talked  of  the  milk-white  doe.  Some  had  fears 
of  evil  from  the  strange  ar>Darition,  Some  thought  she  was 
the  omen  of  good,  and  some  thought  it  was  the  spirit  of 
some  sad  departed. 

Sometimes  she  would  be  seen  on  the  high  grounds  of 
Croatan,  sometimes  in  the  swamps  of  Dur  ant's  Island, 
sometimes  upon  the  Cranberry  bogs  of  East  Lake,  often 
on  Roanoke  Island  near  Raleigh  City,  and  sometimes, 
though  rarely,  on  the  sands  of  Kill  Devil  Hills ;  sometimes 
alone,  always  sad  and  beautiful. 

The  news  of  the  white  doe  spread  far  and  wide,  and  old 
Winirina  determined  to  call  a  council  of  chiefs  to  determine 
what  to  do. 

Okisco,  chief  of  the  Chawanookes  ;  Kuskatenew  and  Kil- 
kokanwan,  of  the  Yeopoms,  and  others,  attended  the  coun- 
cil. They  all  came  with  their  attendants,  all  armed  with 


LEGEND   OF  THE   WHITE   DOE.  17 

their  Avar  weapons,  the  bow  and  arrow.  They  determined 
to  have  a  grand  hunt  in  the  early  Indian  summer  time,  and 
without  delay.  In  November,  when  the  leaves  had  fallen 
and  the  earth  was  carpeted  with  its  brown  and  russet  cov- 
ering of  forest  leaves,  all  the  friendly  chiefs  came  to  Roan- 
oke  Island  to  join  the  fierce  Wingina  in  his  appointed  hunt 
for  the  milk-white  doe,  and  each  with  his  chosen  weapon 
of  the  chase. 

The  chiefs,  after  their  feast,  prepared  by  the  wife  of 
Wingina,  agreed  that  they  should  station  themselves  along 
the  course  of  the  white  doe  when  pursued  by  the  hunters, 
and  either  exhaust  her  in  the  chase,  or  slay  her  with  their 
deadly  arrows.  Wingina,  the  most  powerful  of  all,  took 
his  place  at  Raleigh  -City,  where  the  doe  always  passed 
and  always  stopped. 

Old  Granganimeo,  the  brother  of  Wingina,  took  his 
stand  at  Croatan  Sounfl,  where  she  crossed  to  Roanoke 
Island. 

Okisco  took  his  stand  upon  the  goodly  land  of  Pomonik, 
in  the  low  grounds  of  Durant's  Island. 

Kind  old  Manteo  went  up  into  the  shaky  land  Wocokon, 
among  the  prairies  and  cranberry  bogs  of  East  Lake. 

Minatonon,  the  fierce  chief  who  made  his  home  at  Se- 
quaton,  took  his  stand  at  Jockey's  Ridge,  by  the  sea,  in  the 
land  of  the  Coristooks. 

Wanchese  took  his  stand  at  Kill  Devil,  in  the  country 
of  Secotan. 

They  had  all  brought  with  them  their  best  bows  and 
arrows,  and  also  their  chosen  archers.  But  the  bow  of 
Wanchese  differed  from  the  others.  When,  long  ago,  he 
had  gone  over  the  sea  to  England,  the  great  Queen  had 
given  him  an  arrow-head  made  of  solid  silver,  like  the 
stone  arrow-head  that  Amadas  carried  to  Sir  Walter  Ral- 

teigh  with  his  other  Indian  curiosities.  It  was  made  by 
her  most  expert  workers  in  silver,  and  she  told  him  it  would 
kill  the  bearer  of  a  charmed  life  that  no  other  arrow  could 
wound.  Wanchese  carried  this  with  his  other  weapons, 
and  determined  to  test  its  power  upon  the  swift  white  doe. 
• 


1 8  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

Manteo  started  the  doe  in  the  shaky  land  of  Wocokon. 
She  started  unharmed  at  the  twang  of  the  bow-string.  She 
sped  with  the  swiftness  of  the  north  wind's  breath.  Through 
the  tangle  wood  of  Wocokon,  through  the  bogs  and  mo- 
rasses of  Pomonik,  across  the  highlands  of  Croatan,  on,  on, 
she  went,  and  the  twang  of  the  bowstring  was  the  harm- 
less music  of  her  flying  bounds.  She  plunged  into  the 
billows  of  Croatan  Sound.  She  reached  the  sand  hills  of 
Eoanoke,  leaving  the  Indian  hunters  far  behind  her.  As 
she  came  to  the  island,  old  Granganimeo  drew  his  bow  and 
sped  his  harmless  arrow.  She  stood  upon  the  top  of  the 
old  fort  at  Raleigh  City,  sniffed  the  breeze  and  looked  sadly 
over  the  sea.  Wingina  carefully  and  steadily  drew  upon 
her  panting  side  the  deadly  arrow.  All  in  vain.  She 
bounded  into  Roanoke  Sound  and  across  to  the  sea.  Mena- 
tonon  was  at  Jockey's  Ridge,  but  his  arrow,  too,  was  harm- 
less. The  panting  white  doe  found  time  at  the  Fresh  Ponds 
to  slake  her  thirst,  and  then,  turning  to  the  sea  that  she 
seemed  to  love  with  an  unnatural  affection,  sped  onward, 
until  she  reached  the  steep  hills  of  Kill  Devil.  There, 
alas  !  was  her  doom.  Wanchese,  taking  aim  with  his  silver 
arrow,  aimed  at  her  heart,  let  fly  the  fated  bowstring,  and 
the  sad  and  beautiful  milk-white  doe  sprang  into  the  air 
with  the  fatal  arrow  in  her  heart,  and  fell  to  the  ground. 

Wanchese  ran  to  the  spot  and  found  the  victim  writhing 
in  the  death  agony.  She  lifted  her  dying,  soft  eyes  to  the 
red  man  and  uttered  her  last  sound,  "Virginia  Dare." 
Under  her  throat  the  words  "Virginia  Dare"  were  plainly 
pencilled  in  dark  hair,  and  on  her  back  was  pencilled  in 
brown  hair  the  name  "Croatan." 


LEGEND   OF   BATZ'S   GRAVE.  19 


LEGEND   OF    BATZ'S   GRAVE. 

NEAR  Drunimond's  Point,  on  the  upper  waters  of  Al- 
bemarle  Sound,  lies  a  solitary  island,  now  uninhabited, 
once  the  home  where  the  goat  browsed  and  the  gull  built  its 
nest  and  defied  the  storm  with  its  discordant  scream.  Its 
name  is  "Batz's  Grave."  Within  living  memory  no  man 
has  dwelt  thereon,  but,  within  living  memory  it  was  the 
roost  of  myriads  of  migratory  gulls,  who  held  undisturbed 
possession  of  their  island  home. 

There  is  a  legend  about  that  desert  island  that  furnishes 
food  for  the  contemplative,  a  legend  of  love  and  sadness, 
a  legend  of  Jesse  Batz  and  Kickowanna,  a  beautiful  maid- 
en of  the  Chowanoke  tribe  of  Indians. 

Batz  was  a  hunter  and  trapper  on  the  upper  waters  of 
Albemarle  Sound,  and  ^as  one  of  the  earliest  settlers  that 
made  a  home  in  that  paradise  of  the  Indian  hunter,  where 
the  wild  game  alone  disputed  his  supremacy. 

Jesse  Batz  made  his  temporary  home  on  the  island  that 
the  Indians  sometimes  visited  and  called  Kalola,  from 
the  innumerable  flocks  of  sea-gulls  that  disturbed  its  soli- 
tude. Batz  was  friendly,  and  sometimes  joined  the  In- 
dians in  their  hunting  parties.  Jle  was  young,  comely 
and  athletic.  He  became  familiar  to  the  Indians  in  their 
wigwams  and  the  chase. 

There  was  one  who  was  the  light  of  the  wigwam  of  the 
Chowanokes — who  sometimes  looked  at  Jesse  Batz  with 
the  love-light  in  her  eye — the  pretty,  nut-brown  Kicko- 
wanna. Her  eye  was  as  a  sloe,  and  her  long  and  glossy 
hair  was  as  a  raven's  wing.  Her  step  was  agile  and 
graceful  as  the  "down  that  rides  upon  the  breeze."  While 
Batz,  the  hunter,  let  flv  the  bowstring  that  brought  down 
the  antlered  stag  of  the  forest,  a  better  archer  aimed  at 
Jesse's  heart  the  fatal  arrow,  and  he,  too,  fell,  a  victim 
of  Cupid's  unerring  aim.  The  insidious  poison  rankled 
in  his  veins.  He  was  a  changed  man  in  everv  look  and 
tissue  of  his  being.  The  chase  had  lost  its  charm.  His 


20  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

eye  would  droop  when  Kickowanna  came.  She  was  daugh- 
ter of  the  old  King  of  the  Cho\vanokes,  Kilkanoo,  the  jewel 
of  his  eye.  Kickowanna  was  a  Peri  of  beauty.  Famed 
she  was  throughout  the  land.  The  great  Pamunky  chief 
of  the  Chasamonpeak  tribes  to  the  north  had  sought  her 
hand,  and  had  offered  alliance  to  Kilkanoo,  chief  of  the 
Chowanokes,  but  his  suit  was  rejected  and  he  sought  to 
obtain  by  violence  what  he  could  not  by  courtly  supplica- 
tion. War  raged  for  a  time  between  Pamunky  and  Kil- 
kanoo. Batz  fought  with  the  Chowanokes.  His  valor, 
his  strategy  and  his  success  were  conspicuous.  He  led 
the  Indian  braves.  In  a  hand-to-hand  personal  encounter 
with  Pamunky  he  clove  him  down  with  his  claymore,  and 
in  the  fierce  grapple  would  have  brained  him  with  his  In- 
dian club,  but  the  prostrate  Pamunky  sued  for  mercy. 
Batz's  ire  softened,  and  he  gave  him  his  life.  For  Batz's 
deeds  of  bravery  Kilkanoo  adopted  him  as  a  member  of 
the  Chowanoke  tribe,  under  the  adopted  nanie  of  Secotan, 
which,  interpreted,  is — "The  Great  White  Eagle." 

Batz  grew  in  favor  and  influence  with  the  Chowanokes. 
He  was  always  present  at  their  councils,  at  their  harvest 
dances,  their  war  dances,  and  when  they  smoked  the 
calumet  he  was  given  the  biggest  pipe  of  peace. 
Batz  became  an  adopted  Indian  of  the  Chowanoke 
tribe.  He  adopted  the  Indian  dress  and  customs. 
The  pretty  Indian  maiden,  Kickowanna,  whom  he 
loved,  and  by  whom  he  was  loved,  with  winning 
words  of  love  distilled  into  his  willing  ears  the  siren  voice 
of  ambition,  and  whispered  low  that  when  her  father, 
Kilkanoo,  should  be  beckoned  up  to  the  "happy  hunting 
grounds,"  he  would  be  his  chosen  successor,  King  of  the 
warlike  Chowanokes.  Batz  and  Kickowanna  lived  and 
loved  together.  She  pencilled  his  eyebrows  with  the  ver- 
million  of  the  cochukee  root  She  put  golden  rings  in  his 
nose  and  ears.  She  wound  long  strings  of  priceless  pearls 
around  his  neck.  She  put  the  moccasin  shoes  and  levins 
around  his  feet  and  limbs.  She  folded  his  auburn  locks 
in  fantastic  folds  around  the  top  of  his  head,  and  decked 


LEGEND   OF    BATZ'S   GRAVE.  21 

it  \vith  the  eagle's  feather,  emblematic  of  his  rank  and 
station.  And  then  she  gave  him  the  calumet  of  peace  and 
love.  And  while  he  smoked  the  calumet  of  peace  and 
hapmness,  eye  met  eye  responsive  in  language  known  alone 
to  love.  He  then  looked  the  big  Indian  indeed,  and  the 
dream  of  love  encompassed  them. 

While  this  dreamy  delirium  prevailed  the  stream  of  love 
ran  on  in  its  varying  smooth  and  turbulent  current.  Batz, 
now  a  recognized  power  with  the  Chowanokes,  made  f  re- 
ft unit  visits  to  his  old  island  home,  sometimes  prolonged. 
While  there  in  his  solitude,  the  waves  and  the  sea-gulls 
SMIIU;  a  lullaby  to  his  weird  fancies.  The  beauteous  Indian 
maiden  sometimes  came  from  her  home  at  the  upper 
broad  waters,  and  her  visits  were  love's  own  paradise. 
She  came  from  the  opposite  shore  of  the  mainland,  pad- 
dling  her  light  canoe.  Xo  season  knew  her  coming. 
Sometimes  in  the  silent  watches  of  the  night,  sometimes 
in  the  glare  of  middav.  Always  alone.  Always  aglow 
with  love.  And  when  she  came  it  was  love's  high  pas- 
time. The  scream  of  the  white  gull  was  the  chant  of  love. 
The  monotone  of  the  waves  was  the  lullaby  of  love.  Tlio 
sighing  of  the  winds  as  they  swept  through  the  pendant 
masses  was  a  sigh  of  love,  the  very  solitude  and  silence  of 
the  forest  was  love's  chosen  temple,  and  every  nook  and 
recess  was  a  shrine. 

One  night,  alas !  it  was  a  night  of  destiny !  the  Indian 
maiden  came,  as  was  her  wont.  The  angry  clouds  looked 
down,  the  storm  raged,  every  scream  of  every  sea-bird 
betokened  danger  nigh.  The  wind  blew  as  'twas  its  last, 
the  lightning  flashed,  thunder  pealed  and  the  welkin  rang 
with  the  echoes  of  the  blast.  But  love  defies  danger,  and 
the  pretty  Indian  maiden  pushed  through  the  storm  to 
the  lone  island  with  the  roar  of  thunder  for  her  watery 
funeral  requiem. 

I*5i tz  never  left  the  island  more.     He  remat 
till  lie  died,  a  broken-hearted  man, 
body,  and  he  rests  there  in  his  final  rest  ti 
note  calls  him  to  meet  his  loved  Kickowgw'     V 


22  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

AN    UNSETTLED    QUESTION. 

A   LIFE   ON   THE   OCEAN   WAVE. 

MANY  events  in  history  derive  their  public  interest  from 
their  antiquity.  Some  from  their  intrinsic  importance, 
some  from  the  fact  that  it  was  a  matter  in  dispute,  and 
men  are  naturally  attracted  to  any  matter  of  contention 
or  conflict,  from  the  clash  of  arms  in  battle  array  to  a 
common  dog  fight  in  which  Tige  gnaws  off  the  ears  of  Lion 
in  a  rough-and-tumble  fight. 

The  question  of  where  Amadas  and  Barlowe  first  landed 
on  the  coast  of  North  Carolina,  and  through  what  inlet 
on  our  sand-barred  coast  they  came  to  Roanoke  Island, 
is  row  a  controverted  question  that  antiquarians  have  failed 
to  satisfactorily  settle.  It  is  of  no  practical  importance. 
It  interests  only  a  few  old  fossils  as  it  interested  a  few  of 
the  old  departed,  like  Dr.  Frank  Hawks,  of  sainted  mem- 
ory, and  John  H.  Wheeler,  likewise  sainted.  But  yet  it 
interests  these  old  men,  and  the  younger  generation  are 
tolerant  of  them,  and  from  a  spirit  of  charity  and  kind- 
ness turn  from  the  practical  athletic  tilts  of  life  to  listen 
to  these  speculations,  which  are  of  as  much  practical  im- 
portance as  the  mediaeval  angry  disputes  as  to  the  differ- 
ence between  "tweedledum  and  tweedledee." 

Nevertheless,  we  are  in  the  fight,  and  we  will  venture 
a  few  suggestions  upon  the  subject  of  the  entrance  of  the 
primal  discoverers  into  the  North  Carolina  sounds. 
There  are  many  explorers  of  that  subject,  and  if  Amadas 
and  Barlowe  had  known  the  good  work  they  were  building, 
and  had  only  driven  down  a  stake  in  the  sand  and  by  a 
suitable  inscription  had  marked  the  place  of  their  entry, 
they  would  have  saved  enough  printer's  ink  to  run  seven- 
teen weekly  countrv  newspapers  during  their  existence. 
For  a  hundred  years  and  more  it  was  considered  a  settled 
fact  that  the  two  ships  of  Sir  Walter  Raleigh's  expedition 
to  America  came  in  at  Ocracoke  Inlet  and  sailed  north 
for  Roanoke  Island,  where  i.hey  settled  and  builded  the 


AN    UNSETTLED   QUESTION.  23 

old  fort  on  the  west  end  of  the  island.  This  theory  was 
undisputed  for  over  a  hundred  years.  But  after  the  lapse 
of  ages  the  old  inlet  opposite  Roanoke  Island,  which  was 
closed  to  navigation  about  1800,  became  a  commercial 
factor,  and  a  handy  football  of  the  politicians,  and  proba- 
bly from  that  cause  was  given  prestige  as  the  old  inlet 
through  which  Amadas  and  Barlowe  entered  the  inland 
sounds.  This  theory  was  generally  accepted  urtil  Dr. 
Hpwks,  who  was  too  great  a  genius  for  a  historian,  discov- 
ered that  the  historians  before  him  were  all  mistaken,  and 
that  the  explorers  came  in  at  New  Inlet.  He  determined 
it  by  the  measurement  of  leagues  from  Roanoke  Island 
to  New  Inlet,  which  corresponds  with  the  distance  men- 
tioned by  the  navigators.  But  New  Inlet  has  not  been 
nayigable  for  sea  vessels  within  living  tradition  or  histori- 
cal record.  It  is  now  nearly  closed,  as  is  Roanoke  Inlet, 
\\liidi,  according  to  mafs  of  recent  discovery,  had  through 
it  in  1738  t went v-f our  feet  of  water. 

Old  Mrs.  Hay  man,  who  lived  beyond  one  hundred  years, 
said  that  a  deep  inlet  came  through  the  uFresh  Ponds" 
when  she  was  a  little  girl.  Some  say  Raleigh's  naviga- 
tors came  through  "Old  Taffy's  Inlet."  And  so  it  goes. 
Amadas  and  Barlowe  little  dreamed  of  the  trouble  they 
have  given  us. 


24  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


GEORGE    DURANT    AND    K1LCOKANNAN. 

A  wit's  a  feather,  a  fool's  a  rod, 

An  honest  man's  the  noblest  work  of  God. 

DID  YOU  ever  hear  the  name  "Poor  Lo '?"  Well,  I  will 
tell  you. 

The  race  of  American  Indians  is  called  Poor  Lo,  because 
they  are  the  "poor"  of  all  the  races  of  men.  "Lo"  is  an 
exclamation,  meaning  "behold  !"  Behold  the  poor  Indian  ! 

The  Indians  are  a  revengeful  race,  and  when  they  are 
wronged,  they  return  injury  for  injury,  and  are  cruel  in 
the  treatment  of  their  enemies. 

They  have  suffered  much  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  race, 
and  our  race  has  suffered  much  from  them.  They  are  a 
race  of  red  men,  and  the  race  of  white  men  have  driven 
them  back  and  back  from  their  homes  and  hunting  grounds. 
The  race,  in  a  few  years  more,  will  be  utterly  extinct,  and, 
like  the  buffalo  of  the  plains  that  they  hunted,  will  be 
unknown  upon  the  earth. 

The  discoverers  of  America  thought  that  no  men  had 
any  right  to  a  country  unless  they  were  Christian  men, 
and  they  claimed  all  the  land  that  they  discovered  that  was 
not  inhabited  by  Christian  people.  But  this  was  not  the 
teaching  of  our  holy  religion. 

That  religion  teaches  that  all  men  have  rights,  and  that 
they  must  have  what  belongs  to  them,  though  they  may  be 
of  different  color,  and  the  commandment  applies  to  heath- 
en as  well  as  to  Christian  men. 

But  the  early  discoverers  of  America  did  not  think  the 
Indians  had  any  right  to  the  land  they  lived  and  hunted  on, 
and  so  they  took  their  lands. 

But  there  were  exceptions  to  this.  George  Durant,  of 
North  Carolina,  and  the  Quaker,  William  Penn,  of  Penn- 
sylvania, are  honorable  exceptions,  and  should  always  be 
honored  as  men  who  dealt  justly  with  the  Indians. 

William  Penn  purchased  of  the  Indians  in  Pennsylva- 
nia the  land  upon  which  the  city  of  Philadelphia  now 


GEORGE    DURANT    AND    KILCOKANNAN.  25 

stands,  and  paid  them  for  it.  George  Durant  purchased 
from  Kilcokannan,  King  of  the  Yeopim  Indians,  the  land 
now  called  Durant's  Neck,  in  Perquimans  County,  and 
paid  him  for  it.  The  tract  of  country  that  George  Du- 
rant bought  was  then  called  Wecocomicke. 

Would  vou  like  for  me  to  tell  you  how  he  bought  Weco- 
comicke, and  how  he  paid  for  ^ ' 

George  Durant  had  come  down  from  Virginia  and  set- 
tled on  Albemarle  Sound,  and  after  being  in  the  country 
now  called  Durant's  Neck  about  a  year,  he  said  to  one  of  his 
friends :  "This  is  a  good  country  to  make  a  home  in ;  the 
land  is  rich :  the  forest  is  full  of  wild  animals  of  every 
kind;  the  waters  are  full  of  fish,  and  the  red  men  are 
friendly.  If  I  only  knew  of  whom  to  buy  the  land,  I  would 
purchase  and  set  tie  down  for  life." 

"Whom  ?"  said  his  friend ;  "why  Kilcokannan,  King  of 
the  Yeopims,  is  the  owtier,  if  there  is  any  owner ;  or  you 
might  take  the  land.  Kilcokannan  is  a  heathen,  and 
none  but  Christians  own  these  lands." 

'That  may  be  Christian  law,"  said  Durant;  "but  it  is 
not  the  law  of  Christ.  He  did  not  take  away  from  Caesar 
what  belonged  to  Caesar,  and  Ca3sar  was  a  heathen,  just 
as  Kilcokannan  is.  Ca?sar  was  a  learned  and  powerful 
heathen,  and  Kilcokannan  is  poor  and  helpless.  The 
goodly  land  of  Wecocomicke  belongs  to  Kilcokannan,  and 
if  I  get  it,  I  shall  pay  him  for  it.  I  had  rather  settle 
with  Kilcokannan  than  hereafter  with  that  Judge  who 
knoweth  all  things  and  punisheth  the  unjust" 

The  friend  with  whom  Durant  had  these  kind  words 
was  named  Pritlove,  and  it  was  agreed  between  them  that 
Pritlove  should  offer  to  purchase  the  Wecocomicke  from 
Kilcokannan  for  George  Durant. 

Some  days  after  this  conversation  between  Pritlove 
and  George  Durant,  Pritlove  met  Kilcokannan  on  a  bear 
hunt,  and  mentioned,  by  signs  and  language  as  best  he 
could,  that  George  Durant  would  like  to  buy  of  him  the 
goodly  land  of  Wecocomicke. 

Kilcokannan  was  silent.     He  then  lifted  his  eyes  to- 


26  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

ward  the  sun,  bowed  his  head  to  the  earth,  watched  the 
direction  of  the  wind,  and,  by  signs  and  language,  said: 
"My  braves." 

By  this  he  meant  that  he  would  consult  his  Indian  war- 
riors about  it. 

The  warriors  assembled  at  Kilcokannan's  request. 
George  Durant  was  invited  to  be  present.  Kilcokannan 
had  a  bear's  head  scalp  on  his  head,  an  alligator's  tooth 
hung  from  his  breast,  and  scarlet  moccasins  were  on  his 
legs.  His  warriors  sat  around  him  decked  in  the  plu- 
mage of  birds  and  the  skins  of  wild  animals. 

George  Durant  sat  apart  from  the  rest,  dressed  in 
broad-brim  hat  and  long  Quaker  coat.  All  were  seated 
on  a  cloth  spread  out  on  the  ground.  All  were  silent.  A 
large  pipe  was  handed  around,  and  each  one  smoked  in 
silence. 

Then  Kilcokannan  spoke  to  the  assembled  warriors  for 
some  time,  but  his  words  were  not  understood  by  Durant. 

The  warriors  then  arose  from  their  seats  and,  one  by 
one,  they  passed  before  Kilcokannan,  bowing  low  as  they 
passed  him.  They  then  seated  themselves,  and  Kilco- 
kannan, taking  his  pipe,  smoked  first  and  then  handed  it 
in  turn  to  the  others. 

At  the  first  smoke,  the  pipe  was  handed  to  Durant  last. 
This  time  Durant  smoked  next  after  Kilcokannan,  and 
after  all  had  smoked,  Kilcokannan  arose,  walked  over  to 
where  Durant  was  sitting,  touched  him  on  each  cheek,  and 
again  took  his  seat. 

All  this  Indian  ceremony  meant  that  the  Indians  would 
sell  the  land  to  George  Durant  and  live  in  peace. 


THE   STORY   OF   WILLIAM    DRUMMOND.  2J 


THE    STORY    OF    WILLIAM    DRUMMOND. 

"  We  stand  aghast  with  horror, 
At  the  deep  damnation  of  his  taking  off." 

— Macbeth. 

SOON  after  the  country  along  Albemarle  Sound  was  set- 
tled, William  Drummond  was  appointed  Governor.  He 
was  the  first  Governor  of  the  colony  that  was  known  as 
North  Carolina. 

He  was  appointed  by  the  Lords  Proprietors,  to  whom  the 
King  of  England  had  granted  all  the  Albemarle  country. 

These  Proprietors  were  eight  English  noblemen  to  whom 
the  King  gave  the  country.  They  had  power  to  establish 
a  government  over  the  country,  to  make  laws  and  appoint 
officers. 

This  was  about  the  year  1664  that  they  appointed 
Drummond  Governor. 

Drummond  was  by  birth  a  Scotchman,  and  when  he 
was  aopointed  Governor  he  was  living  in  Virginia. 

He  was  a  good  man  and  made  a  good  Governor. 

Like  most  of  the  Scotchmen  that  came  to  America,  he 
was  industrious,  energetic  and  attentive  to  business. 

The  people  liked  him,  and  named  Drummond's  Point 
on  Albemarle  Sound  after  him.  They  also  named  Lake 
Drummond,  in  the  Dismal  Swamp,  after  him,  and  these 
places  keep  his  name  to  this  day. 

He  visited  different  parts  of  the  country  that  he  was 
appointed  over.  He  was  interested  in  the  people  living 
in  North  Carolina,  and  was  popular  with  them. 

While  he  held  the  office  of  Governor,  the  country  was 
prosperous  and  the  population  grew  in  numbers. 

He  was  appointed  Governor  for  three  years,  but  made 
such  a  good  chief  officer  that  he  would  probably  have  been 
reappointed  to  the  same  office. 

But  the  ways  of  an  overruling  Providence  in  the  things 
of  this  world  are  past  finding  out.  What  seems  to  us  cruel, 
time  proves  to  have  been  kind.  What  looks  to  us  unwise, 
time  proves  it  wise. 


28  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

Our  place  and  our  duty  is  patience  and  waiting,  sub- 
mission, trust.  Time,  perhaps,  may  show  us  that  "all 
things  work  together  for  good."  Perhaps  not.  But  wait. 

The  close  of  Drummond's  life  was  an  unhappy  one. 
His  death  was  a  cruel  one.  He  met  death  with  a  hero's 
couracre,  without  a  word  of  supplication  or  complaint. 

He  died  for  popular  liherty.  He  fell  in  an  uprising  for 
freedom.  He  shed  his  blood  against  tyranny.  He  died  an 
ignominious  death  at  the  hands  of  a  tyrant. 

It  is  an  honor  to  North  Carolina  and  to  the  Albemarle 
country  that  her  first  Governor  died  a  martyr  in  the  cause 
of  the  people.  His  name — the  name  of  William  Drum- 
mond,  the  first  Governor  of  North  Carolina — should  have 
a  warm  place  in  the  hearts  of  his  countrymen. 

Would  you  like  to  know  how  and  why  he  came  to  die  ? 
Listen. 

William  Drummond  was  a  citizen  of  the  colony  of  Vir- 
ginia when  he  was  appointed  Governor  of  North  Carolina. 

When  he  came  into  the  Albemarle  country  to  be  Gov- 
ernor of  the  colony,  I  think  he  settled  about  Edenton  or  in 
Dur ant's  Neck.  I  think  so,  because  the  Chowanook  In- 
dians had  a  considerable  settlement  where  Edenton  now 
stands. 

Or  he  may  have  settled  in  Durant's  Neck,  where  the 
Yeopim  Indians  lived,  because  most  of  the  early  white  set-, 
tiers  came  to  Perquimans  County,  in  Durant's  Neck. 

Governor  Drummond  was  visiting  his  old  home  in 
Virginia,  and  while  there  he  found  the  people  of  Virginia 
in  arms  against  the  government. 

It  was  an  armed  rebellion  against  the  authority  of  Gov- 
ernor Berkley,  of  Virginia. 

Berkley  was  a  harsh,  rough  man  of  ungoverned  tem- 
per. He  was  an  ignorant  man  himself,  and  wanted  the 
people  under  him  to  be  more  ignorant  than  he  was.  He 
despised  education,  and  in  one  of  his  public  papers  said 
he  did  not  want  a  school  or  a  printing  press  in  Virginia. 
If  you  were  not  too  polite  and  refined  to  use  the  word, 
you  would  say  he  was  a  "fool." 


THE  STORY   OF   WILLIAM    DRUMMOND.  2Q 

When  Dnmimond  went  to  Virginia  the  people  were  vio- 
lent against  Berkley. 

The  leader  in  opposition  to  him  was  a  young  lawyer 
named  Nicholas  Bacon. 

Bacon  was  a  good  speaker  and  a  popular  man.  He  in- 
flamed the  passions  of  the  people.  He  denounced  Berk- 
lev  as  a  corrupt  despot. 

He  drew  his  own  sword  and  called  upon  the  people  to 
drive  Berkley  from  power,  Many  of  the  people  took 
sides  with  him. 

Drurnmond,  with  his  hot  Scotch  blood,  was  fresh  from  a 
people  who  loved  liberty,  and  had  left  Virginia  for  the 
freedom  of  the  Albemarle  country. 

He  naturallv  took  sides  with  Bacon  and  the  people. 
He  knew  Berkley;  knew  him  to  be  a  selfish  tyrant,  an 
ignorant  ruler  who  used  his  power  for  his  own  benefit, 
and  had  sometimes  used  his  authority  to  the  injury  of  the 
Alliemarle  settlers. 

Drummond  took  up  arms  for  Bacon  and  the  people  of 
Virginia.  He  gave  to  the  cause  his  wise  council  and  his 
brave  arm. 

Might  and  power  prevailed.  The  popular  outbreak  was 
nut  down. 

Some  fled.     Some  surrendered.     Some  were  captured. 

Drummond  was  one  of  those  who  were  captured. 

He  was  brought  before  the  tyrant,  probably  in  irons, 
who  saluted  him  with  mock  courtesy. 

"Good  morning,  Mr.  Drummond/7  said  Berkley,  making 
him  a  low  bow,  "you  are  welcome.  I  had  rather  see  you 
than  any  one  else.  You  shall  be  hanged  in  half  an  hour." 

Then,  turning:  to  his  attendants,  he  ordered  a  trial,  sen- 
tenced Drummond  to  d,eath,  and  he  was  executed  in  less 
time  than  Berkley  had  said. 

Drummond  died  a  martyr  to  popular  liberty.  He  was 
the  first  noted  rebel  of  North  Carolina.  He  was  the  first 
Governor  of  North  Carolina  that  took  arms  agains  ta  ty- 
rant. Oa swell  was  the  second,  and  Ellis  and  Vance  were 
later  in  arms  against  usurpation. 


30  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

When  King  Charles  of  England  heard  of  Drummoiid's 
death,  he  said,  speaking  of  Berkley;  "That  old  fool  has 
taken  more  lives  in  that  naked  country  without  offence 
than  I  have  in  all  England  for  the  murder  of  my  father." 

But  the  King  did  not  a-o  far  enough.  He  ought  to  have 
ordered  him  to  England  and  had  him  tried  and  punished 
for  tyranny  and  murder. 

Such  was  the  sad  fate  of  our  first  Governor.  It  was  a 
cruel  fate.  But  he  died  a  hero.  No  word  of  fear  fell 
from  his  lips.  Cherish  his  memory,  sympathize  with  his 
misfortunes.  Turn  from  the  tyrant  who  caused  his 
death. 

Drummond  has  no  monument  of  marble  or  brass.  But 
his  monument  is  in  our  hearts,  and  we  keep  fresh  therein 
the  inscription  of  his  virtues. 

Our  good  old  mother  State  has  not  been  generous  to  the 
memory  of  her  dead  sons.  She  has  raised  few  marble 
monuments  to  their  honor.  It  is  not  well.  But  \ve  must 
love  her  none  the  less.  We  must  make  our  hearts  their 
monuments  and  mark  their  virtues  there. 

Loving  hearts  are  imperishable.  Marble  monuments 
moulder  into  dust.  Your  young  hearts  are  of  wax.  I 
want  you  to  inscribe  upon  their  waxen  tablets  the  name  of 
DRUMMOND.' 


OUR    PARLIAMENTARY   GENESIS.  31 

OUR    PARLIAMENTARY    GENESIS 
(The  hole  whence  we  were  digged. — Is.) 

NATURE'S  work  is  upward  from  small  beginnings,  as 
oaks  from  acorns  and  large  streams  from  fountains.  St. 
Peter's  at  Rome  is  the  successor  of  the  "Groves  that  were 
God's  first  temples."  Rome  from  twin  brothers  nurtured 
bv  a  wolf.  England  from  the  thick  mists  of  its  early  his- 
tory. Massachusetts  from  wandering  pilgrims  in  search 
of  liberty.  North  Carolina,  the  cradle  of  our  country, 
started  at  its  first  attempt  at  settlement  in  an  environ- 
ment of  sorrow  that  crowns  it  with  the  cypress  wreath  of 
mourning.  That  abortive  struggle  was  followed  by  the 
trapper  and  the  hunter,  that  by  the  successful  quest  of 
"bottom  lands,"  and  that  by  organized  government  in  its 
humblest  forms.  • 

The  earliest  record  of  organized  government  in  North 
Carolina  is  of  a  general  assembly  of  the  people  of  the  col- 
ony at  the  house  of  Captain  Hecklefield,  which  is  supposed 
to  have  been  located  at  the  present  site  of  Nixonton,  in  Pas- 
quotank  County,  long  familiarly  known  as  "Old  Town," 
because  it  was  the  first  county-seat  of  government  of  Pas- 
quotank  County,  and  was  succeeded  by  Elizabeth  City,  on 
Pasquotank  River,  in  the  year  1800. 

But  tradition  is  the  parent  of  history,  and,  like  all  un- 
written history,  is  typified  by  the  sybelline  leaves  of  classic 
storv,  written  on  leaves  and  scattered  to  the  winds. 

We  have  a  tradition  of  our  early  Parliamentary  history 
that  has  never  before,  as  we  remember,  been  committed  to 
the  custody  of  written  language;  and  as  it  came  to  us 
from  an  authentic  source  in  which  we  have  great  faith, 
we  hand  it  down  on  the  wings  of  "Grandfather's  Tales." 

When  a  lad  in  our  formative  period  of  life,  somewhere 
about  a  dozen  years,  on  its  sunny  or  shady  side,  we  were 
the  ready  boy  of  a  large  kindred  family  connection.  We 
went  on  errands,  we  visited  the  sick ;  when  an  old  member 
of  the  family  visited  their  children  or  grandchildren,  we 


32  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

were  the  ready  boy  to  carry  them  around  from  place  to 
place.  It  was  a  convenience  to  them,  and  not  without 
profit  to  us,  which  profits  we  quickly  invested  in  ginger 
cakes  and  beer,  which,  though  not  a  very  permanent  in- 
vestment, doubtless  brought  us  as  much  real  happiness  as 
if  invested  in  real  estate  or  government  bonds. 

Gen.  Duncan  McDonald,  of  Edenton,  was  our  kinsman 
by  marriage,  a  good  man,  fond  of  children,  indulgent 
and  liberal  with  them.  He  was  a  military  man  by  train- 
ing and  position,  and  his  official  business  often  called  him 
to  distant  places  in  his  military  district.  On  one  of  these 
occasions  he  was  called  to  Elizabeth  City  to  review  the 
militia  of  Pasquotank  County.  The  ready  boy  was  ready 
to  take  him,  and  more  particularly  as  he  was  companion- 
able with  boys. 

On  the  day  appointed  we  equipped  ourselves  with  a 
"double  gig"  and  a  nice  stepping  horse,  and  started  on  our 
day's  journey.  The  General  was  kind,  chatty  and  com- 
panionable. 

Toward  evening  we  crossed  "Hall's  Creek"  bridge  in 
Pasquotank  County,  a  mile  from  the  Hecklefield  farm 
at  Nixonton.  On  rising  the  hill  at  Hall's  Creek,  the  Gen- 
eral stopped  the  horse  and  said  to  us:  "The  first  General 
Assembly  of  North  Carolina  met  under  that  tree,"  at  the 
same  time  pointing  to  a  large  oak  tree  on  the  left-hand 
side  of  the  road,  that  towered  above  the  oaks  that  surround- 
ed it. 

He  then  chuckled  to  himself,  and  said  that  one  of  the  by- 
laws of  the  Assembly  was  that  "the  members  should  wear 
sh6es,  if  not  stockings,  during  the  sessions  of  the  body,  and 
that  they  must  not  throw  their  chicken  and  other  bones 
under  the  tree." 

General  McDonald  was  a  man  of  literary  culture,  and 
particularly  fond  of  antiquarian  lore.  He  was  greatly 
amused  at  the  humble  origin  of  our  legislative  history, 
and  laughed  over  it  with  great  glee.  If  the  oak  is  still 
standing,  it  might  be  a  good  speculation  to  have  it  cut  up 
into  memorial  walking  canes  to  clog  the  pride  of  our 


CULPEPPER'S  REBELLION.  33 

dandy  legislators  in  Prince  Albert  coats,  with  kid  gloves 
and  gold-headed  canes.  It  would  serve  as  a  lesson  of  hu- 
mility to  remind  them  of  the  hole  whence  they  were 
digged. 


CULPEPPER'S    REBELLION. 

A  land,  rent  with  civil  feuds, 
Drenched,  it  may  be,  in  fraternal  blood. 

—  Webster. 

IN  1677  there  was  a  "revolutionary  time"  in  the  Albe- 
marle,  which  section  then  constituted  the  chief  settlement 
of  Carolina.  There  was  a  dual  government,  or  rather  a 
dual  usurpation  of  government.  Miller  and  Culpepper 
both  claimed  supremacy.  Miller  had  the  best  show  of 
authority,  being  the  representative  of  the  duly  author- 
ized Governor,  by  appointment  of  the  Lords  Proprietors, 
who  lingered  in  the  West  Indies,  allured  by  love,  as  it  was 
supposed,  but  professing  to  be  detained  by  sickness.  Mil- 
ler, his  secretary,  was  sent  on  ahead  to  hold  the  office  of 
Governor  by  a  temporary  tenure.  He  came  over  to  Al- 
bemarle  with  some  show  of  authority  and  administered 
the  government  in  an  autocratic  way.  The  people  re- 
spected his  authority  and  obeyed  the  laws  which  he  en- 
acted for  them.  He  imposed  taxes,  laid  duties  upon  foreign 
imports,  and  ruled  by  his  own  free  will. 

Culpepper,  seeing  that  Miller  was  usurping  power,  set 
up  a  claim  to  the  Governorship  for  himself,  and  soon 
established  a  contraband  trade  with  Boston,  then  a  preten- 
tious village  in  New  England.  He  defied  the  authority  of 
Miller.  He  refused  to  pay  the  import  duties  imposed 
by  Miller,  and  continued  to  trade  with  the  rich  planters 
of  Albemarle  Sound  and  its  tributary  waters,  and  was 
encouraged  by  them.  There  was  absolute  free  trade,  and 
Culpepper  s  profits  from  the  government  became  greater 
than  Millers. 


34  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

This  contraband  trade  was  carried  on  mainly  by  one 
Gilliam,  who  commanded  a  "skipper"  vessel,  engaged 
in  the  trade  with  Boston.  He  was  a  shrewd  fellow,  and 
found  a  free  trade  with  the  farmers  of  the  Albemarle, 
without  the  burden  of  impost  duties,  was  profitable  both 
to  the  rich  planters  and  to  himself.  Culpepper  winked 
at  this  contraband  traffic.  Gilliam  winked  back  and 
pursued  his  business  with  great  diligence. 

George  Durant,  who  lived  on  Little  River,  was  a  very 
wealthy  man,  and,  while  a  good  and  upright  man,  was 
thrifty  in  business  and  successful  in  the  accumulation  of 
wealth.  Finding  authority  disputed,  with  two  men  con- 
tending for  supremacy,  and  not  authorized  or  caring  to 
solve  the  trouble,  he  took  sides  with  that  in  wjiich  he 
found  most  profit  and  favored  Culpepper.  Favoring  Cul- 
pepper, he  favored  Gilliam,  and  Durant7  s  plantation  be- 
came Gilliam's  headquarters  for  his  illicit  trade. 

Miller  had  the  largest  following,  and  having  gone  into 
office  by  peaceful  methods  he  had  the  support  of  the  more 
conservative  classes  of  the  population.  Culpepper  was 
a  usurper,  and  made  no  claim  to  rightful  authority.  He 
was  denounced  by  Miller  as  a  lawless  man,  and  attempts 
were  made  to  arrest  him  for  treason. 

Miller  heard  that  Gilliam  was  in  Little  River,  pursuing 
his  unlawful  business,  and  that  he  intended  to  come  round 
into  Pasquotank  River  and  stop  at  Pembrook  (now  Cobb's 
Point)  for  the  purpose  of  trading.  Later  he  heard  that 
Culpepper  was  to  come  round  with  him  in  his  "skipper." 
He  thought  his  opportunity  had  come,  and  determined  to 
go  to  Pembrook,  board  the  skipper  when  she  anchored,  and 
arrest  Culpepper  as  a  lawless  traitor.  Relying  upon  his 
authority  as  Chief  Magistrate  of  Carolina,  he  went  to 
Pembrook  and  awaited  the  coming  of  Culpepper  and  Gil- 
liam. He  did  not  wait  long.  The  skipper  soon  arrived 
and  cast  anchor  in  the  stream.  Miller  pushed  off  in  a 
boat,  boarded  the  skipper,  found  Culpepper  and  Gilliam, 
and  demanded  their  surrender  in  the  name  of  the  Province 
of  Carolina. 


THE    EDENTON    TEA    PARTY.  35 

Culpepper  and  Gilliam  showed  fight,  and  instead  of 
being  arrested  by  Miller,  they  overpowered  and  arrested 
him,  took  him  ashore  and  imprisoned  him  in  the  jail  at 
Pembrook. 

Thus,  having  Carolina's  questionable  Governor  in  du- 
rance vile,  Culpepper  administered  his  usurped  authority 
for  eight  years. 

What  became  of  Miller  in  that  lawless  time,  history 
and  tradition  is  silent,  but  history  tells  us  that  Culpepper 
was  afterwards  arrested  by  order  of  the  Lords  Proprietors 
and  taken  to  England  for  trial  upon  the  charge  of 
treason. 

He  was  defended  by  Lord  Shaftesbury,  the  most  dis- 
tinguished jurist  of  the  period,  and  acquitted  upon  the 
ground  that  there  was  no  organized  government  in  Caro- 
lina. 


THE    EDENTON    TEA    PARTY. 
"  Do  have  a  cup  of  tea,  sir." 

TEA  is  a  historic  beverage.  Before  the  dawn  of  civil- 
ization it  was  the  national  drink  in  the  oldest  Empire  of 
the  world.  Before  coffee  became  known  in  the  social  and 
festive  world,  it  was  the  solace  and  comfort  of  the  aged. 
When  coffee  became  its  rival,  it  never  supplanted  it,  and 
to  this  day  tea  is  the  favorite  drink  of  the  old,  refined  and 
luxurious.  Doctor  Johnson,  the  leviathan  of  English 
literature,  astonished  Mrs.  Thrale  by  quaffing  a  dozen 
cups  of  his  favorite  tea  at  one  sitting,  at  her  hospitable 
board. 

It  is  not  strange,  then,  that  the  tax  on  tea  by  the  Brit- 
ish Parliament  excited  so  much  complaint  among  the 
patriots  of  the  Revolution,  and  that  the  wives  and  moth- 
ers of  the  Revolution  felt  the  burden  of  the  tax  on  tea,  and 
the  ladies  of  Edenton  felt  the  pressure  more  than 


36  GRANDFATHER'S  TALKS. 

elsewhere  in  the  State,  because  it  was  the  social  and  com- 
mercial seat  of  empire  in  North  Carolina  in  the  colonial 
times. 

So  they  met  in  a  body,  the  prominent  society  ladies  of 
the  town,  at  the  residence  of  Mrs.  Barco,  the  wife  of  a 
distinguished  barrister  of  the  town,  organized  by  appoint- 
ing Mrs.  Earco  to  take  the  chair  as  president  of  the  body, 
and  adopted  a  set  of  patriotic  resolutions,  denouncing  the 
tea  tax  of  the  British  Parliament,  and  pledging  them- 
selves not  to  use  any  more  tea  of  British  manufacture  after 
that  social  evening  while  the  odious  tax  on  their  favorite 
beverage  continued  in  force. 

That  patriotic  indignation  meeting  was  held  October 
25,  1774.  It  was  doubtless  the  sensation  of  the  town,  and 
gave  new  fuel  to  the  fires  that  soon  burst  into  flame  in  the 
outburst  of  the  Revolution. 

This  was  the  only  Tea  Party  that  was  ever  held  in  North 
Carolina  or  the  United  States  that  became  a  factor  in  our 
great  Revolutionary  struggle.  The  Boston  Tea  Party 
was  an  Indian  Masque  Party.  Without  intending  to  dis- 
parage that  famous  historical  event  of  our  Boston  brethren, 
the  Masque  Tea  Party  of  Boston  was  an  inspiration  of  com- 
merce rather  than  of  patriotism.  The  Revolutionary  Tea 
Party  of  Edenton  was  purely  social  and  patriotic,  and  by 
that  social  and  patriotic  act  of  the  Edenton  dames,  the 
"hand  that  rocked  the  cradle"  nerved  the  arm  of  the  heroes 
that  fought  the  battles  of  the  Revolution  from  Moore's 
Creek  to  Yorktown. 

From  that  Tea  Party  in  Edenton  hangs  a  tale,  and  a 
tale  of  romance  and  history.  Its  identity  is  established 
by  the  local  traditions  of  the  period  and  by  the  enduring 
record  of  the  painter's  art. 

In  the  early  twenties  of  the  last  century,  about  the  year 
1823  or  1824,  there  was  brought  to  the  town  of  Edenton 
by  Captain  Halsey,  a  worthy  and  intelligent  sea-captain 
who  traded  from  Edenton  up  the  Mediterranean  Sea, 
a  painting  on  glass,  headed  "The  Edenton  Tea  Party." 
On  a  voyage  to  the  Mediterranean  he  met  with  William 


The  Lidies  of  Elenton  signing  their  Association. 


THE  EDENTON  TEA  PARTY.  39 

T.  Muse,  a  lieutenant  in  the  United  States  Navy,  a  native 
of  Pasquotank  County,  but  long  a  resident  of  Edenton, 
where  he  had  been  our  schoolmate  at  the  old  Edenton 
Academy.  Bill  Muse  (how  that  loved  name  still  makes  the 
heart-strings  of  our  memory  tingle  at  the  touch  of  the 
"Auld  Lang  Syne")  gave  Captain  Halsey  the  painting 
above  mentioned,  and  asked  him  to  carry  it  home  to  Eden- 
ton and  deposit  it  in  a  place  of  safety.  Muse  stated  that 
he  had  found  it  hanging  in  a  barber-shop  in  one  of  the 
islands  of  the  Mediterranean  Sea. 

Captain  Halsey  brought  it  home  and  placed  it  on  exhi- 
bition in  old  Captain  Manning's  tailor  shop.  For  several 
days  it  was  the  sensation  of  the  town.  Everybody  went  to 
see  it.  Some  of  the  oldest  people  remembered  the  Tea 
Party  that  the  painting  commemorated.  Some  recognized 
the  faces  of  some  of  the  ladies  in  the  painting.  Mrs. 
Dickerson,  a  society  lafly  of  Edenton  at  the  time,  was 
pointed  out  as  a  most  striking  likeness. 

That  painting  on  glass  was  broken  in  pieces  some  years 
after,  and  the  broken  pieces  were  put  in  place  and  photo- 
graphed and  preserved  as  it  was  when  it  was  brought  home. 


40  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

JOHN    HARVEY. 

(THE  GREAT  REVOLUTIONARY   LEADER  ) 

IT  is  one  of  the  unsolved  problems  in  human  life  wheth- 
er circumstances  make  great  men  or  great  men  create  the 
circumstances  from  which  they  spring,  or  whether  they 
act  and  react  upon  each  other.  However  that  may  be, 
John  Harvey  was  the  great  leader  of  the  Revolution  in 
North  Carolina.  The  man  and  the  circumstances  met. 
Of  illustrious  descent,  his  ancestor  John  Harvey  having 
been  Governor  of  the  Province  many  years  before,  of  large 
wealth,  of  great  influence,  possessing  that  dominant  will- 
power of  which  heroes  are  made,  and  with  natural  gifts  that 
were  formed  for  command,  John  Harvey  was  born  with 
nature's  signet  of  authority. 

He  had  long  been  the  foremost  man  in  the  troublous 
times  that  preceded  the  Revolution,  and  had  rode  upon 
the  storm  of  that  ominous  period  that  betokened  the  birth 
of  the  greatest  event  in  the  world's  history.  He  was  the 
central  political  figure  in  North  Carolina.  All,  eyes 
turned  to  him  in  this  crisis  in  the  history  of  the  Province. 
He  rode  upon  its  whirlwind  and  directed  the  storm.  He 
was  in  the  confidence  of  royal  authority.  He  presided 
in  the  Assemblies  convened  by  the  order  of  the  Governor 
appointed  by  the  King  of  Great  Britain ;  but  he  was  not  the 
submissive  tool  of  its  authority.  His  heart  was  imbued 
with  the  spirit  of  independence  that  inspired  a  people 
who  were  "freest  of  the  free."  He  was  Speaker  of  the 
Assembly  that  Governor  Martin  prorogued  in  order  that 
the  Legislature  might  "cool"  and  be  more  complaisant  in 
some  controversy  with  the  Governor.  The  Legislature 
met  on  the  4th  of  December,  1773.  Meanwhile  the  por- 
tents of  the  Revolution  had  grown  more  imminent,  and 
at  a  meeting  of  the  Legislature  on  the  8th  inst.  following, 
a  committee  was  appointed  to  obtain  the  "earliest  intel- 
ligence of  proceedings  in  England  relating  to  America, 
and  to  keep  up  correspondence  with  the  other  colonies." 


JOHN    HARVEY.  41 

This  was  the  germ-seed  of  the  Revolution  in  North 
Carolina.  It  was  a  seed  mainly  planted  by  the  hand  of 
John  Harvey.  We  will  see  later  how  that  seed  "fell  upon 
good  ground,"  and  how  the  hand  that  planted  it  cultivated 
it  with  diligence.  John  Harvey  was  a  skilled  husband- 
man when  he  drove  his  plow  in  the  Revolutionary  furrow, 
and  he  produced  fruits  an  hundred  fold  and  more. 

Governor  Martin's  eyes  were  wide  open  to  the  impend- 
ing crisis,  and  he  determined  that  North  Carolina  should 
not  co-operate  with  the  other  colonies  while  he  was  the 
Governor  of  the  Province.  He  recognized  the  spirit  of 
independence  that  animated  the  people  of  the  Province 
of  North  Carolina.  He  saw  the  swelling  current  of  co- 
operation among  the  colonies,  and  he  determined  to  thwart 
it  by  gubernatorial  authority  in  North  Carolina.  He  had 
the  authority  to  convoke  the  Legislature,  and  he  deter- 
mined that  it  should  not  meet,  and  that,  consequently,  the 
Province  should  not  be  represented  in  any  Congress  of 
the  Colonies,  for  the  purpose  of  co-operating  in  hostile 
declarations  against  Great  Britain,  "until  matters  were  in 
better  shape." 

Harvey  was  not  sleeping  at  his  post.  He  was  informed 
of  the  designs  of  Governor  Martin  by  the  Governor's  pri- 
vate secretary,  probably  with  his  approval,  to  intimidate 
Harvey.  The  lion-hearted  hero  of  the  Revolution  held 
a  meeting  with  Governor  Johnston,  of  Eden  ton,  and  Col- 
onel Buncombe,  of  Tyrrell  County,  at  "Buncombe  Hall," 
the  hospitable  seat  of  the  Colonel,  and  at  their  interview 
Harvey  said,  as  he  had  declared  to  Martin's  secretary, 
that  if  Governor  Martin  did  not  convoke  the  Assembly, 
"then  the  people  will  convene  one  themselves." 

The  Governor  did  not  convene  the  Assembly. 

Johnston,  writing  of  that  meeting  at  "Buncombe 
Hall"  to  William  Hooper,  of  Wilmington,  says:  "Harvey 
was  in  a  violent  mood,  and  declared  he  was  for  assembling 
a  convention  independent  of  the  Governor,  and  that  he 
would  lead  the  way  and  issue  hand-bills  over  his  own 
name."  Later,  leaders  on  the  Cape  Fear,  acting  on  Har- 


42  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

vey's  suggestion,  called  on  the  people  to  choose  their 
deputies. 

That  Convention  met,  although  the  Governor  forbade 
it  by  proclamation.  This  was  the  first  Revolutionary  pop- 
ular Convention  that  ever  met  in  America  without  royal 
authority,  and  in  defiance  of  it.  That  Convention,  and  it 
was  a  very  able  one,  met  in  New  Bern,  and  John  Harvey 
was  its  President.  It  passed  resolutions  denouncing  the 
claim  of  the  Parliament  to  tax  the  colonies  without  rep- 
resentation, denounced  the  tax  on  tea  and  forbade  its  use 
in  North  Carolina,  denounced  the  Boston  Port  Bill,  de- 
clared an  import  duty  upon  goods  of  English  manufacture, 
declared  in  favor  of  a  Continental  Congress  of  the  colo- 
nies, and  appointed  delegates  to  that  Congress  in  Phila- 
delphia; and  it  authorized  John  Harvey,  the  President, 
to  call  another  Convention  whenever  he  thought  it  expe- 
dient. 

That  shows  where  North  Carolina  stood  before  there 
was  an  overt  act  of  revolution,  before  a  gun  was  fired  at 
Lexington,  and  before  Virginia  showed  her  Revolutionary 
teeth.  That  showed  the  blood  that  flowed  through  John 
Harvey's  veins. 

Now,  a  word  for  John  Harvey's  memory.  Blessed 
memory !  Heroic  inheritance !  First  to  hurl  defiance  at 
royal  authority  in  America!  First  to  draw  authority 
from  the  people  instead  of  the  King.  Before  Henry  first 
uttered  the  slogan  of  "liberty  or  death"  in  the  sacred 
halls  of  old  St.  John's  Church  in  Richmond,  John  Har- 
vey had  proclaimed  the  supremacy  of  the  people  of  North 
Carolina  over  kings  and  their  representatives. 

In  the  National  capitol  at  Washington  there  is  a  hall 
set  apart  for  the  statues  of  two  of  the  great  men  of  the 
several  States.  North  Carolina's  niche  in  that  hall  is 
empty.  A  bust  of  Harvey  would  not  add  an  atom  to  his 
heroic  fame,  but  it  would  show  the  world  that  ingratitude 
is  a  sin  that  does  not  tarnish  the  good  name  of  North  Caro- 
lina, and  that  John  Harvey's  name  and  fame  is  her  price- 
less heritage. 


THE    RESOLUTIONS   OF   ST.    PAUL'S   VESTRY.          43 

THE    RESOLUTIONS   OF   ST.    PAUL'S    VESTRY. 
"  Resistance  to  tyrants  is  obedience  to  God." 

MANY  memorials  of  the  patriotism  of  the  citizens  of 
North  Carolina  during  the  Revolutionary  period  exist  and 
are  preserved.  Some  have  never  had  recognition,  and 
some  have  slept  the  sleep  of  forgetfulness.  Among  those 
that  have  never  had  sufficient  recognition  are  the  resolu- 
tions of  the  vestrymen  of  old  St.  Paul's  Church,  Edenton, 
which  are  now  preserved  in  the  parish  register  of  the 
church,  and  signed  by  Richard  Hoskins,  Wm.  Boyd,  Da- 
vid Rice,  Thomas  Benbury,  Aaron  Hill,  Jacob  Hunter, 
Pelatiah  Walton,  John  Beasley,  William  Hinton,  Wil- 
liam Bennet,  Thomas  Bonner  and  William  Roberts,  on 
the  19th  day  of  June,  1775. 

These  men  are  "appfes  of  gold  in  pitchers  of  silver," 
and  should  be  toasted  6*n  all  our  patriotic  anniversaries, 
that  tried  men's  souls  in  the  dark  days  of  those  bloody 
times  that  bred  heroes  and  tested  the  fidelity  of  men  to 
home  and  country.  Mecklenburg's  pride  glows  with  a 
warmer  heart-beat  when  the  names  of  Brevard,  Avery, 
Polk,  Alexander,  Davidson,  Graham,  Balch,  and  the  other 
immortals  that  made  the  20th  of  May  the  day  of  days  in 
Carolina's  annals.  Everv  true  son  of  our  dear  old  mother 
State  joins  hands  and  hearts  with  them  in  the  loud  acclaim 
of  gratitude  and  honor.  But  who  joins  us  in  giving  due 
honor  to  the  Hoskins,  the  Benburys,  the  Beasleys,  the 
Hills,  the  Hunters,  the  Hintons,  the  Bonners,  and  the  other 
patriots  who  embalmed  the  19th  of  June  in  our  annals, 
a  month  after  the  "Mecklenburg  Declaration  of  Indepen- 
dence" '\ 

Read  these  immortal  words  by  the  vestrymen  of  St. 
Paul's  Church,  in  Edenton,  and  take  off  your  hats  in  hon- 
or of  the  great  men  who  were  true  to  their  country  when 
the  die  trembled  in  the  doubtful  balance.  Listen,  and 
bless  and  honor  the  vestry  resolutions  that  have  rung  down 
the  ages.  Who  dare  challenge  their  heroism,  their  pa- 


44  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

triotism,  their  virtue.  Listen,  and  be  prouder  of  your 
heritage  of  renown: 

"We,  the  undersigned,  professing  our  allegiance  to  the 
King,  and  acknowledging  the  constitutional  executive  pow- 
er of  the  government,  do  solemnly  profess  and  declare 
that  we  do  absolutely  believe  that  neither  the  Parliament  of 
Great  Britain,  nor  any  member,  or  any  constituent  branch 
thereof,  have  a  right  to  impose  taxes  upon  these  colonies 
to  regulate  the  internal  policy  thereof;  and  that  all  at- 
tempts, by  fraud  or  force,  to  establish  and  exercise  such 
claims  and  powers  are  violations  of  the  peace  and  security 
of  the  people,  and  ought  to  be  resisted  to  the  utmost ;  and 
that  the  people  of  this  Province,  singly  and  collectively, 
are  bound  by  the  acts  and  resolutions  of  the  Continental 
and  Provincial  Congress,  because  in  both  they  are  fully 
represented  by  persons  chosen  by  themselves.  And  we 
do  solemnly  and  sincerely  promise  and  engage,  under  the 
sanctions  of  virtue,  honor,  and  tfte  sacred  love  of  liberty 
and  our  country,  to  maintain  and  support  all  the  acts  and 
resolutions  of  the  said  Continental  and  Provincial  Con- 
gress to  the  utmost  of  our  power  and  ability. 

"In  testimony  whereof,  we  have  hereunto  set  our  hands, 
this  19th  day  of  June,  1775." 

This  protest  of  the  vestrymen  of  St.  Paul's  Church, 
viewed  in  all  its  aspects,  is  most  important,  as  indicative, 
of  the  spirit  of  our  Revolutionary  ancestors.  Look  at  it: 
Edenton  was  the  metropolis  of  the  Royal  Government  in 
North  Carolina.  The  agents  of  the  British  Government 
lived  there.  An  atmosphere  of  royalty  pervaded  the  com- 
munity. Its  most  influential  social  element  was  among 
the  representatives  of  the  British  Government.  St.  Paul's 
Church  was  a  beneficiary  of  the  Church  of  England's  "So- 
ciety for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel."  The  vestry  of  St 
Paul's  Church  represented  both  ecclesiastical  and  civil  au- 
thority. They  were  evidently  sturdy  men.  The  strong  lan- 
guage of  their  resolutions  indicate  their  earnest  and  sincere 
purpose.  They  were  carrying  burdens  social  and  official 
that  the  patriots  of  Mecklenburg  knew  not  of.  When  they 


THE   REGULATORS.  45 

declared  that  "neither  the  Parliament  of  Great  Britain 
nor  any  member  or  constituent  branch  thereof  has  a  right 
to  impose  taxes  upon  these  colonies  to  regulate  the  inter- 
nal policy  thereof,  and  that  any  attempts  to  exercise  such 
claims  by  force  or  fraud  ought  to  be  resisted  to  the  ut- 
most/' they  rose  to  the  full  stature  of  stalwart  manhood 
and  meant  to  sunder  all  ties  in  conflict  with  their  love  of 
country. 


THE    REGULATORS. 

THE  BATTLE  OF  ALAMANCE. 

For  time  at  last  sets  all  things  even, 
And  if  we  do  but  watch  the  hour. 
There  never  yet  was  human  power, 
That  could  evade,  it'  unforgiven. 

THERE  are  three  events  in  North  Carolina  history  that 
have  not  been  sufficiently  commemorated:  The  Battle  of 
Alamance,  the  Proceedings  of  the  Vestry  of  St.  Paul's 
Church  of  Edenton,  and  the  Battle  of  Moore's  Creek. 
Mecklenburg  has  been  more  fortunate.  Its  position  was 
long  contested,  especially  by  the  Virginia  historians,  but 
it  has  fought  its  way  to  public  recognition  and  now  lifts  its 
head  among  the  primal  events  of  our  Revolutionary  his- 
tory. Even  that  heroic  event  was  long  disputed,  and 
some  of  our  most  distinguished  and  faithful  North  Caro- 
linians doubted  its  authenticity. 

Alamance  has  been  more  unfortunate  and  longer  in 
having  its  claim  as  the  germ-seed  of  the  Revolution,  plant- 
ed before  the  Alexanders,  the  Polks,  the  Brevards,  and  the 
other  heroes  of  Mecklenburg  had  put  on  the  toga  of  man- 
hood, fully  recognized  by  the  predominance  of  testimony. 
North  Carolina  is  cautious,  deliberative  and  slow,  and  Zeb 
Vance,  in  that  speech  to  the  Army  of  Northern  Virginia, 
which  General  Lee  declared  was  worth  fifty  thousand  men 
to  the  Confederate  service,  hit  the  nail  squarely  on  the  head 


46  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

when  he  said  the  people  of  North  Carolina  were  a  race  of 
"Tar  Heels/7  and  stuck  when  they  put  their  heels  down. 
Strange,  too,  because  she  has  two  sisters,  on  the  south  of 
us  and  north  of  us,  one  full  of  mercury,  and  jumps  to  a  con- 
clusion at  the  first  flash;  and  the  other,  full  of  pompous 
stateliness  and  avarice  of  fame,  folds  her  robes  of  dignity 
about  her  and  says,  "Stand  back,  we  are  better  than 
thou." 

The  sons  of  the  State  are  now  putting  Alamance  in  its 
true  and  rightful  position  as  a  beacon  light  in  the  primal 
storms  of  that  great  event  in  the  world's  history  that 
taught  mankind  the  great  lesson  in  free  government  and 
made  the  American  mountaineer  a  marvel  in  the  world's 
history.  All  honor  to  W.  L.  Saunders,  the  stout-hearted 
North  Carolinian.  Blessed  be  his  memory.  A  worthy 
son  of  a  worthy  and  reverend  father,  Rev.  Joseph  H. 
Saunders. 

The  Regulators  were  patriotic.  They  resisted  oppres- 
sion of  British  office-holders.  They  were  outraged  and 
oppressed  by  unlawful  taxations,  by  the  oppressor's  scorn 
and  the  proud  man's  contumely.  They  protested  again  and 
again  against  these  infamous  acts  of  the  British  Govern- 
ment. At  last,  after  their  patience  was  exhausted,  they 
resorted  to  force,  and  Tryon's  soldiers  overcame  them  on 
the  bloody  field  of  Alamance,  subdued  them  in  battle  with 
death  on  both  sides,  hung  them  after  a  drum-head  trial, 
and  executed  the  prisoners  without  mercy.  Their  griev- 
ances were  afterward  acknowledged  by  Try  on,  the  "Wolf 
of  North  Carolina,"  as  the  Indians  designated  him,  and  his 
successor,  Governor  Martin.  And  now,  the  victims  of  this 
flagrant  oppression  by  the  British  Government  cry  from 
the  ground  for  justice  from  their  countrymen  who  sprang 
from  the  seed  their  brave  hearts  had  planted.  Let  their 
countrymen,  who  have  reaped  the  fruits  of  their  heroism 
and  sufferings,  make  requital  by  justice  and  blessings, 
late  but  timely,  on  their  long  misrepresented  memories. 

The  Battle  of  Alamance,  on  the  soil  of  North  Carolina, 


THE   TUSCARORA    MASSACRE.  47 

on  the  16th  of  May,  1771,  was  the  reveille  drum-beat  of 
the  Revolution,  and  the  blood  then  shed,  on  the  open  bat- 
tle-field and  on  the  scaffold,  was  the  blood  of  the  martyrs  of 
liberty ;  the  germ-seed  of  Mecklenburg's  Declaration,  of  the 
patriotic  protest  of  old  St.  Paul's  at  Edenton,  of  the 
victorious  fight  at  Moore's  Creek,  and  of  Guilford  and 
York  town. 


THE   TUSCARORA    MASSACRE. 
'•Man's  inhumanity  to  man." 

THE  saddest  event  in  our  history  is  the  Indian  massacre 
by  the  Tuscarora  Tribeof  Indians  in  1711. 

It  was  the  most  numerous  of  the  Indian  tribes  in  the 
colony  at  that  time.  They  dominated  the  other  smaller 
tribes,  and  were  known  for  their  ferocity  and  cruelty. 

They  had  long  shown  unfriendliness  to  the  white  set- 
tlers, and  with  characteristic  secretiveness  were  maturing 
their  plans  for  an  indiscriminate  slaughter  of  all  the  col- 
onists, without  regard  to  age,  sex  or  condition.  Their 
end  and  aim  was  an  utter  extinction  of  the  white  settlers. 

On  the  night  of  the  agreement  of  the  Tuscarora  tribe, 
there  was  a  general  uprising,  and  the  Indians  massacred 
one  hundred  and  thirty  men,  women  and  children,  with 
such  inhuman  barbarities  that  humanity  shudders  at  the 
recital. 

The  population  of  the  colony  at  this  time  did  not  prob- 
ably exceed  two  thousand.  There  had  been  occasional 
Indian  disturbances  between  the  white  settlers  and  the 
Indians.  They  were  of  a  local  character,  but  they  were 
feeders  of  the  general  disturbance  which  resulted  in  the 
atrocious  massacre  of  1711,  on  the  night  of  the  22d  of 
September. 

It  was  a  well-laid  scheme  of  the  cruel  Tuscaroras,  in 


48  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

which  they  had  enlisted  the  smaller  tribes  then  dwelling 
in  the  colony — the  Meherrins,  the  Corees,  the  Matamus- 
keets,  and  others.  The  unsettled  condition  of  public  af- 
fairs favored  them.  The  contest  then  raging  between  the 
Church  of  England  men  and  the  Quakers  for  equal  rights 
in  the  government  of  the  Province,  represented  by  Gary  and 
Glover,  the  opposing  claimants  of  the  Governor's  office, 
and  the  angry  feelings  in  which  the  contest  was  producing 
its  results  of  war  and  bloodshed  and  quasi  war,  invited 
the  Indians  to  the  most  cruel  Indian  massacre  that  sad- 
dens our  annals. 

In  one  night,  in  the  most  perfect  secrecy,  with  entire 
accord,  the  Indians  rose  as  one  man  on  the  night  of  Septem- 
ber 22,  1711,  and  with  inhuman  desperation  fell  upon  the 
sleeping  and  defenceless  population  and  slew  them  with 
fiendish  torture,  at  which  our  blood  is  curdled  by  the  reci- 
tal. Old  men  gray  with  age  had  their  heads  smashed 
in  and  their  white  hairs  bespattered  with  blood;  helpless 
infancy,  with  its  pitiful  cry  for  mercy,  was  cruelly  mur- 
dered, and  women  in  the  presence  of  their  children  were 
tortured  and  cruelly  murdered. 

The  blow  was  a  terrible  one  to  the  scattered  inhabi- 
tants of  the  Albemarle  settlements.  It  suspended  for  a 
time  the  heart-burnings  of  intestine  strife.  Quaker  and 
Cavalier  stood  side  by  side  in  the  presence  of  a  common 
danger,  united  by  the  ties  of  a  common  brotherhood. 

Such  was  the  dread  scene  of  the  22d  of  September, 
1711. 

A  promising  colony  of  Swiss,  under  De  Graff enreid,  of 
Berne,  Switzerland,  had  made  a  settlement  in  New  Bern, 
and  were  industriously  engaged  in  laying  off  lands  in  the 
vicinity.  Lawson,  the  Surveyor-General  of  the  colony, 
accompanied  by  De  Graffenreid  and  attendants,  were  on 
a  surveying  expedition  to  locate  the  lands.  While  en- 
gaged in  this  peaceful  business,  they  were  attacked  by  a 
party  of  Indians  and  captured.  At  an  Indian  council  they 
were  sentenced  to  death,  which  order  was  inflicted  upon 
Lawson  with  great  torture,  and  De  Graffenreid  was  lib- 


HUGUENOT   BLOOD   IN    NORTH   CAROLINA.  49 

crated  because  lie  was  supposed  to  be  high  in  authority 
;in«l  that  his  death  would  be  avenged. 

Meanwhile  messengers  were  dispatched  to  Virginia  and 
South  Carolina  for  assistance.  Governor  Spotswood,  of 
Virginia,effected  a  treaty  of  peace  with  the  Tuscaroras. 
Gen.  James  Moore,  of  South  Carolina,  came  over  with  a 
body  of  troops,  attacked  the  Indians  with  great  bravery 
a  i.  Fort  Barn  well,  near  New  Bern,  with  great  slaughter, 
and  drove  them  from  the  Province.  They  fled  from  the 
colony  of  North  Carolina  and  joined  the  Five  Nations  of 
the  iroquois  Tribe  in  New  York,  forming  what  has  been 
called  the  Six  Nations  in  New  York,  where  a  remnant  of 
them  still  live. 

The  smaller  tribes  who  were  led  by  the  fierce  Tuscaroras 
won-  left  undisturbed. 


THE    HUGUENOT  BLOOD  IN    NORTH  CAROLINA. 

The  web  of  our  life  is  of  a  mingled  yarn,  good  and  ill  together. 

— Julius  Ccesar. 

THE  revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes  is  one  of  the 
most  memorable  events  in  French  history,  and  is  a  most 
significant  illustration  of  the  mercurial  disposition  of  the 
French  people.  The  French  people  have  more  individu- 
ality than  any  people  that  have  ever  lived  upon  earth,  and 
their  individuality  finds  expression  most  frequently  in 
scenes  of  revolution,  violence  and  bloodshed.  They  are 
bright,  vivacious,  full  of  enterprise,  energy  and  forecast, 
prone  to  take  oft'ence,  sudden  and  quick  in  quarrel,  and  dar- 
ing death  at  the  cannon's  mouth.  They  have  given  to 
history  its  greatest  military  heroes,  its  greatest  statesmen, 
jreatest  philosophers,  its  greatest  writers,  its  greatest 
poets,  and  its  greatest  orators. 

The  first  Napoleon  said  to  one  of  his  great  Marshals  who 
had  followed  him  in  his  exile,  and  who  stood  by  him  in  the 


50  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

supreme  hour  of  death:  "Bertrand,  there  have  been  but 
three  great  captains,  Ca3sar,  Alexander  and  myself.77  The 
world  has  furnished  no  greater  warrior  than  Napoleon,  no 
greater  scientist  than  Cuvier,  no  greater  poet  than  Bos- 
suet,  no  greater  philosopher  than  Fenelon,  no  greater 
novelist  than  Hugo,  no  greater  dramatist,  save  Shake- 
speare, than  Moliere ;  and  France  has  made  more  history, 
both  in  its  social  and  tragic  features,  than  any  other  na- 
tion on  earth. 

They  must  have  derived  their  fighting  blood  from  Cain, 
their  sagacious  blood  from  Esau,  their  military  blood  and 
wise  strategy  from  Joshua,  their  astronimic  blood  from 
Job,  and  their  wisdom  from  Solomon. 

This  great  blood,  so  compounded  and  intermingled,  was 
cast  upon  the  shores  of  Albemarle  as  a  flotsam  after  the 
"Revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes.'7  When  that  cruel 
and  bloody  persecution  drove  from  France  the  best  of  its 
population,  its  most  skilled  artisans,  the  most  cultured  of 
its  population,  and  enriched  other  lands  with  the  best  blood 
of  France,  the  Albemarle  country  was  newly  settled  and 
the  Lords  Proprietors  invited,  by  liberal  gifts  and  privi- 
leges, immigrants  from  all  the  world  to  come  to  the  new- 
found land  of  Albemarle,  subdue  its  forests  and  reduce 
to  cultivation  its  rich  "bottom  lands.77 

Five  brothers,  Huguenots,  skilled  artisans,  workers  in 
metals,  fabrics  and  leather,  saw  the  invitation  of  the  Eng- 
lish Proprietors  and  determined  to  cast  their  lots  in  Amer- 
ica. They  were  religious  devotees,  and  left  the  land  of 
their  birth  for  freedom  of  conscience  and  freedom  to  wor- 
ship God  in  obedience  to  its  .dictates.  They  had  suffered 
persecution,  and  in  the  'choice  of  recantation,  destruc- 
tion or  exile,  they  chose  the  last 

In  the  latter  years  of  the  seventeenth  century,  about 
1680,  as  the  family  tradition  has  handed  down  to  us,  five 
Huguenot  brothers  sailed  from  France  to  seek  an  asylum 
from  persecution  in  the  wild  lands  of  America.  They 
crossed  the  ocean  in  safety,  and  in  seeking  an  entrance 
into  Carolina7s  inland  broad  waters,  they  encountered  the 


HUGENOT    BLOOD    IN    NORTH    CAROLINA.  51 

storm-swept  shoals  of  Hatteras,  that  octopus  of  the  sea, 
whose  appetite  for  suffering  and  death  has  never  been 
sated,  and  there  they  were  wrecked  and  cast  upon  its  then 
inhospitable  shores,  with  nothing  saved  but  life. 

Soon  after,  they  explored  the  lands  on  the  headwaters 
of  Albemarle  Sound  and  settled  there.  They  settled  in  the 
counties  adjacent  to  it. 

John  located  in  Tyrrell  and  engaged  in  the  seafaring 
trade  to  Boston,  and  married  in  Boston.  Levi  settled  in 
Pasquotank  County,  owned  the  land  on  which  Elizabeth 
City  now  stands,  and  is  supposed  to  have  engaged  in 
commercial  pursuits.  Thomas  settled  in  Perquimans  and 
became  a  farmer.  Job  settled  in  lower  Chowan  and  became 
a  successful  farmer  and  worker  in  leather,  which  had 
been  his  business  in  his  native  home  in  France.  What 
became  of  the  other  brother  is  not  known,  but  it  is  said  in 
the  old  family  traditions  that  he  was  drowned  in  Tennes- 
see many  years  after. 

These  brothers  were  the  germ-seed  and  origin  of  the 
numerous  family  of  Creecys  scattered  over  the  counties 
contiguous  to  Albemarle  Sound. 


52  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

THE  SCOTCH-IRISH  ELEMENT  IN  OUR  HISTORY 

We  tread  upon  the  ashes  of  heroes,  patriots  and  statesmen. 

THE  migration  of  races  is  one  of  the  most  interesting 
studies  of  history.  It  is  one  of  the  most  potent  influences 
in  the  complicated  machinery  of  divine  providence  in  pre- 
venting the  decadence  of  the  human  race  by  the  infusion 
of  new  blood,  and  thus  preserving  the  unity  of  the  race  and 
its  virile  purity  and  strength. 

N^orth  Carolina,  though  now  the  most  homogeneous  pop- 
ulation of  all  the  States,  was  originally  a  composite  race, 
derived  principally  from  the  ancestral  English  stock,  the 
Huguenot  refugees,  and  the  Scotch-Irish  stock,  impelled 
by  the  migratory  instinct  and  by  the  unrest  of  the  love  of 
liberty,  and  the  search  for  newer  fields  of  enterprise. 

Perhaps  the  most  distinctive  and  enterprising  element 
of  our  population  was  the  Scoteh-Irish  element.  It  was 
the  outgrowth  of  a  Scotch  colony  who  migrated  from  their 
parent  hive  and  settled  at  first  in  the  north  of  Ireland, 
where  they  became  identified  with  the  Celtic  race  by  inter- 
marriage and  the  adoption  of  their  habits  and  customs. 
They  were  a  combination  of  the  warm  blood  of  Ireland 
with  the  steadiness  and  tenacity  of  the  Scotch  Covenanter. 
It  combined  Irish  wit,  vivacity  and  impulse  with  Scotch 
sobriety  and  earnestness — a  rare  combination  of  contradic- 
tory qualities,  resulting  in  wondrous  alchemy. 

This  was  a  grand  element  in  our  population.  The 
Irish  element  caused  their  migration  to  the  new  land  be- 
yond the  sea,  where  broader  fields,  with  less  restraints  of 
the  rigid  rule  of  government,  invited  them. 

About  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century  they  land- 
ed upon  the  shores  of  Pennsylvania  and  there  abided  for 
permanent  settlement ;  but  the  staid  character  of  the  Qua- 
ker population  did  not  suit  their  progressive  tempera- 
ment and  they  sought  a  home  in  Carolina  where  lived  the 
"freeest  of  the  free,"  where  the  Irish  blood  could  find  vent 


THE   SCOTCH  IRISH    ELEMENT   IN   OUR    HISTORY.      53 

for  its  hilarity  and  its  Scotch  stick  and  stubbornness  could 
find  a  congenial  home. 

