Washington sentinel. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1853-1855, 1854-10-19
From the AbbeviIIe Banner.
A sketch Of the Early Life Of john &. Cali
h0un.


Froni the Abbeville Banner
A sketch Of the Early Life Of Joha q. Call
h0un.
BES LoxoSD, Tale Co.. Ala---I received
yours of the 7th instant, a few days ago. Hay-
ing been q warm friend and ardent admirer Of
Mr. Calhoun, | take pleasure in answering your
inquiries concerning his early life, as far as
am able. lie was seven years my senior, and
ofcourse ! was but a boy when he attained to
the age Of manhood. FIRST knew him in the
year 1901, when we were for few months
schoolfellows in the acadamy then taught by
the late DR.. Waddel, in Vienna. Mr.. Calhoun
soon after this time entered Yale College, and
my education having only just begun, saw
nothing of him, until commenced the study
of law in the summer Of 1910. AT this time
MIR. Calhoun was practicing law at Abbeville
courthouse, the late Governor Noble being his
partner They occupied as an Office, the house
IN which Governor Noble afterwards lived till
his death. After knew him as lawyer, Mr..
Y. always boarded at the hotel known as The
Red House," and now occupied by the McLaren
family. During part, if not all the time he
boarded there. the hotel was kept by George
Whitefeld The business of the court was, at
that time, divided pretty equally between the
three Offices Calhoun and Mobiles, b. G. Yam
cey's, and my brother George Bowie's. There
were at this time six or eight students in these
offices, viz: Captain Robert Cunningham, of
Laurens District, and Nathaniel A. Ware, in
Calhoun and Mobiles, Wilson Birk, Of Georgia,
j. T. White6eld, and G. C.. Yancey in Mr., Yam
cey's, and the late Chief Justice of Alabama,
Abner S. Lipscomb, and myself in my brothers
Office.
F.
Mr.. c. was always kind and familiar with
young men, and ever ready to advance them by
his counsels and instructions. 1t was our com
slant habit to assemble in the summer even
ings in Mr.. Calhoun's piazza and listen to his
conversation, in which his partner and Mr..
Yancey, and sometimes the older students, par
tisipated. In this way he delighted to instruct
his young frienda, and believe we all pro6ted
greatly by such occasions. AT this period of
hislife, and believe ever afterwards, Mr.. Cal
houn was in the habit of taking much exercise,
and always on foot His customary walk was
up the Pendleton road, and he seldom turned
before he had walked mile and half This
exetcise was usually taken very early in the
morning, and he was generally willing TO have
one of his young friends as q companion-not
to enjoy their conversation, but to benefit them
by his. / remember on one occasion he in
vited me to accompany him in his morning
stroll-and refer to it now, not to claim any
particular intimacy with SO distinguished man,
Of which any one might Justly be proud, but to
record a disciplinary achievement Of his own,
which struck me at the time as being very
wonderful. He was endeavoring to impress
upon my mind the great Importance of cult
waiting the poaoe, of attention; and TO enconr-
age me in my efforts, he stated that to this end
he had early subjected his mind TO such
course of rigid discipline, and had persisted
without faltering until he had acquired per-
feet control over it, and that he could now con-
fine it as long as he pleased to any subject,
without wandering even for moment, and
that it was his uniform habit, when he set ont
alone, to walk or ride, to select subject for re-
Election, and that he never suffered his attention
to wander from it until he was satisfied with its
examination. In this single achievement is to
be found, as firmly believe, the principal
cause of his quiet intellectual triumph; this
made him the greatest thinker Of his age, and
to this achievement are we to attribute his won.
derful powers Of combination and analysis.
You ask me, awhen, and on what occasion
did he make his merry first public e6ot2" The
first public speech ever heard him make was
on the occasion of public meeting of the citi-
zens Of Abbeville, called on the occasion of the
wanton attack Of the Leopard on the Chesa.
peake. On this occasion-he was then stu
dent of law-he astonished every body, and laid
the foundation of that enduring popularity in
his native district, which he retained to the day
of his death. If be had ever before made a
public speech, am not aware of the fact.
You again ask, Chow did the family in its
early history spell the name?" Until the time
of the generation to which Mr.. Calhoun him.
self belonged, the name was spelled with an 0
in the first syllable instead Of an A--Colhoun.
Mr.. James Calhoun, the brother, believe to
the day of his death. wrote his name Colhoun.
In earlier times, it is probable the name was
written Colquhoun, as believe it is to this day
in Great Britain. aoa
You do not expect me, am sure, TO attempt
a delineahon Of the character, private or public,
Of our departed friends. That has been done
by others much better than ! could do it. None
of his friends ever loved him more-many,
perhaps, knew him better than did. And ]
will only add, that he possessed more equa-
nimity than any man have ever known. j
never saw him depressed in spirits, nor excited
by anger. He was always cheerful-the natu-
raj result Of life Of constant and uniform
virtue.
Having thus very hastily and imperfectly,
given you all the information possess in ref
erence to the inquiries Of your letter, conclude
with the high esteem and respect with which
am, Your friend,
THE CUBAN ExPEDITIoN.-According TO The
Washington correspondent of the New York
Tribu1e confidential aoenfs of the Cnhan ox.