The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1861-02-27
Early History Of n Traitor.
A COLLEGE "REMINISCENCES.

~ b ! = 4. b H il Il
The class ofls2o, in Yale College, (tw'
years in advances. of mine.) was the fines
body of yonng men that lever saw in Col
leye. Prominent in it were Elijah II. Mills
(son OF Daniel Webster's immediate prede
cessor in the United States Senate,) .faciI
princsps bat dying very young; II H,nry A
Boarlman, D. d. joseph Elirids se, D. D.
Edwin r. Gilbert, d. d.. Jarnes W. Nc
Lane, D. D.; Daniel Ulm,nn, Francis Gillette
Qate Senatorin Congress,) T. Adm spence
(latc Representative in Con yress, AMI many
other men of mark. ,. @
There was one Of the class whose name
cay not b, found on tn, list Of graduetes, o,
on any annual catalogue after 1927. III
was and still is handsome little fellow, look
ing very small in his class, who, with few
exceptions, were of full manly growth Thi:
youth hailed from great State the "chiv
alsous sunny South" bright eyed, dark.
complexione1, and "ardant as a Southern
sun could make him"
In the early part of1S2s, there was nys
terious trouble in that class. Watches, breast
pms, seals, p,ncil-cases, pen.knives, jack,
knives, two -bladed klive :, four -bladei knives
etc, etc, AMI lastly, sunlry sums of money,
''lying around loose" in stulent's rooms,
disappeared unacsountably. The loosers
looked gloonily at each other, and Suspicious.
ly at others Something must be done =
They finally constitute themsel YES vorln.
teer objective force" set their tap -baited
with thirty five dollars in good bank n,t,s,
an1 soo1 ctuyht the thief He confessed
On opening his trln't in his presence, they
found it nearly full of missing valu,b'es--
jewelry, pocket cutlery and horlogery enough
to. stock a Chatham street stor, lie begged
ptifully n)t to b, exposed +; they boxed
piteouSly at his hand 1sone young face, anil
relentcd at the thought Of blasting his open.
ing lif, He had been a universal favorita
the pet Of his class 50 they agreed not to
inform either the city ma q ,trats or the Fac.
ulty of the University, but ordered him tc
"clelr OUT at one, AMI forever. He went
instantly to good President Day, obtained a
certificate Of honorable disrnission, and van.
ished. .. .r r... .-x. .-.,...- ..
That little thief is now Senator in Con
gresS, advocating, and justfying, and threat.
ening the robbery of forts, and the stealing
of the military cutlery and har lware gene.
rally, of the Fedora! Government, without
any more color or shadow of pretext than he
had for his like operations on his fellow stu
dents just thirty three years ago. A third
of a century has not made, and can never
make, any change in such an originally born
rascal
Had those early filchings been mere
thoughtless, boyish escapad,, a momentary
yielding to temptation while in great want,
they would not deserve mention now bat
they were systematized then-lons contin.
ued, accumulated, and boarded plferings
f:on trusted bosom rriend.'. as.s.f ra..s.f
HI the fc,i1w ao1st i1agl,l cepr,iuce
ais Pirate m2rlity public life, | would
have allowed the secret Of his early crimes tc
remain in. the hearts OF the few who then
knew and now remember it.
. @at ID. FRANcIs BACON.
N. Y. IdeDenAept