The Sumter banner. [volume] (Sumterville, S.C.) 1846-1855, 1853-04-12
MIS GET, L A NEOUS
Recoliecrions of HEr. Calhoun.

Ine IOlloHlnS article IS from the
pen Of young lady of Alabama
whose reminiscelce will be read witt
all the more pleasure for the scarscci
ty Of personal anecdotes of the great
southerner:
ltis a pleasant yet mournful oc
cupation to recall the hours spent in
the society Of tht great and pure
statesman, and tq|dwell upon the i'm
preston made bE his conversation
and appearance. More particularly
dol prize these memories since he is
no longer among IS, and l know the
privilege of listcni}g to him is never
again to be enjoWd. Taught from
childhood to admire I might almost
say worship his cha,sctcr as a states
man, the first time behcld him is
indelibly impressed lpon MY mind.
The fame Of an cloqlent minister of
tie Gospel had draNa together the
inhabitants Of the l,tt,s village of 2.
and the surrounding ceuntry. Clan
cling carelessly over the church, l
was attracted by t!,, striking ap.
pearance Of d gentleman Just then
entering a pew near a.e one occu-
pied. His hair silvtrcG by aye,
form erect, the penctr;'ing glance of
his grey eye, together with the
thoughtful expression IF his face,
"marked him as no primary man."
a Ascertaining who he MS, could
scarcely fepress an exclamation of
delight and surprise. Il, man L adj
mired more than any liv,g one was
now before me. The renaindcr of
the services were lost onmo my at,
tention was occupied in watching him.
lie Joined in the services Of the
church with great dcvotior of man.
ner and paid undivided atrntion to
the sermon, In q short dime nv
.degiia ofaapproach,ng i Is sfi2s ; j
fed | rode to Fort IIills.s3&Sa38a friend
to return a call. Mrs. T$ttalhoun,
with old fashioned :hospitalia- insist
ed that we should spend thcylay. 70
approach Mr.. G. i'll a cr&wl, to
speak to him then, | had anti ;vatcd:
but to know him for the first time iu
his own home, to.see him aloa, with
his family, was'.S pleasure as uncx-
pected as it was agreeable. No young
person draws near to a great man
for the first time without feeling of
awe. I longed for, yet dreaded Mr.
C.'s appearance i'll the drawing
room. When he entered, aud was
presented to him, the simplicity OF
his manner, and pleasing, quiet con
versation, soon assured nc, and l
felt perfectly at my ease, lie was
very agreeable to young people. en-
tering into their amuscmcnts and oc-
eupations as if he felt and enjoyed
them. With his sons his inter
course and influence were very hap.
py. He treated their opinions with
respect, at the same time correcting
them when erroneous. One IN
stance I remember. One of his sons,
thoughtlcss lad, who had already
learned to pride himself upon be.
longing to the aristocracy of the
State, where aristocracy Of birth is
priced more than in any other State
in the Union, spoke Of the impcrti.
Bncnt curiosity and inquisitivcncss of
the lower class. "NIy son." remark
ed Mr.. c., "you must not com
mcnce life with such wrong imprcs,
slons. If you can give inlorma.ion
to those who have not your advan,
tages, give it gladly, and learn from
them in return. Some of the best
lessons Of my life I have learned from
those beneath me. If they have
less education, they observe more
closely than we do. I never meet a
laboring man who seems disposed
for conversation, but l listened to
his remarks and ask him questions. "
Turning over a portfolio Of en-
cravings for our amusement, Mr..
9. held up to our gaze the most mis-,
cradle daub in the way Of a portrait /
ever behcld. 1t was the head Of a
man, with fiery red hair, standing
up as if each hair was elcctri
fed; eyes without expression, and
mouth and nose unproportionatc. "Do
you think this o correct likcncss?" he
asked with a peculiar smile.
Il received this a few days since
with an accompanying letter request.
ing q lock Of my hair, from Il young
lady who admircs my character, and
has had 50 many descriptions Of me
that she thinks she can paint a cor
rect likeness Of me. This is the re
suit OF her experiment.
why did you not return It and
inform her that it was mlikc?' | ask
ed.
If this is herilea Of beauty, an1