From  Pennsylvania  there  came  a  stream  of  Scotch-Irish, 
and  planted  themselves  in  the  sections  of  Alamance,  Meck- 
lenburg, and  the  adjacent  counties,  planted  there  by  a  wise 
Providence  to  await  the  unfolding  of  a  great  drama  in 
which  they  were  to  bear  a  mighty  part. 

They  brought  with  them  their  preachers  and  their 
school-masters,  their  creeds  and  their  confessions ;  made  the 
mountain  section  the  garden  of  ^orth  Carolina,  produced 
a  stalwart  population  that  gave  us  our  greatest  leaders  in 
the  crisis  of  our  struggle  for  independence,  and  made 
their  homes  the  pride  of  our  State. 

They  gave  us  the  martyrs  of  Alamance,  whose  patriotic 
blood  was  the  germ-seed  of  the  Revolution.  They  gave 
us  Mecklenburg's  immortal  Declaration  of  Independence, 
whose  primal  bugle  note  of  freedom  yet  sounds  in  the  grate- 
ful ears  of  the  patriotic  sons  of  our  loved  mother  State. 
They  gave  us  our  beloved  Vance,  whose  Irish  nature  found 
expression  in  his  charming  flow  of  wit  and  humor,  and 
whose  Scotch  blood  found  expression  in  his  heroic  fortitude 
under  suffering  and  his  sturdy  manhood  under  all  the 
vicissitudes  of  his  great,  eventful  life — a  rare  combination 
of  two  strains  of  blood  that  showed  even  in  his  broad 
religion.  He  was  Father  Ryan,  the  poet-priest,  in  the 
jollity  of  his  Irish  character,  and  John  Knox,  the  sturdy 
Presbyterian,  in  his  Scotch  blood — an  even-balanced  mon- 
ument of  sturdiness  and  jollity.  They  gave  us  the  Alex- 
anders, the  Erevards,  the  Polks,  the  Grahams,  and  others, 
\\lmse  blessed  memories  are  an  inspiration  of  patriotism, 
and  they  are  giving  us  to-day  a  Queen  City  in  the  nest  of 
the  hornets  of  the  Revolution,  that  will  be  the  bright  light 
of  our  whole  country  when  New  York  and  Boston  and 
t'liii'jiu'o  have  become,  like  Persepolis  and  Palmyra,  the 
lnmcd  cities  of  the  plain. 


54  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


TOM  BROWN'S  DOG  TILDEN. 

Who  kicks 
My  dog, 
He  has  got  me  to  lick. 

— Burdette. 

TOM  BROWN  was  a  Baptist  preacher  of  Gates  County. 
He  was  a  master  of  the  pulpit  and  made  the  gospel  ring 
from  the  sacred  desk.  He  was  fond  of  field  sports,  and 
had  a  setter  dog.  The  dog  was  named  "Tilden,"  after 
the  Democratic  candidate  for  the  Presidency  in  1876. 
Tilden  was  given  to  him  when  a  puppy  by  one  of  his 
brethren  who  lived  in  a  distant  part  of  his  pastoral  care. 
As  a  puppy  Tilden  showed  remarkable  sagacity.  He  was 
vigilant,  affectionate  and  docile,  and  his  bird  ingtinct  was 
apparent  before  his  yelp  was  fully  developed.  He  never 
forgot  a  friend  or  a  foe,  and  his  friends  accumulated  faster 
than  his  foes,  for  his  disposition  was  most  lovable.  Before 
his  molar  teeth  were  grown  he  had  learned  all  the  language 
of  dog  pantomime,  and  the  children,  whose  love  he  had. 
won,  were  constantly  learning  him  some  new  tricks.  He 
would  stand  up  on  his  hinder  legs,  try  to  stand  on  his  head 
when  bidden  by  a  pantomimic  waggle  of  the  head,  would 
bark  before  eating,  with  solemn  gravity,  and  knew  the 
names  of  his  owner  and  of  all  the  children.'  He  loved 
field  sports,  and  when  brother  Brown,  who  was  a  Nimrod 
indeed,  forgot  his  gun  and  field  sports,  Tilden  would  pull 
at  his  trousers'  legs  until  he  made  him  get  his  gun,  and 
Tilden  would  signify  his  approval  and  happiness  by  wild 
antics  and  capers. 

Tilden.  grew  to  dog  manhood  and  grew  in  wisdom  every 
day.  His  learning  in  dogology  was  marvelous.  He  knew 
all  the  neighbors  by  face  and  name,  would  carry  to  any 
one  of  them  whose  name  was  called  to  him  a  message  in 
writing  in  his  mouth,  and  would  wait  for  an  answer.  He 
would  go  to  the  post-office  and  bring  the  mail,  and  \vas 
never  happier  than  when  a  party  of  sportsmen  came  with 


TOM  BROWN'S  DOG  TILDEN.  55 

their  guns  to  have  a  field-day  with  Tilden's  owner.  He 
was  a  perfect  hunter,  knew  the  haunts  of  birds,  and  would 
stay  by  a  Bob  White  all  day  long,  and  would  have  died 
by  him  if  the  hunters  did  not  come. 

Tilden  became  a  great  pet  in  the  community  of  upper 
Gates  County,  and  they  were  a  community  who  delighted 
in  dog  and  gun.  All  of  them  loved  him,  and  would  send 
delicacies  for  Tilden  to  brother  Brown's.  His  attain- 
ments in  dog  pantomime  were  a  marvel  of  sagacity,  and 
the  tales  that  brother  Brown  told  of  him  spread  far  and 
wide.  At  a  Gates  Court  the  tale  was  told  to  us.  We 
thought  it  wonderful  beyond  parallel.  When  we  got  home 
we  told  the  story  of  dog  Tilden  to  our  friends  and  neigh- 
bors, but  they  did  not  believe  it,  and  some,  bolder  than  the 
rest,  intimated  that  brother  Brown  had  formed  a  combi- 
nation to  manufacture  a  sensational  story  to  interest  and 
fool  the  public.  It  wounded  our  pride  and  damaged  our 
character  for  truth,  which  we  had  always  treasured  as 
one  of  the  purest  jewels  in  our  casket.  So,  when  we 
next  went  to  Gatesville,  we  met  brother  Brown,  and  said 
to  him,  said  we,  "Brother  Brown,  sir,  you  are  a  preacher, 
and  under  bonds  to  speak  the  truth,  and  we,  all  our  life, 
have  been  striving  to  build  up  a  character  for  truth.  We 
must  stop  this  talk  about  Tilden,  or  we  will  be  put  down 
as  two  of  the  biggest  liars  in  North  Carolina;  and  if  it 
comes  to  that,  we  had  better  do  as  Judas  Iscariot  did." 
He  then  commenced  sniffling  his  nose  and  wiping  his 
weeping  eyes,  and  said:  uTilden,  poor,  dear  old  Tilden, 
is  dead."  And  thereby  hangs,  a  sad  recital.  We  tell  the 
tale  as  Tom  Brown  told  it  to  us. 

One  day  Tilden  did  not  eat.  His  appetite  failed  more 
and  more.  He  grew  worse.  His  usual  sleeping  place  was 
a  comfortable  dog-house  in  the  yard.  His  eye  grew  dim, 
and  his  natural  sprightliness  left  him.  The  Brown  house- 
hold were  sad.  Tom  took  him  in  his  bed-room  at  night, 
made  a  comfortable  rug  bed  for  him  on  the  floor,  and  he 
was  watched  over  with  the  tenderest  care.  He  lost  flesh. 
Sometimes  his  lustreless  eye  would  follow  the  children 


56  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

around  the  room.  He  seldom  left  his  bed.  He  grew 
worse  and  worse.  The  neighbors  would  come  in  to  en- 
quire after  Tilden.  Tilderi's  time  had  come.  Tom  Brown 
put  his  hand  over  his  heart  and  it  was  'still.  There  was 
no  pulsation.  The  children  came  around  and  called  him, 
"Tilden,  Tilden,  poor  Tilden !"  but  he  gave  no  sign  of 
life.  Tom  and  his  family  then  gave  way  to  grief.  Tom 
sent  off  for  John  Gatling,  one  of  the  neighbors.  He  came 
quickly.  Tom  met  John  at  the  door  and  told  him  Tilden 
was  dead.  John  came  in,  felt  of  him  and  said  there  was 
no  sign  of  life.  After  examining  him  over  again,  John 
said  to  Tom  (they  were  brother  hunters),  "Tom,  if  he  is 
dead,  you  get  your  gun  and  click  the  trigger  by  his  ear,  and 
he  will  give  sign  of  life  if  he  is  not  dead."  Tom  took  a 
gun  from  a  corner  where  he  had  several  and  clicked  the 
trigger  over  his  ear.  He  gave  no  sign.  And  then  there 
was  one  universal  outburst  of  grief.  John  turned  to  Tom 
and  said,  "Tom,  that  wer'nt  the  gun  you  use  when  you 
hunt  with  Tilden."  Tom  then  went  back  and  brought  the 
gun  that  he  commonly  used,  and  stooping  down  over  Til- 
den he  cracked  the  trigger  near  his  ear.  The  dear  old  fellow 
slowly  opened  his  dying  eyes,  feebly  wagged  his  tail,  then 
closed  them  forever — Tilden  was  dead. 


TEACH    AND    POTTER,  CAROLINA'S   OUTLAWS.         57 


TEACH   AND  POTTER,  CAROLINA'S  OUTLAWS. 

'•  'T  is  true,  't  is  pity, 
And  pity  't  is.  't  is  true." 

— Macbeth. 

NORTH  CAROLINA  is  not  a  soil  that  produces  great  and 
good  men  alone.  It  produces  good  and  bad  men,  but  the 
good  and  patriotic  men  greatly  predominate.  We  should 
be  false  to  our  record  if  we  chronicled  the  good  alone. 
We  are  all  attracted  by  good  men  and  are  led  by  their  deeds- 
in  the  paths  of  virtue.  We  are  warned  by  bad  men  and 
generally  taught  by  their  lives  that  the  paths  of  lawless 
vice  lead  to  dishonored  graves.  So,  on  the  other  hand, 
the  paths  of  virtue  lead  to  honor  in  life,  peace  and  happi- 
ness at  its  close  and  perpetual  blessedness  in  that  eternal 
life  to  which  we  are  all  journeying. 

The  saying  of  the  great  poet  that  the  evil  which  men 
do  lives  after  them  and  the  good  is  oft  interred  with  them, 
is  a  poetic  fiction  with  a  modicum  of  truth.  The  good  and 
the  evil  of  our  lives  live  after  us  and  serve  as  beacons  and 
buoys  to  warn  and  to  guide  us.  Xo  word  or  action  dies 
in  our  lives,  but  lives  on  as  still  or  clamorous  monitors  in 
the  pilgrimage  of  life. 

In  turning  over  in  our  memory,  in  searching  for  the  list 
of  conspicuous  bad  men  who  have  left  their  baleful  influ- 
ence upon  our  annals,  we  are  gratified  that  we  are  unable 
to  find  but  two  men  to  hold  up  as  beacons  of  warning  to 
our  countrymen.  We  do  not  regret  their  living,  although 
the  world  is  not  the  better  for  their  having  lived  in  it. 
They  are  the  dark  foils  that  make  virtue  more  lustrous, 
and  make  us  more  grateful  for  our  heritage  of  the  great 
and  good  names  that  shine  on  every  page  of  our  blessed 
history. 

Who  were  these  two  men,  so  conspicuous  by  their  rarity  ? 
One  lived  in  colonial  days  and  was  a  sea  pirate.  His  life 
was  that  of  a  desperado  and  his  death  was  by  violence  in 
mortal  combat,  an  outlaw,  a  refugee  from  justice,  an 


58  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

Ishmaelite  indeed,  who  carried  his  life  in  his  hand,  which 
was  lifted  against  mankind.  His  name  was  Edward 
Teach  (Blackboard),  and  he  made  the  waters  of  Albe- 
marle  Sound  and  its  tributaries  his  rendezvous  and  place 
of  retreat  for  security  from  his  enemies.  Teach  lived  in 
the  early  years  of  the  eighteenth  century.  He  was  not  a 
native  of  North  Carolina.  He  was  born  in  Bristol,  Eng- 
land. He  entered  on  his  career  of  piracy  in  1716.  Up  to 
that  time  for  several  years  he  had  been  a  private  sailor. 
He  was  daring  and  adventurous,  and  a  famous  pirate, 
named  Kornagold,  put  him  in  command  of  a  sloop  which 
he  had  captured.  Teach  sailed  for  the  American  coast, 
making  many  captures  on  the  way,  which  he  plundered. 
From  that  time  he  continued  his  piratical  outrages  along 
the  Carolina,  Virginia  and  Atlantic  coast,  and  made  the 
Carolina  sounds  his  home. 

Governor  Spotswood,  of  Virginia,  offered  a  reward  of 
one  hundred  pounds  for  his  capture. 

At  length,  hearing  that  he  was  in  Pamlico  Sound, 
near  Ocracoke  Inlet,  on  the  17th  of  November,  Governor 
Spotswood  dispatched  Lieutenant  Maynard,  of  the  British 
Navy,  from  James  River  in  Virginia  to  search  for  Teach 
and  capture  him.  On  the  31st  he  came  in  sight  of  the 
pirate  at  Ocracoke  Inlet.  Blackbeard  had  heard  of  his 
coming,  and  when  he  saw  him  he  prepared  for  a  desperate 
resistance.  Teach  had  seventeen  desperate  men  under 
him.  Maynard  had  more  than  thirty.  The  engagement 
was  desperate.  By  a  feint,  Maynard's  men  were  sent  be- 
low and  Teach  was  made  to  believe  that  Maynard  declined 
the  fight  and  was  about  to  surrender.  When  Teach  saw 
this,  he  sailed  to  Maynard's  ship  to  take  possession  of  her. 
As  soon  as  he  boarded,  Maynard  ordered  his  men  on 
deck,  and  then  it  was  a  hand-to-hand  fight,  Maynard  and 
Teach  heading  it  with  sabres.  Teach  was  mortally 
wounded  after  he  had  wounded  thirty  of  Maynard's  men. 
After  Maynard  had  captured  Teach's  sloop,  he  cut  off  his 
head,  fastened  it  to  his  bowsprit  and  sailed  up  to  Bath 
in  Beaufort  County,  then  Hyde. 


TEACH    AND    POTTER,    CAROLINA'S   OUTLAWS.         59 

The  other  "black  sheep"  in  North  Carolina's  history  was 
Bob  Potter,  who  lived  a  century  after  Teach.  He  was  a 
native  of  Virginia,  and  we  first  hear  of  him  in  the  town  of 
Halifax,  where  he  became  a  notorious,  brawling  politician, 
antagonized  J.  R.  J.  Daniel,  and  became  notorious  for  his 
street  brawls  and  personal  conflicts  with  that  celebrated 
public  man.  They  both  had  a  following  of  friends.  Pot- 
ter was  an  attractive  and  brave  man,  and  seemed  to  have 
the  public  sympathy.  He  was  a  ready  writer,  and  in 
the  printed  controversies  Potter's  vocabulary  was  scathing 
and  terrible.  Bob  brought  over  from  Virginia  his  brother 
Hal,  who  was  armed  and  not  averse  to  a  fight  of  any  kind. 
In  a  street  fight  in  Halifax,  in  which  weapons  were  used  on 
both  sides,  Hal  came  out  of  it  with  fifteen  buckshot  in 
his  groin. 

This  warfare  was  kept  up  for  several  years,  when 
Daniel  went  to  Louisiana1  and  Potter  settled  in  Granville 
County.  Potter  was  a  lawyer  by  profession,  and  a  mag- 
netic, ambitious  and  aggressive  man.  He  had  not  been 
long  in  Granville  before  he  was  nominated  for  Congress 
and  elected.  Meanwhile,  he  had  married  a  girl  in  Gran- 
ville of  prominent  family  connection.  He  went  to  Congress, 
where  he  passed  a  gay  and  voluptuous  life  and  represented 
himself  to  be  an  unmarried  man ;  and  Governor  Branch, 
who  was  his  colleague  in  Congress,  warned  his  young  fe- 
male friends  against  him.  He  returned  home  after  the 
adjournment  of  Congress,  brought  criminal  charges  against 
his  wife  that  were  without  foundation,  committed  the 
crime  of  mayhem  upon  two  innocent  men,  who  were  his 
wife's  relatives,  and  one  of  them  an  old  man.  Notwith- 
standing this  flagrant  outrage,  he  announced  himself  a 
candidate  for  the  Legislature  from  the  county  of  Gran- 
ville and  was  elected.  He  went  to  Raleigh  at  the  meeting 
of  the  Legislature,  and  was  expelled  from  that  body  for 
the  infamous  crime  of  mayhem  which  he  had  committed 
in  Granville. 

Soon  after  his  expulsion  from  the  Legislature,  he  left  for 
Texas,  then  a  Mexican  province.  We  have  heard  that  he 


60  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

went  on  foot,  armed  with  a  shot-gun  and  followed  by  two 
bloodhounds. 

In  Texas,  where  he  settled,  he  led  a  vagrant  and  law- 
less life,  and  was  soon  involved  in  brawls  with  his  neigh- 
bors. In  one  of  these  he  was  overpowered  by  his  foes 
and  sought  safety  in  flight,  after  killing  one  of  his  antag- 
onists. He  wTas  hotly  and  closely  pursued,  and  to  escape 
from  his  pursuers  he  plunged  into  a  lake  and  dived  under 
the  water  for  safety.  When  he  came  to  the  surface  he  was 
fired  upon  from  the  shore  and  his  head  riddled  with  bul- 
lets. Teach  and  Potter  both  came  to  violent  deaths — fit 
termination  of  lives  of  crime  and  violence. 


OLD-TIME   HAZING   AT   THE   UNIVERSITY.  6 1 

OLD-TIME  HAZING  AT  THE   UNIVERSITY. 
O,  the  boys ;  the  boys. 

HAZING  is  a  college  custom  as  old  as  the  hills.  Seventy 
years  ago  it  was  known  as  the  ceremony  of  "Admission  to 
the  Ugly  Club.''  In  its  origin  it  was  a  useful  institution. 
It  broke  up  the  mauvais  honte  (so-called)  which  beset  a 
green  student,  and  made  him  miserable  under  the  appre- 
hension of  doing  something  or  doing  the  impolite  thing. 
In  process  of  time  it  developed  into  the  modern  "hazing," 
which  has  grown  into  such  proportions  as  to  call  forth  the 
discipline  of  the  colleges,  and  has  sometimes  found  its 
way  into  our  law  courts.  Please  tell  us  what  "hazing" 
means,  and  what  is  its  derivation  > 

The  Ugly  Club  origin  of  hazing  was  a  social  institution 
of  the  University  of  North  Carolina  seventy  years  ago. 
I ;  was  presided  over  by  the  acknowledged  ugliest  member 
of  the  club,  and  was  intended  as  a  benevolent  institution, 
to  bo  used  as  an  antidote  for  the  disease  of  nostalgia 
(home-sickness),  which  was  epidemic  with  freshmen.  It 
counteracted  the  malady  of  longing  for  home,  and  intro- 
duced the  new-comer  to  a  home  and  familiar  circle. 

In  1831,  we  entered  the  Freshman  class  of  the  Univer- 
sity, and  for  several  days  we  suffered  intolerably  from  the 
homing  feeling.  One  day,  Lumbus  Battle,  the  only  student 
and  classmate  with  whom  we  had  formed  an  intimate 
friendship,  asked  us  if  we  had  joined  the  "Ugly  Club."  We 
told  him  no,  and  that  we  had  never  heard  of  it.  He  then  per- 
suaded us  to  join,  and  told  us  that  he  had  joined,  and  that 
Mr.  John  Gray  Bynum,  who  was  President  of  the  Club, 
had  told  him  to  invite  us  to  join  them.  We  told  Lumbus 
wo  would  join  if  he  would  go  with  us.  The  night  of  the 
meeting  came.  The  session  was  held  in  a  room  in  the 
upper  story  of  the  South  Building.  At  the  appointed 
time,  Lumbus  and  I  went  to  the  hall.  Lumbus  gave 
four  raps  at  the  outer  door,  and  suggested  that  we  needn't 
bo  sea  rod.  The  door  was  opened  by  the  ugliest  specimen  of 


62  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

a  man  we  had  ever  seen,  and  dressed  in  the  most  uncouth 
style.  He  had  on  his  head  something  like  the  old  dunce 
cap  of  the  public  schools,  except  that  it  had  horns  to  it. 
His  cheeks  and  eyebrows  were  blacked  with  grease  and 
soot.  His  sleeves  were  rolled  up,  and  he  looked  like  our 
ideal  of  the  mythological  Vulcan.  He  looked  at  us  with 
one  eye  closed,  and  invited  us  in  with  his  best  bow.  We 
went  in,  the  President  preceding  us.  Lumbus  joined  the 
brethren  and  put  on  his  cap.  President  Bynum  then 
marched  around  the  room,  mumbling  some  cabalistic 
words,  while  we  stood  alone  in  the  middle  of  the  hall,  feel- 
ing very  much  like  a  fool. 

Bynum  came  to  us  after  his  mummery  and,  in  solemn 
manner,  asked  us  if  we  could  dance.  We  told  him,  "Not 
much/7  He  said,  "How  much  ?"  We  told  him  timidly 
that  we  had  danced  some  at  "corn  shuckings,"  and  some 
little  at  girls'  parties.  He  then  pranced  around  us  with 
a  sort  of  "limber  leg  double  shuffle,"  and  asked  us  to  join 
him.  He  then  hummed  "Sugar  in  the  Gourd,"  and  kept 
time  to  it  with  his  feet.  He  then  asked  if  we  could  sing. 
We  said  "!N"ot  much."  He  asked  again,  "How  much  ?" 
and  we  told  him  we  could  sing  "Up  in  the  Morning  Early" 
and  "Three  Blind  Mice."  But  he  couldn't  get  us  to 
sing.  Like  poor  Macbeth,  the  song  "stuck  in  our  throat." 

Bynum  then  asked  us,  "Could  we  wrastle?"  We  told 
him,  "Yes,  some."  No  sooner  was  the  word  out  of  our 
throat  than  he  pitched  in  and  grappled  us.  The  old 
war-horse  was  now  roused  in  us.  We  caught  him  round 
the  middle,  and  we  had  it  round  and  round  the  room,  the 
members  of  the  club  shouting,  slapping  hands  and  whoop- 
ing, "Creecy,  Creecy !"  Some  one  cried  out,  "Tie  old 
snake"  on  him.  Old  Gray  Bynum  took  the  hint,  tied  the 
"old  snake"  lock  round  our  legs,  and  before  we  could  say 
"Jack  Robinson,"  we  were  flat  of  our  back  on  the  floor, 
and  "Old  Gray"  on  top  of  us.  "Gray"  had  us  down,  but 
his  tongue  was  out.  After  a  few  long  breaths,  "Gray," 
still  holding  us  down,  said,  "What  mout  be  your  name  ?" 
"Dick,"  said  we.  He  then  asked  us  our  other  name. 


OLD-TIME    HAZING   AT   THE    UNIVERSITY.  63 

"Creecy,"  said  we.  "Well,  it's  a  funny  name;  you  are 
greasy  by  name,  and  I'll  make  you  greasy  by  favor,"  and, 
calling  for  a  pot  of  grease  and  soot,  he  dabbed  our  cheeks 
with  it.  We  then  got  up,  and  he  introduced  us  to  each 
one  of  the  brethren,  and  then  we  were  at  home  and  all  of 
the  sheepishness  was  gone  out  of  us. 

Then  Gray  took  the  President's  chair,  made  an  address 
full  of  his  old-time  wit  and  humor,  and  then  pronounced 
the  meeting  adjourned.  He  was  our  friend  ever  after, 
until  his  graduation,  and  when  that  famous  controversy 
arose  between  the  Di.  and  Phi.  Societies,  which  for  awhile 
threatened  conflict,  we  were  a  Bynum  man. 

Lumbus  and  I  slept  under  the  same  blanket  that  night. 
He  was  very  happy,  and  during  the  night  he  said:  "Dick, 
if  old  Gray  hadn't  tied  'old  snake'  on  you,  you'd  have  had 
him  down  in  a  few  more  rounds.  You  had  his  tongue  out 
when  he  throwed  you." 


\\ 

Xi 


64  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

THE  OLD-TIME  QUAKER. 

How  dost  thou  do  ? 

THE  Quaker  element  in  our  population  was  prominent 
in  the  early  settlement  of  Eastern  Carolina,  in  the  Colonial 
period,  in  the  period  of  the  Revolution,  and  subsequent 
thereto  up  to  the  half  of  the  nineteenth  century,  when 
negro  slavery  had  much  to  do  with  the  large  Quaker  emi- 
gration from  North  Carolina  to  Indiana  and  Illinois, 
and  the  gregarious  instinct  of  sectarian  brotherhood  swelled 
the  tide  of  migration  to  other  States,  until  a  genuine  old- 
time  Quaker  is  now  almost  an  ethnological  curiosity.  Bel- 
videre,  in  Perquimans  County,  and  some  scattered  settle- 
ments in  Northampton  County,  alone  remain  as  represent- 
atives of  a  sturdy  race  that  made  their  distinctive  impress 
upon  the  character  of  Eastern  Carolina,  and  even  their 
peculiar  dress  and  phraseology  have  almost  disappeared. 

A  sturdy  and  a  stalwart  race  were  the  old-time  Quakers  ; 
conservative,  plain,  direct  in  purpose  as  in  language, 
averse  to  worldly  vanities,  poised,  prudent,  undaunted  be- 
fore authority,  shrewd  in  business  transactions,  thrifty  in 
business,  in  all  things  a  Quaker.  But  the  old-time  Quaker 
has  passed  away,  and  the  aold  broad-brim"  and  the  old 
"Quaker  coat77  are  not  seen  on  our  streets  and  highways. 
But  their  memory  is  green. 

The  last  old-time  Quaker  in  Elizabeth  City  was  friend 
Miles  White,  a  wealthy  old  citizen,  who,  at  his  death  in 
Baltimore  about  the  year  1855,  was  worth  over  a  million  of 
dollars. 

Miles  White  started  in  life  as  a  poor  one-horse  farmer 
in  the  county  of  Perquimans.  In  early  life  he  sometimes 
brought  a  load  of  pine  wood  or  some  product  to  town.  He 
was  industrious.  W.  C.  Brooks,  of  Gates  County,  father 
of  George  W.  Brooks,  took  notice  of  his  industry  and  per- 
severing ways,  and  proposed  to  him  a  mercantile  co-part- 
nership. It  was  accepted  by  White,  and  they  opened  a 
dry  goods  store  on  "Road  street,  not  far  from  the  old  Tis- 


THE   OLD-TIME   Q\  AKER.  65 

dale  Building,  midway  between  the  Relf  House  (now 
Albemarle)  and  Leather  Hill.  They  conducted  the  busi- 
ness for  several  years  and  prospered  until  the  business 
was  dissolved  by  mutual  consent. 

Having  accumulated  money  by  merchandise,  White 
next  entered  upon  a  general  business,  which  he  conducted 
with  such  success  that  he  became  a  wealthy  man  of  the 
town.  Everything  that  he  touched  prospered.  But  his 
success  never  altered  the  simplicity  and  geniality  of  his 
social  life.  His  temper  and  disposition  was  sunny  and 
unruffled,  and  he  became  very  popular  with  all  classes 
save  those  he  had  driven  a  hard  bargain  with.  Persons 
sometimes  complained  of  his  shrewd  ways  of  business,  but 
his  honesty  was  never  impeached  but  once,  when  he  had 
overreached  a  man  of  the  town,  who  was  also  noted  for 
his  shrewd  business  ways,  and  was  also  noted  for  his  iras- 
cibility. The  excited  townsman  grew  hissing  hot  in  the 
collar,  and  began  to  denounce  Miles  as  a  wretch,  a  dishon- 
est man,  who  loved  money  better  than  his  God.  He  abused 
Miles  in  the  most  opprobrious  terms  of  the  language. 
Miles  kept  his  temper  and  his  tongue,  and  looked  steadily 
into  the  eyes  of  the  irate  banker,  and  when  he  stopped  his 
abuse  from  pure  exhaustion,  he  replied  with  the  utmost 
composure — "John,  ditto."  The  scene  was  so  ludicrous, 
and  the  reply  of  the  old  Quaker  was  so  terse  and  compre- 
hensive, and  the  contrast  so  great,  that  both  of  them  broke 
into  laughter  and  parted  good  friends. 

Miles  White  never  laughed,  but  often  smiled,  chuckled 
at  any  amusing  incident,  and  enjoyed  a  modest  joke  won- 
derfully. In  the  latter  years  of  his  residence  in  the  town, 
he  divided  his  time  between  Elizabeth  City  and  Baltimore, 
and  was  principally  engaged  in  purchasing  crops  of  corn. 
During  this  time  our  acquaintance  was  somewhat  inti- 
mate, and  we  sometimes  joined  him  of  an  evening  in  rid- 
ing in  different  parts  of  the  county,  looking  after  his  pur- 
diMses  of  corn,  and  arranging  for  its  shipment  to  markets 
in  different  parts  of  the  country.  These  trips  were  very 
pleasant  to  us,  and  his  conversation  was  instructive  and 


66  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

entertaining.  On  one  of  these  occasions  he  amused  us 
with  an  account  of  a  business  transaction  he  had  with 
Mordecai  Morris,  a  brother  Quaker  of  the  straightest  sect. 
Mordecai  was  a  wealthy  man,  a  large  farmer,  shrewd  on 
a  bargain,  and  as  sharp  in  trade  as  Miles.  We  knew  that 
Miles  wanted  to  buy  Mordecai's  crop  of  corn  on  Dry 
Ridge.  He  had  made  him  what  he  thought  was  a  liberal 
offer  for  it.  Mordecai  stood  off  to  strain  Miles  up  to  a 
little  advance  on  his  offer.  He  had  often  complained  to 
us  of  the  dilatory  tactics  of  Mordecai.  On  a  Saturday 
evening,  he  told  us  that  he  was  going  down  to  spend  the 
Sabbath  with  Mordecai,  and  if  he  did 'not  take  his  offer 
for  his  corn  he  would  stop.  After  a  long  chaffer  over  the 
bargain  on  Saturday  night,  the  two  stiff  and  wealthy 
"broad-brims,"  went  to  meeting  on  Sabbath  day  at  the 
old  "meeting-house"  near  Simon's  Creek.  The  spirit 
didn't  move  much  that  day,  and  Mordecai  fell  into  a  com- 
fortable snooze,  In  the  sepulchral  silence  of  the  devo- 
tions, the  devil,  who  was  "walking  up  and  down  upon  the 
earth"  looking  for  a  job,  came  up  and  whispered  into 
Mordecai's  ear  as  he  slept,  and  the  thought  of  the  corn 
trade  being  uppermost,  he  burst  out,  as  he  slept,  and  said : 
"Miles,  if  thou  wilt  furnish  the  bags  and  bag  strings,  the 
corn  is  thine."  This  incident  amused  Miles  greatly,  but 
he  never  jested  about  sacred  things. 


THOMAS   HART    BENTON.  67 

THOMAS  HART  BENTON. 
Render  unto  Csesar  the  things  that  are  Caesar's. 

No  NATIVE-BORN  Carolinian  has  been  truer  to  his  nativ- 
ity than  the  illustrious  United  States  Senator  from  Mis- 
souri. His  steps  had  wandered  far  from  home,  but  his 
heart  always  turned  in  affection  to  the  "Haw  Fields"  of 
Orange  County,  North  Carolina.  He  loved  the  old  State 
with  filial  devotion,  always  treasured  her  sacred  history 
with  veneration,  and  her  sons  with  honor,  and  emptied  the 
Cornucopia  of  his  own  well-earned  laurels  into  her  loving 
lap. 

Nat  Macon  was  the  Gamaliel  of  his  politics.  He  learned 
his  lessons  of  sturdy  patriotism  at  his  feet,  not  only  for  his 
personal  admiration  of  tiie  virtues  of  that  firm  "old  Ro- 
man," but  because  he  was  a  son  and  representative  of 
"his  native  State." 

To  him  belongs  the  honor  of  first  giving  to  North  Caro- 
lina's Guilford  Battle  Ground  the  just  honor  of  being  the 
great  pivotal  battle  of  the  Revolution,  and,  the  distinction 
of  making  Yorktown  the  close  of  the  struggle  for  indepen- 
dence. He  first  presented  to  our  eyes  the  first  true  story  of 
Guilford,  and  made  us  prouder  of  the  heroes  who  obeyed 
the  orders  of  their  commander  and  fell  back  in  order,  after 
accomplishing  his  foreformed  purpose. 

The  history  of  Thomas  Hart  Benton  is  full  of  the  les- 
sons of  energy,  industry,  will  force  and  heroic  determi- 
nation. 

In  the  contests  of  life  which  were  assigned  to  him,  his 
back  was  never  turned  on  friend  or  foe,  and  all  who  met 
him  as  friend  or  foeman,  recognized  a  great  gladiator  in 
the  arena.  He  lived  in  heroic  times.  There  were  "giants 
in  those  days,"  and  he  was  one  of  them.  He  was  a  truly 
sreat  man ;  crroat  in  heroic  manhood,  in  sturdv  friendship, 
in  profound  acquirements,  in  personal  bravery,  in  moral 
hravory,  and  in  the  magnificent  achievements  of  genius 
and  industry. 


68  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

In  the  many  heroic  events  of  the  last  century  of  our 
civil  life,  there  is  none  more  so  than  the  history  of  the 
''Expunging  .Resolutions,"  of  which  Benton  was  the  au- 
thor. "Solitary  and  alone/7  against  opposition  such  as 
was  never  encountered  before,  he  snatched  victory  from 
defeat,  humbled  the  Senate  of  the  United  States,  tri- 
umphed over  Calhoun,  Clay,  Webster,  Mangum  and  Wat- 
kins  Leigh,  and  made  the  Secretary,  in  the  presence  of  the 
Senate,  draw  black  lines  around  and  across  their  resolu- 
tions of  condemnation  of  President  Andrew  Jackson  for 
his  removal  of  the  government  deposits  from  the  United 
States  Bank  four  years  before.  There  has  been  no  in- 
stance of  such  will  force  and  determination  in  the  parlia- 
mentary history  of  the  world. 

Thomas  H.  Benton  was  born  in  Orange  County,  North 
Carolina,  near  Hillsboro,  and  emigrated  to  Tennessee  in 
the  last  years  of  the  last  century.  He  practised  law  in 
that  State  for  several  years,  and  emigrated  .thence  to  the 
State  of  Missouri,  where  he  achieved  his  distinction  and 
represented  Missouri  in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States 
for  thirty  consecutive  years,  and  while  in  the  Senate  was 
without  a  superior. 


MECKLENBURG  DECLARATION.          69 


MECKLENBURG    DECLARATION  OF   INDE- 
PENDENCE. 

THERE  are  few  events  in  our  National  history  more 
conclusively  established  by  circumstantial  testimony 
than  the  Declaration  of  Independence  by  the  patriots 
oi  the  county  of  Mecklenburg,  on  the  20th  of 
May,  1775.  There  is  no  event  in  the  history  of 
North  Carolina  of  which  her  people  are  prouder, 
or  which  they  cherish  with  more  filial  loyalty.  There 
is  no  event  in  her  history  of  which  they  are  more 
jealous,  or  that  they  defend  with  more  persistence  or  more 
stubbornness.  It  is  not  the  earliest  germ-seed  of  the 
Revolution.  John  Ashe,  in  the  Stamp  Party  of  Wilming- 
ton, defied  the  authority  of  Great  Britain  ten  years  before 
with  his  drawn  sword.  John  Harvey  defied  its  authority 
before  the  Mecklenburg  Declaration  by  assuming  the  au- 
thority of  the  Governor  and  convoking  a  Revolutionary 
Assembly.  These  acts  were  heroic.  But  Mecklenburg's 
Declaration  is  more  conspicuous  because  it  has  been  more 
assailed  and  more  defended.  But  no  one  now  denies  its 
authenticity,  but  an  idiot  or  an  enemy. 

It  was  a  great  event  in  our  history  American  blood 
had  been  shed  at  Lexington  and  Concord.  There  was 
a  meeting  of  citizens  of  a  mountain  county  in  North  Caro- 
lina, principally  peopled  by  that  heroic  Scotch-Irish  race 
that  has  always  been  foremost  in  the  struggles  of  history, 
in  the  hazards  of  war  and  the  enterprises  of  peace — a  race 
that  has  never  turned  its  back  on  friend  or  foe,  and  that 
now,  in  time  of  peace,  is  doing  more  for  North  Carolina 
than  any  other  in  the  State.  These  hardy  mountaineers 
mot  in  the  county-town  of  Charlotte  on  the  19th  day  of 
M  -i  v,  to  consider  the  situation  of  affairs  between  the  Amer- 
ican colonies  and  Great  Britain.  The  convention  was  ad- 
dressed by  the  leaders  of  the  county,  men  of  intelligence 
and  influence.  The  fire  of  liberty  spread  like  a  contagion. 
Finally,  it  adjourned  to  meet  again  the  next  day. 

On  the  next  day,  the  ever-memorable  20th  of  May,  the 
spirit  of  independence  burst  into  flame.  The  patriot  lead- 


yo  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES.  * 

ers  and  a  large  concourse  of  people  assembled,  passed  pa- 
triotic resolutions  of  independence  of  Great  Britain,  recog- 
nized the  authority  of  Congress,  organized  an  independent 
civil  and  military  government,  and  pledged  their  lives, 
fortunes  and  sacred  honor  to  maintain  it,  and  sent  the 
resolutions  to  the  American  Congress  at  Philadelphia  by 
a  special  messenger. 

All  this  was  done  more  than  a  year  before  the  National 
Declaration  of  Independence,  before  the  public  senti- 
ment of  the  country  was  ripe  for  independence,  before 
any  State  had  suggested  independence,  and  at  a  time  when 
the  author  of  the  National  Declaration'  of  Independence 
was  not  in  favor  of  secession  from  Great  Britain. 

DECLARATION     OF     INDEPENDENCE     BY     THE     CITIZENS     OF 
MECKLENBURG  COUNTY,  NORTH  CAROLINA, 


MAY    20,    1775. 

"In  conformity  to  an  order  issued  by  the  Colonel  of 
Mecklenburg  County,  in  North  Carolina,  a  Convention, 
vested  with  unlimited  powers,  met  at  Charlotte,  in  said 
county,  on  the  19th  day  of  May,  1775,  when  Abraham 
Alexander  was  chosen  Chairman,  and  John  McKnitt  Alex- 
ander Secretary.  After  a  free  and  full  discussion  of  the 
object  of  the  Convention,  it  was  unanimously 

"Resolved  I.  That  whosoever,  directly  or  indirectly, 
abetted,  or  in  any  way,  form  or  manner,  countenanced  the 
unchartered  and  dangerous  invasion  of  our  rights,  as 
claimed  by  Great  Britain,  is  an  enemy  to  this  country,  to 
America,  and  to  the  inherent  and  inalienable  rights  of 
man. 

"IT.  Resolved,  That  we,  the  citizens  of  Mecklenburg 
County,  do  hereby  dissolve  the  political  bands  which  have 
connected  us  to  the  mother  country,  and  hereby  absolve 
ourselves  from  all  allegiance  to  the  British  crown,  and  ab- 
jure all  political  connection,  contract  or  association  with 
that  nation  who  have  wantonly  trampled  on  our  rights 
and  liberties,  and  inhumanly  shed  the  innocent  blood  of 
American  patriots  at  Lexington. 


MECKLENBURG  DECLARATION. 


71 


"III.  Resolved,  That  we  do  hereby  declare  ourselves  a 
free  and  independent  people,  are,  and  of  right  ought  to  be, 
a  sovereign  and  self-governing  association,  under  the  con- 
trol of  no  power  other  than  that  of  our  God,  and  the  gen- 
eral government  of  Congress ;  to  the  maintenance  of  which 
independence  we  solemnly  pledge  to  each  other  our  mutual 
co-operation,  our  lives,  our  fortunes,  and  our  most  sacred 
honor. 

"Abraham  Alexander,  Chairman;  J.  M.  Alexander, 
Secretary;  Adam  Alexander,  Hezekiah  Alexander,  Ezra 
Alexander,  Charles  Alexander,  Waitetill  Avery,  Ephraim 
Brevard,  Hezekiah  J.  Balch,  Richard  Barry,  John  David- 
son, William  Davidson,  Henry  Downs,  John  Flenniken, 
John  Ford,  William  Graham,  James  Harris,  Robert  Ir- 
win,  William  Kennon,  Matthew  McClure,  Neill  Morri- 
son, Samuel  Martin,  Duncan  Ochletree,  John  Phifer, 
Thomas  Polk,  Ezekiel •  Polk,  Benjamin  Patton,  John 
Quearv,  David  Reese,  Zacheus  Wilson,  Sr.,  William  Wil- 
son." "  1 


72  GRANDFATHER  S   TALES. 

THE  STAMP  PARTY  IN   WILMINGTON. 
No  braver  soldier  ever  yet  drew  sword. 

THROUGH  the  whole  history  of  North  Carolina,  the 
Cape  Fear  section  has  been  the  fruitful  nursery  of  heroes, 
patriots  and  statesmen.  Wilmington  is  its  business  cen- 
tre, and  Wilmington  has  always  been  the  home  of  men 
who  were  foremost  in  the  race  of  distinction.  On  the 
roll  of  her  great  names  the  Ashes,  the  Waddells,  the 
Swanns,  the  Moores,  the  Hoopers,  the  Howes,  and  the 
Hills  are  familiar  to  all  who  feel  a  just  pride  in  the  good 
name  of  North  Carolina. 

Among  all  these  illustrious  names  there  is  no  one  more 
distinguished  than  Gen.  John  Ashe.  He  was  a  son  of 
John  Baptista  Ashe,  the  founder  of  this  distinguished 
family  in  North  Carolina.  He  had,  for  some  years,  been 
a  leading  member  of  the  Colonial  Assembly,  and  in  1762 
was  chosen  Speaker  of  that  body.  He  soon  became  the 
most  prominent  man  in  the  colony,  and,  by  his  position, 
was  the  most  influential. 

He  was  entitled  to  the  unique  distinction  of  having  been 
the  harbinger  of  the  Revolution  in  North  Carolina,  and 
probably  in  America,  the  first  to  resist  the  authority  of 
Great  Britain,  the  first  to  defy  it  by  an  overt  act,  the  first 
to  triumph  over  its  officers,  and  the  first  to  compel  royal 
officials  to  sign  an  act  of  disobedience  to  the  sovereign 
authority  of  England's  King. 

This  bold  act  was  done  in  open  day,  in  the  presence  of 
the  Governor  backed  with  a  royal  force,  and  has  no  parallel 
in  the  history  of  those  trying  times  of  the  Stamp  Act  trou- 
bles. It  was  a  controversy  over  the  old  question  of  tax- 
ation without  representation  that  roused  the  resistance  of 
our  Revolutionary  fathers  ten  years  later,  and  the  matter 
of  contention  was  the  same — the  imposition  of  a  tax  stamp 
on  paper. 

The  heroic  act  was  thus : 

Houston  was  the  Stamp-Master  of  the  British  govern- 


THE   STAMP   PARTY   IN    WILMINGTON.  75 

uieiit,  an  official  representative  of  the  government  who 
was  to  have  the  custody  of  the  stamped  paper  used  for 
official  purposes,  and  distribute  it  for  use  among  the  peo- 
ple. There  was  a  tax  on  the  paper,  not  onerous,  but  offen- 
sive to  the  American  people  because  it  was  a  tax  that  they 
had  no  voice  in  its  enactment. 

A  large  quantity  of  this  paper  was  expected  every  day 
to  arrive  and  be  handed  over  to  the  Stamp  Master.  About 
the  middle  of  November,  1765,  Houston  came  to  Wil- 
mington, and  Colonel  Ashe  led  the  people  with  drums 
beating  and  colors  flying  to  his  lodgings,  and  took  him 
out  and  carried  him  to  the  court-house,  where  he  was 
forced  to  sign  a  resignation  of  his  office. 

A  few  days  later  the  stamps  arrived  in  the  sloop-of-war 
"Diligence,"  but  as  there  was  now  no  Stamp  Master  to  re- 
ceive them,  they  remained  boxed  up  on  board  that  ship. 

Two  jrionths  later,  two  merchant  vessels  coming  into 
port,  were  seized  by  the  sloop-of-war  Viper,  commanded 
by  Captain  Lobb,  because  their  papers  were  not  stamped, 
and  they  were  held  by  the  war  vessels  off  old  Brunswick, 
where  Governor  Try  on  had  his  residence,  and  where  the 
ships  of  war  lay  at  anchor.  Colonel  Ashe,  as  Speaker  of 
the  House  of  Commons,  had  warned  Governor  Tryon  that 
any  attempt  to  enforce  the  Stamp  Act  would  be  resisted 
to  death.  The  release  of  the  captured  vessels  was  at  once 
demanded;  Governor  Tryon,  after  some  delay,  refused  to 
release  them.  In  the  meantime,  Ashe  and  his  associates 
had  perfected  their  plans.  He  called  out  the  militia  of 
New  Hanover,  and,  being  joined  by  Colonel  Waddell  and 
the  Brunswick  militia,  and  detachments  from  Bladen  and 
Dnplin,  he  marched  to  Old  Brunswick,  determined  to 
put  an  end  to  that  act  of  Parliament  in  this  Province. 
Arriving  at  the  Governor's  mansion  on  the  evening  of 
the  19th  of  February,  they  informed  Governor  Tryon 
that  they  had  come  to  redress  their  srrievances,  and  de- 
manded to  see  Captain  Lobb.  But  Captain  Lobb  was 
not  there.  A  detachment  then  pushed  on  to  Fort  John- 
ston, at  Smithville,  to  seize  that  fort  and  get  possession 


76  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

of  the  cannon ;  but  Lobb  was  able  to  spike  the  guns  before 
the  fort  was  taken.  At  noon  the  next  day  the  Governor 
end  Captain  Lobb,  and  the  King's  officers,  held  a  council 
on  board  the  ship-of-war  "Diligence,"  and  Captain  Lobb 
declared  his  determination  never  to  surrender  the  captured 
merchant  ships.  Two  hours  later,  Ashe  and  a  band  of  Pa- 
triots boarded  the  "Diligence/'  and  there,  under  the  royal 
flag,  surrounded  by  the  King's  forces,  they  demanded 
that  Captain  Lobb  should  give  up  the  vessels  and  abandon 
his  purpose  to  enforce  the  Stamp  Act. 

Their  blood  was  up,  and  they  were  resolved  to  fight  to 
the  death.  Their  undaunted  spirit  brooked  no  opposition. 
Lobb  was  compelled  to  yield.  Within  three  hours  after 
the  agreement  was  made  in  the  council  of  King's  officers 
tc  hold  the  captured  vessels,  the  British  commander  sur- 
rendered them  up  into  the  hands  of  the  Patriot  leaders. 

But  that  was  not  enough. 

Ashe  and  the  people  had  come  with  arms  in  their  hands 
to  put  an  end  to  the  Stamp  Act,  and  the  work  was  not  yet 
finished.  They  now  proposed  to  make  the  crown  officers 
swear  never  to  issue  any  stamp  paper  in  this  colony.  The 
first  officer  they  demanded  was  Colonel  Pennington,  His 
Majesty's  Comptroller  of  Customs.  Pennington  was  then 
in  the  Governor's  mansion,  and  Try  on  sought  to  protect 
him.  But  the  mansion  was  thoroughly  surrounded  by 
armed  and  determined  men,  and  every  avenue  of  escape 
was  cut  off.  Pennington  resigned  his  office  to  the  Gov- 
ernor, and  surrendered  himself,  and  took  the  oath  the 
Patriots  dictated.  And  so  also,  Mr.  Day,  the  Collector  of 
the  Port,  and  all  the  county  clerks  and  other  crown  officers 
were  required  to  swear  never  to  issue  or  to  use  any  stamp 
paper  in  the  Province. 

This  heroic  act  was  revolutionary  seed  that  sprouted 
ten  years  later,  and  for  seven  years  produced  through  blood 
and  suffering  the  glorious  fruit  of  independence. 


JIMMY   SUTTON    AND   ADMIRAL   COCKBURN.  77 

JIMMY  SUTTON   AND  ADMIRAL  COCKBURN. 
Jirumie,  Oh  !  Jimmie  was  a  Rider 

JOHN  GILPIN'S  ride  is  known  through  the  length  and 
breadth  of  the  land,  but  Jimmy  Button's  ride  is  unknown. 
The  difference  is  that  Gilpin  is  embalmed  in  English  verse, 
and  Sutton's  rests  on  uncertain  traditions ;  but  the  one  is 
historic  and  the  other  poetic  fancy. 

Jimmy  Sutton  lived  at  Sandy  Point,  on  Albemarle 
Sound.  It  is  a  long  projection  into  the  Sound,  and  com- 
mands a  view  to  the  east  as  far  as  the  human  eye  can 
reach. 

In  August,  1814,  Admiral  Cockburn,  of  the  British 
Navy,  came  into  the  inlet  at  Cape  Henry,  attacked  the  town 
of  Hampton,  and  corrynitted  outrages  upon  its  defence- 
less population  that  were  without  parallel  in  the  annals 
of  civilized  warfare. 

After  desolating  Hampton,  he  gave  out  word  that  he 
would  next  attack  the  sound  and  river  towns  of  North 
Carolina.  This  was  a  feint  to  conceal  his  purpose  of 
attacking  Washington  City,  which  he  afterwards  did,  and 
in  the  war  then  raging  between  the  United  States  and 
Great  Britain  he  added  another  wreath  to  his  crown  of 
infamy. 

The  report,  which  reached  Edenton  and  New  Bern, 
that  he  intended  to  make  these  towns  his  objective  points 
in  the  raging  fight,  together  with  his  outrages  at  Hamp- 
ton, created  a  panic  in  these  towns  that  was  without  prece- 
dent. The  first  Mrs.  Gaston,  of  New  Bern,  died  from 
fright  under  the  apprehension  of  his  coming.  The  pop- 
ulation of  Edenton  was  wrought  up  to  a  pitch  of  fear 
and  excitement  unknown  to  them  before. 

Col.  Duncan  McDonald,  a  young  officer  but  a  born  mili- 
tary man,  called  out  the  county  militia,  drilled  them  for 
the  fray,  mounted  eight  smooth-bore  cannon,  and  pre- 
pared to  resist  the  British  fleet  when  it  came  into  Edenton 
Bay. 


78  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

Jimmy  Sutton,  a  squatty-built  farmer  who  lived  at 
Sandy  Point,  on  Albemarle  Sound,  was  directed  by  Col- 
onel McDonald  to  station  himself  on  the  point  of  projection 
of  Sandy  Point,  and  to  be  on  watch  day  and  night,  and  if 
ir  the  distance  on  Albemarle  Sound  he  should  descry  the 
approach  of  Admiral  Cockburn's  British  fleet,  he  should 
immediately  report  the  fact  at  headquarters  at  Edenton, 
at  post-haste. 

Jimmy  was  a  kindly  but  eccentric  man,  but  firm,  loyal 
and  true  to  his  country.  Colonel  McDonald  could  not 
have  selected  a  better  man  for  the  work  assigned  him.  For 
two  days  he  watched  at  the  Point  for  the  enemy,  with  his 
fleetest  liorse  saddled  and  bridled  in  the  woods  near  by. 

On  the  morning  of  the  third  day  he  descried  a  small 
object  that  loomed  in  the  distance.  It  was  not  larger  than 
your  hand,  but  it  grew  bigger,  as  did  Jimmy's  eyes.  At 
length  the  masts  developed,  and  then  a  fleet  of  vessels. 
Jimmy  took  one  last  look  at  them,  and  then,  murmuring 
"Gunboats !  British  gunboats,  by  George !"  he  jumped 
through  brake  and  briar  for  his  horse,  jumped  in  his  sad- 
dle, yelling  as  he  went,  "The  Admiral !  the  Admiral !" 
He  put  his  horse  on  the  run,  yelling  as  he  sped,  "The 
Admiral!  the  Admiral!"  It  was  a  windy  day,  and  as  he 
hastened  for  Edenton  his  hat  blew  off.  But  on  he  went, 
not  caring  for  his  hat.  Some  of  his  neighbors  ran  out  to 
see  what  was  to  pay.  To  his  shouting,  "The  Admiral!" 
he  was  asked,  "What  Admiral?"  He  gave  but  one  an- 
SAver,  "The  Admiral !" 

When  he  reached  town  after  his  Gilpin  ride,  the  air  was 
vocal  with  his  shouts  and  the  people  were  in  great  alarm. 
Colonel  McDonald  was  mounting  his  cannon,  and  the  wo- 
men of  the,  town  were  making  their  escape  in  every  way. 

While  this  scene  of  turmoil  prevailed,  six  small  oyster 
boats  came  up  to  the  wharf,  laden  with  the  luscious  bi- 
valves, and  quiet  was  restored.  About  the  same  time 
Admiral  Cockhurn  was  burning  Washington  and  Presi- 
dent Madison  was  making  his  escape  from  the  President's 
house;  and  Jimmy  Sutton's  flight  from  six  little  oyster 
boats  haunted  him  through  life. 


BATTLE    OF   GUILFORD   COURT    HOUSE.  79 

BATTLE  OF  GUILFORD  COURT  HOUSE. 
Oh  !  History  !  what  falsehoods  are  written  in  thy  name. 


sometimes  repeats  itself,  but  oftener  corrects 
itself.  Napoleon  once  said  that  history  was  a  fable,  and 
we  sometimes  have  thought  that  he  who  made  more  his- 
tory than  any  other  life,  spoke  truly.  It  really  is  melan- 
choly to  tli  ink  of  the  fables  of  history,  the  inaccuracies  of 
history,  the  omissions  of  history,  and  its  misrepresenta- 
tions. North  Carolina  has  been  a  great  sufferer  in  that 
way:  probably  the  greatest  of  all  the  original  thirteen. 
Why  this  is  so,  we  know  not;  but  we  have  a  theory  that 
may,  perhaps,  account  for  it. 

The  history  factories  of  our  country  have  been  Boston 
and  Richmond.  Boston/s  market  for  its  historical  wares 
has  been  the  North,  and  Richmond's  market  has  been  the 
South.  Boston  has  never  cared  anything  about  us,  any 
way  :  probably  all  the  greatest  of  the  original  thirteen. 
had  a  swollen  head  and  a  morbid  State  pride  that  caused 
Virginia  to  think  that  history  and  its  heroes  belonged 
to  them,  and  North  Carolina,  being  their  next-door  neigh- 
bor, was  absorbed,  and  all  its  historic  laurels  torn  from  her 
modest  brow  and  wreathed  around  Virginia's  avaricious 
crown. 

Time  bringeth  all  things  right,  but  often  wears  leaden 
shoes,  and  is  rather  tardy  in  putting  in  its  work.  Time 
took  a  hundred  years  and  more  to  write  aright  the 
history  of  the  Regulators  of  Alamance  and  for  that 
long  time  it  allowed  the  history  factories  to  brand  the 
heroes  of  that  earliest  bugle  note  of  the  Revolution  as 
lawless  brigands,  instead  of  heralding  them  truly  as  pa- 
triots, heroes  and  martyrs  to  the  sacred  cause  of  liberty. 

So  with  the  Mecklenburg  Declaration  of  Independence. 
li  was  a  hundred  years  before  that  immortal  event  in 
the  history  of  North  Carolina  and  the  whole  country  was 
given  its  just  place  in  the  annals  of  this  country.  And  to 
this  day  it  is  sometimes  spoken  of  as  apocryphal. 


8o  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

And  now  we  are  engaged  in  a  manly  struggle  to  main- 
tain, from  contemporary  authority  and  proofs  that  are 
incontestable,  that  the  Battle  of  Guilford  Court  House, 
on  North  Carolina's  sacred  soil,  rendered  the  British  sur- 
render at  Yorktown  a  "foregone  conclusion,"  that  the 
retreat  of  the  North  Carolina  troops,  after  two  steady 
rifle  volleys,  was  a  strategic  movement,  ordered  by  General 
Greene  and  carried  out  in  good  order  and  without  con- 
fusion. 

The  Battle  of  Guilford  Court  House  was  the  beginning 
of  the  end  of  the  Revolutionary  War.  It  was  the  pivotal 
battle  of  the  war.  It  was  the  Gettysburg  of  the  fight. 
The  enemy  fell  into  our  victorious  arms  at  Yorktown,  with 
heart  and  backbone  broken  by  their  stunning  blow  at 
Guilford. 

The  action  of  the  North  Carolina  troops  at  Guilford 
was  a  military  strategy  that  Morgan  had  successfully  used 
at  the  Battle  of  Cowpens,  and  had  recommended  to  General 
Greene  to  be  used  at  Guilford.  The  troops  were  militia, 
and  they  were  ordered  by  General  Greene  to  deliver  a 
rifle  volley  into  the  ranks  of  the  British  when  they  made 
a  bayonet  charge  and  got  within  rifle  range.  They  obeyed 
orders.  They  delivered  two  volleys,  mortally  wounding 
Colonel  Webster,  of  the  British  Army,  who  was  in  com- 
mand of  the  charging  party,  and  mowing  down  his  men 
like  autumn  leaves.  They  then  retreated  in  good  order, 
as  ordered  by  General  Greene. 

Colonel  Tarleton,  of  the  British  Army,  who  was  in 
the  road  to  the  rear  of  Webster's  Brigade,  and  witnessed 
the  charge,  says  of  it:  "The  order  and  coolness  of  that 
part  of  Webster's  brigade  which  advanced  across  the  open 
ground  exposed  to  the  enemy's  fire,  can  not  be  sufficiently 
extolled.  The  militia  allowed  the  front  line  to  approach 
within  150  yards  before  they  gave  their  fire." 

The  Battle  of  Guilford  Court  House  was  fought  on 
Thursday,  March  15,  1781,  between  the  American  forces 
under  Major-General  Greene  and  the  English  forces  un- 
der Lord  Cornwallis,  and  in  its  character  and  consequen- 
ces was  second  to  no  battle  of  the  Revolution. 


BATTLE    OF   GUILFORD   COURT    HOUSE.  8l 

Lee  and  Campbell,  who  participated  in  the  fight  on  the 
American  side,  and  have  written  about  it,  have  written 
disparagingly  of  the  North  Carolina  troops,  who  were 
in  the  front  line  of  General  Greene's  army.  But  they  were 
Virginians,  and  their  testimony  has  been,  criticised  and 
contradicted  by  so  many  witnesses  that  truth  has  over- 
taken it  after  the  lapse  of  many  years. 

On  Saturday  before  the  battle,  Greene  writes  to  Gov- 
ernor Jefferson,  of  Virginia,  explaining  his  plan  of  bat- 
tle, and  his  expectancy  of  General  Caswell  of  the  North 
Carolina  militia  and  Colonel  Campbell  with  the  Virginia 
Ttegulars ;  and  upon  their  arrival  he  expected  to  "dispose 
of  the  army  in  such  a  manner  as,  at  least,  to  encumber 
the  enemy  with  a  number  of  wounded  men."  In  General 
Greene's  correspondence  he  refers  to  General  Pickens7 
command  of  North  Carolinians  as  troops  "on  whose  ser- 
vices he  could  depend  on  from  day  to  day.77  Johnson, 
who  adopts  the  Virginia  disparagement  of  the  North  Car- 
olina militia,  in  speaking  of  the  battle  of  Hobkirk's  Hill, 
which  took  place  on  the  25th  day  of  April,  more  than  a 
month  after  the  Battle  of  Guilford,  says:  "The  only  mili- 
tia force  then  with  the  army  consisted  of  254  North  Caro- 
linians; 150  of  these,  under  Colonel  Read,  had  joined 
Greene  soon  after  he  crossed  the  Dan,  and  had  faithfully 
adhered  to  him  from  that  time.77  These  men  were  in  the 
Battle  of  Guilford. 

There  were  1,640  North  Carolina  troops  in  the  Battle 
of  Guilford.  These  were  militia  and  volunteers  whose 
names  are  not  mentioned  on  the  muster  rolls.  They  obeyed 
the  orders  of  General  Greene,  discharged  two  volleys  at 
the  bayonet  charge  of  the  English,  doing  great  slaughter, 
and  then  retreated  as  General  Greene  had  ordered.  These 
facts  are  woll  established,  while  it  is  as  well  established 
that  a  militia  company  commanded  by  Lee  left  the  field 
without  orders  from  General  Greene.  (See  Schenck7& 
North  Carolina,  1T«0-S1.) 


82  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


JOHN  STANLY. 

An  eye  like  Mars, 

To  threaten  and  command. 

FEW  MEN  have  lived  in  North  Carolina  of  more  con- 
spicuous natural  endowments  than  John  Stanly,  of  New 
Bern,  who  was  disabled  for  many  years  by  a  stroke  of 
paralysis  while  speaking  on  the  floor  of  the  House  of 
Commons  of  North  Carolina.  That  was  in  1825,  and  he 
died  in  1834. 

In  the  obituary  notice  of  Stanly,  written  by  his  great 
rival  at  the  bar  in  North  Carolina,  William  Gaston,  gives 
a  graphic  account  of  the  sad  close  of  the  career  of  one  of 
the  most  gifted  men  that  North  Carolina  has  ever  pro- 
duced. He  was  for  many  years  a  member  of  the  Legis- 
lature of  North  Carolina,  and  by  his  aggressive  and  out- 
spoken vehemence  and  sarcasm,  he  held  the  rod  over  that 
body. 

Mr.  Stanly  was  especially  an  Eastern  man,  and  he  held 
a  rod  pickled  in  his  sarcasm  over  the  Western  North  Car- 
clina  delegation  in  the  Legislature  of  North  Carolina. 
He  kept  them  all  completely  "hacked,"  until  Bartlett 
Yancey,  of  Caswell  County,  a  fearless,  fiery  and  impetuous 
speaker,  came  on  the  stage  as  a  Representative  in  the  Leg- 
islature. 

As  a  lawyer,  Mr.  Stanly  held  the  highest  rank  in  the 
State,  but  he  was  more  noted  as  -an  advocate  before  the 
jury  than  as  a  jurist,  and  his  forte  of  sarcasm  and  invec- 
tive gave  him  great  power. 

The  misfortune  of  his  life  was  his  killing  Governor 
Speight  in  a  duel.  The  dispute  between  Speight  and 
Stanly  arose  from  some  political  controversy,  and  Stanly 
was  challenged  by  Governor  Speight  to  mortal  combat. 
The  challenge  was  accepted  and  the  arrangements  made 
for  the  meeting.  The  hostile  meeting  took  place  on  the 
suburbs  of  the  town  of  New  Bern.  They  stood  back  to 
back  at  ten  paces  apart,  and  wheeled  and  fired  when  the 


JOHN    STANLY.  83 

word  was  given.  The  town  turned  out  en  masse.  Several 
ineffectual  shots  were  exchanged.  There  were  propositions 
ma<lc  for  an  amicable  settlement,  but  Speight  was  obsti- 
nate, and  refused  all  propositions  for  settlement  At 
length  Stanly  aimed  the  fatal  shot  and  Speight  fell,  mor- 
tally wounded.  Speight  was  an  old  and  distinguished 
man,  and  had  befriended  Stanly  in  his  early  manhood. 
Jlis  death  was  a. blow  to  the  happiness  of  Stanly,  from 
which  he  never  entirely  recovered. 

M  r.  Stanly  was  a  man  of  great  resource  in  emergency. 
An  incident  of  his  readiness  and  adroitness  in  legislation 
is  given  by  his  contemporaries  in  the  Legislature.  Gen- 
eral Lafayette  visited  the  United  States  from  France  in 
1825.  He  was  the  guest  of  the  country,  and  the  honors 
that  were  paid  to  him  were  an  outpouring  of  gratitude 
for  his  services  in  achieving  our  independence,  lie  came 
to  Xorth  Carolina  during  his  journey,  and  the  leading 
members  of  the  Legislature  were  anxious  for  an  appro- 
priation from  the  State  Treasury  to  defray  the  expenses 
of  his  visit  to  Xorth  Carolina.  There  was  some  opposi- 
tion to  the  appropriation  from  some  parsimonious  mem- 
bers. The  friends  of  the  bill  thought  it  would  pass  if  the 
ayes  and  nays  were  not  called.  The  vote  on  the  final 
passage  was  at  hand.  The  stillness  of  death  pervaded  the 
Assembly.  Stanly  was  in  the  chair  as  Speaker.  When 
about  to  put  the  question,  a  western  member  in  homespun 
ii-arb  arose  and  said :  "Mr.  Speaker,  I  call  for  the  ayes  and 
Bays."  The  house  was  dumb,  and  an  awful  stillness  pre- 
vailed. Stanly  called  Iredell,  of  Edenton,  to  the  chair, 
and  ri.sinu,  cast  his  "cerulean"  eye  over  the  Assembly, 
and  said:  "Mr.  Speaker,  I  thank  the  gentleman  for  his 
motion.  I,  too,  desire  to  put  every  member  on  record, 
so  that  if  any  one  votes  against  this  bill  he  may  be  gibbeted 
I'iirh  up  on  the  pillory  of  infamy."  Every  man  voted 
aye. 


84  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


GASTON  AT  THE  UNIVERSITY  COMMENCE- 
MENT OF  1832. 

A  proud  day. 

THE  address  of  William  Gaston  at  the  University  of 
North  Carolina  at  the  Commencement  of  1832  was  an 
event  in  the  literary  history  of  North  Carolina.  Gaston's 
Address  at  the  University,  Choate's  Eulogy  on  Daniel 
Webster  at  Dartmouth  College,  and  Grady's  Address  at 
Boston,  were  the  three  greatest  rostrum  addresses  of  the 
nineteenth  century,  so  far  as  we  have  heard  or  read.  Gas- 
ton's  address  was  the  grandest  of  them  all,  and  no  other 
of  them  would  have  won  from  their  audience  a  rapture 
that  rose  above  demonstrative  applause,  as  Gaston's  did. 

When  Gaston  came  to  the  University  to  deliver  the  an- 
nual address  before  the  Dialectic  and  Philanthropic  Socie- 
ties, by  invitation  of  the  latter  Society,  of  which  he  was 
an  honorary  member,  he  was  on  the  high  middle  ground 
of  life,  being  53  years  old.  He  had  won  fame  in  Con- 
gress arid  in  the  General  Assembly  of  North  Carolina.  He 
had  a  State  and  a  National  reputation,  and  when  the  Phi.'s 
were  enabled  by  the  abrogation  of  an  agreement  which  had 
existed  to  invite  only  regular  members  of  the  two  Socie- 
ties to  deliver  the  annual  address,  it  was  regarded  as  a 
great  triumph  over  the  Di.'s,  as  it  was  thought  that  they 
did  not  have  an  equal  to  Gaston  on  their  roll  of  member- 
ship, and  he  was  already  regarded  as  the  Commencement 
orator. 

The  appointment  of  Gaston  drew  a  large  concourse  of 
visitors  from  all  parts  of  the  State ;  the  largest,  it  was  said, 
that  ever  attended  a  Commencement  before,  especially 
of  the  prominent  and  distinguished  men  of  the  State. 
Gaston  came  during  the  Commencement  exercises,  a  day 
or  two  before  the  delivery  of  the  address.  He  was  the 
guest  of  Dr.  Caldwell,  the  President  of  the  University. 
He  became  at  once  the  cynosure  of  all  eyes.  His  man- 
ner was  grave,  courteous  and  unostentatious.  He  was 


G ASTON    AT   THE    UNIVERSITY   COMMENCEMENT.      85 

aliable  with  dignity  and  companionable  without  familiar- 
ity, lie  visited  the  libraries  occasionally,  and  sometimes 
walked  with  .Dr.  Caldwell  to  his  astronomical  observatory, 
and  we  once  saw  him  with  the  austere  and  dignified  Pres- 
ident, who  was  a  man  somewhat  in  stature  like  him 
who  climbed  the  sycamore  tree  to  see  Christ,  and  Gaston 
of  large  and  imposing  person,  and  the  thought  flitted 
through  our  mind  that  "Bolus"  looked  smaller  by  the 
comparison. 

As  the  big  day  of  the  .Commencement  came,  expecta- 
tion grew  as  the  time  approached.  The  June  day  was 
auspicious.  The  students  were  arrayed  in  their  best. 
All  the  arrangements  had  been  made.  Tom  Ashe,  of 
Wilmington,  had  been  selected  by  the  Phi.  Society  to  walk 
rn  one  side  of  Gaston  in  the  procession  to  Person  Hall, 
where  he  was  to  speak,  and  Thomas  L.  Clingman,  selected 
by  the  Di.  Society,  on  the  other.  With  some  difficulty, 
we  procured  a  scholar's  black  silk  gown  large  enough  for 
Gaston  to  wear. 

The  procession  was  formed  at  the  old  South  Building. 
The  Richmond  Cornet  Band  was  in  front,  Next  came 
Gaston,  the  orator,  costumed  in  a  black  silk  gown.  On 
one  side  of  him  was  Tom  Ashe,  with  the  trained  step  of 
an  English  grenadier,  with  the  proud  and  grand  visage  that 
bespoke  his  lineage.  On  the  other  side  was  Clino-man, 
awkward  and  gawky  as  a  plowman's  prentice  boy,  but  with 
a  brain  that  Webster  and  Cuvier  might  have  envied.  Next 
to  them  came  the  Trustees  of  the  University,  marching 
two  and  two.  Next  the  Faculty,  then  the  student  body, 
and  last  the  concourse  of  visitors. 

The  procession  started  from  the  "Old  South,"  right- 
flanked  to  the  "Old  East,"  and,  when  opposite  Person 
Hall,  wheeled  on  the  left  and  faced  for  the  Hall,  the  band, 
meanwhile.  Mowing  their  spirit-stirring  airs  "like  mad." 

The  head  of  the  column  reached  the  threshhold  of 
ihe  old  chapel,  which,  in  a  thousand  years,  wrill  be  a 
-lirinp  for  literary  pilgrims.  There  was  then  and  there 
n  momentary  pause.  Then  Gaston,  with  the  bearing  of 


86  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

old  John  Kemble,  entered  on  the  left  and  right  of  him 
Ashe  and  Clingman;  Ashe  with  a  military  bearing 
that  would  have  done  honor  to  the  hero  of  a  thousand 
battles,  Clingman  throwing  out  his  legs  right  and  left  like 
he  was  stiff-kneed,  and  looking  for  all  the  world  like  he 
thought  all  the  crowd  was  looking  at  him,  and  that  Gas- 
ton  and  Ashe  were  mere  small  kites  dangling  _at  his  tail, 
to  give  pomp  to  his  pageantry.  But  "old  Billy"  had  the 
brains. 

They  marched  to  the  rostrum,  and  as  they  were  taking 
their  seats  near  a  little  table  on  which  Gaston  was  about 
placing  Ids  manuscript,  Clingman,  in  moving  his  awkward 
legs,  knocked  the  table  over,  and  but  for  A  she's  readiness, 
the  table,  and  perhaps  Gaston  himself,  would  have  gone 
sprawling  on  the  floor  below. 

The  Trustees  followed,  and  with  the  Faculty,  headed  by 
uold  Bolus/'  took  their  seats  on  the  rostrum  like  ''potent, 
grave  and  reverend  seignors."  The  Seniors  of  the  grad- 
uating class  followed  and  took  their  accustomed  seats,  that 
they  were  about  to  vacate  forever  for  the  rosy  drama  of 
life.  Then  the  Juniors,  then  the  Sophs.,  and  lastly  the 
Fresh.,  proudest  of  them  all,  because  they  were  incipient 
Sophs,  and  had  thrown  off  the  Freshman's  toga. 

The  Fresh,  had  hardly  taken  their  accustomed  seats  in 
the  chapel  when  the  crowd  of  visitors  broke  ranks,  as  if 
in.  panic,  all  pressing  forward  in  eager  haste  to  get  seats 
in  the  chapel.  It  was  a  madding  crowd,  heaving  and 
setting  in  a  frantic  mass  that  beggars  description.  Bea- 
vers were  lifted  above  the  crowd  of  surging  humanity. 
Beavers  were  crushed.  Men  were  lifted  from  their  feet 
and  borne  along  by  the  struggling  and  compact  mass.  They 
were  an  hour  pushing,  tussling,  heaving  and  setting  to  get 
in  and  get  seats.  Tears  of  perspiration  ran  down  their 
ragged  cheeks,  and  passion  was  painted  on  every  linea- 
ment of  that  heaving  mob.  While  they  were  heaving 
near  the  door,  we,  a  Freshman,  full  of  admiration  for 
greatness,  crept  up  to  a  standing  place  in  the  aisle  near  the 
speaker,  and  waited  there,  standing  within  ten  feet  of 
him. 


G ASTON    AT   THE    UNIVERSITY   COMMENCEMENT.      87 

At  length  the  mob  subsided  and  got  standing  places, 
iind  there  was  a  great  calm.  The  hall  was  jammed  and 
mm  i  ti  !<•<!.  Jack  Ha  ugh  ton,  of  Tyrrell,  a  Senior  friend, 
and  we,  stood  near  together,  arid  gave  the  speech  a  rapt 
attention  during  the  hour  and  twenty  minutes  of  its  de- 
livery. 

It  was  a  grand  effort,  the  grandest  that  Gaston  ever 
m,id< -,  and  should  now  be  in  the  hands  of  every  school 
IMA  and  every  man  of  generous  aspirations  in  the  State. 
Jt  should  go  down  the  generations  as  the  companion  piece 
<ii'  his  State  anthem — "The  Old  Xorth  State."  It  should 
be  taught  in  our  schools.  It  should  be  committed  to  mem- 
cry  in  classes.  It  should  be  declaimed  on  our  school 
bikinis.  It  should  be  adopted  as  a  classic  in  our  lessons  of 
elocution.  It  would  make  us  better  boys,  better  men,  bet- 
ter scholars,  more  accomplished  gentlemen. 


GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 
THE  LAST  OF  THE  ROMANS. 

The  Grand  Old  Man. 


MR.  JuKFEKsoy  said  of  Nathaniel  Macon  that  he  was 
the  last  of  the  Romans.  John  Randolph  said  in  his  will, 
he  was  the  wisest  man  he  had  ever  known.  Mr.  Benton 
speaks  of  him,  in  his  "Thirty  Years  in  the  Senate,"  as  his 
counsellor  and  friend  in  public  life.  Mr.  Macon  has 
passed  into  history  as  one  of  the  purest  and  most  incorrup- 
tible statesmen  that  has  ever  been  on  the  stage  of  public 
life  in  these  United  States.  He  was  a  type  of  the  old 
North  Carolina  character  in  the  earlier  and  better  days  of 
the  State.  He  was  plain,  straightforward  and  had  great 
simplicity  of  character.  His  simplicity  amounted  to  ec- 
centricity. He  was  morally  and  physically  courageous. 
He  drew  his  knife  to  defend  Mr.  Randolph  from  personal 
assault  in  a  theatre  in  Philadelphia.  Against  the  unani- 
mous sentiment  of  Congress  and  the  people,  he  refused  to 
vote  for  an  appropriation  in  Congress  to  pay  the  traveling 
expenses  of  General  Lafayette,  when  he  visited  this  coun- 
try in  1826  as  the  guest  of  the  Nation.  He  was  simple 
in  his  manners,  ways,  conversation  and  deportment.  He 
wished  his  family  and  grandchildren  to  call  him  "Mee- 
kins," insisting  that  Macon  was  called  Meekins  by  the 
old  people,  and  they  called  him  so  until  one  of  his  devil 
boys,  Bob,  said  to  him  at  his  table,  "Grandpa  Meekins, 
will  you  have  some  of  the  beekins"  (bacon).  He  was 
elected  to  the  General  Assembly  of  North  Carolina  from 
Warren  County  when  he  was  a  private  in  the  Revolution- 
ary Army,  with  a  musket  on  his  shoulder.  When  his  elec- 
tion was  announced  to  him,  he  told  the  messenger  that 
they  meant  somebody  else,  and  refused  the  office  until  its 
f-ceentanee  was  nrsyed  upon  him  by  Governor  Ca  swell. 
When  he  came  to  "Raleigh  in  1835  as  a  member  of  the  Con- 
vention, Miss  Betsy  Gaddis,  who  kept  a  boarding-house 
for  members  of  the  Assembly,  and  with  whom  he  had 
boarded  when  a  vonns:  man  in  the  Assembly,  called  to  see 


THE    LAST   OF   THE    ROMANS.  89 

him  and  embraced  him.  Mr.  Macon  did  not  know  her  at 
first,  but  after  awhile  he  said  that  he  remembered  her, 
that  "she  made  the  best  grog  he  ever  drank."  In  the 
Convention  of  1835,  in  a  lull  in  the  debate  on  the  Catholic 
disability  clause  of  the  old  Constitution,  he  called  Jo 
Khoullac,  of  Bertie,  to  the  chair,  and  addressed  the  body 
on  the  subject.  The  danger  of  the  Roman  Catholic  relig- 
ion to  our  secular  institutions  had  been  much  mentioned. 
Mr.  Macon  favored  the  removal  of  the  disability,  and 
among  other  things  said,  with  <>Teat  simplicity :  "Gentle- 
men say  they  fear  the  Catholics  will  swallow  up  our  lib- 
erties. There  is  some  danger  of  it,  but  there's  more  dan- 
ger of  a  mouse  swallowing  a  buffalo ;"  and  then  he  added, 
"I  am  not  a  member  of  any  church,  but  I  sometimes 
attend  the  Baptist  and  feel  pretty  sure  the  Baptists  would 
swallow  them  before  they  swallowed  our  liberties." 

We  are  probably  no&  the  only  living  North  Carolinian 
v.-ho  has  a  distinct  impression  of  Mr.  Macon's  personality, 
and  we  are  often  applied  to  for  information  about  him. 
We  saw  him  once  in  1831,  when  a  boy  of  fifteen,  in  War- 
renton  at  a  Fourth-of-Jul^  banquet.  Mr.  Macon  was 
then  about  eighty,  and  was  evidently  the  "big  dog  in  the 
pit"  and  a  favorite  of  the  people.  He  talked  familiarly 
with  anv  and  everybody.  He  had  on  a  chip  hat  and  home- 
spun plain  clothes,  with  a  long  vest  that  covered  his  abdo- 
men. They  called  him  "Uncle  Nat."  Some  one  asked 
him  where  he  got  his  hat  from.  He  replied  that  his  over- 
seer's wife  made  it  for  him. 

