Meigs County telegraph. [volume] (Pomeroy [Ohio]) 1848-1859, 1854-04-18
Colonel Bowie.

grea, resolution and considerable daring.--
He once tol the following anecdole 10 q
friend Of ours: Travelling, in early man.
hood, in public conveyance in a South.
Western State, he found himself in the com.
pany Of three other persons, consisting Of 0
young lady, and gentleman, her husband
and Of an individual puffied uo in cloak,
whose conn,enance was concealed, and who
appeared TO be indulgng in o tete-a.tete with
Morpheus. Suddenly big, brawny Ken
iuckiah 90, into the coach smoking cigar,
and lrowning fercely around as much as to
say, I'm half horse, half alligator; the yaller
flower of the forest, all 'brimslone but the
head and,ears. and that's aquafortis.' In
fact. he looked as savage as meat axe, and
pulled forth huge volumes Of smoke. with
outreference 10 the company within, espe-
cially the lady, who manifested certain tim
id symptoms Of annoyance. IL
Presently, after some whispering, the gen.
lleman with her, in the poli.est accents re-
quested the stranger not 10 smoke, as it an
noyed his companion. The fellow answered.
4 reckon I've paid my place. I'll smoke
as much as darn please, and all creation
shan't stop me no how With that he
looked dangerous, and rolled his eyes round
as fercely as raulesnlke. Ii was evident
that he had no objection 10 quarrel; and if IL
occurred, il was likely 10 lead to a deadly
struggle. The young man who had spoken
10 him shrunk back and was silent. Clay
fell his galartry aroused. He consdered for a
moment whether he should interfere; bu. ex-
experienced natural reluctance 10 draw up.
on him the brutal violence Of his gigantic ad.
versary. In ,ha, fawess country he knew that
his life nigh, be sacrificed, unavergeG. He
knew himself physically unequal 10 the con.
test, and he.hought, after all. i. was not his
busnessQuixo.ically 10 take up another
mans quarrel
Feeling pity for the insulted. and DISCUS,
towards the insuller, he determined TO lake
no notice; when--very quietly indeed--the
cloaked figure. in the figure assumed an up.
right position, and the mantle was suffered
10 fall from il without effort or excitement.
The small, but muscular frame of man
plainly dressed in tightly buuoned frock
coat, with nothing remarkable about his ap-
pearance, was seen, and pair Of bright
gray eyes sought the fierce optics Of the le-
rocous Ken,uckian. Wi.hou, word, this
'lay.fgure' passed his hand under his collar
at the back OF his neck, and slowly and de-
Iibera.ely drew forth a long--exwemely long
and gliltering knife from It's sheath in that
singular place.
Stranger he said, my name is Colonel
James Bowie, we'll known 10 Arkansas and
Louisiana, and if you dom, pu, that cigar ou,
of the window in quarter Of miru,e, I'll
pu, this knile through your bowels as sure
as DEATH ...... ...-.... .. =
Clay said he never forgot in afier life the
expression Of the Colonel's eyes a, ,ha. mo.
men.. The predominant impression made
upon him, was the certainty Of The ,hrea
being fulfilled, and apparently the same
conviction impressed itself ere long on the
mind Of the offender. During TWO or three
seconds his eye met tha, of Bowie. He
was The weaker, and he quailed With f,
curse he tore the cigar from between hi'
teeth, and flung ii, scowling, but downcast
out Of the coach window. Upon which
Col. James Bowie as deliberately replaced
his long knife in It's eccentric hiding place
and, wi,hou, saying word to any one else
or even vouchsafng a glance al any one
re(olded his cloak about him, and did no
uuer anolhe. syllable 10 ,he end of the jour
ney.-.Neo Quarterly Reuie,O for January