The Carolina Spartan. [volume] (Spartanburg, S.C.) 1852-1896, 1856-04-17

man whose character you have drawn so
well. While truly deplore hi. fate, may
be permitted to indulge hope that It may
have some tendency to cast odium OH a
practice which deserves every censure you
have bestowed upon it. You have men.
toned two facts Of WHICH had never heard.
The one is the part he took in producing
the commercial meeting st Baltimore
which preceded ibe convention at Phia.
delphis; the other, which is in1sed cbasac-
terl>tic of Gen. Hamilton. is his resignation
"tthe em"uments his milil..ry services gave
him right to claim"
1t may be known 10 some OF our read
ers that DR.. Mason was originally selected
as the most competent person to prepare n
suitable biography of Gen Hamilton. lie
accepted the task, and in his hands il
would have been n labor cf love to do JUS.
tice to the pre-eminent abilities and virtues
OF his illustrious friend. In pursuance of
this object he spent much time throughout
a series OF years in collecting materials and
verifying historical memoranda relative to
the subject OF his proposed memoir. His
idea OF what such work should be may
be gathered from the following extracts
~
February 81, 1908:
'By The desire of his widow, and with
the appreciation ofhis most intimate friends,
l have venturcd upon the arduous task of
! writing the life Of Gen Hamilton. | feel
what boldness there IS in such an attempt,
and am not insensile 20 the immense dis
parity between the powers Of ll,a, tran
scendant man and his biograrhQr. That
the work shall hc what every one who had
the happiness Of his acquaintance would
wisl, ii To be. perfect portrait OF himself,
| am fur from the vanity Of supposing Nor
can it be nationally expected. as it woulI
require second Hamilton. De.
sirous of diScharging the duties of my en-
gagemcnt IN manner rs satisfactory and
honorable a> possible, have rcs lived and
stipulated iha, no restrict on Shall he laid
upon me with respect To time. The noaum
premdf"r an annum is a prrcept NO, Ia be
dispensed with 10y works which are TO have
either grea, utility or permanent repu,a.
ton"
1t was not until about ten years after
having undertaken the task that DIR. Mason
found himself compelled to relinquish il
from impaired health. And Dir. Van
Nechtcn. in making this statement, express
es the assurance that lit would have sooth-
cd his g'icf. if he could have anticipated
what ample justice would II, length be
done to the character Of his friend
rs well rs his friends assaian;s.' 1t ha,
been cI"Quenily said that distinguished
merit will ever rise superior 10 oppression
and draw lustre from icpInach. Just as the
rapors which gather around the ri>;n" sun
and follow it in its course seldom f,il at
the close of ;lIat course Ia furm marnl
cent theatre for lis reception, and to invest
with varirgated lin,s and with suftcnNl
eftul,encc The luminaIy which they can
| not hide. The sun Of Hamilton went down
while it WAS vet noon, and amid scenes of
tragic ASPECT; but the dense clouds of po
lticnl lctraciion which ftr time o,Scuicl
its rays have melted into tlin and serene
air, now that an admiring po>lerity has
assigned him his appropriate rank as u star
OF the first magnitude in the galaxy OF
American worthless. So ancient patriotism
transferred TO the heavens the name and
place of those who by their vaIor or their
! genius had illustrated the age in which they
! lived. Sic itHr ad 0Strd.
! few months ago we published bv re
/ quest IN account ,fthe last hours Of Aaron
Burr, rs recently given 10y a venerable clcr
| gyuan Of New York, who miuiS,crcd 10
him the consultations of religion, and who
still survives. We have thought it would
not he unacceptable 10 many readers il we
now reproduce the following letter uf DIR.
Mason, in which he recites he particulars
Of his interview with Gen. Hamilton ON
! the day previous to his decc;,Se, as every
memorial of that great man possesses his.
torical value:
New foRK, JuLY Is, 1904.
! To the Editor Of the Commercial .1dcerH
SCI:
SIR: Having read in your paper Of the
10th very imperfect account of my cou-
versalion with Gen. Hamilton the day nre.
vious TO his decease, judge it my duly Ia
lay the following narrative before the puLlic:
On the morning of "Wednesday. the ! Tia
instant. shortly after the rumor oi the Gene.
ral's injmy had created nn amrn in the
city, note from DIR. Post Informed me tina,
"he WAS extremely i'll ut Mr. William BAY.
ards, and expressed u particular desire tu
see me rs soon as possible" went imme.
iaIcIy. The exchange Of melancholy sale
talionS on entering tic Generals apart.
ment was succeeded by Il silence which
he broke by saying that hc bad been
! anxious TO see mennd have the sacrament
administered TO him, and that this was
still his wish. replied that "it gave me
unutierabe pain TO receive from him any
request TO which could not acccde; tha.
IN tho present instance compliance WAS
| incompatible with all my obligations as i,
| Is n principle in our churches never To ad
minister the Lords supper privately TO any
/ person under any circumstances. He urged
me no further. then remarked TO him
that ''the holy communion IS an exhibition
and pledge Of the mercies which the Son
oil God has purchased; that the absence ol
the sign does not exclude from the mercies
signlhed, which were accessible 10 him by