The Democratic Whig. [volume] (Columbus, Miss.) 1842-1843, 1843-06-15
biooRAFIY q ~ aoNRoE 3D.

Nexilo and died thoFo previous 10 that event
IL wes avery respectable man. both by bic
hsbila. connexions and associations. Monroe
received q piain edncaiion n bic native sists
and commenced lie IL carly manhood IN Tex
ls-ho VS. ~ particularly employed prior b
he rsFolulieu, oxcepi az one tine as q clerk
il the counting house Of Morgan q Reed;who
DID business a. Galveston Hay-ghe Repuia-
tun he lalt With be omploYeu was b. no means
enviable, and bet liiile cilcuiatsd 70 advance
BIZ interest 10 meFcanuls career IN that coun-
~. The grand drama Of his efentiul life
commenced Ia The winter Of '35--'S8-When
d the city q New Orleans, be became &C.
quaintsd with Mr. Q. Darl, formerly Of Rodney
MiBa, and having arm in the city Of New
Odaana under the style ofFranklin and Dan
end G. Dart and Co, Of Matches.
Dars had become embarrassed. and not
having The means Il paying his deba, aiter
revolving many means Of extricatiou, he at
lest fell upon the one, Of buying slaves IN The
Havana, where they were cheap in compara.
son with tie prices in the United State, an
settling them on q plantation IN Texas, where
the lands were only one Goth Of the price Of
fine cotton lands in the south west, and where
the climate had been represented 70 HIM aa
peculiarly adapted 10 The production ofthe cot
ION plant. IN It's greatest Perfection-from
which be honestly expected 10 a few years to
realize ample means for the extinguishment
Of bis debts, and have besides more than q
competency for bis wife and children. But
there were difficulties in the way--he was
neither practically nor theoretically planter
Nor had be any turn for that sort Of business
In addition % this, ifhe gave he personal at
tention 10 the plantation. be would have 10 re-
move bis family there, deprive his children Of
the advantages OF education, and expose bis
wife, who was an amiable and accomplished
woman to an tho hafdships and troubles Incl
dent and inseparable from pioneer life and in
addition, II he.assumed. the control and manage
hent Of the property 10 person, and had things
IN bis own name, he might have been pursued
by hs creditors in the United States, and bro
ken up before he had time to realize the very
means with which he expected topay them
and 50 defeat the very object he had in view.
At this stage Of his meditations he met Mon
roe Edwards, who readily entered into his
plans and promised ar. entire devotion to The
success Of the enterprise. Edwards had no
money, but in lieu thereof he was 10 finnish
talents, vigor, enterprise, DC, and to cover
the property in his own name. Dart furnish
ed at the outset $4,000 in gold and United
States Bank bills, which were equivalent at
that time TO specie, and they LEFT the city
about the close Of the year 'S5, for Havana,
where Dart succeeded in negotiation from the
house Of Knight d Co., a loan Of S35, 100,
thus swelling their cash capital TO S65,OOO.
They bought and landed in Texas, on the
BRACES River, some time 10 February SO, a.
bout go extremely likely and valuable young
negroes, none being under 10 and very few
over 20 years Of age. While in the Havana
an incident occurred, which plainly indicated
what in a suitable field Of action, might be the
future career Of Edwards not satisfied with
The large gang ofnegroes which Mr. Dart had
fairly purchased for him, he decoyed likely
negro boy on board the vessel and there
concealed him with the view Of kidnapping him
his owner discovered il and was about 10 an
ply to the authorities, when the thing came
20 the knowledge Of Mr.. Dart, who BY great
exeriions hushed the matteru BY paying the
sum Of sl,7O0
Arrived IN Texas Edwards pretended to
commence the business Of planiing-bought
an Indifferent tract Of land for the section Of
conntrV IN which he 9rnnpead - -.--------
-he knew nothing ofplanling, nor did he take
the requisite pains to inform himselE--nor did
he seem disposed TO give the least personal
attention to the matter, being seldom on the
plantation himself and emp.oyinggovcrseers
not for Their fidelity and ability but for their
cheapness but there was one thing he did
understand, however; and which he lost no
time in INDUCING in, and that was splurging
he wore the best cloths, rode the finest horses
and often travelled with a servant his an.
pearance in the little villages in the country
was sure to produce great sensation, from |
the superiority Of his equipments over common
travellers.
He spent large portion Of each year in
the United States, and at last for The purposes
ofamusement greater expansion of mind and |
more 70 improve in the grand art of financiering
he resolved to cross the Atlantic, and had The |
taste to select the occasion Of the GROWING
Of Britains youthful Queen. Meantime,
Dart, who was living in the United States,
principallyfat Rodney, Mississippi could got no |
account Of how things were going on in Tex |
as. and was in the deepest ignorance Of the
condition Of his partnership afairs in that
country. He knew but one thing IN certainty
and that was that he had not received one dol |
lar Of profits whatever. Under these cir
cumstances, Edwards being not yet returned
from Europe, be determined (iS3S) TO visit p
Texas and personally investigate the state Of /.
he business and property in that country. He /
did 30 and found every thing in so deranged
and embarrassed a condition that he employ.
ed lawyer and sequeseFed the whole proper
" as last means both Of obtaining his share
Of the same and at the same time securing
Knight # Co. for whom be very honorably
entered upon record a confession of iudg.
ment fog the $4,000, which he had been Dor.
rowed for the concern in the Havana. Soon
Edwards returned, ana hearing
upon L.s arrival in the United States of Darts
Energetic proceedings in Texas, not at all sb-
lShed, he in due time makes his appearance
a TeNaas armed with two forged dseds--ihe
me relating 70 the land and negroes, and the
'ther 10 the inferior transactions Of the part
which It appeared that Edwards
vas the owner Of every thing, The forgeries
bad been made BY taking too letters Of Darts
written to Edwards from Rodney, Mississippi, {
md extracting every thing but Darts sig. ,
nature By means Of some chemical agent, and =
Is IN the process the texture Of the paper had
been destroyed, the deeds were written by
means OF the principle Of the manifold writer I
q which no fluid Is employed. Dart boldly }
proclaimed the forgery, bat as Edwards had '
greatly the advantage Of him in7coolness and
ilgnltty Of manner the general impression was
greatly IN Edwards favor, particularly as Dart
wa thought to be a weak man in business '
matters and Edwards was known 70 be ex.
.remeiy keea' 10 the meantime Edwards had I
ne deeds recorded in the oOunties of Harris .