We  next  saw  him  for  ten  consecutive  days  as  presiding 
officer  of  the  Convention  of  1835.  He  was  then  about 
eighty-three,  armarently  vigorous  and  having  but  little 
the  marks  of  senility.  His  hair  was  short  cut,  not  fleecy 
white,  but  a  light  sandy  srrav.  He  was  apparently  about 
5  feet  8  inches  in  height;  weight  apparent! v  about  165; 
complexion  blonde,  inclined  to  rosy.  Dress,  a  brownv 
white  suit  of  linen  thread  of  apparently  domestic  manu- 
facture. His  eyes  were  gray,  inclined  to  blue.  He  was 
stocky  built;  his  eye  was  not  dim,  and  his  natural  force 


90  GRANDFATHER'S  TALKS. 

\\  as  Avell  preserved.  He  was  clean  shaved.  He  was  always 
in  his  place,  and  did  not  vacate  his  place  but  once  in  the 
ten  days  we  attended  the  Convention  in  the  Presbyterian 
church,  in  lialeigh,  and  that  was  during  the  debate  on  the 
thirty-second  article  of  the  old  Constitution,  above  re- 
ferred to. 


BETSY   DOWDY'S  RIDE. 

HISTORICAL  TRADITIONS  OF  THE   BATTLE   AT  .GREAT   BRIDGE. 

"  O.  woman,  timid  as  a  child. 
When  skies  are  bright,  serene  and  mild: 
Let  evil  come,  with  angry  brow, 
A  lion-hearted  hero  thou." 

THE  winter  of  1775  was  a  dark  and  gloomy  time  for 
the  Revolutionary  patriots  of  North  Carolina.  Governor 
Try  on  had  left  his  "palace"  in  New  Bern,  secretly  and 
hurriedly  had  taken  refuge  on  board  the  armed  schooner 
"Cruizer,"  and  was  stationed  at  the  mouth  of  the  Cape 
Fear  River,  issuing  orders,  fortifying  the  Tory  feeling 
in  the.  Colony,  and  inciting  the  slaves  to  servile  insurrec- 
tion. Lord  Dunmore  had  been  driven  from  Williams- 
burg,  Va.?  by  popular  indignation,  and  had  gone  down  to 
Norfolk  and  intrenched  himself  there.  From  this  posi- 
tion he  was  annoying  the  adjacent  sections  of  Virginia 
by  hostile  raids,  and  was  expected  to  make  incursions  into 
the  adjacent  sections  of  Carolina.  The  death  of  John 
Harvey,  of  Perquimans  County,  in  June,  1775,  had  cast 
a  gloom  over  the  Polony,  and  especially  over  the  northeast- 
ern counties,  where  his  patriotism  and -manly  virtues  were 
best  known.  But  the  fires  of  liberty  were  kept  burning. 
Dunmore,  with  a  few  regulars  who  had  accompanied  him 
in  his  flight  from  Williamsburg,  Va.,  had  ravaged  Suf- 
folk and  some  other  places,  and  wras  preparing:  to  extend 
his  ravages  to  the  Albemarle  section  of  Carolina.  Our 
leading  men  were  on  the  alert,  and  couriers  were  keeping 


BETSY    DOWDY'S    RIDE.  93 

them  in  close  touch.  John  Harvey,  of  Perquimans,  had 
joined  his  fathers  across  the  great  divide,  but  his  mantle 
bad  fallen  upon  his  kinsman  and  connection  by  marriage, 
Gen.  William  Skinner,  of  Yeopim  Creek,  and  he  was 
watching  every  movement  of  Dunmore.  Col.  Isaac  Greg- 
ory, of  Camden,  was  hurrying  with  a  small  militia  force 
to  join  our  Col.  Kobert  Howe  and  meet  the  enemy  at 
Great  Bridge,  in  Virginia.  Tom  Benbury,  of  Chowan, 
then  Speaker  of  the  lower  house  of  the  General  Assembly., 
had  left  his  luxurious  home  at  "Benbury  Hall,"  that 
overlooked  Albemarle  Sound,  and  was  hurrying  to  join  the 
troops  under  Howe,  with  commissary  stores.  Excitement 
ran  high,  and  the  expected  invasion  of  the  Albemarle 
counties,  and  the  probable  collision  at  Great  Bridge,  where 
Dunmore  was  intrenched,  was  the  universal  subject  of  con- 
versation. Howe  was  pushing  by  forced  marches  to  the  aid 
of  Virginia  with  some  regulars  and  the  Hertford  County 
militia  under  Colonel  Wynns  of  that  county.  Public 
expectation  was  on  tiptoe. 

Joe  Dowdy  and  old  man  Sammy  Jarvis  lived  on  the 
"banks"  opposite  to  Knott's  Island.  They  were  near 
neighbors  and  intimate  friends.  Early  in  December, 
1775,  Jarvis  went  over  to  the  "main"  to  hear  the  news 
of  Colonel  Howe's  movement  toward  Great  Bridge. 
When  he  returned  home,  late  in  the  evening,  he  was  greatly 
excited.  He  was  impressed  with  the  dangerous  situation 
of  the  dwellers  by  the  sea.  He  was  constantly  saying, 
"Dunmore  and  them  blamed  Britishers  will  come  down 
the  coast  from  Norfolk  and  steal  all  our  'banks'  stock 
and  burn  our  houses,  dine  'em."  After  a  short  rest  and 
a  hasty  bite  of  supper,  old  man  Jarvis  went  over  to 
Dowdy's  to  tell  him  the  news. 

Dowdy  was  a  wrecker  for  the  money  that  was  in  it,  and 
a  fisher  for  the  food  that  was  in  it.  He  was  always 
watching  the  sea.  He  was  a  devout  man,  always  prayed 
for  the  safetv  of  the  poor  sailor  who  was  exposed  to  the 
perils  of  the  deep,  and  always  closed  with  a  silent  suppli- 
cation that  if  there  should  be  a  wreck,  it  might  be  on  the 


94  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

Currituck  beach.  He  had  -nrosnered  in  the  business  of 
g  wrecker,  had  saved  many  lives  and  much  wreckage  and 
money.  His  visible  stx>re  of  chattels  was  beef  cattle  and 
banker  ponies.  He  herded  them  bv  the  hundreds. 

Uncle  Sammy  came  in  without  ceremony  and  was  cor- 
dially received.  "Well,  Uncle  Sammv,"  said  Dowdy, 
"what  are  the  news ;  tell  us  all."  "Well,  Joseph/7  said 
Jarvis,  "things  is  fogerty.  Gregory,  Colonel  Isaac,  is 
hurrying  up  his  Camden  milish  to  join  Howe,  and  Tom 
Benbury,  of  Chowan,  is  pushin"*  on  his  wagons  of  com- 
missaries. If  they  don't  reach  Great  Bridge  in  time  to 
bear  a  hand  in  the  fight,  they'll  hurry  on  to  N"orfolk  and 
drive  Dunmore  out  of  the  old  town.  But  if  Dunmore 
beats  our  folks  at  Great  Bridge  then  our  goose  is  cooked, 
and  our  property  is  all  gone,  all  the  gold  and  goods  saved 
in  our  Jiard  life-work,  and  all  our  cattle  and  marsh  po- 
nies.'7 "You  don't  tell  me,"  said  Dowdy.  "Yes,  it's  so, 
just  as  sure  as  'old  Tom.'  The  only  thing  that  can  save 
us  is  General  Skinner,  of  Perquimans,  and  the  militia, 
and  he  is  too  far  away,  We  can't  get  word  to  him  in 
time."  As  Jarvis  said  these  words  slowly  and  with  em- 
phasis, Betsy  Dowdy,  Joe  Dowdy's  young  and  pretty 
daughter,  who  was  present  with  the  family,  said :  "Uncle 
Sammy,  do  you  say  the  British  will  come  and  steal  all  our 
ponies  ?"  "Yes,"  said  he.  She  replied :  "I'd  knock  'em 
in  the  head  with  a  conch  shell  first."  Betsy  soon  left  the 
room.  She  went  to  the  herding  pen,  and  Black  Bess  was 
not  there.  She  then  went  to  the  marsh  and  called  aloud, 
"Bess  !  Bessie  !  Black  Beauty !"  The  pretty  pony  heard 
the  old  familiar  voice  and  came  to  the  call.  Betsy  took 
her  by  her  silken  mane,  led  her  to  the  shelter,  went  into  the 
house,  brought  out  a  blanket  and  also  a  small  pouch  of 
coin.  She  placed  the  blanket  on  the  round  back  of  the 
pony,  sprang  into  the  soft  seat  and  galloped  over  the  hills 
and  far  away  on  her  perilous  journey.  Down  the  beach 
she  went,  Black  Bess  doine  her  accustomed  work.  She 
reached  the  point  opposite  Church's  Island,  dashed  into 
the  shallow  ford  of  Currituck  Sound  and  reached  the 


BETSY    DOWDY'S    RIDE. 


95 


thore  of  the  island.  On  they  sped,  Black  Bess  gaining 
new  impulse  from  every  kind  and  gentle  worrl  of  Betsy. 
The  wonderful  endurance  of  the  banker  pony  nevei 
failed,  and  Black  Bess  needed  no  spur  but  the  cheer- 
ing word  of  her  rider.  "Bessie,  pretty  Bess;  my 
i»I;ick,  sleek  beauty,  the  British  thieves  shan't  have  you. 
\\V  are  going  after  General  Skinner  and  his  milish. 
They'll  beat  'em  off  of  you."  She  almost  sanor  to  the 
docile  pony  as  they  went  on  their  journey.  Through  the 
divide,  on  through  Camden,  the  twinkling  stars  her  only 
light,  over  Gid.  Lamb's  old  ferry,  into  Pasquotank  by  the 
k '.Yarrows"  (now  Elizabeth  City),  to  Hartsford,  up  the 
highlands  of  Perquimans,  on  to  Yeopim  Creek,  and  Gen- 
eral Skinner's  hospitable  home  was  reached.  The  morn- 
ing sun  was  gilding  the  tree  tops  when  she  entered  the 
gate.  She  was  hospitably  welcomed,  and  when  she  briefly 
told  the  story  of  her  coming,  cordial  kindness  followed. 
The  General's  daughters,  the  toast  of  the  Albemarle, 
Dolly,  Penelope  and  Lavinia,  made  her  at  home.  He 
listened  to  her  tale  of  danger  and  promised  assistance. 

Midday  came,  and  with  it  Betsy's  kind  farewell.  Fil- 
ial duty  bade  her,  and  she  hied  her  home.  As  she  neared 
her  sea-girt  shore  the  notes  of  victory  were  in  the  air. 
"They  are  beaten,  beaten,  beaten,  they  are  beaten  at  Great 
Bridge."  The  reports  materialized  as  she  went.  The 
battle  at  Great  Bridge  had  been  fought  and  won.  Howe 
had  assumed  command  of  the  Virginia  and  Carolina 
troops  upon  his  arrival,  and  was  in  hot  pursuit  of  Dun- 
more  toward  Norfolk,  \vhere,  after  a  short  resistance, 
Norfolk  was  evacuated  by  the  British  troops,  who  sought 
refuge  on  board  their  ships,  and,-  after  a  few  cannon 
shot  into  the  town,  they  departed  for  parts  unknown. 

Then,  and  long  after,  by  bivouac  and  camp  fire  and  in 
patriotic  homes  was  told  the  story  of  Betsy  Dowdy's 
Ride. 


96  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


WHAT    I    KNOW    ABOUT   SHOCCO   JONES. 

Great  wit  to  madness  nearly  is  allied, 
And  thin  partitions  do  the  bounds  divide. 

— Pope. 

•LEAVING  out  the  early  chronicle  of  Lawson,  we  have 
had  four  formal  histories  of  North  Carolina,  Lawson's  be- 
ing an  account  of  his  journey  ings  through  the  country, 
and  the  history  written  by  Joseph  Seawell  Jones,  of  War- 
ren. County,  North  Carolina,  being  called  " Jones'  De- 
fence of  North  Carolina."  "Shocco"  nvas  a  pseudonym, 
adopted  probably  because  he  was  born  near  Shocco  Springs, 
in  Warren  County,  N.  C.,  a  place  of  fashionable  resort 
then,  and  for  some  years  after.  Jones  was  a  young  man, 
full  ^of  enthusiasm,  with  an  intellect  of  brilliant  rather 
than  substantial  type,  with  eccentricity  on  the  border  line 
of  insanity,  sometimes  considered  the  genuine  article, 
and  with  a  love  of  the  sensational,  which  was  the  ruling 
passion  of  his  soul.  With  the  addition  of  that  passion  by 
which  Wolsey  and  the  aangels  fell,"  you  have  a  pen  pic- 
ture of  a  North  Carolinian  of  the  olden  times,  who  filled 
a  large  space  in  the  Dublic  eye  of  the  State,  and  whose 
sad  history  was  a  romance  and  a  failure. 

"Jones'  Defence  of  North  Carolina"  was  a  develop- 
ment of  the  period.  Dr.  Williamson's  History  of  North 
Carolina  had  been  a  failure  as  a  history  and  not  a  success 
as  a  medical  disquisition  upon  the  fevers  of  Eastern 
North  Carolina. 

Xavier  Martin's  History  succeeded  Williamson's,  and 
but  for  his  removal  from  the  State  in  the  first  years  of 
the  nineteenth  century,  and  the  subsequent  loss  of  his  his- 
torical materials,  his  history  would  have  supplied  a  great 
want. 

Then  came  a  long  interval*  of  quiescence  about  the  State 
history,  and  its  first  revival  was  by  the  publication  of 
some  accounts  referring  to  the  Mecklenburg  Declaration. 
It  attracted  considerable  attention  in  the  State,  and  the 
subject  was  given  a  new  interest  by  the  publication  of  a 
correspondence  between  ex-Presidents  John  Adams  and 


WHAT    I    KNOW    ABOUT   SHOCCO  JONES.  97 

Tin nnas  Jefferson,  in  which  correspondence  Mr.  Jefferson 
had  charged  that  the  Mecklenburg  Declaration  was  a 
Ira iid,  and  in  connection  with  it  had  made  some  unjust  im- 
putations upon  the  patriotism  and  loyalty  of  the  North 
Carolina  representatives  in  the  Congress  of  the  Revolu- 
tion. It  excited  a  -furor  in  the  State.  It  touched  our 
patriotism  at  the  nerve  centre.  In  this  tide  of  popular 
sentiment  of  Xorth  Carolina,  "Shocco"  Jones  was  thrown 
upon  the  top  of  the  wave  of  public  indignation.  He  was 
lV.>hionably  conneete<|,  an  habitue  of  the  elite  society  of 
Shoceo  Springs,  a  native  of  the  historic  county  of  War- 
ren,  vomit:,  ardent  and  aggressive,  and  with  an  individual- 
ity of  the  most  eccentric  character.  Yolnhle  to  a  degree, 
liis  progress  was  not  handicapped  by  modesty.  'Hie  man 
and  the  occasion  mot.  Jones  had  literary  instincts,  am- 
bition, culture  to  some  extent,  and  surely  Mr.  Jefferson 
Mas  an  antagonist  worthy  of  his  steel.  lie  had  the  social 
fcelinir  inordinately,  travelled  much,  kne\v  everybody,  and 
wished  to  know  everybody  else,  and  his  purpose  to  launch 
a  <haft  ai  the  memory  of  the  Sage  of  Monticello  became 
widely  known,  lie  became  a  pet  of  the  distinguished 
men  in  Xorth  Carolina,  and  men  wrhose  lineage  ran  back 
t<  the  foundation  of  the  State  were  fired  by  his  patriotic 
enthusiasm,  and  made  him  the  custodian  of  their  valuable 
famil\  records,  which  he  had  no  talent  for  preserving.  It 
wafl  proclaimed  that  he  would  prove  that  Mr.  Jefferson 
«?aa  i  plagiarist  and  that  be  had  the  resolutions  of  Meck- 
lenburti-  County  on  bis  table  when  he  wrote  the  National 
Declaration  of  Independence. 

"Jones'  Defeiici"  appeared,  and  it  added  fresh  fuel  to 
the  flame  of  patriotism.  It  did  not  give  entire  satisfaction 
to  the  mature  judgment  of  the  State.  Some  said  it  was 
inaccurate  in  statement,  and  others  that  it  was  too  "efflo- 
n  -cent  in  diction/'  but  it  fired  the  youthful  mind  and  was 
the  basis  of  many  a  colic-.  <--ay  and  declamation. 

i •  i •: i;s«  > \  A  i.   u  K«  •«  ELECTION s. 

About  the  time  that  the  "Defence"  made  its  appearance, 
or  while  in  the  throes  of  expectancy,  we  were  a  Freshman 

7 


98  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

or  Sophomore  at  the  University,  and  the  news  spread 
through  the  College  that  "Shocco"  Jones  was  in  the  vil- 
lage and  had  come  through  the  campus  riding  upon  the 
shoulders  of  a  stalwart  negro.  We  were  the  librarian  of 
the  Philanthropic  Society  and  on  duty  when  the  news 
reached  us.  Soon  after,  there  came  into  the  Library  Hall 
a  man,  swarthy,  tall,  long-haired,  wild-eyed,  who  intro- 
duced himself  as  Jo.  Seawell  Jones,  of  Shocco.  He  was 
attended  by  several  students.  The  conversation  was  led 
by  Mr.  Jones,  and  soon  it  fell  into  the  subject  of  his  "De- 
fence of  North  Carolina."  His  whole  soul  seemed  ab- 
sorbed in  the  subject.  He  was  unsparing  in  his  denuncia- 
tions of  Mr.  Jefferson.  He  stated  that  he  was  then  en- 
gaged in  preparing  a  "Picturesque  History  of  North  Caro- 
lina/' to  follow  the  "Defence  of  North  Carolina." 
We  suppose  now  that  he  meant  an  "Illustrated  His- 
tory of  North  Carolina,"  as  he  casually  referred  to 
some  of  the  historic  scenes  on  Roanoke  Island. 

We  neither  saw  nor  heard  any  more  of  "Shocco" 
Jones,  except  occasional  mention  of  his  being  in  Wash- 
ington, and  his  prominence  in  society  circles,  until  about 
1836.  Meanwhile  his  "Defence  of  North  Carolina"  had 
been  generally  read,  and  it  had  various  comments.  It 
became  a  pyre  at  which  the  torch  of  patriotism  was  fired. 

About  1836  it  was  reported  in  North  Carolina  that 
" Shocco"  Jones  had  been  involved  in  an  angry  personal 
dispute  in  Rhode  Island,  with  a  citizen  of  that  State,  about 
the  "Revolutionary  history  of  North  Carolina,  which  had 
resulted  in  a  challenge  from  Jones  to  the  field  of  honor. 
The  challenge  was  said  to  have  been  accepted,  and  the 
fight  was  to  come  off  at  an  early  date.  In  a  short  time 
came  a  proclamation  from  the  Governor  of  Rhode  Island, 
forbidding  the  violation  of  the  peace  within  the  bounds  of 
Rhode  Island.  A  counter  proclamation  was  promptly 
issued  by  Jones,  in  which  he  intimated  that  the  fight  could 
be  had  across  the  little  State  of  Rhode  Island  without  vio- 
la tin<r  its  laws.  Meanwhile  the  public  mind  of  North 
Carolina  was  on  the  qui  vive  of  expectancy. 


WHAT   I    KNOW   ABOUT   SHOCCO  JONES.  99 

While  the  public  interest  was  at  its  height,  a  Scotch 
schoolmaster  of  the  town  of  Edenton,  named  McLochlin, 
raw,  credulous,  sympathizing,  came  from  Norfolk,  Va., 
by  the  canal-stage  route  to  his  home  in  Edenton.  The 
stage  stopped  at  the  "Half-Way  House"  for  dinner.  While 
McLochlin  was  at  dinner,  there  came  from  an  inside  door 
a  man,  wild-looking,  haggard,  nervous,  abstracted,  and 
took  a  seat  beside  him.  He  confided  to  McLochlin's  cred- 
ulous ear  the  story  of  the  fatal  duel  he  had  just  fought  on 
the  Virginia  line,  where  he  had  killed  his  adversary,  and 
all  for  North  Carolina.  He  said  he  was  pursued  by  the 
officers  of  the  law,  showed  him  a  handkerchief  saturated 
with  blood  with  which  he  had  staunched  the  blood  of  his 
dying  adversary,  begged  his  help  in  this  time  of  his  great- 
est need,  asked  McLochlin  if  there  was  any  one  in  Edenton 
who  would  shelter  a  man  who  had  shed  the  blood  of  his 
enemy  for  North  Carolina.  Jones  took  his  new  friend  to 
a  private  room,  where  he  opened  the  tale  of  the  tragedy. 
After  long  deliberation,  the  name  of  Hugh  Collins  was 
suggested  as  the  friend  of  the  distressed.  Oh,  yes !  Jones 
knew  him  well.  Had  met  him  in  Washington  society 
circles.  The  very  man  ! 

It  was  arranged  that  McLochlin  should  go  on  to  Eden- 
ton, go  at  once  to  Hugh  Collins,  who  was  then  fishing  a 
large  seine  at  the  old  Sandy  Point  fishery,  and  get  him  to 
meet  Jones  at  the  arrival  of  the  stage  in  Edenton  next 
day.  McLochlin  hied  him  home.  Jones  remained  in 
hiding. 

Jones  came  to  Edenton  next  day.  Collins  was  in  wait- 
ing. Damon  and  Pythias  were  not  more  cordial  than 
"Hugh"  and  "Shoe."  A  carriage  was  in  waiting.  Both 
were  hurried  in  and  off,  and  with  rapid  speed  they  were 
taken  to  the  safe  retreat  of  Sandy  Point  beach.  When 
they  arrived,  Jones,  for  greater  safety,  asked  Collins  to 
put  out  pickets  to  provide  against  surprise  and  to  keep  his 
private  yacht  manned  with  four  stalwart  oarsmen,  ready 
at  a  moment's  notice  to  take  Jones  to  the  southern  shore 
of  Albemarle  Sound.  "Hugh,"  full  of  the  responsibility 


ioo  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

of  his  great  charge,  had  everything  ready  as  requested. 
The  oarsmen  never  left  their  rowlocks.  After  a  few  days 
Jones  came  out  from  hiding,  and  for  ten  days  no  man  in 
North  Carolina  has  been  more  lionized,  petted  and  feasted. 
Jack  Leary,  a  veteran  wealthy  seine  fisherman,  banqueted 
him  with  great  and  bounteous  honor.  Thomas  Benbury, 
ihe  oldest  fisherman  on  the  sound,  claimed  him  as  his 
honored  guest.  Others  followed.  If  Jones  had  asked  for 
$100,000,  we  believe  he  could  have  had  an  honored  check 
for  it  in  half  an  hour. 

After  some  time  spent  in  this  round  of  festivity  and 
honor,  Jones  went  to  Mississippi,  where  he  hobnobbed 
with  Sargent  S.  Prentis,  "whom  he  had  introduced  into 
good  society  at  Washington."  Finally,  in  the  wilds  of 
Texas,  in  the  days  of  the  old  Texan  Avars  with  Mexico,  he 
died,  a  hermit,  alone,  deserted,  unknown — with  all  his 
eccentricities,  a  patriot,  a  lover  of  his  old  home,  having 
done  some  good  in  his  day  and  generation,  and  left  a  name 
among  its  historians. 


GOVERNOR  JOHN    M.    MOREHEAD.  IOI 


GOVERNOR  JOHN   M.   MOREHEAD. 

Good  name  in  man  and  woman,  dear  my  lord, 
Is  the  immediate  jewel  of  their  souls 

— Othello. 

GOVERNOR  MOREHEAD,  of  Greensboro,  was  a  typical, 
iep  resell  tative  Xorth  Carolinian.  He  was  poised,  con- 
M'rvative,  unpretentious  and  plain.  Large  in  person,  dig- 
nified in  bearing,  courteous  in  deportment,  he  had  the 
* guinea  stamp"  of  nature's  nobility.  We  imagine  he 
\\;is  not  a  man  of  early  educational  advantages,  and  we 
think  lie  was  not  an  alumnus  of  the  University.  We  re- 
ceived that  impression  from  hearing  his  inaugural  address 
Bl  ( iovernor  in  the  capitol  at  Raleigh,  after  his  election  over 
i.  Romulus  M.  Saunders  in  the  famous  Harrison  cam- 
of  1840.  We  \tere  a  younger  man  then  than  now, 
thought  the  whole  educational  duty  of  man  was  to  know 
the  proper  construction  of  a  grammatical  sentence  and  to 
explain  the  difference  between  udone"  and  "did,"  and  Gov- 
ernor Morehead,  in  his  inaugural  address,  rose  above  the 
littleness  of  tweedledum  and  tweedledee.  It  was  an  able 
speech,  strong,  patriotic  and  masterful,  but  not  elegant. 

We  did  not  then  make  allowance  for  the  school  of  the 
•  •Miipnimi  with  General  Saunders,  from  which  he  had 
reeently  emerged,  and  which  had  taught  him  that  strength 
was  stronger  than  elegance.  General  Saunders  was  the 
roughest  of  rough  diamonds,  and  his  phillipics  were  just 
on  the  temperate  side  of  the  "cuss"  belt. 

Tn  the  campaign  of  1840,  Morehead  was  the  Whig  can- 
didate, and  Saunders  the  Democratic,  and  in  Edenton, 
l'<  fore  u  cultured  audience  of  ladies  and  gentlemen,  there 
\\  ;is  a  dramatic  scene  in  the  court-house,  in  which  More- 
head  was  in  the  act  of  rebaptising  Saunders  with  a  huge 
pi tclier  of  water,  in  response  to  his  inelegant  language 
of  vituperation,  and  would  have  accomplished  it  but  for 
the  timely  interposition  of  friends  who  were  sitting  on 
the  platform  with  them. 


102  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

Governor  Morehead  was  a  patriotic  and  influential  cit- 
izen of  North  Carolina.  His  judgment  was  clear  and 
bis  convictions  courageous.  His  heart  always  beat  true  to 
the  State  and  all  its  interests.  He  left  a  name  of  highest 
character  and  usefulness,  at  the  mention  of  which  our 
hearts  have  a  warmer  heart-beat  of  pride  and  gratitude. 

While  Governor  Morehead  was  in  active  life,  the  popu- 
lar cry  and  aspiration  of  all  the  leaders  of  thought  in 
North  Carolina  was  the  building  of  a  railroad  running 
from  the  mountains  to  the  seaboard  of  North  Carolina 
at  Beaufort  harbor.  The  idea  was  first  started  by  Dr.  Jo- 
seph Caldwell  about  the  year  1824. 

The  Doctor  had  travelled  in  Europe  in  the  interest  of 
the  University  in  that  year,  and  had  witnessed  the  origin 
of  railroad  construction.  He  was  a  cold,  cool,  calculating 
man,  and  weighed  things  in  icy  scales  before  he  endorsed 
them.  He  saw  the  beginning  of  the  railroad  era,  saw  the 
beginning  of  them  in  practical  operation,  and  he  came 
home  thoroughly  aroused  to  their  great  value  in  the  devel- 
opment of  new  countries,  and  especially  helpful  to  North 
Carolina. 

Over  the  name  of  "Carleton,"  he  published  in  the  Ra- 
leigh Register  and  other  State  papers  a  series  of  railroad 
articles,  urging  the  importance  of  a  road  running  through 
the  State  from  west  to  east  and  terminating  at  Beaufort 
harbor.  The  ablest  and  most  influential  leaders  of  the 
State  welcomed  the  idea,  took  hold  of  it  in  a  half-hearted 
way,  talked  about  and  spoke  in  public  about  it.  It  was 
the  dream  of  a  generation.  But  nothing  of  a  practical 
character  was  done  about  it  for  many  years. 

The  honor  of  giving  a  practical  impulse  to  that  patri- 
otic State  enterprise  is  due  to  William  S.  Ashe,  of  the  dis- 
tinguished Ashe  family  of  Wilmington,  who  introduced 
in  the  Senate  of  North  Carolina  a  bill  chartering  the 
North  Carolina  "Railroad  and  giving  State  aid  to  the 
amount  of  two  millions  to  that  great  object.  This  bill 
passed  both  houses  of  the  General  Assembly,  and  Governor 
Morehead  then  threw  his  whole  energy  into  accomplish- 


GOVERNOR  JOHN  M.  MOREHEAD.         103 

ing  the  work,  building  it  from  Charlotte  to  Goldsboro. 
Later,  Governor  Morehead  applied  himself  to  giving  full 
effect  to  Dr.  Caldwell's  idea  of  connecting  the  mountains 
and  the  sea. 

What  had  long  been  the  dream  of  Carolina's  most  dis- 
tinguished and  patriotic  sons  became  a  reality  to  him. 
The  people  looked  to  him  as  the  great  leader  of  public 
thought  in  practical  matters.  The  people  listened  to  him 
gladly,  and  his  counsels  fell  upon  good  ground  and  pro- 
duced its  fruits.  He  rode  down  the  contemplated  road, 
worked  up  an  enthusiasm  that  it  had  never  known  before, 
planted  in  the  minds  of  the  population  along  the  route 
new  seeds  for  contemplation  that  grew  up,  and  in  time 
Governor  Morehead  saw  his  work  fully  under  way,  and 
saw  a  new  town  started  in  Beaufort  harbor  that  bore  his 
name  and  was  consecrated  to  his  memory. 

The  good  work  inaugurated  by  our  great  Governor,  and 
partly  accomplished  by  him,  has. never  yet  emptied  into 
the  lap  of  Xorth  Carolina  the  rich  fruits  which  at  first 
were  so  confidently  predicted;  but  in  the  cycles  of  time, 
in  which  a  thousand  years  are  as  but  a  day,  the  time  will 
come  when  a  united  North  Carolina,  with  universal  ac- 
claim, will  rise  up  as  one  man  to  bless  anew  the  revered 
name  of  John  M.  Morehead. 


104  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


AN   EVENING  WITH   WILLIAM  GASTON. 

His  life  was  gentle  ;  and  the  elements 

So  mixed  in  him,  that  Nature  might  stand  up, 

And  say  to  all  the  world,  This  was  a  man. 

— Julius  Cazsar. 

MATURED  greatness  has  no  feature  more  beautiful,  and 
no  ornament,  more  attractive  and  graceful,  than  a  conde- 
scending and  amiable  attention  to  youth.  It  is  the  Cor- 
inthian column  of  the  Gothic  temple,  inviting  by  its 
graceful  proportions  the  approach  of  its.  youthful  votary 
in  the  flush  of  enthusiastic  devotion.  Without  it,  great- 
ness is  less  great,  and  learning  less  comely ;  Hercules  with 
his  club,  inspiring  awe,  but  repelling  affection.  "Like 
some  old  tower  dimly  seen  by  starlight,  it  leaves  the  im- 
pression of  power  akin  to  the  terrific  and  sublime;  but 
wants  the  mild  and  softening  light  of  this  absent  grace  to 
make  it  lovely  to  the  contemplation  and  dear  to  the  heart." 

Trusting  to  your  defense  from  the  charge  of  egotism, 
I  Avill  venture  to  incur  the  imputation  by  relating  an  in- 
cident connected  with  William  Gaston,  illustrative  of  his 
genial  and  kindly  nature,  which  occurred  at  an  early 
period  of  my  life,  when  I  had  but  recently  divested  my 
youthful  habiliments,  and  had  scarcely  yet  accommodated 
myself  with  becoming  dignity  to  the  toga  virilis  of  Ameri- 
can manhood. 

'Not  very  long  after  the  Convention  of  1835,  I  chanced 
to  visit  the  city  of  Raleigh  while  the  Supreme  Court  was 
in  session  in  company  with  a  young  friend;  and  being 
detained  longer  than  we  had  anticipated,  I  determined,  if 
a  suitable  occasion  presented,  to  turn  the  detention  to 
account  by  satisfying  what  had  long  been  a  wish  ungrat- 
ified,  of  forming  the  personal  acquaintance  of  William 
Gaston. 

When  a  mere  boy  I  had  received  a  kind  of  parenthet- 
ical introduction  to  the  great  man,  during  a 'moment  of 
leisure,  while  he  was  engaged  in  the  trial  of  some  cause 
before  the  Supreme  Court,  of  which  he  was  then  an 


AN   EVENING   WITH    WILLIAM   G ASTON.  105 

attorney ;  but  1  did  not  feel  justified  in  renewing  my 
acquaintance,  after  the  lapse  of  several  years,  upon  the 
basis  of  such  an  impromptu  introduction. 

As  my  youth  ripened  into  manhood,  this  ungratified 
wish  had  grown  until  it  had  become,  indeed,  an  ardent 
passion  of  niy  heart.  It  was  natural. 

It  had  been  my  good  fortune  to  witness  the  exhibition 
of  his  wondrous  power  in  some  of  its  sharpest  intellectual 
conflicts,  and  its  most  signal  intellectual  triumphs ;  to  wit- 
ness it  at  that  most  impressible  period  of  life  when  the 
heart,  alive  to  every  sympathy,  yields  its  spontaneous 
homage  to  the  magic  mastery  of  genius. 

When,  on  my  way  to  college,  an  aspirant  to  the  honors 
of  Freshmanship,  I  tarried  a  little  in  Raleigh ;  not  as  at 
Jericho,  "until  my  beard  should  grow,"  for  that  would  have 
detained  me  too  long — but  in  order  to  keep  company 
with  a  party  of  "gay  froung  fellows"  who  were  going  up 
the  same  way  I  was,  and  who  persuaded  rne  to  wait  and 
join  them  and  have  a  nice  time  altogether. 

The  Legislature  was  in  session.  All  Raleigh  was  aflame. 
Legislative  combinations  had  been  formed,  and  antagonis- 
tic elements  had  been  moulded  into  a  homogeneous  mass 
to  remove  the  capitol  and  rob  her  of  her  birthright. 

For  want  of  something  to  do,  I  spent  much  of  my 
time  in  the  lobby  of  the  Governor's  house,  then  used  as 
a  temporary  legislative  hall,  in  consequence  of  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  capitol  by  fire.  It  was  then  and  there  I  first 
observed  William  Gaston.  He  was  the  centre  of  general  at- 
tention, the  cynosure  of  all  eyes.  So  distinct  is  my  recol- 
lection of  him,  I  can  see  him  now,  as  it  were  yesterday, 
sitting  in  front,  a  little  to  the  left  of  the  Speaker's  chair, 
n  <rrand  old  man,  just  touching  the  verge  of  venerable 
ago,  with  finely  chiseled,  classic  features,  calm,  contempla- 
tivc  thoughtful  brow,  and  manly  person;  the  scholarly 
stoop  increasing  rather  than  marring  the  effect  of  the 
Personation  of  intellectual  intelligence. 

"A  combination,  and  a  form,  indeed, 
Where  every  god  did  seem  to  set  his  seal, 
To  give  the  world  assurance  of  a  man." 


io6  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

I  heard  both  his  speeches  upon  the  "appropriation  bill," 
as  it  was  then  called ;  the  bill  which  raised  the  question  of 
the  removal  of  the  seat  of  government  from  Kaleigh.  His 
second  speech  was  a  master-piece  of  brilliant,  elaborate, 
finished  oratory.  It  was  the  first  great  speech  to  which 
I  had  ever  listened,  and  I  was  borne  on  the  top  of  the  tide 
of  admiration  with  which  it  was  universally  received. 
That  speech,  unfortunately,  is  not  now  preserved,  and  its 
reputation  rests  upon  the  insecure  traditions  of  those  who 
are  fast  passing  away. 

His  first  speech  was  a  ruse  de  guerre;  what,  in  the 
language  of  Isaac  Walton,  would  be -"a  bait  for  a  nibbler"  ; 
in  fowling  phrase,  "a  coy  duck" ;  in  the  language  of 
the  "ring,"  a  "feint,"  to  be  followed  by  a  stunning  blow. 
It  was  a  good  speech,  not  remarkable;  going  just  far 
enough,  and  not  too  far,  for  its  purpose ;  sometimes  leav- 
ing a  "castle  exposed,"  and  then  carrying  the  war  barely 
far  enough  to  say  "check  your  queen." 

There  sat  his  antagonist,  a  dangerous  man,  an  adver- 
sary not  to  be  trifled  with,  who,  by  the  preconcerted  ar- 
rangement of  his  party  friends,  was  the  champion  who 
was  not  to  expend  his  ammunition  upon  small  birds,  but 
to  reserve  his  fire  for  the  larger  game. 

"  His  hook  was  baited  with  a  dragon's  tail, 
He  sat  upon  a  rock  and  bobbed  for  whale." 

According  to  legislative  etiquette,  it  was  said  that  Gas- 
ton  was  entitled  to  reply  to  this  keen  sportsman ;  why,  I 
do  not  know,  not  being  learned  in  parliamentary  dialectics ; 
but  it  was  apparent  that  his  antagonist  was  determined 
not  to  move  until  Gaston  showed  his  hand. 

After  the  conclusion  of  Gaston's  first  speech,  the  mem- 
ber from  Fayetteville  proceeded  to  his  work  with  the  con- 
summate skill  of  an  accomplished  dialectician,  using  with 
admirable  dexterity  all  the  weapons  of  his  well-furnished 
armory,  dissecting  and  eviscerating  his  opponent,  to  the 
infinite  satisfaction  of  himself  and  his  friends.  But  Gas- 


AN    EVENING   WITH   WILLIAM   GASTON.  1 07 

ton's  rejoinder  gave  him  a  Koland  for  his  Oliver,  and 
made  Kaleigh  the  permanent  seat  of  government  of  North 
Carolina. 

1  next  saw  William  Gaston  about  a  year  later  upon  the 
literary  rostrum,  and  heard  his  admirable  address  to  the 
graduating  class  at  the  University ;  an  address  which  has 
become  a  recognized  standard  of  its  class  of  literature, 
and  which,  apart  from  its  wise  and  salutary  counsel,  may 
be  studied  to  advantage  by  those  who  wish  to  acquire  "an 
English  style,  familiar  but  not  coarse,  elegant  but  not 
ostentatious." 

I  next  heard  him,  a  few  years  later,  upon  perhaps  the 
most  memorable  occasion  of  his  life.  It  was  in  the 
Convention  of  1835,  in  the  debate  upon  what  is  known 
as  the  "thirty-second  article."  That  discussion  enlisted 
not  only  his  patriotic,  but  his  most  earnest  personal  sym- 
pathies. One  of  the  'objects  for  which  the  Convention 
had  been  called  was  to  consider  the  propriety  of  removing 
this  article  from  the  Constitution  of  the  State.  Although 
inoperative,  it  was  regarded  as  a  blur  upon  the  charter, 
an  odious  imputation,  if  not  a  political  disfranchisement 
of  a  meritorious  class  of  citizens  for  their  religious  opin- 
ions; and  it  was  pointed  to  by  the  envious  detractors  of 
Gaston,  who  had  high  office  under  the  Constitution  with 
that  article  in  it,  as  proof  that  his  lust  of  place  was 
stronger  than  his  sense  of  honor. 

With  these  considerations  weighing  upon  him,  he  arose 
to  address  an  assembly  distinguished  for  wisdom,  gravity 
and  age,  and  for  two  days  bound  them  as  with  a  spell  by 
a  production  which,  in  all  that  can  convince  the  under- 
standing, charm  the  senses  or  move  the  heart,  is  unsur- 
passed in  the  annals  of  uninspired  eloquence. 

I  am  altogether  unable  to  convey  an  idea  of  the  im- 
pression made  upon  my  mind,  then  just  budding  into  ma- 
turity, by  that  #reat  effort.  "Demosthenes  for  the  crown," 
"Cicero  against  Cataline,"  were  familiar  from  recent 
study;  "Burke  against  Warren  Hastings"  had  been  the 
delight  of  my  boyhood ;  "Webster  in  reply  to  Hayne"  was 


io8  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

yet  ringing  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  land  ; 
but  they  had  all  failed  to  tell  me  what  "the  Old  Man  Elo- 
quent" signified.  Never  till  then  did  I  know  what  Gray 
meant  when  he  sang, 

"  The  applause  of  listening  Senates  to  command." 
Not  till  then  did  I  know  the  gift  which 

"  Touched  Isaiah's  hallowed  lips  with  fire." 

Not  till  then  the  wand  which  genius  waves  over  men.  It 
is  now  more  than  a  third  of  a  century  since  my  heart- 
chords  were  swept  by  that  master-hand ;  and  many  a  touch 
from  eloquent  lips  since  then  those  chords  have  felt,  but 
they  vibrate  still  with  the  notes  of  that  wondrous  melody, 
and  will  vibrate  ever 

" — till  my  last  of  lines  are  penned 
And  life's  hopes,  joys  and  sorrows  at  an  end." 

The  companion  of  my  casual  visit  to  Raleigh,  above 
alluded  to,  was  the  fortunate  heir  of  one  of  Gaston's  old 
friendships,  and  had  received  many  proofs  of  his  friendly 
regard.  In  one  of  his  visits  during  our  sojourn,  he  ob- 
served that  he  had  a  young  friend  with  him  who  was  a 
warm  admirer  of  his,  and,  if  agreeable,  he  would  be  glad 
to  introduce  him  at  some  moment  of  leisure. 

"Make  my  respects,"  said  Gaston  politely,  "and  I  shall 
be  pleased  to  see  you  both  at  my  office  this  evening  at  8 
o'clock." 

Prompt  to  the  time  "as  lovers  to  their  vows,"  we  pre- 
sented ourselves  at  the  appointed  place,  and  I  was  formally 
introduced  to  him  whose  magic  power  had  wakened  first 
my  youthful  dream  of  glory. 

We  found  there  with  Gaston  a  distinguished  citizen  of 
the  State ;  a  man  who,  under  .any  other  circumstances  and 
other  association,  would  have  been  a  recognized  great 
man ;  one  to  whom  nature  had  been  niggard  of  her  gifts 
of  physical  graces,  but  to  whom  an  ample  atonement  had 


AN  EVENING  WITH  WILLIAM  GASTON.         109 

I. ecu  made  for  an  ungainly  person  by  bestowing  some  of 
her  rarest  intellectual  gerns  and  imparting  to  them  addi- 
tional lustre  by  contrast  with  the  rough  ore  in  which  they 
hud  been  cast 

But  all  greatness  is  comparative.  He  bore  to  Gaston 
the  same  relation,  to  use  the  language  of  the  smithery, 
that  an  excellent  ''striker"  does  to  the  head  blacksmith. 
And  most  opportunely  for  us  was  he  there.  For  without 
him,  who  would  have  done  the  striking?  Without  him, 
the  evening,  instead  of  being  to  us  a  life-memory,  would 
have  been  a  dumb  show,  performed  by  one  player  and 
two  unites.  But  as  it  was,  we  had  a  most  brilliant  per- 
formance, a  kind  of  duet,  one  playing  upon  "a  harp  of  a 
thousand  strings/'  and  the  other  striking  the  triangle 
with  i Musical  taste  and  judgment. 

If  this  opportune  friend  was  there  by  invitation,  from 
kindness  to  us,  it  was*most  kind;  if  there  by  invitation 
lo  take  part  in  the  exercises,  it  was  most  considerate  of 
<ome  one's  reputation;  if  there  by  accident,  it  was  most 
fortunate. 

The  conversation  was  at  first  upon  general  topics,  the 
I >r<>< -codings  of  the  Legislature,  then  in  session;  the  effect 
of  certain  measures  then  under  consideration;  the  charac- 
ter of  its  members,  with  occasional  reference  to  those  who 
h;id  been  prominent  in  the  past  legislative  history  of  the 
State;  tin-  practical  operation  and  effect  of  certain  amend- 
ments to  tlie  Constitution  made  by  the  Convention  of 
l^.">.~»  and  then  hut  recently  adopted ;  the  growing;  tendency 
of  our  neople  to  abandon  their  calm,  conservative  charac- 
ter, and  to  be  carried  away  by  the  wild  strife  of  political 
parties,  and  which,  at  the  moment,  impressed  me  with  the 
idea  that  he  was  not  quite  up  with  the  progressive  spirit  of 
the  a::e. 

His  style  of  conversation  was  peculiarly  attractive; 
<  a-y,  graceful,  tasteful  and  unostentatious;  sometimes 
addressing  himself  to  us  and  making  us  feel  that  we  were 
a  part,  though  not  macjnn  pars,  of  the  performance.  Our 
fri»'iid  who  came  so  opportunely,  bestowed  upon  us,  too, 


no  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

an  occasional  look  from  the  corner  of  his  eye,  as  if  saying, 
"and  what  are  you  doing  here,  you  spalpeens  ?" 

From  an  examination  of  the  characteristics  of  our  own 
people,  and  comparison  of  their  social  condition  with  that 
of  the  population  of  some  of  our  sister  States,  resulting 
from  the  influence  of  long-continued  strife,  the  conversa- 
tion passed,  by  natural  connection,  to  an  examination  of  the 
condition,  peculiarities  and  institutions  of  those  States. 

Gaston  had  passed  the  preceding  summer  in  a  length- 
ened tour  through  the  Northern  States  and  Canada,  and 
the  conclusions  at  which  he  had  arrived  from  personal 
observation,  and  his  description  of  natural  scenery,  were 
exceedingly  interesting. 

Niagara  Falls  had  long  been  a  living  picture  to  my 
mind;  by  fancy,  by  personal  description,  and  by  the 
painter  and  the  poet's  art  I  had  read  innumerable  de- 
scriptions of  it;  from  Halleck's  grand  anthem  (I  think 
it  is  Halleck's)  to  him  of  the  shears  and  goose, 

"  Who  had  but  one  unending  note, 
Gods,  what  a  place  to  sponge  a  coat ! " 

But  none  like  Gaston's  had  impressed  my  mind  so  forci- 
bly with  the  grandeur  of  this  great  work  of  the  Omnipo- 
tent ;  none  had  been  so  easy,  so  natural,  so  grand  and  yet 
so  simple,  so  like  the  great  work  itself.  His  graphic  de- 
scription impressed  an  animal  vitality  into  the  storied 
stream,  as  with  easy  self-possession  he  pictured  the  placid 
water  moving  smoothly  on,  and,  just  at  the  brink  of  the 
precipice,  making  a  pause,  as  if  unexpectedlv  encountering 
a  foe  it  could  not  conquer,  and  then  writhing  in  the  agony 
of  a  moment's  desperate  determination  before  taking  the 
awful  plunge. 

He  related  an  incident  of  the  effect  produced  upon  an 
untutored  mind  by  this  stupendous  work  of  nature.  He 
met  at  the  falls  an  old  college  class-mate  whom  he  had 
not  seen  for  many  years — Judge  Berrien,  of  Georgia — 
accompanied  by  his  two  daughters  and  a  faithful  old  fam- 
ily servant  whom  the  young  ladies  called  "Mammy." 


AN    EVENING   WITH   WILLIAM    GASTON.  Ill 

"We  had  all/7  said  Gaston,  "been  standing  for  some 
time  near  the  cataract,  gazing  in  silence  upon  the  mighty 
work.  The  silence  was  broken  by  the  old  servant. 

"  'Missis/  said  she  to  one  of  the  young  ladies,  'how 
Icng  has  this  water  been  running  here?' 

"  'Since  the-  foundation  of  the  world,  Mammy." 

"And  then  pausing  for  a  moment,  the  old  woman  con- 
tinued, 'and  how  long  will  it  keep  on  running  here,  missis  ?' 

"  "Until  the  end  of  the  world.' 

"Raising  her  hands  and  eyes  to  heaven,  with  a  manner 
which  no  art  can  imitate,  she  simply  exclaimed,  'Great 
God  Almighty!" 

Many  other  subjects  and  incidents  of  his  travels,  dwelt 
upon  by  Gaston,  were  most  delightful  and  instructive: 
his  personal  descriptions  and  delineations  of  character  of 
the  men  of  note  he  met,  his  contrast  of  society  in  Canada 
and  the  United  States,*  his  reflections  upon  the  vanity  of 
human  greatness,  suggested  by  certain  amusing  incidents 
of  travel  which  occurred  in  his  journey,  and  his  recital  of 
interviews  and  conversations  with  distinguished  people. 

But  I  have  already  exceeded  my  original  design,  and 
must  bring  this  paper  to  a  close. 

I  fear  I  have  left  the  impression  that  my  friend  and  I 
performed  the  part  of  simple  mutes  in  the  entertainments 
of  the  evening.  If  so,  that  impression  is  most  erroneous 
and  most  unjust  to  our  reputations.  We  were  not  con- 
spicuous, and  we  would  not  have  been  so.  But  we  bore 
•nr  part.  We  twain  spoke  one  word.  It  was  thus : 

During  the  summer  at  some  watering-plaoe  Gaston 
had  mot  with  Martin  Van  Buren,  then  in  the  zenith  of  his 
popularity  and  greatness,  and  wearing  in  triumph  the 
hereditary  honors  of  his  "illustrious  predecessor."  He 
had  much  to  say  of  the  distinguished  man,  his  political 
and  personal  character ;  mentioning,  among  other  things, 
that,  in  conversation  with  Chancellor  "Kent  in  reference 
to  "Van  Buren's  intellectual  ability,  he  had  contended  that 
his  public  career  furnished  no  evidence  of  superior  intel- 
lectual endowments,  but  had  been  distinaniished  rather  for 


ii2  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

the  exhibition  of  those  qualities  of  mind  which  are  rarely,, 
if  ever,  associated  with  executive  ability ;  that  he  had  cited 
the  opinion  of  David  B.  Ogden  expressed  to  him  in  conver- 
sation, as  corroborative  of  his  own.  , 

"Oh,"  said  the  Chancellor  in  reply,  "Davy  is  warped  by 
his  political  prejudices.  Van  Buren  is  a  man  of  very  supe- 
rior, positive  ability.  He  practiced  law  before  me  for 
twenty  years,  and  he  always  seized  the  strong  points  of  his 
own  case  and  the  weak  points  of  his  adversary,  and  I  take 
that  to  be  proof  of  ability  in  any  man." 

Gaston  then  proceeded  to  give  his  own, estimate  of  Van 
Bureirs  character,  pointing  out  some  good  features,  but 
regarding  him  as  distinguished  by  that  quality  which  esti- 
mated the  value  of  men  according  to  their  uses  to  himself. 

"He  regards  men,"  said  he,  "as  I  do  these  snuffers, 
valuable  when  needed,  but  after  being  used  of  no  further 
value,  until  wanted  again." 

Proceeding  in  his  narrative,  he  referred  to  a  toast  sent 
by  Van  Buren  in  reply  to  an  invitation  to  be  present  at 
some  political  demonstration.  He  was  unable  to  recall 
the  language  of  the  toast.  His  inability  to  remember  a 
certain  word  interrupted  his  narrative,  and  for  a  moment 
seemed  to  annoy  him.  Turning  to  our  opportune  friend, 
he  said,  "What  was  the  word  he  used  about  'hostility  to 
the  United  States  Bank  ?'  You  remember  the  toast."  No 
response  came.  He  turned  unsatisfied  away. 

He  then  turned  toward  us.  As  his  eye  traveled  by  me, 
I  caught  it,  saw  his  troubled  expression,  and  in  a  "still, 
small  voice"  I  said — "Uncompromising." 

"Yes,"  said  he,  addressing  himself  directly  to  me  with 
a  most  benevolent  expression  which  I  can  never  forget, 
'"uncompromising  hostility  to  the  United  States  Bank," 
pnd  then,  in  a  tone  and  manner  which  made  me  feel  as  if 
my  father  spoke  it,  he  added,  "we  should  be  uncompro- 
mising with  nothing  but  vice." 

One  word  more.  William  Gaston  has  now  been  dead 
many  years.  While  he  lived  his  position  among  his 
countrymen  was  as  that  of  the  sou  of  Kish  amono:  the  Phil- 


AN    EVENING   WITH    WILLIAM    GASTON.  113 

istines.  In  any  association  he  was  truly  a  great  man.  I 
speak  of  him  not  as  a  lawyer,  not  as  a  judge,  nor  a  states- 
man, nor  an  orator,  writer,  philosopher,  or  poet;  but  as 
a  great  representative  man;  representative  of  the  excel- 
lencies of  his  race,  the  dignity  of  learning,  the  beauty  of 
virtue,  the  worth  of  integrity  and  honor  and  uprightness 
of  character ;  the  Christian  graces,  the  kindly  sympathies, 
the  fraternal  impulses  of  life,  which  alone  impart  to  man 
his  real  manhood,  and  make  him  a  reflex  "image  of  his 
Maker."  Yet,  great  as  he  was,  no  literary  memorial  com- 
mensurate with  his  real  magnitude  has  yet  been  dedicated 
to  his  memory. 

There  are  those  living  who  were  his  compeers;  who 
knew  him  best  and  admired  him  most,  men  every  way  com- 
petent to  tell  the  story  of  his  life;  men  distinguished  by 
some  of  the  same  qualities  which  made  up  the  sum  of  his 
exceeding  greatness.  Let  them  not  by  longer  neglect 
inflict  a  foul  wrong  upon  posterity.  Let  them  look  to  it, 
as  men  who  desire  a  place  in  the  recollection  of  those  who 
must  pronounce  their  eulogy. 


ii4  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


INTERESTING  NORTH  CAROLINA  HISTORY  FOR 
OUR  YOUTHFUL  READERS. 

ON  North  Carolina  soil  Virginia  Dare,  the  first  child 
of  English  parents  in  America,  was  born. 

The  first  print  of  English  footsteps  ever  made  in  Amer- 
ica was  made  in  North  Carolina  in  1584,  in  the  brightest 
period  of  English  history. 

The  first  prayer  of  Christian  worship  ever  uttered  by 
English  lips  in  America  was  uttered  on  Koanoke  Island, 
in  Dare  County,  North  Carolina.  The  first  ordinance  of 
the  Christian  religion  ever  celebrated  by  the  English- 
speaking  race  in  America  was  celebrated  on  North  Caro- 
lina soil. 

The  first  popular  Legislative  Assembly  in  America 
called  by  the  authority  of  the  people,  in  defiance  of  royal 
authority  and  against  its  protest,  met  in  North  Carolina, 
at  New  Bern,  in  August,  1774. 

The  first  blood  shed  by  the  people  in  America,  in  resist- 
ance with  arms  against  the  oppressive  acts,  power  and 
authority  of  Great  Britain,  under  a  Governor  appointed 
by  King  George  of  England,  was  North  Carolina  blood, 
at  Alamance,  in  North  Carolina. 

The  first  open  Declaration  of  Independence  of  Great 
Britain  made  in  America  was  the  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence made  by  the  people  of  Mecklenburg  County,  at 
Charlotte,  on  the  20th  of  May,  1775. 

The  first  purchaser,  in  America,  of  Indian  lands  for  a 
valuable  consideration  was  made  in  Perquimans  County 
by  George  Durant  from  Kuskatanew,  King  of  the  Yeopim 
Indians,  in  1663,  nearly  fifty  years  before  the  purchase 
by  William  Penn  of  the  Pennslyvania  Indians. 

After  these  distinguished  first  historical  events,  is  it 
not  a  just  claim  of  North  Carolina  that  she  is  "the  right- 
ful mother  of  the  States?"  Sir  Walter  Kaleigh  stands 
sentinel  at  the  gateway  of  her  history,  and  following  him 
she  has  an  illustrious  lineage  down  through  her  long  his- 


INTERESTING    NORTH   CAROLINA   HISTORY.        115 

tory.  Erom  Moselj  to  Vance  her  sons  have  lighted  the  bea- 
con tires  of  freedom.  Her  eminence  in  the  Pantheon  of  his- 
tory is  only  equalled  by  the  modesty  that  accompanies 
true  greatness.  True  greatness  never  seeks  fame.  The 
greatest  .North  Carolinian  was  the  most  modest  and  diffi- 
dent of  men.  He  was  a  lawyer,  and  to  the  close  of  a  long 
life  always  trembled  when  he  first  got  up  to  speak.  Gen- 
eral Washington  was  our  greatest  citizen,  the  most  dis- 
tinguished and  the  most  beloved.  After  the  Revolution- 
ary War  Congress  passed  resolutions  of  compliment  and 
thanks  to  him  for  his  public  service.  He  was  present, 
and  got  up  to  reply,  but  his  modesty  overcame  him,  and 
he  could  not  get  along.  Mr.  Witherspoon,  of  New  Jersey, 
an  old  Scotch  preacher,  who  was  in  Congress,  rose  and 
said :  "Sit  down,  young  man ;  your  valor  is  only  equalled 
by  your  modesty" — and  then  he  replied  for  Washington. 
Distinction  sits  not  gracefully  on  him  who  seeks  it.  "Of- 
ii'  •  sought  me;  I  sought  not  office,"  was  the  proud  and 
just  remark  of  William  Gaston,  when  discussing  the  ques- 
tion of  Catholic  disability  in  its  personal  application  to 
himself  in  the  Convention  of  Xorth  Carolina  of  1835. 
( )ncf  when  she  was  taunted  by  some  noisy  politicians  with 
i><-iii._:  ;i  plain  and  slow  State,  that  great  man  replied  that 
lie  hi >]>('(]  it  would  be  long  before  she  exchanged  that 
for  a  more  equivocal  characteristic.  The  taunt  came  from 
•  •in-  sister  State  of  South  Carolina,  and  the  reply  was  in 
some  respects  a  deserved  rejoinder.  Let  us  cling  to  our 
iii-Miid  old  State.  Let  us  cherish  her  homely  virtues,  and 
In  us  also  cherish  the  splendid  position  she  deserves  as 
"the  Mother  of  the  States." 


n6  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


PASQUOTANK    RIVER. 

A  thing  of  beauty  is  a  joy  forever. 

— Keats. 

*'jNo  MAN  is  a  hero  to  his  valet,"  saith  the  old  saw.  To 
a  great  extent  it  is  true,  but  it  is  nevertheless  true  also  that 
propinquity  and  familiarity  make  the  most  brilliant  ob- 
jects stale.  Familiarity  breeds  contempt,  saith  another 
old  saw  that  is  kindred  to  the  first. 

We  have  known  men  in  North  Carolina  that  lost  their 
legitimate  claim  to  the  dignity  of  greatness  simply  be- 
cause they  were  genial,  vivacious  and  witty.  George  E. 
Badger  was  a  many-sided  great  man,  but  threw  away  the 
major  part  of  his  grand  heritage  by  his  doggerel  buf- 
foonery. 

Chief  Justice  Smith,  who  was  an  observant  man,  as 
well  as  a  big  lawyer  in  his  time,  once  told  us  when  we 
were  young  lawyers  together,  that  Mr.  Badger  was  a  bril- 
liant and  superior  man,  a  great  lawyer  and  an  astute  lo- 
gician, but  there  was  some  flaw  in  the  material  or  manu- 
facture of  his  greatness  that  marred  its  symmetry.  We 
suggested  that  the  defect  was  that  he  was  too  good  an 
actor  in  low  comedy  for  a  matured  great  man.  Webster, 
who  was  fond  of  Badger  when  they  were  in  the  United 
States  Senate  together,  once  told  Badger,  when  he  was 
playing  buffoon  for  the  entertainment  of  Webster  and  a 
little  circle  of  Senators,  that  he  was  the  "most  magnifi- 
cent trifler  that  he  had  ever  known."  The  remark  of 
Webster  was  a  ten-strike,  and  a  word  photograph  of  Mr. 
Badger. 

A  young  friend  who  was  the  greatest  genius  as  a  boy  and 
young  man  we  ever  met,  could  say  more  funny  and  witty 
and  smart  things  than  we  ever  heard  from  human  lips. 
He  had  the  gift  of  greatness  in  a  remarkable  decree.  He  said 
to  us  in  the  last  conversation  we  ever  had  with  him  that 
he  had  been  a  failure  in  life,  and  he  knew  why.  He  made 
men  laugh  too  much ;  that  dull  men  laughed  at  and  pitied 


PASQUOTANK    RIVER.  IIJ 

him;  that  if  ho  had  his  life  to  work  over,  he  would  put 
an  owl  on  his  inantel  to  be  an  object-lesson  to  him  to  look 
wise  and  say  little ;  that  Cowper's  " Jackdaw  in  a  Church 
Steeple"  did  not  fill  the  bill  half  as  well  as  a  big-eyed, 
wise-looking,  far-seeing  and  reflective  screech  owl. 

Pardonnez-iaoi.  Au  mouton;  which  means,  halt;  you're 
off  your  head,  come  back  to  the  first  station.  You  set  out 
;••  h-11  us  about  the  Pasquotank  Kiver,  and  you  wandered 
i«»  (leorge  Badger  and  your  young  friend,  and  they  never 
saw  Pasquotank  Kiver.  We  have  paused  to  consider  the 
connection  between  the  river  and  the  great  men  marred  by 
the  frivolities  of  genius.  We've  got  it.  It  all  turned  on 
familiarity,  and  how  it  belittles  men  and  things. 

We  have  known  Pasquotank  River  from  our  earliest 
manhood.  We  have  bathed  in  its  amber  waters.  We 
have  swallowed  the  nectgr  of  its  ambrosial  current.  We 
have  gazed  listlessly  upon  the  shadows  of  the  magnificent 
cypress  giants  that  guard  its  banks.  We  have  wreathed 
fancy  stories  from  the  weird  pictures  drawn  by  the  setting 
sun.  But  we  saw  it  every  day,  went  up  and  down  it 
many  times,  until  we  became  its  valet,  and  the  evening 
shadows  and  the  glowing  simrise  and  the  weird  pictures 
cast  by  the  dying  sun  made  no  more  impression  upon  us 
than  any  every-day  object  of  nature. 

Once,  it  has  now  been  fifteen  or  twentv  years,  we  were 
sitting  alone  in  our  editorial  sanctum,  enjoying  a  pleas- 
ant surcease  of  toil,  when  a  handsome  boy  of  apparently 
ten  or  twelve  summers  came  in  and  asked  for  a  copy  of 
the  city  paper.  After  giving  him  the  paper,  we  fell  into 
<  onvorsation,  and  he  told  us  that  his  father  and  mother 
and  himself  were  from  Lexington,  Ky.,  where  his  father 
published  a  magazine  called  the  Kentucky  Stock  Farm, 
and  that  they  were  on  a  visit  to  this  part  of  North  Carolina 
to  see  the  country.  As  he  left,  we  sent  word  to  his 
father  to  call  in  and  see  us. 

Durinff  the  day  his  father  called.  He  was  courtly,  in- 
telligent and  interesting.  He  had  come  from  Kentucky 
Vorfolk.  and  thence  via  the  canal  and  the  Pasquotank 


lib  GRANDFATHER'S   TALES. 

River  to  Elizabeth  City.  He  had  come  over  the  evening 
before.  He  was  enthusiastic  in  his  admiration  of  Pas- 
quotank  River,  its  grand  weird  scenery,  the  gigantic  for- 
est growth  of  cypress  trees,  the  varied  aspects  of  serpen- 
tine bends,  succeeded  by  long  sweeps  of  straight  currents. 
He  had  traveled  much,  and  he  compared  it  with  the  his- 
toric rivers  at  home  and  abroad.  He  said  that  its  floral 
beauties  (it  was  in  May)  were  unrivalled  in  the  world. 
He  dwelt  upon  its  amber  crested  waves  and  its  dense  soli- 
tudes in  which  nature  maintained  its  supremacy.  He 
compared  it  with  the  famed  Hudson,  and  gave  the  supe- 
riority to  the  Carolina  river  that  was  the  pan-handle  and 
reservoir  of  the  Great  Dismal  Swamp. 

And  then  we  recounted  to  him  some  of  the  strange 
legends  of  its  history.  How  it  was  the  favorite  rendezvous 
of  Teach,  the  f amous  Carolina  pirate,  who  wras  the  terror 
of  the  Carolina  and  Virginia  coasts  in  the  early  years  of 
the  eighteenth  century,  and  who  made  his  headquarters  at 
the  head  of  one  of  those  long  straight  stretches  of  the  river 
that  commanded  a  lengthened  view  and  gave  notice  of  the 
approach  of  an  enemy.  And  when  we  told  him  of  the 
"Old  Brick  House/'  its  history,  and  its  date  of  1700  on 
the  old  bricks,  and  of  the  blood  spots  on  the  floors  of 
two  rooms  of  the  house,  mute  and  ineffaceable  witnesses  of 
the  tragic  scenes  that  they  commemorated,  his  curiosity 
was  excited  as  we  had  not  seen  before,  and  he  expressed 
great  desire  to  see  with  his  own  eyes  the  scene  of  the  dread 
orgies. 

Since  then  we  have  seen  the  river  much  and  often  in 
its  varied  aspects  of  scenery,  and  have  thought  more  and 
more  that  it  is  distance  which  gives  enchantment  to  a 
view,  and  that  familiarity  robs  it  of  its  gorgeous  plumage. 
The  eye  that  looks  daily  upon  Niagara  and  hears  its  lion 
roar,  thinks  of  it  as  a  s;ood  site  for  a  laundry  or  a  cotton 
factory,  while  the  unfamiliar  ©ye  exclaims,  "Great  God 
Almighty!"  and  turns  in  mute  adoration  toward  the  Al- 
mighty Architect  and  Builder. 


GASTON    IN    THE   CONVENTION    OF    1835.  1 19 


GASTON    IN    THE   CONVENTION    OF    1833. 

When  he  speaks,  the  air,  a  chartered  libertine,  is  still. 

— Shakespear. 

THE  name  of  Judge  Gaston  awakens  in  our  memory  a 
reminder  of  that  great  man,  and  recalls  to  us  some  events 
in  his  distinguished  career.  His  life  was  an  eminent 
success,  a  succession  of  brilliant  achievements  in  civil  life, 
won  by  genius,  character  and  assiduous  labor,  without  the 
adventitious  aids  of  revolutions  or  arms.  His  triumphs 
were  truly  the  triumphs  of  peace,  the  triumphs  of  in- 
tellectual contest,  and  we  purpose  to  briefly  recall  one  of 
those  occasions  which  probably  summoned  all  the  weapons 
of  his  well-equipped  intellectual  armory. 

Judge  Gaston  was  the  central  figure  of  the  Convention 
of  1835,  confessedly  the  ablest  and  most  distinguished 
body  of  men  that  has  ever  assembled  in  North  Carolina  to 
deliberate  upon  the  affairs  of  State.  Nat,  Macon  was 
President,  having  retired  from  long  and  distinguished 
public  service  in  the  National  councils.  Judge  Daniel, 
of  the  Supreme  Bench  of  North  Carolina,  and  several 
Judges  of  the  Superior  Courts,  were  also  members, 
and  ex-members  of  Congress  were  in  large  number.  Cru- 
dup,  of  Granville,  and  Sam  Carson,  of  Burke,  both  of 
\\iimii  \vriv  distinguished  in  public  life.  Jesse  Wilson 
was  "in-  of  the  delegates  from  Perqpiimans,  Joseph  B. 
Skinnor  from  Chowan,  Judsje  Bailey  from  Pasquotank, 
Governor  Swain  from  Bnncoml>o,  and  indeed,  the  most  con- 
spicuous men  \vcrc  sent  from  all  the  counties.  The  State 
\va-  ^really  rxcitcil  over  the  basis  of  representation,  the 
ea<t<  ni  i>:irt  of  tin-  State  holding1  the  control  of  power  by 
tin-  pm iM'i-tv  qualification,  and  the  west  complaining  vio- 
lently that  population  'was  not  made  the  basis.  The  Oon- 
v<  nt inn  was  -a  body  of  limited  political  powers,  but  there 
were  other  questions  submitted  to  its  consideration  beside? 
the  basis  of  representation. 

X"t  the  least  attractive  of  these  questions  to  which  the 
Convention  was  limited,  was  the  religious  disability  ques- 


120  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

lion,  which  was  embraced  in  the  thirty-second  article  of 
the  old  Constitution,  which  was  adopted  in  1776.  That 
article  disqualified  for  office  in  North  Carolina  "all  who 
denied  the  existence  of  God  or  the  truth  of  the  Protestant 
religion."  That  article  doubtless  interested  Judge  Gas- 
ton  more  than  any  subject  that  was  to  be  brought  before 
the  Convention.  The  design  of  the  article  unquestionably 
was  to  disqualify  Roman  Catholics  from  holding  office  in 
North  Carolina.  It  was  to  Judge  Gaston  a  delicate  personal 
question,  a  question  of  conscience  and  honor.  He  was  a 
devoted  Catholic  in  religious  faith.  He  ,was  a  Judge  of 
the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State,  and  in  assuming  the  duties 
of  his  high  office  had  sworn  to  support  the  Constitution  of 
North  Carolina,  with  the  thirty-second  article  excluding 
from  office  those  who  "denied,  the  truth  of  the  Protestant 
religion"  in  it.  Gaston  was  sensitive  to  honor  and  chi- 
valrous in  character.  He  was  of  distinguished  ancestry, 
and  nurtured  in  the  most  cultured,  refined  and  distin- 
guished circles  of  New  Bern's  elegant  society.  His  own  per- 
sonal honor  was  on  trial,  and  was  involved  in  the  decision 
of  the  Convention.  The  thirty-second  article  must  have 
been  to  him  the  great  question  before  the  Convention,  and 
it  was  natural  that  he  should  have  been,  as  he  was,  grave, 
thoughtful,  absorbed,  wrapped  in  the  communings  of  his 
own  thoughts  as  the  deliberations  of  the  Convention  went 
on. 

For  the  ten  days  that  we,  then  a  youth  just  returning 
from  the  University,  attended  the  sessions  of  the  Conven- 
tion, in  the  Presbyterian  church  in  "Raleigh,  Judge  Gas- 
ton  always  occupied  the  same  seat,  a  little  to  the  right  and 
not  far  removed  from  the  chair  of  the  President.  To  our 
youthful  imagination,  he  was  the  embodiment  of  intel- 
lectual greatness.  He  seemed  apart.  He  was  courteous, 
but  not  familiar,  exchanged  few  words  with  those  near 
him,  and  never  indulged  in  pleasantry.  The  thirty-sec- 
ond article  was  not  taken  up  early  in  the  session.  The 
suffrage  question  had  been  up,  and  Gaston  had  been  con- 
spicuous, able  and  conciliatory  in  the  debate. 


GASTON    IN    THE   CONVENTION    OF    1835.  121 

When  we  came  to  Ilaleigk  and  went  to  the  sessions  of 
the  Convention  with  our  boy  friends,  C.  O.  Battle  and 
Henry  W.  Miller,  both  deceased,  the  thirty-second  article 
was  under  discussion,  and  public  interest  was  greatly  ex- 
cited. The  hall  of  the  Convention  was  crowded  with  vis- 
itors and  ladies.  Distinguished  men  and  the  oi  polloi 
were  all  out.  J  udge  Sewell,  Dr.  Smith  of  Orange,  Crudup 
of  Granville,  Judge  Daniel,  and  several  others,  had  spoken 
as  the  days  wore  on;  Gaston  sat  in  profound  thought, 
head  bent  down,  arms  sometimes  folded,  always  vigi- 
lant. We  well  remember  the  indignant  rebuke  he  once 
launched  upon  Judge  Sewell,  who  was  his  enemy  and  un- 
successful rival  for  the  honor  of  the  Supreme  Court,  at  a 
personal  reference  to  Mr.  Gaston  and  his  occupancy  of  a 
place  on  the  Bench.  Most  of  the  speeches  had  been  in 
favor  of  retaining  the  thirty-second  article,  and  the  senti- 
ment of  the  Convention  was  apparently  the  same  way. 

When  the  subject  had  become  somewhat  exhausted,  Gas- 
ton  arose  slowly,  with  great  deliberation,  amid  breathless 
silence,  and  for  two  days  riveted  the  attention  of  all  pres- 
ent by  a  speech  which  is  unequalled  in  our  memory.  He 
showed  fatigue  after  speaking  the  first  day,  and  a  motion 
was  made  by  Mr.  Wilson,  of  Perquimans,  for  adjourn- 
ment, but  upon  some  manifestation  of  opposition  to  the 
motion,  on  account  of  the  rapt  attention,  Mr.  Gaston  com- 
menced to  resume  his  speech ;  but  the  motion  was  renewed 
when  it  was  seen  that  Gaston  needed  rest.  The  next  day  the 
speech  was  resumed  and  continued  to  the  regular  ad- 
journment The  fate  of  the  thirty-second  article  was  seen 
before  the  speech  was  concluded ;  and  upon  the  question  of 
amendment  being  submitted,  it  was  carried,  we  think, 
very  largely. 

Had  that  speech  never  been  made  the  thirty-second  arti- 
cle would  probably  now  be  a  stain  upon  our  Constitution. 
The  speech  was  a  masterlv  one,  and  probably  the  most 
labored  effort  of  Gaston's  life.  All  his  powers  were 
worked  up  to  their  utmost  energy,  and  every  power  of 
moving  men's  minds  by  speech  was  brought  into  requi- 


122  GRANDFATHER'S   TALES. 

sition.  It  was  powerful  in  argument.  His  position  that 
one  could  disbelieve  in  Protestantism  and  yet  believe  the 
"truth  of  the  Protestant  religion/'  was  exceedingly  fine 
and  ingenious,  and  also  his  position  that  the  thirty-second 
article,  when  rigidly  interpreted,  would  exclude  Dunkards 
and  Quakers  as  well  as  Catholics.  His  humor,  in  illus- 
trating the  common  ignorance  of  the  Catholic  religion,  by 
a  conversation  about  the  meaning  of  a  "fetheral"  (a  Fed- 
eralist) was  inimitable,  and  placed  him  in  the  foremost 
rank  of  great  actors.  His  appeal  to  all  Christians  for 
charity  in  the  name  of  a  common  Christianity,  was  equal 
to  any  of  the  masterpieces  of  English  composition. 

But  to  our  mind,  when  the  speech  was  delivered  and 
now,  the  most  captivating  and  stirring  passages  were  the 
personal  parts  relating  to  himself,  and  which  do  not  appear 
in  the  reported  and  published  speech  as  taken  down  in 
shorthand  by  Joe  Gales  at  the  time. 

After  adducing  conclusive  proof  that  the  article  under 
consideration  was  obscure,  if  not  positively  inoperative, 
he  turned  to  the  Convention  and  made  a  most  powerful 
appeal  to  them  to  make  the  Constitution  of  the  agood  old 
State"  clear  and  explicit.  And  then,  addressing  himself 
to  the  proposition  that  they  should  make  the  article  a 
clear  and  plain  disqualification  of  Catholics,  he  said, 
in  tones  that  touched  all  hearts,  tfcat  he  had  not  deter- 
mined what  he  should  do,  but  he  could  not  move  among 
his  countrymen,  to  whom  he  had  devoted  his  heart's  af- 
fections and  the  best  years  of  his  life,  "with  an  infamous 
brand  upon  his  forehead"  ;  and  as  he  closed  the  sentence  he 
slapped  his  hand  upon  his  forehead  and  marched  with  a 
step  that  was  the  personation  of  majesty  a  short  distance 
among  the  members  near  him. 

It  was  a  grand  scene  that  time  can  never  efface. 


GAVIN    HOGG.  123 


GAVIN   HOGG. 

THE  Bar  in  the  Edenton  district  has  always  held  a 
distinguished  place  in  the  history  of  North  Carolina.  Be- 
fore the  Revolution  Mosely  had  a  reputation  as  a  leading 
lawyer,  and  before  and  after  the  Revolution  Governor 
Johnston  had  the  name  of  a  great  jurist.  Doubtless  there 
were  others  whose  names  do  not  occur  to  us.  After  the 
Revolution  came  the  Iredells,  father  and  son,  names  long 
honored  in  our  district  and  the  State;  the  Blairs,  the 
Cummings,  and  others.  Some  of  these  are  mentioned  by 
the  first  Waightstil  Avery,  the  founder  of  the  Avery 
family,  in  his  diary,  when  he  passed  through  this  section 
of  the  State,  from  Connecticut,  before  the  Revolution.  In 
his  diary  he  chronicles  the  fact  that  those  members  of  the 
bar  in  Edenton  to  whom  he  had  letters  of  introduction 
were  sceptics,  or  free-thinkers,  in  religious  matters;  in 
which  respect  we  are  glad  to  chronicle  that  our  Edenton 
brethren  of  the  present  day  are  not  their  counterpart, 
but  contrariwise  are  very  proper  men. 

Later  down  into  the  post-revolutionary  period,  we  reach 
the  time  in  the  early  nineteenth  century  when  Gavin 
Hogg  commenced  his  career  at  the  bar  in  Bertie  County, 
then  a  poor  and  briefless  barrister,  afterward  an  acknowl- 
edged chief,  and  a  formidable  rival  of  Gaston,  not  in 
culture  and  acquirements,  but  in  rugged,  stalwart  power  as 
a  great  lawyer.  It  may  encourage  some  of  our  younger 
brethren  who  are  disposed  to  repine  at  their  hard  lot  and 
to  shrink  from  the  rugged  pathwav  of  earlv  professional 
life,  to  give  a  little  incident  of  Hogg's  entrance  upon  the 
profession.  It  was  related  to  us  by  the  venerable  Jona- 
than Tayloe,  when  over  eighty  years  of  age,  as  having 
come  under  his  personal  observation.  Hogg  was  born,  we 
have  understood,  at  Chapel  Hill  of  poor  parentage.  He 
was  of  Irish  lineage.  Having  his  law  license,  he  went 
down  into  the  eastern  part  of  North  Carolina  in  search 
of  a  place  to  "locate."  He  drove  up  to  the  tavern  in 
Windsor  in  a  single-stick  gig,  after  a  long  and  fatiguing 


124  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

day's  ride,  without  money  and  without  the  acquaintance 
of  any  one  in  the  place,  lie  interviewed  the  landlord 
pretty  soon,  told  him  his  business,  told  him  he  had  no 
money  and  no  friends,  showed  him  his  license,  said  he 
meant  work,  and  wanted  board  and  would  pay  him  if  he  got 
work,  and  if  not  he  would  not  pay  him.  The  landlord, 
whose  name  we  regret  that  we  can  not  recall,  upon  the 
faith  of  his  mission  and  his  candor,  welcomed  him  cor- 
dially, gave  him  his  board  until  he  could  pay,  invited 
him,  as  was  the  custom  of  the  period,  to  take  something, 
which  he  declined;  and  Hogg  commenced  his  life-work, 
which  knew  no  step  backward,  until  in  old  age  he  retired 
from  the  profession,  the  peer  of  the  great  ones,  wealthy, 
respected  and  honored.1 

Gavin  Hogg  was  of  large  person,  with  a  fine,  massive 
head  that  wrould  have  made  Fowler  and  Wells  happy,  and 
an  eye  like  Mars.  In  manner  he  was  grave,  reserved, 
austere  and  forbidding,  wrapped  in  the  solitude  of  his 
own  meditations.  According  to  the  testimony  of  our  best 
lawyers,  the  ablest  brief  that  the  Supreme  Court  Reports 
of  North  Carolina  show  was  prepared  by  Gavin  Hogg. 
Personally  he  was  unpopular.  But  in  the  war  of  1812 
he  raised  a  company  in  Bertie,  of  which  he  was  Captain, 
and  was  at  the  "Battle  of  Craney  Island/'  near  Norfolk, 
Va.,  and  he  was  a  very  popular  officer.  It  is  related  that 
in  his  old  age,  after  he  had  retired  from  the  bar  and  was 
a  wealthy  and  honored  man,  he  went  to  Windsor  from 
Raleigh,  to  which  place  he  had  removed  when  his  reputa- 
tion was  established  and  acknowledged,  and  strove  to  be 
affable  and  familiar  with  his  old  friends  and  clients 
among  whom  he  had  settled  when  poor  and  briefless,  but 
they  could  not  be  familiar  with  him.  He  died  in  Raleigh 
at  an  advanced  age  about  the  year  1837. 


