The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1842-03-01
Mr.. GRAVES to Mr.. Cilley.


| receive Col. Webb's communication it does not DIS
claim any exception TO him personally gentleman
have therefore, to inquire whether you declined
to receive his communication on the ground OF any
personal exception to him as gentleman or man OF
| honor. A categorical answer is expected.
Very respectfully,
Hon. J. CILLEY
/ knew nothing of the delivery of this note, and
nothing Of the answer to it, until you came to me
with both, and with a challenge already drawn for
me to deliver to Mr.. Cilley in the evening. The an
swer was in these words:
Mr.. Ciiiey TO Mr.. Graves.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,,
February %, 1888.
Sir: Your note of this date has been placed in my
hands. regret that mine of yesterday was not sat
isfactory to you but cannot admit the right on your
part to PROFOUND the question 10 which you ask a
categorical answer, and therefore decline any fur
Their response to it,
Very respectfully,
JONA. CII.LEY.
Hon. w. J. GRAVES.
When you came to me with this last note, you
came asking advice, but with your mind decided
to send challenge and with challenge already
drawn before you saw me. As you afterwards testi-
fed, you said there was no alternative left you had
consulted with one, and requested me to bear the
of the House, about half past O'Clock p. NJ /
begged you to wait until the House adjourned
After the adjournment we walked down the ave-
nue. together, and demonstrated against bearing the
challenge and prevailed on you at last to deliberate
for one night to afford time to see whether some
thing might not occur, or might not be DONE to re-
eye you from the necessity Of challenging Mr.. Gil
ley at ALL You consented to this, took the challenge
with you: we parted for the night, and had no fur
Their communication with each other until the next
morning. ~
About ten O'clock the next morning of FRIDAY
the Odd, you called at my boarding house. miss
Queen's) Pennsylvania avenue, and again brought
with you challenge already drawn, and requested
me to bear it. You said that nothing had occurred
to change your determination, and you could see no
alternative You submitted to me the form of the
challenge which you had drawn. You remarked
that there hco points of controversy with Mr..
Cilley to wit:
lst The point of peracity;. Whether he did not say
to you what you alleged he said in your verbal inter-
view with him. This he had denied in his first note
after requesting you TO ask for it in writing.
ID The point of honor: In refusing to give you in
writing satisfactory reasons for declining receive
at your hands note from Col Webb.
The first the point which seemed to weigh
most in your mind, and concurred with you that il
was the ground on which you could be ,lstfable in
that time, drawn conformably to this view II
was you know, afterwards DESTROYED and I have nc
copy of it now; but, speaking from recollection, its
substance was call upon Mr. Cilley for denying yo,u
statement Of ,rhat he had said, after admitting 10 you
and requesting you 10 call on him for il in icrifing
admitted that this was your true cause of quarrel
but demurred to bearing the challenge and still urged
that something might still be done to avoid it.
thought that Webb ought not to allow you to hgh
Mr. Cilley, or to be involved in challenge on his
count, and that he might demand to take your place
You seemed to think that it was no longer Webbs
but your own affair; that your word was disputed
and denied as well as his character doubted. We
discussed this question some time, and you at last i'm
sisted that should accompany you to Mr.. Clay:
room, and be guided by his counsel in the matter
You boarded at the same house with hm-at Mrs
Hill's, few doors from Miss Queens. | went with
YOU to his room about l. o'clock, A. Nj. on Friday
the 23d, and we found him alone. You submitted Il
him in my presence whether there was any alterna
tive then for you but to challenge Mr.. Cilley. He
promptly responded that you had other course left
You then submitted to him the form of the challenge
you had drawn. He read it, and did not approve it
and said that your true point Of challenge was tina
Mr. Ciey had refused to receive the note of Colonel
Webb which you had borne, and had refused also tc
assign such reasons as would exoneratc you from re
sponsiblty. Immediately debated this point with hin
as to the true of dispute but he persisted il
his opinion took the challenge you had drawn, threw
it aside and with his hand and pen wrote the
following:
WASHINGTON City, February %, 1888
i" AS YOU have declined accepting commune alton
which | bore to you from Col. Webb, and as by YOU
note of yesterday you have refused to decline on
grounds which would exonerate me from all response
bny growing out of the affair, am left no other al
Tentative but to ask that satisfaction which is recog
nized among gentlemen. My friend, Hon. Henry A.
Wise, lie authorized by me to make the arrangements
suitable to the occasion.
"Your obedent servant,
CIV j. GRAVES"
Z" Hon. j. CILLEY."
You accepted this form and adopted it in lieu o.
your own; copied it in your handwriting destroyed
the manuscript Of Mr.. Clay, and then insisted that
should Immediately bearit to Mr.. Ciley. Mr.. Clay
| added his persuasons to yours, and was prevailed
on to bear it to Mr.. Cley which did little before
| ~ o'clock M. on that day
Alter the adjournment OF the House on Friday, the
3d. at about half past p. NJ. you walked with me
again to my room. Expecting to have to fight with
pistols, you examining my brace, about O'Clock
in the evening, when General George w Jones, the
second Of Mr. Cilley, entered and presen ed to YOU
| the acceptance of your challenge. You Immediately
retired. Gen. Jones then sat down at my table anG
drew up the following terms, to wit
" WARRINGTON, February %, 1885,
| " Mr.. Cilley proposes to meet Mr.. Graves at sucl
place may be agreed upon between US, tomorrow a
IL o'clock NJ The weapons 10 be used on the occa.
sion shall be rifles, the parties placed side to side a
eighty yards distance from each other to hold tn,
rifles horizontally at arms length downwards; the Ii
flies to be cooked and triggers set the words to be
Gentlemen, are you ready 2 After which, neither
answering No, the words shall be in regular sue
cesslon, Fre-one two, three, four Neither part,
shall fire before the word fire, nor after the
four The positions OF the parties at the ends o
the lines to be determined by lot. The second of tn,
party losing the position shall have the giving of tn,
word The dress 10 be ordinary winter clothing ant
subject to the examination of both parties Eacf
party may have on the ground, besides his second,
surgeon and two other friends. The seconds for tn,
execution of their respective trusts, allowed t.
have pair of pistols each the ground, but no othe
person shall have any weapon. he rifles TO be load
ed in the presence of the seconds. Should Mr.
Graves not be able to procure rifle by the time pre-
| scrhed time shall be allowed for that purpose.