Columbus Democrat. [volume] (Columbus, Miss.) 18??-18??, 1849-11-10
glIMllUEL



From kenne Is Lie Of Wirt, We take The loi
lowing letter to Judge Carr upon the li''omened
duel between Decatur aud Barron, in which a
gallant patrio, threw away his Lille.
Washington, April 2, lS20.
,hank YOU, my dear friend, or your short LEI
ter, which | would have sooner answered but +
causes beyond my control. losiead OF aremp'
Ing 10 give YOU an sccoun, Of the quarrel IL
tween cur lamenled Decatur aud Bairon. STa.
pose to send you, in this, a copy Of their CORES,
pundence, which we are promised from The lns
tegencer press Tomorrow. Decatur showed
me this correspondence, in confidence, late last
fall so lar as it had then gone; and used every
effort to prevent The fight, which he was very far
from wishing to b ing on, but which he consld,
cred as forced upon him in such way that there
was no avoiding it but by disavowlng what he
had really said and thought Of Barron; and Of
this ! need not say he was incapable. tie did
not approve OF duelling.
lie then passed TO his own case. tighllng
h. said, was his profession, and !, would De I'M.
possible for him 10 keep his station and preserve
his responsibility without showing himself ready,
Al all times, to answer the call OF any one who
bore the name Of o gentleman.
Alter my return from Baltimore, heard no.
thing more Of il I'll he was brought home NOR.
tally wounded; aud then | saw him no more
Ill. he was a corpse. As ! stood near hun,
alone, and looked at his dear face, marked, a.
i still was, with the last traces Of his departed
spirit, | could not help saying Nv hat IS life,
and what all the glory that this world can gife
Iho sooqny is not a very novel one; indeed,
have made il, in common with others, u
thousand times before; but | never tell It's lorce
I'LL then, for never, till then, had | seen the
corpse Of such man. They both tel at the
shot, which was so simultaneous, tina, the rcporI
Of Two pistols could moi be heard by those who
.'ood on ot sight, though close within ear.saot.
fhs heard from Commodore Porter, who was
standing thu, with Rogers, He exclaimed imme-
l,ately, 'One Of them is killed, Tor there is onl,
oap shot"
Very different was the scene when he got to
he ground. Decatur was apparently shot dead;
he revived alter while, and he and Barron held
parley as they lay on the ground. Dr. Wash
ing'ou, who goi Up just then, says that It remind
ed hin Of the closing scene Of tragedy -liam-
ct and Lacrles. Then Barron proposed ha
they should make friends before they met II
Heaven, (ior be supposed they would both die
nr1pdiately.) Decatur said thai he had neve'
brcn his enemy, that he freely forgaye him hi.
dah--lhoush be could not forgive those wh'
had stimulated him 10 seek his life. Ono rep
says that Barron exclaimed "Woald to God tnl
had said ibis much yesterday" II il ceHalt
that Tho ma rlpV vag A friendly one and that they
parted IN peace Decatur knew he was TO die
and bis only sorrow was, that he had moi died 4
| the service Of his country. II is believed tia
Barron viii recover though dis is far from Ger
ain. The papers viii Tell you every tbing as Il
necaiur's funeral procession, &c.
| Your friend WIN, WlRT.