JAMES    ALLEN.  125 


JAMES  ALLEN. 

JAMES  ALLEN,  of  Windsor,  Bertie  County,  has  left  a 
greater  impression  upon  the  public  mind  for  gigantic  in- 
tellect than  any  man  who  has  been  at  the  bar  of  the 
Edenton  circuit.  His  head  was  the  embodiment  of  in- 
tellect, high,  massive  base,  rising  like  a  dome,  with  an 
eye  of  remarkable  brilliancy,  and  a  person  below  the  me- 
dium height,  but  of  considerable  rotundity,  not  unlike 
the  celebrated  Judge  Douglas,  of  Illinois.  He  was  a 
poor  boy  in  the  town  of  Windsor,  neglected,  untrained, 
his  father  following  the  sea  and  taking  but  little  care  of 
his  son.  His  brightness  and  remarkable  head  attracted 
the  attention  of  Thomas  A.  Turner,  an  eccentric  but  in- 
tellectual and  observant  old  bachelor  of  Windsor,  who 
persuaded  him  to  go  to  school  at  his  expense.  He  proba- 
bly made  rapid  proficiency  at  school,  for  at  an  early  age 
he  walked  to  Washington  City,  during  the  administra- 
tion of  General  Jackson,  to  solicit  an  appointment  as 
cadet  at  the  Military  Academy  at  West  Point,  having  a 
letter  to  Governor  Branch,  who  was  then  Secretary  of  the 
Navy  in  the  Cabinet  of  General  Jackson.  Governor 
Branch  introduced  him  to  the  President,  who,  it  is  said, 
looked  at  him,  asked  him  some  few  questions,  and,  upon 
the  faith  of  his  pluck  in  walking  to  Washington  and, 
doubtless,  his  intellectual  head,  old  Hickory  appointed 
liim  a  cadet-at-large.  He  went  to  West  Point,  where  he 
took  the  very  highest  stand,  being  in  the  class  with  Gen- 
eral Lee,  of  the  Confederate  service,  and  graduating  equal 
first  with  Henry  Clay,  who  fell  in  the  Mexican  War,  son 
of  the  illustrious  Kentuckian.  The  on  dit  of  the  time  was 
that  Allen  was  a  better  mathematician  and  a  better  scholar 
than  Clay  but  that  his  father's  influence  made  him  Allen's 
equal.  It  is  said  that  General  Lee  enquired  for  his  old 
classmate  during  the  Confederate  War,  but  he  was  dead 
some  years  before. 

After  graduating,  Allen  remained  in  the  army  a  few 
v<  ;ns.  and  there  appearing  no  prospect  in  the  profession 


126  GRANDFATHER'S  TALKS. 

of  arms  but  a  life  of  inglorious  ease,  he  resigned  and  re- 
turned to  Windsor,  to  enter  upon  the  legal  profession. 
Having  obtained  his  license,  he  rose  at  once  to  the  front 
rank  and  acquired  a  good  practice.  He  was  a  purely 
logical  speaker,  speaking  in  a  plain,  unostentatious  man- 
ner, but  with  most  convincing  effect.  He  dealt  in  pure 
reason,  but  no  man  was  more  convincing  to  a  jury.  His 
speeches  showed  a  powerful  mind.  He  had  in  some  de- 
gree the  humorous  faculty,  which  he  sometimes  indulged 
and  with  great  effect.  In  the  Harrison  campaign  of  1840, 
he  sometimes  took  part  as  a  Whig,  and  always  spoke  with 
convincing  power.  He  was  at  a  large  district  convention 
of  the  Whig  party,  at  Edenton,  in  1840,  which  was  at- 
tended by  Outlaw,  Cherry,  Paine  and  other  prominent 
leaders,  and  no  one  spoke  with  more  effect,  or  was  a  greater 
favorite  with  the  audience,  than  James  Allen. 


ETHNOLOGY.  127 


ETHNOLOGY. 

For  we  are  the  same  our  fathers  have  been, 
We  see  the  same  sights  our  fathers  have  seen, 
We  drink  the  same  streams,  and  view  the  same  sun, 
And  run  the  same  course  our  fathers  have  run. 

— Anon. 

PERHAPS  no  subject  in  the  vast  range  of  thought  pos- 
sesses more  interest  for  man  than  the  history  of  man.  The 
poet  was  right  when  he  announced,  "The  proper  study 
of  mankind  is  man."  Man  is  man's  most  favorite  and 
interesting  study,  and  mysterious  as  is  his  moral  and  in- 
tellectual nature,  his  physical  nature  and  history  is  as 
much  or  more  so.  Whence  he  came,  or  how  he  came, 
\vli ether  he  sprang  into  existence  with  all  his  faculties 
perfect  and  entire  at  the  fiat  of  the  Omnipotent;  whether 
coeval  with  the  earjjh  which  is  his  dwelling-place,  or 
subsequently  placed  there  to  till  and  dress  it  and  to  be 
monarch  of  the  vast  domain;  whether  starting  from  the 
lichens  and  the  mosses,  he  has  gone  on  in  the  slow  progress 
of  improvement  until  he  has  developed  into  a  Caesar  or 
Xapoleon ;  whether  one  man  and  one  woman  "created  He 
them/'  or  whether  of  many  types  and  races;  are  still 
questions  puzzling  and  mysterious,  taxing-  to  their  utmost 
power,  and  beyond  their  power,  the  philosophic  acumen 
of  the  learned  and  the  curious,  and  will  ever  remain 
mysterious,  until  by  a  new  development  and  a  higher  and 
holier  and  more  intelligent  existence  our  eyes  shall  be 
opened  and  all  things  be  made  plain. 

Leaving  the  question  of  man's  origin,  other  questions 
as  mysterious  crowd  upon  the  imagination  and  tax  the 
burdened  thought.  The  origin  of  races,  the  migration  of 
races,  the  extinction  of  races,  the  amalgamation  of  races ; 
whether  the  progress  of  the  human  race  is  the  great  pur- 
pose of  God,  or  progress  and  retrocession  be  the  law  of 
His  mysterious  providence;  whether  in  our  enlightened 
poriod  wo  have  not  forgotten  as  well  as  learned ;  whether 
the  age  of  Pericles  and  the  Athenians  was  not  superior  in 


128  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

arts,  in  letters,  in  physical  development  and  manhood  to 
the  vaunted  developments  of  the  twentieth  century; 
whether  the  mechanical  skill  which  reared  the  Pyramids 
in  the  desert  as  a  mausoleum  for  the  Ptolemys,  thousands 
on  thousands  of  years  gone  by,  has  ever  been  equalled  in 
the  long  line  of  ages  since — these  perplexing  questions, 
full  of  mystery  and  doubt,  leave  us  as  they  found  us, 
groping  blindly,  bewildered  and  unsatisfied. 

Turning  to  our  own  country  we  find  new  and  equally 
mysterious  pages  in  the  history  of  man's  unlearned  lesson 
of  man.  Our  nursery  books  tell  us  that  Christopher 
Columbus  discovered  America  in  the  year  1492,  and  that  he 
found  the  country  peopled  by  an  aboriginal  and  strange 
race  whom  he  called  Indians.  The  Indians  the  aboriginal 
race !  They  were  the  creatures  of  yesterday.  Ages  before 
them  there  existed  on  this  continent  a  race  that  lived  in 
towns  and  cities,  that  cultivated  the  arts  of  a  superior  civil- 
ization peculiar  to  themselves,  a  race  that  has  left  no  writ- 
ten memorials,  but  whose  unwritten  history  is  traced  in  its 
fortifications  that  show  engineering  skill,  in  its  walls  of 
masonry,  and  its  tumuli,  in  which  were  deposited  the  re- 
mains and  relics  of  the  dead.  How  long  this  race  ante- 
dated the  discovery  of  Columbus  is  left  to  conjecture  to 
determine.  They  probably  existed  at  a  very  remote  pe- 
riod of  history,  or  belonged  to  the  pre-historic  period. 
Their  principal  settlements  were  in  the  valleys  of  the 
Ohio  and  Mississippi  and  along  the  great  lakes,  where 
they  lived  in  fortified  towns,  constructed  walls  and  raised 
mounds  for  the  sepulture  of  their  dead.  There  is  little 
doubt  that  many  of  them  dwelt  in  North  Carolina,  but 
the  indications  are,  from  the  absence  of  fortifications, 
that  they  did  not  make  it  their  permanent  dwelling  place, 
or  that  the  other  races  were  subjugated  to  their  will. 

The  evidences  of  the  existence  of  this  ancient  race  in 
North  Carolina  are  found  chiefly  in  the  county  of  Mitch- 
ell. In  the  forests  of  this  county,  in  the  valleys,  along 
the  crests  of  the  hills,  are  found  numerous  pits,  generally 


ETHNOLOGY.  1 29 

about  ten  feet  in  diameter,  now  nearly  filled  up  and  upon 
many  of  them  a  large  full-grown  forest  growth.  These 
pits  have  been  excavated,  and  the  examinations  made  have 
given  the  conclusion  that  they  were  unsuccessful  explora- 
tions in  search  of  precious  metals.  Other  pits  of  larger 
size  are  also  found  in  the  same  county.  One,  called  the 
Sink  Hole,  near  the  North  Toe  Kiver,  eight  miles  from 
Bakersville,  forty  feet  deep  and  about  the  same  diameter, 
has  been  opened  and  worked  beyond  is  original  depth,  and 
mica  found  in  sufficient  quantities  to  make  the  labor  remu- 
nerative. During  the  excavation  some  of  the  tools  used 
in  the  original  excavation  were  found,  and  also  a  tunnel 
connecting  with  other  shafts.  The  tunnel  was  only  four- 
teen inches  wide,  indicating  that  it  was  worked  by  ^a 
diminutive  race  of  men. 

A  series  of  these  pits  is  found  in  the  same  county  on 
( 1;uic  <  'reek,  and  also  or?  North  Toe  River,  near  the  Turn- 
pike. All  of  these  pits  have  been  profitably  worked  for 
mica  during  the  last  few  years. 

These  are  the  forest  records  of  a  race  of  whom  history 
or  tradition  has  furnished  us  no  mementoes,  a  race  that 
had  made  some  progress  in  the  arts  of  civilized  life — a 
race  that  had  some  knowledge  of  engineering,  who  built 
cities,  raised  fortifications,  waged  wars,  mined  into  the 
bowels  of  the  eartli  to  procure  the  means  of  carrying  on 
the  peaceful  traffic  of  commerce — a  race  fashioned  after 
the  same  Maker  and  endowed  with  the  same  passions  with 
ourselves,  who  mourned  their  dead  and  laid  them  with 
sepulchral  honors  in  mounds  reared  to  their  memories, 
where  they  too  were  laid,  and  all  have  passed  away  with- 
out a  trace  to  tell  the  story  of  their  being,  save  the  mys- 
terious record  of  their  labors  dug  by  their  strong  arms 
into  the  eternal  hills. 

"When  I  consider  Thy  heavens,  the  work  of  Thy  fingors  : 
the  moon  and  stars  which  Thou  hast  ordained ; 

"What  is  man,  that  Thou  art  mindful  of  him  ?  and  the 
son  of  man,  that  Thou  viaitest  him?" 


130  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


THE   CONVENTION    OF   1835. 

The  earth  hath  bubbles  as  the  water  hath. 

— Ban  quo. 

THE  North  Carolina  Constitutional  Convention  of  1835 
is  generally  acknowledged  to  have  been  the  ablest  body  of 
men  that  ever  met  in  the  State.  It  was  probably  as  im- 
portant a  body  as  ever  met.  It  was  the  climax  of  a  con- 
troversy that  had  long  agitated  the  whole  State,  and  of 
the  angry  feeling  that  was  engendered  between  Eastern 
and  Western  North  Carolina,  which  at  one  time  threat- 
ened civil  convulsion.  The  subject  of  controversy  that 
gave  rise  to  the  Convention  was  the  basis  of  representa- 
tion, the  west  contending  that  population  should  be  more 
largely  represented,  and  the  east  that  a  conservative  con- 
stitution should  make  property  largely  the  basis.  In  1823 
and  '24  the  agitation  was  most  intense.  Under  the  old 
post-revolutionary  constitution  at  Halifax,  the  eastern 
representation  was  largely  predominant,  based  as  it  was 
upon  property,  and  they  persistently  resisted  all  increase 
of  western  representation.  The  west  was  constantly  ap- 
plying to  the  Legislature  for  a  division  of  their  large 
counties,  which  was  as  frequently  refused  by  the  eastern 
majority.  The  direct  object  was  to  make  the  business 
of  the  west  more  convenient  to  the  people  of  the  counties, 
the  indirect  object  was  to  give  Western  North  Carolina 
the  majority  in  the  General  Assembly,  and  thereby  call 
a  Convention  to  change  the  basis  of  representation.  Western 
North  Carolina  was  then  chiefly  composed  of  a  hardy  race 
of  rough  bear  hunters,  without  property  and  without  cul- 
ture. Their  representatives  generally  were  men  like  them- 
selves. Their  applications  for  redress  were  unheeded,  and 
their  representatives  were  objects  of  derision;  but  they 
increased  in  numbers,  and  their  numbers  were  a  constant 
menace  to  their  more  wealthy  and  more  cultured  eastern 
brethren.  John  Stanly,  of  New  Bern,  was  the  champion 
of  the  east,  and  was  unsparing  in  the  use  of  all  the  wea- 
pons of  sarcasm  in  his  well-equipped  armory,  upon  the 


THE   CONVENTION    OF    1835.  131 

western  members  who  came  to  Raleigh  in  their  best  cow- 
colored  homespun  clothes.  But  in  1824  western  Carolina 
issued  a  protest,  signed  by  Charles  Fisher,  Bartlett  Yan- 
cey  and  other  leading  western  men,  which  thrilled  the 
State  by  threats  of  revolutionary  separation,  and  ulti- 
mately led  the  east  to  pass  the  act  calling  a  Convention  to 
amend  the  Constitution. 

That  Convention  was  a  stormy  one.  It  made  changes 
in  the  basis  of  representation  and  other  articles  of  the  old 
Constitution.  It  was  composed  of  able  men,  antago- 
nistic in  sectional  interests,  and  it  came  to  represent  oppo- 
site sectional  ideas.  The  west  was  armed  in  the  justness 
of  their  claim,  and  their  delegates  were  more  aggressive 
and  violent  in  the  expression  of  their  opinions.  Some- 
times, while  the  Convention  was  in  session,  secession  from 
the  body  by  western  men  was  imminent.  But  for  the 
kind,  moderate  and  fraternal  words  of  that  great  Carolin- 
ian, William  Gaston,  of  New  Bern,  we  think  that  violent 
and  revolutionary  methods  would  have  been  resorted  to. 
His  words,  heard  when  a  youth,  addressed  to  western  men 
aflame  with  passion,  yet  ring  in  our  ears — "My  friends — 
and  surely  mine  to  you  is  no  unfriendly  voice —  '  and 
how  well  do  we  remember  his  rejoinder  to  Governor  Swain, 
who  gave  Scriptural  illustration  to  western  revolution- 
ary sentiment.  Governor  Swain,  in  a  closing  burst  of 
passionate  eloquence,  said:  "Unless  our  demands  are 
granted,  unless  our  wrongs  are  righted,  we  will  rise  like 
the  strong  man  in  his  unshorn  might  and  pull  down  the 
pillars  of  the  political  temple."  The  allusion  was  a  happy 
one  and  happily  applied,  and  appreciated,  and  the  western 
delegates  "rolled  it,"  in  their  speeches,  "under  their 
tongues,"  as  a  "sweet  morsel,"  always  giving  credit  to  the 
"distinguished  gentleman  from  Buncombe."  After  some 
<l;i\s,  Gaston,  who  had  been  silent  in  the  debate  on  the 
"lt;i>is,"  rose  to  speak,  and  after  ably  discussing  the  sub- 
j«vr  at  length,  paused  and  said,  substantiallv :  "The  dis- 
r i n o-u i shod  member  from  Buncombe  has  said  that  Sinless 
i IK-  \\TMMI:-  of  our  western  brethren  are  redressed,  they 
will  rise  like  the  strong  man  in  his  unshorn  might  and 


132  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

pull  down  the  pillars  of  the  political  temple.'  The  strong 
man,  the  son  of  Manoah,  was  brought  out  to  make  sport 
for  the  enemies  of  his  country  at  the  impious  feast  of 
Dagon.  He  tugged  and  pulled  the  massive  pillars  of  the 
temple  and  buried  all  in  one  hideous  ruin.  It  was  a  great 
and  a  glorious  deed.  He  fell  a  martyr  and  a  hero,  vic- 
torious among  the  slain."  Gaston  had  read  the  Bible 
more  thoughtfully  than  Swain. 


JOSEPH     B.    SKINNER. 

An  all-round  man. 

—Old  Saw. 

PERHAPS  the  most  distinguished  lawyer  in  the  district 
after  Hogg,  and  contemporary  with  him  in  his  early  profes- 
sional life  except  the  younger  James  Iredell,  whose  his- 
tory Wheeler  has  already  written,  was  Joseph  B.  Skinner, 
of  Edenton.  There  are  remarkable  men  that  float  along  on 
the  tide  of  time  that  are  without  a  parallel.  Mr.  Skinner 
was  such  a  man.  He  was  born  in  Perquimans  County, 
in  Harvey's  Neck,  and  was  the  son  of  Joshua  Skinner,  a 
hard-working  and  well-to-do  farmer,  who  raised  his  sons 
to  hard  work  and  plain  living.  He  gave  indications  at  an 
early  period  of  uncommon  brightness,  and  an  uncle  of 
his  determined  that  he  should  have  the  advantage  of  mental 
training.  He  had  already  learned  the  elements  of  edu- 
cation at  the  common  schools.  In  a  conversation  that 
this  uncle  had  with  his  brother  Joshua,  he  was  heard  to 
say:  "I  see  in  this  boy  the  future  hope  of  our  family." 
Through  the  influence  of  his  uncle  he  was,  after  proper 
preparation,  sent  to  Princeton  College,  where  he  gradu- 
ated at  an  early  age,  and  where  he  was  the  contemporary  of 
Gaston.  After  graduation  he  studied  law,  at  Hayes,  the 
seat  of  Governor  Johnston,  and  after  obtaining  his  law 
license,  entered  upon  the  practice  of  his  profession  with 


JOSEPH    B.    SKINNER.  133 

diligence.  lie  Was  devoted  to  business,  at  all  dines  in  his 
office,  early  and  late,  making  his  business  his  sole  pur- 
suit, making  all  things  secondary  to  it — the  social  cour- 
tesies of  life,  the  demands  of  pleasure,  the  calls  of  wealthy 
or  distinguished  persons.  In  the  town  of  Edenton,  where 
he  practiced  law,  his  attention  to  business  attracted  uni- 
versal attention.  Mr.  Collins,  the  wealthiest  man  in  the 
place,  called  at  his  office  for  a  social  call  while  Mr.  Skinner 
was  engaged  in  business,  and  he  did  not  notice  Mr.  Col- 
lins. He  left  unnoticed,  and  always  after  employed  Skin- 
ner in  all  his  business.  His  attention  to  business  won 
the  rich  man.  Mr.  Skinner  did  a  large  and  lucrative 
practice  from  Currituck  to  Chowan,  and  over  the  sound. 
He  acquired  fortune  by  his  practice.  At  about  fifty-five 
years  of  age  he  retired  from  practice  and  went  on  a  farm 
one  mile  from  Edenton,  where  he  passed  the  remainder 
of  his  life  in  the  enjoyment  of  all  the  comforts  which 
ample  fortune  could  give.  It  was  said  by  some  that  the 
rivalry  and  superior  attainments  of  the  younger  Iredell 
drove  him  from  the  bar.  However  this  may  have  been, 
Mr.  Skinner  was  in  the  full  enjoyment  of  a  large  prac- 
tice when  he  retired. 

He  was  not  an  eloquent  speaker,  in  the  popular  sense, 
but  no  man  spoke  more  lucidly;  in  fact,  that  was  the 
striking  characteristic  of  his  mind,  the  clearness  with  which 
he  conceived  any  subject  and  his  plain  manner  of  stating 
any  proposition.  His  humor  was  also  a  striking  charac- 
teristic, and  he  was  master  of  the  whole  armor  of  ridi- 
cule. His  judgment  was  unerring,  and  his  confidence  in 
it  irave  a  boldness  to  his  operations  in  business  that  sur- 
prised every  one  with  his  success.  He  engaged  largely 
in  fishing  on  both  sides  of  the  Albemarle  Sound  with  emi- 
nent success.  He  was  probably  the  best  and  most  pro- 
gressive farmer  in  the  counties  of  Chowan  and  Perqui- 
mans,  where  ho  owned  large  possessions.  He  was  an  aris- 
tocrat, and  exclusive  in  his  social  intercourse;  but  he  was 
kind  an<l  liberal  to  the  poor,  aided  meritorious  voiing 
men  who  needed  assistance,  and  his  knowledge  of  men 


i34  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

was  so  accurate  that  his  judgment  never  failed  in  his  esti- 
mate of  men. 

Mr.  Skinner  was  a  man  of  rare  humor  and  foresight, 
and  his  humor  frequently  entered  into  his  business  cal- 
culations. 

On  one  occasion  he  was  very  anxious  that  the  minister 
in  charge  of  old  aSt.  Paul's"  Church,  in  Edenton,  of 
which  he  was  a  member,  should  have  an  increase  of  salary. 
At  that  time  the  salary  of  the  minister  was  made  up  by 
the  renting  of  the  pews.  He  attended  the  renting,  and 
finding  that  the  bids  were  low  and  would  not  realize  such 
a  salary  as  he  wished,  he  commenced  running  up  the  bids 
on  all  that  were  put  up  to  such  a  sum  as  he  thought  neces- 
sary to  make  up  the  salary  of  the  clergyman.  When  he 
had  bid  off  some  dozen  or  more,  some  one,  in  surprise, 
ventured  to  ask  him  what  he  was  bidding  off  so  many  pews 
for.  He  said  he  bid  them  off  for  his  negroes,  and  in- 
tended that  they  should  attend  church  and  occupy  them. 
They  knew  that  he  would  do  it,  and  the  white  members 
of  the  church  soon  took  them  off  his  hands  and  bid  higher 
on  the  others. 

Tie  was  once  sitting  in  his  parlor  writing  a  letter  of 
instructions  to  a  manager  of  one  of  his  farms  in  Perqui- 
mans,  and  his  overseer,  Jas.  Cannon,  was  waiting  in  the 
room  for  Mr.  Skinner  to  finish  writing,  when  a  knock  was 
heard  at  the  outer  door.  The  visitor  was  invited  into  the 
room.  It  was  the  period  of  clock-peddlers,  a  class  of  men 
that  were  the  persistent  representatives  of  the  book  agents 
of  our  time.  The  visitor  was  a  clock  peddler.  He  came 
into  the  parlor,  bringing  his  clock  with  him.  "Buy  a 
clock  this  morning,  sir?"  asked  the  peddler,  before  offer- 
ing the  customary  salutation.  "Don't  wish  one,"  said 
Skinner,  without  raising  his  head  from  his  writing."  First- 
rate  timer-keeper,"  said  the  peddler,  setting  his  clock  to 
striking;  "Double  pendulum,  brass  mounting,  full  ring, 
no  cheat,  let  me  put  her  up  for  you,  sir."  "Don't  want 
your  clock,  sir,"  said  Skinner,  continuing  to  write.  "Come, 
now,  do  buy,  keep  good  time,  all  right  for  fifteen  dollars," 
said  the  peddler,  the  clock  all  the  time  ringing  out,  "ting, 


JOSEPH    B.    SKINNER.  135 

ting,  ting,  ting" — "No  mistake  in  her,  sir."  Mr.  Skinner 
slowly  raised  his  head  from  his  paper,  and  in  his  slow 
and  deliberate  tones,  said:  "Cannon,  tell  Eden,  and  Little 
Jack,  and  Big  Bob,  and  Peter  Mike,  and  Slab  Foot  Jim, 
to  come  here."  Meanwhile  the  peddler  kept  on  an  end- 
less fusilade  of  recommendations,  the  clock  all  the  while 
keeping  music,  "ting,  ting,  ting."  The  order  was  no  sooner 
given  than  obeyed.  The  five  strapping  negro  fellows  came 
in  to  receive  the  order,  the  clock  and  the  peddler  in  full 
cry.  "Boys,"  said  Mr.  Skinner,  "take  that  clock  peddler 
and  put  him  in  his  wagon  and  send  him  off."  No  sooner 
was  the  order  given  than  it  was  obeyed,  to  the  peddler's 
utter  astonishment  and  despite  his  violent  struggles  to  re- 
lease himself.  Skinner,  looking  at  Cannon  with  an  arch 
expression,  said :  "Cannon,  d — n  the  fellow,  how  he  kicks." 
Mr.  Skinner  died  about  the  year  1850,  being  over  sev- 
enty years  old,  of  rheumatic  gout.  He  had  been  a  great 
sufferer  for  years.  He  left  a  large  estate.  He  requested 
that  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer  should  be  placed  upon 
his  breast,  and  the  Bible,  open  at  the  Book  of  Job,  by  his 
side,  before  his  burial. 


136  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


JUDGE    R.    R.    HEATH. 

If  we  knew  the  woe  and  heartache 
Waiting  for  us  down  the  road, 
Would  we  waste  the  day  in  wishing 
For  a  time  that  ne'er  can  be  ? 

— Anon. 

THERE  arrived  in  Edenton  from  N&w  Hampshire,  on  a 
schooner  from  Boston,  a  young  man,  a  stranger,  without 
pecuniary  means,  slender  of  person,  modest  and  retiring 
in  demeanor,  seeking  employment  He  was  an  educated 
man,  and  appeared  to  have  graduated  at  Dartmouth  Col- 
lege. The  Trustees  of  Edenton  Academy,  hospitable  to 
merit,  employed  him  as  an  assistant  in  that  institution,  to 
Jos.  H.  Saunders,  who  was  principal  in  the  flourishing 
institution.  That  man  was  R,obt  E.  Heath,  afterward  a 
Judge  of  the  Superior  Court  of  North  Carolina.  He 
remained  in  that  employment  for  three  or  four  years,  ex- 
hibiting a  social  and  agreeable  disposition  and  becoming 
a  favorite  in  the  community.  During  this  period  he 
was  engaged,  in  an  irregular  and  desultory  manner,  in 
studying  law  with  George  W.  Barney,  who  had,  some 
years  before,  come  to  Edenton  from  New  Hampshire,  and 
had  acquired  wealth  by  his  law  practice  and  by  marriage, 
and  who,  later,  dishonored  the  profession  of  which  he 
was  a  conspicuous  member.  One  fine  morning  the  boys 
who  were  his  pupils  were  startled  by  the  news  that  their 
teacher  had  gone  to  Raleigh  to  be  made  a  lawyer.  They 
whistled  aloud  and  put  their  fingers  on  their  nose,  for 
none  of  them  knew  that  their  schoolmaster  was  studying 
law.  However,  at  that  period  "honors  were  easy,"  and 
the  Supreme  Court  ground  all  the  grist  that  was  brought 
to  the  mill.  He  came  back,  after  some  days,  a  lawyer, 
and  the  boys,  always  on  the  lookout  for  knowledge,  heard 
that  all  the  law  that  he  carried  to  the  mill  was  stuffed  into 
him  by  Barnev,  who  was  a  good  lawyer,  as  they  rode  to- 
gether to  Raleigh. 

After  obtaining  his  license,  he  left  the  school  and  took 


JUDGE    R.    R     HEATH.  137 

a  law  office,  but  was  not  much  in  it.  He,  however,  at- 
tended to.  his  business  irregularly,  and  Thos.  B.  Haugh- 
ton,  an  old  lawyer,  whose  daughter  Mr.  Heath  subse- 
quently married,  sometimes  said,  to  the  surprise  of  others, 
that  Heath  was  one  of  the  best  lawyers  in  the  town,  but 
no  one  believed  it.  After  his  marriage,  and  while  Mr. 
Haughton'lived,  he  did  but  little,  a  sort  of  flotsam  of  the 
profession.  But  when  Mr.  Haughton  was  drowned,  leav- 
ing a  very  large  estate,  heavily  involved  and  ultimately 
bankrupt,  Mr.  Heath  waked  up  to  the  reality  of  his  situa- 
tion, poor,  the  son-in-law  of  a  bankrupt  father,  dependent 
upon  himself,  with  nothing  but  his  law  books,  a  family 
looking  to  him  for  bread;  and  he  became  a  man.  He 
removed  to  Ed  en  ton  from  the  country.  He  was  diligent 
in  business.  He  made  friends.  He  won  clients.  He 
gained  causes.  He  was  a  plain  man.  Plain  in  his  at- 
tire. Plain  in  his  manners.  Plain  and  free  and  simple 
in  his  intercourse.  He  followed  the  courts  from  Curri- 
tuck  to  Hyde,  and  was  everywhere  a  favorite.  In  politics 
he  was  an  unterrified  Democrat,  at  a  time  when  it  was 
thought  not  to  be  decent  to  be  other  than  a  Whig.  Demo- 
crats recognized  him  as  an  able  leader  in  whom  there  was 
"no  variableness  nor  shadow  of  turning."  He  was  every- 
where their  trusted  leader,  counsellor  and  guide.  He 
was  a  thorough,  well-posted  politician  and  Democrat,  not 
a  speaker  of  the  first  class,  but  eminently  wise  in  counsel. 
Mr.  Heath  was  now  a  leader  in  the  profession,  with  a 
leading  practice  in  all  the  courts,  the  peer  of  the  ablest  in 
a  bar  that  presented  a  galaxy  of  talent,  and  that  numbered 
among  its  members  Moore,  and  Kinney,  and  Outlaw,  and 
Cherry,  and  Bragg,  and  Jim  Allen,  and  Tom  Jones,  and 
Jas.  Jones,  and  Haughton,  and  Jesse  Wilson,  and  Bailey, 
and  Sheppard,  and  Smith,  and  Elliott,  and  Paine,  and 
Brooks,  and  Martin.  Among  this  array  of  talent,  Mr. 
Hoath  held  high  rank,  as  a  ready,  astute  and  profound 
lawyer.  His  memory  of  authority  and  precedent  was  a 
marvel.  At  a  moment's  notice  he  would  cite  cases  by 
namo  and  page  and  in  point. 


i3&  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES 

In  Edenton,  where  he  lived,  he  was  the  acknowledged 
rival  of  Judge  Moore,  and  in  their  conventional,  courtesy 
there  was  too  much  rivalry  for  cordial  friendship.  Moore 
was  laborious,  painstaking,  cautious,  earnest.  Heath  was 
ready,  quick,  alert,  surprising.  Moore  was  earnest,  and  his 
earnestness  sometimes  arose  to  eloquence.  Heath  was  calm, 
easy,  placable,  even-tempered.  Moore  was  impassioned 
and  vehement.  Generally  Moore  was  the  more  successful 
lawyer.  He  never  trusted  himself.  He  never  "went  off 
half-cocked."  He  was  always  thoroughly  prepared.  In 
mental  characteristics  he  was  very  much  like  Chief  Jus- 
tice Smith.  Heath  too  often  trusted  to  the  chances. 

About  the  year  1850  Mr.  Heath  was  elected  to  the  Bench 
by  the  Legislature,  without  his  seeking.  He  made  an  able 
Judge,  and  has  left  a  reputation  that  is  a  credit  to  the 
Bench  of  North  Carolina.  After  the  war  Judge  Heath 
removed  to  Tennessee,  and  resumed  his  profession.  He 
was  never  satisfied.  In  letters  to  Bat.  Moore.,  who  was 
his  intimate  friend,  he  spoke  of  the  Albemarle  country  of 
North  Carolina  as  the  best  country  to  live  in  that  he  had 
ever  seen,  and  that  he  regretted  his  having  left  it 

We  heard  the  late  Judge  Brooks  say  that  while  in  Eden- 
ton  at  the  trial  of  the  Johnston  Will  case,  Judge  Heath 
took  a  walk  with  him  to  his  old  house  and  home  on  Main 
street,  and  it  was  apparent  to  him  that  his  mind  was 
shadowed  by  a  cloud  of  despondency.  The  past  and  its 
memories  brooded  over  him  as  a  pall. 

About  the  year  1875  Judge  Heath  returned  to  North 
Carolina,  where  he  married  a  lady  of  wealth  in  the  west- 
ern part  of  the  State. 

And  here  we  would  gladly  pause  and  cast  the  veil  over 
the  memory  of  our  old  school-master ;  but  biography,  like 
history,  must  be  true  to  itself. 

After  living  in  North  Carolina  a  few  years,  in  a  time 
of  great  mental  depression  and  bodily  sickness,  in  a  mo- 
ment of  despair,  he  shrank  from  the  troubles  of  the  world, 
which  seemed  of  old  to  sit  so  lightly  upon  him,  and  took 
by  violence  his  useful  life. 


GENERAL   WILLIAM    GREGORY.  139 

Judge  Heath  was  large  in  person,  with  a  face  of  a  most 
kind,  benign  and  winning  expression.  He  was  especially 
kind  and  social  with  the  young  members  of  the  profession, 
assisting  them  with  advice  and  looking,  perhaps,  too  gently 
upon  any  of  their  irregularities.  In  religious  faith  he 
was  a  Roman  Catholic.  He  died  at  about  sixty-five  years 
of  age. 


GENERAL    WILLIAM    GREGORY. 
A  genius  of  eccentricity. 

ONE  of  the  most  remarkable  men  in  the  whole  history  of 
Elizabeth  City  was  Gen.  William  Gregory.  In  the  pos- 
thumous collections  of  old  North  Carolina  families  by 
J.  H.  Wheeler,  General  Gregory,  of  Elizabeth  City,  is 
spoken  of  as  an  old  citizen  of  North  Carolina  who,  early 
in  life,  was  known  as  "Beau  Gregory."  He  was  a  con- 
spicuous figure  in  his  town  for  many  years.  He  had  great 
courtesy  and  style  of  manner,  and  was  a  punctilious  ob- 
server of  all  the  ceremonials  of  polite  society  up  to  his 
death  in  1846.  In  personal  appearance  he  strikingly 
resembled  General  La  Fayette,  so  famous  in  our  Revolu- 
tionary history.  His  father  was  a  Revolutionary  officer 
of  large  wealth,  whose  son  William  was  his  only  son ;  and 
he  gave  him  the  advantages  of  educational  culture  and 
polite  association,  and  after  completing  his  general  edu- 
cation, placed  him  under  the  tuition  of  Gen.  William  R. 
Davie,  of  Halifax,  to  be  trained  in  the  profession  of  the 
law.  General  Davie  was  the  most  eminent  lawyer  in 
North  Carolina,  and  was  distinguished  for  elegant  ac- 
complishments and  courteous  bearing,  acquired  by  diplo- 
matic association  at  the  Court  of  France,  where  he  had 
been  a  representative  of  our  Government. 

After  completing  his  education  and  obtaining  his  license, 
General  Gregory,  for  a  time,  opened  a  law  office  in  Eliza- 
beth City,  but  his  large  expectations  of  wealth  and  fond- 


140  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

ness  for  the  pleasures  of  society  interfered  with  his  legal 
studies,  and  he  was  not  a  success  at  the  bar.  in  fact,  it 
was  a  long-current  statement  that  he  never  appeared  before 
a  court  and  jury  but  once.  It  was  said  that  he  arose  to 
address  the  jury,  when  the  case  was  on  trial,  and  said: 
"Gentlemen  of  the  jury,  I  conceive  that  my  client."  He 
then  looked  confused  and  sheepish,  and  said  again,  "Gen- 
tlemen of  the  jury,  I  conceive.7'  He  then  paused,  looked 
foolish  and  dazed,  and  after  a  little  while  he  proceeded 
and  said  again,  "Gentlemen  of  the  jury,  I  conceive,"  and 
then  sat  down.  Mr.  Goodman,  the  leader  of  the  bar,  who 
appeared  on  the  opposite  side,  arose  and  'said :  "Gentle- 
men of  the  jury,  brother  Gregory  has  conceived  three 
times  and  brought  forth  nothing,"  and  then  went  on  to 
argue  the  case.  It  was  Gregory's  first  and  last  effort. 
He  always  kept  up  his  association  with  the  members  of 
the  law  profession,  always  attended  the  courts,  and  was 
treated  with  marked  attention  and  consideration  by  the 
members  of  the  bar. 

In  his  old  age,  when  nearing  eighty,  he  was  a  conspic- 
uous figure  on  our  streets,  and  was  a  specimen  of  vigorous 
old  age,  erect  and  sturdy  looking.  He  was  companion- 
able with  young  men  and  old,  and  was  a  favorite  with 
every  one.  He  became  very  poor  in  his  old  age,  and  was 
kindly  cared  for  by  his  relatives  and  friends.  'He  dressed 
plainly,  but  with  scrupulous  neatness. 

General  Gregory  had  a  singular  constitutional  defect 
in  his  intellectual  organization.  He  had  no  conception 
of  the  proper  use  of  words  or  their  application,  and  the 
blunders  which  he  made  were  a  perennial  fountain  of 
jest  for  the  town.  He  was  utterly  unconscious  of  his  in- 
accuracies. Bill  Butler,  the  wag  of  the  town,  was  never 
happier  than  when  he  could  get  General  Gregory  to  ex- 
plain to  him  something  relating  to  military  matters.  But- 
ler would  listen  to  him  with  apparent  earnestness,  while 
Gregory  would  go  through  all  the  details  of  military  drill 
^nd  evolution,  and  then  Butler  would  go  through  the 
•-movements  with  the  most  ludicrous  blundering.  The 


GENERAL   WILLIAM    GREGORY.  14! 

General  would  repeat  it,  saying  " cl — n  it,  Butler 

(he  would  cuss  sometimes),  why  don't  you  do  like  1  show 
you!7'  While  they  enjoyed  the  joke,  our  old  people  were 
always  respectful  to  the  General.  He  was  a  militia  Gen- 
eral, and  knew  no  more  about  military  matters  than  a 
militia  muster  captain  with  a  cornstalk  sword. 

General  Gregory  was  utterly  without  business  capacity, 
not  for  want  of  general  intelligence,  but  for  an  impatience 
of  the  details  of  business,  because  he  was  dandled  in  the 
lap  of  luxury  in  his  early  days  and  could  never  bring 
himself  down  to  the  drudgery  of  labor. 

He  \vas  postmaster  of  the  town,  and  soon  the  business 
got  awry,  and  his  administration  of  post-office  affairs  was 
examined  by  an  expert  examiner  of  the  office,  who  found 
a  shortage  in  his  accounts.  His  bondsmen  promptly  set- 
tled the  delinquency  and  there  was  no  attempt  at  con- 
cealment. After  the*  matter  was  settled  and  the  post- 
office  had  passed  out  of  his  hands,  one  of  his  bondsmen,  an 
old  and  confidential  friend,  said  to  him — "Gregory,  what 
<li<l  you  do  with  all  the  money  that  came  into  your  hands  ?" 
"What  did  I  do  with  it?  Why,  I  spent  it  like  a  gentle- 
man, sir,"  said  the  General. 

While  he  was  postmaster  a  weekly  mail  came  through  the 
Dismal  Swamp  Canal  from  Norfolk,  and  generally  arrived 
at  night.  Its  arrival  was  announced  by  firing  an  old 
cannon  on  the  wharf  where  the  mail  boat  landed.  One 
very  dark  night  the  cannon  was  fired  some  time  before  the 
arrival  of  the  mail,  and  the  postmaster,  the  landlord  of 
the  hotel,  old  Billy  Albertson,  and  several  citizens  went 
down  to  the  wharf  to  get  the  mail  and  the  passengers,  and 
some  from  mere  curiosity.  Dr.  Mathews,  then  in  his  prime 
and  over  on  the  alert-  for  a  practical  joke,  had  stretched 
a  rope  across  lower  Main  street  on  the  route  to  the  mail- 
boat  landing.  The  rope  was  about  the  height  of  a  man's 
knees  from  the  ground.  Gregory  hurried  down  for  his 
in  nil,  and  was  the  first  to  be  tripped  heels  over  head  by  the 
rope.  While  he  was  lying  prostrate  on  the  ground,  Al- 
hortson  came  hurrying  down  to  meet  his  passengers,  and 


142  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

was  tripped  and  fell,  and  he  gave  vent  to  his  ire  by  cursing 
and  threatening.  Gregory  spoke  out  in  the  darkness — 
"Billy,  don't  cuss ;  I  am  down,  too.  It's  that  damn  Sam. 
Mathews." 


ANECDOTES   OF    MR.    BADGER. 

Still  the  wonder  grew, 
That  one  big  head 
Could  carry  all  he  knew. 

— Goldsmith. 

LET  us  place  upon  the  grave  of  Mr.  Badger  some  few 
offerings  illustrative  of  his  eccentricities  and  of  his  won- 
derful versatility  of  talent,  for,  after  all,  his  versatility 
of  talent  and  acquirements  were  the  most  distinguished 
features  of  his  character. 

We  once  heard  Chief  Justice  Smith  say  that  if  Mr.  Bad- 
ger talked  about  a  horse  one  would  suppose  he  had  devoted 
his  whole  life  to  the  study  of  horses,  and  so  if  he  talked 
of  anything  else,  one  would  think  he  had  made  that  sub- 
ject a  special  study.  He  seemed  to  have  an  intuitive 
knowledge  of  things  foreign  to  his  pursuits,  and  he  had 
a  fondness  for  displaying  it  that  was  almost  a  weakness. 
We  once  heard  Colonel  Ferebee  say  that  in  the  Secession 
Convention,  Mr.  Badger  discoursed  to  Wm.  Pettigrew  and 
himself,  who  were  members  of  that  Convention,  about 
the  relative  merits  of  different  kinds  of  liquor  at  a  length 
and  learning  that  was  wonderful ;  concluding  with  a  tribute 
to  the  value  of  whiskey  over  all  other  liquors. 

Mr.  Badger  was  in  this  town  to  argue  a  case  of  usury, 
in  which  the  State  Bank  of  North  Carolina  was  plaintiff 
and  Horatio  Williams  was  defendant,  at  the  Spring  Term 
of  the  Superior  Court  of  1844,  Jud^e  W.  H.  Battle  pre- 
siding. He  was  in  the  full  victor  of  his  faculties  and  man- 
hood. He  was  exuberant  of  health  and  spirits.  He  was 
full  and  running  over  with  playfulness  and  vivacity.  And 
he  was  looking  anxiously  forward  to  a  place  in  the  TTni- 


ANECDOTES   OF    MR.    BADGER.  143 

ted  States  Senate,  which  was  depending  on  hip  individ- 
ual personal  popularity  and  upon  the  success  of  the  Whig 
Party  in  North  Carolina  during  that  canvass.  We  had 
heard  of  Judge  Badger  as  an  austere  man,  haughty,  super- 
cilious, proud,  inconsiderate.  We  had  heard  him,  when 
a  boy,  speak  with  contempt  of  popular  government.  We 
had  heard  of  his  contemptuous  reference  to  the  Legis- 
lature of  North  Carolina,  of  his  contemptuous  reference 
to  the  voters  of  Wake  County,  when  he  was  an  indifferent 
candidate  for  their  suffrages  in  opposition  to  Wm.  H. 
Haywood.  We  had  observed  when  a  boy  that  he  never 
attended  the  sessions  of  the  Convention  of  1835.  We 
took  this  as  an  expression  of  his  contempt  for  that  distin- 
guished body.  We  had  therefore  concluded  that  the  same 
intercourse  would  be  shown  here.  How  greatly  we  were 
mistaken.  He  was  introduced  to  his  professional  breth- 
ren by  Colonel  Outlaw.  He  was  courteous,  kind  and 
familiar.  He  became  easy  and  playful  with  all  the  young 
members  of  the  profession.  The  ink  on  our  license  was 
hardly  dry,  but.  we  can  remember  with  what  happiness 
we  felt  the  pressure  of  his  great  hand  upon  our  youthful 
shoulders.  He  was  familiar  with  all  the  people  of  the 
t.nvii.  Tom,  Richard  and  Harry,  he  would  hail  across 
the  street  by  their  familiar  names  and  go  tripping  across 
to  talk  familiarly  with  them.  He  was  at  the  time  the 
most  accomplished  demagogue  that  we  ever  saw. 

His  speech  was  a  masterly  effort.  He  was  assisted  by 
Wm.  B.  Shepard  and  General  Ehringhaus ;  the  defence 
was  supported  by  Chas.  II.  Kinney  and  Augustus  Moore. 
The  principal  arguments  were  made  by  Mr.  Badger  and 
Mr.  Kinney.  Each  foeman  worthy  of  the  other's  steel. 
Mr.  Kinney  was  in  declining  health,  but  the  knowledge 
of  the  foeman  brought  out  the  full  measure  of  his  strength. 
He  overtaxed  his  physical  power,  and  the  next  day  he 
was  prostrated  by  a  hemorrhage. 

Mr.  Badger  came  to  the  court  through  the  country,  in  an 
elegant  turn-out  with  a  pair  of  beautiful  bay*,  which  \vas 
every  day  at  the  door  of  the  hotel  at  the  service  of  I  he 
ladies  who  were  boarding  at  the  hotel. 


144  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

'ihe  day  before  Mr.  Badger  was  to  leave  in  the 
evening,  he  was  standing  on  the  corner  opposite  the  hotel, 
the  gay  centre  of  an  admiring  crowd  of  listeners,  when 
Mr.  Ehringhaus,  the  cashier  of  the  bank,  a  venerable 
man  of  nearly  seventy  years,  a  great  admirer  of  Mr.  Bad- 
ger, and  especially  pleased  with  attentions  from  the  dis- 
tinguished man,  was  passing  on  the  other  side.  Mr.  Bad- 
ger hailed  him  aloud,  familiarly:  "House  (as  he  called 
him)  come  over  here."  Mr.  Ehringhaus  came  over,  and 
after  a  few  words  of  pleasant  conversation,  said  to  Mr. 
Badger,  pointing  to  his  handsome  carriage  and  horses 
standing  before  the  door  of  the  hotel:  "Badger,  I  wish 
you  would  leave  that  pair  of  horses  down  here  for  me  when 
you  go  away  to-morrow !"  Mr.  Badger  looked  at  him  for 
a  moment,  and,  assuming  a  most  grave  manner,  said: 
"House,  1  like  you.  I  have  another  pair  of  fine  horses 
at  home,  and  I  would  like  to  give  you  that  pair  of  horses. 
I  would  like  very  much  to  do  so.  But,  House,  suppose 
I  was  to  give  you  that  carriage  and  horses,  how  shall  I 
carry  away  that  nice  lunch  you  will  put  up  for  me  to-mor- 
row to  carry  with  me?  How  should  I  carry  that  old 
French  brandy,  that  two  or  three  bottles  of  old  Port,  that 
oyster  sauce  and  pickles,  that  nice  turkey  and  chicken 
salad,  that  cold  lemon  pudding,  and  the  other  nice  and 
appetizing  delicacies  that  you  are  going  to  fix  up  so 
kindly  for  me?"  House  put  on  the  dry  grins.  Mr.  Bad- 
ger extemporized  a  thirty-dollar  lunch  in  a  few  minutes. 

The  morning  Mr.  Badger  left  to  speak  in  Perquimans, 
he  was  invited  to  breakfast  with  Mr.  Ehringhaus,  and 
ordered  his  carriage  to  leave  from  there.  He  was  accom- 
panied by  Thos.  F.  Jones,  of  Perquimans,  and  it  is  from 
Mr.  Jones'  narrative  that  we  take  the  account  of  that  visit. 
Mr.  Ehringhaus'  family  were  society  people,  and  Mr.  Bad- 
ger was  received  with  marked  and  ceremonious  courtesy. 
Nothing  was  omitted  that  was  due  to  one  so  distinguished. 
All  the  ceremonial  observances  were  strictly  followed. 
The  servants  were  trained  to  the  observance  of  the  most 
minute  etiquette  of  fashion. 


ANECDOTES   OF   MR.    BADGER.  145 

When  breakfast  was  announced,  Mr.  Badger  was  ush- 
ered in  with  every  mark  of  respect  and  deference.  The 
guests  were  assigned  to  their  several  places ;  and  as  the  dis- 
tinguished guest  was  about  being  seated,  the  servant  girl, 
as  by  direction,  removed  the  cha-ir  to  replace  it  when 
seated.  When  lo !  Mr.  Badger,  not  observing  that  the 
chair  had  been  removed,  attempted  to  take  his  seat  be- 
fore it  was  replaced,  and  fell  sprawling  upon  the  floor 
in  a  most  mortifying  manner.  The  whole  family  were 
in  a  condition  of  utter  bewilderment.  The  servant  girl 
was  frightened  and  mortified,  and  things  presented  a  most 
pitiable  sight.  Mr.  Badger  laid  there  till  the  tempest  had 
subsided,  and  then,  raising  himself  up  on  his  elbows  and 
looking  at  Mrs.  Ehringhaus,  said,  with  the  most  satisfied 
expression,  "Well,  Madam,  what  comes  next?"  as  if  it 
were  a  part  of  the  ceremony  for  him  to  be  tripped  up  and 
tin-own  upon  the  floor.  . 


10 


146  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


THE    PEN    AND   THE    SWORD. 

Beneath  the  rule  of  man  entirely  great. 
The  pen  is  mightier  than  the  sword. 

— Richelieu. 

THE  question  is  often  asked,  Who  was  the  greater,  Na- 
poleon Bonaparte  or  Sir  Walter  Scott  \  Scott  wrote  the 
life  of  Napoleon,  and  it  was  the  first  elaborate  biography 
of  that  man  of  destiny.  Who  was  the  greater,  Homer, 
author  of  the  great  epic  poem,  or  Achilles,  the  hero  of  the 
great  drama  of  history  upon  which  that  ejpic  was  founded  i 
Who  was  the  greater,  Patrick  Henry,  the  orator  and  tri- 
bune of  the  Devolution,  or  Wirt,  who  crystalized  that 
oratory  into  biographical  history  ?  Unquestionably,  the 
pen  of  the  historian  is  mightier  than  the  sword  of  the 
warrior.  So  likewise,  a  fortiori  (as  lawyers  say)  the  pen 
is  mightier  than  the  "root  of  all  evil." 

To  illustrate  these  propositions:  North  Carolina  has 
made  enough  history  to  make  a  large-sized  library.  It 
has  furnished  enough  orators  to  fill  all  the  mausoleums 
of  history.  Wm.  K.  Davie  was  the  orator,  statesman  and 
diplomatist  of  the  Revolution.  He  was  the  Patrick  Henry 
of  North  Carolina.  Why  was  not  Henry  the  Wm.  R. 
Davie  of  Virginia  ?  Davie  was  a  superior  man  to  Henry. 
Davie  was  a  courtly  gentleman  of  the  old  school,  a  good 
lawyer,  an  able  debater,  .a  representative  of  our  govern- 
ment at  the  polished  Court  of  France,  and  wore  a  gentle- 
man's queue,  manufactured  in  Paris.  Henry  was  a  bar- 
keeper, a  hook-and-line  fisherman,  a  fox  hunter,  and,  as 
Mr.  Jefferson  told  Mr.  Webster  at  Monticello  in  1820, 
associated  with  rowdies  in  intimate  companionship.  Why 
then,  is  it,  that  Henry  rides  down  the  lines  of  history  as 
the  "silver-tongued  orator"  of  the  Revolution,  and  Davie 
is  "hardly  known  to  our  school  children?  Simply  because 
Wirt's  pen  was  mightier  than  Davie's  tongue  or  sword. 
All  along  the  line  from  Davie  dowrn,  orators  have  been  in- 
digenous to  North  Carolina  soil,  and  at  every  period  of 
her  history.  Why  do  we  not  know  that  history  by  heart  ? 


THE    PEN    AND   THE   SWORD.  147 

Simply  because  our  pens  have  been  silent  amid  the  clash 
of  arms  and  the  progress  of  great  events.  Now,  this  is 
all  wrong.  He  that  raises  his  arm  on  the  ramparts  of  his- 
tory should  ride  like  a  panoplied  knight  down  its  lines. 
If  North  Carolina  has  made  history,  as  she  doubtless  has, 
then  it  is  right  and  just  that  the  laurels  of  history  should 
be  twined  around  her  brow.  How  can  the  wrong  be  right- 
ed ?  How  can  it  be  condoned  before  the  august  tribunal 
of  history?  Let  "North  Carolina  Day"  be  set  apart  IB 
all  our  schools  in  the  State  as  sacred  to  our  history.  Let 
each  pupil  select  some  event  in  our  annals  and  write  a 
historical  essay  upon  the  event,  or  some  one  be  assigned 
t<>  him  for  study  and  composition.  Let  the  teacher  select 
the  best  essay  and  preserve  it,  and  the  next  generation  of 
North  Carolina's  sons  will  know  more  and  be  prouder  of 
the  grand  old  State  of  their  birth  and  its  achievements  in 
the  role  of  history.  ft 


148  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


THE   GIANTS   OF   184O. 

Green  be  the  turf  above  thee, 
Friends  of  my  better  days. 

— Drake. 

THE  year  .1840  was  the  most  memorable  date  in  the  po- 
litical history  of  the  United  States.  It  was  a  great  crisis  in 
our  party  contests.  The  Whig  Party  had  been  maintaining 
an  unequal  contest  with  the  Democratic  party  for  several 
years,  sometimes  gaining  a  victory  in  sporadic  cases,  and 
always  maintaining  its  intellectual  ascendency  in  the 
National  Congress,  and  always  an  overmatch  for  the  great 
leaders  of  Democracy. 

The  Whig  National  Convention  met  in  Harrisburg,  and 
after  a  tumultuous  session  nominated  a  man  who  had  been 
much  of  his  life  in  the  public  service,  had  made  no  dis- 
tinguished name  as  a  statesman,  but  had  made  some  repu- 
tation as  a  military  man  and  had  won  one  battle — the 
battle  of  Tippecanoe. 

That  convention  at  Harrisburg  adopted  no  platform  of 
principles.  Its  candidate  was  unknown,  but  he  was  her- 
alded as  a  good  old  man  of  plain  and  honest  character,  of 
humble  aspirations,  and  held  the  humble  office  of  county 
clerk  in  a  county  town  of  Ohio,  and  lived  in  an  unpreten- 
tious way  at  North  Bend,  on  the  Ohio  River. 

At  Harrisburg  he  was  nominated  over  Clay,  Webster 
and  General  Scott.  The  nomination  took  the  country  by 
surprise,  but  it  \vas  backed  by  a  vast  deal  of  enthusiasm.  In 
the  National  Convention  the  First  District  of  North  Caro- 
lina was  represented  by  Kenneth  Eayner,  of  Hertford 
County,  our  representative  in  the  lower  house  of  Con- 
gress, Charles  R.  Kinney,  leading  lawyer  of  Elizabeth 
City,  and  William  W.  Cherry,  of  Bertie  County.  There 
may  have  been  some  others.  The  nomination  was  re- 
ceived with  derision  by  the  Democrats  and  by  some  prom- 
inent Whigs,  with  coldness.  Win.  B.  Shepard,  of  Eliza- 
beth City,  who  had  been  in  Congress  with  Harrison  for 
several  years,  said  he  could  not  vote  for  him,  that  he  wa& 


THE   GIANTS   OF    1840.  149 

an  "old  granny,"  and  while  in  the  Senate  of  the  United 
States  had  been  conspicuous  for  his  stupidity.  Mr.  Shep- 
ard  made  no  concealment  of  his  opinions,  and  his  influ- 
ence was  creating  a  local  public  sentiment  against  the 
Whig  nominee  for  President.  Charles  R.  Kinney,  brim- 
full  of  enthusiasm  for  the  chief  whom  lie  had  helped  to  put 
in  nomination,  assailed  the  opinions  of  Mr.  Shepard  in 
the  local  newspapers  and  he  was  replied  to  by  Mr.  Shep- 
ard through  the  same  newspaper  medium.  The  eontro-^ 
versy  was  kept  up  for  some  time  with  ability  and  acri- 
mony that  was  leading  to  personal  conflict,  The  matter 
was  finally  adjusted  by  mutual  friends,  and  Mr.  Shepard 
gradually  fell  into  the  surging  Harrison  tide  and  did 
yeoman  service  with  ringing  speeches,  from  Bertie  to  Cur- 
rituck. 

K'cniictli  Kayner  was  then  the  Whig  leader  of  the  First 
I  >i-trict,  an  earnest,  ambitious  and  popular  idol  of  the  par- 
ry, lie  came  home  from  Plarrisburg  some  days  after  the 
adjournment  of  the  Convention,  at  which  time  the  Harrison 
tide  was  rising  and  sweeping  the  people  before  it,  and  log 
cabins  and  hard  cider  were  becoming  the  object  lessons 
of  the  campaign. 

The  people  of  the  town  of  Edenton  had  erected  a  capa- 
cious cabin  on  the  green,  in  front  of  the  court-house,  and 
they  would  have  Rayner  to  speak  in  it  first.  He  seemed 
unusually  thoughtful.  When  he  rose  to  speak  he  was 
thoughtful  to  austerity.  During  his  speech  he  used  these 
words :  "We  must  drive  the  Democrats  from  power,  peace- 
ably, if  we  can,  if  not,  forcibly."  The  words  were  uttered 
with*  a  deep-toned  earnestness  that  thrilled  the  audience. 
There  was  no  applause,  but  the  solemn  silence  that  attend- 
ed it  showed  the  deep  thoughts  that  choked  their  utterance. 

While  Rayner  was  speaking  there  came  into  the  cabin 
a  little  man  of  rather  ungainly  appearance,  and  whose 
attire  and  bearing  indicated  his  indifference  to  those  im- 
portant objects.  Some  of  his  friends  crowded  around 
him  with  cordial  greeting.  We  had  never  seen  him  be- 
fore. He  was  invited  and  taken  to  the  platform  with 


150  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

Kayner.  lie  and  Rayner  met  with  the  cordialty  of  inti- 
mate friendship.  The  little  man's  size  and  appearance 
was  against  him.  His  bearing  was  wanting  in  dignity. 
An  intellectual  smile  played  between  his  eyes  and  his 
broad  mouth.  When  examined  carefully  his  physiogno- 
my represented  two  qualities.  His  chin  and  lower  jaw 
stood  for  kindliness,  humor,  amiability  and  good  fellow- 
ship. His  upper  head  was  a  capacious  dome,  enlarging 
from  base  to  summit.  It  was  a  symmetrical  dome  of 
thought,  the  domicile  of  a  brain  power  that  made  a  great 
master  among  men.  It  was  William  W..  Cherry — one  of 
the  most  genial,  gifted,  eloquent,  forceful  speakers  that 
the  Albe^marle  section  has  ever  given  to  North  Carolina, 
perhaps  the  most  so.  He  was  the  soul  of  wit,  humor  and 
conviviality.  His  powers  of  repartee  were  as  sharp,  as  a 
4 'two-  edged  sword,"  but  left  no  wound.  As  a  raconteur  he 
was  the  superior  of  Ham  Jones.  His  benevolence  was 
broad  as  humanity,  and  he  was  as  pure  as  a  Vestal  Virgin, 
with  an  exquisite  geniality  that  was  never  stained  by  a 
bad  habit. 

When  Kayner  finished  speaking,  "Cherry  !  Cherry  !"  was 
vociferously  called  for.  He  came  in  response  to  the  cor- 
dial call.  He  had  scarce  uttered  a  few  sentences  before 
everybody  recognized  a  great  orator.  With  electric  argu- 
ment that  convinced,  words  that  thrilled  fell  from  him  as 
seldom  before  had  fallen  from  human  lips. 

O,  the  ironies  of  fate ! 

Cherry  died  young;  scarce  turned  forty.  Fate  had 
emptied  its  cornucopia  of  honors  in  his  lap,  and  his  future 
was  a  sim-ijilt  prospect.  He  had  not  an  enemy  in  the 
world,  and  his  friends  were  loving  and  true.  He  fell 
before  the  relentless  reaper,  all  unexpected,  when  the  peo- 
ple were  casting  their  honors,  all  unsought  by  him,  at  his 
feet. 

When  we  were  in  the  court-house  at  Edenton  where  the 
Whig  convention  met  that  unanimously  nominated  him 
for  Congress  to  succeed  Kenneth  Rayner,  who  had  re- 
signed the  place,  we  were  assisted  the  place  of  secretary 


THE   GIANTS   OF    1840.  15! 

of  the  convention,  over  which  Augustus  Moore,  Sr.,  of 
Edenion,  presided.  It  was  an  easy  task  to  nominate 
Cherry.  It  was  prearranged.  A  committee  was  appoint- 
ed to  notify  him,  and  they  soon  came  in  with  him. 

His  speech  of  acceptance  was  in  his  usual  style.  We 
took  it  down  stenographically  as  he  spoke.  When  the 
convention  adjourned,  toward  night,  we  went  out  and 
in  the  early  night  wrote  it  out  and  then  looked  for  Mr. 
Cherry  to  submit  it  to  him  for  revision.  After  some 
search,  we  found  him  in  the  old  Club  House  at  the  Eden- 
ton  Hotel,  in  his  stocking  feet  and  shirt  sleeves,  sitting  in 
a  chair  with  his  feet  doubled  up  under  him,  and  cracking 
jokes  with  a  crowd  of  admiring  friends.  He  was  re- 
counting to  them  a  story  of  a  Western  county,  North  Car- 
olina constable  who  went  to  Charleston,  S.  C.,  on  horse- 
back to  purchase  a  piece  of  land  in  North  Carolina  from 
a  rich  nabob  who  was  ft  titled  colonel,  which  we  had  heard 
Ham  Jones  tell  in  Kaleigh  some  years  before.  He  beat 
glorious  old  Ham,  far  away. 

After  he  had  finished,  we  submitted  our  report  to  him. 
He  pronounced  it  good,  and  with  thanks  gave  every  word 
his  approval.  We  sent  the  proceedings  and  speech  to  the 
Raleigh  Register,  and  the  same  number  of  the  paper  con- 
tained his  death.  The  touching  obituary  by  Weston  "R. 
Gales  had  under  the  headlines  Burke's  famous  -apothegm : 

"What  shadows  we  are,  and  what  shadows  we  pursue !" 


152  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

THE    DEATH    OF    WILLIAM    GASTON. 

O  death  !  where  is  thy  sting. 

^ , 

WJIEX  Judge  Gaston  departed  this  life  in  Raleigh,  Jan- 
uary 23,  1844,  at  65  years,  a  great  man  left  us,  and  Caro- 
lina was  in  mourning  for  her  most  distinguished  son. 
Distinguished  as  his  life  had  been,  rounded,  patriotic  and 
useful,  when  he  departed  this  life  nothing  became  him  like 
the  leaving  of  it.  He  was  a  grand  old  man,  and  was  beck- 
oned away  at  the  green  old  age  of  sixty-five  years,  full  of 
honor,  distinction,  usefulness  and  the  love  and  gratitude 
of  his  countrymen. 

While  the  Supreme  Court  of  North  Carolina,  of  which 
he  was  one  of  the  Justices,  was  in  session  in  the  morning, 
he  was  attacked  with  giddiness  in  the  head,  with  symp- 
toms of  apoplexy.  The  Court  adjourned  immediately, 
and  he  was  taken  in  a  carriage  to  his  office  at  Mrs.  Tay- 
lor's. He  rallied  from  the  attack  during :  the  evening, 
and  at  night  several  distinguished  friends  called  in  to  see 
him.  He  talked  with  them,  and  the  conversation  turned 
naturally  upon  the  uncertainty  of  life  and  kindred  relig- 
ious subjects.  As  he  became  interested  in  the  subject, 
Judge  Gaston  rose  up  on  his  elbow  and  then  sat  up  in  bed. 
He  spoke  on  infidelity  and  its  influence  upon  character, 
and  referred  to  Tobias  Watkins,  a  distinguished  public 
officer,  who  was  an  avowed  infidel,  and  whom  he  had 
known  while  a  member  of  Congress  in  Washington.  He 
said  he  always  distrusted  him,  and  then  he  added :  "I  do 
not  say  that  an  infidel  may  not  from  education  and  high 
motives  be  an  honorable  man,  but  I  dare  not  trust  him. 
A  belief  in  an  all-ruling  Providence,  who  shapes  our 
ends  and  will  reward  us  according  to  our  deeds,  is  neces- 
sary. We  must  believe  and  feel  that  there  is  a  God,  Alwise 
and  Almighty."  As  he  pronounced  this  last  word, 
he  raised  himself  up  in  bed  and  fell  back  a  lifeless  corpse. 
A  grand  and  dramatic  close  of  an  illustrious  life.  . 

Mr.  Gaston  was  a  g-reat  favorite  in  New  Bern,  where 


DEATH    OF    WILLIAM    GASTON.  153 

he  had  lived  all  his  life.  He  was  beloved  for  his  cour- 
tesy, his  kindness,  his  benevolence,  and  for  his  great  abil- 
ity and  usefulness  in  public  and  private.  He  was  the 
central  iigure  in  the  group  of  distinguished  men  that  illus- 
trated the  history  of  New  Bern  as  no  town  in  the  State 
had  been.  It  seemed  at  one  time  that  every  big  man  in 
North  Carolina  had  been  "born  or  lived  at  some  time  in 
that  "Athens"  of  the  State,  as  the  noble  old  town  used  to 
be  lovingly  called.  Stanly,  Gaston,  Taylor,  Shepard, 
Hawks,  Daves,  Badger,  Manly,  Graham,  Henry,  Nash, 
Speight,  Backus,  Bryan  and  a  crowd  of  other  great  men, 
were  all  born  or  lived  there. 

The  negroes  joined  in  the  general  distress  at  Judge 
Gaston's  death.  He  was  always  their  friend.  He  always 
deplored  the  existence  of  slavery  in  North  Carolina,  and 
regarded  it  as  "the  worst  evil  that  afflicted  the  Southern 
portion  of  our  Confederacy,"  and  in  his  famous  address 
at  the  University  in  1832,  asked  if  it  was  too  much  "to 
hope  for  its  ultimate  extirpation  in  North  Carolina." 
When  he  was  a  candidate  for  the  Legislature,  when  the 
old  "State  House"  in  Raleigh  was  burned,  and  he  was 
elected  over  Charles  Shepard  by  one  majority,  all  the  free 
negroes  voted  for  him. 

His  memory  is  yet  green  in  the  hearts  of  his  country- 
men, and  the  patriotic  ode  written  by  him  in  a  moment 
of  inspiration  —  "  Carolina  !  Carolina  !  Heaven's  bless- 
ings attend  her"-  -  yet  wakens  the  love  of  our  people  for 
the  dear  old  State  we  love  so  well. 


154  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


MAMMY    ELLEN. 

Full  many  hearts  in  lowly  bosoms  dwell 
The  world  knows  not  of,  or  cares  not  to  tell. 

WE  tell  the  story  of  the  heroism  of  the  lowly.  There 
are  heroes  of  domestic  life  that  have  found  but  little  space 
in  history.  It  is  a  picture  of  Southern  life,  and  we  hope 
it  will  not  be  out  of  place  to  rescue  it  from  oblivion,  with- 
out drawing  on  the  imagination  for  its  simple  "annals  of 
the  poor."  It  is  the  picture  of  the  old^black  mammy  of 
Southern  society  before  that  cruel  "war  between  the 
States/'  that,  whatever  may  have  been  its  benefits  (and 
there  are  doubtless  many)  developed  some  of  the  most  fiend- 
ish traits  of  our  poor  human  nature  and  ruthlessly  sun- 
dered ties  that  were  heaven-born,  earth-blessed,  and  nur- 
tured in  love. 

It  is  the  story  of  Mammy  Ellen,  a  faithful  old  black 
mammy,  to  whose  pure  and  loving  memory  we  would  now 
like  to  raise  a  monument  of  pure  black  marble  to  commem- 
orate the  virtues  of  a  black  slave  who  had  been  the  foster- 
mother  of  the  children,  had  nursed  them  in  childhood,  had 
followed  them  in  manhood  with  kindly  words  of  counsel 
when  the  world's  gilded  temptations  lured  them  from 
duty.  But  that  coveted  work  has  been  denied  us  by  an 
inexorable  necessity  that  has  dogged  the  heels  of  our  res 
auguMa  dorni. 

Mammy  Ellen's  is  a  plain  picture,  true  to  life.  She 
had  her  home  by  day  and  a  lowly  cot  at  night  in  a  loving 
household.  She  was  always  with  the  family  and  the  chil- 
dren that  she  loved  with  unselfish  devotion;  intelligent, 
watchful,  patient  and  forbearing.  From  a  little  girl  she 
had  been  an  intimate  associate  of  the  family.  As  she 
grew  to  womanhood  she  became  their  loved  counsellor  and 
friend.  Her  patience  and  good  humor  was  a  marvel  of 
loveliness.  She  always  kept  her  temper,  even  when  it 
was  subjected  to  the  innocent  provocations  of  childhood's 
love  of  fun.  Sometimes  "tired  nature,"  wearied  with 


MAMMY    ELLEN.  155 

watching  at  night,  would  seek  relief  in  a  short  kicat-nap"  by 
day,  and  healthy  and  bright  children,  always  watchful 
for  jobs  in  the  field  of  fun,  would  poke  straws  into  Mammy 
Ellen's  closed  eyelids,  and  she  would  always  come  to  con- 
sciousness with  a  happy  smile  and  a  kindly  word  of 
chiding. 

A  little  incident  occurs  of  Mammy  Ellen's  faithful 
watching,  mixed  a  little  with  the  supernatural.  A  sick 
chamber,  a  little  boy,  of  that  interesting  age  when  "sweet 
is  the  voice  of  childhood  and  its  earliest  words,"  is  sick 
unto  death.  His  mother,  worn  with  watching,  broken 
with  grief,  had  left  him  in  despair,  to  commune  with 
God.  His  father  and  Mammy  Ellen  watched  by  his 
dying  bed,  both  weeping.  Death,  with  its  inverted  torch, 
we  both  thought  had  come  to  beckon  him  away.  Every 
childish  prattle  of  his  was  crowded  into  a  moment.  The 
critical  moment,  we  tlfought,  had  come.  At  length  the 
father  gave  way,  and  telling  Mammy  Ellen  to  close  his 
eyes  after  death,  sought  the  anguished  mother.  She  was 
in  an  upper  chamber,  night  clothed,  pacing  up  and  down 
the  floor,  sad  but  silent.  The  agonized  father  said :  "My 
dear,  we've  got  to  give  up  our  little  boy.  He  can  not  live 
half  an  hour."  She  turned  to  the  half-crazed  father  and 
said,  as  if  in  words  of  inspiration,  "No,  no;  he  will  not 
die.  I  have  been  in  prayerful  communion  with  our  Heav- 
enly Father,  and  he  has  given  me  assurance  that  our  dear 
little  boy  would  be  spared  to  us."  We  went  back  below. 
Faithful  Mammv  Ellen  was  watching  over  him.  The 
lift lo  fellow  roused  for  a  moment  from  a  comatose  sleep. 
Mammy  Ellen  leaned  over  him  and  said,  "How  do  you 
feel  now  ?"  He  answered  quickly,  "I'm  better,  do  you 
kn<>w,  now."  He  turned  over,  went  to  sleep,  recovered 
rapidly  and  was  restored  to  his  parents. 

And  now  let  us  turn  to  the  dark  side  of  this  shield.  Tn 
tho  fall  of  1863  there  came  to  Elizabeth  City  a  one-armed 
General,  who  wore  and  dishonored  the  epaulettes  of  the 
Knifed  States  Army,  and  occupied  the  town.  He  brought 
with  him  five  thousand  negro  soldiers.  He  established 


156  GRANDFATHER'S   TALES. 

a  reign  of  horror  here  for  about  a  month.  He  impris- 
oned innocent  and  delicate  women,  placed  them  under  a 
guard  of  negro  soldiers,  who  watched  all  their  movements 
by  day  and  night.  He  threatened  old  men  and  non-com- 
batants with  fire  and  death.  He  had  but  one  instinct- 
cruelty — and  he  gratified  his  thirst  for  desolation.  He 
§wept  away  every  vestige  of  property  and  made  us  a 
land  of  wretched  paupers.  When  he  was  leaving,  he  sent 
a  squad  of  negvo  soldiers  to  take  away  all  the  negroes  that 
were  left.  Some  Buffaloes  with  whom  he  consorted,  di- 
rected him  tx>  homes  where  some  yet  remained.  They 
came  to  the  home  where  Mammy  Ellen  lived.  She  did 
not  want  to  go.  They  tried  to  persuade  her  away,  and 
called  her  "sissy."  She  still  refused  to  go.  At  length 
they  told  her  she  must  go  and  made  a  show  of  force ;  the 
children  came  to  them  and,  weeping,  begged  them  not  to 
take  away  Mammy  Ellen.  Their  hearts  of  steel  did  not 
relent  before  the  supplications  of  childhood  in  tears.  At 
length  Mammy  Ellen,  weeping,  took  from  her  pocket  an  old 
purse,  and  taking  some  silver  coin,  distributed  it  among 
them, and  embracing  them  and  calling  them  "her  children," 
took  her  departure  with  the  soldiers,  and  her  body  now  rests 
somewhere  among  the  sand  dunes  of  Roanoke  Island,  and 
her  blessed  spirit  still  hovers  over  and  follows  the  children 
that  she  loved  and  watched  over  in  life. 


HENRY   W.    MILLER.  1.57 


HENRY    W.    MILLER. 

Where  every  god  did  seem  to  set  his  seal, 
To  give  the  world  assurance  of  a  man. 

— Hamlet. 

XORTII  CAROLINA  has  had  many  men  in  its  citizenship 
that  illustrate  the  touching  lines  in  "Grey's  Elegy  in  a 
Country  Churchyard" — 

"Some  mute  inglorious  Milton 

Here  may  rest, 
Some  Cromwell,  guiltless  of  his  country's  blood/' 

They  sleep  unhonored  because  no  pen  has  made  record 
of  their  deeds — that  handmaid  of  immortality,  mightier 
than  the  sword,  most  potent  of  all  the  agencies  in  the  pre- 
servation of  glorious  and  inglorious  deeds,  the  index  finger 
of  the  art  preservative,  that  marks  the  sign-boards  in  the 
pathway  of  time. 

Among  those  "mute  inglorious  Miltons,"  whose  grand 
march  to  greatness,  witnessed  by  his  wondering  contempo- 
raries, and  whose  magic  words  of  eloquence  and  wisdom 
;iiv  fast  fading  from  the  memories  of  men,  was  Henry 
Watkins  Miller,  of  Kaleigh.  He  bore  upon  his  august 
brow  nature's  guinea  stamp  of  nobility.  He  was  born  to 
greatness,  and  the  shadow  of  his  wonderful  intellectual 
nit't-  was  I-M si  before  him  before  his  entrance  upon  the 
JIIVIIM  of  life. 

He  was  our  school  friend.  We  for  two  years  occupied 
adjacent  rooms  in  the  old  historic  "South  Building"  of  the 
University  of  North  Carolina,  separated  only  by  a  narrow 
passage  way.  That  passage  way  was  the  dividing  line 
between  the  Di.  and  Phi.  brotherhoods,  but  it  did  not  di- 
vide our  friendship,  which  was  of  a  somewhat  intimate 
character. 

Much  is  said  of  the  mastery  of  men,  and  Miller's  mas- 
tery at  the  University  was  the  mastery  of  men.  His  in- 
tellectuality as  a  boy  was  a  marvel.  His  personality  was 
charming.  His  eye  was  like  a  slop ;  but  the  aspect  of 


158  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

Mars  was  softened  by  a  glance  of  kindness  that  won  all 
hearts  by  its  sincerity  and  benevolence.  Seldom  he 
laughed,  but  when  he  did  it  was  a  musical  ripple  of  a 
placid  river  on  a  pebbly  bottom. 

One  word  more  and  we  will  dispose  of  his  boyhood.  He 
was  at  the  head  of  his  class  as  an  intellectual  man,  but  he 
was  not  a  "first-mite"  man.  His  genius  was  too  univer- 
sal to  be  "cribbed,  cabined  and  confined,"  to  be  bound 
around  by  the  technicalities  of  the  scholar.  He  was  an 
all-round  intellectual  prodigy.  His  field  of  triumph  was 
too  broad  for  the  struggles  of  logarithms,  hydrostatics  and 
optics,  and  he  gave  all  his  strength  to  the  struggles  of  man- 
kind. Another  word,  and  we  give  up  his  boyhood  and  turn 
to  the  graver  and  sadder  period  of  his  life. 

Miller  graduated  in  1834.  He  spoke  the  third  speech  in 
the  order  of  distinction.  It  was  a  grand  effort,  full  of 
the  afflatus  of  oratory  in  its  grandest  type.  His  father, 
a  plain  old  man,  in  the  sixties,  homespun  clothed,  a  Vir- 
ginian, of  Buckingham  County,  came  to  the  University 
at  the  C Commencement  of  1834,  to  see  his  son  graduate. 
We  stood  by  the  old  man  in  the  aisle  of  Gerrard  Hall. 
Young  Henry  Miller  carried  the  audience  along  with  him 
by  the  magic  thrill  of  his  eloquence.  The  old  man  wept 
like  a  child  as  young  Henry  swept  the  heart-strings  of  the 
audience,  and  when  he  sat  down  the  old  man,  with  stream- 
ing eyes,  went  upon  the  rostrum,  took  his  gifted  son  in 
his  arms,  and  wept  aloud.  All  college  distinctions  paled 
before  the  grand  triumph  of  that  proud  day. 

