The Davenport gazette. [volume] (Davenport, Scott Co., Iowa) 1841-185?, 1854-02-23
American Travel

The late celebrated Mr.. Clay was man
of grea; resolution and considerable daring.
He once told the following anecdote to a
friend of ours. Travelling. in South East
ern State, he found himself in the company
Of three other persons. consisting of young
lady and gentleman, her husband, and of an
individual muf1ed up in a cloak, whose
countenance was concea led, and who ap-
pcared TO be indulging in tete-a-tete with
Morpheus Suddenly big, brawny Ken
ti.ckan got into the coach smoking cigar,
and frowned iiercely around, as much as 10
say, ''I'm half horse, half alligator; the yal-
| Ter flower of the forest, 'all birthstone but
the head and ears, and that's aquufortis. -
F.. In fact, he looked as savage as meat-aye
and putfed forth huge volumes of smoke,
Will out reference to the company within,
Especially ofthe lady, who manifested GER.
tain timid symptoms Of annoyance. Pres
emily, after some whispering, the gentle
man with her, in the poitest accents. re-
quested the stranger not to smoke, as j,
annoyed his companion. The fellow an
/ swcred, IL reckon I've paid my place. III
smoke as nuth as | darn please and all
hell sha'nt stop me no how" With thai
he looked dangerous, rolled his eyes round
as fiercely as rattlesnake. 1t was evi.
dent he had no objection to a quarrel. and
| that if it occurred it was likely to lead to a
deadly struggle. The young man who had
spoken to him shrunk back and was silent.
Clay felt his gallantry aroused. He consid
creditor moment whether he should inter-
fere, but experienced natural reluctance to
draw upon himself the brutal violence Of
hi. sIvn In hot lou .laSc
country, he knew his life might be sacrificed
unavenged. He knew himself physically
unequal to the contest, and he thought, af-
ter all, it was not his business Quixoti-
cally to take up another mans quarrel
Feeling pity for the insulted and disgust to-
ward the insulter, he determined to take nc
notice; when, very quietly indeed, the cloak
ed figure in the corner assumed an up
right position, and the mantle was suffered
to fall fronsit without effort or excitement
The small but sinewey frame of man,
plainly dressed in tightly buttoned frock
coat, with nothing remarkable about his APP
pearance, was seen, and pair of bright
gray eyes sought the fierce optics of the fe-
rocious Kentuckian. Without word, this
clay figure" passed his hand under his col
lar at the back Of his neck, and slowly and
deliberately pulled forth long--extreme-
y long-and glittering knife from its sheath
in that singular place. stranger" he
said, "my name is Colonel James Bowie,
well known in Arkansas and Louisiana, and
if you don't put that cigar out of the win
dow in quarter of minute, I'll put this
knife through your bowels. as sure as
death" Clay said he never forgot in after
life the expression of the Colonel's eyes at
that moment. The predominentinpression
made upon him was the certainty of the
threat being fulfilled, and apparently the
same conviction impressed itself ere long
upon the offender. During two or three
seconds his eyes met that of Bowie. He
was the weaker, and he quailed. With
curse, he tore the cigar from between his
teeth, and flung it, scowling, but downcast,
out Of the coach window. Upon this,
Colonel james Bowie as deliberately re-
placed his long knife in its eccentric hi
ding place, and, without saying a word to
any one else, or even vouchsating glance
at any one. refolded his cloak around him,
and did not utter another syllable to the
end of the journey.--.Ne1 Orleans Reuier
for January.