The Council Bluffs nonpareil. [volume] (Council Bluffs [Iowa]) 1857-1867, 1857-07-04

DR.. Fooec uf tbs Buffalo Commercial .id.
rertiser gives tho following account Of =
man Of leisure that he met IN South Ameri-
ca: t
When we were in South America there
was a man living there named Henry Grice.
He Was we'll rcAd, had very 6ne consersa-
,ional powers, =. clear and subtitle intellect,
and agreeable manners, ,-aualities that al
together would have adorned almost any
station: but he WAS, take him ali in all,
about the most irreolaimsble scoandrel we
ever had the pleasure of knowing. Never
did man sell himself to the devil more
cheaplv than he did. With his fnc facul-
ties, his culture sud acute perceptions, he
might have achieved fortune and high re-
nown in almost any pursuit. Ills library
was choice and he used it. His knowledge
of law entitled him to be called rcspecta-
BILE iurist. The defect was in his moral
character. lie was gross coward. We
had occasion once to thre,tcn to shoot
him, and ha shrunk away Ike scoursed
hound. He embezxled the money Of his
employers in Havana, and tied to the Main.
In Carshasena he married rich. beautiful
and pious woman. The resul, OF the union
was two or three children, when in fit
of passion he attempted to murder his wife,
by throttliag her. She succeeded in making
her escape, and went to the capitol. He
told us once tina, ais wife was to good for this
earth, she ought to be an angel in heaven.
Among his other pleasant accomplishments
was that of gambling. His skill, coolness
under any reverses. and general success was
almost providentiai. He had the faculty Of
sleeping almost at viii, and those who knew
him we'll regard him as doubly dangerous,
when roused from nap, he resumed his
game. one day early in March, there came
over from Popayan young gentleman who
had Just besn elected to Congress. He had
heard of Grice, and brought with him sixty
thousand dollars in gold. 4 few days after
his arrival he met Grlce ut dinner party.
Paropiato-we are not quite sure OF the
orthography--was proposed. II it played
with three dice that are thrown from the
hand on table. The betting soon became
heavy. In the course of two hours Grice
lost twenty thousand dollars. He then lay
down on a sofa and dropped asleep imme-
diately. After sleeping for an hour or
more he awakened and resumed his play.
Before he left the table he had won back
all his previous losses, and had received and
sent home by his steward the sixty thousand
dollars the enterprising young gentleman
from Popayan had brought to try his luck
with. The next day we had occasion to call
on Grce at his house. He was reclining on
sofa reading. In the course of she con-
versation he entered upon an animated dis
cussion Of the Platonic philosophy, and
showed us some new books he had just re-
ceve from New York, among which were
kent's and Story's Commentaries, Pres
colts Histories. &c. His house was full of
rare, beautiful and costly things, baskets of
jewels. pearls, diamonds, rubIcs, chains aud
vessels Of gold and ivory, the workmanship
of which far exceeded the valuc Of the ma
terial. He was then waiting his trial on u
charge involving forgery and perjury on his
part Of which he was subsequently y convict
ed