While  at  the  University  he  was  a  model  of  every  pro- 
priety. He  had  no  excesses,  was  a  member  of  the  Presby- 
terian Church, -and  Avas  in  all  respects  moderate,  circum- 
spect and  exemplary.  But  let  him  who  stands  and  of 
whom  "all  speak  well,"  beware  lest  he  fall ! 

He  returned  to  his  home  in  Kaleigh  after  graduation. 
His  fame  of  greatness  had  preceded  him.  Friends  on 
every  side  met  him  with  open  arms  and  were  profuse  of 
compliment  and  congratulation.  George  E.  Badger,  the 
head  of  the  law  profession  in  Raleigh,  and  a  leader  in  its 


HENRY   W.    MILLER.  159 

distinguished  social  life,  took  him  by  the  hand,  took  him 
up  as  4'his  boy,"  took  him  in  his  office  as  a  law  student, 
flattered  him,  praised  him,  and  predicted  his  future  dis- 
tinction. Weston  R.  Gales  received  him  and  made  him 
a  pet  in  his  charmed  circle  of  social  life,  with  its  brilliant 
baits  of  temptation  and  pleasure.  His  head  was  turned, 
the  proprieties  of  his  past  life  were  thrown  to  the  winds, 
he  fell  before  the  tempter  and  his  life  is  now  the  best 
Temperance  lecture  in  the  whole  history  of  North  Carolina. 

1 1  is  life  afterward  was  a  fall,  and  a  staggering,  repentant 
recovery.  Sometimes,  yea  often,  the  fire  of  his  old-time 
brilliancy  would  flame  out  with  unwonted  fervor.  In  the 
Harrison  storm  of  1840,  he  was  a  power,  and  the  cam- 
paign newspaper  articles — "A  Plain  Man  and  One  of  the 
People" — were  read  throughout  the  State  and  had  great 
influence.  He  acquired  the  reputation  of  a  great  but  un- 
certain lawyer.  He  hail  a  leading  practice  in  important 
cases,  and  at  his  best  was  regarded  as  an  unrivalled  ad- 
vocate. 

About  1858  he  was  appointed  by  the  "Ladies  of  the 
Mount  Yernon  Association,"  with  Edward  Everett,  the 
iiTc-Mt  Massachusetts  orator,  to  deliver  lectures  through- 
out tlic  I'nitcd  States  for  the  purpose  of  purchasing  Mount 
Yernon  and  dedicating  it  to  the  memory  of  Washington. 
It  was  a  distinguished  honor,  and  much  appreciated  by 
Carolina's  talented  son.  For  a  time  it  exercised  a  salu- 
tary influence  over  his  life,  and  he  entered  the  service 
a>- iirned  him  with  an  earnestness  and  ability  that  eclipsed 
i  he  fame  of  Everett. 

Miller's  lecture  was  never  published,  but  we  had  the 
pleasure  of  reading  the  manuscript  some  years  after,  and 
it  was  strikingly  elegant,  original  and  forceful. 

As  a  graceful  orator  and  elocutionist,  he  could  not  have 
been  excelled  by  Everett;  for  Miller  was  the  equal  of 
Daniel  Webster  in  magisterial  face  and  bearing,  and  his 
superior  in  person  and  in  the  sweet  musical  cadence  of 
his  tones. 

Once,  in  1862,  we  were  on  a  railroad  bound  for  Ra- 


160  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

leigh.  We  were  sitting  by  a  friend,  and  while  in  conver- 
sation with  him,  we  heard  a  voice  full  of  melody  and 
sweetness  coming  from  behind  us  far  down  in  the  car. 
We  said  to  the  friend  near  us,  "Surely  we've  heard  that 
voice  before.  It  sounds  like  Henry  Miller's."  He  re- 
plied, "Mr.  Miller  is  on  the  train."  We  had  not  met 
Miller  for  thirty  years. 

We  turned  and  looked  over  the  dense  crowd.  Far  down 
we  recognized  the  majestic  brow  and  eye  of  "Old  Coal" 
of  the  University.  I  went  at  once  to  him.  He  met  me 
as  I  him,  with  the  old-time  heartiness,  known  only  to 
school-day  friendship..  We  turned  to  ftie  past,  and  gave 
some  space  to  the  present.  He  lamented  the  war  .then 
raging;  and  the  stoppage  of  his  work  in  the  lecture  field 
with  Edward  Everett  added  to  his  personal  regrets. 

We  suggested  that  he  devote  some  part  of  his  life  to 
preparing  an  elaborate  biography  of  William  Gaston.  He 
said  no  man  appreciated  the  character  of  the  great  Caro- 
linian more  than  he  did,  but  he  was  poor,  and  the  demands 
of  his  family  took  all  his  time.  He  then  passed  his  hand 
through  our  hair  and  made  some  comment  upon  the  foot- 
prints of  time  with  both  of  us.  He  got  off  at  the  next 
station,  and  we  parted  never  to  meet  again. 


JUDGE   THOMAS    RUFFIN.  l6l 


JUDGE  THOMAS  RUFFIN. 

"  A  good  name  is  rather  to  be  chosen  than  great  riches/'    It  gives 
weight  to  reproof,  force  to  counsel  and  point  to  example. 

— Orier. 

As  T.ONG  as  magistracy  exists,  the  name  of  Thomas 
Ruffin,  of  North  Carolina,  will  be  conspicuous  among  her 
great  sons.  He  was  specially  a  great  lawyer,  and  the 
monument  that  he  reared  to  his  memory  was  acquired  by 
long  and  laborious  service  in  her  legal  ranks. 

From  the  ranks,  amid  difficulties,  without  family  in- 
fluence, without  patronage,  with  the  encumbrance  of 
constitutional  diffidence,  in  the  face  of  eminent  legal  prac- 
titioners and  rivals  at  the  bar,  he  rose  to  be  the  acknowl- 
edged leader  on  his  circuit  of  courts,  and  in  the  progress  of 
\\\>  <-;iivrr  came  to  be  the  chief  minister  at  its  altars. 

His  distinguished  life  and  character  is  full  of  practical 
lessons  to  the  young  aspirant  for  forensic  distinction  who 
longs  to  inscribe  his  name  upon  the  pillars  of  the  legal 
temple. 

It  is  a  lesson  of  struggle  under  difficulties,  of  intense 
labor,  of  indefatigable  perseverance,  of  resolute  deter- 
mination, of  patience,  of  self-reliance,  of  triumph. 

When  Demosthenes,  the  great  Grecian  orator,  and  as- 
signed the  highest  place  in  the  Pantheon  of  oratory,  was 
asked  what  was  the  main  constituent  of  oratory,  he  said — 
action  ;  and  when  asked  for  the  next  element,  he  repeated — 
action;  and  when  asked  for  the  third  constituent,  he  re- 
peated the  same  answer.  The  lesson  of  Thomas  Ruffin's 
life  was  that  labor,  thrice  repeated,  was  the  grand  ele- 
ment in  the  life  of  a  successful,  great  lawyer.  He  was 
no  orator  as  Brutus  or  Cicero.  He  was  without  the 
graces  of  manner.  He  had  no  honeyed  words  of 
rhetoric  that  won  the  hearts  of  men.  His  voice  brought 
no  reminder  of  the  Eolian  harp.  His  countenance  was 
austere,  and  his  limbs  were  not  cast  in  the  mould  of  an 
Appollo  Belvidere.  He  probably  never  told  a  joke  in 


162  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

his  life,  and  probably  but  seldom  relaxed  into  pleasantry. 
But  he  was  a  man  of  character,  upright,  earnest,  sincere 
and  laborious.  He  had  duty  for  his  guide-star,  and  was 
in  every  fiber  of  his  constitution  a  grand  model  of  God's 
masterwork — an  honest  man.  He  was  equal  to  all  the 
positions  he  occupied  in  life.  He  had  been  a  legislator 
in  the.  General  Assembly,  had  been  a  Judge  on  the  Circuit 
and  Supreme  Bench,  and  was  a  master  in  each.  On  the 
Circuit  Bench  he  was  earnest,  pure,  able,  and  dispatched 
business  with  great  diligence,  promptness  and  firmness. 
On  the  Supreme  Bench  he  was  probably  unequalled  in 
our  judicial  annals.  His  opinions  on  the  Supreme  Bench 
were  distinguished  for  learning,  clearness  and  profound 
research.  They  were  universally  commended,  and  were 
quoted  with  approval  in  the  courts  of  Westminster  Hall, 
in  England. 

If  there  was  any  weakness  in  the  panoply  of  his  acquire- 
ments, it  was  in  his  literary  character.  He  was  not  at 
home  on  the  literary  rostrum.  He  addressed  the  gradua- 
ting class  of  1835  at  the  University  of  North  Carolina, 
and  we  thought  it  too  direct  and  practical  for  a  graceful 
literary  occasion.  There  are  some  occasions  in  which  wis- 
dom is  not  wise  when  unadorned,  when  a  "spade"  must  be 
described,  and  not  called  by  its  homely  cognomen. 

Judge  Ruffin  was  a  Virginian  by  birth,  a  Carolinian 
by  education  and  adoption.  His  Virginia  lineage  em- 
braces much  distinction  in  the  judicial  line — a  maternal 
ancestor  being  Judge  Spencer  Roane,  who  was  Chief  Jus- 
tice of  that  State. 

His  preparatory  education  was  in  the  town  of  Warren- 
ton,  N.  C.,  where  he  formed  school-mate  friendships  with 
many  Carolinians,  who  in  after  life  were  his  warm  friends. 
He  graduated  at  Princeton  College  with  distinction  in  his 
class,  and  while  there  was  the  room-mate  and  class-mate 
of  Gov.  James  Iredell,  of  North  Carolina.  Soon  after  his 
maturity  he  removed  to  Hillsboro,  N.  C.,  where  he  passed 
his  honored  and  successful  life,  and  departed  this  life  at 
eighty-three  years,  full  of  honor  and  reverence. 


A    MONSTER   SNAKE.  163 

A  MONSTER  SNAKE. 

[A  STORY  OF  THE  SEA.] 

SOME  boys  were  on  an  outing  to  the  "Fresh  Ponds" 
at  Nags  Head,  a  favorite  resort  of  sportsmen,  and  as  they 
journeyed  on  through  brake  and  briar,  they  saw  an  im- 
mense snake's  head  protruding  through  a  hole  in  the  body 
of  a  live  oak  tree.  One  of  them,  who  carried  the  com- 
missary basket,  pointed  to  the  monster's  head,  and  was 
amazed.  He  was  about  to  run  home  in  fright,  but  an- 
other boy,  larger  than  himself,  shook  him  vigorously  by  the 
shoulders  until  his  nerves  were  recovered. 

While  this  athletic  pantomine  was  going  on,  his  snake- 
hood  was  looking  on  with  serene  composure.  The  boy 
was  considering  the  Scriptural  injunction  to  bruise  that 
serpent's  head.  He  recovered  from  his  Scriptural  reverie, 
seized  his  breech-loader  and  bruised  his  head  with  twenty- 
four  heavy  buckshot.  In  fact,  he  blew  off  his  snakeship's 
head,  and  left  him  a  monster  off  his  head. 

Nearer  the  bottom  of  the  tree  there  was  another  hole, 
a  sort  of  back  door  to  the  snake's  sanctum  (so  to  speak). 
In 'a  little  while  the  snake's  tail  began  slowly  to  protrude 
itself  through  that  snakely  back  door.  One  of  the  boys, 
recognizing  his  opportunity,  dragged  out  five  feet  of  his 
headless  body  through  that  hole,  threw  the  head  part  over 
a  boy's  shoulder  and  the  tail  over  his  own,  and  then,  forget- 
tinu  the  Fresh  Ponds  and  the  big  black  bass,  marched  back 
to  the  hotel  as  proud  as  an  army  with  banners. 

On  their  way  back  they  discovered  a  protuberance  in  the 
snake's  abdomen  that  alarmed  them.  Finally,  they 
reached  the  hotel,  and  everybody  came  up  and  marvelled 
at  the  great  triumph.  They  examined  the  egg,  which  the 
boys  had  dissected  from  the  snake's  body,  and  wondered 
*r.ill  the  more.  They  examined  the  egg,  and  each  exam- 
iner had  his  own  theory. 

At  length  some  one  suggested  that  they  should  form  an 


164  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

organized  body  to  deliberate  on  the  mystery  of  the  snake 
and  the  egg.  Agreed.  John  G.  Wood,  of  Hayes,  was 
called  to  the  chair,  and  Moses  Blackstock,  of  Bertie, 
was  called  on  to  express  his  sentiments.  He  kindly  re- 
sponded. "This,"  said  he,  "is  a  venomous  species  of  the 
angulus  dioscutos.  It  is  an  amphibious  animal,  and  is 
always  found  near  the  sea.  It  has  a  thousand  legs,  which 
are  used  as  paddles  in  the  sea  and  propellers  on  land.  It 
can  outrun  the  swiftest  race-horse,  and  can  jump  twentv 
feet  at  a  bound.  As  to  the  egg,  it  is  the  property  of  some 
thrifty  old  housewife,  which  she  used  ^  as  a  nest-egg  to 
fool  her  hens  with  and  make  them  lay  when  they  don't 
want  to."  Others  shook  their  heads,  and  said  it  was  noth- 
ing but  a  story  which  the  boys  had  hatched  from  a  stone 
they  had  picked  up  on  the  beach. 

In  the  confusion  of  their  conflicting  opinions,  some  one 
suggested  that  if  any  one  could  explain  the  mystery  it  was 
Bill  Jones,  an  exotic  banker ;  that  Bill  was  a  funny  man, 
and  when  in  his  funny  mood  he  could  not  tell  his  right 
leg  from  a  powder-horn ;  but  set  two  cocktails  before  him 
with  a  straw  in  each,  and  let  him  draw,  and  in  ten  min- 
utes he  wrould  tell  you  more  of  the  past,  present  and  future 
than  all  the  wise  men  from  Cape  Hatteras  to  Collington 
Bay.  Two  cocktails  of  John  Ward's  best  were  ordered,  and 
a  committee  appointed  to  invite  Bill  Jones's  presence  at  the 
conclave.  He  soon  came,  and,  looking  around,  saw  tAvo 
cocktails  staring  him  in  his  face,  that  was  beaming  with 
happiness.  He  addressed  himself  to  them,  and  for  five 
minutes  discussed  first  one  and  then  the  other.  Then, 
turning  to  the  crowd,  he  said,  "Gents,  for  what  want  ye 
me  ?"  The  chairman  answered :  "We  want  your  learning 
as  to  this  snake  and  this  egg."  He  bowed  his  best  bow, 
and  then,  pointing  to  the  monster  reptile,  said:  "That 
snake  belongs  to  the  angadusa  family — venomous,  destruc- 
tive and  rabid.  Its  jaws  turn  upon  a  pivot  and  hinge, 
and  it  can  take  in  a  hog,  a  possum,  or  a  puppy,  and  some- 
times swallows  a  baby,  without  distinction  of  color,  race 
or  previous  condition.  This  one  is  well  known  here.  He 


A    MONSTER   SNAKK.  165 

was  the  terror  of  these  banks.  He  ate  Betsy  Barker's  baby 
at  one  gulp.  He  ran  off  with  Nancy  Dowdy's  two  twins, 
and  has  eaten  various  and  sundry  others.  From  exami- 
nation of  his  fangs,  he  is  thirty  years  old.  The  boys  were 
fortunate  in  shooting  him  as  quick  as  they  did,  for  when 
his  head  was  thrust  through  that  hole  he  was  preparing 
for  a  spring,  and  would  have  wrapped  his  head  around 
one  of  the  boy's  neck  and  stuck  his  tail  in  his  nostrils, 
-trangled  him  in  less  time  than  a  minute,  and  devoured 
him  at  -his  next  meal." 

Turning  to  the  egg,  Bill  J.  eyed  it  from  every  stand- 
point arid  said :  "This  is  an  ossified  egg  of  the  Great  Auk, 
a  mammoth  bird  of  the  torrid  regions  that  existed  in  pre- 
historic ages,  just  prior  to  the  death  of  Abel.  There  is 
only  one  Auk  egg  in  the  world.  It  is  preserved  in  the 
British  Museum  and  a  million  dollars  has  been  refused 


1 66  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


BATTLE  OF  MOORE'S  CREEK   BRIDGE. 

I  have  no  words  : 

My  voice  is  in  my  sword. 

— Macbeth. 

PERHAPS  no  battle  of  the  Revolution  had  greater  effect 
in  rousing  the  Patriots  of  the  Revolution  in  its  earlier 
stages  and  inspiring  their  hearts  with  the  enthusiasm  of 
independence  than  the  battle  of  Moore's  Creek  Bridge. 
It  was  the  first  regular  pitched  battle  of  the  Revolution 
in  any  of  the  States.  It  was  fought  by  the  regular  colon- 
ial troops  of  North  Carolina,  in  Cumberland  County, 
on  a  branch  of  Cape  Fear  River,  on  the  27th  of  February, 
1776.  The  forces  engaged  in  the  campaign  were  the 
North  Carolina  troops,  commanded  by  Col.  James  Moore, 
Colonels  Lillington,  Caswell,  Martin  and  Ashe;  and,  on 
the  other  side,  the  Scotch  Highlanders,  commanded  by 
Gen.  Donald  MacDonald,  who  was  a  Tory,  and  had  been 
commissioned  as  General  of  North  Carolina  troops  by 
the  Colonial  Governor.  The  Patriots  consisted  of  about 
1,100,  being  Colonel  Moore's  Continentals,  and  the  min- 
ute men  from  New  Bern  and  New  Hanover  and  militia 
from  the  counties  of  Duplin,  Craven,  Dobbs  and  Bladen, 
under  Colonel  Caswell ;  a  hundred  "volunteer  independent 
yagers"  from  Wilmington,  commanded  by  Colonel  Ashe, 
and  a  hundred  and  fifty  minute  men  from  Wilmington 
under  Colonel  Lillington.  The  opposing  force  of  Tory 
Highlanders,  under  the  command  of  General  MacDonald, 
consisted  of  about  1,500  men,  chiefly  Scotch  Highlanders. 

As  soon  as  the  Loyalists  began  to  embody  at  Campbel- 
ton,  Colonel  Moore  took  position  at  Rockfish  Creek,  seven 
miles  down  the  river,  and  was  watching  the  movement  of 
the  force  under  General  MacDonald,  and  had  determined 
to  attack  them  at  the  first  suitable  opportunity.  But  the 
enemy,  whose  object  was  to  get  to  Wilmington  and  join  the 
British  fleet  in  the  harbor,  evaded  him  bv  crossing  the  river 
and  passing  to  the  eastward  to  another  road.  Moore, 


BATTLE   OF    MOORE'S   CREEK    BRIDGE.  167 

however,  directed  Lillington  and  Caswell  to  concentrate 
their  forces  on  that  road  near  the  widow  Moore's  bridge, 
on  a  creek  that  emptied  into  Black  River,  about  thirty 
miles  from  Wilmington,  while  he  hurried  down  to  close 
in  on  the  Highlanders.  During  the  day  and  night  of  the 
26th  of  February,  Colonel  Lillington,  who  was  the  first 
to  reach  the  bridge,  had  thrown  up  a  breastwork  com- 
manding the  crossing,  while  the  Highlanders  were  rapidly 
approaching  from  the  opposite  side.  Colonel  Caswell 
came  just  in  time,  and  during  the  night  Lillington  also 
destroyed  part  of  the  bridge,  removing  the  planks  so  as 
to  impede  the  attacking  party  if  they  attempted  to  cross 
the  bridge. 

On  the  early  morning  of  the  27th  of  February,  the 
Highlanders,  seeing  an  embankment  apparently  unoccu- 
pied, and  supposing  that  the  Americans  had  abandoned  or 
were  about  abandoning  their  position,  determined  to  at- 
tack them.  They  fired  a  morning:  gun  and  then  charged 
furiously  over  the  bridge,  not  knowing  the  impediment  of 
its  partial  destruction.  The  patriots  attacked  them  with 
great  impetuosity  while  on  the  bridge,  and  totally  disor- 
ganized them.  Then  Captain  Slocumb's  company  crossed 
the  creek  lower  down  and  attacked  them  in  the  flank,  and 
the  Highlanders  broke  and  retreated.  The  Patriots  killed 
about  seventy  of  the  enemy  and  took  many  prisoners, 
among  whom  was  General  MacDonald  himself.  It  was  a 
complete  victory  for  the  Patriots  and  broke  the  formid- 
able Tory  outbreak  among  the-  Scotch  Highlanders,  who 
had  fled  from  Scotland  after  the  disastrous  battle  of  Cul- 
loden  in  their  home  country,  and  made  their  new  home  in 
the  Cape  Fear  region  of  North  Carolina. 

Tn  this  first  pitched  battle  of  the  Revolution,  that  is 
hardly  known  to  our  own  people,  the  Patriots,  under  Gen- 
eral Moore,  had  two  wounded,  one  of  whom  died.  The 
Tories,  under  General  MacDonald,  lost  seventy.  Captain 
McLcod  and  Captain  Campbell,  of  the  Highlanders,  were 
killed  early  in  the  fight  on  the  bridge,  the  former  of  whom 
received  upwards  of  twenty  bullets  through  his  body.  A 


168  GRANDFATHER'S  TALKS. 

very  few  minutes  after  the  fall  of  these  leaders  the  whole 
army  was  in  flight.  Many  were  drowned  and.  many  pris- 
oners were  taken,  General  MacDonald  being  taken  the  next 
day.  He  was  commissioned  as  Brigadier-General  and 
Commander-in-Chief  in  North  Carolina.  There  were 
twenty-six  prisoners  taken,  all  of  whom  were  sent  on  to 
the  American  General  Congress  in  Philadelphia. 

The  importance  of  this  signal  victory  of  the  Americans 
is  fully  recognized  in  the  scant  contemporary  letters  and 
publications.  They  speak  of  the  great  joy  that  it  had 
diffused  in  the  Province,  and  how  great  a  disappointment 
it  was  to  Clinton  and  Lord  William  Campbell,  who  were 
in  Cape  Fear  Kiver  in  British  ships  of  war,  "in  sanguine 
expectation  of  being  joined  by  the  defeated  and  routed 
Touy  troops."  If  the  fight  at  Moore's  Creek  Bridge  had 
been  won  by  the  Tories  under  General  MacDonald,  all 
East  Carolina  would  have  been  overrun  and  probably 
the  whole  South  would  have  been  subdued. 

And  yet,  when  Senator  Butler  introduced  a  resolution 
in  the  United  States  Senate  proposing  an  appropriation 
to  aid  in  raising  a  monument  at  the  site  of  this  first  pitched 
battle  of  the  Revolution,  some  Senator  asked,  with  lament- 
able simplicity,  where  the  battle  of  Moore's  Creek  Bridge 
was  fought,  Alas !  alas !  the  schoolmaster  is  abroad,  but 
where  are  the  pens  that  are  "mightier  than  the  sword." 

It  is  sometimes  asked  why  the  Highlanders,  who  had 
sustained  so  signal  a  defeat  in  a  contest  with  the  British 
Government  at  the  disastrous  battle  of  Culloden  in  1745, 
should  have  taken  up  arms  for  the  British  Government 
against  the  citizens  of  their  new  home  in  North  Carolina. 
It  is  the  old  story  of  the  "burnt  child."  They  had  felt 
the  fire  of  the  British  arm  in  their  old  home,  and  with 
the  true  instinct  of  a  canny  Scot  they  feared  a  repetition 
of  Culloden. 

But  time  has  redeemed  their  mistake  in  the  struggle 
for  independence,  and  the  State  of  North  Carolina  now 
points  with  pride  to  the  descendants  of  the  Macs  who  fell 
at  Moore's  Creek  Bridge,  who  have  since  brought  and 
emptied  into  her  loving  lap  laurels  won  in  field  and  forum. 


THE    BANKER    PONY.  169 

THE  BANKER  PONY. 
••  The  War  Horse  Smtfeth  the  Battle  from  afar." 

THE  horse  is  man's  best  friend.  In  peace  he  is  man's 
best  agent  in  subduing  the  forest  to  the  plow,  lie  is  the 
great  agent  of  transportation  and  intercommunication.  He 
was  a  factor  in  the  progress  of  the  human  race  from  the 
earliest  period  of  time.  He  is  as  prominent  as  man  in 
the  chronicles  of  Holy  Writ 

Why,  then,  should  he  not  have  a  place  in  history  ?  He 
has  won  battles.  He  has  subdued  forests.  He  has  been 
the  faithful  companion  of  man  in  all  his  enterprises.  He 
has  been  the  inspiration  of  song  and  story  and  art.  The 
artist  has  made  him  the  emblem  of  death,  and  "Death  on 
the  Pale  Horse"  has  immortalized  the  easel  of  West.  The 
Arab  loveth  his  steed.  •Civilized  man  cherishes  his  horse, 
gives  ear  to  his  intuitive  knowledge  of  past,  present  and 
future  events.  Had  the  Great  Creator  denied  man  the 
power  of  speech,  as  he  has  the  horse,  the  horse  would  have 
been  his  superior.  Without  speech  man's  reasoning  would 
have  been  inferior  to  the  horse's  instinct.  He  has  more 
strength,  more  sagacity  without  speech,  more  valuable  in- 
stincts and  forecasts  than  man,  and  in  the  outset  of  the 
race  of  life  he  starts  in  the  race  far  ahead.  His  self-reli- 
ance, that  great  factor  in  human  progress,  is  earlier  de- 
veloped and  is  more  tenacious.  But  he  is  denied  the  vocal 
power,  hence  he  takes  rank  next  to  head  in  the  roll  of 
creation. 

Why,  then,  deny  him  a  place  in  history  to  which  he 
has  contributed  so  much  in  sacred  and  profane  records  ? 
Why  close  the  doors  of  fame  to  him  who  has  ofttimes 
turned  tho  tide  of  battle  and  changed  the  pathway  of 
nations  ? 

From  Job  to  Pharaoh  the  horse  is  a  conspicuous  sub- 
ject. 

The  earliest  horse  known  in  North  Carolina  is  probably 
the  banker  pony,  and  in  all  the  crossings  of  breeds  and 


170  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

the  training  of  thoroughbreds,  he  has  retained  and  never 
been  surpassed  in  his  peculiar  characteristics  of  endu- 
rance and  docility.  When  Amadas  and  Barlowe  came  to 
Roanoke  Island  in  1584  the  pony  was  probably  here  on 
the  shores  of  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  and  was  sometimes 
used  by  the  Indians  in  the  chase  and  for  transportation 
purposes.  He  was  self-supporting  on  the  salt  marshee, 
and  was  sometimes  subjugated  by  the  aborigines  for  the 
purposes  of  the  chase. 

How  he  came  there,  whence  he  came,  and  how  long  he 
had  been  there  are  still  unsolved  problems  in  the  specula- 
tions of  naturalists  and  philosophers. 

Some  claim  that  he  was  brought  over  to  America  in 
the  migrations  of  the  "Lost  Tribes"  of  Israel  after  their 
escape  from  the  horsemen  and  chariots  of  the  Egyptians  in 
the  flood-tide  of  the  Red  Sea ;  and  that  our  banker  ponies 
were  the  remnants  of  the  Egyptian  hosts  who  perished 
in  the  Red  Sea. 

This  remnant  of  wild  horses  escaped  the  general  de- 
struction and  were  taken  by  the  Israelites  and  preserved 
by  them  as  memorials  of  their  preservation.  When  the 
lost  tribes  were  lost  in  the  forty  years  of  wandering  in  the 
wilderness  and  found  a  home  in  North  Carolina,  long 
before  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  conceived  the  idea  of  trans- 
atlantic exploration,  they  brought  the  Egyptian  ponies 
with  them,  and  ever  after  preserved  them  as  memorials  of 
a  beneficent  Providence. 

Others  claim  that  the  banker  pony  is  a  development  of 
the  sand  fiddler  from  the  long  evolution  of  the  ages. 
They  trace  the  marks  of  a  remote  lineage  in  their  resem- 
blances and  characteristics,  as  the  remote  ancestry  of  the 
blooded  horse  can  be  traced  by  white  spots  reappearing 
among  his  descendants  at  intervals  in  the  genealogy  of  the 
blood.  The  "fiddler,"  they  say,  is  tenacious  of  his  habi- 
tat and  combatative  in  its  defence.  So  is  the  banker  pony. 
The  "fiddler"  is  remarkable  for  the  strength  of  his  spinal 
column.  So  the  banker  pony.  The  spinal  column  of 
the  "fiddler"  is  as  tough  and  sinewy  as  a  "razor-back" 


THE    BANKER    PONY.  17 1 

porker.  The  spinal  column  of  the  banker  pony  is  phe- 
nomenally tough  and  strong.  He  will  pull  with  ease 
a  burden  attached  to  his  tail  that  he  could  not  move  when 
attached  to  his  shoulders.  The  "fiddler"  is  a  burrower 
in  the  sand,  and  makes  his  hole  an  asylum  of  refuge  and 
a  castle  of  defence.  The  pony  will  paw  the  sand  until 
it  will  make  a  hole  as  deep  as  his  body. 

But  we  discard  all  these  theories  as  philosophical  vaga- 
ries of  a  diseased  f  ancy,  and  adopt  another  which  has  less 
imagination  but  more  wisdom. 

When  Ponce  de  Leon,  the  Spanish  explorer,  came  back 
to  America,  after  accompanying  Columbus  on  his  first 
voyage,  he  came  in  small  ships;  and  to  economize  storage 
he  brought  with  him  a  few  small  Spanish  mustang  horses. 
His  object  was  to  use  them  in  his  search  for  that  marvel- 
ous "Fountain  of  Youth,"  which  was  to  transmute  the 
dull  and  wasted  materials  of  age  into  the  vital  principle 
of  youth,  and  enable  old  age  to  put  on  the  vigor  of  youth 
and  retain  the  experience  of  age.  De  Leon  landed  on  the 
coast  of  Florida  in  the  early  years  of  the  sixteenth  cen- 
tury, to  accomplish  his  original  and  glorious  mission,  but  he 
found  much  mosquitoes,  tarantulas  and  alligators,  but  no 
Fountain  of  Youth;  and  he  went  back  to  Spain  and  left 
the  little  mustangs  to  shift  for  themselves.  They,  having 
the  instinct  of  wisdom,  and  not  liking  the  sunny  land  in 
which  insects  abounded  and  only  man  was  dwarfed,  sought 
a  more  salubrious  clime,  mierrated  slowlv  northward,  until 
they  came  to  the  coast  of  Carolina,  where  food  was  abun- 
dant and  insects  scarce,  and  there,  with  a  wisdom  supe- 
rior to  man's  they  have  ever  since  remained,  docile  when 
domesticated  and  helpful  to  his  human  eolaborer. 


172  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


DARE  COUNTY. 

Aye,  call  it  holy  ground, 
The  soil  where  first  they  trod. 

— Mrs.  Hemans. 

THE  county  of  Dare  was  formed  by  a  slice  or  rib  taken 
from  the  sides  of  the  counties  of  Currituck,  Tyrrell  and 
Hyde.  It  lies  chiefly  along  the  seacoast,and  its  inhabitants 
partake  of  that  vitality,  heartiness,wholesouledness,  health- 
iness, cordiality  and  open-handed  hospitality  which  always 
distinguished  the  dwellers  by  the  sea.  Stanteo,  its  county- 
town,  is  situated  on  the  historic  island  of  Roanoke,  at  the 
head  of  Shallow  Bag  Bay,  and  though  at  present  a  town 
of  small  pretensions,  may,  in  the  future,  become  the  seat 
and  centre  of  the  fishing  industry.  A  few  years  have 
wonderfully  developed  that  businessv  and  furnished  a  rich 
treasury  to  the  people  of  Dare. 

About  twenty  years  ago  some  boys  playing  by  the  sea 
shore  near  Cape  Hatter  as  accidentally  caught  a  few 
large  fish  unknown  before.  They  were  the  first  known  of 
the  fish,  iio\v  so  highly  prized,  called  Blue  Fish.  Seven- 
teen years  ago  Chauncey  Meekins,  a  citizen  of  Roanoke 
Island,  esteemed  for  his  enterprising  and  excellent  char- 
acter, and  who  extended  bounteous  hospitality  to  his 
friends,  and  especially  to  his  friends  of  the  legal  profes- 
sion, set  the  first  blue-fish  net  in  the  ocean  opposite  Roan- 
oke Island.  Since  then  Mr.  Meekins  has  continued  the 
business,  and  has  made  the  largest  catch  of  blue  fish  at  one 
setting  of  which  mention  has  been  made  to  us.  From  one 
setting  he  gilled  and  saved  5,000  blue  fish.  The  blue  fish 
is  one  of  the  marvels  of  the  sea,  and  the  tales  of  his  habits 
and  peculiarities,,  unquestioned  here,  would,  in  other  lands, 
be  classed  as  fabulous  fish  stories.  He  makes  his  appear- 
ance on  the  Albemarle  coast  toward  the  last  of  ISTovember. 
He  strikes  the  coast  of  Virginia  about  Cape  Henry,  and 
follows  it  down  to  Cape  Hatter  as ;  there  he  follows  the 
current  setting  out  to  sea,  and  then  striking  northward 


DARE    COUNTY.  173 

repeats  the  circuit  from  Cape  Hatteras.  They  are  the  ter- 
ror of  the  sea.  The  bull  dogs  of  the  ocean.  As  ravenous 
as  an  anaconda  and  as  savage  as  a  meat-axe.  Woe  to  the 
man  or  beast  or  fish  or  fowl  that  comes  within  reach  of 
their  sharp  fangs.  Woe  to  the  fat-backs.  Poor-spirited, 
timid,  unresisting,  oily,  plethoric  fat-backs.  Victims  of  the 
1)1  no-  fish's  rage  and  appetite. 

Ephraim  Meekins,  of  Roanoke  Island,  has  furnished  us 
with  some  facts  about  these  fat-backs  so  marvelous  that 
wo  should  be  disposed  to  question  them  but  for  the  fact 
that  our  friend  Ephraim,  in  a  newspaper  controversy  last 
year,  about  a  blue-fish  roe,  armed  alone  with  his  practical 
knowledge,  encountered  one  who  studies  physical  phe- 
nomena by  the  light  of  science;  and  when  that  contro- 
versy ended,  waved  his  victorious  banner  over  a  vanquished 
scientist. 

Fat-backs  have  a  futfny  way  of  assuming  a  new  alias 
in  every  new  locality  they  visit.  Far  North  they  are 
known  as  "Mossy  Bunkers."  As  they  get  along  they  pass 
as  "Porgies,"  "Ale-Wives"  and  "Old-Wives,"  and' when 
thoy  reach  the  Albemarle  coast  they  are  recognized  as  "Fat- 
Backs,"  and  welcomed  with  bloody  teeth  to  hospitable 
throats  by  the  insatiate  blue  fish.  They  come  in  immense 
shoals.  Sometimes,  frightened  almost  to  death  by  their 
pursuers,  they  rush  upon  the  shore  in  countless  millions 
and  seek  death  by  their  own  rash  act.  Sometimes  as  many 
as  fifty  shoals  can  be  seen  at  once,  varying  in  size  from  a 
fifth  to  a  quarter  acre,  reaching  down  five  feet  below  the 
surface  of  the  sea  and  risin~  in  a  dense  body  a  foot  above 
it ;  and  the  blue  fish  visible  under  them,  pegging:  away  and 
ripping  them  to  pieces,  and  bloodying  the  ocean  all  around. 
Sometimes  the  mass  of  fat-backs  is  so  compact  that  fisher- 
mon  have  unshipped  their  rudders,  placed  it  upon  the  fat- 
,  and  stood  upon  it  in  the  open  sea.  And  somebody 
that  somebody  "did,"  or  "could,"  or  "might,"  or 
'khad"stuek  his  oar  ur>  in  the  mass  of  the  fish,  and,-  climb- 
ins;  up  to  the  top  of  the  oar,  waved  his  hat  around  his 


174  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

head,  with  three  cheers  for  Tilden,  Hendricks  and  Vance. 
All  Dare,  now,  is  on  the  rampage  for  the  blue-fish  fray, 
and  though  the  terror  of  the  sea,  when  they  meet  the  daring 
men  of  Dare  they'll  meet  an  enemy  they  can  not  conquer. 


NAGS  HEAD. 
"  The  Land  of  the  Blest." 

WE  write  amid  historic  associations.  Our  eye  takes  in 
at  a  glance  the  scenes  and  places  where  the  first  white 
men  landed  in  America  of  whom  history  has  preserved  an 
authentic  narrative.  The  now  closed  inlet  through  which 
Sir  Walter  Raleigh's  colonists,  under  the  command  of 
Ainadas  and  Barlowe,  entered  Roanoke  Sound;  "Ballast 
Point/7  where  they  cast  anchor,  where  the  white  man  and 
the  red  man  first  met  face  to  face,  with  that  strange  and 
mysterious  color  line  of  race  that  hath  not  and  can  not  be 
blended  in  harmonious  unity ;  the  waters  where  they  chaf- 
fered and  traded  with  the  Indians/,  the  spot  where  was 
born  Virginia  Dare,  the  first  white  child  of  American 
birth,  and  where  was  first  administered  the  rite  of  Chris- 
tian baptism  ut)on  American  soil ;  the  rude  fort  or  embank- 
ment thrown  up  by  the  ill-fated  colonists  as  a  protection 
against  the  attacks  of  hostile  Indians ;  Croatan  to  which 
they  went  when  they  abandoned  the  fort,  never  to  return 
or  be  heard  of  more ;  Roanoke  Island  with  its  old  and  re- 
cent sanguinary  historical  memories ;  and  the  new  town  of 
Manteo,  consecrated  by  name  and  locality  to  the  memory 
of  him  who  through  all  the  vicissitudes  of  adverse  fortune 
was  the  true  and  steadfast  friend  of  the  pale-faced  colo- 
nists— another  illustration  that 

"  Little  deeds  of  kindness, 
Little  words  of  love," 

graven  by  humanity  upon  the  tablet  of  the  heart  outlive 
the  proudest  memorials  blazoned  by  ambition  upon  the 


NAGS    HEAD.  175 

records  of  fame — all  these  lie  spread  out  before  us  as  a 
vast  panorama. 

Nags  Head  has  also  a  history,  not  gray  with  age  and 
''rich  with  the  spoils  of  time,"  but  attractive  in  its  social 
and  domestic  aspects,  and  in  its  more  public  character, 
connecting  itself  with  events  which  have  shaped  the  desti- 
nies of  peoples,  and  to  which  time  will  give  the  enchant- 
ment that  distance  imparts. 

It  was  here,  in  the  war  of  1812,  that  troops  under  the 
command  of  Captain  Bell,  of  Currituck,  were  stationed 
to  guard  the  coast  and  prevent  the  landing  of  the  British 
forces.  And  here,  too,  in  the  war  of  1812  lived  some  of 
a  class  of  men  incident  to  all  wars,  who  were  typified  by 
that  animal  to  which  nature  has  denied  the  natural  weap- 
ons with  which  it  has  armed  its  kind,  which  never  "locks 
horns"  with  an  enemy.  It  was  here,  in  the  war  of  1861- 
1865,  that  Gen.  II.  A.  •Wise,  of  Virginia,  had  his  head- 
quarters while  in  command  of  the  troops  stationed  on  Roan- 
oke  Island,  in  the  Spring  of  1862,  holding,  when  the  disas- 
trous battle  ended,  the  post  of  safety,  if  not  of  danger,  and 
illustrating  in  his  safe  and  precipitate  personal  retreat  by 
the  light  of  buildings  and  stores  himself  had  fired,  that 
discretion  is  an  important  element  in  the  estimate  of  valor. 

But  it  is  in  its  social  and  hygienic  aspects  that  Nags 
Head  is  chiefly  known  and  has  become  identified  with  the 
local  history  of  this  part  of  Eastern  North  Carolina. 
From  that  time  when  "the  memory  of  man  runneth  not  to 
the  contrary"  it  has  been  the  resort  for  health  of  persons 
and  families  living  in  the  adjacent  section.  From  time 
immemorial  it  has  been  the  nursery  of  the  Albemarle  coun- 
try. For  many  years  families  came  down  and  passed 
much  of  the  months  from  June  to  October,  living  in  rude 
and  primitive  style,  with  such  accommodations  as  could 
be  obtained  among  the  dwellers  along  the  coast,  a  plain 
and  peculiar  people  who  obtained  a  precarious  support 
from  the  supply  of  fish  which  the  waters  afforded  and  from 
the  wrecks  cast  by  the  dangerous  tempests  upon  the  coast. 
From  its  accessibility  and  from  its  being  a  narrow  part  of 


176  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

the  sand  bank  separating  the  sound  from  the  ocean,  Nags 
Head  became  the  resort  most  frequented  by  the  visitors, 
and  about  the  year  1830  some  advance  was  made  in  its  sum- 
mer comforts  by  some  of  the  visitors  putting  up  small  one- 
story  houses  near  the  sound,  upon  the  sand  hills  which 
dotted  the  shore  in  every  direction.  These  simple  shanty 
structures  added  greatly  to  the  number  and  comfort  of  vis- 
itors. They  possessed  an  expansive  elasticity  without 
limit,  and  by  the  addition  of  curtains  were  infinitesimally 
subdivided  for  the  accommodation  of  friends. 

The  erection  of  a  hotel  building  capable  of  accommoda- 
ting some  200  persons  in  1838,  by  a  company  composed 
of  citizens  of  Elizabeth  City,  constitutes  an  epoch  in  the 
history  of  Nags  Head.  This  event  gave  it  a  new  charac- 
ter and  a  new  departure.  Hitherto  it  had  been  the  resort 
of  families  and  their  friends,  occupying  isolated  rude  ten- 
ements, with  no  common  centre  of  union,  but  now  fashion 
and  gayety  were  to  attract  with  their  enchantment  a  new 
class  of  visitors.  Youth  and  beauty,  belles  and  beaux, 
with  the  romance  of  love  and  flirtation,  added  a  new  fea- 
ture, and  every  season  had  its  tale  of  matches  made  or 
broken.  "Engagement  Hill,"  about  this  time,  derived  its 
name  from  circumstances  that  its  name  suggests,  and  its 
tradition  and  history  excel  those  of  "Kill  Devil  Hills"  or 
"Nags  Head  Hill"  in  romantic  and  tender  incidents. 

The  career  of  Nags  Head  was  an  unbroken  progress  of 
prosperity  until  the  war  of  1861,  which  desolated  the  place. 
Elegant  structures,  the  seats  of  social  refinement  and  hap- 
piness, were  given  over  to  the  ruthless  hands  of  half-sav- 
age negroes  and  a  fanatic  soldiery.  The  private  resi- 
dences were  torn  down.  The  little  church,  around  which 
clustered  so  many  sacred  associations,  shared  the  same 
fate  at  the  hands  of  the  spoilers,  and  when  peace  came  with 
its  healing  wings,  scenes  once  bright  with  the  mingled  hap- 
piness of  childhood,  manhood  and  age  were  naught  but  a 
mournful  desolation,  with  the  wild  winds  chanting  the 
remiiem  of  the  dead  past  amid  the  solitude  of  the  eternal 
hills. 


NAGS    HEAD.  177 

But  time  will  heal  and  tears  will  dry,  and  after  an  ab- 
sence of  many  years,  with  their  mournful  vicissitudes,  we 
have  come  again  to  revisit  old  scenes  peopled  with  mem- 
ories of  the  departed,  with  the  old  familiar  land-marks 
swept  off  by  the  sand  drift.  The  old  ocean  is  still  here, 
with  the  huge  billows  still  echoing  the  great  voice  of  the  Al- 
mighty. We  have  buffeted  again  the  same  grand  old 
mountain  waves,  swam  out  again  beyond  the  breakers,  and 
rested  again  in  poise  upon  the  bosom  of  the  briny  deep. 
That  elastic  kick-out  of  the  strong  swimmer,  acquired  in 
boyhood,  clings  to  us  through  life  with  the  same  tenacity 
that  it  clings  to  a  bull-frog.  All  of  yore  is  changed ;  some 
vestiges  of  the  old  hotel,  built  in  1838  and  burned  in  1862, 
are  still  visible. 


12 


178  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


GOVERNOR   SWAIN. 

"  Speak  of  me  as  I  am;  nothing  extenuate; 
Nor  set  down  aught  in  malice." 

IF  WE  were  asked  who  was  more  distinguished  in  the 
public  life  of  North  Carolina  for  patriotism,  usefulness, 
and  State  love,  we  would  reply,  after  Zeb.  Vance,  our 
beloved  war  governor — Governor  David  L.  Swain — the 
long-popular  President  of  the  University  of  North  Caro- 
lina, both  natives  and  residents  of  the  county  of  Buncombe. 

Strange  to  say,  Governor  Swain  was  a  surprise  and  a 
disappointment  to  the  whole  State  of  North  Carolina 
when  he  was  selected  as  President  of  the  University.  He 
was  a  malformation  in  person,  out  of  proportion  in  physi- 
cal conformation,  apparently  thrown  together  in  haste 
and  manufactured  from  scattered  debris  of  material  that 
had  been  used  in  other  work.  Nature  had  been  a  most 
unkind  mother  to  him;  gawky,  lanky,  with  a  nasal  twang 
that  proclaimed  him  an  alien,  and  a  pedal  propulsion  that 
often  awakened  derision  and  offended  nobody's  self-love. 
In  addition  to  all  these  unjust  gifts  of  nature,  he  was  an 
unlettered  man  and  owed  nothing  to  the  primary  or  higher 
schools,  and  so  far  as  scholastic  training  goes,  he  was  an 
ignorant  man. 

And  yet  he  was  elected  to  the  Presidency  of  the  oldest 
and  best  institution  of  learning  in  the  Southern  States, 
and  administered  its  affairs  longer  and  with  more  wisdom 
than  any  of  his  distinguished  predecessors ;  and  by  pre- 
cept and  example  during  his  long  administration,  he  im- 
pressed himself  upon  the  sons  of  North  Carolina  as  no 
other  man  in  the  State  has  ever  done — an  impression  that 
is  shown  in  our  mature  manhood  at  this  day,  and  will  be 
felt  in  North  Carolina  as  long  as  time  lasts. 

It  was  President  David  L.  Swain  that  helped  much  to 
give  us  Zeb.  Vance  and  make  that  most  loved  Carolinian 
the  great  man  that  he  was.  It  was  President  Swain's 
bounty  that  enabled  Vance  to  secure  an  education  at  the 


GOVERNOR   SWAIN.  179 

University  of  North  Carolina,  where  he  laid  the  founda- 
tion of  his  future  greatness. 

When  the  bee  of  the  University  first  buzzed  in  Gov- 
ernor Swain's  bonnet,  so  to  speak,  he  was  himself  in 
doubt  as  to  his  fitness  for  "the  Presidency  of  the  Univer- 
sity. He  had  been  prominent  in  politics,  had  acquired 
some  distinction  as  a  lawyer,  had  been  a  leading  member 
of  the  Legislature,  and  was  sometimes  spoken  of  as  a  popu- 
lar speaker  and  parliamentarian.  He  had  been  elected 
Governor  of  the  State,  and  when  Dr.  Caldwell,  President 
of  the  University,  died  in  1835,  Swain's  administration 
of  the  State  Government  was  about  expiring. 

One  fine  fall  evening  the  Governor  was  sitting  alone 
in  his  official  office  on  the  capitol  grounds  in  Raleigh. 
Judge  Nash  passed  through  the  grounds,  and  seeing  Gov- 
ernor Swain  sitting  alone  in  the  door  of  his  office  stopped 
in  to  talk  with  him.  T£he  Governor  was  in  a  confiding 
mood  and  explained  to  the  kind  Judge  his  situation.  He 
>;ii<l  his  term  of  office  as  Governor  of  the  State  was  draw- 
ing to  a  close,  and  he  was  puzzled  to  know  what  he  was 
iroinir  to  do  for  a  living;  that  it  would  take  a  long  time 
for  him  to  reestablish  himself  in  his  law  practice ;  that  he 
\vas  ucver  fond  of  la,w  practice*  thnt  there  was  no  vacancy 
in  the  United  States  Senate  from  North  Carolina,  and 
would  not  be  for  several  years,  and  that  he  thought  of  being 
a  Candidate  for  the  Presidency  of  the  University.  He 
asked  Judge  Nash,  who  was  a  man  of  literary  accomplish- 
ments and  legal  learning,  what  he  thought  of  it.  The 
Judge  did  not  reply  promptlv  and  it  was  evident  he  did 
not  think  well  of  it.  Before  Judge  Nash  replied  the 
Governor  said  to  him :  "Well,  Judge  Nash,  if  you  will 
mention  the  matter  to  Jud™  Duncan  Cameron,  who  loves 
the  University,  and  he  disapproves  of  it,  I  will  say  no 
more  about  it,"  Judge  Nash  replied  that  he  was  then 
"ii  his  wav  to  Judge  Cameron's  to  tea,  and  would  men- 
tion the  subject  to  him.  Judge  Nash  during  the  evening 
;it  Judire  Cameron's  said  to  him  that  Governor  Swain 
wanted  flip  appointment  of  President  of  the  University, 
and  asked  him  what  he  thought  of  it. 


180  GRANDFATHER'S 

Judge  Cameron,  after  a  moment's  reflection,  said: 
"Well,  I  never  thought  of  it,  but  Swain  is  the  very  man 
for  the  place ;  a  man  who  has  proven  himself  such  a  great 
manager  of  men  would  make  a  good  manager  of  boys." 
The  Governor  was  told  this  opinion  of  Judge  Cameron, 
and  forthwith  announced  himself  as  a  candidate  for  the 
place. 

When  the  intelligence  of  Governor  Swain's  candidacy 
for  President  of  the  University  reached  Chapel  Hill  the 
faculty  was  astounded.  Dr.  Mitchell,  familiarly  called 
"Old  Mike/7  who  w^as  a  pushing  man,  anxious  for  the 
place,  and  had  an  unbridled  tongue,  ridiculed  the  subject. 
Dr.  Hooper,  familiarly  called  "Old  Billy/7  also  hankered 
after  the  place.  He  was  a  proud  man,  of  exquisite  wit 
and  humor,  and  his  pride  of  ancestry  was  sharpened  by 
the  current  of  his  blood  that  ran  through  nobles  ever  since 
the  flood.  He  was  quiet,  but  in  an  unguarded  moment  let 
drop  the  remark  that  "the  people  of  North  Carolina  haJ 
done  everything  they  could  for  their  ignorant  Governor  and 
now  they  wanted  to  send  him  to  the  University  to  be  edu- 
cated." 

We  had  seen  Governor  Swain  tAvice  before  he  became 
President  of  the  University.  Once  when  he  was  Gov- 
ernor, and  once  when  he  was  a  member  of  the  Convention 
of  1835,  representing  Buncombe  County. 

In  that  Convention,  which  was  torn  by  antagonistic 
factions  in  the  State  on  the  basis  of  representation  in  the 
General  Assembly,  Swain  was  the  leader  of  the  forces  of 
Western  North  Carolina.  He  made  a  great  speech  on 
that  subject,  which  at  one  time  threatened  the  unity  of 
the  State,  and  we  listened  to  it  with  delight.  He  presented 
all  the  points  in  the  case  from  the  western  point  of  view. 
It  was  bold,  defiant,  logical,  argumentative  and  sometimes 
eloquent.  He  was  fond  of  Scriptural  quotations,  and  often 
used  them  with  great  effect.  Once,  towering  in  his  wrath 
and  raising  his  index  finger  as  in  defiance  of  Eastern 
Carolina,  he  said :  "Let  our  Eastern  brethren  beware.  If 
they  do  not  grant  our  peaceful  appeal  for  a  change  in  the 


GOVERNOR   SWAIN.  l8l 

basis  of  representation,  we  will  rise  like  the  strong  man  in 
his.  unshorn  might  and  pull  down  the  pillars  of  the  polit- 
ical temple." 

The  subject  was  under  discussion  in  the  Convention  for 
several  days,  and  every  Western  member  that  spoke  re- 
ferred to  the  Scriptural  quotation  of  the  "eloquent  gentle- 
man from  Buncombe."  At  length,  Mr.  Gaston  addressed 
the  Convention  on  the  same  subject.  After  speaking 
about  an  hour,  he  turned  round  and  said:  "The  gentleman 
from  Buncombe  has  said  that  if  the  East  does  not  grant 
the  peaceful  demands  of  the  West,  they  will  rise  like  the 
strong  man  in  his  unshorn  might  and  pull  down  the  pillars 
of  the  political  temple.  The  strong  man,  the  son  of  Ma- 
nnjih,  was  brought  out  from  his  prison  to  make  sport  for 
the  ninnies  of  his  country,  and  do  honor  to  the  impious 
feast  of  Uagon.  He  tugged  and  heaved  at  the  massive  pil- 
lars  of  the  temple,  ani  all  were  crushed  in  one  hideous 
ruin.  It  was  a  great  and  a  glorious  deed.  He  fell  a  mar- 
tyr and  a  hero,  victorious  among  the  slain." 

No  more  was  heard  of  the  eloquent  gentleman's  Scrip- 
tural quotation.  Gaston  had  spiked  Swain's  Scriptural 
gun. 


1 82  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


JAMES    IREDELL— W.    B.    SHEPARD  —  KENNETH 

RAYNER— W.    N.   H.  SMITH— COL.   HENRY 

M.   SHAW. 

"  Like  the  mother  of  the  Grachi,  when  asked  for  her  jewels,  she 
pointed  to  her  sons." 

THE  First  District  of  North  Carolina  has  always  been 
proud  of  her  Representatives  in  the  National  councils. 
Looking  to  the  Senate  of  the  United  States  first,  she  has 
had  but  one  member  of  that  august  body  during  the  exist- 
ence of  the  Government — James  Iredell,  Jr. 

Mr.  Iredell  was  the  son  of  Justice  James  Iredell,  of  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States,  under  the  adminis- 
tration of  Washington.  Descended  from  an  intellectual 
ancestry,  born  to  distinction,  and  being  endowed  by  nature 
with  great  genius  and  abilitv,  he  reached  manhood  with 
much  promise  of  distinction  in  his  legal  profession.  He 
soon  acquired  distinction  and  popularity  with  his  fellow 
citizens,  and  public  life  sought  him  as  a  Representative  in 
the  General  Assembly. 

He  took  high  rank  in  debate  in  the  General  Assembly, 
and  was  the  peer  of  Gaston,  Drew,  Cameron  and  Alfred 
Moore,  and  the  other  great  men  who  adorned  our  State 
councils  at  that  time.  He  was  at  the  head  of  the  law  pro- 
fession in  the  First  Judicial  District,  and  at  an  early  age 
was  transferred  to  the  Circuit  Bench. 

Some  years  after,  he  was  elected  Governor  of  North 
Carolina  by  the  Legislature.  At  the  expiration  of  his 
term  sts  Governor,  he  was  elected  to  the  United  States 
Senate,  to  succeed  Nat.  Macon ;  and  in  that  body  he  main- 
tained a  high  position.  It  is  said  that  he  was  selected  to 
reply  to  Mr.  Webster,  in  the  celebrated  debate  on  nulli- 
fication, and  his  place  was,  in  consequence  of  Iredell's  sick- 
ness, supplied  by  Hayne,  of  South  Carolina.  He  died  at 
the  age  of  sixty-five,  when  attending  the  Courts  of  the 
First  District, 

William  B.  Shepard  was  a  native  of  New  Bern,  N.  C. 
After  coming  of  age,  he  removed  to  Camden  County,  where 


SHEPARD — RAYNER.  183 

he  had  large  landed  estates,  and  after  obtaining  his  law 
license  he  practiced  his  profession  in  that  county  with 
great  success  for  several  years. 

After  living  some  time  in  Camden,  he  made  his  home  in 
Elizabeth  City.  Always  interested  in  public  affairs,  study- 
ing politics  from  its  highest  standpoint,  he  took  part  in 
public  discussions  and  became  known  to  the  people  of  the 
District  as  an  able  and  accomplished  man. 

Lemuel  Sawyer  then  represented  the  District  in  Con- 
gress, and  had  been  in  Congress  for  several  years.  Shep- 
ard  was  put  in  nomination  by  his  friends  as  an  opponent 
of  Sawyer,  and  was  elected  over  him  in  1829,  and  con- 
tinued in  office  for  eight  years;  and  while  a  member  of 
Congress  for  eight  years  he  became  the  undisputed  leader 
of  the  North  Carolina  delegation  in  Congress.  He  was 
gifted  as  an  orator,  conservative  as  a  statesman,  and  a  gen- 
tleman in  all  his  instiraets  and  intercourse.  He  volunta- 
rily retired  from  Coneress. 

He  then,  with  ample  means  and  leisure,  led  the  life  of 
a  gentleman  of  leisure,  attending  the  Courts  of  the  local 
bar,  and  often  elected  to  the  Legislature  as  Senator  and 
Representative. 

Tie  was  often  spoken  of  for  United  States  Senator  from 
North  Carolina,  and  aspired  to  the  position,  and  was  fitted 
for  it.  In  1845  he  was  the  competing  candidate  before 
the  Legislature  with  George  E.  Badger,  and  his  friends  al- 
ways thought  that  he  would  have  been  chosen  if  his  speech 
accepting  the  situation  had  been  made  before  his  defeat. 
After  that,  his  interest  in  public  affairs  diminished,  and  it 
seemed  to  be  looked  at  by  him  from  afar.  He  occasionally 
was  elected  to  the  Legislature,  and  some  time  in  the  fifties 
his  health  gave  way,  after  the  deat>»  of  his  second  wife,  and 
he  departed  for  the  "undiscovered  country"  with  the  love 
and  admiration  of  his  countrymen. 

Kenneth  TCayner  was  a  lion  in  his  early  manhood.  In 
its  maturity  his  "vaulting  ambition  overleaped  itself,"  and 
he  fell,  and  in  age  he  was  poor  and  disappointed,  forgotten 
by  his  old  friends,  having  deserted  them  for  new  friends 


184  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

that  lie  had  always  despised.  At  his  death,  his  life  became 
the  burden  of  a  moral  and  a  tale.  His  memory  is  full 
of  sadness,  and  recalls  the  words  of  the  preacher,  "Vanity 
of  vanities!  vanity  of  vanities!  all  is  vanity!"  Alas! 
once  the  popular  idol,  honored,  loved,  nattered  and  ca- 
ressed. A  great  leader,  bold,  daring,  unflinching.  True 
to  his  friends,  defiant  to  his  enemies,  loving  North  Caro- 
lina with  his  heart's  devotion. 

"Cromwell,  I  charge  thee,  fling  away  ambi^'^.  By 
that  sin  fell  the  angels."  By  that  sin  fell  Kenneth  Ray- 
ner.  "Oh  !  what  a  fall  was  there,  my  countrymen  I" 

William  N.  H.  Smith,  of  Murfreesboro,  was  a  good  and 
a  great  lawyer.  He  stood  at  the  head  of  his  profession. 
He  rose  to  the  Chief  Justiceship  of  North  Carolina.  He 
took  high  rank  in  social  position.  In  private  life  he  was 
without  reproach.  In  public  and  official  life  he  was  with- 
out a  superior.  He  died  in  harness,  in  advanced  age, 
with  honors  thick  upon  him,  and  left  a  memory  that  was 
without  spot  or  blemish. 

Col.  Henry  M.  Shaw  was  a  native  of  Rhode  Island,  but 
a  citizen  of  North  Carolina  all  of  his  mature  life.  At  an 
early  age  he  became  an  inmate  of  the  family  of  Dr.  Gid- 
eon Merchant,  of  Currituck  County,  and  from  that  Gama- 
liel of  Democracy  he  imbibed  those  political  principles  with 
which  he  was  always  identified. 

From  the  time  when  he  commenced  the  practice  of  med- 
icine, he  rose  rapidly  in  practice  and  became  very  success- 
ful. But  he  was  always  an  ardent  politician,  and  soon  be- 
came a  leader  in  the  Democratic  councils  and  a  public 
speaker  in  political  campaigns. 

He  had  great  readiness  as  a  public  speaker,  and  was 
the  most  logical,  forceful  and  deliberate  that  we  ever  lis- 
tened to.  He  was  thoroughly  posted  upon  -political  and 
general  subjects.  He  became  prominent  for  Congressional 
honors,  and  was  put  in  nomination  as  the  candidate  of  the 
Democratic  party. 

His  election  followed  his  nomination,  and  he  made  a 
most  excellent,  obliging  and  able  Representative,  He  went 


HENRY    M.    SHAW.  185 

to  Congress  in  a  stormy  period.  The  cloud-burst  that 
drenched  our  country  in  blood  was  already  portentous  with 
forked  lightning  and  rumbling  thunder.  Soon  after,  he 
left  Congress  to  cast  his  lot  with  his  troubled  countrymen. 

At  the  outbreak  of  the  war,  Colonel  Shaw  was  tendered 
the  command  of  the  8th  Regiment  of  North  Carolina 
Troops,  which  he  promptly  accepted.  He  entered  the 
field  at  once.  He  was  captured  in  the  defence  of  Roanoke 
Island,  where,  after  a  gallant  defence  in  a  fight  with  over- 
powering numbers,  he  surrendered  to  a  hopeless  fate,  after 
being  flanked  on  both  sides. 

After  his  parol  wras  out,  he  returned  to  his  post  of  duty 
and  danger,  and  at  the  battle  of  Bachelor's  Creek,  near 
New  Bern,  on  the  1st  of  February,  1864,  Colonel  Shaw 
sealed  his  devotion  to  his  country  with  his  life.  He  was 
killed  by  a  rifle  ball  while  reoonnoitering  the  enemy. 


1 86  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


WILLIAM    W.  CHERRY. 

"  Friend  of  my  youth, 
Great  mind  of  wondrous  gifts  " 

CHERRY  was  distinguished  at  the  University  more  for 
his  rollicking  disposition  and  for  making  the  "Old  South" 
ring  with  the  echo  of  his  voice,  than  for  his  studious  habits. 
He  was  seldom  on  time  at  the  beginning  of  a  session,  and 
once,  on  his  way  to  the  University,  at  the  beginning  of  a 
session,  he  fell  in  with  a  party  of  companionable  friends, 
not  students,  and  went  down  to  Fayetteville  with  them, 
reaching  the  University  to  join  his  class  when  the  session 
was  well  advanced.  But  he  managed  by  his  genius  and 
good  nature  to  keep  up  with  the  class  until  his  graduation. 

Leaving  the  University,  he  returned  to  his  home  in 
Windsor,  Bertie  County,  and  after  some  delay  entered  upon 
the  legal  profession,  of  which  he  became  a  leading  member. 
He  was  a  great  advocate,  remarkable  for  his  readiness,  his 
admirable  presentation  of  the  facts  of  a  case,  and  had  a 
most  magnetic  influence  with  a  jury.  He  was  not  a  great 
lawyer,  a  profound  lawyer,  with  a  thorough  and  accurate 
and  comprehensive  knowledge  of  precedent  and  authority, 
versed  in  the  deep  subtleties  of  the  law,  its  intricacies  and 
discriminations,  and  capable  of  dividing  a  hair  "  'twixt 
north  and  northwest  side,"  but  he  was  a  thorough  master 
of  the  facts  of  a  case.  He  could  turn  and  twist  them, 
presenting  them  in  every  shade  and  complexion  and  aspect, 
and  making  them  luminous  to  the  plainest  understanding. 
His  language,  the  vehicle  of  his  thought,  was  wonderful, 
and  the  play  of  his  changing  expression  of  countenance 
gave  great  force  to  it.  His  manner  was  natural  and  easy, 
his  action  perfectly  unaffected  and  suited  to  the  word, 
and  his  voice  was  charming  to  listen  to,  not  the  mellow 
deep-toned  voice  of  the  trained  elocutionist,  but  one  that 
won  by  its  sympathetic  and  kindly  tones.  It  was  a  voice 
that  drew  his  hearers  to  him  and  made  them  kin.  When 
he  was  about  to  use  a  pleasantry,  his  face  was  lighted  from 


WILLIAM    W.    CHERRY.  1 87 

afar,  and  his  voice  changed  and  his  audience  was  led  along 
and  prepared  for  it. 

Mr.  Cherry  was  an  active  politician  of  the  Whig  school. 
He  was  a  partisan  without  bitterness.  When  the  Whig 
party  was  first  known  by  that  name,  the  Democratic,  Jack- 
son party,  was  largely  in  the  ascendant  in  Bertie.  Cherry 
took  his  fiddle,  on  which  he  was  an  expert,  and  canvassed 
the  county  in  all  the  highways  and  by-ways,  and  by  his 
pleasantry  and  bonhommie  won  them  largely  over  into 
the  Whig  ranks. 

In  the  Harrison  campaign  of  1840,  he  was  a  great 
power.  He  attended  the  Whig  National  Convention  at 
Harrisburg  that  nominated  General  Harrison,  and  it  is 
believed  that  he  first  turned  to  account  for  General  Har- 
rison the  "hard-cider  and  coon-skin"  jeer,  upon  which  the 
campaign  so  lar^elv  turner!  ^  that  political  storm.  He 
certainly  was  the  firsf  that  used  it  in  Eastern  North 
Carolina,  stating  in  a  log-cabin  speech  in  Edenton,  soon 
after  his  return  from  Harrisburg,  that  he  had  first  seen 
the  taunt  in  Baltimore  on  his  return  from  the  National 
Convention,  and  used  it  in  the  campaign.  In  that  cam- 
paign Cherry  was  the  great  bulwark  of  Whiggery  in  the 
First  District.  He  spoke  everywhere  to  large  crowds, 
and  gained  votes.  Shepard,  and  Rayner,  and  Outlaw, 
and  Speed,  and  Allen,  and  Tom  Jones  were  his  compeers 
and  supporters.  He  was  elected  from  the  county  of  Ber- 
tie to  the  Legislature  of  North  Carolina  for  the  first  time 
in  the  public  service  in  that  year.  He  was  then  but  little 
known  out  of  the  District,  but  we  heard  Judge  Moore  say, 
about  that  time,  that  Cherry  would  be  a  thorn  in  the  side 
of  the  Democrats  in  the  Legislature. 

A  little  incident  may  be  mentioned  illustrating  his  readi- 
ness. He  went  to  Raleigh  to  the  Legislature  by  way  of 
Warrenton.  Arriving  in  Warrenton  at  nistfit,  a  stranger, 
he  joined  a  group  of  Warrentonians  around  the  fire  of  the 
public  room  of  the  hotel  and  soon  joined  them  in  a  polit- 
ical talk,  thev' being;  all  Democrats  of  the  Warren  County 
type,  he  taking  the  Whig  side.  The  stranger,  plainly 


188  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

clad,  and  not  imposing  in  person,  got  the  best  of  the  argu- 
ment, and  the  Warrentonians  looked  at  him  with  some 
astonishment.  Failing  in  argument,  they  fell  back  on 
an  authority  which  settled  all  questions  in  Warren  County. 
They  quoted  Nat.  Macon  in  confirmation  of  their  opinions, 
supposing  that  no  one  would  dare  gainsay  what  Mr.  Ma- 
con  had  said.  Cherry  dissented  from  Mr.  Macon's  opin- 
ion, and,  to  the  surprise  of  others,  spoke  lightly  of  that 
great  man.  The  Warrentonians  promptly  retorted  that 
John  Randolph,  in  his  will,  had  said  that  "Nat.  Macon 
was  the  wisest  man  he  had  ever  known.'7  At  that  time  a 
suit  was  pending  in  the  Court  of  Appeals,  at  Richmond, 
contesting  Mr.  Randolph's  will,  chiefly  upon  the  ground 
of  insanity.  Cherry,  in  reply  to  the  quoted  opinion  of 
the  eminent  Virginian,  said:  "Mr.  Randolph's  will  is 
contested  in  Richmond  now,  upon  the  ground  of  insanity, 
and  I  think  the  strongest  proof  of  his  insanity  is  that  he 
said  that  Nat.  Macon  was  a  wise  man." 

Mr.  Cherry  was  once  in  a  public  meeting  at  Gatesville, 
in  the  court-house,  and  there  was  some  difficulty  with  the 
chairman  in  determining  a  question  that  was  submitted  to 
vote.  The  ayes  and  noes  were  called.  Not  satisfactory. 
Divide.  Not  satisfactory.  The  ayes  will  go  to  one  side 
of  the  house  and  the  noes  to  the  other.  Cherry  called  out 
to  the  ayes,  of  which  he  was  one,  to  seize  the  noes  and 
carry  them  over  to  their  side  of  the  house.  It  was  a 
scuffling  vote  that  was  some  hours  in  the  determination. 
Finally,  the  pantino*  ayes  "appeared  to  have  it,  the  ayes 
had  it."  This  illustrates  Cherry's  pleasantry. 

In  1844,  Cherry  was  the  Clay  Presidential  elector  op- 
posed by  an  able  champion  of  Democracy,  Thomas  Bragg, 
afterward  Governor.  It  was  the  battle  of  the  giants. 
Cherry  stood  his  ground  and  maintained  his  position  with 
Great  ability.  Brag^  was  a  battle-axe,  Cherry  was  a 
scimeter.  He  carried  the  District. 

In  1846,  Mr.  Cherry  was  nominated  for  Congress  by 
the  Whiff  Convention  that  met  in  Edenton.  He  was  nom- 
inated without  opposition,  and  after  being  introduced,  de- 


WILLIAM    W.    CHERRY.  189 

livered  a  speech  of  great  power  and  interest.  We,  then 
a  young  man  with  a  fresh  license,  being  Secretary  of  the 
Convention,  reported,  in  brief,  Mr.  Cherry's  speech.  After 
writing  it  out  from  our  notes,  we  submitted  it  to  him,  and, 
after  his  approval,  sent  the  proceedings  of  the  Convention, 
with  the  speech  reported  in  full,  to  the  Raleigh  Register 
for  publication.  The  same  paper  which  contained  the 
proceedings  of  the  Convention,  contained  the  notice  of 
his  death.  He  died  while  attending  Northampton  Court, 
the  week  after  his  nomination,  at  the  early  age  of  forty- 
three  years. 

"  What  shadows  we  are  and  what  shadows  we  pursue." 

Mr.  Cherry  was  small  in  person,  with  a  rather  large 
head  and  a  winning  expression  of  face  that  won  all  hearts. 
Nature  had  not  been  kin^l  to  him  in  his  personal  make-up, 
of  which  he  frequently  jested.  His  face  was  angular,  his 
hair  coarse  and  stiff,  and  he  was  negligent  of  his  dress. 
To  be  plain,  he  was  unmistakably  ugly.  But  he  had  all 
the  virtues  that  we  love  and  admire,  with  no  counteracting 
vices.  He  was  a  most  charming  and  attractive  compan- 
ion, and  the  District  sustained  a  great  loss  in  his  untimely 
death. 


190  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


THE    MINISTERS   OF   GOD. 

"  Pointing  up  to  Heaven, 
They  led  the  way/' 

THE  pulpit  of  North  Carolina  has  furnished  saintly 
men  who  were  the  leaders  of  public  thought  in  matters 
relating  to  godliness,  and  who  by  wise  counsel  and  burning 
words  have  made  the  world  the  better  for  their  living. 

Among  these  great  men  no  one  has  been  more  con- 
spicuous than  Rev.  Thomas  Atkinson,  Bishop  of  the  Dio- 
cese of  North  Carolina  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 
He  was  a  native  of  Virginia,  and  was  elected  to  the  Epis- 
copate of  North  Carolina  after  the  apostacy  of  Bishop 
Ives.  He  was  elected  in  the  early  fifties.  It  was  a  most 
fortunate  selection,  and  God's  wise  guidance  was  manifest 
in  it.  He  was  a  comparative  stranger  to  the  Convention 
that  made  the  selection.  He  was  elected  after  many  bal- 
lotings,  over  men  who  had  a  large  following  and  who 
ranked  among  the  most  distinguished  theologians,  and  were 
a  great  force  in  the  sacred  desk.  The  time  when  he  came 
was  inauspicious.  The  blow  given  to  the  Church  by  an 
apostate  Bishop  was  not  yet  healed.  But  his  coming  was 
a  benediction.  It  soothed  and  cemented  factions,  and 
every  one  became  satisfied.  He  was  soon  recognized  as 
one  of  the  princes  of  the  pulpit,  a  godly  man,  without 
guile  or  selfishness,  of  kindly  social  instincts,  firm  without 
dogmatism,  and  learned  without  ostentation ;  imposing  in 
person,  graceful  in  action,  effective  in  oratory,  simple  and 
natural  in  every  act.  His  sermons  were  models  of  every 
eloquence ;  masterful  in  argument,  forceful  in  logic,  touch- 
ing in  pathos.  Every  subject  he  touched,  he  invested  with 
a  new  and  sacred  interest.  His  sermon  on  "Necessity  and 
Eree  Will"  was  the  clearest  and  most  profound  exposition 
of  that  most  intricate  religious  puzzle  we  ever  listened  to. 

Turning  from  this  brief  reference  to  this  eminent  ser- 
vant of  God,  we  select  Dr.  Thomas  H.  Pritchard,  the  dis- 
tinguished Baptist  minister,  as  a  star  of  brightest  lustre 
in  the  firmament  of  the  clergy. 


THE    MINISTERS   OF   GOD.  191 

Dr.  Pritckard  was  a  Henderson  on  the  maternal  side  of 
his  lineage,  and  that  means  strength  in  intellectuality,  pro- 
fundity in  thought,  taste  and  elegance  in  diction,  and  the 
most  charming  gifts  of  social  intercourse.  Scratch  the 
soil  in  North  Carolina  where  great  men  grow,  wherever 
you  will,  and  you  will  find  a  Henderson  there.  The  stock 
is  indigenous  to  North  Carolina,  and  it  has  illustrated 
every  department  of  its  intellectual  life.  Dr.  Pritchard 
was  no  exception  to  this  unvarying  rule. 

We  first  met  Thomas  Pritchard  when ,  he  was  a  stu- 
dent of  the  Baptist  ministry  and  a  private  tutor  in  the 
family  of  Richard  Felton,  a  wealthy  planter  in  the  county 
of  Perquimans.  We  spent  a  week  with  him,  and  had 
frequent  conversations  with  him.  To  us  he  then  gave 
little  promise  of  the  great  factor  he  was  afterwards  to 
become  in  the  pulpit  and  councils  of  the  Baptist  Church 
in  North  Carolina.  HeVas  modest,  retiring  and  diffident. 
We  thought  him  too  much  so.  He  seemed  deficient  in 
strength  of  conviction,  and  too  ready  to  acquiesce  in  sug- 
gestions on  religious  and  other  subjects  before  he  had  suf- 
ficiently examined  them. 

Forty  years  from  that  time,  we  were  in  attendance  at  a 
Baptist  Association,  sitting  in  the  far-end  of  the  church, 
near  the  pulpit,  in  which  its  annual  session  was  held. 
Way  down  at  the  lower  door  of  the  church  a  portly  man 
came  in,  and  he  was  soon  greeted  by  friends  who  came  up 
and  shook  hands  with  him.  His  step  to  the  end  of  the 
church,  wrhere  we  sat,  was  an  ovation.  We  saw  at  once 
that  a  big  man's  shadow  was  over  the  crowd.  His  person 
and  manner  were  imposing  and  in  admirable  taste.  He 
had  a  kind  word  for  this  and  that  brother  as  he  approached 
us.  As  he  came  near,  the  word  "brother,"  as  it  came  from 
his  lungs  in  deep  sonorous  tones,  fell  on  our  ear.  We 
scanned  him  closely  as  he  came.  That  man  must  be  a 
Henderson,  thought  we;  we  can  see  our  old  Aleck  all 
ovor  him.  Thon  we  looked  at  him  through  the  glasses 
of  forty  years,  and  we  could  see  glimmering  through  the 
darkness  tho  modest  Tom  Pritchard  that  we  had 


192  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

passed  a  week  with  at  Eichard  Felton's  forty  years  before, 
When  he  reached  our  place,  he  swung  around  in  a  seat 
just  in  advance  of  us. 

After  he  had  rested  awhile,  we  rose,  stood  before  him, 
and  extended  our  hand;  and  he,  not  recognizing  us,  we 
asked  if  he  knew  us.  lie  said  not,  and  then  said  enquir- 
ingly, "Who  is  the  brother  ?"  We  replied,  "Not  a  brother, 
a  first  cousin,  perhaps."  We  then  gave  him  our  name, 
and  he  said  with  much  heartiness,  "God  bless  me!  Dr. 
Tom  Martin  and  I  were  talking  about  you  last  week,  when 
we  went  fishing." 

We  saw  much  of  Dr.  Pritchard  afterwards,  and  heard 
his  admirable  addresses  on  education  after  he  became 
President  of  Wake  Forest  College.  His  public  speeches 
were  models  of  excellence.  His  voice  was  a  bugle  call, 
his  elocution  was  graceful  and  tasteful,  and  every  sen- 
tence he  uttered  was  the  expression  of  a  great  truth. 

Among  the  pioneers  of  Wesleyan  Methodism  no  one's 
memory  is  held  in  higher  estimation  for  his  usefulness,  his 
exemplary  Christian  character,  and  his  efficient  labors  as 
a  faithful  minister  of  God  than  Louis  Skidmore.  He  was 
emphatically  a  good  man,  a  good  and  influential  preacher, 
and  his  mellow  voice  with  its  sweet  intonations  melted 
hearts  to  tenderness  and  won  them  to  the  paths  of  a  Chris- 
tian life. 

When  a  small  boy,  hardly  in  our  teens,,  it  was  our  good 
fortune,  when  away  at  school,  to  board  with  a  pious  Meth- 
odist family  in  the  town  of  Oxford.  Their  house  was 
the  hospitable  home  of  all  Methodist  preachers.  None 
was  more  welcome  than  Louis  Skidmore,  and  no  ont, 
contributed  more  to  the  happiness  of  the  household.  His 
voice  was  an  Eolian  harp,  with  a  bugle  attachment.  The 
old  Methodist  hymns  of  eighty  years  ago  he  had  at  his 
tongue's  end.  He  often  preached  in  the  village  church, 
and  he  would  bring  an  audience  to  its  feet  when  he  uttered 
the  sweet  notes  of  the  "Old  Ship  of  Zion,"  or  some  other 
rally  hymn  of  the  olden  time.  He  could  wake  a  shouting 
revival  at  any  time  by  his  powers  of  song. 


