Southern Argus. [volume] (Columbus, Miss.) 1834-1842, 1838-07-03

~ own course. That course wa
PURSUE ~ ;, The army, thatit lost for him, q
50 ~ e,,,nnosed it would, the respect O
! naJ hi tbe officers. The ensuing sum
-, no- gave Mr.. Drake an opportunity g
, 'ol most triumPhantly' ms con
J"ct and principles. He had Deen STA
';oos5 h n small fortress which had been
u-oc,o5 bv Gen. Wayne, during the win
81 mon the spot which had been render
II ro5,arkable. bv the defeat Of St. Glars
OU - three years before. The garrison
,n:isted of a single rifle company, and
Ibirtv infantry, and Ofthe latter Drake was
,be Immediate commander. In the be.
Ginning Of July, 1894, detachment OF
Sbe army. consisting of several hundred
,Don under the command OfMaj. McMa-
hoD beinq encamped near the fort, IN
which they had the previous day deposited
onantity of provisions which they had
.sor,ed from the cantOnment of the ar
-, ~ Greenyille,. were attacked, early in
ne morning, by upwards Of three thousand
Ind;ans The troops made gallant re-
s;.,once but being turned on both TANKS,
md IN danger of being surrounded, they
retreated TO the open ground around the
fort.
From this, too, they were soon dislodg-
ed bv the overpowering force of the enc
NV: in the retreat many wounded men
were in danger of being left, which, being
observed from the Fort, Capt. Gibson d.
rected his own Lieutenant to take the in
fanirv brakes particular command) and
portion ofthe rihemen, and sally out to
their relief. To this Drake objected, and
claimed the right to command his own
men. and, as senior to the other licuten-
ant, his right also to the whole command.
30, very well, sir" said the captain, "lt
such is your wish, take it" at Is my
wish sir, to do my duty, and will endeav-
mr. IN do II. now and at all times, was the
modest reply of Drake. He accordingly
sailed out skifully interposed his de-
tachment between the retreating troops
and the enemy, opened upon them hot
fire, arrested their advance, and gave an
opportunity to the wounded to effect their
escape; and to the broken and retreating
companies of our troops, to reform and
nvain to face the enemy. Throughout the
whole affair, brakes activity, skill, and
extraordinary elf-possession, were most
conspicuous, The enemy Of course OBJ
served il as well as his friends: The nu.
merous shots directed at him, however,
like the arrows Of Teucer, aimed at Me
heart Of Hector, were turned aside by
providential interference, until he had &C.
complished all that he had been sent to
perform. He then received a ball through
his body and fell faithful corporal came
to his assistance, and with his aid he rea.
ched the fort; and those two were the
last of the retreating party that entered it.
Drake making it a point of honor that it
should be so. Mr.. Drake was rendered
unfit for duty, for a long time by his
wound. He had not indeed recovered
from it in the summer of 1896, when he
was my guest, w en- in command at Fort
Washington (Cincinnati) on his way, on
furlough, to visit his native State, Con-
necticut. His friends, however, enjoyed
his presence but a short time. Having,
as ! understood, taken the yellow fever in
passing through Philadelphia, he died in a
few days after he reached his home.
have yet another Renaissance, the re.
latiOn Of which may serve the cause you
have so much at heart.
An officer ofthe army had so often and
so unnecessarily wounded the feelings of
another ofthe same corps, the duties of
which made their association indispensi.
bic, that he considered himself bound to
demand satisfaction in the usual way
They met, and the injured man fell, re-
celvlng mortal wound, as il was antici-
pated he would from the superior skill of
his antagonist in the use of the weapon
which they used. Being possessed Of a
high grade of talents and an amiable char
Octer, he had the sympathy Of all the off,
GERS. With others / visited him after he
had been removed to his quarters. He
expressed desire to see the officer with
whom he had fought, and was present al
the interview. wish / could describe, as
1t merits, this interesting scene. The cir.
cumstaDces attending it were so deeply
impressed upon my mind that they car
never be effaced, as long as my memory
holds It's seat.
In the tent were some half dozen Off
GERS, the friends Of the dying man, (for, a
have said he had from his amiabIe quail
ties, many and warm ones, exhibiting I'm
equivocal evidences Of their s0rrow. Con
sPicuous above the rest, and near the hea
Ofthe rude couch, was the manly form
the Commandant ofthe Corps, to whlc
both Of the duellists belonged, 1.-THE bea
ideal Of chivalrous valor, and the Chew;
lier de Bayard ofthe army, endeavoring
stife as best he could, the feeling whiC
agitated his bosom. At little distanc
in full view of the victim of his passion
sat the insensible -: but | must re
train the indignation which still FEEL
He was my brother oficer--we shared Z
gether the perils of a difficult war--and
battle, know that he did his duty-al
whatever might have been his conduct
others never had personally any reaSc
to complain of him. But there he 81
apparently at least, unaffected by the nj
chiefhe had done, by burying in an u
timely grave, man who had never iniU
ed him, whose arm might be needed in d
pending decisive battle with the hitheT
triumphant enemies of his country, a
whose intellect might at some future til
have been usefully employed in its cou
ellis. The severe bodily pain which
dying officer had for some time sufIerC
had ceased; and that calm and ease h
succeeded, which is the unequivocaI b,