Daily evening star. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1852-1854, 1854-03-04
DAILY EVENING STAR.
AMERICAN TRAVEL.

Henry Clay was man of great reso
luton and considerable daring. Trav
cling in carly manhood, in public con.
veyance in South Eastern State, he once
found himself in the company of three
other persons, consisting of young lady
and gentleman, her husband, and an in.
dividual muffled in q cloak, whose coun
tenance was concealed, and who appeared
to be indulging in tete-a-tete with Nor
pheus. Suddenly big, brawny Ken.
| tuckian, got into the coach smoking :
cigar, and frowned fercely around, a.
much as to say: I'm half horse, hal
alligator, the yeller flower of the forres
all brimstone but the head and ears, and
that's aquafortis. In fact, he looked
as savage as meat axe, and pufftd forth
huge volumes of smoke, without reference
to the company within, especially of the
lady, who manifested certain timid symp-
toms Of annoyance. Presently, after
some whispering, the gentleman with her,
in the politest accent, requested the
stranger not to smoke, as it ANNOYED his
companion. The fellow answered; Il
reckon I've paid for my place. I'll smoke
as much as please, and all hell shan't I
stop me, no how, With that, he roll,d
his eyes round as fercely as rattlesnake.
1t was evident he had no objections to q
quarrel, and that if it occurred it was
likely to lead to deadly struggle. The
young man who had spoken to him shrank
back and was silent. Ed.
Clay felt his gallantry aroused. lie
considered for moment whether he
should interfere: but experienced natu.
raj reluctance to draw upon himself the
brutal violence of his gigantic adversary.
In that lawless country, he knew his life
might be sacrificed unavenged. He knew
himself physically unequal to the contest,
and thought, after all, it was not his bus
mess, Quixotically to take up another
mans quarrel. Feeling pity for the in.
suited, and disgust toward the insulter,
he determined to take no notice; when.
very quickly indeed, the cloaked figure in
in the corner assumed an upright posi-.
ton, and the mantle was suffered to fall
from it without effort o. excitement. The
small, but sinewy frame of man, plainly
dressed in tightly -buttoned frock coat,
with nothing remarkable about his ap-
pearance, was seen, and pair Of bright
gray eyes sought the fierce optics of the
ferOcious Kentuckian. Without a word,
he passed his hand under his collar at
the back of his neck, and deliberately
pulled forth long-extremely long
and glittering knife from its sheath in
that singular place. " Stranger, be said,
my name is James Bowie, well known
in Arkansas and Louisiana, and if you
don't put that cigar out of the window in
quarter of minute, I'll put this knife
through your bowels, as sure as death"
Clay said he never forgot in his life the
expression of Bowie's eyes at that moment.
The predominant impression made upon
him was the certainty of the threat being
fulfilled, and apparently the same con-
riction impressed itself ere long upon the
offender. During two or three seconds
his eyes met those of Bowie. He was
the weaker, and he quailed. With
curse, he tore the cigar from between his
teeth, flung it, scowling, but downcast,
out of the coach window. Upon this
Colonel Bowie as deliberately replaced
his long knife in its eccentric hiding
place, and without saying q word to any
one, refoided his cloak around him, and
did not utter another syllable to the end
of the journey. .....t