THE   MINISTERS   OF  GOD.  193 

Other  names  of  great  pulpit  power  in  North  Carolina 
crowd  upon  us.  Dr.  Hawks  was  a  born  orator,  and  a  man 
of  genius  without  the  nose  of  a  historian.  Quentin  Trot- 
man  was  a  great  master  among  men.  President  Wingate, 
of  Wake  Forest  College,  was  a  pulpit  orator  of  superior 
gifts  and  an  unequalled  executive  officer. 

Rev.  Thomas  Lowe,  of  Halifax,  whom  we  never  met, 
is  pronounced  by  competent  judges  a  paragon  of  oratory ; 
and  Dr.  Gloss,  the  greatest  and  best  of  men. 


194  GRANDFATHER  S   TALES. 

UNION   LEAGUE  AND  KU    KLUX    KLAN. 
Gorgons,  Hydras  and  Chimeras  dire. 

THE  history  of  "North  Carolina  is  full  of  civil  and  mil- 
itary revolutions,  social  convulsions  and  upheavals  that 
threatened  at  times  her  existence  as  an  organized  govern- 
ment ;  but  there  has  been  no  civil  and  social  convulsion  in 
her  history  that  equals  in  horror  and  atrocity  the  sad  scenes 
that  threatened  the  peace  and  happiness  of  our  people  in 
the  time  of  reconstruction  and  Freedman's  Bureau  that 
followed  as  a  sequel  to  the  unhappy  "War  between  the 
States." 

After  the  war,  with  the  passions  and  bitterness  of  the 
sanguinary  conflict  still  burning  with  unabated  fury,  the 
more  unrelenting  elements  of  the  North  seemed  to  turn 
their  swords,  yet  reeking  with  slaughter,  into  reaping 
hooks  of  gain,  gleaners  in  the  desolated  harvest  fields  of 
a  conquered  enemy.  The  South  was  overrun  with  North- 
ern emissaries,  some  animated  by  a  feeling  of  sincere 
philanthropy,  stimulated  by  the  ardor  of  a  fanatic  crusader, 
and  with  a  charitable  desire  to  elevate  a  race  whom  they 
had  been  trained  by  romance  and  song  to  believe  had  been 
kept  in  subjugation  by  long  oppression  and  torture,  and 
Avho  needed  only  a  helping  hand  to  be  lifted  to  a  plane  of 
equality  with  the  best  Caucasian  blood  of  the  South.  Some 
came  to  spy  out  the  nakedness  of  a  land  overrun  by  the  for- 
tunes of  war ;  but  generally  from  a  desire  of  gain  and  to 
gather  up  the  fragments  that  were  left  of  a  luxury  that 
had  once  adorned  a  land  that  bloomed  with  wealth  and 
happiness. 

They  found  a  race,  lately  emancipated,  happy,  credulous, 
ignorant  and  easily  deceived.  They  became  their  leaders, 
and  in  many  cases  inflamed  the  passions  of  the  late  slaves 
against  their  old  masters.  They  established  secret  orders 
or  lodges,  which  fitted  the  nature  of  the  late  slaves,  ad- 
mitted them  to  membership  and  inspired  them  with  wicked 
and  diabolical  purposes. 


UNION    LEAGUE   AND    KU    KLUX    KLAN.  195 

The  Union  League  was  the  first  fruits  of  this  invasion 
of  the  South  after  its  desolation  and  sorrow  of  an  unsuc- 
cessful four  years7  war.  It  combined  various  elements  of 
our  much-mixed  population — philanthropists,  carpet-bag 
adventurers,  some  native  Union  men,  negroes,  and  others 
led  by  sheer  curiosity.  It  soon  produced  legitimate  fruits. 
Southern  men  of  high  character  were  objects  of  vengeance. 
Barns  were  burned ;  their  owners  were  sometimes  shot  in 
the  darkness  as  they  ran  out  to  extinguish  the  flames;  ne- 
groes were  urged  to  pillage  and  plunder;  and  there  was  a 
reign  of  apprehension  and  terror. 

'I'll is  condition  of  disorder  produced  its  natural  results. 
Proud,  intelligent  and  patriotic  men,  crushed  to  earth  by 
combinations  that  they  were  powerless  to  resist,  deter- 
mined to  accomplish  by  artifice  what  they  could  not  do 
by  <>|>en  resistance. 

They  knew  the  negr<J  character  better  than  the  new 
comers,  of  whom  they  were  the  dupes.  They  knew  their 
caution,  their  superstition,  and  their  timidity. 

A  new  protective  secret  organization  had  been  started 
in  Pulaski,  Tenn.,  and  had  acquired  a  local  celebrky, 
and  had  sought  an  extension  in  North  Carolina.  It  was 
railed  the  order  of  the  "Ku  TClux  Klan."  It  wras  consid- 
ered by  our  wisest,  most  fearless  and  patriotic  leaders. 
A  branch  of  the  order  was  soon  established  in  some  of  our 
\\vstrni  counties,  and  its  ritual,  regalia,  masks  and  pass- 
words were  adopted.  Its  operations  were  by  night,  and 
its  visitations  and  equipment  struck  terror  into  the  super- 
stitious minds  of  the  negro  race.  It  acted  well  for  some 
time  and  had  a  salutary  influence  in  the  counties  where 
the  outlawry  prevailed.  But  excess  followed  the  success 
of  the1  order,  and  these  excesses  were  greatly  exaggerated. 

Governor  Holden,  of  "Raleigh,  then  held  the  office  of 
.(!«•  \ernor  of  North  Carolina.  Either  influenced  by  fear 
of  his  own  safety  or  bv  love  of  display  and  authority, 
he  issued  a  proclamation,  putting  the  counties  in  which  the 
TCu  Klux  were  operating;  under  martial  law  and  suppress- 
ing nil  civil  law,  intending  to  break  up  the  order  by  the 
rule  of  his  own  autocratic  will. 


196  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

In  the  central  counties  he  arrested  some  of  the  most 
distinguished  citizens  of  the  State,  imprisoned  them  with- 
out trial,  and  tortured  them  in  the  most  cruel  manner,  to 
extort  confessions  that  might  implicate  others  as  members 
of  the  Ku  Klux  order.  He  called  to  his  aid  outlaws  and 
desperadoes  from  East  Tennessee,  invested  one  Kirk,  from 
Tennessee,  who  had  been  a  buft'aloe  in  the  Confederate 
war,  with  autocratic  authority  to  arrest  and  punish  as  he 
might  please  any  persons  that  he  should  suspect  of  being 
in  any  way  connected  with  the  Ku  Klux  organization. 
Kirk  was  a  willing  and  a  ready  agent  of  Holden.  He 
imprisoned  old  men,  gray-headed,  distinguished  for  long 
and  patriotic  service  to  the  State,  such  men  as  Judges 
Roane  and  Carr,  and  subjected  them  to  inhuman  treat 
ment. 

The  whole  State  was  aroused.  The  Supreme  Court 
was  appealed  to  to  issue  a  writ  of  habeas  corpus  and  have 
the  persons  brought  before  the  State  Courts.  The  writ 
was  issued,  but  Holden  refused  to  *rive  heed  to  it.  The 
Chief  Justice  was  appealed  to  to  enforce  its  execution, 
but  he  declined  to  enforce  it. 

At  length  Judge  George  W.  Brooks,  of  Elizabeth  City, 
si  Federal  Judge  of  great  firmness  and  integrity  of  char- 
acter, finding  his  authority  in  a  Federal  statute,  issued 
a  writ  of  habeas  corpus  for  the  imprisoned  citizens ;  and 
he  served  the  State  with  a  courageous  fidelity  which, 
though  appreciated  at  the  time,  has  never  yet  been  duly 
honored  by  the  State  of  E~orth  Carolina. 

The  Democratic  Legislature  of  1870,  early  in  the  ses- 
sion, properly  passed  a  bill  of  impeachment  against  Gov- 
ernor Holden,  and  impeached  him  for  high  crimes  and 
misdemeanors  for  his  conduct  in  the  Ku  Klux  matters: 
and  after  a  long  judicial  examination,  convicted  him. 
expelled  him  from  his  high  office,  and  made  him  incapable 
of  holding  office  thereafter  in  the  State.  He  lived  to 
advanced  age,  a  pitiable  old  man,  an  object-lesson  in  Caro 
lina  history  of  the  punishment  that  awaits  an  evil-doer. 


WESTERN    SCENERY.  197 

WESTERN    SCENERY. 
Pelion  piled  on  Ossa. 

WERE  you  ever  among  the  mountains  of  Madison  Coun- 
ty, North  Carolina '(  If  not,  go ;  and  you  will  see  old  nature 
in  her  grand  majesty,  and  if  not  pompous  and  proud,  you 
will  feel  the  littleness  and  humility  of  humanity.  You 
will  feel  like  a  pigmy  among  giants  and  will  involun- 
tarily breathe  the  Scripture — "Oh,  God !  what  is  man, 
that  Thou  art  mindful  of  him :  or  the  son  of  man  that  Thou 
regardest  him?" 

You  look  around,  see  nature  in  her  august  majesty; 
you  feel  your  own  littleness  and  your  kinship  to  the 
worm  that  crawleth  on  the  earth.  Look  around  you  and 
wonder!  You  are  in  th^  "Land  of  the  Skies,"  six  thou- 
sand feet  above  sea-level,  with  mountains  piled  on  moun- 
tains all  around  you,  and  tinkling  rills  dancing  to  the 
monotone  of  their  melody  in  the  valleys  below ;  a  sight 
lovely,  picturesque  and  grand  beyond  description  to  the 
dwellers  in  the  alluvial  plains. 

Put  yourself  in  Waynesville,  look  around  at  the  moun- 
tain peaks  piled  on  mountain  peaks,  and  cast  yous1 
glance  on  Pigeon  River  below,  as  it  goes  gur- 
gling and  singing  to  the  sea.  We  once  stood  among 
those  scenes,  and  a  half-tone  photograph  of  them 
still  lingers  fresh  and  undimmed  upon  our  memory.  It 
read  us  a  sermon  in  rocky  mountain  cliffs  that  we  have 
never  forgotten. 

While  there,  we  went,  with  an  old  bear  hunter  of  the 
mountains  for  a  guide,  to  the  mountain  peaks  near  by. 
His  name  was  Wid  Medford.  He  was  guide,  pilot  and 
yarner  of  Lickstone  Mountain.  We  saw  the  eagle  in  his 
eyrie,  and  saw  our  National  bird  in  his  domestic  sur- 
roundings, with  his  eye  like  Mars  commanding  the  sun 
below  him.  Every  glance  of  the  eye  from  that  land 
that  kissed  the  skios  was  an  anthem  and  a  poem.  But 
amid  all  that  grandeur  of  nature  that  gave  us  foretaste  of 


198  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

the  grandeur  of  that  higher  destiny  to  which  we  aspire, 
there  was  a  grotesque  piquancy  in  the  stories  related  to 
us  by  our  guifle,  of  "hair-breadth  escapes'7  by  flood  and 
field,  of  deadly  grapple  with  the  beasts  of  the  forest  in  their 
homes  in  the  mountain  gorge  and  jungle,  and  other  inci- 
dents of  sixty-five  years  of  a  wild  hunter's  life  of  peril 
that  brought  us  back  to  the  realities  of  this  mundane 
sphere. 

The  fluency  with  which  Wid  reeled  off  his  stories  re^ 
called  the  aphorism  of  the  "twice-told  tale."  Some  of  them 
we  can  never  forget.  Pardon  one  of  them. 

Wid  had  been  wandering  for  some  days  among  the 
mountain  peaks  and  canyons  of  Lickstone  in  a  vain 
search  for  a  panther  whose  unaccustomed  scream  he  had 
hoard  some  nights  before.  While  pursuing  this  lead, 
he  saw,  by  signs  well  known  to  a  mountain  hunter's  prac- 
ticed eye,  that  he  was  near  the  camping  grounds  of  several 
large  bears.  He  followed  the  trail  slowly  and  carefully. 
The  signs  grew  more  and  more  numerous.  Here  would 
be  seen  a  broken  limb,  there  the  berries  were  lapped,  and 
again  there  was  a  pause  at  a  pool  to  take  a  "wallow"  bath. 
He  saw  by  studying  the  hunter's  alphabet  that  the-re  were 
three  bears  in  the  herd — an  old  dam  and  two  well-grown 
cubs.  He  soon  scented  them,  and  approached  them  on 
the  leeward  side  and  saw  three  bears  lapping  chestnuts  in 
the  top  of  a  large  chestnut  tree.  His  ammunition  had 
been  exhausted  to  two  charges  in  the  barrels  of  "Old 
Betsy."  They  lapped  apart,  and  he  could  not  hope  to 
bring  down  three  bears  with  two  loads.  He  manoeuvered 
dexterously  for  some  time,  but  could  never  get  them  in 
range.  At  length  he  determined  to  secure  two  of  them 
with  his  two  loads,  discharged  in  quick  succession.  "Bang! 
went  'Old  Betsy/  "  said  he,  "and  down  tumbled  one. 
Bang!  she  repeated,  and  down  came  another."  The  third 
one  staid  up  the  tree,  at  first  in  wild  amazement.  At 
length  he  climbed  down  slowly.  Wid  secreted  him- 
self at  the  bottom  of  the  tree,  drew  his  butcher  knife,  and 
when  bear  number  three  came  within  reach  of  him  he 


WESTERN   SCENERY.  199 

clasped  him  in  his  arms  and  cut  his  throat,  and  then  se- 
cured him.  Some  one  in  our  party,  bolder  than  the  rest, 
said:  "Wid,  you  know  that's  a  lie."  To  which  Wid  re- 
plied, with  great  earnestness  and  fervor,  "  'Fore  God,  it's 
a  living  truth,  and  if  the  bear  was  here  he'd  tell  you  so." 

While  we  remained  and  wandered  among  the  wondet- 
i'ul  scenes  of  die  mountains,  that  wondrous  "Land  of  the 
Skies,"  where  the  devout  man  may  dwell  in  contemplation 
of  heavenly  scenes,  we  saw  many  things  which  yet  we  love 
to  linger  on.  We  were  much  pleased  with  a  little  church 
\ve  saw — ''Grace  Church  in  the  Mountains."  It  is  a  me- 
morial church  for  a  little  grandchild  of  Bishop  Atkinson, 
a  daughter  of  Dr.  Buell.  It  is  built  of  black  walnut, 
em-led  black  walnut,  poplar,  ash  and  oak,  and  is  a  gem. 
The  furniture  of  the  church  was  made  of  black  walnut 
and  manufactured  in  Waynesville.  It  will  seat  about 
TWO  hundred  persons.  One  of  the  windows,  a  memorial 
window,  was  presented  by  the  good  Bishop. 

We  did  not  see,  but  heard  of  a  Presbyterian  church  in 
the  near  vicinity  of  Waynesville  that  was  built  entirely 
of  one  poplar  tree,  and  enough  timber  was  left  over  of 
the  tree  to  fence  in  the  yard.  The  tree  was  ten  feet  across 
the  stump.  This  may  seem  to  savor  of  Munchausen,  but 
we  heard  the  fact  frequently  mentioned,  and  it  was  vouched 
for  by  persons  of  unquestioned  veracity. 


2oo  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


GENERAL  J.  J.   PETTIGREW. 

Twine  a  few  sad  cypress  leaves  around  the  brow  of  any  land,  and 
it  becomes  lovely  in  its  consecrated  coronet  of  sorrow. 

—Father  Ryan. 


his  absence  in  Europe,  Pettigrew  had  devoted 
much  study  to  military  science.  The  conviction  upon  his 
mind  before  his  last  visit  to  Europe  and  during  his  ab- 
sence, was  strong  and  decided  that  a  bloody  crisis  im- 
pended over  his  own  country,  and  that  the  muttering  thun- 
ders of  war  which  had  so  long  threatened  its  peace,  which 
several  times  had  been  averted  by  the  patriotic  and  earnest 
efforts  of  those  to  whom  the  country  turned  with  confi- 
dence in  times  of  difficulty  and  listened  with  reliance  and 
trust  to  their  peaceful  counsels,  could  be  calmed  no  longer. 
While  they  lived,  while  the  venerable  patriots  whose  life- 
long service  had  been  given  to  their  country  and  whose 
patriotism  and  devotion  to  the  whole  and  every  part  of  it, 
none  could  question,  the  storm  of  sectional  strife  had  been 
often  allayed  ;  so  often,  indeed,  that  the  conviction  became 
general  of  a  special  good  providence  which  held  the  favored 
land  in  the  hollow  of  its  hand  and  would  bear  it  safely 
on  over  the  surging  billows  of  domestic  discord.  But 
the  trusted  hands  that  had  so  long  held  the  helm  and  guided 
the  ship  when  tossed  by  the  tempest  of  political  strife 
were  cold  in  death,  the  voices  so  potent  to  calm  the  angry 
waves  of  sectional  commotion  were  hushed,  and  the  calm 
and  peaceful  counsels,  left  as  a  legacy  to  their  countrymen, 
were  forgotten,  or  really  unheeded  by  the  maddened  and 
reckless  zealots  of  party,  urged  on  by  desperate  partisans 
who,  unmindful  of  the  perils  that  threatened,  sought  the 
triumph  of  sectional  success  even  at  the  price  of  fraternal 
blood  and  a  ruined  country. 

With  the  conviction  firmly  impressed  upon  him  that  the 
slumbering  fires  of  long  years  of  angry  contention  could 
not  be  much  longer  suppressed,  and  that,  studied  by  the 
ordinary  manifestations  of  our  nature  and  the  lights  fur- 


GEN.    J.    J.    PETTIGREW.  2OI 

nislied  by  the  lessons  of  history,  the  theatre  of  contention 
must  soon  be  transferred  from  legislative  halls  to  tented 
fields,  and  political  questions,  to  which  the  statesman- 
ship and  patriotism  of  the  times  were  unequal,  must  be 
determined  by  armed  battalions  amid  the  realities  of  war, 
Pettigrew  began  his  work  of  preparation  for  the  anticipated 
conflict  of  arms.  While  in  Paris  he  had  opportunities  of 
military  study  and  observation  in  that  metropolis  of  war, 
of  which  he  was  not  unmindful.  He  had  been  favorably 
introduced  to  those  who  had  become  distinguished  in  the 
art  of  wrar,  and  the  chief  purpose  of  his  visit  being  well 
understood,  he  had  such  advantages  of  acquiring  knowledge 
of  the  science  of  war  and  its  practical  details  as  are  sel- 
dom afforded.  Upon  his  return  to  Charleston,  he  was 
elected  captain  of  a  rifle  company,  which  he  organized 
and  formed  after  the  plan  of  the  French  Zouave  model, 
with  the  efficient7  of  which  mode  of  drill  he  had  been 
much  pleased  in  France.  The  company  soon  attracted 
much  attention.  Its  novelty,  and  the  spirit  with  which  it 
was  animated,  won  the  commendation  of  the  city  of 
Charleston.  It  became  a  model  military  organization,  and 
was  regarded  as  the  best  of  the  volunteer  companies  in 
South  Carolina.  Nor  was  it  a  mere  mimic  pageant  of 
war.  It  was  the  serious  and  earnest  offspring  of  Petti- 
grew  Js  conviction  of  the  necessity  of  preparation.  Th? 
portents  were  all  ominous  of  the  dreadful  future,  and  a 
prudent  forecast  dictated  preparation  for  coming  events 
of  serious  and  alarming  magnitude.  For  this  purpose  the 
rifle  company  was  formed.  It  was  soon  joined  by  other 
volunteer  organizations,  formed  after  the  same  model, 
and  Pettigrew  was  elected  Colonel  of  the  First  Rifle  Regi- 
ment. 

And  noAv  the  time,  so  long  deferred,  had  come.  So 
lorio-  deferred  that  many  thought  a  special  providence 
Gfuardod  the  destiny  of  the  country,  to  bear  it  safely 
through  all  political  perils,  and  avert  the  dire  calamity  of 
war.  Deferred  by  the  earnest  exertions  of  patriotic  hearts, 
by  the  eloquent  appeals  of  trusted  statesmen,  by  the  sin- 


202  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

cere  prayers  of  the  faithful,  by  the  proud  memory  of  the 
past  and  the  bright  hopes  of  the  future  of  our  country. 
But  it  could  be  deferred  no  longer.  The  fiat  of  the  Om- 
nipotent had  been  uttered  in  the  wrath  of  God  and  the 
decree  was  to  be  sealed  with  the  lives  of  martyred  heroes 
and  patriots,  and  the  record  made  eternal  in  the  inex- 
tinguishable baptism  of  blood.  Where  the  fault,  or  upon 
whose  shoulders  rests  the  burden  of  the  great  sin  and  its 
grievous  sequences,  this  is  not  the  occasion  to  enquire.  Let 
it  be  buried,  so  far  as  feeble  mortals  may,  until  nations,  a& 
individuals,  shall  stand  around  the  throne  and  at  the 
judgment  bar  of  the  Great  Eternal  God,  and  answer  for 
all  the  deeds  done  while  in  the  body. 

Upon  the  secession  of  South  Carolina,  Pettigrew  imme- 
diately offered  his  regiment  for  military  service.  Upon 
the  occupation  of  Fort  Sumter  by  Major  Anderson,  Petti- 
grew  was  assigned  the  command  of  Castle  Pinckney,  and 
was  afterward  transferred  to  Morris  Island,  in  order  to 
prevent  the  reinforcement  of  Fort  Sumter  by  the  Gov- 
ernment of  the  United  States.  The  unexpected  occupotion 
of  Fort  Sumter  by  Major  Anderson,  under  cover  of 
night,  precipitated  events.  Pettigrew  was  ordered  by  Gov- 
ernor Pickens  to  demand  of  Anderson  the  evacuation  of 
the  Fort,  as  its  occupation  was  in  violation  of  an  agree- 
ment that  the  situation  of  Charleston  harbor  should  re- 
main unchanged  and  await  the  efforts  to  avert  the  impend- 
ing troubles.  The  result  of  that  demand  we  give  in  Pet- 
tigrew's  own  words,  in  a  letter  to  Governor  Pickens : 

"To  F.  W.  Pickens,  Governor,  etc. 

aSnt : — I  have  the  honor  to  report  that  pursuant  to  the 
instructions  of  your  Excellency,  I  proceeded  this  morning 
to  Fort  Sumter  in  company  with  Maj.  Ellison  Capers, 
Acting  Adjutant  of  my  Regiment. 

"We  were  courteously  received  by  Major  Anderson,  the 
commanding  officer. 

"I  stated  to  him  in  the  presence  of  all  of  his  officers  that 
you  had  been  astonished  at  the  reception  of  the  news  of 


GP:N.  j.  j.   PKTTIGREW.  203 

I 

his  having  transferred  his  garrison  to  Fort  Sumter,  that 
by  the  understanding  hetween  the  State  of  South  Caro- 
lina  ami  the  President  of  the  Tinted  States,  the  property 
of  the  United  States  was  to  be  respected,  and  on  the  orl'.ev 
side  the-  military  posts  should  remain  in  an  unchanged 
condition,  in  a  word  that  the  question  was  to  be  consid- 
ered a  political,  and  not  a  military  one.  I  enforced  upon 
him  strongly  the  fact  that  we  had  punctiliously  performed 

"He  declined  acceding  to  my  demand. 

repressed  every  attempt  to  precipitate  the  people  upon  the 
property  of  the  United  States,  and  I  demanded  in  your 
name  that  affairs  should  be  restored  to  their  previous  con- 
dition. 

"He  replied  that  he  was  a  Southern  man  in  his  feelings 
upon  the  questions  at  issue,  and  had  so  informed  the  de- 
partment when  appointed ;  that  he  knew  nothing  of  the 
agreement  mentioned ;  *that  he  was  the  Military  Com- 
mander of  all  the  forts  in  the  harbor  and  did  not  consider 
that  he  had  re-enforced  them  in  merely  transferring  his 
garrison  from  one  to  another ;  that  he  had  been  informed 
from  various  sources  that  he  would  probably  be  attacke  i 
in  case  the  report  of  the  Commissioners  was  unfavorable ; 
that  Fort  Moultrie  was  indefensible  against  an  ordinarily 
skilful  attack;  that  he  had  acted  entirely  upon  his  own  re- 
sponsibility. 

"lie  declined  acceding  to  my  demand. 
"Very    respectfully, 

"J.   JOHNSTOX   PETTIGREW/' 

In  the  interval  until  the  bombardment  and  surrender 
of  Fort  Sumter,  Pettigrew  was  at  Morris  Island,  perfect- 
ing his  regiment  in  drill  and  discipline  and  training  them 
to  the  rigorous  hardships  of  military  service.  His  com- 
mand, from  the  nature  of  its  organization,  did  not  take 
part  in  the  bombardment  of  Fort  Sumter. 

Early  in  18(51  he  received  a  stand  of  colors  for  his  regi- 
ment, which  he  acknowledged  in  these  touching  words: 

"The  flasr  of  the  old  Republic  is  ours  no  more.  That 
noble  standard  which  has  so  often  waved  over  victorious 


204  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

fields ;  which  has  so  often  carried  hope  to  the  afflicted  and 
struggling  hearts  of  Europe ;  which  has  so  often  protected 
us  in  distant  climes,  afar  from  home  and  kindred,  now 
threatens  us  with  destruction.  In  all  its  former  renown 
we  participated.  Southern  valor  bore  it  to  its  proudest 
triumphs,  and  oceans  of  Southern  blood  have  watered  the 
ground  beneath  it.  Let  us  lower  it  with  honor,  and  lay  it 
reverently  upon  the  earth." 

With  the  fall  of  Sumter,  all  hope  of  reconciliation  or 
peace  was  abandoned,  if  indeed  all  hope  of  peace  had  not 
flown  before,  and  each  section  of  the  country  confronted 
the  other  in  the  grim-visaged  antagonism  of  war.  The 
position  of  Adjutant-General  of  the  State  was  tendered  to 
Colonel  Pettigrew  by  the  Legislature  of  South  Carolina. 
This  position,  requiring  great  administrative  ability  and 
of  eminent  usefulness  in  organizing  the  State  forces,  the 
acceptance  of  which  was  urged  upon  him  in  consideration 
of  greater  usefulness  than  when  restricted  to  the  duties 
of  a  single  regiment,  Pettigrew  declined.  He  sought  the 
active  duties  of  the  field  as  more  congenial  to  his  tempera- 
ment, and  at  the  request  of  General  Beauregard  he  pro- 
ceeded to  organize  a  rifle  regiment  for  service  during  the 
war,  of  which  he  was  to  be  Colonel.  The  regiment  was 
soon  made  up,  and  companies  exceeding  the  number  re- 
quired had  to  be  refused.  Staff  and  field  officers  were 
agreed  on  and  a  junior  officer  dispatched  to  Montgomery, 
then  the  seat  of  the  Confederate  Government^  to  offer  the 
regiment  to  the  Secretary  of  War,  and  obtain  authority 
to  muster  it  into  service.  But"  the  plan  of  the  Confed- 
erate Secretary  of  War,  at  the  time,  was  to  receive  com- 
panies, and  not  organize  regiments,  reserving  to  himself 
the  organization  into  regiments,  and  the  selection  and  ap- 
pointment of  field  officers.  This  arrangement  of  the  Sec- 
retary of  War  met  with  much  opposition  from  the  com- 
panies that  composed  the  regiment,  and  their  efforts  to 
retain  the  selection  of  officers  to  themselves  being  unsuc- 
cessful, they,  many  of  them,  sought  admission  to  other 
regiments,  which  were  being  formed  in  the  State,  under 
authority  of  the  Department  of  War. 


GEN.    J.    J.    PETTIGREW.  205 

Colonel  Pettigrew  was  thus  without  command,  but  his 
ardent  spirit  was  not  long  at  rest.  The  State  of  North 
Carolina,  his  cherished  mother,  shortly  afterward  tendered 
him  the  command  of  the  Twelfth  North  Carolina  Regi- 
ment, which  he  accepted  as  Colonel,  and  proceeded  at  once 
to  Raleigh  to  assume  the  command. 

During  the  winter  of  18 6 1-7 6 2  he  was  in  camp  at 
Evansport  on  the  Potomac.  He  discharged  all  the  duties 
pertaining  to  his  situation  with  such  eminent  ability  and 
skill,  and  with  such  satisfaction  to  his  superior  officers, 
that  entirely  without  his  knowledge,  he  was  recommended 
for  promotion  to  the  rank  of  Brigadier  General.  This 
.appointment  was  tendered  him  by  the  President,  but  with 
rare  modesty  the  appointment  was  declined  by  Colonel 
Pettigrew  on  the  ground  that  he  had  not  seen  sufficient 
active  service  for  so  important  a  command;  that  he  had 
never  been  under  fire  and  had  never  commanded  troops 
when  in  action.  This  rare  case  of  modesty  surprised  the 
President,  who  remarked  that  it  was  the  first  case  in 
which  an  officer  had  refused  promotion  to  an  office  because 
lie  had  not  proved  his  fitness  for  the  place  by  an  actual 
discharge  of  its  duties.  This  reluctance  to  assume  a 
higher  command  was,  however,  overcome  by  Major  Gen- 
oral  Holmes,  who,  upon  General  French  (Pettigrew's 
brigade  commander)  being  ordered  to  report  to  Wilming- 
ton for  duty,  insisted  that  Colonel  Pettigrew  should  recall 
his  refusal  of  promotion  and  succeed  General  French  in 
command  of  the  brigade.  This  request  of  General  Holmes 
being  urged  with  earnestness,  as  a  patriotic  duty,  over- 
ruled his  judgment,  and  he  wrote  to  the  War  Department 
revoking  his  refusal.  He  was  then  at  Fredericksburg. 

Soon  after,  General  Pettigrew  was  ordered  to  Yorktown 
and  with  Whiting's  division,  was  engaged  in  the  hotly- 
rontested  battle  of  the  Seven  Pines.  In  this  battle  he  was 
wounded  in  the  neck  and  shoulder  and  fell  into  the  hands 
of  the  enemy.  On  the  31st  of  May,  while  the  battle  was 
raging,  he  was  instructed  to  drive  the  enemy  from  a  posi 
tion  in  the  woods  where  they  were  strongly  posted.  The 


2o6  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

attempt  had  been  made  before  by  a  regiment  of  the  divis- 
ion and  had  failed.  The  position  held  by  the  enemy  was 
a  strong  one,  and  in  making  the  attack  the  regiment  was 
exposed  to  the  fire  of  a  battery  of  artillery  on  the  flank. 
Pettigrew,  leading  one  of  his  regiments,  was  attempting 
to  carry  the  position  by  assault  when  he  was  wounded.  An 
attempt  was  made  to  remove  him  from  the  field,  while  ex- 
hausted from  the  loss  of  blood,  by  a  captain  of  one  of  his 
companies,  but  inquiring  how  the  day  was  going,  and 
being  told  it  was  against  us,  and  hearing  some  of  the  offi- 
cers rallying  their  men,  he  insisted  that  the  officer  and 
men  who  were  assisting  him,  should  leave  him  on  the  field 
and  join  their  company.  For  some  time  he  was  thought 
to  be  mortally  wounded,  and  he  was  mourned  by  his  kin- 
dred and  his  country  as  one  who  had  passed  from  earthly 
scenes.  But  it  was  afterward  ascertained  that  he  had 
been  sent  to  Fort  Delaware  as  a  prisoner  of  war. 

Upon  returning  from  Fort  Delaware,  still  suffering 
from  his  wounds,  he  took  command  of  his  brigade,  near 
Petersburg.  The  necessities  of  the  service  had  transfer- 
red his  old  regiment  to  another  command,  but  he  soon  per- 
fected the  discipline  of  the  new  organization,  and  his  repu- 
tation for  military  skill  and  the  rare  attractiveness  of  his 
personal  character  filled  his  ranks  with  North  Carolina's 
most  sterling  sons. 

With  his  brigade  filled  and  disciplined  anew,  he  joined 
the  army  of  the  Potomac,  under  Lee,  and  entered  upon 
the  Pennsylvania  campaign.  When  the  Confederate 
Army  entered  Pennsylvania,  the  orders  of  General  Lee 
were  most  positive  in  regard  to  the  conduct  of  the  troops. 
Whatever  might  be  their  sense  of  wrong,  he  ordered  that 
no  acts  of  retaliation  should  be  allowed.  This  order,  so 
consonant  with  his  own  sentiments,  was  carried  out  by 
General  Pettigrew  with  the  most  careful  and  rigid  enforce- 
ment of  discipline,  nor  did  he  alone  maintain  the  most  per- 
fect discipline  in  his  own  immediate  command,  but  he  was 
also  prominent  in  bringing  to  the  notice  of  his  division  com- 
mander any  lapse  in  the  discipline  enjoined  by  General 


GEN.    J.    J.    PETTIGREW.  207 

Lee,  and  which  Pettigrew  regarded  as  essential  to  die  pres- 
ervation of  the  army. 

Gettysburg  and  its  sanguinary  slaughter  came.  In  the 
first  day's  fight  Pettigrew  and  his  brave  command  were 
in  the  thickest  of  the  fight  and  bore  their  proud  banners 
pressing  the  retreating  foe.  His  more  than  decimated 
troops  bore  witness,  with  the  testimony  of  blood,  to  their 
gallantry  and  daring.  Pettigrew's  personal  bravery  and 
coolness  were  everywhere  conspicuous.  "Look,  boys/7  said 
a  young  lieutenant,  while  shot  and  shell  were  singing  the 
carnival  of  death.  "Look,  boys ;  did  you  ever  see  a  nobler 
man.  Hurrah  for  General  Pettigrew !"  "I  never  real- 
ized before,'7  said  Gapt.  Jo.  Davis,  of  Franklin,  "I  never 
realized  before,  how  much  one  man  \vas  worth.  His  pres- 
ence mid  dim-ing  command  nerves  the  arms  of  thousands." 

On  the  second  day,  Pettigrew  was  held  in  reserve,  but 
victory  still  followed  th£  Confederate  banners. 

On  the  third  day,  Pettigrew  was  placed  in  charge  of 
1 1  cili's  division,  and  in  that  fatal  and  gallant  charge  on 
Cemetery  Hill,  he  was  in  a  line  on  the  left  of  Picket's 
command.  His  was  not  a  supporting  column.  Both  were 
repulsed  by  superior  numbers,  occupying  a  strong  and  im- 
pn-ii-nable  position.  Pettigrew  was  painfully  wounded, 
and  Bnrgxvvn,  Marshall,  M^cCrea  and  Iredell — all  .North 
Carolina's  dead  jewels — wrote  with  their  blood  the  dying 
declaration,  that  Xorth  Carolina  had  followed  the  Con- 
federate banners  to  the  farthest  point  that  Lee  had  planted 
them.  On  the  first  clay  of  July  Pettigrew's  brigade  went 
into  the  light  with  3,000  as  gallant  men  as  ever  answered 
the  bugle-call  to  battle.  On  the  morning  of  the  4th  it 
numbered  but  >•">">. 

The  Confederate  army  fell  back  upon  Hagerstown  and 
the  Potomac,  crossing  the  river  at  Williamsport  and  Fall- 
ing Waters.  After  a  night's  march,  tbe  troops  were  rest- 
ing on  the  morning  of  the  14th  of  July,  near  the  bridge,  at 
Fa  1  lino-  Waters.  General  Pettierew,  with  other  officers, 
was  walking  to  the  left  of  the  division,  when  their  atten- 
tion was  attracted  by  a  small  body  of  cavalry  issuing  from 


208  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

the  woods  near  by.  The  small  number  caused  them  to  be 
mistaken  for  Confederates.  There  was  an  irregular  skir- 
mish, a  scattering  fire,  and  General  Pettigrew  was  mor- 
tally wounded.  He  was  removed  with  the  army,  was 
taken  to  the  house  of  Mr.  Boyd,  near  Winchester,  Va., 
where,  on  the  17th  of  July,  his  noble  spirit,  with  all  of  its 
rich  endowments  and  splendid  culture  passed  peacefully 
away  to  its  bounteous  Creator. 


THOMAS  S.   ASHE. 

See  what  grace  was  seated  on  his  brow. 

— Hamlet. 

THOMAS  S.  ASHE  graduated  at  the  University  of  North 
Carolina  in  the  class  of  1832,  several  members  of  which 
afterward  became  men  of  rank  in  the  country.  Thomas 
L.  Clingman  was  the  best  scholar  in  the  class,  and  gradu- 
ated with  its  highest  honor,  distinguished  for  his  genius, 
his  ability,  his  awkwardness,  and  his  endurance  as  a 
bandy-player.  He  spoke  the  "Latin  Salutatory"  speech 
at  graduation,  which,  at  that  period,  was  the  speech  of 
highest  honor.  J.  H.  Parker,  of  Tarboro,  spoke  the  "Vale- 
dictory," second  in  honor,  and  Thomas  S.  Ashe  the  third 
speech.  The  other  members  of  the  class  who  became  dis- 
tinguished were  Jas.  C.  Dobbin,  Secretary  of  the  Navy 
under  President  Pierce,  and  R.  H.  Smith,  of  Halifax, 
always  prominent  as  an  able  and  public-spirited  citizen  in 
North  Carolina.  Thomas  W.  Harris  was  the  handsomest 
member  of  the  class,  and  Tom  Ashe  the  best  looking  and 
most  commanding.  James  C.  Dobbin  was  the  most  popu- 
lar man  in  the  class.  Tom  Ashe  commanded  the  most  re- 
spect, Clingman  was  the  most  wondered  at,  and  Dick  Smith 
was  the  most  beloved. 

Throughout  their  respective  careers  in  life  the  charac- 
teristics these  men  developed  at  college  seemed  to  adhere 
to  them. 

Clingman  in  public  life  was  a  very  strong  man.     He  was 


RECOLLECTIONS  OF  JUDGE  ASHE.        209 

chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Foreign  Relations  in  the 
House  of  Representatives,  and  greatly  prided  himself  oil 
some  of  his  speeches  on  foreign  affairs  and  on  his  insight 
into  world-wide  politics.  But  he  still  found  time  to  study 
philosophy  and  science,  and  he  measured  mountains,  and 
explained  in  minute  detail  the  track  through  the  heavens 
of  a  groat  meteor,  whose  course  he  traced  from  Alabama 
over  into  Kentucky,  calculating  to  a  nicety  how  high  it 
was  above  the  surface  of  the  earth.  And  he  was  likewise 
a  irivat  authority  on  water-spouts. 

When  the  war  came  on,  he  was  animated  by  a  great  am- 
bition to  attain  military  renown.  In  battle  he  was  cool, 
collected  and  philosophical ;  and  in  personal  bravery  no 
soldier  excelled  him.  To  crown  his  work,  he,  after  peace, 
collected  his  principal  writings  and  speeches  and  pub- 
lish ed  a  book  of  them — setting  a  pace  for  other  Carolinians 
who  have  been  too  remiss  in  matters  of  authorship. 

Tom  A  she,  in  many  respects,  was  just  the  opposite  of 
Clingman.  Clingman  was  a  pushing  politician ;  Asho 
was  of  a  modest,  retiring  nature;  but  withal  as  manly  a 
man  as  was  ever  born  on  our  soil.  He  was  hardly  known 
outside  of  his  judicial  district  as  a  lawyer,  but  when  put 
on  the  Supreme  Court  Bench,  his  opinions  were  recog- 
nized by  the  profession  as  models  of  rare  excellence. 

Without  solicitation,  he  was  elected  Confederate  States 
Senator ;  and,  indeed,  whatever  public  honors  came  to  him, 
they  came  because  of  the  respect  his  course  in  life  inspired. 

We  recall  a  little  incident  in  regard  to  him: 

In  1868,  by  military  order,  the  negroes  were  to  vote 
upon  the  question  of  adopting  the  proposed  Constitution. 
The  Conservatives,  who  were  opposed  to  all  these  proceed- 
ings, met  in  Convention  at  Raleigh.  Governor  Graham  ad- 
dressed them  in  a  speech  of  great  power,  urging  that  the 
white  people  should  make  a  party  to  themselves.  At  the 
same  election,  a  governor  and  other  officers  provided  for 
in  that  Constitution  were  to  be  voted  for.  If  the  Const! 
tution  were  rejected  by  the  people,  the  officers  elected  would 
not  be  installed. 

«4 


2io  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

Vance  was  nominated  by  the  Conservatives,  and  Holden 
by  the  Radicals.  It  looked  like  it  was  to  be  the  same  old 
contest  of  1864  over  again.  But  Vance,  after  thinking 
over  it,  declined.  The  executive  committee  then  tendered 
the  nomination  to  Judge  Merrimon;  he,  too,  declined. 
Other  names  were  brought  forward — but  all  the  politicians 
declined.  The  executive  committee  was  thus  confrontel 
by  a  serious  situation.  Finallv,  Colonel  Bob  Cowan  said 
that  he  could  name  a  man  who  would  not  decline  to  lead 
North  Carolinians  in  any  struggle  for  their  rights  and 
happiness — no  matter  if  it  was  a  forlorn  hope.  "Name 
the  man,"  the  others  said.  "It  is  Tom  Ashe.  He  will 
not  decline  to  be  the  leader  of  our  people.  I  pledge  my- 
self to  that."  And  so  Colonel  Cowan  was  commissioned 
to  see  Tom  Ashe  about  it.  And  Bob  Cowan  was  justified. 
Ashe  came  out  and  made  a  memorable  canvass,  with  no 
expectation  of  any  personal  advantage ;  for  if  the  Conserv- 
atives defeated  the  Constitution,  the  election  of  the  officers 
was  a  nullity ;  and  if  the  Radicals  succeeded  in  carrying 
the  Constitution,  thev  would  also  certainly  elect  his  op- 
ponent, Holden,  Governor. 

Well,  that  was"  a  campaign  in  which  ebony  shins  and 
"forty  acres  and  a  mule"  plaved  a  leading  part.  If  the 
venerated  George  Washington  had  been  our  candidate,  the 
sable  cohorts  would  have  downed  him.  The  darkeys 
wouldn't  have  known  the  Constitution  from  an  elephant- 
had  they  met,a  travelling  circus  in  the  road,  and  they  were 
inflamed  to  .the  sizzling  point  against  the  whites.  Truly, 
those  were  days  of  humiliation  and  mortification  to  the 
flesh.  But  we  had  the  spirit  to  endure — and  lofty  souls 
like  Tom  Ashe  led  us  along  until  after  awhile  we  came  out 
of  the  wilderness  into  the  promised  land. 


UNIVERSITY    REMINISCENCES.  211 

UNIVERSITY    REMINISCENCES. 
"The  old,  old  tale  of  long  ago  " 

THE  University  of  North  Carolina  nearly  seventy  years 
ago  was  in  many  respects  unlike  the  University  of  to- 
day. Probably  the  discipline  was  more  rigid,  and  the 
great  law  of  obedience  was  more  strictly  enforced.  The 
students  were  then  boys,  and  boys  need  watching.  Now, 
we  suspect,  they  are  "young  gentlemen,"  and  their  own 
sweet  will  is  more  recognized.  Then  some  of  the  boys 
wore  homespun  and  home-made  square-tail  coats,  and  well- 
fitting  tailor-made  store  clothes  were  not  common.  The 
bon-ton  were  Litehford's  best,  made  to  order  by  the 
fashionable  tailor  of  the  little  town  of  Raleigh,  and  re- 
served for  Commencement  occasions.  The  square-tail- 
coat boys,  who  brought  tneir  goose  quills  for  pens  and  their 
dip-candles  from  home,  were  the  best  students.  And 
when  a  boy  had  the  self-sacrifice  and  manhood  to  defy  the 
proud  boy's  contumely  and  save  an  honest  penny  by  tak- 
ing his  frugal  meal  of  molasses  and  corn-bread  cold  from 
a  tin  plate  in  his  room,  that  boy  cast  before  him  the  shad- 
ow of  a  coming  man.  Poor,  dear  old  Murray !  next-door 
neighbor  to  us,  Old  South  Building,  west  end  corner. 
Looking  down  through  the  long  and  darkening  vista  of  the 
corridors  of  time  we  can  see  him  now.  Working,  work- 
ing, studying,  delving,  earnest,  never  tiring  day  and  night, 
early  and  late,  living  hard  and  working  hard.  Always 
the  same  dear  old  Murray,  with  his  dip-candle  at  night  and 
his  tin  plate  at  meal  times.  He  struggled  on  with  it  all, 
poor  and  uncomplaining.  But  when  bewildere-l  in  a 
mathematical  labyrinth,  old  Murray  was  a  staff  to  lean 
on  and  find  rest.  What  was  his  lot  in  the  chances 
and  changes  of  life  we  have  never  known.  But  there  was 
a  man  in  him  then.  And  it  is  a  comfort  to  us  now,  and 
proof  that  we  were  not  wholly  bad,  that  we  sometimes 
brought  him  from  "Miss  Nancy's"  on  the  hill  the  first 
and  second  joint  of  a  chicken  leg,  to  cheer  his  scanty  fare. 
Dear  old  Murray ! 


2i2  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

Do  our  boys  remember  Dave  Bartim  and  George  Hor- 
ton?  How  unlike  in  appearance,  in  tastes,  in  pursuits; 
how  diverse  in  distinction ;  and  yet  how  sharp  and  bitter 
and  jealous  was  their  rivalry.  Both  lineal  descendants 
of  Ham.  One  of  the  guinea,  the  other  of  the  bacon  type. 
One  a  sturdy,  short,  stout,  strong-handed  and  stout-hearted 
faithful  college  servant,  a  great  favorite  with  the  boys, 
always  ready  to  serve  them,  of  few  words,  but  his  words 
were  sense,  tending  day  by  day  the  young  sprouts  of  liter- 
ature, but  without  one  spark  of  literature  within  him. 
This  was  Dave.  The  other,  George  Horton,  was  a  forest- 
born  poet,  who  learned  his  letters  while  turning  his  plow 
at  the  end  of  the  furrow,  and  framed  his  verses  while 
driving  his  team. 

On  Saturday  evening  he  came  up  to  college  from  the 
country  with  his  week's  poetical  work  in  manuscript  which 
was  ordered  by  the  boys  on  the  Saturday  before.  When 
he  came  he  was  a  lion  and  attracted  all  the  light  from 
Dave.  His  average  budget  of  lyrics  was  about  a  dozen 
in  number.  They  were  mostly  in  the  love  line,  and  ad- 
dressed to  the  girl  at  home.  We  usually  invested  a  quarter 
a  week,  and  generally  to  the  tune  of  the  girl  we  left  behind 
us.  But  once  we  taxed  George's  genius  with  a  grave  text. 
We  gave  him  for  his  muse,  "Gar  nux  erketai'  (we  believe 
it's  Greek),  and  explained  to  him,  with  learned  emphasis, 
that  it  meant  in  English^-"For  the  night  cometh  in 
which  no  man  can  work."  He  was  equal  to  the  task,  and 
brought  us  a  learned  poem  on  "industry,"  in  which  oc- 
curred the  oft-repeated  couplet : 

"  For  the  yoke  of  industry  is  wealth, 
And  the  yoke  of  industry  is  health." 


DEATH    OF   DR.     MITCHELL.  213 


DEATH    OF    DR.    MITCHELL. 

Such  graves  as  his  are  pilgrims'  shrines. 
Shrines  to  no  code  nor  creed  confined — 
The  Delphian  vales,  the  Palestines, 
The  Mecca  of  the  mind. 

— On  Burns. 

THERE  is  perhans  no  tragedy  in  the  private  walks  of 
life  in  North  Carolina  that  equals  the  death  of  Dr.  Elisha 
Mitchell,  the  Professor  of  Geology  in  the  University  of 
North  Carolina,  for  its  mournful  and  dramatic  incidents. 

lie  was  a  native  of  Litchfield,  Connecticut,  a  graduate 
<>f  Yale  College,  a  class-mate  of  George  E.  Badger,  and 
was  appointed  to  a  Professorship  in  the  University  of 
North  Carolina  upon  the  recommendation  of  Professor 
Olmstead,  of  Yale.  He  came  to  Xortli  Carolina  in  the 
early  part  of  the  last  century,,  and  passed  his  life  at  the 
University  of  the  State  until  his  sad  departure. 

lie  was  a  great  favorite  at  the  University,  he  won 
the  affection  of  the  students  by  his  learning,  his  varied 
attainments,  his  quaint  and  quiet  humor,  and  his  amiable 
eccentricities.  He  was  a  unique  representative  of  the 
University  faculty,  and  was  a  connecting  link  between 
austerity  and  freedom  in  college  intercourse. 

A  great  lover  of  nature,  he  would  sometimes  head  a 
.-elect  party  of  students  and  in  freedom  and  abandon 
would  court  nature  in  her  sylvan  solitudes.  They  were 
occasions  of  enjoyment,  and  while  ostensibly  a  scientific, 
geological  and  botanical  exploration,  it  was  in  fact  a  social 
festival  in  which  preceptor  and  pupil  unbent,  and,  waiving 
the  formalities  of  dignity,  had  a  good  time. 

With  all  his  ease  and  geniality,  there  was  an  air  of 
1"  imive  though tf ulness  about  him  that  seemed  akin  to 
melancholy  or  a  silent  communing  with  the  inner  depths 
of  his  soul,  as  if  some  dark  cloud  lowered  over  the  horizon 
of  his  life  as  a  portent  of  evil  to  come.  His  walk  at 
times  was  slow,  meditative  and  abstracted,  and  he  seemed 
to  be  absorbed  in  his  own  companionship ;  and  then  he 


GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


would  recover  his  consciousness  and  give  vent  to  some 
quaint  expression  that  would  wreath  his  face  in  smiles. 

We  once  heard  him  say  to  Judge  Duncan  Cameron, 
while  Thomas  L.  Clingman  was  delivering  his  senior 
speech  on  the  rostrum  in  Gerrard  Hall  :  "Judge,  that  boy 
has  got  a  mind  as  big  as  my  arm,"  at  the  same  time  stretch- 
ing out  his  muscular  arm  to  its  full  length. 

We  once  heard  Dr.  Mitchell  and  Rev.  W.  M.  Green 
(afterwards  Bishop  Green)  discussing  the  subject  of  the 
Immortality  of  the  Soul.  The  good  Bishop,with  instinctive 
kindness,  was  contending  for  the  universality  of  the  im- 
mortality of  all  animals  ;  and  he  illustrated  his  position 
by  the  life  of  the  weary  stage-coach  wheel-horse.  •  "He," 
said  the  good  Bishop,  "is  one  of  God's  creatures  ;  chained 
to  a  wheel  with  a  burden  behind  it,  and  lashed  through 
life  by  a  merciless  driver.  It  has  always  seemed  to  me 
that  such  a  fate  should  have  its  compensations  in  green 
fields  and  shady  pastures,  to  find  happiness  in  an  im- 
mortal life."  "That  is  all  well,"  said  the  erudite  doctor 
of  laws  and  letters,  "but  when  you  come  to  an  oyster  it 
don't  apply." 

In  1857,  after  the  Commencement  of  the  University  in 
June,  Dr.  Mitchell  felt  the  old  impulse  of  his  geological 
tastes,  and  determined  to  gratify  a  long-cherisheJ  wish 
to  explore  the  mountain  peaks  of  Western  North  Carolina, 
and  taking  with  him  the  implements  of  his  favorite  science, 
he  set  out,  unattended  by  his  staff  of  explorers,  to  commune 
with  science  in  that  Wonderland  of  Nature  —  the  "Laud  of 
the  Skies"  —  the  invalid's  hope  and  the  pilgrim's  shrino. 

He  went.  It  was  his  last  journey  to  the  undiscovered 
country;  went  alone  into  the  vast  solitudes  of  the  Black 
Mountains  of  Western  Carolina.  He  had  for  some  days 
explored  the  lower  mountains  of  the  range,  staying  at 
night  with  some  of  his  plain  friends  in  their  humble  cab- 
ins among  the  mountains. 

On  the  27th  of  June  he  ascended  its  peaks.  It  v/as  n 
perilous  and  an  arduous  journey,  but  he  was  in  robust 
health,  on  the  high  plateau  of  middle  life,  ardent,  enthu- 


DEATH    OF   DR.    MITCHELL.  217 

siastic,  and  hopeful  of  discovering  in  North  Carolina  the 
highest  mountain  peak  cast  of  the  Rockies.  He  did  not 
return  to  his  friends  at  night,  but  it  excited  no  alarm,  be- 
cause he  was  brave  and  adventurous  in  his  scientific  pur- 
suits, and  it  was  naturally  supposed  that  he  was  lured  on 
in  his  researches  in  the  laboratory  of  nature. 

Time  wore  on  and  he  did  not  return.  There  was  sus- 
picion, then  fear,  then,  with  some,  came  assurance  that 
something  of  evil  had  befallen  the  great  and  good  scientist. 
Alarm  came  on,  and  searching  parties  were  foraied  to 
solve  the  mystery.  Their  search  was  vain.  No  tidings 
of  the  missing  came. 

At  length  an  old  mountain  bear  hunter,  long  familiarly 
known  as  "Big  Tom  Wilson,"  who  was  trapping  by  night 
in  the  gorges  of  the  Black  Mountains,  discovered  what  he 
supposed  to  be  a  human  body.  He  staid  by  it  until  the 
morning  sun  lighted  up  the  mountain  hollows,  and  there, 
to  his  horror,  he  saw  the  lifeless  body  of  the  good  man  he 
had  known  in  life,  lying  half  hidden  in  a  pool  of  wa:er. 

He  looked  around  to  see  how  harm  had  come  to  the 
body.  All  along  the  mountain  steeps  he  saw  broken  limbs 
aiul  other  evidences  of  a  struggle  to  arrest  disaster.  To 
his  practiced  eye  the  sad  story  of  the  tragedy  was  written 
in  object-lessons  along  the  mountain  sides.  He  had  lost 
his  foothold  and  had  taken  the  fatal  plunge  to  death  irito 
flic  gorge  below.  A  sad  plunge  into  the  unknown.;  but 
fou Id  any  death  be  more  fitting  to  the  great  Carolinian 
whom  it  befell  ? 

Loving  friends  bore  his  body  to  the  highest  mountain 
)n-ak  of  the  Black  Mountains,  6,717  feet  above  tide-water, 
the  highest  mountain  peak  east  of  the  Rockies,  which  now 
bears  the  honored  name  of  Mt.  Mitchell. 


2i8  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


AMONG    THE   CAROLINA    WRITERS. 

Suit  the  action  to  the  word, 
The  word  to  the  action. 

— Hamlet. 

NORTH  CAROLINA  has  not  been  prolific  in  writers  of 
her  majestic  history.  But  she  has  some  bright  stars 
that  shine  in  the  firmament  and  give  lustre  to  the 
name  of  their  nativity,  that  we  would  not  willingly  let 
die.  He  who  stands  at  the  gateway  of  our  history  was 
consecrated  by  the  companionship  of  Shakespeare,  Bacon 
and  Ben  Johnson,  and  left  his  mark  upon  the  lettered  glory 
of  the  Elizabethan  period  of  English  history.  During 
the  twelve  years  of  his  dreary  imprisonment  under  the 
charge  of  treason,  after  the  death  of  his  patron  Queen, 
his  pen  was  his  comfort  and  his  companion,  and  while  there 
he  wrote  a  "History  of  the  World,"  on  whose  stage  he  .had 
been  so  potent  an  actor.  That  name  was  Sir  Walter 
Raleigh — statesman,  historian,  poet,  warrior.  As  a  writer, 
he  was  followed  by  Hackluyt,  the  distinguished  scientist 
who  was  sent  over  by  Raleigh  with  Amadas  and  Barlowe 
to  write  an  account  of  their  discoveries  in  the  land  of  the 
setting  sun.  Hackluyt's  style  is  of  the  antique.  His  work 
is  now  a  rare  gem  of  early  American  literature,  and  was 
written  of  and  on  Roanoke  Island.  These  are  the  early 
pioneers  of  literature  associated  with  the  name  and  early 
history  of  North  Carolina. 

Next  to  these,  though  not  in  close  proximity,  come 
our  historians — Lawson,  Williamson,  Martin,  Wheeler, 
Hawks.  Of  these,  Wheeler  is  the  most  useful ;  inaccurate 
in  some  instances,  but  full  of  filial  loyalty  to  the  State. 
Williamson  was  a  "canny  Scot,"  and  his  history  was  t. 
financial  venture  written  for  a  Philadelphia  publisher 
upon  a  contract  at  a  price  per  page,  and  its  pages  are  a 
dark  thread  running  through  a  wide  blank  margin. 

Martin  was  well  equipped  as  a  historian,  but  left  the 
State  for  a  judicial  position  in  Louisiana,  and  his  histor- 


AMONG   THE   CAROLINA    WRITERS.  2 19 

ical  materials,  which  were  ample,  were  lost  or  destroyed  at 
sea  in  their  transit  to  New  Orleans. 

Dr.  F.  L.  Hawks  followed  Martin  as  the  historian  of 
his  native  State.  Great  things  were  expected  of  him.  He 
was  a  natural  genius,  of  literary  tastes  and  instincts,  of 
elegant  accomplishments,  of  profound  learning,  but  ho 
had  not  the  historic  nose. 

Following  Hawks,  came  Jo.  Sewell  Jones,  an  erratic 
genius,  gifted  in  a  certain  way,  enthusiastic,  sensational. 
His  work  should  have  been  entitled  the  Romance  of  North 
Carolina  History. 

Before  Jones  there  were  fragmentary  works  that  added 
much  to  our  historical  collection — Caruthers,  Foote,  Gen- 
eral Graham's  sketches  of  Eevolutionary  history,  and  other 
literary  labors  with  which  we  are  not  sufficiently  familiar 
to  speak  definitely  of  their  merits  and  demerits. 

The  elder  James  Iredell,  the  Associate  Justice  of  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States,  was  the  recognized 
best  writer  of  our  Revolutionary  times.  He  did  not  write 
a  continuous  history  of  the  State,  but  as  a  letter-writer,  in 
which  he  chronicled  contemporary  events,  he  was  incom- 
parable. Griffith  McRee,  of  Wilmington,  rendered  the 
State  a  great  service  when,  at  the  suggestion  of  James  C. 
Johnston,  of  Hays,  near  Edenton,  he  prepared  a  Life  of 
Judge  Iredell,  and  left  the  State  his  debtor  in  gratitude. 

James  Iredell,  Jr.,  inherited  the  literary  tastes  of  his 
distinguished  father,  and  if  his  life  had  been  given  to 
literary  pursuits  instead  of  the  law,  its  jealous  rival,  he 
would  have  reached  an  equally  high,  if  not  higher,  dis- 
tinction on  the  round  of  ambition's  ladder.  His  Address 
at  the  University  of  North  Carolina  at  the  Commence- 
ment of  1834  was  a  masterpiece  of  literary  excellence,  but 
it  was  too  short  for  so  grave  an  occasion. 

Floating  down  the  tide  of  our  history  to  a  later  period 
we  come  to  Dr.  William  Hooper,  of  the  University,  con- 
fessedly the  finest  writer  of  his  period.  A  web  of  sorrow 
was  woven  in  his  mental  constitution,  but  wit  and  humor 
bubbled  up  through  its  interstices  whenever  he  touched 


220  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

pen  to  paper.  His  Address  at  the  University  in  1834, 
upon  the  defects  of  primary  education  in  North  Carolina, 
was  inimitable  in  humor,  and  convulsed  a  large  and  cul- 
tured audience  as  we  have  never  seen  before  or  since.  His 
address  at  a  later  period,  u  Fifty  Years  Ago,"  was  but  a 
step  behind  it  in  moving  men  to  merriment. 

The  press  has  played  its  part  in  our  prose  literature. 
The  blood  of  the  Hales  of  Fayetteville  runs  in  editorial 
channels.  The  elder  Edward  J.  Hale,  the  veteran  editor 
of  the  Fayetteville  Observer,  was  for  forty  years  identified 
with  the  press  of  North  Carolina,  and  long  exercised  through 
the  Fayetteville  Observer  an  influence  fbr  good  that  is  yet 
felt  in  the  State.  When  the  war  of  the  States  was  IP 
progress,  he  continued  the  publication  of  the  Observer  until 
Sherman  and  his  bummers  came  to  Fayetteville  and  deso- 
lated the  town.  After  the  war,  Mr.  Hale  removed  to  Now 
York  and  established  himself,  with  his  son,  as  a  publisher 
of  books.  The  change  of  scene  produced  no  change  of 
heart  with  him,  and  while  he  lived  in  New  York,  the  old 
love  of  his  nativity  seemed  to  glow  with  a  warmer  and 
more  intense  flame.  He  was  greatly  beloved  in  his  old 
home,  and  travellers  from  North  Carolina  generally  re- 
garded Edward  J.  Hale  as  an  interesting  object  of  their 
Southern  tour.  After  a  brief  illness,  he  passed  away,  leav- 
ing the  odor  of  a  sweet  and  saintly  memory  which,  we  trust, 
will  be  long  cherished  among  us  in  North  Carolina. 

Weston  R.  Gales,  of  the  old  Raleigh  Register,  was  a 
greatly  gifted  man,  and  handled  a  gifted  pen.  He  wis  a 
charming  social  companion,  an  unsurpassed  post-prandial 
orator,  and  but  for  convivial  excess  would  have  been  a 
model  man.  The  line  of  heredity  shows  plainly,  too,  in 
the  Gales  blood.  Father,  son,  brother  and  grandson,  all 
handled  pens  mightier  than  the  sword. 

Col.  W.  L.  Saunders  was  probably  the  best  writer  the 
State  has  ever  produced.  In  force,  clearness,  directness, 
in  power  of  illustration  and  in  unflinching  tenacity  he 
was  without  a  parallel.  If  there  was  any  defect,  it 
in  the  humor  that  gives  sparkle  to  composition. 


AMONG   THE    CAROLINA    WRITERS.  221 

Gaston,  as  a  penman,  was  as  pure  and  pellucid  as  Addi- 
son.  Badger's  force  was  marred  by  his  infinite  drollery. 
His  sense  of  ridicule  was  so  dominant,  even  on  the  gravest 
subjects,  that  it  impaired  his  sincerity. 

Gen.  J.  J.  Pettigrew  was  distinguished  as  a  writer  as 
well  as  a  military  commander.  Had  he  lived  out  his  nat- 
ural life,  no  Carolinian  would  have  lived,  greater  than  he. 
The  two  Camerons,  John  W.  and  John  D.,  were  both  gifted 
penmen.  George  Davis,  our  gifted  school-boy  friend,  was 
a  gifted  man,  and  the  law,  though  it  gave  us  a  good  lawyer, 
deprived  us  of  a  prince  of  letters. 

Engelhard,  Price  and  Fulton,  Holden,  the-  Camerons, 
the  old  Asheville  Citizen  and  Joe  Turner's  Raleigh  ben- 
'inel  shine  in  the  array  of  able  writers. 

Others  we  would  gladly  mention.  They  multiply  as 
time  rolls  on,  but  they  are  on  this  side  the  line  of  historic 
chronicles,  and  we  deal  Vith  the  books  that  are  made  up, 
balanced  and  closed. 


222  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


THE    BOMBARDMENT. 

Stand  not  upon  the  order  of  your  going. 

— Macbeth. 

PERHAPS  the  most  memorable  day  in  the  annals  of  Eliza- 
beth City  was  the  day  of  the  bombardment,  early  in  Feb- 
ruary, 1862,  after  the  fall  of  Roanoke  Island.  After  the 
fight  and  Confederate  defeat  at  Hatteras,  the  year  before, 
the  sound  and  river  towns  of  the  Albemarle  section  were 
in  a  condition  of  perpetual  trepidation  in  fear  of  the  inva- 
sion of  the  Federal  troops  who  had  taken  possession  of 
Hatteras,  and  the  apprehension  of  injury  was  conjured 
into  a  thousand  fancies  of  outrage  and  destruction  of  lire 
and  property.  But  Burnside,  who  was  in  command  at 
Hatteras,  was  in  no  hurry  to  push  his  advantage,  and 
the  next  step  for  him  was  to  capture  Roanoke  Island, 
which  was  occupied  by  various  troops,  under  the  command 
of  Col.  Henry  M.  Shaw. 

Roanoke  Island  was  attacked  and  captured  early  in 
February,  and  the  people  of  Elizabeth  City  were  first  to 
hear  the  sad  news.  There  seemed  to  be  a  sort  of  ment;il 
telegraphy  between  Roanoke  Island  and  that  town,  an  1 
the  news  of  Roanoke  and  its  fall  was  soon  followed  by 
the  news  that  the  Federal  gunboats  were  preparing  for  a 
hostile  visit  to  the  water  towns  in  North  Carolina.  We, 
as  nearest  to  the  stragetic  point,  were  in  a  state  of  tremu- 
lous buzziness.  On  the  streets  the  enquiry  every  day  from 
man  to  man  was,  "Are  they  coming  ?  When  are  they  com- 
ing? Will  they  shell  the  town?  Shall  we  fight,  or  what 
shall  we  do?"  Some  said  fight.  Col.  S.  I).  Starke, 
highest  in  command,  ordered  out  the  militia  and  threw  up 
breastworks  at  Cobb's  Point  for  the  defence  of  our  harbor. 
Many  thought  it  best  to  set  fire  to  our  houses  and  retreat 
by  the  light,  as  the  Russians  had  successfully  done  at 
Moscow  when  invaded  by  Napoleon.  Colonel  Starke  ap- 
proved it,  Others  did  it  when  the  time  came. 

We  were  living  on  Pasquotank  River  in  the  country. 


THE    BOMBARDMENT.  223 

nine  miles  from  town,  but  were  in  town  every  day  to 
keep  up  with  current  events.  Returning  from  town  one 
day,  we  heard  when  in  town  that  the  Yankees  were  gccdng 
their  gunboats  ready  to  come  to  town.  The  rumor  had 
greatly  excited  the  town,  and  the  people  were  much  dis- 
turbed what  to  do  when  they  came.  We  got  home  late, 
communicated  the  startling  news  to  our  disturbed  house- 
hold, and  retired.  About  midnight  a  messenger  t'ron 
Elizabeth  City  roused  us  from  sleep  and  delivered  a  aios- 
sage  from  Rev.  E.  M.  Forbes,  Rector  of  Christ  Chirjh, 
saying  that  a  statement  had  reached  town  that  the  Yankee 
gunboats  were  preparing  to  leave -Roanoke  Island  for  Eliz- 
abeth City,  and  requesting  that  we  would  send  up  wagons 
to  remove  his  books  and  valuables  to  our  home  in  the  coun- 
try for  safety.  We  hurried  Isaac  off  immediately  wiih  a 
farm  wagon,  a  three-mule-cart  with  driver,  and  little 
Peter  with  a  single  box  wagon.  We  rose  early  next  morn- 
ing, in  fact  we  didn't  go  to  sleep  any  more  that  nigh!'. 
While  at  breakfast,  a  servant  ran  into  the  room  from  up- 
stairs, saying  with  great  alarm  that  the  river  was  full  of 
steamboats  going  up  towards  town,  like  a  wedge,  that  there 
was  inore'n  forty  of  'em.  We  ran  upstairs,  looked  out  of 
an  upper  window,  and  there  they  were,  moving  like  a 
phalanx,  to  disturb  our  peace  and  happiness.  When  we 
went  down,  Isaac  had  returned  with  the  debris  of  Mr. 
Forbes'  goods,  wares  and  chattels.  Great  drops  of  bead 
sweat  were  rolling  down  his  ebony  cheeks,  and  his  emo- 
tions overcame  his  utterance.  To  our  enquiry  where  Mr. 
Forbes  was,  he  said,  "Mr.  Forbes  was  flusterated."  "I  an' 
he  was  a  talkin',  you  know,  Master  Richard,  when  he  was 
a  pilin  in  his  books  and  pictures  and  sich,  a  big  'bung' 
flew  over  our  heads,  un  he  said  to  me,  said  he,  'Isaac,' 
and  I  returned  'Yeth,  thir,' ;  and  again  he  said  to  me,  said 
he,  'Isaac,  you  better  get  away  quick  as  you  can.'  I  said 
again,  'Yeth,  thir,  Mr.  Forbes,  sir,  I  will,  for  it  looks  like 
judgment,'  and  then  I  jumped  on  my  seat  and  'Old  Buck' 
(Old  Buck  was  gamy  and  the  off-horse)  let  out  like  Satan 
was  atter  him.  When  I  came  to  the  Cobb's  Point  road  de 


224  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES 

bungs  was  a  fly  in'  all  round,  and  Buck  and  Bill,  who  allers 
minded  me  when  I  sot  behin'  'em,  didn't  ker  no  ^n  >re  for 
me  den  a  born-bline  torn  kitten."  "Where's  Mr.  Forbes  ?" 
"Dunno.  When  I  seed  him  he  was  lookin'  like  he  was 
gwine  to  run."  "'What  did  he  say?"  "Well,  Master 
Richard,  he  was  say  in'  some  words  he  hadn't  ought  to  seel. 
'Feared  to  me  like  cuss  words." 

"Well,  Isaac,  where's  Mr.  Forbes'  things?"  ''Lori  o' 
massy,  Master  llichard,  1  tell  you  how  dat  is.  Dey's 
scattered  all  along  the  road  from  here  to  'Lizabeth." 

Finishing  our  hasty  breakfast,  we  mounted  our  horse 
and  set  out  for  town,  and  our  eyes  opened  on  a  sight  we 
hope  never  to  see  again.  All  the  people  of  the  lowu  were 
on  the  road,  most  of  them  were  afooot,  shoe-tops  deep  in 
mud  and  slush,  muddy,  bedraggled,  unhappy,  wrolclied. 
They  were  looking  for  an  asylum  of  safety  among  country 
friends.  We  met  scores  of  our  town  friends,  for- 
lorn and  miserable.  We  asked  for  others,  and  they 
told  us  the  town  was  on  fire  and  was  deserted,  and  that 
a  naval  engagement  was  raging  in  the  harbor;  thai  two 
Confederates  were  killed  and  three  Yankees.  \Ve  soon 
met  General  Heningsen  on  the  road,  flying  before  an  un- 
seen enemy,  from  the  fort  at  Cobb's  Point,  and  * 'minding 
not  the  order  of  his  going."  We  met  some  ladies  afoot, 
unhappy,  looking  for  an  asylum.  We  met  the  Piemonts 
in  "Little  Billy's"  three-mule  cart,  looking  for  our  house. 
They  told  us  of  the  distress.  That  it  was  a  deai  town. 
That  it  was  dead  as  a  graveyard,  that  all  yhad  left,  some 
never  to  return.  We  asked  after  our  friends.  Tlioy  ^aid 
that  some  had  set  fire  to  their  houses  and  made  tracks  for 
Ourrituck,  that  others  had  done  the  same,  and  that  the 
whole  town  was  then  on  fire,  to  spite  the  Yankees;  that 
the  Elliots  had  started  on  foot  for  Oxford,  that  the  Mar- 
tins were  in  a  buggy,  flying  for  Oxford,  that  Rev.  E.  M. 
Forbes  was  staying  in  town  to  meet  the  Yankees  when 
they  landed  on  the  wharf,  surrender  them  the  town  and 
ask  protection;  that  Mr.  Forbes,  when  they  left,  \vas  put- 


GOVERNOR    WILLIAM    A.    GRAHAM.  225 

ting  on  his  ecclesiastical  vestments,   in  order  tl-ar   they 
might  respect  his  sacred  office. 

It  was  a  grand,  gloomy  and  peculiar  time,  such  as  this 
town  had  never  seen  before,  has  never  seen  since,  and  we 
trust  may  never  see  again. 


GOVERNOR    WILLIAM    A.    GRAHAM. 

And  like  the  down  that  rides  upon  the  breeze, 
His  form  was  grace  and  every  action  ease. 

— Anon. 

IF  WE  were  called  on  to  designate  the  most  distinguished 
and  influential  Governor  of  North  Carolina  in  its  long 
roll  of  Chief  Magistrate^  in  all  its  history  up  to  the  "war 
between  the  States,"  we  should  answer  without  hesitation, 
William  A.  Graham.  His  life  had  not  fallen  Da  the  try- 
ing times  that  confronted  Governor  Vance,  but,  had  it 
been  his  lot,  he  would  have  met  them  with  the  samo  heroic 
and  unflinching  spirit  that  distinguished  our  grear  War 
Governor.  But,  unlike  him,  he  would  not  have  found  grains 
of  merriment  in  every  pound  of  sorrow,  for  Governor  Gra- 
ham was  wrapped  by  nature  in  an  environment  of  dignity 
that  shrouded  mirth  and  reoelled  familiarity.  There  has 
been  no  man,  perhaps,  in  North  Carolina  that  V.as  been 
endowed  with  such  graces  of  manner  and  address  that 
marked  him  as  a  great  master  among  men.  He  wa-i  grave 
and  dignified  without  austerity,  easy  without  familiarity, 
and  he  always  had  a  courtliness  of  personal  bearing  that 
commanded  every  one's  respect  and  offended  no  one's  self 
love. 

Mr.  Graham's  life  forms  a  conspicuous  feature  in  the 
drama  of  North  Carolina's  history  while  he  lived.  With 
its  political  history  he  was  identified  from  the  early  outset 
of  his  life. 

He  entered  life  with  the  prestige  of  ancestral  dwtiiuv- 

15 


226  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

tion,  descended  from  that  Scotch-Irish  race  which  has 
illustrated  our  annals,  he  added  new  honors  to  its  illus- 
trious lineage. 

Soon  after  his  entrance  upon  the  legal  profession  ho  was 
elected  to  the  Legislature  from  the  county  of  Orangs.  lie 
made  his  mark  in  that  body  soon  after  he  became  a  mem- 
ber, and  retained  a  prominent  position  in  the  council  of 
the  State  ever  afterwards,  and  added  National  honors  to 
his  subsequent  career. 

In  the  Harrison  Presidential  storm  of  1840,  Mr.  Gra- 
ham bore  a  conspicuous  part  in  the  Whig  phalanx  of  can- 
vassers, and  the  subsequent  Legislature*  had  to  elect  two 
United  States  Senators  for  North  Carolina,  in  the  place  of 
Senator  Strange,  who  had  resigned,  and  Senator  Mangum, 
whose  term  had  expired.  Mr.  Graham  was  elected  GO  fill 
the  unexpired  term  of  Senator  Strange,  and  Senator  Man- 
gum  to  succeed  himself.  It  was  a  high  compliment  to 
^Ir.  Graham,  considering  his  age  and  his  residence  in  the 
same  county  with  Senator  Mangum.  In  this  exalted  po- 
sition Senator  Graham  soon  gave  evidence  that  the  Stats 
had  acted  wisely  in  selecting  him  as  Senator  to  supply 
the  place  of  Senator  Strange.  He  took  part  in  the  leading 
subjects  of  debate,  was  always  heard  with  attention  and 
interest,  and  his  speeches  were  commended  by  the  ablest 
statesmen  throughout  the  country. 

In  1&44:  he  was  nominated  as  the  Whig  candidate  for 
Governor  of  North  Carolina,  which  nomination  he  was 
reluctant  to  accept,  but  he  was  urged  to  accept  it  by  Lis 
political  friends  of  the  Whig  Party,  and  finally  accepted 
it.  His  opponent  of  the  Democratic  Party,  Mike  Hok-j, 
of  Lincoln  County,  was  a  foeman  every  way  worthy  of  his 
steel.  Young,  accomplished,  well  educated,  eminently 
magnetic,  the  Democrats  of  that  day  confidently  calculated 
on  his  success.  Of  a  warmer  temperament  than  Graham, 
more  gifted  as  an  orator,  not  less  gifted  in  personal  attrac- 
tiveness, they  were  well  matched  in  the  canvass.  But 
before  the  canvass  was  ended  Hoke  was  beckoned  away  by 
the  pale  messenger,  and  Graham  was  elected  by  a  large 


GOVERNOR    WILLIAM    A.    GRAHAM.  22J 

majority.  He  served  as  Governor  for  two  terms  with  sig- 
nal usefulness  and  satisfaction  to  the  people  of  the  State. 
He  left  the  office  of  Governor  with  a  National  reputation 
that  gave  him  the  appointment  of  Secretary  of  the  Navy 
in  President  Fillmore's  Cabinet,  the  duties  of  which  office 
were  discharged  with  an  administrative  ability  that 
crowned  the  administration  of  the  Department  with  great 
eclat  He  established  intercourse  with  Japan  which 
opened  its  ports  to  the  world,  and  placed  that  gem  OL  the 
Orient  into  the  family  of  nations.  Under  the  auspices 
of  the  Navy  Department  the  region  of  the  Amazon  River, 
in  South  America,  was  successfully  explored,  and  a  new 
market  was  opened  to  our  commerce. 

Subsequently,  he  was  nominated  for  the  Vice-Presi- 
dency with  General  Scott,  and  it  was  confidently  expected 
that,  with  General  Scott's  military  reputation  and  Gov- 
ernor Graham's  reputation  as  a  statesman,  the  election 
would  be  a  Whig  triumph ;  but  it  fought  its  last  battle, 
and  was  folded  up  among  the  treasures  of  our  history. 

Governor  Graham's  great  strain  was  the  part  he  first 
bore  in  our  fratricidal  war.  His  constitution  was  calm, 
conservative  and  deliberate,  and  he  was  naturally  a  Union 
man  in  the  early  stages  of  our  sanguinary  civil  war.  He 
was  less  impulsive  than  the  people  whom  he  had  served 
so  long  and  faithfully,  and  as  long  as  he  could  he  clung 
to  the  Union  with  which  he  was  identified ;  but  when  the 
tocsin  of  war  was  sounded  and  an  invasion  of  his  native 
State  was  threatened,  he  returned  to  his  normal  position, 
joined  the  councils  of  the  Confederacy,  and  sent  his  five 
to  defend  his  home. 


228 


THE    MOUNTAIN    GRANDEUR    OF    WESTERN 
CAROLINA. 

I'll  to  the  mountains.     I  will  not  think  the  thoughts 
Nor  breathe  the  breath  of  other  men. 

— Festus. 

THE  most  beautiful  scenery  in  America,  if  not  in  the 
world,  is  to  be  found  in  Western  Carolina.  There  by  the 
workings  of  nature's  laws,  mountains  have  been  piled 
on  mountains,  and  between  the  ranges  are  lovely  valleys 
watered  by  picturesque  streams.  In  the  Alps  the  craggy 
mountain  tops  are  bare,  but  in  blest  Carolina,  the  verdure 
extends  to  the  very  pinnacle  of  the  loftiest  ranges.  It 
is  a  region  that  fosters  individuality,  and  trains  the  inhab- 
itants to  boldness  and  enterprise.  Children  are  born  among 
the  wonders  of  nature,  and  by  their  daily  experience 
they  are  taught  self-reliance  and  attain  rare  powers  of 
physical  endurance.  In  the  seclusion  of  their  mountain 
homes,  they  develop  the  attributes  of  a  sterling  manhood, 
and  among  them  are  found  many  families  richly  endowed 
with  intellectual  gifts  and  bearing  the  stamp  of  marked 
superiority. 

