The Union and journal. [volume] (Biddeford, Me.) 1858-1882, 1864-01-30
Sflistellalleous.
(From tire Atlantic Monthly for December9
THE MAN WITHOUT A COUNTRY

suppose that very few casual readers Of the
New York Herald Of August 18th, observed, In
an obscure corner, among the deaths" the
announcement:
'CNoLAy. DIED, on board U. s. Corvette Loyant
Lat II g., Long. i3l w ,on tho iith OF May, PHIL
~ NOLAN"
l happened to observe II, because ! was
stranded at the old Mission House In Mack,nae,
waiting for Lake Superior steamer which did
not choose to come, and was devouring, to
the very stubble. all the current literature
could get hold Of, even down to the deaths and
marriages in the Herald. My memory for
names and people Is good, and the reader will
see, rs he goes on, that had reason enough to
remember Philip Nolan. There are hundreds
Of readers who would have paused ut that an
nouncement, II the officer Of tho Levant who re-
ported II had chosen to make 1t thus: "Oied,
May llth, Til. MAN WITHOUT CoUSrRr."-
For it was rs "The Man without Country"
that poor Philip Nolan had generally been
known by the officers who had him In charge
during some fifty years, as. indeed. BY oil the
men who sailed under them. dare say there
Is many man who has taken wine with him
once fortnight, in three years cruise, who
never knew that his name was "Nolan," or
whether the poor wretch had any name mt all
There can now be no possible harm in telling
this poor creatures story. Reason enough
there has been till now, ever since Madison s
Administration went out In 1917, for very
strict secrecy, the secrecy ofhonor itself, among
the gentlemen Of the navy who have had Nolan
In successive charge. And certainly 1t speaks
well tor the esprit de corps ofthc profession and
the personal honor Of its members, that to the
press this mans story has been wholly un-
known, and, think, to the country at large
also. have reason to think, from some invcs-
LEGATIONS made in the Naval Archives when I
was attached to the Bureau Of Construction,
that every Official report relating to him was
burned when Ross burned the public buildings
Mt Washington. One OF the fuckers, or posi-.
bly, one of the Watsons, had Nolan in charge at
the end of the war and when. on returning
frvm his cruise, he reported at Washington to
one of the Ciowninshields. who was in the
Navy Department when he came home, ,-he
found that the Department ignored the whole
business. Whether they really knew nothing
about it, or whetherit was a" Non mi ricordo," !"
determined on rs q piece Of policy, do not
know. But this do know, that since 1917,
aud possibly before. no naval officer has men,
toned Nolan in his report of cruise.
But, rs say, there Is no need for secrecy any
longer. And now the poor creature is dead, 1t
seems to me worth while TO tell little of his
story, by way OF showing young Americans Of
to-day what 1t is to be
MAN WITHOUT A COUNTRY.
Philip Nolan was rs fine young officer as
there was in the Legion Of the West" ms tho
Western division Of our army was then called.
When Aaron Burr made his first dashing cxpe-
dition down to New Orleans In 1905, at Fort
Massac, or somewhere above on tho river, he
met, as the Devil would have il, this gay, dash
ing. bright young fellow, at some dinner. party,
l think. Burr marked him, talked to him,
walked with him, took him a day or two's voy-
ace in his fiat boat, and, In short, fascinated
him. For the next year, barrack. life was very
tame to poor Nolan. He occasionally availed
of the permission the great man had given him
to write to him. Long. high-worded. stilted
letters the poor boy wrote aud rc-wrote and
copied. But mover n line did he have in reply
from the gay deceiver. The other boys in the
garrison sncered at him, because he sacrificed
In this unrcquited affection for politician the
time which they devoted 10 Monongahela,
sledge, and high low jack, Bourbon, euchre,
and poker were still unknown. But one day
Nolan had his revenge. This time Burr came
down the river, not as On attorney seeking
place for his office. but ~ disguised conquer
or. He had defeated know not how many dis
trict attorneys hs had dined at know not
how many public dinners; he had been herald
cd in know not how many Weekly Arguses !:
and Il was rumored that he had an army behind
him and an empire before him. 1t was great
day-his arriyal-to poor Nolan. Burr had
not been nj the fort On hour before he sent for
him. That evening he asked Nolan TO take him
ont in his skih, to show him cane:br or
cotton Wood tree, a. be said, really TO seducs