As  two  of  a  type  we  recall  Samuel  P.  Carson  antl 
Zebulon  B.  Vance,  names  that  are  closely  associated  be- 
cause of  a  most  unhappy  affair. 

Dr.  Robert  Vance,  the  uncle  of  him  whom  our  people  so 
much  loved  as  their  great  War  Governor,  was  a  man  of 
fine  characteristics.  Like  his  distinguished  nephew,  he 
had  boldness,  and  strength  of  character,  determination 
and  zeal.  He  was  a  student  of  public  affairs  and  was  well 
informed  in  all  branches  of  knowledge.  He  represented 
the  Buncombe  District  in  Congress  three-quarters  of  a  cen- 
tury ago.  An  aspirant  for  his  seat  was  young  Sam.  Car- 
son, who  had  served  a  session  or  tAvo  in  the  Legislature, 
and  was  unusually  gifted  as  an  eloquent  orator.  During 
the  canvass,  Dr.  Vance  charged  that  Carson's  father 
had  been  disloyal  during  the  Revolution.  Carson 


MOUNTAIN    GRANDEUR.  229 

denied  the  charge,  but  Vance  would  not  retract.  And  so 
Carson  proposed  to  have  it  out  with  him  after  the  election. 
The  celebrated  'Davy  Crockett  was  a  friend  of  Carson  and 
undertook  to  train  him  in  the  use  of  the  pistol ;  and  Davy 
was  reputed  to  be  as  sure  a  shot  as  any  man  in  America. 
When  the  election  was  over  Carson  challenged  Dr.  Vanes 
and  they  fought  a  duel  at  Saluda  Gap  on  the  South  Caro- 
lina line,  Davy  Crockett  being  present.  Vance  fell  mor- 
tally wounded.  Carson  had  been  chosen  at  the  ele:tion 
and  he  continued  in  Congress  some  ten  years.  At  Wash- 
ington he  was  regarded  as  one  of  the  readiest  debaters  in 
Congress,  and  he  stood  high  up  in  the  esteem  and  confi- 
dence of  Andrew  Jackson,  who  Avas  then  President.  And 
at  home  the  people  delighted  in  honoring  him,  for  his 
>plendid  powers  of  oratory  made  him  the  idol  of  the  moun- 
taineers. His  last  public  service  was  in  the  Convention 
of  1835.  He  then  moved  to  Texas,  and  a  few  years  later 
died,  after  a  long  period  of  ill-health. 

Among  all  the  great  men  the  West  has  given  to  Carolina, 
perhaps  none  were  superior  to  Carson  except  Zeb.  Vance, 
the  nephew  of  the  man  he  slew  in  mortal  combat.  Zeb. 
Vance  is  too  well  known  for  us  to  dwell  at  length  on  his 
great  capacity  and  surpassing  excellence  as  an  orator.  Wo 
will  only  say  that  when  he  was  in  the  zenith  of  his  powers, 
lie  swayed  men  with  a  force  that  has  never  been  excelled 
nmong  our  peple.  Truly  the  West  has  been  as  prolific 
of  great  men  as  she  is  notable  for  the  number  of  her  moun- 
tain peaks ;  and  the  mothers  who  could  rear  such  men  and 
givr  them  to  the  State,  must  have  been  as  remarkable  as 
the  valleys  in  which  they  lived  are  noteworthy  for  rlieir 
loveliness. 


230  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


FLORA  MCDONALD. 

On  man 

He  tried  His  'prentice  ban', 
And  then  He  made  the  lasses  O. 

— Burns. 

THERE  is  only  one  woman  who  has  been  identified  with 
North  Carolina  history  that  has  been  mentioned  in  two 
hemispheres.  Flora  McDonald,  a  Scotch  lassie,  when  a 
sweet,  bright  girl  in  the  island  of  South  Uist  in  the  High- 
lands of  Scotland,  where  she  was  born  'and  reared,  she! 
tered  and  concealed  Charles  Edward,  known  in  English 
History  as  the  Pretender,  in  her  womanly  apparel,  after 
the  disastrous  battle  of  Culloden,  in  1745,  with  courageous 
defiance  of  danger  and  at  the  peril  of  her  own  safety. 

Edward  became  a  fugitive  after  the  battle  of  CulloJen 
and  was  closely  pursued  by  his  enemies.  The  power  of 
the  Highland  "lairds,"  who  were  his  adherents,  was  de- 
stroyed by  their  defeat  at  Culloden,  and  Charles  Edward 
sought  concealment  in  the  mountains  of  Rosshire,  escap- 
ing capture  by  the  generous  self-sacrifice  of  Mackenzie. 
He  found  a  temporary  shelter  in  the  mountain  fastnesjes 
of  the  island  of  South  Uist.  He  was  in  hiding  with 
Laird  McDonald.  He  was  in  imminent  danger  of  imme- 
diate capture.  The  wife  of  the  laird  on  whose  domain 
he  was  in  hiding  was  in  deep  sympathy  with  Prince  Ed- 
ward and  proposed  several  projects  for  his  escape.  Fi- 
nally she  suggested  that  they  should  disguise  him  in 
female  attire  and  pass  him  off  as  a  travelling  waiting-maid 
But  it  was  difficult  to  find  any  one  who  would  assume  the 
dangerous  place  of  his  mistress.  Two  had  declined. 
Flora  McDonald,  the  young  and  beautiful  daughter  of  a 
petty  laird  on  the  island,  had  a  stepfather  who  was  an 
adherent  of  the  government.  She  was  approached  by  the 
good  woman  who  knew  the  peril  of  the  Prince.  She 
asked  Flora  if  she  would  undertake  the  escape  of  Prince 
Edward  as  her  waiting-maid.  With  the  womanly  in- 


FLORA    M' DONALD.  231 

stinct  of  sympathy  for  the  distressed,  she  accepted  the 
perilous  task.  The  Prince  was  concealed  in  a  rocky  wild 
in  the  mountain.  Thither  Flora  was  taken  by  a  tru&ied 
officer  of  the  Prince's  forces.  They  found  him  alone, 
broiling  a  small  fish  on  the  coals  for  his  solitary  repast. 
At  first  he  was  startled,  supposing  them  to  be  his  enemies, 
and  made  ready  to  defend  his  life.  He  soon  saw  thby 
were  his  friends.  He  readily  accepted  their  plans  for 
his  escape.  Preparations  were  made  for  leaving  the  is- 
land. Flora  secured  a  passport  from  her  stepfather,  who 
was  a  British  officer,  for  herself  and  her  companions,  in- 
cluding a  stout  Irish  woman,  whom  she  called  Betsey 
Burke. 

Soon  after,  the  travelling  party  set  out  from  Uist  in  an 
open  boat  for  the  Isle  of  Skye.  A  violent  storm  arose. 
All  were  alarmed  for  their  safety.  The  heroic  girl  en- 
couraged the  oarsmen  with  words  of  cheer.  Betty  Burke 
(the  Pretender)  sang  Highland  songs  and  recited  wild 
legends  to  encourage  them.  As  they  approached  the  Isle 
of  Skye  a  band  of  soldiers  drawn  up  on  the  shore  fired 
on  them,  and  as  the  balls  were  whistling  near  them  they 
changed  their  course  and  landed  at  another  point  on  the 
island.  Concealing  the  Prince  in  a  hollow  rock  on  the 
beach,  Flora  repaired  to  the  Chieftain's  headquarters. 
The  Laird  was  absent,  but  Flora  saw  his  wife  and  ap- 
pealed, not  in  vain,  to  the  generous  enthusiasm  of  woman. 
The  heart  responded  to  the  appeal  of  humanity,  and  she 
gave  orders  for  the  fugitive's  safe  departure.  He  was 
conducted  to  a  safe  retreat  and  embarked  for  the  Isle  of 
Hearsay,  where  he  found  friends. 

At  parting  with  Flora,  Charles  Edward,  the  unhappy 
fugitive  that  she  had  so  bravely  protected,  kissed  her  hand 
and  said,  "Gentle,  faithful  maiden,  I  hope  we  shall  yet 
meet  in  the  Palace  Koyal."  But  they  never  met  again. 

After  Charles  Edward  had  escaped  to  France,  the  indig- 
nation of  the  officers  of  the  crown  fell  upon  those  who  had 
aided  him  in  his  flight.  Flora  was  arrested  with  others, 
and  imprisoned  in  the  Tower  of  London,  to  be  tried  for 


232  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

her  life.  While  in  prison,  the  beauty  and  bravery  of  the 
girl,  who,  without  religious  or  political  motive,  had  suffered 
so  much  for  the  cause  of  distressed  royalty,  deeply  inter- 
ested the  English  nobility.  By  their  influence  and  exer- 
tions she  was  finally  released.  Presents  were  showered 
upon  her  after  her  release.  She  received  gold  ornaments 
and  coin,  which  she  brought  with  her  when  she  emigrated 
to  Carolina.  She  was  presented  to  George  the  Second, 
King  of  England.  When  he  asked  her  how  she  dared 
render  assistance  to  the  enemy  of  his  crown,  she  answered : 
"It  was  no  more  than  I  would  have  done  for  your  Majesty, 
had  you  been  in  a  like  situation."  She  was  returned  to 
Scotland  under  the  escort  of  Malcolm  McLeod,  a  fellow 
prisoner,  with  great  show  and  equipage. 

Four  years  after,  she  married  Allan  McDonald,  a  Scot- 
tish Laird,  who  in  1775,  emigrated  to  J^orth  Carolina  with 
his  family  and  some  friends  and  settled  at  Cross  Creek, 
now  Fayetteville,  where  a  large  number  of  distressed  Scot- 
tish families  sought  refuge  from  the  civil  disturbances  in 
the  British  Empire. 

But  they  soon  found  disturbances  and  war  in  their 
adopted  home,  where  commotion  was  rampant.  The 
contest  between  the  British  Government  and  its  American 
colonies  was  then  imminent,  and  it  soon  burst  into  flame. 
The  Highlanders,  who  fled  from  Scotland  for  peace  and 
quiet,  sympathized  with  the  Government  that  they  had 
so  lately  been  in  arms  against.  They  were  summoned  by 
the  Colonial  Governor  to  support  the  royal  cause.  They 
responded  to  the  call.  General  Donald  McDonald,  a  kins- 
man of  Flora  and  the  most  influential  man  among  them, 
erected  his  standard  at  Cross  Creek,  and  on  the  first  of 
February,  1776,  sent  out  his  proclamation,  calling  on  all 
his  true  and  loyal  countrymen  to  join  him.  The  husband 
of  Flora  and  most  of  the  Highlanders  joined  the  royal 
ranks.  Flora  gave  her  influence  to  the  cause  her  husband 
and  kinsmen  had  espoused  and  animated  her  countrymen 
in  arms.  They  met  the  Patriots  at  the  early  "Battle  of 
Moore's  Creek  Bridge/'  and  found  another  Culloden. 


FLORA    M' DONALD.  233 

After  the  battle  General  Donald  McDonald,  who  had 
been  commissioned  as  General  of  the  royal  forces  in  North 
Carolina,  was  taken  prisoner  while  sitting  on  a  stump  near 
his  tent.  Allen  McDonald,  the  husband  of  Flora,  was  also 
taken  prisoner,  and  they  with  some  twenty  others  were  sent 
prisoners  to  Halifax. 

Allen  and  his  family,  after  this  disastrous  experience, 
and  release,  as  a  prisoner,  determined  to  return  to  oheir 
old  home  in  the  Highlands.  On  their  return  voyage  in  a 
British  sloop  of  war,  they  encountered  a  French  ship  of 
war  and  an  engagement  ensued.  In  the  action  Flora,  who 
was  in  the  thick  of  the  fight,  encouraging  the  men,  was 
wounded.  The  enemy  was  beaten  oft'  and  the  heroine  was 
landed  safely  on  her  native  soil. 

Her  eventful  life  closed  March  5th,  1790.  More  than 
three  thousand  persons  followed  her  remains  to  the  ceme- 
tery Kilmuir,  in  the  Isle  of  Skye.  According  to  her 
wish,  her  shroud  was  made  of  the  sheets  in  which  Prince 
Edward  had  slept  the  night  he  was  her  guest  at  Kings- 
bury. 


234  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


THE    BLACK    FLAG. 

(SCENES   OF    FRATERNAL   STRIFE.) 

EIGHTEEN  hundred  and  sixty-three  was  the  dark  year 
in  the  history  of  the  Civil  War,  in  this  town  and  the  adja- 
cent section  of  North  Carolina.  It  was  the  dark  and 
bloody  district.  Human  life  was  not  more  valued  or  more 
secure  than  a  raccoon's.  The  battlefields  of  Northern  Vir- 
ginia were  havens  of  rest  and  happiness  to  it.  We  have 
heard  of  black  flags  in  war,  in  which  human  beings  became 
incarnate  devils  and  laid  aside  all  the  instincts  of  human- 
ity. We  never  saw  a  black  flag  but  once.  The  man  who 
carried  it  we  suspected  was  an  Ishmaelite,  and  that  his 
hand  was  uplifted  against  every  other  man.  Its  pictorial 
emblems  were  a  skeleton,  cross-bones,  and  sockets  whence 
eyes  once  looked  out.  He  showed  it  to  us  and  told  us  it 
meant  war  to  the  invaders  without  quarter  and  without 
mercy.  He  had  another,  and  we  were  told  that  he  showed 
it  to  the  other  side.  Buffaloes,  spies,  tale-bearers,  non- 
combatant  buffaloes  were  everywhere.  The  worst  features 
of  human  nature  were  developd  in  a  rich  soil  and  danger 
was  all  around  you.  We  have  heard  of  "marching  through 
Georgia"  and  its  horrors  of  bummers  and  pillage  and  ra- 
pine. But  this  was  marching  into  Elizabeth  City  and 
staying  there.  It  is  a  common  reference  to  the  sad  days  of 
the  reconstruction  period  from  1866  to  1870  as  full  of  out- 
rage, oppression  and  hardship,  but  they  were  halcyon  days 
for  Elizabeth  City,  compared  with  the  bloody  black  flag 
days  of  1863. 

Roanoke  Island  was  in  the  hands  of  the  Federal  troops 
and  it  was  a  safe  retreat  for  negroes,  and  a  paradise  of 
Union  men,  spies  and  Northern  sympathizers.  No  wliis- 
per  of  a  true  Southern  man,  but  it  was  reported  at  head- 
quarters at  Roanoke  Island  in  less  time  than  twenty-four 
hours.  Your  nearest  neighbor  was  often  your  truest  and 
cruelest  enemy. 

Our  little  children  (the  largest  were  away)  had  a  toy 


THE    BLACK    FLAG.  235 

Confederate  flag  about  as  big  as  your  hand,  and  in  child- 
ish sport  they  nailed  it  to  the  outside  gate.  It  was  not 
there  two  hours,  when  it  was  taken  down  from  motives  of 
prudence.  Next  day  a  raiding  party  of  negroes  and  white 
men  came  to  the  house  from  the  river  landing,  and  in  an 
imperative  manner  demanded  a  search  of  the  house  for 
Confederate  flags.  Trunks  were  rudely  burst  open  and 
rifled.  A  little  flag,  the  childrens'  plaything,  was  found. 
They  bore  it  off  in  triumph,  and  it  was  doubtless  exhibited 
at  headquarters  on  Roanoke  Island  as  a  trophy  of  victory. 
Raids  of  whites  and  negroes  were  of  weekly  occurrence,  and 
of  tener.  We  carried  our  lives  in  our  hands.  In  Perquim- 
ans,  Tom  Newby,  a  quiet,  estimable  and  inoffensive  citi- 
zen, a  cultured  gentleman,  was  called  to  his  door  at  night 
by  a  raiding  party  from  Roanoke  Island  and  cruelly  shot 
and  killed  without  a  word  of  warning.  Our  guerilla  pro- 
tectors shot  and  killed  Black  Sanders  from  the  bushes,  iu 
retaliation,  and  the  cruel  war  without  military  organiza- 
tion went  on.  The  Sanders  Federal  gang  shot  and  killed 
Ad.  White,  an  innocent  man  found  with  a  gun  on  his  shoul- 
der. The  guerillas  under  Elliott  and  Sanderlin  shot  and 
killed  Cox  at  Trunk  Bridges  and  a  child  that  he  held  bo- 
fore  him  as  a  shield.  Buffaloes  and  their  allies  were  ram- 
pant Pete  Burgess,  of  Camden,  a  noted  buff  aloe,  with  a 
gang  of  buffaloes,  shot  and  killed  McPherson  in  or  near 
his  own  house  before  the  eyes  of  his  weeping  wife  and  chil- 
dren. Later,  Wild,  the  one-armed  commander  of  the  ne- 
gro troops  who  disgraced  his  epaulettes  and  blue  coat,  ar- 
rested Daniel  Bright,  a  soldier  of  Hinton's  regiment  at 
home  on  furlough,  and  hung  him  without  accusation  or 
trial  at  the  "River  Bridge,"  now  "Hinton's  Corner."'  A 
raiding  party  of  Hinton's  regiment,  arrested  a  buffalo, 
hung  him,  suspended  his  body  from  a  limb  and  placed  a 
placard  on  his  breast  stating  that  he  was  hung  in  retalia- 
tion for  the  murder  of  Daniel  Bright. 

That  surely  was  a  time  of  horrors,  a  war  without  armies 
or  the  pomp  and  pageantry  of  military  array.  It  wa^  an 
internecine  war  in  which  all  the  ties  of  neighborhood, 


236  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

brotherhood  and  civilization  were  rudely  sundered.  The 
charge  at  Ballaklava  in  which  no  question  of  the  reason 
why,  no  action  but  to  do  or  die,  was  in  the  minds  of  those 
heroes  on  the  march  to  death,  pales  before  the  glare  of 
such  warfare.  Pettigrew's  bloody  charge  at  the  heigh  U*  of 
Gettysburg  is  child's  play  in  comparison  with  it.  In  Gen- 
eral Sherman's  classic  phraseology,  "war  is  hell."  What, 
pray,  would  he  have  called  such  a  war  as  we  had  hers  in 
old  times  in  this  town.  It  was  war  without  its  pomp  and 
pageantry,  without  the  amenities  and  chivalry  of  organized 
warfare,  without  a  recognized  code  and  rules  of  civilized 
war,  without  the  "paths  of  glory"  leading  to  the  grnve. 
It  was  one  long,  weary,  suspicious,  frightful  watch,  sur- 
prise and  reality.  For  months  we  never  went  to  our  f  i-ont 
door  without  unconsciously  turning  our  sleepless  eyes  to 
the  river  shore  in  search  of  a  foeman,  who  was  a  wolf  in 
his  lair,  ready  to  spring  upon  us  from  covert. 

During  the  whole  of  this  long,  black  night  of  terrors 
there  was  but  one  fight  in  the  open,  between  our  Ranger 
protectors  and  the  Federal  cavalry  raiders.  It  was  in  the 
upper  part  of  Pasquotank,  near  the  fatal  spot  where  Daniel 
Bright  was  murdered.  It  was  popularly  called  the  battle 
of  "Turtle's  Run,"  not  so  called  from  any  local  associa- 
tion, but  from  the  rapid  "run"  made  from  the  field  by 
Jack  Tuttle,  a  member  of  the  company  who  had  never  be- 
fore heard  the  siz  of  a  rifle  ball.  One  struck  Jack's  gun 
and  gave  him  a  sudden  attack  of  St.  \"itus'  and  he  "got  up 
and  dusted,"  the  boys  cheering  as  he  ran.  It  was  the  bat- 
tle in  which  our  boys  behaved  like  veterans  in  the  open 
field,  in  which  the  Federal  cavalry  were  driven  back,  and 
in  which  the  brave  captain  Tom  Tamplin  was  wounded  and 
was  borne  from  the  field  in  the  arms  of  his  loving  com- 
rades. 


REMNANTS   OF   LO.  237 


REMNANTS   OF    LO. 

Oh,  a  wonderful  stream  is  the  river  of  Time 
As  it  runs  through  the  realm  of  tears. 

—  Taylor. 

IN  JACKSON  and  Swain  counties  is  a  reservation  where 
a  remnant  of  the  Cherokee  Indians  still  dwell,  and  we  be- 
lieve it  is  the  home  of  more  of  the  aboriginal  Red  men  than 
can  elsewhere  be  found  east  of  the  Mississippi.  The  Chero- 
kees  were  Southern  Indians  and  traditional  accounts  say 
they  originally  had  their  hunting  grounds  in  the  region  of 
which  Charlotte  is  now  the  centre.  It  was  somewhere 
about  the  year  1600,  some  fifty  years  before  North  Caro- 
lina was  settled,  that  a  powerful  tribe  came  down  from 
Canada  and  fought  three  consecutive  days  with  the  Chero- 
keee,  great  slaughter  being  inflicted  on  both  sides.  Then 
they  took  a  breathing  spell ;  and  finally  it  was  agreed  be- 
tween them  that  the  Cherokees  should  move  to  the  moun- 
tains and  allow  their  adversaries  to  have  the  lands.  And 
so  the  Catawbas  became  settled  in  North  Carolina. 

The  Cherokees  were  in  the  early  days  described  as  being 
less  savage  than  most  of  their  race,  and  they  gava  the 
whites  no  great  trouble,  until  the  French,  who  claimed  the 
back  country,  induced  them  to  become  hostile  to  the  Eng- 
lish. However,  they  had  their  wars  with  the  colonists 
who  year  by  year  pressed  harder  and  harder  on  their  hunt- 
ing grounds ;  but  they  continued  to  hold  their  land  in  the 
mountains.  As  they  were  not  citizens,  and  as  their  gov- 
ernment was  tribal,  the  whites  regarded  them  as  a  foreign 
nation,  although  they  lived  here  in  their  own  country.  And 
so  treaties  were  made  with  the  tribes  as  with  foreign  na- 
tions. By  our  treaty  with  the  Cherokees  a  large  territory 
in  the  mountains  was  set  apart  as  their  property,  and  no 
white  man  could  lawfully  buy  an  acre  of  it.  But  the 
whites  wanted  it,  and  so  they  interfered,  and  at  length  they 
induced  some  of  the  chiefs  to  ask  the  government  to  give 
them  other  lands  across  the  Mississippi  for  their  hunting 


238  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

grounds ;  and  eventually  this  was  done,  but  the  tribe  repu- 
diated the  contract. 

However,  about  1837  General  Winfield  Scott  was  sent 
with  some  troops  and  forcibly  moved  the  Cherokees  from 
our  State,  and  the  Creeks  from  Georgia,  and  carried  them 
across  the  Mississippi  to  new  hunting  grounds  in  th?  In- 
dian Territory.  But  some  of  the  Cherokees  took  to  the 
woods  and  escaped,  and  after  a  while  a  new  treaty  was 
made  by  which  a  large  part  of  their  reservation  in  our 
mountains  became  the  property  of  the  State,  and  was 
opened  to  white  settlers. 

The  land  retained  by  the  Indians  lies  in  Jackson  and 
Swain  counties,  and  there  the  Indians  have  lived  unmo- 
lested for  fifty  years,  increasing  in  numbers  and  becoming 
more  and  more  civilized.  They  now  dress  like  white  peo- 
ple, and  cultivate  the  land.  They  have  schools,  and  are 
taught  to  speak  English.  It  is  pleasant  to  think  th^t  at 
least  a  remnant  of  the  aborigines  still  survive  in  their  old 
homes,  and  that  within  the  beautiful  mountains  of  IvTorth 
Carolina  they  have  a  retreat  where  they  can  enjoy  the 
blessings  of  peace  and  security  while  having  some  of  the 
advantages  of  civilization. 

One  of  these  Cherokees  has  achieved  fame  that  will  per- 
petuate his  name  for  centuries.  He  constructed  an  alpha- 
bet of  fifty  signs  that  represented  the  sounds  of  his  Indian 
language,  and  three-quarters  of  a  century  ago  his  alphabet 
was  used  in  printing  a  paper  and  books  for  his  people.  His 
name  was  Sequoia,  and  the  story  of  his  performance  be- 
came known  to  a  great  Italian  scientist  who  was  travelling 
in  this  country.  Years  later  when  General  Bidwell,  who 
a  few  years  since  was  the  Prohibition  candidate  for  the 
Presidency,  discovered  the  giant  redwood  trees  in  Cali- 
fornia, the  scientist  at  Washington  proposed  to  call  them 
Washingtonienses ;  the  British  called  them  Wellingtonia  • 
but  the  Italian  scientist  called  them  Sequoia,  in  honor  of  the 
Cherokee ;  and  this  name  was  adopted.  So  those  big  trees, 
which  are  4,000  years  old,  and  which  are  the  wonder  of  the 
world,  will  hand  down  the  name  of  a  Cherokee  Indian  to 
the  remotest  ages. 


A    DREAD    TIME.  239 

A    DREAD   TIME. 
"A  time  that  tried  men's  souls." 

WE  HAVE  sometimes,  yea  often,  regretted  that  we  did 
not  shoulder  our  rifle  during  the  times  that  tried  men's 
souls  and  bodies,  in  the  bloody  era  in  our  history  from 
1861  to  1865,  and  that  age  and  domestic  exigency  kept  us 
aw*ay  from  the  field  of  conflict. 

But  we  have  frequently  thought,  that  we,  who  remained 
at  home  in  the  Albemarle  section  of  North  Carolina,  were 
in  more  danger  and  trouble  than  the  honored  soldier  that 
responded  to  the  first  bugle  call  to  arms  and  left  home  and 
all  its  endearments  to  face  a  world  in  arms  against  his 
home.  Up  to  the  fall  of  our  forts  at  Hatteras,  we  were 
undisturbed  by  a  hostile  presence.  Our  troubles  were 
such  as  we>  imagined.  It  was  considered  an  asylum  for 
those  who  from  stress  of  circumstances  or  other  cause  were 
not  in  the  camp  or  on  the  battlefield,  which  was  their  nor- 
mal place. 

But  when  Hatteras  fell,  the  scene  was  wholly  changed. 
Our  Illiad  of  woes  then  began.  Squads  of  soldiers  came 
up  occasionally.  Some  of  them  were  inoffensive,  especially 
the  early  visitors.  They  seemed  uneasy,  but  looked  around 
with  searching  eyes,  as  if  to  take  in  the  situation  for  some 
ulterior  purpose. 

In  1863  a  small  body  of  Federal  troops  were  sent  to 
occupy  Elizabeth  City.  They  were  under  the  command 
of  two  brothers,  named  Sanders.  One  of  them,  having 
black  hair,  was  familiarly  known  as  "Black  Sanders." 
The  other  having  light  hair  was  known  as  "White  ban- 
ders." Our  local  guerilla  company  had  their  eyes  upon 
them  and  were  secretly  keeping  informed  of  all  their 
movements.  One  night  Black  Sanders,  with  some  "buf- 
faloe"  friends,  attended  a  negro  dance  party  near  town. 
Some  of  our  guerilla  friends,  knowing  the  street  they 
would  come  back  to  town,  secreted  themselves  at  the  west 
corner  of  Main  street,  opposite  the  Albemarle  House  (then 


240  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

the  Leigh  House).  Sanders  was  mortally  wounded.  He 
fled  to  their  headquarters  at  the  Grandy  House  on  Shepard 
street  and  died  soon  after  reaching  town. 

It  was  a  hot  time  in  town  the  next  day.  The  Fed- 
eral camp  on  Shepard  street  was  wrought  up  to  intense  eix- 
citement  and  the  atmosphere  was  lurid  with  threats  of 
vengeance.  The  pall  of  death  and  secrecy  that  hung  over 
the  dreadful  tragedy  was  well  established,  but  no  trace  of 
the  actors  could  be  found. 

The  Federal  soldiers  of  the  camp  were  out  scouring  the 
country  to  find  some  clew  to  the  tragedy,  but  their  search 
was  unavailing. 

At  length  they  fell  in  with  Ad.  White,  somewhere  in 
town,  with  a  gun  on  his  shoulder.  They  took  him  pris- 
oner. There  was  no  evidence  of  his  guilt.  He  disclaimed 
all  knowledge  of  the  circumstance  of  the  shooting.  He 
was  a  citizen  of  Perquimans,  and  a  visitor  to  Elizabeth 
City.  He  was  obstinate,  unyielding,  and  an  intense  Con- 
federate of  the  stalwart  type.  He  made  no  confessions. 
They  wanted  a  victim,  and  Ad.  White  was  found  with  a 
gun  on  his  shoulder.  He  was  condemned,  sentenced  to 
be  shot,  and  the  sentence  was  executed  the  same  day.  He 
was  a  brave  and  obstinate  man  and  died  without  fear,  a 
martyr  to  his  convictions  and  his  patriotism. 

The  man  in  the  guerilla  camp  who  fired  the  fatal 
shot  that  sent  "Black  Sanders"  without  shrift  to  his  dread 
account,  has  never  been  known  with  certainty.  He  was 
probably  killed  by  a  volley. 

It  was  supposed  by  many  at  the  time  that  he  was  killed 
by  Arthur  Butt,  a  man  of  many  intellectual  gifts,  but  more 
eccentricities  and  of  infinite  jest. 

He  was  the  life  of  the  social  circle,  a  man  of  ardent  tem- 
perament and  Southern  sympathies.  He  was  a  country 
schoolmaster  and  a  good  elocutionist. 

During  the  bloody  times  a  newspaper  was  a  rare  sight, 
and  sometimes  we  got  a  Confederate  paper  published  on 
dirty  brown  paper,  and  sometimes,  though  rarely,  we  came 
in  possession  of  a  Northern  paper.  When  we  got  one  it 


A    DREAD   TIME.  241 

• 

was  the  attraction  of  the  town,  and  Arthur  mounte-i  a 
goods  box  and  read  the  war  news  to  an  attentive  crowd  of 
eager  listeners. 

Poor  Arthur !  peace  and  blessings  on  his  memory.  How 
oft  he  sat  an  audience  on  a  roar.  How  oft  he  roused  the 
drooping  spirits  and  brought  cheerful  happiness  out  of 
the  depths  of  despair. 

After  the  death  of  Ad.  White  there  was  intense  excite- 
ment throughout  this  vicinity.  Some  clamored  for  retali- 
ation, but  we  were  disheartened,  broken  in  spirit,  trodden 
under  foot  by  raids,  and  we  do  not  know  that  there  were 
any  retaliatory  steps. 


16 


242  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


THE    KING  OF    BIRDS   AND  THE    BRAVEST 
OF    BEASTS. 

FOR  AN  island  twelve  miles  long  and  two  wide,  and  in- 
habited by  some  seven  hundred  people,  Koanoke  Island 
has  been  as  loud  a  spot  as  any  of  the  same  number  of  square 
inches  on  the  globe.  It  has  been  full  of  sensations  from 
the  jump ;  and  from  the  birth-day  of  Virginia  Dare  in 
1585,  to  the  bully  fight  of  recent  date,  in  which  birds,  beast 
and  woman  bore  a  hand,  a  period  near  unto  three  hundred 
years,  it  has  seldom  been  without  an  eye-opener  in  the 
shape  of  a  sensation.  It  has  been  the  scene  of  bloody  fights 
between  hostile  Indian  tribes,  and  between  civilized  armies 
in  hostile  array.  Savage  and  civilized  relics  of  remote 
ages  and  modern  convulsions  are  hidden  beneath,  or  wave- 
washed  upon  the  surface  of  its  golden  sands.  Indian  forts, 
and  cairns,  and  tumuli  attest  its  hoary  history.  Abel's 
pet  dog  that  sings  in  church  meetings ;  and  the  canary  that 
praises  itself  in  parrot  English,  attest  the  attainments  of 
its  beasts  and  birds,  in  polite  accomplishments.  Lewi? 
Mann's  sixty  alligators,  hatched  and  reared  in  a  potato- 
house,  attest  the  fecundity  of  its  soil — or  the  fecundity 
of  Lewis'  imagination.  Two  miles  from  the  shore,  afc  the 
point  at  the  gateway  to  Oregon,  lie  luscious  bivalves.  Wild 
fowl  of  every  name  feed  upon  its  grasses.  Its  men  are 
the  best  specimens  of  stalwart  and  athletic  manhood;  its 
women  of  feminine  loveliness. 

But  to  our  tale. 

At  Roanoke  Island,  a  soaring  eagle,  towering  in  his  pride 
of  might,  turned  his  proud  eye  from  gazing  at  the  sun, 
upon  the  quiet  yard  of  Walter  Dough.  A  flock  of  fat  geese 
that  nipt  the  tender  yard  grass,  invited  his  eye  and  tempted 
his  taste.  The  glance  was  father  to  the  thought-  and 
down  he  pounced.  The  feathers  flew,  the  geese  squawked, 
and  there  was  a  sensation  in  that  farm  yard— and  there 
was  a  dog  there,  too.  A  goose  is  put  down  as  a  fool,  but  it 
is  a  vulgar  error.  A  goose  is  a  particular  smart  fellow. 


KING   OF    BIRDS   AND   BRAVEST   OF    BEASTS.         243 

And  so  was  this  one  the  eagle  struck.  As  soon  as  the  eagle 
struck,  the  goose  ran  under  the  house,  which  was  soms  two 
feet  above  ground,  with  the  eagle  fastened  to  her  back, 
and  the  rest  of  the  flock  in  hot  pursuit.  And  there  the 
light  grew"  fast  and  furious.  Forty  biting  and  flopping 
geese  on  one  side,  and  the  king  of  birds  on  the  other.  Al- 
though outmimbered,  the  eagle  maintained  the  fight  and 
clung  to  his  victim. 

But  soon  another  enemy  presented  himself.  An  enemy 
more  terrible  than  an  army  of  geese — a  bull-terrier  dog — 
little,  but  full  of  fight.  It  wasn't  fair ;  and  the  dog  had 
no  natural,  belligerent  rights  in  a  combat  between  birds; 
but  he  came  with  a  bound,  and  the  eagle  had  no  time  to 
settle  questions  of  military  ethics;  so  he  threw  himself  on 
his  back  (eagle  fashion)  to  do  his  best  in  this  hard  fight 
U'tween  tooth  and  toenajl.  The  dog  made  a  lunge  at  the 
eagle's  breast,  and  the  eagle  stuck  his  claws  deep  into  the 
clog's  fore-shoulder. 

The  blow  was  simultaneous  on  either  side.  Both  blows 
told.  But  a  terrier  never,  and  an  eagle  hardly  ever,  says 
die.  The  only  witnesses  of  the  dread  combat  were  die 
geese,  who  now  stood  off  and  looked  on,  and  Miss  Martha 
Brothers,  who  was  singing  to  her  spinning  jenny,  in  the 
house  alone,  when  the  fight  began ;  and  who  in  the  end  was 
to  be  the  conquering  hero,  crowned  with  the  laurels  of 
victory.  The  battle  raged.  Teeth  gnashed.  Claws  staved. 
Eyes  flamed.  But  eagles,  like  men,  contend  against  odds 
when  fighting  against  fate,  and  so  this  eagle's  great  heart 
sank  within  him,  and  turning  tail  upon  his  foe  he  sought 
safety  in  flight.  But  his  retreat  was  slow  and  full  of  diffi- 
culty— for  he  had  fifteen  pounds  of  bull  terrier  swinging 
behind  him.  He  reached  the  yard  fence.  With  one  des- 
perate effort  he  sought  to  scale  it.  He  reached  its  top- 
most, round.  He  bore  a  weight  he  could  not  further  carry. 
There  they  stood,  victor  and  vanquished.  Then  it  was  that 
Miss  Martha  Brothers,  the  true  hero  of  the  fight,  came  to 
i  he  front,  and  won  the  palm  of  victory.  Seizing  a  rail, 
with  one  fell  swoop,  she  came  down  with  a  crash  upon  the 


244  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

eagle's  head,  and  left  him  prostrate,  struggling  in  the  ago- 
nies of  death;  the  victim  of  a  combination  too  powerful 
to  be  resisted.  Alas  poor  eagle !  He  measured  nine  feet 
between  the  tips  of  his  outstretched  wings. 


GEN.    JAMES    MARTIN. 

While  a  foreign  troop  was  landed  in  my  country,  I  never  would 
lay  down  my  arms,  never  !  never  !  never  ! 

— Lord  Chatham, 

JAMES  GREEN  MARTIN  was  born  on  Main  street  in 
Elizabeth  City,  1ST.  C.,  on  the  14th  of  February,  IClt). 
From  the  Academy  in  Elizabeth  City,  he  continued  his 
education  at  the  Episcopal  school  in  Raleigh,  until  the 
year  1835,  when,  upon  the  recommendation  of  Hon.  Win. 
B.  Shepard,  representative  in  Congress  from  the  First  Dis- 
trict, he  was  appointed  to  a  cadetship  at  West  Point.  A  cter 
the  four  years  course  at  that  institution,  he  was  graduated. 
No.  14,  in  the  class  of  which  Generals  Sherman  and 
Thomas  were  members,  and  was  assigned  to  the  Artillery. 
He  was  first  assigned  to  duty  on  the  Maine  frontier,  when 
the  boundary  dispute  threatened  conflict  with  Canada. 

He  went  to  the  Mexican  war  under  the*  command  of 
General  Worth,  and  was  with  him  at  the  capture  of  Monte- 
rey. He  was  afterward  transferred  to  General  Scott's 
command,  and  was  with  him  in  all  the  fights  in  his  advance 
on  the  city  of  Mexico,  up  to  and  including  the  battta  of 
Churubusco,  where  he  lost  his  right  arm.  After  the 
Mexican  war  he  was  transferred  from  the  line  to  the  staff. 

When  the  war  between  the  States  was  declared,  he  was 
at  Fort  Reilly,  and  when  North  Carolina,  by  her  act  of 
secession,  resumed  her  paramount  authority,  Major  Mar- 
tin, recognizing  his  allegiance  to  his  State,  his  hom3  and 
his  kindred,  returned  and  offered  his  sword  to  North  Caro- 
lina. He  was  made  Adjutant-General,  with  the  rank  of 
Major-General,  and  commenced  at  once  the  organization 


GEN.    JAMES    MARTIN.  245 

of  that  splendid  body  of  troops  that  in  the  Confederate 
Government  was  the  right  arm  of  the  service.  This  work 
done,  he  went  into  the  field  as  a  Brigadier-General  in  the 
Confederate  Army.  In  the  proposed  attack  on  New  Bern, 
by  General  Hill,  he  was  ordered  with  his  brigade  to  Shep- 
ardsville,  to  cut  off  communication  between  Morehead  City 
and  New  Bern.  He  attacked  and  took  the  forts  at  Sliep- 
ardsville,  capturing  a  good  many  Federal  prisoners  and 
destroying  Federal  property.  The  attack  on  New  Bern 
was  abandoned  and  our  troops  in  retreat,  when  the  news 
reached  General  Martin.  He  moved  away  to  avoid  an 
attack  from  New  Bern  and  reached  Wilmington,  with  all 
his  prisoners.  In  1864,  his  Brigade  was  ordered  to  report 
to  General  Beauregard,  at  Petersburg,  and  was  engaged 
in  the  fight  at  Bermuda  Hundreds  where  General  Butler 
was  "bottled  up."  Thence  he  joined  General  Lee,  with 
his  brigade,  at  Richmond,  and  was  at  the  second  battle  of 
Cold  Harbor,  thence  back  to  Petersburg,  and  engaged  in 
many  of  the  fights  at  that  place.  Frem  Petersburg,  Gen- 
eral Martin  was  sent  by  General  Lee  to  Asheville  to  take 
command  of  the  western  part  of  the  State  of  North  Caro- 
lina, where  he  was  when  General  Johnston  surrendered. 

After  the  close  of  the  war  General  Martin  studied  and 
obtained  license  to  practice  law,  in  which  professional  busi- 
ness he  was  engaged  to  the  time  of  his  death. 

In  the  private  relations  of  life  General  Martin  was 
blameless  and  exemplary.  He  was  an  earnest  and  devout 
member  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  an  earnest 
worker  in  its  religious  enterprises,  and  an  influential  mem- 
bor  of  its  diocesan  and  general  councils.  Doubtless,  ere 
this,  he  has  entered  upon  that  new  condition  of  life  where 
a  beneficent  Creator  bestows  the  higher  rewards  of  a  well- 
spent  life. 


246  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

CHARLES  R.  KINNEY. 

"A  pebble  in  our  p;ith  oft  turns  the  current  of  our  life." 

ABOUT  the  year  1820  there  came  from  Norwich,  Conn.., 
to  Norfolk,  Virginia,  on  his  way  to  Mobile,  Alabama,  to 
repair  his  broken  fortunes,  Charles  R.  Kinney,  a  young 
man  about  twenty-six  years  of  age,  destined,  in  after  years, 
to  fill  a  place  in  the  affections  and  influence  and  antago- 
nisms of  the  bar  in*  the  Edenton  District  and  also,  in  our 
judgment,  to  occupy  the  foremost  rank  in  ability  and  legal 
attainments  and  in  large  practice  among  the  members  yf  a 
bar  distinguished  for  learning  and  ability.  There  hap- 
pened in  Norfolk  at  the  same  time,  a  gentleman  from 
Camden  County,  N.  C.,  Miles  Gregory,  a  wealthy  fanner, 
who  was  stopping  at  the  same  hotel  with  the  young  stran- 
g;er,  and  happening  to  get  into  conversation  with  him, 
found  he  was  in  search  of  employment.  The  conversa- 
tion resulted  in  making  an  engagement  with  Mr.  Kmney 
to  come  to  Camden  and  teach  the  children  of  Mr.  Gregory, 
in  his  family.  He  came  out  to  Camden  through  the  Dis- 
mal Swamp  Canal  in  a  canal  boat,  according  to  the  custom 
of  the  period,  and  becoming  a  member  of  the  family  he 
took  charge  of  Mr.  Gregory's  children,  and  taught  them  for 
two  or  three  years.  While  he  was  at  this  business,  in  that 
county,  in  the  vicinity  of  Elizabeth  City,  he  occasionally 
came  over  to  the  town  where  he  formed  the  acquaintance  of 
Jno.  L.  Bailey,  a  practicing  lawyer  on  the  circuit.  The 
acquaintance  ripened  into  an  intimate  friendship,  which 
continued,  without  abatement,  through  life.  Mr.  Bailey, 
afterward  Jud^e  Bailey,  was  a  kind  man,  sympathized 
with  the  struggling,  and  soon  became  acquainted  with  the 
condition  of  young  Kinney,  a  poor  man,  ardent,  ambitious, 
educated,  with  refined  and  noble  instincts,  and  every  inch 
a  man.  The  result  of  the  friendship  was  the  entrance  of 
Kinney  as  a  law  student  of  Bailey.  He  had  left  in  Nor- 
wich a  wife  and  infant  child,  entirely  dependent  upon 


CHARLES    R.    KINNEY.  247 

him,  and  he  continued  his  labors  as  a  schoolmaster  in  the 
family  of  Mr.  Gregory,  while  pursuing  his  law  studies  un- 
der the  tuition  of  Mr.  Bailey.  He  made  proficiency  in 
his  legal  studies,  and  obtained  his  admission  to  the  bar  in 
regular  course.  After  obtaining  his  license  at  the  bar,  he 
discontinued  his  employment  with  Mr.  Gregory  and  re- 
moved to  Elizabeth  City  to  enter  upon  the  business  of  his 
life,  and  to  make  it  his  home  until  he  died.  His  attain- 
ments in  his  profession,  his  superior  natural  gifts,  and  his 
impulsive  and  chivalrous  nature  soon  made  him  conspicu- 
ous in  his  new  home,  and  made  him  friends  and  foes.  To 
his  friends  he  was  most  faithful,  sympathizing,  affection- 
ate, making  himself  part  and  parcel  of  all  their  joys  and 
sorrows  ;  to  his  foes  he  was  dauntless,  unyielding,  firm,  and 
bold  as  a  tiger  with  fresh  blood  upon  his  teeth;  but  his 
heart  was  tender  as  a  child's,  and  melted  at  the  offer  of 
kindness  from  his  bitterest  foe.  . 

Mr.  Kinney  did  not  get  into  practice  rapidly.  In 
infancy  he  fell  from  his  nurse's  arms,  and  his  back  was 
injured  by  the  fall.  This  deformed  him  in  the  back,  below 
the  shoulders,  and  lowered  his  stature  from  about  six  feet 
to  about  five  feet,  nine  inches,  but  it  did  not  impair  his 
activity  or  gracefulness.  He  was  unrivalled  in  feats  of 
activity  and  horsemanship.  He  was  a  member  of  tb.o 
cavalry  company  in  town,  and  none  of  the  members  of  the 
company  were  superior  to  him  in  feats  of  daring  rough 
riding.  This  deformity,  and  perhaps  some  traits  of  inde- 
pendent character,  had  caused  him  to  incur  the  prejudice 
of  some  of  the  young  men  of  the  town  who  proposed  to  be 
the  regulators  of  society  and  to  make  everything  conform 
to  their  ideas  of  taste  and  propriety.  Kinney  was  unwil- 
ling to  accept  their  dictatorship,  and  thought  and  acted  for 
himself,  independently  of  their  social  influence.  This 
wore  on  until  it  amounted  to  positive  and  active  hostility, 
leading  to  crimination  and  recrimination,  newspaper  and 
pamphlet  controversy  and  to  street  encounters,  and  finally 
to  challenges  to  mortal  combat.  Kinney  defied  them  on 
everv  field.  He  was  opposed  to  duelling  from  principle. 


248  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

He  so  proclaimed  it,  and  his  known  opinions  may  have 
made  it  their  chosen  mode  of  redress.  He  was  taunted 
with  his  nativity,  with  his  lineage,  of  which  they  k;iew 
nothing.  He  was  goaded  to  madness.  In  one  of  his  naws- 
paper  controversies,  in  reply  to  the  allusion  to  his  lineage, 
in  a  burst  of  feeling  he  said : 

"My  father  yet  lives,  old  and  venerable.  He  never  had 
the  honor  of  sending  or  accepting  a  challenge.  His  cour- 
age ran  in  a  different  channel.  Ere  he  had  reached  the 
threshold  of  manhood  he  bared  his  bosom  to  the  battle's 
rage  in  the  eventful  struggle  which  separated  the  American 
colonies  from  British  dependence." 

He  accepted  the  challenge,  and  it  was  no  fault  of  his 
that  it  was  bloodless. 

On  the  general  circuit  of  the  Edenton  District,  Mr. 
Kinney  had  so  small  an  appearance  that  for  a  long  time  he 
was  little  known  or  considered.  At  Currituck  where,  in 
later  years,  his  opinion  was  law,  and  he  had  an  appearance 
on  one  side  of  every  important  case  on  the  docket,  it  was 
five  years  that  he  went  to  the  Court  an  unsolicited,  briefless 
barrister,  and  at  the  expiration  of  that  time  a  mere  acci- 
dent gave  him  an  appearance. 

In  the  county  of  Currituck,  in  1828,  an  atrocious  murder 
of  an  old  man  was  committed,  and  from  suspicious  cir- 
cumstances public  sentiment  settled  upon  John  Chittem 
and  his  wife.  They  were  arrested  and  confined  in  the 
common  jail,  and  the  body  of  the  murdered  man  was 
found  in  an  old  well.  Chittem  was  a  wealthy  man,  and 
employed  all  the  bar  to  defend  him,  except  Mr.  Kinney, 
thinking  he  was  not  worth  employing.  Iredell  was  prose- 
cuting attorney  for  the  State.  Before  the  case  came  on 
for  trial,  during-  the  Spring  Term,  Judge  Lowry,  who  was 
presiding,  died  on  the  circuit,  and  Mr.  Iredell  was  ap- 
pointed by  the  Governor  to  fill  his  place.  This  created 
a  vacancy  in  the  office  of  Solicitor.  When  Currituck  Court 
came  on,  Mr.  Kinney  was  the  only  lawyer  unemployed, 
and  the  Judge  ex  necessitate  had  to  appoint  him  to  prose- 
cute. When  the  case  was  called,  from  some  cause,  proba- 


CHARLES    R.     KINNEY.  249 

ably  from  the  recent  appointment  of  the  Solicitor  and  his 
want  of  time  to  examine  the  case,  it  was  continued  to  tho 
next  term  of  the  Court.  There  was  a  formidable  array  of 
counsel  for  the  defense,  headed  by  Isaac  Lamb,  then  a  lead- 
ing attorney  in  that  part  of  the  District.  Kinney,  as  act- 
ing Solicitor,  was  alone  in  the  prosecution.  The  testimony 
was  entirely  circumstantial.  Chittem  had  married  the 
young  widow  of  the  murdered  old  man  soon  after  his  death. 
Other  circumstances,  many,  pointed  to  the  foul  woric  of 
the  old  man's  taking  off.  Kinney  had  ample  time,  and 
had  made  thorough  preparation.  His  speech  was  wri^'.en 
out,  but  not  committed  to  memory.  We  have  seen  it  in 
manuscript.  It  was  the  closing  speech,  but  befora  its 
close  the  case  was  decided.  It  summed  up  the  testimony 
with  terrible  effect,  and  when,  at  the  close  of  the  artistic 
presentation  of  all  the  circumstances  in  phalanx,  he  pointed 
his  long  arm  and  indSx  finger  at  Chittem,  and  with  his 
deep,  sonorous  tones,  said:  "As  Nathan  said  unto  David, 
thou  art  the  man."  The  bosom  of  the  prisoner  heaved  a 
sigh,  and  Isaac  Lamb's  foot  moved  to  and  fro,  his  custom- 
ary signal  of  mental  giving  away.  Chittem  was  convicted 
and  executed  near  Currituck  Court  House. 

We  have  heard  Mr.  Kinney  say  that  that  speech  was 
worth  a  thousand  dollars  to  him  in  an  hour  after  he  left 
the  court-room.  He  was  always  after  employed  in  all 
the  leading  cases  on  the  docket. 

He  rose  about  that  time  to  be  the  leader  on  the  circuit. 
From  Currituck  to  Ty-rrell  and  Hertford  he  was  the  ac- 
knowledged leader,  primus  inter  pares.  His  practice  was 
large  and  his  income  probably  the  largest  from  law  prac- 
tice in  the  District.  But  he  never  valued  money,  and  cared 
little  about  its  accumulation,  squandering  large  sums  upon 
agricultural  experiments,  of  which  he  was  very  fond.  He 
often  said  the  reason  he  did  not  accumulate  money  was 
that  he  knew  not  the  difference  between  six  cents  and  six 
and  a  quarter. 

We  have  often  mentally  enquired  what  were  Mr.  Kin- 
ney's  infirmities,  for  as  the  sparks  fly  upward,  it  is  the 


250  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

common  penalty  of  life.  He  had  fewer  than  most  men. 
He  was  impetuous,  quick,  but  his  heart  was  as  large  as 
humanity.  As  he  truly  said  in  a  memorial  address  upon 
the  death  of  the  lamented  W.  W.  Cherry,  if  he  could  he 
"would  have  wiped  all  tears  from  all  eyes."  In  his  pro- 
fessional practice,  perhaps,  his  fault  was  that  he  was  not 
sufficiently  aroused  to  the  minor  matters  of  the  law.  In  -j 
matter  which  involved  large  property,  or  in  a  matter  in 
which  a  poor  client  was  greatly  wronged,  all  the  energies 
of  his  nature  were  fully  aroused  and  all  his  great  ability 
was  put  forth,  and  upon  such  occasions  we  have  never  seen 
him  equalled.  At  other  times  he  was  a  sleeping  lion.  Ai 
such  times,  to  use  the  vulgar  but  significant  phrase,  he 
was  apt  to  "go  off  half-cocked.77  This  perhaps  was  the 
fault  of  his  professional  life. 

His  voice  was  soft,  variable  and  full  of  sympathy,  capa- 
ble of  expressing  the  deepest  emotions  of  horror,  disgust 
and  denunciation.  When  a  boy  we  happened  in  the  court- 
house when  he  was  defending  a  client  where  the  defend- 
ant^ brother  was  a  witness  for  the  State,  upon  a  charge  of 
larceny.  The  denunciations  of  the  witness  as  a  Ubas3 
betrayer  of  his  brothers  blood,77  and  his  irate  manner, 
still  thrill  us. 

About  1844  his  health  began  to  decline,  and  he  was  often 
compelled  to  be  absent  from  his  courts.  In  1845  he  went 
to  the  Virginia  Springs  and  his  health  was  much  restored. 
He  was  greatly  encouraged.  At  Gates  Court  he  was  in 
fine  spirits,  and  the  accounts  he  gave  of  the  men  he  met 
during  the  summer  were  exceedingly  interesting.  We  went 
up  with  him  to  the  court,  and  he  remarked  if  he  could  go 
every  year  to  the  Greenbriar  Springs  he  could  live  to  three- 
quarters  of  a  century.  From  Gates  Court  he  returned  to 
Elizabeth  City  with  fine  prospects  of  health  and  happi- 
ness. The  next  week  was  Chowan  Court,  at  Edenton.  We 
went  up  in  our  sulkies.  (We  hope  the  kind  reader  will 
pardon  the  egotism  of  this  last  brief  narrative. )  On  Wed- 
nesday of  the  week  Mr.  Kinney  was  engaged  in  the  trial 
of  the  Mesmer-Norcom  case,  a  case  of  intense  interest,  in 


CHARLES   R.    KINNEY.  251 

which  a  whole  community  was  torn  and  terribly  excited 
with  angry  passions.  He  entered  upon  the  trial  with  his 
customary  zeal  and  fearlessness.  We  went  into  the  court- 
house while  the  trial  was  progressing,  after  having  been 
absent  a  short  while.  We  missed  Mr.  Kinney,  and  some 
one  told  us  he  had  a  slight  hemorrhage  in  the  excitement  of 
the  trial.  We  went  out  in  search  of  him,  found  him  in 
the  office  of  Dr.  Norcom,  on  Queen  street,  silent,  wan  and 
greatly  depressed.  He  enquired  when  we  were  going 
down,  said  he  would  go  immediately,  and  requested  us  to 
join  him  on  the  road.  We  hurried  off  to  overtake  him. 
As  we  passed  through  the  town  of  Hertford,  Mr.  Jones 
came  out  from  Dr.  Johnson's  office  and  motioned  us  to 
stop.  Mr.  Kinney,  he  said,  was  in  the  office  in  a  dying 
condition.  We  hurried  to  the  hotel  and  returned  to  the 
office.  As  we  entered  the  ante-room,  Mr.  Jones,  in  silence, 
pointed  to  a  bowl  filled  with  blood.  We  went  into  the  ad- 
joining room  where  lay  our  dying  friend.  He  turned  to 
us  his  dying  eyes  in  recognition  and  gave  us  his  hand.  He 
died  with  his  hand  in  ours,  and  with  the  last  words,  feebly 
uttered,  "I  know  my  fate.  I'm  not  alarmed.  My  wife 
and  children,  that's  all,"  passed  away  without  a  struggle, 
at  the  age  of  fifty-three  years. 


252  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

MRS.    RACHEL   CALDWELL. 
'*  Woman's  wit  is  wiser  than  man's  wisdom." 

DR.  DAVID  CALDWEKL  is  a  conspicuous  figure  in  the  an- 
nals of  North  Carolina.  He  was  the  pioneer  of  education 
in  North  Carolina.  He  antedates  both  Murpheyand  Wiley, 
and  established  a  school  in  Guilford  County  before  the 
war  of  the  Revolution,  that  gave  education  to  many  prom- 
inent professional  men  and  clergymen  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church,  of  which  he  was  a  distinguished  minister. 

His  wife  was  his  "helpmeet  indeed.77  He  was  an  ardent 
patriot  and  Whig  during  the  troublous  times  of  the  Revo- 
lution, and  was  an  object  of  hatred  to  the  Tories  who  lived 
in  his  neighborhood,  and  his  wife  often  rendered  him  and 
the  patriots  assistance  in  times  of  peril  that  made  her 
greatly  beloved  by  her  countrymen  during  and  after  the 
war. 

Several  cases  are  mentioned  of  her  readiness  in  dan- 
gerous emergencies.  Upon  one  occasion,  Dr.  Caldwell, 
who  had  been  in  hiding  in  the  woods  to  escape  capture, 
returned  stealthily  to  his  house,  and  while  there  his  house 
was  suddenly  surrounded  by  armed  men  who  seized  him 
before  he  could  escape,  designing  to  carry  him  to  the 
British  camp.  He  was  put  under  a  guard  of  one  or  two 
men,  while  the  others  searched  the  house  for  plunder. 
When  they  were  nearly  ready  to  depart,  the  plunder  being 
piled  in  the  middle  of  the  room,  the  prisoner  beside  it 
with  his  guard,  Mrs.  Caldwell,  who  was  in  an  adjoining 
room,  came  in,  stepped  behind  Dr.  Caldwell,  leaned  over 
his  shoulder,  and  whispered  to  him  as  if  intending  the 
question  for  his  ear  alone,  asking  if  it  was  not  time  for 
Gillespie  and  his  men  to  be  there.  One  of  the  soldiers 
near  by  caught  the  words,  and  knowing  Gillespie  was  a 
brave  and  dangerous  Patriot  partisan,  demanded  with  ap- 
parent alarm  what  was  meant  by  the  whispered  words. 
Mrs.  Caldwell  replied  that  she  was  merely  speaking  to  her 


MRS.    RACHEL   CAI.DWELL.  253 

brother.  The  party  was  panic  stricken.  Hurried  ques- 
tions were  exchanged  among  them,  and  they  soon  hur- 
riedly fled,  abandoning  their  prisoner  and  the  plunder. 
This  simple  manoeuvre  of  a  thoughtful  woman  produced 
consternation  among  the  enemy,  and  relieved  her  husband 
and  her  property.  That  whisper  drove  them  away. 

In  the  fall  of  1780  a  stranger,  weary  with  long  travel, 
stopped  at  the  house  of  Dr.  Caldwell  and  asked  for  supper 
and  a  night's  lodging.  He  said  that  he  had  stopped  there 
because  Dr!  Caldwell  was  a  clergyman,  and  he  knew  that 
he  was  a  friend  of  his  country.  He  said  he  was  the  bearer 
of  dispatches  from  General  Washington  to  General  Greene 
of  an  important  character.  Mrs.  Caldwell  told  him  of 
his  danger,  that  she  was  alone  and  her  husband  was  an 
object  of  peculiar  hatred  to  the  Tories,  and  it  was  uncer- 
tain when  an  attack  would  be  made  on  the  house.  Should 
they  hear  that  a  messenger  from  Washington  was  in  the 
house  and  had  important  papers,  he  would  be  robbed  before 
morning;  that  he  should  have  something  to  eat  immedi- 
ately, but  advised  him  to  seek  a  safer  place  of  shelter  for 
the  night.  Soon  hoarse  voices  were  heard  outside,  crying 
"Surround  the  house,"  and  a  body  of  Tories  rushed  in. 
Just  before  they  entered  tVio  house,  Mrs.  Caldwell  bade  the 
stranger  follow  her,  and  she  led  him  out  by  a  private  door. 
A  large  locust  tree  stood  outside.  Pointing  to  it,  she  di- 
rected him  to  climb  up  in  its  thick  and  thorny  branches  and 
conceal  himself.  The  night  was  intensely  dark.  She 
directed  him  to  conceal  himself  until  they  commenced  to 
plunder  the  house.  He  could  then  descend  on  the  other 
side  and  make  his  escape.  The  house  was  pillaged,  but 
the  express  messenger  escaped. 

Dr.  Caldwell  and  his  brother  Alexander  had  plantations 
nearby.  One  evening  when  Alexander  was  absent  from 
home,  two  British  soldiers,  marauding  in  the  neighbor- 
hood, came  to  Alexander's  house,  and  after  plundering  it, 
ordered  his  wife  to  get  supper  for  him.  She  hurried  a 
messenger  over  to  her  brother-in-law  to  advise  her.  He 
sent  word  to  treat  them  kindly  and  get  supper  for  them, 


254  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

but  she  must  observe  where  they  placed  their  guns  and  set 
the  table  at  the  other  end  of  the  house.  He  promised  to 
come  over  at  once,  conceal  himself  in  a  haystack  near  by, 
and  she  was  to  inform  him  as  soon  as  the  men  had  set  down 
to  supper.  The  directions  were  followed.  While  the 
men  were  sitting  at  supper,  Dr.  Caldwell  quietly  entered 
the  adjoining  room  in  which  their  guns  had  been  deposited, 
took  up  one  of  the  guns  and  stepping  to  the  door  of  the 
room  where  they  were  enjoying  their  supper,  presented 
the  weapon  and  informed  them  they  were  his  prisoners, 
and  that  their  lives  would  be  the  forfeit  if  they  attempted 
to  escape.  They  surrendered  immediately.  Dr.  Caldwell 
marched  them  before  him  to  his  own  house,  kept  them  till 
morning,  and  then  making  them  take  an  oath  of  parole  on 
the  Holy  Bible,  he  released  them.  The  pledge  was  faith- 
fully kept 

Dr.  Caldwell  lived  until  after  the  war,  continuing  his 
labors  as  a  teacher  and  preacher.  He  died  in  1824,  in 
the  hundredth  year  of  his  age. 


HE    LOVED   EVERYTHING   IN   THE   STATE.  255 

HE    LOVED    EVERYTHING    IN    THE   STATE. 
"Alas !  we  ne'er  shall  see  his  like  again." 

Z.  B.  VANCE  is  the  most  unique  character  that  has  ever 
lived  in*  North  Carolina  history.  In  our  Pantheon  of 
great  characters  he  stands  apart.  His  was  an  all-round, 
well-balanced,  even-poised,  symmetrical,  lovable  character. 
To  say  that  it  was  without  fault,  would  be  to  belie  our 
common  nature.  But  the  faults  of  his  lovely  make-up  were 
like  sun  spots,  scarcely  visible  to  the  naked  eye.  Looking 
down  the  long  vista  of  great  names  and  comparing  them 
with  Vance,  we  find  Gaston  his  superior  as  an  intellectual 
prodigy,  a  profound  statesman,  a  laborious  student,  an 
accomplished  scholar,  an  able  lawyer.  Badger  was  his 
superior  as  an  acute  dialectician,  and  in  the  versatility  of 
his  attainments.  As*a  professional  anecdotist,  but  differ- 
ing in  kind,  Ham  Jones  was  his  equal,  if  not  his  superior. 
Jack  Stanley,  of  New  Bern,  was  his  superior  in  caustic, 
sharp  and  cruel  repartee.  Bartlett  Yancey,  of  Caswell, 
was  his  superior  in  withering  and  fierce  invective.  Wil- 
liam A.  Graham  was  his  superior  in  style  and  courtliness ; 
W.  W.  Cherry,  of  Bertie,  in  ready  wit  and  copious  phrase- 
ology. 

But  in  his  cornucopia  of  varied  and  numerous  gifts, 
Zeb  Vance  was  the  superior  of  them  all.  He  was  "our 
own  Zeb/7  He  was  "our  great  tribune."  He  was  "our 
great  War  Governor."  He  was  our  loved  leader  in  the 
times  that  tried  men's  souls.  He  gave  one  of  his  eyes  to 
his  loved  State,  and  then  congratulated  himself  that  there- 
after he  would  have  an  "eye  single  to  her  service."  His 
head,  his  heart,  his  strength,  his  manhood,  his  love,  were 
given  to  North  Carolina,  with  an  affluence  of  affection 
that  no  other  son  of  hers  had  given.  In  all  the  grand  attri- 
butes of  manhood  he  was  the  equal  of  most  and  the  supe- 
rior of  many. 

He  was  Gaston  without  his  august  dignity;  Badger 
without  his  frivolity ;  Ham  Jones  without  his  infirmity  of 


256  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

habits;  Jack  Stanley  without  his  asperity;  Bartlett  Yan- 
cey  without  his  tempestuous  impetuosity ;  Graham  without 
his  frigid  imperturbability;  Cherry  without  his  diminu- 
tive personality. 

Turning  from  this  glance  at  his  comparative  intellec- 
tual anatomy,  the  enquiry  arises,  What  made  our  great 
Tribune  the  loved  and  honored  character  that  he  was,  so 
loved  and  admired  when  living  and  so  mourned  when  dead  ? 

Why?  Why  is  it  that  he  is  the  Confucius  of  North 
Carolina  mythology  ?  Mainly,  it  was  his  simple,  child- 
like faith  and  love  for  North  Carolina.  Everything  in 
North  Carolina  was  lovely  in  his  eyes  except  its  tincture 
of  Republicanism.  We  can  never  forget  his  denunciation 
of  that  stench  in  his  nostrils  when  he  climaxed  his  phillipic 
by  an  expansive  snort  from  his  great  nasal  organ,  and 
then,  after  a  short  rest,  uttered  the  word — skunk.  It  was 
nasal  oratory  that  "Horatius  might  have  envied  and  Cicero 
not  despised."  There  was  no  demagogery  in  Vance's  lovc- 
for  North  Carolina,  no  pretense,  no  ostentation. 

In  the  many  times  we  have  hung  delighted  on  his  lips, 
we  can  recall  but  one  in  which  he  gave  vent  to  his  State 
love  before  a  popular  audience.  After  telling,  with  tones 
and  simplicity  that  moved  all  hearts,  how  he  loved  the  dear 
old  State,  he  said  he  was  like  an  old  North  Carolina  negro 
who  came  before  a  committee  of  the  Senate,  to  testify  as 
to  the  exodus  of  the  negroes  to  Kansas.  He  said  the  old 
man  looked  old  and  weary,  poor  and  foot-sore.  The  old 
man  described  to  the  Senators  the  beauties  of  Kansas,  its 
roads  and  fields  and  fine  buildings.  He  was  making  his 
way  back  to  North  Carolina.  Senator  Vance  asked  him 
why  he  came  back  to  North  Carolina,  if  Kansas  was  so 
beautiful.  He  answered:  "Well,  I  tell  you,  Marse  Sen- 
ator, things  had  a  onwelcome  look  out  thar,  and  Caliny'g 
old  fields  and  crooked  fences  was  home."  Vance  loved 
North  Carolina  with  an  unfeigned  love.  He  loved  its 
young  men,  its  old  men,  its  old  women,  and  loved  all  the 
children. 

We  can  not  forget  an  incident  at  New  Bern,  at  an  annual 


The  Vance  Monument, 
At  the  Capitol  Grounds,  Raleigh. 


HE    LOVED    EVERYTHING   IN   THE   STATE.          259 

fair.  Vance  was  sitting  in  a  reception-room,  and  his  old 
friends  were  calling  and  shaking  hands  with  him.  We 
were  sitting  near  him,  and  for  an  hour  we  were  interested 
and  amused  by  their  cordial  greetings. 

A  tall,  bony  and  awkward  fellow  came  in,  reached  out 
his  hand,  Vance  grabbed  it,  and  they  shook  and  shook  and 
shook,  and  I  thought  at  one  time  they  would  hug  right 
there  before  me.  It  was  "How  do,  Bob,"  and  "How  du,  Col- 
Min-1,  ''until  my  nerves  trembled  and  we  didn't  knowwhether 
we  were  on  our  head  or  on  our  heels.  In  their  reminis- 
cences there  was  an  allusion  to  Goose  Creek,  which  seemed 
to  tickle  them  both  mightily,  but  which  we  did  not  under- 
stand. After  Bob  left,  Vance  explained  it  to  us. 

( )n  the  retreat  from  Xew  Bern,  they  were  stopped  at 
(loose  Creek,  and  they  had  to  construct  a  raft  to  get  the 
re^iii lent  across.  Bob  concluded  he  could  ford  the  creek, 
and  divesting  himself  •of  his  clothing  placed  them  in  a 
bundle  and  gave  them  to  a  comrade  to  bring  over  to  him 
when  they  came  over  on  the  raft. 

Bob  pitched  in,  got  across  and  waved  his  hand  in  sign 
of  safety.  At  length  his  comrades  came  over  on  the  raft, 
but  Bob's  clothes  could  not  be  found.  When  the  roll  was 
called  Bob  was  there,  ])nris  natural  ibus,  with  his  musket 
on  his  naked  shoulder.  He  marched  that  way  for  several 
miles  before  he  could  cover  his  nakedness. 

This  analysis,  already  too  long,  must  close.  Great  as 
was  our  loved  Governor,  rounded  as  was  his  character,  ver- 
satile as  were  his  gifts,  God  had  much  to  do  with  his 
greatness.  He  drew  before  him  such  opportunities  as  had 
in -\ '»  r  before  been  offered  to  any  Carolinian.  He  was  God's 
<-hosen  vessel  for  them,  and  he  was  equal  to  the  opportunity. 
He  took  them  up  and  rode  into  fame  on  a  chariot  of  fire, 
and  came  out  unscorched.  He  was  a  co-laborer  with 
(iod  in  utilizing  the  opportunity  for  this  rare  workman- 
ship. 


26o 


GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


THE    BUREAU    RULE    IN    1866. 

"  Honey,  ef  you  feelin'  prime 

Never  min'  de  sky; 
Long  ways  ter  de  summer  time, 
But  bright  days  by  en  by." 

WE  HOLD  these  truths  to  be  self-evident.  There  are 
but  two  leading  principles  upon  which  government  can  be 
successfully  administered:  One  is  the  principle  of  love 
and  the  other  is  the  principle  of  fear.  A  government  ad- 
ministered upon  either  of  these  principles  as  its  dominant 
feature  may  be  a  success  and  a  strong  government.  The 
one  based  upon  fear  is  that  typified  by  the  language  of  the 
centurion — go  and  come.  Generally,  but  not  necessarily, 
its  chief  motive  power  is  the  will  of  one  man.  Sometimes 
that  one  will  may  be  aided  by  the  concurrent  and  subser- 
vient will  of  a  council  or  congress,  but  the  one  will  is  the 
dominant  motive  power  of  the  government,  exerted  either 
directly  or  indirectly.  A  government,  or  an  administra- 
tion of  government  of  this  kind  may  be  a  strong  govern- 
ment; it  often  is ;  it  may  be  a  power  upon  the  earth,  com- 
mand respect  abroad  and  promote  the  material  prosperity 
of  the  country  at  home;  but  it  dwarfs  the  governed,  it 
lowers  them  in  the  scale  of  creation,  and  consults  neither 
their  opinion  nor  their  happiness ;  it  is  a  despotism,  or 
leads  directly  thereto,  and  if  not  already  a  recognized 
despotism,  it  rapidly  and  surely  becomes  so.  Of  this  class 
of  government  the  recognized  representatives  are  Russia 
and  Turkey,  both  autocratic  governments  in  which  the 
governed  are 

"  Like  dumb,  driven  cattle.'' 

This  government  in  its  origin  was  the  offspring  of  com- 
promise and  good-will,  formed  by  the  mutual  surrender  of 
individual  interests  to  the  general  welfare.  But  for  that 
generous  surrender  of  separate  interests  in  order  to  pro- 
mote the  general  welfare,  this  government  would  never 


THE    BUREAU    RULE    IN    1 866.  26l 

have  had  an  existence.  But  for  that  spirit  of  compromise 
and  kindness,  North  Carolina  would  never  have  entered 
into  the  compact  of  government,  She  stood  off  for  a  long 
time  before  she  entered  into  a  closer  political  compact 
with  her  sister  States,  and  even  when  she  did  enter  into 
that  compact  and  surrender  certain  of  her  rights,  reserving 
to  herself  those  she  did  not  specially  surrender,  it  was  done 
against  the  advice  of  some  of  her  ablest  and  purest  sons, 
and  against  the  earnest  protest  of  Governor  Samuel  John- 
ston, of  Eden  ton,  who,  when  a  defeated  candidate  before 
the  people,  in  opposition  to  the  adoption  of  the  Constitu- 
tion, went  to  Halifax  while  the  Convention  was  in  session 
and  "lobby 'd"  against  it. 

One  pleasant  evening  in  the  sixties,  sitting  on  the  veran- 
dah inhaling  the  odors  of  lilacs  and  laburnums,  feeling 
quite  at  ease — much  as  Caesar  felt  the  "eve  he  overcame 
the  Nervii" — there  presented  himself  a  worthless  negro 
that  we  had  sent  off  from  the  farm  shortly  before  for — 
well  we  won't  say.  His  air  was  pompous,  self -possessed 
and  somewhat  threatening.  He  bore  in  his  hand  a  paper 
addressed  to  us.  We  examined  critically  the  written 
summons,  in  order,  with  the  little  knowledge  we  had  of 
the  science  of  reading  character  from  handwriting,  to  de- 
termine what  manner  of  man  he  was  before  whom  we 
were  to  appear.  We  could  learn,  from  this  examination, 
but  two  things  about  him.  Unquestionably  he  was  not  a 
lawyer ;  and  as  unquestionably  he  was  not  a  speller. 

Armed  with  this  learning,  and 

"A  little  learning  '  aint '  a  dangerous  thing," 

although  Pope,  the  poet,  says  it  is,  we  proceeded  on  Wed- 
nesday morning,  as  a  law-abiding  man,  to  make  our  prepa- 
ration to  respond  to  the  awful  summons. 

We  drew  from  its  long,  low  rest  a  towering  old  "beaver" 
of  die  vintage  of  1858,  which  had  seen  no  service  during 
the  clash  and  clangor  of  a  four  years7  war.  An  old  suit 
of  seedy  black,  once  the  tegument  of  a  gentleman — alas! 
now  "none  so  poor  to  do  him  reverence" — a  suit  which 


262  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

had  not  suffered  capture  during  the  war,  was  produced 
and  donned.  An  old  bandana  of  antique  size  and  cut, 
which,  in  other  days,  had  seen  other  service,  was  thrown 
gracefully  around  our  war-attenuated  neck.  The  coat  was 
cut  from  the  model  of  the  swallow's  tail;  the  pants  were 
large  and  baggy,  and  the  bandana  cumbrous  and  heavy, 
but  the  beaver  was  the  redeeming  feature — a  towering 
black  beaver,  though  old  and  venerable,  can,  somehow,  defy 
criticism  and  even  ridicule. 

Thus  far  fixed,  we  came  out,  and  it  almost  opened  the 
fountain  of  our  eyes  that  the  little  children  didn't  know 
"their  father  dear." 

We  presented  ourselves  at  the  open  door  of  the  temple  of 
jus — no — wickedness,  and  with  one  of  those  graceful 
sweeps  of  the  right  hand,  while  the  right  foot  was  getting 
into  position,  with  which  we  were  once  wont  to  "charm 
all  hearts,"  we  made  what  the  French  call  un  profond 
reverence — a  low  bow. 

Sam  Baler  was  there  ahead  of  us,  at  his  ease  and  quite 
at  home.  The  Bureau  was  in  position.  We  made  a 
quick  and  rapid  survey  of  his  physiognomy.  Eyes 
small,  set  close  together;  cunning,  rat  type.  Jaws  large, 
spreading — firmness.  Then,  hurriedly  as  we  could, 
we  threw  our  phrenological  eyes  around  his  head  to 
see  if  we  could  find  any  hope  there — perceptive  organs 
small,  no  sense;  secretiveness  large,  do  anything  mean 
and  keep  it  to  himself.  Oh!  what  a  great  big  bump 
just  over  the  top  of  his  ear,  large,  very  large ;  acquisitive- 
ness large;  money — he's  money  on  the  brain.  The  fel- 
low'll  steal.  Our  first  thought  was  to  address  ourself  to 
that  organ,  but  we  had  no  bribe  money,  in  fact,  none  at  all, 
and  we  gave  that  up. 

Having  made  this  rapid  survey,  we  handed  in  our  sum- 
mons, listened  to  Bureau's  statement  of  the  case,  and  pro- 
ceeded to  make  the  opening  speech.  Sam  Boler  replied— 
we  rejoined — Boler  surre  joined,  and  then  we  butted.  We 
come  with  a  rebutter  and  he  paid  us  back  with  a  surre- 
butter. 


THE    BUREAU    RULE   IN    1 866.  263 

During  the  whole  of  this  trial  of  strength  between  Sam 
and  us,  Bureau  sat  mute  and  unmoved,  with  eyes  fixed  on 
the  combatants,  save  once.  Once  we  put  on,  as  best  we 
could,  a  confidential  "old  fel"  expression  and  made  a  pass 
at  his  organ  of  acquisitiveness  by  saying  "we  were  fully 
able  to  pay  all  costs  and  expenses,  incidental  and  other, 
which  might  arise  out  of  this  trial,"  and  then  Bureau 
smiled — smiled  a  ghastly  smile. 

The  battle  over,  we  awaited  the  decision  which  was  to 
determine  the  rations  for  ten  children  and  three  adults. 
Bureau  cracked  his  finger  joints,  looked  wise,  and  simul- 
taneously with  his  last  crack,  gave  his  decision,  which  to 
us  was  like  a  rifle  cracked  at  our  breast :  Sam  Boler  had 
won  the  day. 

Then  it  was  we  perorated.  We  took  our  old  beaver  in 
our  left  hand — we  reared,  we  pitched,  we  charged,  we  beat 
in  our  old  beaver,  we  •represented  that  "ram  tied  to  a 
gate-post,"  we  talked  about  the  "monumental  principles 
of  eternal  justice,  and  the  inalienable  rights  of  man." 
Bureau  opened  his  mouth  once  and  said :  "I've  heard  that 
talk  before."  We  left  the  court-room  like  Macbeth's  guests, 
without  "minding  the  order  of  our  going." 

We  went  outside  and  blowed  and  cooled  a  little,  then 
went  back  to  the  door  and  when  I  put  my  head  in  the  door, 
Boler  had  changed  his  place.  He  and  Bureau  were  sit- 
ting "cheek-by- jowl."  Bureau  had  a  pencil  in  his  hand, 
and  I  think  they  were  doing  a  sum  in  division. 

As  I  was  withdrawing  my  head  I  threw  an  unamiable 
glance  at  Sam  Boler ;  and,  "holy  father !"  would  you  be- 
lieve it,  he  had  his  right  hand  thumb  stuck  on  to  the  end 
of  his  nose,  and  his  left  hand  thumb  hitched  into  his  right 
hand  little  finger  and  waggling  his  fingers  just  like  a 
"poomp  handle,"  and  looking  right  at  us. 


2,64  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


THE    CAPTURE    OF    THE    MAPLE    LEAF. 

"Strike— for  your  altars  and  your  fires! 
Strike  for  the  green  graves  of  your  sires, 
God  !  and  your  native  land  !  "" 

WE  have  sought  information  of  the  Maple  Leaf  from 
many  sources.  We  obtained  much  information  from  Mr. 
Joseph  Wilson,  one  of  our  oldest  and  most  esteemed 
citizens,  who  fed  the  Confederate  captors  of  the  Ma- 
ple Leaf  in  the  swamps  of  Currituck  when  they  were 
pursued  by  Federal  cavalry;  from  -Mrs.  Henrietta 
Walker,  a  resident  of  Currituck  County,  a  venerable 
and  veritable  book  of  chronicles  of  the  war,  whose 
husband,  now  dead,  'carried  the  captors  across  Cur- 
rituck Sound,  and  took  care  of  them  in  the  Curri- 
tuck swamps,  and  more  recently  from  a  communication 
by  Ed.  McHarney,  who,  when  a  boy  of  17,  with  his 
brother  and  a  companion,  conveyed  some  of  the  Confede- 
rate captors  in  their  boat  to  Yeopim  Creek  in  Perquim- 
ans  County,  and  thence  piloted  them  across  Chowan  river 
into  the  Confederate  lines. 

A  few  days  ago  we  were  were  looking  over  the  contents 
of  a  recent  publication — "The  Camp  Fires  of  the  Con- 
federacy"— when  we  came  across  an  article  headed 
"Capture  of  the  Maple  Leaf,"  written  by  Captain  A.  E. 
Asbury,  of  Higginjsville,  Missouri,  who  seems  to  have  been 
one  of  the  captors  of  the  Maple  Leaf.  He  says  that  he 
with  twenty-five  other  Confederates  were  confined  by  Ben. 
Butler  in  Fort  Xorfolk,  in  a  small  room,  on  half-rations, 
half  cooked  and  under  great  suffering.  There  were  26 
of  them  in  a  room  12  by  30  which  was  used  as  cook-room, 
closet,  hospital,  bed-room  and  exercise.  While  panting 
there  in  this  "Dark  Hole  of  Calcutta"  there  came  a  Fed- 
eral Government  transport  ship — the  "Maple  Leaf' '- 
bound  for  Fort  Delaware  with  75  Confederate  officers, 
prisoners  of  war.  Captain  Asbury,  with  his  25  half- 
starved  comrades,  was  r>ut  on  board  the  transport  for  the 
same  fort  on  the  13th  day  of  June,  1863.  Among  the 


CAPTURE   OF   THE    MAPLE    LEAF.  265 

prisoners  were  Col.  A.  K.  Witt,  of  an  Arkansas  Regiment, 
and  Lieutenant  Scmmes.  They  were  cordially  received 
by  the  prisoners,  and  at  once  passed  out  to  sea  by  Fortress 
Monroe.  The  one  hundred  Confederate  prisoners  were 
guarded  by  about  twenty  United  States  soldiers.  The 
prisoners  were  allowed  free  intercourse,  being  unarmed. 
They  plotted  to  seize  the  vessel  at  the  tap  of  the  great  bell 
at  twilight.  At  the  signal  agreed  on,  every  man,  from  his 
station,  pounced  upon  his  man,  armed  and  unarmed,  and 
a  desperate  struggle  for  supremacy  ensued,  man  to  man, 
arm  to  arm,  breast  to  breast.  "Freedom  or  death"  was  the 
slogan.  The  Federal  guard  was  overpowered,  and  their 
arms  taken.  The  Confederates  armed  themselves  with 
the  guns,  sabers  and  pistols  of  the  guards.  Two  Con-fed- 
erate officers  broke  into  the  cabin  where  was  the  com- 
mander and  commanded  him  to  surrender.  He  drew  his 
sword  to  defend  himseif.  The  Confederates  warned  him 
of  the  danger  of  resistance  as  the  boat  was  in  their  posses- 
sion. He  gave  up  his  sword.  It  was  the  work  of  about 
three  minutes,  and  the  Maple  Leaf  was  under  Confed- 
erate command.  No  life  had  been  taken  and  no  gun  had 
been  fired.  The  gray  uniform  supplanted  the  blue.  Colo- 
nel Witt  took  command.  A  council  was  held  and  it  was 
determined  to  empty  and  burn  the  vessel.  But  later,  on 
account  of  the  sick  and  disabled  Confederates  on  board,  it 
was  determined  to  head  her  for  the  nearest  beach.  The 
Federal  officers  were  parolled  and  sworn  to  proceed  to  Fort 
Delaware  and  give  no  notice  of  the  capture.  They  also 
agreed  to  take  care  of  the  Confederate  sick  on  board.  A 
f«-\v  Confederates  stood  guard  over  the  Federal  officers 
until  the  last  Confederate  was  landed  on  the  beach  of  the 
Currituck  coast,near  the  Virginia  and  Carolina  line,having 
taken  with  them  all  the  arms  and  ammunition.  Then  with 
a  yell  and  salute  they  surrendered  the  Maple  Leaf.  She 
headed  for  Fort  Delaware,  but  soon  turned  back  for  Fort- 
ress Monroe,  and  before  the  next  day  the  Federal  Cavalry 
were  scouring  the  Currituck  swamps  in  search  of  the  cap- 
tors of  the  Maple  Leaf. 


266  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


HUMORS   OF    THE    MAPLE    LEAF. 

Why  should  a  man  whose  blood  is  warm  within 
Sit  like  his  grandsire.  cut  in  alabaster? 

— Hamlet. 

IT  is  SAID  that  there  is  a  silver  lining  to  all  the  dark  and 
dismal  clouds  of  life.  We  think  it  was  Kochefocault  (its 
spelt  somewhat  that  way),  the  French  epigrainatist,  who 
said  that  in  the  greatest  misfortunes  of  our  friends  there 
was  always  something  to  comfort  us.  It  is  so  in  the  Cur- 
rituck  episode  of  the  "Maple  Leaf."  Since  we  struck 
this  neglected  "pocket"  in  the  mine  of  Confederate  wav 
history,  we  find  that  every  old  man  has  some  bit  of  remin- 
iscence of  this  brilliant  achievement  in  the  annals  of  the 
war.  But  we  are  the  first  that  put  it  in  the  custody  of 
cold,  unsmiling  type.  And  we  were  first  drawn  to  it  as 
a  feather  in  the  Albemarle's  cap  of  war. 

The  High  Sheriff  of  Camden  County  was  a  "Swamp 
Fox"  when  the  captors  of  the  Maple  Leaf  were  scouting 
about  in  hiding  in  the  swamps  of  Currituck  and  Camden. 
Most  of  his  time  he  was  hunting  a  buffaloe  bull  known  as 
Pete  Burgess.  While  our  "Swamp  Fox"  was  scouring 
the  Camden  swamps,  he  fell  in  with  the  Maple  Leaf  Con- 
federate captors,  and  was  introduced  to  Captain  Semii's, 
who  was  commanding  a  squad  of  the  captors.  Captain 
Semms  taught  the  Sheriff  some  new  tricks  in  guerilla  war- 
fare. He  trained  him  in  the  back-step  drill.  This  w;is 
to  deceive  the  enemy  by  walking  backward  into  a  swamp, 
so  it  looked  like  walking  out  of  it.  The  Sheriff  dodged 
Pete  that  way,  when  not  pursuing  him. 

Milt.  Snowden,  then  a  boy,  now  one  of  our  oldest  and 
most  esteemed  citizens,  toted  victuals  to  the  Maple  Leaf 
Confederates  in  the  swamps  of  Currituck  when  they  were 
dodging  the  Yankee  cavalry.  He  thinks  now,  as  he 
thought  then,  that  the  Yankee  cavalry  did  not  really  want 
to  find  the  Confederate  officers,  because  they  would  have 
had  bloody  work  when  they  found  them. 

Old  man  Abe  Baum,  of  Currituck,  with  his  long  goosing- 


HUMORS  OF  THE  MAPLE  LEAF.        267 

ing-gun  ''Old  Betsy/'  took  one  of  the  yankee  cavalry  a  pris- 
oner during  the  Maple  Leaf  affair.  He  took  him  in  the 
evening,  disarmed  him  at  the  point  of  "Old  Betsy/'  kept 
him  all  night,  slept  with  the  Yankee  in  his  arms  for  secu- 
rity all  night,  and  next  day  took  him  across  into  the  Con- 
federate lines  by  a  grape-vine  route,  delivered  him  into 
the  hands  of  the  Confederate  authorities  and  returned  next 
day  to  pick  up  another  Yankee  by  the  aid  of  "Betsy." 

Dr.  Mclntosh  was  an  old  Doctor  of  Medicine,  then  liv- 
ing in  Currituck.  He  lived  near  the  public  road.  He 
was  a  good  doctor,  used  to  the  technicalities  of  the  learned 
profession,  and  called  little  things  by  big  names.  For  in- 
stance, our  old  fashion  abdominal  ache,  he  would  call  "ab- 
dominal epigastritis,"  or  something  like.  Long  habit  had 
given  him  a  linguistic  vocabulary  that  was  astounding,  and 
he  used  it  in  his  ordinary  conversation.  He  was  standing 
at  his  gate  looking  both  ways  for  the  Yankee  cavalry. 
They  came  up  on  his  back,  without  his  hearing  them,  as  he 
was  quite  deaf.  %'Seen  any  of  them  dam  Rebels,  ole  man  ?" 
"No,"  said  the  Doctor.  "Which  is  the  way  to  Moyock  ?'' 
said  they.  "Well,"  said  the  Doctor,  "you  pursue  your 
circumambient  way,  and  when  you  get  where  the  roads 
bifurcate,  take  the  rectangular  and  perhaps  you  nrn^ 
find  it." 


268  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


WILLIAM    S.    ASHE. 

What  a  piece  of  work  is  man!  how  infinite  in  faculty:  in  form 
and  moving  how  express  and  admirable. 

-  Hamlet. 

WHEN  William  8.  Aslie  died  the  discriminating  editor 
of  the  Wilmington  Journal  wrote:  "Taking  him  all  in  all, 
we  shall  seldom  look  upon  his  like  again ;  nor  can  this  com- 
munity and  the  State  at  large  soon  cease  to  mourn  the  loss 
of  the  noble,  generous,  big-hearted  gentleman,  the  ardent 
patriot  and  the  useful  citizen." 

And  certainly  no  man  was  ever  more  sincerely  mourned 
by  the  people  of  the  southeastern  counties  than  "Bill 
Ashe,"  as  the  people  called  him,  for  no  other  was  so  be- 
loved in  the  homes  of  the  humble  as  well  as  in  the  man- 
sions of  the  rich. 

After  the  war,  the  venerable  General  Holmes  said  he 
lamented  Mr.  Ashe's  death  the  more  because  had  he  lived 
he  could  have  done  so  much  more  than  any  other  man  to 
lead  the  people  of  that  section  to  an  acceptance  of  the  hard 
condition  of  defeat  and  disaster  and  to  bear  the  ills  that 
had  overtaken  them  with  resolution  and  fortitude. 

Springing  from  his  stock,  he  naturally  concerned  him- 
self about  public  matters  and  moved  on  a  high  plane  of 
action.  As  soon  as  he  had  received  his  license  to  practice 
law,  just  twenty-one,  his  party  friends  manifested  their 
interest  in  him  by  electing  him  County  Solicitor  in  four 
different  counties ;  but  he  soon  found  a  professional  life 
was  too  exacting  for  his  social  nature.  He  preferred  rice 
planting,  and  the  deer  hunt.  But  he  read  much,  thought 
more,  and  was  a  profound  student  of  political  questions. 

He  sometimes  represented  New  Hanover  County  in  the 
Assembly,  and  in  1848  was  elected  to  Congress  and  to  the 
State  Senate  at  the  same  election.  Although  a  strong  party 
man  he  was  a  progressive  statesman,  and  favored  all 
measures  that  tended  to  the  advancement  of  the  State  or 
the  people. 


WILLIAM    S.    ASHE.  269 

At  a  time  when  others  shrank  from  such  a  great  mead 
ure,  he  drew  and  introduced  the  bill  to  charter  the  North 
Carolina  Railroad,  appropriating  two  millions  of  dollars 
for  that  work. 

Taking  his  seat  in  Congress  he  at  once  became  a  mem- 
ber of  influence,  and  indeed  few  men  knew  so  well  how  to- 
rn anage  other  men. 

Wishing  to  improve  the  Cape  Fear  River,  he  introduced 
a  bill  making  an  appropriation  for  that  purpose.  His 
party  was  in  the  majority  in  the  House,  but  they  were  all 
opposed  on  principle  to  such  appropriations.  He  pre- 
vailed on  most  of  them  to  leave  the  Chamber  and  let  the 
Whigs  pass  his  bill.  But  when  the  vote  was  taken  there 
was  not  a  quonim ;  so  he  had  to  call  in  some  more  Demo- 
crats— to  vote  against  the  bill — to  get  a  quorum  for  its 
passage. 

His  habit  throughout  his  life  was  to  retire  at  9  o'clock, 
and  to  rise  at  4. 

He  attended  to  his  correspondence  and  arranged  the  de- 
tails of  his  business  for  the  day  before  breakfast.  While 
others  were  taking  their  naps  he  was  hard  at  work.  He 
thus  had  a  large  part  of  the  day  at  his  own  disposal,  and 
had  ample  time  to  indulge  in  courtesies  and  pleasant  inter- 
course so  agreeable  to  him  and  so  necessary  if  one  proposes 
to  wield  a  personal  influence. 

Few  men  ingratiated  themselves  more  than  he  into  the 
hearty  good-will  of  his  associates — whether  of  his  party 
fa i ih,  or  otherwise.  Even  such  Abolitionists  as  Garrei 
Smith  had  a  warm  spot  in  their  hearts  for  him.  He  de- 
tested duplicity.  Once  when  Dr.  Shaw  was  being  op- 
posed for  Congress  by  Hon.  W.  N.  H.  Smith,  Ashe  went 
to  see  President  Buchanan  and  told  him  that  there  was  a 
report  that  he  (Buchanan)  had  written  a  certain  letter 
about  Kansas-Nebraska  affairs  that  was  damaging  Dr. 
Shaw,  and  if  he  could  deny  that,  Dr.  Shaw  could  be 
elected.  The  President  told  him  to  deny  it.  It  turned 
out  that  Mr.  Buchanan  had  written  a  letter  similar  to  that 
alleged ;  and  Mr.  Ashe  after  that  always  refused  to  go- 


270  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

into  Mr.  Buchanan's  presence.  He  therefore  did  not  at- 
tend at  Chapel  Hill  when  Old  Buck  and  Jake  Thompson 
and  all  the  other  Democratic  brethren  were  there. 

After  six  years  in  Congress,  he  became  President  of 
the  Wilmington  and  Weldon  Railroad,  and  under  his  ad- 
ministration that  road  became  prosperous  and  paid  good 
dividends. 

In  its  interests  he  went  to  England  and  made  a  vrry 
advantageous  arrangement  in  regard  to  its  bonded  debt. 
He  addressed  himself  particularly  to  relieving  travel  of  its 
tedium,  and  he  built  up  a  large  Florida  travel.  He  also 
established  regular  steamboat  connection  between  his  road 
at  Wilmington  and  New  York ;  and  when  the  North  Caro- 
lina Railroad  was  finished,  he  arranged  with  Colonel 
Fisher,  its  President,  to  run  through  trains  from  Char- 
lotte to  Wilmington.  Thus  in  1858  he  gave  practical 
effect  to  the  measure  he  had  introduced  ten  years  before 
to  haul  the  freights  of  Western  Carolina  to  the  sea  and 
send  them  to  the  world  from  a  North  Carolina  port. 

In  railroad  circles  he  took  rank  as  the  best  railroad  presi- 
dent at  the  South ;  and  when  the  war  broke  out  President 
Davis  asked  him  to  take  charge  of  all  Government  trans- 
portation from  east  of  the  Mississippi  to  Virginia.  This 
service,  requiring  such  high  administrative  talent,  he  ren- 
dered for  a  year  with  signal  ability ;  but  as  his  great  desire 
was  to  be  in  the  field,  in  the  summer  of  1862  the  President 
authorized  him  to  raise  a  legion  of  infantry,  artillery  and 
cavalry,  to  be  commanded  by  himself.  But  he  soon  met 
an  untimely  death  by  an  accident.  He  with  some  others 
had  started  some  salt-works  at  Wrightsville  Sound.  Re- 
turning from  them  one  evening  in  September,  1862,  he 
received  information  that  one  of  his  sons — with  Jackson'* 
corps — had  been  taken  prisoner.  The  other  was  also  in 
Lee's  army  in  Maryland.  Much  concerned,  he  procured 
a  hand-car  to  hasten  home — some  fifteen  miles  distant. 
On  the  way,  after  dark,  a  train  without  a  headlight  ran 
into  the  hand-car,  and  so  wounded  him  that  he  expired 
after  three  days  of  suffering. 


THE   CHARGE    AT   GETTYSBURG.  2J1 

THE   CHARGE    AT   GETTYSBURG. 
'  O,  fiction,  where  is  thy  blush." 

IF  WEITTKN  history  be  a  fable,  as  Napoleon,  the  great 
maker  of  history,  said;  if  Thermopylie,  one  of  history's 
great  landmarks  in  the  mists  of  time  be  but  a  fable  born 
in  a  poet's  fancy  to  illustrate  his  dream  of  self -sacrificing 
heroism ;  if  Gettysburg,  yet  fresh  in  living  memory,  be 
but  a  fictitious  narrative  to  build  up  local  reputation  and 
give  to  one  what  is  the  property  of  another  and  to  blow 
the  bubble  reputation  away  from  the  cannon's  mouth,  then 
the  muse  of  history  must  change  her  garb  of  solemn  black 
and  be  arrayed  as  a  wanton,  reckless  of  truth. 

The  earliest  record  that  we  remember  of  the  pivotal  bat- 
tle of  Gettysburg  by  a  Southern  writer  is  the  narrative  of 
K-ti-n  <  'ooke,  author  of  ''Surry  of  Eagle's  -Nest,"  in  his 
Life  of  Gen.  R.  E.  Lee.  Mr.  Cooke  is  a  dramatic  writer, 
fluent  and  florescent,  but  his  style  is  that  of  a  novelist 
rather  than  a  historian.  He  soars  on  eagles'  wings  with 
gorgeous  plumage.  History  wears  the  solemn  garb  of 
tfut.h,  which  is  its  pole-star. 

( V>ke  follows  a  chronicler  of  the  war  who  is  notoriously 
untrue,  and  who  cut  his  cloth  to  suit  the  Virginia  measure- 
ment— the  notorious  Pollard  of  the  Richmond  Enquirer. 

Colonel  Walter  Taylor  follows  Cooke,  and  this  array  of 
partial  historians  has  given  such  plausibility  to  error  that 
truth  is  much  puzzled  in  their  pursuit. 

I  nit  truth  is  a  mighty  combatant  and  will  ultimately  tri- 
umph over  error  in  an  open  field  and  a  fair  fight. 

Pickett  was  a  grand  man,  and  needs  not  the  tawdry 
tinsel  of  fiction  to  gild  the  immortal  wreath  of  glory  that 
crowns  ln's  gallant  brow,  and  would  scorn  the  attempt  to 
snatch  a  leaf  from  the  heroes  who  fought  by  his  side  and 
suffered  more  than  lie  in  that  fatal  charge.  Pickett  did 
all  that  man  could  do  in  that  bloody  charge.  And  so  did 
the  heroic  IVttigrew.  Pettigrew  suffered  more  because 
his  was  the  laboring  oar  in  the  assignment  of  duty.  Pickett 
commanded  fresh  troops.  Pettigrew  commanded  troops 


272  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

that  had  borne  the  brunt  of  the  second  day's  fight.  Pet- 
tigrew  was  himself  wounded  on  that  second  day.  In  the 
lengthening  line  of  battle  Pickett' s  position  was  half  a 
mile  nearer  the  Federal  fortifications  on  Cemetery  Ridge 
than  Pettigrew's,  and  he  was  there  because  his  troops  were 
fresh,  and  had  he  succeeded  in  his  charge  the  victory  would 
have  been  won.  But  as  it  was,  he  was  beaten  before  Petti- 
grew  reached  his  point  of  attack,  and  when  Pettigrew  had 
stormed  the  Federal  breastworks  and  was  driving  the 
artillery  from  their  guns,  Pickett  had  surrendered  some 
of  his  regiments  and  was  compelled  to  retreat  in  disorder. 
Could  Pickett  have  held  his  ground  over  theFederal  breast- 
works for  a  half  hour  longer,  Pettigrew  would  have  won 
the  day,  and  Gettysburg  would  have  still  been  one  of  the 
great  pivotal  battles  of  the  world,  and  an  adjustment  of 
fraternal  strife  would  have  been  made  in  thirty  days. 

But  as  it  was,  Pickett's  failure  was  in  fact  the  beginning 
of  the  end.  His  retreat  left  Pettigrew's  flank  exposed  to 
the  fire  of  troops  flushed  with  victory,  and  he  was  com- 
pelled to  follow  the  example  of  Pickett  when  victory  was 
smiling  on  him,  with  a  loss  of  officers  and  men  unparal- 
lelled  in  human  warfare. 

This  is  our  plain  tale  of  Gettysburg,  and  the  early 
chroniclers  of  its  dramatic  history  have  invested  it  with  a 
halo  of  fiction  that  truth  must  ultimately  dispel. 


MRS.    WILLIK  JONES.  273 


MRS.    WILLIE    JONES. 

"  God  shares  the  gifts  of  head  and  heart, 
And  crowns  blest  woman  with  a  hero's  part." 

WILLIE  JONES,  of  Halifax,  was  a  conspicuous  Whig 
Patriot  of  the  Revolution.  He  was  a  prominent  member 
of  all  the  Conventions  of  North  Carolina  during  the  Revo- 
lutionary period,  and  in  all  the  debates  of  those  Conven- 
tions he  was  the  great  tribune  of  the  people  and  watched 
their  interests. 

His  wife  was  a  woman  of  great  refinement,  vivacity  and 
beauty,  an  active  advocate  of  the  Patriot  cause,  and  on  ail 
proper  occasions  asserted  her  convictions. 

The  society  of  Halifax  was  the  most  cultured  in  the 
Colony  and  distinguished  for  its  wealth  and  influence. 
It  was  also  a  political  Centre.  Its  leading  citizens  were 
gentlemen  of  eminence  in  social,  civil  and  professional 
life.  Although  political  feeling  ran  high  there  was  a 
pleasant  social  intercourse  between  all  shades  of  political 
opinion,  and  sometimes  it  extended  to  the  officers  of  the 
British  army  who  were  in  occupancy  of  the  town,  or  were 
there  on  parol. 

The  family  of  Willie  Jones  were  society  people,  his 
daughters  were  pretty  and  attractive,  and  the  asperities  of 
war  were  softened  by  the  amenities  of  social  festivity.  This 
was  peculiarly  the  case  in  the  society  of  Halifax.  Some 
of  the  officers  in  the  British  army  had  lived  in  Halifax 
prior  to  the  war,  had  espoused  the  Royal  cause,  were  popu- 
lar in  their  old  home,  and  still,  to  some  extent,  maintained 
their  old  relations  with  their  old  townspeopla  This  had 
the  effect  to  narrow  the  bloody  chasm  and  introduce  a 
more  tolerant  social  feeling  than  in  some  other  parts  of  the 
Colony. 

In  this  way  the  adherents  of  royalty  and  the  Patriots 

were  occasionally  brought  in  social  contact.     On  one  of 

these  occasions,  at  the  hospitable  home  of  Willie  Jones, 

the  celebrated  British  officer  Tarleton  and  Mrs.  Jones  were 

18 


274  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

in  pleasant  conversation  relating  to  the  war,  and  in  the 
course  of  conversation  it  fell  into  a  strain  of  playful  badi- 
nage. 

Col.  William  Washington  was  a  Whig  Patriot  that  Mrs. 
Jones  greatly  admired  and  she  spoke  of  him  in  conversa- 
tion with  Tarleton  in  high  terms.  Tarleton  had  received 
a  sabre  wound  from  Colonel  Washington,  in  his  arm,  when 
he  was  on  the  retreat  from  the  battle  of  the  Cowpens  in 
South  Carolina,  and  he  was  disabled  from  it  at  that  time. 
He  said,  in  conversation  with  Mrs.  Jones  that  he  would 
like  to  see  Colonel  Washington,  that  he  had  heard  him 
spoken  of  as  a  little  diminutive  fellow.  Mrs.  Jones  re- 
plied quickly :  "You  mi^ht  have  seen  him,  Colonel,  if  you 
had  looked  over  your  shoulder  at  the  battle  of  the  Cow- 
pens."  Tarleton  bore  the  retort  with  calm  politeness  ancl 
silence.  When  the  conversation  was  resumed,  it  turned 
again  upon  Colonel  Washington.  Tarleton  said  sneer- 
ingly  that  Colonel  Washington  was  an  ignorant  fellow  and 
could  not  write  his  name.  Mrs.  Jones  replied,  at  once* 
"Colonel  Washington  can  at  least  make  his  mark,  as  your 
arm  shows."  Tarleton  withdrew. 

Mrs,  Willie  Jones  was  the  daughter  of  Colonel  Mont- 
fort,  and  was  a  fit  companion  of  her  illustrious  husband. 
It  was  our  good  fortune,  when  a  boy  to  know  well  and  be 
under  the  kind  care  of  two  of  the  daughters  of  Mrs.  Jones 
—Mrs.  Joseph  B.  Littlejohn,  of  Oxford,  and  Mrs.  Burton, 
wife  of  Governor  Hutchins  G.  Burton,  of  Ealeigh.  Both 
of  them  were  models  of  every  womanly  virtue — pious, 
kind,  gentle,  sympathizing 

We  once  heard  that  Willie  Jones,  the  Eevolutionary  Pa- 
triot and  statesman,  became  imbecile  in  his  old  age,  and 
that  his  mental  weakness  was  shown  in  his  anxiety  to  do 
no  harm  to  any  human  creature.  When  he  walked  out  on 
the  ground  he  always  swept  before  him  with  a  broom  lest 
he  might  step  upon  an  ant.  We  have  never  seen  it  con- 
firmed. 

Feminine  heroism  is  a  conspicuous  thread  running 
through  all  war,  especially  those  waged  in  defence  of  home 


RALEIGH.  277 

and  country.  They  were  conspicuous  in  our  war  of  Inde- 
pendence, and  in  the  war  of  1801-1865,  North  Caro- 
lina's daughters  made  sacrifices  and  underwent  suffering 
in  defence  of  their  homes  that  entitle  them  to  the  admira- 
and  everlasting  gratitude  of  their  countrymen. 


RALEIGH. 

O  Raleigh!  noble  namesake  of  a  man  of  fairest  fame. 

— Miss  Curtis. 

A>  A  GENERAL  rule  great  events,  great  nations,  great 
men  have  been  the  fruitage  of  great  tribulations.  They 
have  been  nurtured  to  greatness  by  the  discipline  of 
adversity.  It  is  the  ordering  of  a  wise  but  mysterious 
Providence  that  sturdy  loins  should  be  girded  and  strength- 
ened by  opposition.  According  to  this  theory  of  the  work- 
ings of  Divine  Providence,  Raleigh,  in  the  cycles  of  time  is 
drained  to  be  a  great  city,  the  busy  centre  of  active  trade, 
the  moulder  of  public  sentiment,  the  seat  of  empire,  of  let- 
ters, learning  and  art  and  the  home  of  the  greatest  and 
best  of  men. 

When,  in  the  early  history  of  North  Carolina  it  be- 
< MII  10  necessary  to  establish  a  permanent  seat  of  govern- 
ment for  the  Stale,  a  legislature  of  the  people,  sitting  in 
Tarboro,  requested  the  people  to  instruct  their  delegates 
to  "fix  on  the  place  for  the  unalterable  seat  of  govern- 
ment.'7 At  a  convention  in  Fayetteville  in  J.789  an  at- 
tempt was  made  to  carry  into  effect  the  plan  of  locating 
the  seat  of  government,  but  it  was  lost  by  one  vote.  It 
produced  rivalry  between  the  leading  towns  in  the  State. 
The  western  counties  favored  Fayetteville;  and  Edenton, 
New  Bern  and  Wilmington  had  a  following.  Edenton 
had  been  the  seat  of  government,  New  Bern  had  succeeded 
Edenton  by  diplomacy,  and  sessions  of  the  Assembly  had 
been  held  in  Wilmington  and  Fayetteville.  Among  these 


278  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

contending  aspirants  the  business  of  the  State  was  an  am- 
bulatory government  and  the  papers  of  the  government 
were  moved  about,  sometimes  in  one  place  and  then  to  an- 
other, at  great  trouble,  expense  and  loss.  The  State  was 
miserably  divided  by  contending  factions  and  divergent 
centers  of  trade. 

Finally,  driven  by  necessity,  the  Assembly,  after  angry 
contentions,  appointed  a  committee  to  select  a  permanent 
seat  of  government.  The  committee  regarded  the  matter 
geographically,  and  discarding  the  relative  advantages  of 
trade  they  determined  to  consider  the  public  convenience 
and  to  select  the  seat  of  government  with  reference  to  its 
central  location  and  accessibility. 

After  much  log-rolling  the  site  was  selected  in  Wake 
County.  At  that  period  the  advantages  of  navigation 
were  a  prime  object  of  consideration  and  the  selection  of 
a  place  on  a  navigable  stream  was  greatly  desired.  Strange 
as  it  now  seems,  the  site  of  the  seat  of  government 
was  selected  on  Isaac  Hunter's  farm  in  Wake  County, 
mainly  because  it  was  near  "JSTeuse  River ;  the  seat  of  gov- 
ernment would  be  a  port  of  entry  and  ships  laden  with  for- 
eign goods  could  be  landed  at  her  wharves  and  "jack  tars" 
could  be  seen  swaggering  on  her  streets.  This  idea  capti- 
vated the  sound  counties  on  Albemarle  and  Pamlico  and 
secured  the  present  site  of  Raleigh  as  the  permanent  seat. 
by  a  very  small  majority.  Stranger,  perhaps,  is  the  fact 
that  Hamilton  Fulton,  a  distinguished  Scotch  engineer  in 
the  employment  of  the  State,  some  years  after,  gave  it  as 
his  opinion  that  Raleigh  could  be  connected  directly  with 
the  ocean  by  a  system  of  locks  and  dams. 

In  the  selection  of  the  capital  of  the  State,  the  town  of 
Fayetteville  felt  most  aggrieved.  It  had  a  growing  trade 
with  many  of  the  western  counties  of  the  State.  It  was  at 
the  head  of  navigation  of  the  Cape  Fear  River.  Many  of 
the  most  distinguished  citizens  of  the  western  part  of  the 
State  favored  Fayetteville  and  protested  in  public  meetings 
against  the  selection  of  another  place.  Fayetteville  was 
probably  the  most  progressive  town  in  the  State  and  it  had 


RALEIGH.  279 

received  bounties  from  the  General  Assembly  at  various 
times.  It  was  evidently  at  that  time  the  pet  of  the  State. 

The  next  step  after  the  selection  of  a  site  was  the  inaug- 
uration of  the  new  capital. 

Nine  Commissioners,  representing  the  nine  judicial  dis- 
tricts of  the  State,  were  appointed  to  inaugurate  the  State 
capital  and  $20,000  appropriated  by  the  General  Assem- 
bly to  build  a  "State  House"  to  accommodate  the  public 
business  of  the  State.  This  was  in  March,  1792.  The 
Commissioners  laid  off  the  future  city  of  Raleigh.  It 
was  a  town  of  "magnificent  distances,"  of  unsightly  bram- 
ble bush  and  briars,  of  hills  and  morasses,  of  grand  old 
oaks,  with  no  inhabitants  and  an  "on welcome  look"  to  new- 
comers (to  recall  an  anecdote  of  Governor  Vance).  The 
Assembly  soon  made  the  State  officers  come  to  Raleigh  to 
live,  but  for  some  time  the  Governors  evaded  the  law  and 
wouldn't  come  and  stay  in  the  woods.  But  as  it  grew  and 
i;Tc\v  and  its  social  status  improved,  the  Governor  came, 
and  then  some  prominent  men  from  other  parts  of  the 
State  and  their  families,  and  the  town  of  Neuse  began  to 
hold  up  its  head  with  the  leading  towns  of  the  State. 

But  the  unexpected  oftenest  happens  and  misfortunes 
oft  are  blessings  in  disguise. 

On  the  21st  of  June,  1831,  soon  after  breakfast,  the  citi- 
zens of  Raleigh  were  startled  by  the  cry  of  "Fire !"  Smok-3 
was  seen  issuing  from  the  top  of  the  "State  House,"  it 
was  soon  found  that  the  roof  of  the  building  was  on  fire. 
There  was  no  fire  department  and  the  efforts  to  extinguish 
the  flames  were  unavailing.  There  was  great  destruc- 
tion of  public  property.  The  statue  of  Washington  which 
adorned  the  rotunda  of  the  capitol,  the  chef  d'  ouvre  of 
Canova,  was  crushed  by  the  falling  timbers  and  was  in 
i-ii ins,  the  archives  of  the  government  were,  many  of 
them,  destroyed  and  Raleigh  was  in  mourning. 

Misfortunes,  it  is  said,  come  in  clusters.  'Twas  so 
with  Raleigh.  The  capitol  building  was  destroyed.  A 
nc\\  State  House  had  to  be  built.  If  not  rebuilt  in  Ra- 
leigh that  town,  now  taking  on  the  habiliments  of  eminent 
respectability,  would  lose  its  heritage. 


280  GRANDFATHER'S  TALKS. 

Fayetteville  was  ambitious;  had  a  distinguished  and 
influential  body  of  citizens ;  was  still  the  great  mart  of 
trade  from  western  North  Carolina ;  was  identified  with  it 
by  commercial  and  social  relations,  and  the  antagonist 
sectional  feeling  between  the  eastern  and  western  sections 
of  the  State  had  grown  in  strength  since  its  origin  in  the 
selection  of  Raleigh  as  the  seat  of  government  forty  years 
before.  So  this  was  Fayetteville's  opportunity. 

The  General  Assembly  was  to  meet  in  the  ensuing  win- 
ter, and  it  was  known  that  the  rebuilding  of  the  State 
Capitol  would  be  the  most  prominent  question  for  legisla- 
tive consideration. 

Fayetteville,  at  an  early  day,  had  put  in  nomination  as 
its  borough  representative  Louis  D.  Henry,  its  most  dis- 
tinguished citizen.  Raleigh,  seeing  the  object  of  this 
dangerous  step,  and  fearing  a  combination  of  western 
North  Carolina  with  Fayetteville  to  accomplish  the  re- 
moval of  the  capital  to  Fayetteville,  looked  over  the  State 
to  find  a  member  of  the  Assembly  who  could  meet  Henry 
in  debate.  They  put  themselves  in  communication  with 
William  Gaston.  There  Was  a  vacancy  in  the  borough 
representation  from  New  Bern,  by  the  death  of  the  lately- 
elected  member,  and  they  induced  Mr.  Gaston  to  be  a  can- 
didate for  the  place.  He  was  elected  just  before  the  meet- 
ing of  the  Assembly  by  one  vote.  His  arrival  in  Raleigh 
was  announced  by  the  firing  of  cannon.  He  took  his  seat 
and  the  "appropriation  bill"  for  the  rebuilding  of  the 
capitol  was  introduced  at  an  early  date.  It  was  intro- 
duced in  the  House  of  Commons  by  Wm.  H.  Haywood, 
the  young  member  from  Wake  County.  Gaston  and 
Henry  were  the  acknowledged  champions  of  Raleigh  and 
Fayetteville.  Both  of  them  made  able  speeches  to  a  full 
house  and  a  crowded  gallery.  Gaston  spoke  first,  Henry 
replied  and  Gaston  rejoined.  The  interest  was  intense. 
We  had  the  good  fortune  to  be  present  as  a  boy.  Gaston's 
second  speech  was  the  finest  effort  that  the  parliamentary 
history  of  North  Carolina  affords.  It  saved  the  fate  of 
Raleigh  and  gave  it  its  subsequent  proud  career  as  the 
permanent  capital  of  the  State. 


Confederate  Monument, 
On  Capitol  Square,  Raleigh. 


AMONG   CURRITUCK    DUCKS    AND    DUCKERS.  283 

AMONG    CURRITUCK    DUCKS    AND    DUCKERS. 
Quack!  Quack!  Quack! 

WE  NOW  regard  ourself  as  better  posted  in  all  the  learn- 
ing of  shooting  and  wild  fowl  than  any  man  in  North  Car- 
olina not  a  "native"  ducker  and  "to  the  manor  born."  We 
know  all  about  geese  and  swan,  and  can  tell,  to  a  nicety, 
the  difference  between  a  "Black  Duck"  and  a  "Wigeon," 
between  a  "Wigeon"  and  a  "Sprig  Tail,"  between  a  "Spric; 
Tail"  and  a  "Teal,"  between  a  "Teal"  and  a  "Peter,"  be- 
tween a  "Peter"  and  a  "Mallard,"  between  a  "Mallard" 
and  a  "Eed  Head,"  and  between  a  "Red  Head"  and  a 
"Canvass  Back,"  that  head  of  the  family,  joy  of  the  gour- 
mand and  duck  of  ducks.  Red  heads  and  canvass  backs 
are  the  aristocracy  of  the  family.  They  closely  resemble 
in  appearance  and  in.  taste,  but  the  canvass  back  feeds 
on  the  water  celery,  bears  a  higher  market  price  and  a 
better  name,  and  "names  are  things"  among  ducks  as 
among  men.  All  the  others  are  known  as  "common  ducks.'' 
The  present  season  has  been  a  ducker's  paradise,  and  the 
9th  of  December  was  the  climax  of  his  happiness.  The 
weather  opened  earlv  and  has  been  of  unprecedented  se- 
verity, and  game,  consequently,  has  been  more  abundant 
than  for  many  years.  Sport  and  profit  have  gone  hand 
in  hand.  Dunton  and  Walker,  of  Vanslyck's  Landing, 
are  probably  the  best  shots  and  have  done  the  most  profit- 
able shooting  in  the  "goose  honk  country"  of  Currituck 
Sound.  They  are  young  men,  with  the  healthy,  hearty, 
alert  bearing  that  close  contact  with  nature  in  her  rough 
wildness  always  gives.  Wiley  and  Alma  Midyett,  who 
shoot  together,  had  killed  and  sold  $600  worth  of  wild 
fowl  np  to  last  week  of  the  present  season.  Josephus 
IJjiuin,  who  lives  at  the  headquarters  of  "Currituck  Shoot- 
ing Club,"  killed  on  the  9th  of  December,  120  ducks,  30 
geese  and  3  swan.  This  is  the  best  day's  shooting  of  the 
season.  Josephus  is  a  veteran  among  the  three-scores, 
but  solid  as  a  boat  hook,  and  has  probably  sent  more  ducks 


284  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

to  their  long  account  than  any  man  among  the  living.  Oa 
the  same  day,  John  Dimond,  of  New  York,  a  member  of 
"Currituck  Shooting  Club,"  killed  107  ducks  and  3  geese. 
On  the  same  day,  Newton  Dexter,  of  Providence,  Rhode 
Island,  bagged  26  swan,  25  geese  and  over  50  ducks,  with 
a  10-bore  gun.  On  the  same  day,  Stratton  Berrety,  of 
Rhode  Island,  a  member  of  "Currituck  Shooting  Club," 
and  who  ranks  A  No.  1  in  the  club,  killed  80  ducks  besides 
other  game.  This  is  all  tall  shooting,  but  it's  true  as  it's 
tall.  The  sportsmen,  both  native  and  foreign,  are  well 
provided  with  all  the  appliances  for  success,  and  "Stool 
Ducks"  and  "Batteries"  and  "Breech-Loaders"  and 
"Blinds"  form  part  of  their  equipments.  Those  who  shoct 
from  "batteries"  are  most  successful.  They  shoot  in  pairs. 
One  lays  in  the  battery,  flat  of  his  back,  with  his  "stools1' 
around  him,  and  as  the  wild  fowl  hover  over  the  stools  he 
rises  and  fires  into  them.  His  partner  lays  off  to  wind- 
ward in  a  boat,  and  picks  up  the  dead  game  floating  on 
the  water.  The  battery  fellow,  on  his  back,  has  the  hard 
berth,  but  we  suppose  they  "turn  and  turn  about." 

Formerly  Currituck  Sound  had  only  a  local  habitation 
and  a  name  for  its  game  fowl,  but  the  opening  and  use  of 
the  Albemarle  and  Chesapeake  Canal  has  introduced  it 
to  the  outside  world  and  made  it  a  favorite  resort  of 
amateur  sportsmen,  and  nearly  every  locality  has  now  it? 
"Club."  Many  notabilities  from  abroad,  members  of  the 
various  clubs,  are  familiar  names  to  the  native  sportsman. 
Judge  Tuff,  from  near  Boston,  President  of  "Monkey  Is- 
land Club,"  is  favorably  and  kindly  spoken  of.  Gordon 
Bennet  who  has  recently  been  shooting  at  larger  game,  is 
a  member  of  "Light  House  Club."  He  did  not  make  a 
name  as  a  shot,  in  Currituck,  but  there  lingers  a  memory 
of  his  lavish  use  of  money.  Emory,  of  New  York,  Strat- 
ton Berrety,  of  Long  Island,  and  Jack  Dimond,  all  w6 
believe,  members  of  "Currituck  Shooting  Club,"  are  con- 
sidered the  best  shots  from  abroad.  Lawrence  Jerome,  of 
New  York,  a  member,  we  think,  of  "Crow  Island  Club/' 
is  accorded  the  place  of  the  humorist  and  funny  man  of 


AMONG    CURRITUCK    DUCKS    AND    DUCKHRS.  285 

the  club,  a  position  so  jealous  that  no  other  distinction  is 
ever  attained  by  its  occupant.  Captain  Palmer,  of  Bos- 
ton, is  often  mentioned  by  the  natives  as  a  green  old  vet- 
eran of  75  years,  whose  migrations  to  Currituck  Sound 
were  as  regular  as  the  fowl,  and  who  for  many  years  has 
come  like  a  goose  and  goes  when  they  go.  He  loves  the 
sport,  they  say,  and  shows  a  boy's  enthusiasm  in  its  enjoy- 
ment. 

We  must  not,  however,  further  display  our  learning  in 
the  intricate  and  mysterious  profundities  of  duckology ; 
how  they  come,  when  they  come,  whence  they  come,  the 
differing  notes  of  a  duck's  "quack,"  each  after  his  kind, 
the  different  meaning  of  each  intonation  of  a  goose's 
"honk,"  and  the  long-drawn,  rattling,  crackling  note  of 
the  deep-throated  swan. 


286  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


BATTLE   OF    SAWYER'S    LANE. 

"The  foe  himself  recoiled  aghast, 
When,  striking  where  he  strongest  lay, 
We  swooped  his  flanks  throughout  the  fray, 
And  braving  full  their  murderous  rain, 
We  won  the  day  at  Sawyer's  Lane." 

THE  BATTLE  near  South  Mills,  in  Camden  County, 
N".  C.,  was  fought  on  the  19th  of  April,  1862,  and  was  a 
signal  victory  for  the  Confederates.  The  Federal  forces 
were  commanded  by  General  Reno  and  Colonel  Hawkins. 
They  came  up  from  Roanoke  Island,  which  was  captured 
on  the  8th  of  February,  and  landed  at  Chantilly,  on  lower 
Pasquotank  River,  on  the  night  of  the  17th  of  April. 
Their  landing  at  Chantilly  spread  throughout  the  county, 
and  very  soon  their  destination  for  the  village  of  South 
Mills  in  upper  Camden  became  known. 

On  the  morning  of  the  18th  they  commenced  their 
march  through  Camden  County.  There  were  no  Confed- 
erate troops  in  the  county,  as  the  active  fighting  men  were 
with  the  army  in  Virginia.  The  Federal  army  under 
General  Reno  was  left  to  make  their  march  to  South  Mills 
unmolested. 

A  Georgia  regiment  commanded  by  Colonel  Wright  had 
their  headquarters  at  South  Mills,  but  when  the  news 
came  of  the  invasion  of  the  Federal  troops  they  were  scat 
tered  over  the  country  from  Elizabeth  City  to  South  Mills 
watching  the  movements  of  the  enemy,  who  held  posses- 
sion of  Elizabeth  City  by  gunboats  after  the  bombard- 
ment on  the  8th  of  February.  Colonel  Wright  collected 
them  as  fast  as  he  could,  and  Colonel  Ferebee,  who  was 
at  home,  called  out  the  Camden  militia,  and  they  deter 
mined  to  make  a  stand  at  Sawyer's  Lane  and  make  prepa- 
rations for  an  engagement. 

Meanwhile,  General  Reno  was  marching  leisurely  from 
Chantilly  to  South  Mills,  arresting  some  of  the  most  con- 
spicuous citizens  who  were  in  sympathy  with  their  homes, 
and  establishing  intimacy  and  confidence  with  the  buffa- 
loes who  made  their  headquarters  at  "Old  Trap." 


THE   BATTLE   OF   SAWYER'S    LANE.  287 

They  committed  some  depredations  and  used  the  torch 
to  some  extent. 

An  incident  is  mentioned  in  connection  with  their 
march  through  Camden  which  illustrates  the  fidelity  of  the 
Masonic  tie.  The  order  had  been  given  to  fire  the  house 
of  a  man  who  was  obnoxious  on  account  of  his  Southern 
sympathy.  He  was  allowed  to  remove  his  property  from 
the  house,  and  in  taking  out  the  property  he  was  observed 
to  attach  value  to  an  apron  which  he  was  taking  out.  The 
Federal  officer  enquired  of  him  what  it  was.  He  replied 
that  it  was  a  Masonic  apron  which  belonged  to  him  as  a 
member  of  the  Masonic  Lodge.  The  officer  was  a  Mason, 
and  he  ordered  the  house  to  be  spared  and  the  property 
not  to  be  disturbed. 

When  they  reached  Sawyer's  Lane  on  the  morning  of 
the  19th,  Colonel  Wright,  with  about  500  of  his  regiment 
and  some  of  the  Camden  militia,  were  in  line  on  the  wesc 
side  of  the  Lane.  A  large  ditch  intervened.  Colonel 
Wright  ordered  it  to  be  filled  with  old  rails  and  brush  and 
fired  so  as  to  be  an  obstruction  to  the  Federal  forces.  The 
smoke  of  the  burning  brush  prevented  their  approach  and 
obstructed  the  steadiness  of  their  fire.  Notwithstanding 
this  obstruction,  a  deadly  rifle  engagement  wras  kept  up 
during  the  day.  Towards  evening  there  was  an  arrival  of 
Confederate  troops  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  canal. 
When  they  came  near  they  broke  out  in  a  hideous  yell  that 
so  frightened  and  demoralized  the  Federal  troops  that 
they  were  struck  with  panic  and  commenced  to  fall  back. 
This  increased  the  disorder,  and  soon  the  whole  Northern 
army  was  in  retreat  in  great  disorder.  It  was  a  second 
"Bull  Kun"  before  they  reached  Chantilly,  where  they 
had  landed  two  days  before. 

The  old  citizens  of  Camden  give  graphic  accounts  of 
the  wild  retreat  of  the  Federal  troops  on  their  return  from 
Sawyer's  Lane  to  Chantilly,  in  contrast  with  their  march 
from  Chantilly  to  the  battlefield.  The  march  througa 
Camden  County  was  orderly  and  with  the  pomp  of  as- 
sured victory.  The  return  was  a  "devil-take-the-hind- 


288 


GRANDFATHER  S   TALES. 


most77  retreat.  The  road  was  strewn  with  abandoned  hav- 
ersacks, muskets  and  canteens,  and  when  the  Federal  sol- 
diers stopped  at  the  houses  by  the  wayside  to  beg  a  hasty 
bite  of  something,  they  looked  famished  and  haggard; 
and  while  they  swallowed  their  half -chewed  food  they  kept 
one  eye  on  the  watch  westward,  whence  they  were  fleeing. 
They  would  sometimes  eagerly  ask  if  the  "Rebels"  were 
coming,  and  how  much  farther  it  was  to  Chantilly. 

In  the  engagement  at  Sawyer's  Lane  the  Confederate 
loss  was  three  killed  and  several  wounded.  The  Federal 
loss  was  between  sixty  and  seventy.  Twenty-three  bodies 
were  removed  from  one  pit  in  which  they  were  buried  and 
another  pit  contained  more  bodies. 

The  result  of  the  fight  was  a  complete  rout,  although 
it  is  claimed  by  Federal  reports  that  it  was  a  retreat  in 
good  order.  They  took  some  prisoners  with  them  to  Chan- 
tilly, and  all  the  prisoners  describe  the  retreat  as  a  rout 
and  a  panic. 

The  success  of  the  battle  was  due  to  the  strategy  of 
Col.  A.  M.  Wright,  of  the  Third  Georgia  Regiment,  and 
its  final  disaster  and  panic  was  due  to  a  vigorous  Rebel 
veil  from  the  throats  of  new  recruits. 


COL.    WILLIAM    L.    SAUNDERS.  289 


COL.   WILLIAM    L.   SAUNDERS. 

Full  many  a  flow'r  is  born  to  blush  unseen 

—Gray. 

No  MAN  who  has  lived  in  North  Carolina  has  rendered 
more  faithful  service  or  been  inspired  by  a  more  ardent 
patriotism  than  Col.  William  L.  Saunders.  He  was  a 
loving  son  of  the  State  in  every  fibre  and  tissue  of  his  con- 
st imtion.  He  has  left  a  record  of  his  service  both  with 
pen  and  sword.  He  gave  his  blood  to  North  Carolina  in 
the  defence  of  his  home  when  it  was  invaded  in  the  civil 
strife  which  crimsoned  her  sacred  soil  with  fraternal 
blood ;  and  when  peace  came  and  spread  her  blessed  wings 
over  a  land  that  was  made  desolate  by  the  loss  of  her  sons 
ami  her  treasures,  Colonel  Saunders,  in  impaired  health, 
laid  down  his  sword  anc^  took  up  his  pen,  and  the  work  of 
his  pen  was  of  more  signal  benefit  to  his  State  than  all  her 
marshalled  battalions  on  the  tented  field. 

Xo  man  can  read  "Saunders'  Colonial  Records  and 
Prefatory  Notes"  without  rising  from  its  perusal  a  better 
informed  man  in  the  annals  of  his  country,  and  every 
North  Carolinian  will  feel  prouder  of  his  heritage  of  glory. 
It  is  worth  all  the  histories  of  the  State  that  have  ever 
been  penned  by  its  most  illustrious  sons.  The  "Prefa- 
tory  Notes"  are  a  marvel  of  lucid  historical  style,  accuracy 
and  ability,  written  in  a  plain  and  unostentatious  narra- 
tive. 

Governor  Jarvis  once  told  us  that  "Bill  Saunders"  was 
the  wisest  man  in  North  Carolina,  and  could  give  you  the 
most  sensible  opinion  upon  any  subject  you  might  put  to 
him  of  any  man  he  had  ever  known,  especially  if  you  gave 
him  time  to  whistle  some  snatches  of  an  old  familiar  tune  • 
and  Governor  Jarvis  is  a  shrewd  observer  of  men.  The 
State  of  North  Carolina  is  under  a  debt  of  gratitude  to 
William  Lawrence  Saunders  that  it  can  never  fully  re- 
pay. His  monument  should  stand  by  that  of  Zebulon  B. 


290  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

Vance  in  the  Capitol  grounds  at  Raleigh,  as  a  lesson  of 
virtue,  heroism  and  devotion  to  our  grand  old  mother  State. 

William  L.  Saunders  was  born  in  Raleigh  about  the 
year  1838.  His  parents  were  Rev.  Joseph  H.  Saunders 
and  his  wife  Laura  Baker  Saunders,  both,  the  speci- 
mens of  intellectual  and  moral  manhood.  His  mother 
was  a  gem  of  womanhood,  kind,  affectionate  and  true  to 
every  relation  of  life.  His  maternal  grandfather  was  Dr 
Simmons  J.  Baker,  a  gentleman  of  the  old  school,  a  worthy 
representative  of  the  best  Halifax  blood,  and  the  last  mao 
in  North  Carolina  that  wore  an  old-time  gentleman's  cue. 
The  father  of  Colonel  Saunders  was  a  devout  Christian 
minister  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church.  He  was 
of  sturdy  intellectual  mould  and  his  fondness  for  antiqua- 
rian lore  was  as  conspicuous  in  him  as  in  his  more  distin- 
guished son. 

Raleigh  was  the  home  of  Colonel  Saunders  for  the 
greater  part  of  his  life.  He  entered  the  Confederate  ser- 
vice when  the  State  joined  its  seceding  sisters.  He  soon 
rose  to  the  command  of  a  regiment,  and  his  bravery  was 
conspicuous  in  the  war,  to  its  end. 

After  the  war  he  settled  in  Wilmington.  In  the  troub- 
lous times  of  the  reconstruction  period  he  was  prominent 
in  every  act  for  the  protection  of  the  people  of  the  State. 
There  were  some  irregular  acts  of  retaliation  to  counteract 
the  oppressive  conduct  of  the  "Union  Leagues,"  and  he 
was  suspected  of  complicity  in  those  acts,  was  arrested  and 
arraigned  for  trial  before  a  Congressional  investigating 
committee.  He  was  subjected  to  a  rigid  examination  on 
the  witness  stand  by  that  committee  He  shrank  not  be- 
fore that  severe  ordeal.  When  he  was  examined  as  to  his 
complicity,  and  that  of  his  friends,  he  answered  never  a 
word  to  betray  them  or  criminate  himself.  To  every  in- 
genious device  to  extort  a  confession  from  him,  he  was 
dumb.  In  the  face  of  great  peril  he  maintained  an  obsti- 
nate silence,  and  he  finally  triumphed  over  his  enemies. 
Saunders  was  a  nut  they  could  not  crack. 


WINSTON-SALEM.  29 1 

WINSTON -SALEM. 
"  Like  two  twin  cherries  hanging  on  a  parent  stem." 

TOBACCO  is  so  potent  a  factor  in  the  history  of  plants, 
it  has  had  so  much  to  do  with  the  commerce  of  modern 
civilization,  it  has  been  the  builder  of  such  great  towns, 
and  it  is  so  identified  with  the  early  history  of  North  Caro- 
lina, having  been  first  introduced  to  the  English-speaking 
race,  and  probably  to  the  world,  from  Roanoke  Island, 
and  having  been  first  introduced  to  polite  society  in  the 
Court  circles  of  London  as  a  social  accomplishment  by 
that  grand  sentinel  at  the  gateway  of  our  history,  Sir  Wal- 
ter Raleigh — that  it  has  a  just  claim  to  recognition  in  an/ 
work  relating  to  North  Carolina  annals. 

Amadas  and  Barlowe,  on  their  return  to  England  from 
their  explorations  in  America  in  1584,  brought  to  Sir  Wal- 
ter, as  a  memorial  of  their  ,voyage,  from  the  island  in  Amer- 
ica where  they  landed,  specimens  of  sun-cured  tobacco, 
which  the  aboriginal  race  that  they  had  found,  used  upon 
ceremonial  and  social  occasions  as  symbols  of  peace  an! 
friendship.  They  smoked  tobacco  in  their  calumets  of 
peace,  when  the  arrow  and  battle-axe  were  laid  aside. 

A  little  incident  is  mentioned  of  Sir  Walter,  that  after  he 
had  received  the  tobacco  and  pipe  from  Amadas,  he  went 
into  the  august  presence  of  Queen  Bess  smoking  his  hug1 
calumet,  and  it  does  not  appear  that  he  said — "Is  smoke 
offensive  to  your  Majesty  ?"  As  the  smoke  rolled  in  vol- 
umes from  his  mouth  and  nostrils,  the  Queen  became 
alarmed  for  her  favorite  courtier,  and  seizing  a  bucket 
of  water,  dashed  it  over  him  to  extinguish  the  fire  that 
was  burning  within  him. 

In  Winston-Salem  two  centuries  clasp  hands.  Salem 
is  an  old  Moravian  town,  gray  with  age,  laurel-crowned 
with  its  achievements,  conscious  of  its  dignity,  and  march- 
ing slowly  on  with  measured  steps  in  its  career  of  im- 
provement, altogether  unmindful  of  its  sturdy  young 
brother  who  has  sprung  up  in  a  night  by  its  side,  and  is 


GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

making  giant  strides  beside  it  with  its  coat  off  and  its 
sleeves  rolled  up,  and  heavy  bead-drops  on  its  earnest  brow. 
It  bears  no  moss  on  its  proud  and  lofty  crown,  but  instead, 
it  has  a  pipe  in  its  mouth  and  the  aromatic  tobacco  juice 
stains  its  once  spotless  shirt  front. 

Thus,  in  juxtaposition,  separated  only  by  a  narrow 
street,  these  two  representatives  of  the  present  and  thr- 
past  generations  are  almost  one  in  location,  but  are  widely 
separated  in  manners,  habits,  customs  and  individuality. 
Its  line  of  separation  is  as  distinct  as  the  channel  of  the 
Gulf  Stream.  They  are  under  separate  organizations  of 
government.  One  has  an  eye  turned  askance  at  the  unripe 
tobacco  plant  that  grows  so  lustily  by  its  side,  without  the 
social  crown  of  ancestral  dignity,  and  the  other  an  eye  of 
pity  at  the  decrepit  old  grandsire  that  totters  on  its  staff 
and  can  not  keep  step  with  the  surging  tide  in  the  march 
of  life.  But  there  is  no  clash  of  contending  factions  be- 
tween them.  No  angry  surge  of  rivalry  disturbs  their 
harmony,  but  each  keeps  on  the  tenor  of  its  way,  one  by 
bounds  like  a  giant  to  run  its  course,  the  other  with  the 
dignity  and  slowness  so  becoming  to  nobility  that  is  con- 
scious of  its  lofty  pedestal  and  disdains  to  enter  the  lists 
with  a  stripling  in  shirt-sleeves  and  short  pants. 

But  each  of  these  twin  towns  is  great  in  its  way.  Be- 
fore Winston  was  born,  or  had  cleared  the  briars  out  of 
the  way  for  its  first  rude  settlement,  Salem  was  an  old 
and  progressive  town,  with  its  schools  and  churches  and 
factories,  and  with  its  refined  and  devout  colony  of  steady 
Moravians  who  had  left  their  homes  in  Saxony,  and  found 
among  the  mountains  of  North  Carolina  a  place  of  safety, 
where  they  could  worship  God  according  to  the  dictates 
of  their  own  conscience.  Thev  found  this  asylum  at 
Bethabara,  in  Western  North  Carolina,  six  miles  north 
of  the  present  town  of  Salem.  This  was  about  the  year 
1760.  There  they  pitched  their  tents.  They  were  holy 
men  of  God.  They  had  with  them  their  ministers  in 
holy  things,  who  preserved  their  sacred  tenets.  Here  they 
buried  their  dead,  with  their  uniform  memorial  tablets. 


WINSTON-SAL EM.  29^ 

Here  they  worshipped  God,  first  in  temples  not  built  with 
1 1  MI  ids,  later  in  sanctuaries  consecrated  to  His  service. 
Regarding  education  as  the  handmaid  of  religion,  they  next 
established  a  school  for  girls,  which,  under  the  guidanc-3 
of  Divine  Providence,  has  been  a  gushing  fountain  of 
1)1« •»in«;-  to  generations,  ^renerable  in  age,  it  is  the  Alma 
Mnh'i'  of  a  long  line  of  distinguished  graduates,  who  turn 
to  it  in  love,  veneration  and  gratitude. 

Quid  us  Salmi  is,  it  is  not  asleep.  The  hum  of  indus- 
try is  hoard  on  every  hand,  in  cotton,  woollen,  flour,  iron 
and  water-works.  It  is  lighted  by  electricity,  has  no  sa- 
loons, and  is  sustained  by  a  prosperous  agricultural  back- 
country.  It  is  a  model  of  propriety,  morality  and  virtue. 

Winston  is  the  great  centre  of  the  tobacco  industry  of 
rlio  Tinted  States,  and  claims  to  be  the  most  progressive 
town  in  .North  Carolina.  It  is  a  creature  of  yesterday, 
l)u t  it  has  its  factories  of  various  kinds,  its  big  men,  its 
public  enterprises,  its  associations  of  every  kind,  its  electric 
lights,  its  water-works,  its  institutions  of  learning  and  ed- 
ucation, and  its  grand  public  spirit  and  pride  of  place. 
It  lives  in  an  atmosphere  of  tobacco.  Everybody  smokes, 
everybody  chews,  and  tobacco  is  the  talk  of  the  town.  It 
has  its  tobacco  factories,  its  tobacco  warehouses,  and  its 
tobacco  "breaks." 

We  were  once  in  Winston,  and  attended  a  "tobacco 
break".  It  was  a  new  revelation  to  us.  Immense  crowds 
were  in  attendance;  the  auctioneer  was  stript  to  the  belt 
and  ready  for  the  fray.  It  was  a  new,  wild  scene  to  us. 
\\V  had  been  at  corn-shuckings,  corn-hillings,  oyster  roasts, 
camp-meetings,  revival  meetings,  and  all  sorts  of  convivial 
gatherings,  but  never  before  had  we  seen  such  a  scene.  Lit- 
tle piles  of  gold-leaf  tobacco  were  everywhere  on  the  floor 
and  everybody  was  feeling  and  smelling  of  them.  The  auc- 
tioneer was  going  rapidly  from  place  to  place,  a  large 
crowd  following  him  and  eagerly  bidding.  We  were  pass- 
ing about  with  the  madding  crowd,  accompanied  by  our 
friend  and  press-brother,  John  D.  Cameron,  a  citizen  of 
Asheville,  a  lover  of  tobacco  and  familiar  with  all  the 


294 


GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


ways  of  the  tobacco  trade.  He  was  smelling  and  feeling, 
and  we,  to  be  in  fashion,  were  feeling  and  smelling.  He 
was  descanting  to  us  of  the  value  of  a  certain  brand,  feel- 
ing as  he  talked.  We  reached  out  our  gloved  hand  to  ma- 
nipulate the  soft  leaf. 

You  have  probably,  when  a  boy,  put  a  live  coal  of  fire 
on  the  back  of  a  big  tomato  worm  to  enjoy  his  squirms 
and  wriggles  in  the  death  agony.  Cameron  was  like  that 
worm..  With  an  exclamation  of  horror,  he  drew  around 
us  a  crowd  of  spectators  to  see  a  man  who  had  the  hardi- 
hood to  handle  a  leaf  of  tobacco  with  a  gloved  hand !  And 
they  gazed  at  us  as  they  would  at  a  cannibal  savage  from 
Timbuctoo.  We  loved  old  Cameron  thenj  and  treasure  his 
memory  now,  but  we  always  thought  he  never  thought  so 
well  of  us  after  committing  the  unpardonable  sin  of  hand- 
ling a  tobacco  leaf  with  a  kid-gloved  hand  I 


THE    INVASION    OF   THE   CARPET-BAGGER.          295 

THE    INVASION    OF   THE    CARPET-BAGGER. 
"  The  Goths  overran  Rome." 

To  MANY  persons  it  may  be  an  incomprehensible  mys- 
tery how  the  State  of  North  Carolina,  with  more  than  a 
million  of  people  within  its  bounds,  many  of  them  dis- 
tinguished by  eminent  statesmanship,  ability  and  patriot- 
ism, by  great  sagacity,  forecast  and  influence  over  opin- 
ions, and  a  strong  hold  upon  the  affections  and  confidence 
of  the  people — how  the  State  of  North  Carolina,  thus  for- 
tified, and  with  the  ballot  in  her  hands,  could  have  been 
successfully  invaded  by  a  horde  of  hungry  carpet-baggers, 
who  by  a  combination  with  her  unnatural  sons,  subjugated 
her  to  their  power,  and  despoiled  and  humiliated  her.  It 
is  not  only  a  political,  but  a  philosophic  and  historical 
question.  Many  would  now  suppose  that  the  question 
itself  would  have  roused  the  fury  of  the  people,  that  the 
double  odium  of  the  disgraceful  alliance  would  have  con- 
signed the  guilty  parties  in  the  paricidal  compact  to  an 
eternal  political  and  social  infamy  from  which  there  coull 
be  no  resurrection,  and  that  one  universal  shout  of  exe- 
cration, "louder  than  the  loud  ocean,"  would  have  risen 
from  mountain  top  to  ocean  shore,  and  driven  the  miscre- 
ants howling  from  the  land.  But  those  who  think  so  have 
forgotten  the  history  of  the  times  or  the  manifestations  of 
the  human  mind  under  peculiar  circumstances.  Thera 
is  a  stupor  which  sometimes  precedes  death.  There  is  a 
stupor  which  often  succeeds  defeat.  There  is  a  stupcr 
which  generally  attends  despair.  Such  was  our  condition. 
Rather,  we  were  in  the  stupified  condition  of  the  triple 
combination.  The  black  pall  of  mourning  brooded  an'l 
hung  over  the  State, 'the  funeral  pall  for  those  to  whom  wo 
were  wont  to  turn  in  our  hour  of  doubting  and  distress 
and  to  whom  we  never  turned  in  vain.  We  had  been 
utterly  overthrown  by  the  united  powers  of  the  world  and 
we  seemed,  for  the  time,  almost  annihilated  and  utterly 


296  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

crushed  out  from  the  pale  of  earthly  sympathy  and  recog- 
nition. Despair,  which  maketh  the  heart  sick,  was  upon 
us.  That  despair,  twin  sister  of  desperation,  was  within 
our  bosom.  The  "slough  of  despond"  was  upon  us.  North 
Carolina,  riven  by  the  thunderbolt  of  war,  stood  lik^ 
Rachel  weeping  for  her  children  and  would  not  be  com- 
forted because  they  were  not.  She  turned  in  her  despair 
to  her  Fishers,  her  Stokes,  her  Fenders,  her  Fettigrews, 
her  Branches,  her  Andersons  and  her  Shaws.  They  were 
all  dead.  Turning  from  the  dead  to  the  living,  she  called 
to  her  Grahams,  her  Outlaws,  her  Braggs,  her  Barringera, 
her  Moores,  her  Ransoms,  her  Clingmans,  her  Ashes,  her 
Warrens,  her  Carters,  her  Martins,  her  Gilliams  and  her 
Speeds.  They  were  powerless.  Then,  writhing  in  the 
frenzied  agony  of  a  moment's  desperate  determination, 
she  turned  to  her  Holclens,  her  Pools,  her  Caldwells,  her 
Pearsons,  her  Dicks,  her  Settles  and  her  Sam.  Phillips, 
and  lo !  they  had  joined  the  carpet-bagging  vulture  birds 
and  were  driving  their  beaks  into  her  bowels.  Then  it  was, 
that,  uttering  a  cry  of  despair  that  pierced  the  heavens,  she 
veiled  her  face  in  shame  and  fell  like  Caesar  at  the  base 
of  Pompey's  statue,  for  lo !  shame !  she  had  called  in  her 
agony  unto  her  recreant  sons. 


JAMES   C.    DOBBIN.  297 


JAMES   C.    DOBBIN. 

He  was  a  gentleman  on  whom  I  built  an  absolute  trust. 

— Macbeth. 

A  NORTH  CAROLIXA  book  would  be  imperfect  without 
a  reference  to  the  character  and  career  of  James  C.  Dob- 
bin, of  Fayetteville.  He  was  the  friend  of  our  youth,  and 
as  a  boy  lie  was  an  example  of  every  manly  and  gentle 
characteristic,  and  won  to  him,  as  no  other  did,  the  admi- 
ration and  love  of  his  companions.  His  smile  was  a  ben- 
ediction, his  laugh  was  a  murmuring  ripple  that  never 
overflowed  its  hanks  into  the  semblance  of  loud  laughter, 
and  sincerity  was  graven  on  every  lineament  of  his  face. 
If  he  had  had  no  other  qualities  than  those  that  belonged 
to  his  gentle  and  kindly  nature,  he  would  have  been  a 
signal  success  in  life.  But  his  head  was  a  dome  of  thought. 
It  was  like  an  inverted*  pyramid,  and  would  have  made  a 
phrenologist  leap  for  joy. 

\V(  once  heard  old  Dr.  Caldwell,  the  distinguished  Pres- 
ident of  the  University,  say  that  he  had  no  children  and 
that  he  did  not  regret  it,  but  if  he  had  such  a  son  as  Dobbin, 
he  would  rejoice.  And  he  was  not  a  man  who  dealt  in 
compliments. 

James  C.  Dobbin  graduated  at  the  University  in  1832, 
in  the  famous  class  that  was  led  by  Clingman  and  Tom 
Ashe.  He  stood  in  the  front  rank  at  graduation,  but  as 
a  lovable  man  he  was  easily  first. 

After  leaving  the  University  he  returned  to  his  home  in 
Fayetteville,  and  entered  upon  the  study  of  that  profession, 
";uirient  as  magistracy,  noble  as  virtue,  necessary  as  jus- 
tice" ;  but  his  charming  personality,  his  positive  convic- 
tions of  public  policy,  and  his  intellectual  gifts,  made  him 
an  available  candidate  for  public  office.  He  was  a  Dem- 
ocrat, and  his  party  friends,when  he  was  a  young  man, 
put  him  in  nomination  for  the  General  Assembly  from  the 
county  of  Cumberland. 

He  was  elected.     He  soon  acquired  an  influential  po- 


298  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 

sition  in  the  Legislature,  and  was  an  active  participant  in 
its  important  debates.  He  grew  in  influence  and  popu- 
larity. 

A  sad  incident  will  illustrate  his  influence  in  the  General 
Assembly  after  a  service  of  some  years.  His  wife,  to 
whom  he  was  tenderly  attached,  was  an  invalid,  and  accom- 
panied him  to  Raleigh  during  a  session  of  the  Assembly. 
It  was  during  the  session,  in  the  early  fifties,  when 
the  subject  of  making  an  appropriation  to  establish 
an  asylum  for  the  insane  was  under  consideration. 
It  met  with  much  opposition.  It  was  urged  by 
a  philanthropist  —  a  Miss  Dix,  of  New  York,  a 
sister  of  General  Dix,  Senator  from  New* York  in  the  Sen- 
ate of  the  United  States — who,  it  was  said,  had  been  her- 
self a  victim  of  insanity.  Miss  Dix  had  urged  the  matter 
UDOII  the  Legislature  with  the  zeal  of  a  Christian  and  a 
philanthropist,  and  the  blessed  woman  was  giving  it  up 
in  despair. 

She  had  nursed  Mrs.  Dobbin  in  her  extreme  illness. 
She  had  enlisted  her  sympathies  in  the  cause  of  the  ''un- 
fortunate step-sons  of  nature"  bereft  of  reason.  She  had 
induced  the  dying  wife  to  use  her  influence  with  her  dis- 
tinguished husband  in  promoting  the  bill  for  the  insane. 
Mrs.  Dobbin  grew  worse,  and  as  her  eyes  turned  for  the 
last  time  to  him  whom  she  loved  most  on  earth,  her  dying 
words  were  a  supplication  that  he  would  give  his  support 
to  the  bill  for  the  comfort  of  the  insane. 

She  passed  away,  and  good  angels  bore  her  to  the  man- 
sions of  the  blessed.  He  consigned  her,  "dust  to  dust," 
mourned  her  in  his  sad  bereavement,  and  after  some  days, 
bowed  with  grief  over  his  loss,  took  his  seat  in  the  Hall 
of  the  Assembly.  After  some  time,  he  rose  in  his  seat, 
and  with  the  sad  scenes  of  his  domestic  bereavement 
swelling  his  heart  and  choking  his  utterance,  he  called 
up  the  bill  to  establish  an  asylum  for  the  insane.  He 
addressed  the  Assembly  in  a  lengthened  speech,  full  of 
feeling  and  reminiscence  that  melted  the  audience  to 
tears,  and  the  "bill  was  passed,  we  think,  unanimously, 
and  now  that  institution  for  the  comfort  of  the  "unfor- 


JAMES   C.    DOBBIN.  299 

tunate  step-sons  of  nature,"  as  they  were  once  called  by 
a  distinguished  statesman,  is  cherished  in  North  Caro- 
lina as  the  blessed  fruit  of  the  dying  prayer  of  a  sainted 
woman. 

James  Dobbin  afterwards  rose  to  higher  distinction. 
He  acquired  a  national  reputation,  became  a  leader  in 
the  councils  of  the  Democratic  party,  and  during  the  ad- 
ministration of  President  Pierce,  was  his  efficient  and  pop- 
ular Secretary  of  the  Navy.  He  was  appointed  to  that 
important  position  in  the  Cabinet  of  President  Pierce 
without  his  personal  acquaintance  and  without  solicita- 
tion. It  was  a  merited  honor. 

In  the  Democratic  National  Convention  that  nominated 
Franklin  Pierce,  of  New  Hampshire,  for  the  Presidency, 
it  was  the  opportune  and  emphatic  speech  of  Mr.  Dobbin 
that  first  put  him  in  nomination  and  secured  his  selection 
to  the  highest  post  of  honor  among  men. 

As  Secretary  of  the  £favy,  Mr.  Dobbin  rendered  signal 
service  to  the  country.  Under  his  administration  the 
Naval  Academy  at  Annapolis,  then  in  its  infancy,  was 
fostered  until  it  reached  a  high  state  of  efficiency.  He 
introduced  into  the  navy  the  "retired  list,"  retiring  on 
good  pay  the  oldest  officers,  and  giving  young  and  active 
officers  merited  promotion,  and  thus  added  to  the  efficiency 
of  the  naval  service.  He  also  had  built  those  splendid 
naval  vessels,  the  Merrimac,  Niagara,  and  four  others,  the 
finest  vessels  then  in  the  world.  Under  his  administra- 
tion, also,  shells  were  introduced  into  the  armament  of 
naval  vessels.  Altogether,  the  navy  and  the  naval  service 
made  more  ^rogress  under  this  North  Carolinian  than 
under  the  administration  of  any  other  Secretary  in  the 
history  of  the  country. 

Mr.  Dobbin  died  early,  in  the  meridian  of  his  intel- 
lectual powers,  with  the  love  and  admiration  of  his  coun- 
trymen, and  with  a  glorious  future  prospect.  North  Caro- 
lina mourned  him  as  a  loving  son  who  had  brought  honor 
to  her,  and  when  the  roll  of  honor  is  called  of  her  great 
sons  departed,  the  name  of  James  C.  Dobbin  will  always 
be  recalled  with  love  and  admiration. 


300  GRANDFATHER'S  TALES. 


THE    NEW   CENTURY. 

Time  in  advance  behind  him  hides  his  wings; 
Behold  him  when  passed  by! 
What  then  is  seen  but  his  broad  pinions, 
Swifter  than  the  winds  ! 

—  Young. 

TURNING  from  the  past  we  enter  upon  the  new  century 
of  our  country,  of  which  few  of  us  shall  see  the  end.  We 
enter  upon  it  amid  the  throes  of  a  political  convulsion, 
fraught  with  danger,  of  which  none  can  forecast  the  fu- 
ture. But  the  Great  Dispenser  who  holds  the  destiny 
of  nations  as  of  individuals  in  the  hollow  *of  His  hand,  and 
who  always  ultimately  evokes  good  from  evil,  will  accom- 
plish His  own  purpose  in  His  own  time,  and  will  reaffirm 
the  historic  lesson,  that  the  progress  of  the  race  is  the  great 
purpose  of  God.  Man  is  the  agent  and  colaborer  with 
God;  not  an  agent  that  gropeth  blindly,  or  a  creature 
driven  by  relentless  necessity  or  impelled  by  involuntary 
impulse,  but  an  active,  intelligent,  conscious  agent,  reap- 
ing whereof  he  soweth  and  gathering  the  fruits  of  his  wis- 
dom or  his  folly.  Looking  over  the  century  of  our  coun- 
try now  filed  in  the  archives  of  time  and  labeled  for  eter- 
nity, we  find  strange  and  wonderful  developments  an<l 
alarming  retrocessions  in  the  ebb  and  flow  of  human 
progress.  Taking  our  own  Albemarle  country  as  an  index 
of  the  whole,  we  recognize  its  material  progress  in  reducing 
the  forest  to  the  dominion  of  the  plow,  in  opening  and  im- 
proving the  highways  of  commerce,  in  its  improved  agri- 
culture, in  its  improved  mechanic  arts,  a  progress  none  the 
worse  for  having  been  slow  and  steady.  But  in  some 
other  respects  we  must  lament  the  contrast  of  the  begin- 
ning and  close  of  the  century.  Education,  that  great 
lever  in  the  development  of  humanity,  has  obviously  de- 
clined. Early  in  the  century,  at  its  beginning  indeed, 
schools  of  high  grade,  incorporated  academies,  were  estab- 
lished in  Edenton,  then  the  metropolitan  town  of  the  Albo- 
marle  country,  and  other  towns  had  flourishing  academics 


THE    NEW   CENTURY.  301 

of  high  character.  More  interest  was  felt  and  shown  in 
the  great  work,  and  consequently  there  was  a  better  and 
more  controlling  element  of  public  sentiment  in  the  earlier 
than  in  the  later  period  of  the  century.  In  the  early 
period,  the  Albemarle  was  the  controlling  section  of  the 
State.  It  led  in  public  spirit,  in  State  enterprise  and 
policy,  in  influence  in  the  public  councils  and  in  the  mea 
of  public  prominence  and  position  which  it  furnished  to 
the  State  and  general  government.  It  gave  a  Supreme 
Court  Judge  to  Washington's  administration.  It  fur- 
nished Judges  and  Governors  and  Speakers  of  the  Legis- 
lature to  the  State  Government.  The  latter  period  of  th2 
century  saw  the  sceptre  of  Judah  depart  from  the  Albe- 
marle country.  Well  armed  with  the  prestige  of  our  sires, 
we  have  suffered  their  mantle  to  fall  on  other  shoulders. 
Allx-marle  shaped  the  policy  of  the  State  in  the  struggle 
t'm-  independence.  The  reveille  drums  of  the  revolu- 
tion were  sounded  withfn  her  borders,  and  the  voices  of  her 
sons  were  potent  in  the  field  and  council  hall.  All  this 
is  now  changed,  and  it  is  incumbent  upon  those  now  com- 
ing to  the  front  in  this  beginning  of  our  new  century, 
to  see  to  it  that  the  Albemarle  country,  by  a  general  system 
of  education,  by  enlightened  culture,  by  improved  agricul- 
ture, by  selecting  for  political  and  official  position  the 
best,  most  reliable  and  ablest  men,  shall  recover  her  right- 
ful place. 


the 


<ET 


F 

254 

C74 


Creecy,  Richard  Benbury 

Grandfather's  tales  of 
North  Carolina  history