Baltimore daily commercial. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1865-1867, 1865-10-12
Another Version of the Yancey.HiII En-.
counter.

we nave puDllSned the statement made by
the Nashville Banner concerning the cause of
the death of William L. Yancey. The other
side OF the case is given by the Richmond
Times, with some interesting bits of secret
history, as follows:
''Though we knew nothing of the last illness
of Mr.. 1ancey, nor Of the circumstances that
Immediately preceded his death. our informa-
ton III relation to the affair in the Senate
chamber. to which he aludes, is sufficient to
authorize us i'll declaring his version of the
occurrence to be incorrect in every particular.
with the conviction upon us that we shall
make story Of less thrilling tragic interest.
we shall lay before our readers the main facts
OF the affair, for the authority of which we
are, from personal knowledge, willing to
youch.
during the session of 1868, the ConScript
bill, which was TO put into the army all white
residents between the ages of eighteen and
torty-hve years, chiefly engaged the attention
of the Confederate Congress. Mr.. Yancev
| had opposed the conScript of 1862, upon the
ground of It's unconshtutionality, contending
that the constitutional mode of raising troops
was by requlsltion of the President upon the
governors OF the several States: but when the
subject came up in the Senate in 1868, he de-
clared that, after patient and thorough nyrs-
error, and became convinced that Congress
had authority to raise troops by conscription
Mr.. Hill followed Mr. Yancey in the discus
SION. There was bad feeling between them.
engendered during the debate of the same
question IN 1862, and it now blazed ont afresh
| In the course of his remarks, Mr.. Hill tainted
Mr.. fancey with his inconsistency and ter
giversation. Mr. Yancey, throwing into his
| manner and tone an expression of the most
concentrated rage, disgust and contempt, ut
tered the monosyable "Pishtl''
The Senate occupied the north room on the
second floor Of the Capitol, in which the mill
! tary commission now sits. Mr.. Yancey was
IN his seat near the western window; Mr. Hill
was standing near his scat in front of the
President S chair. As the offensive sentence
was uttered the latter stopped in the middle of
a sentence, his face crimsoned. and he shot
an angry glance at his adversary, who met it
with a steady look of defiance; but instantly
recovering. himself he resumed his remarks as
J if nothing had occurred. When he concluded
the Senate resolved into secret session, and
| the lobby and reporters seats were cleared.
! After a brief secret session the Senate ad-
Journed. As Mr.. 1aneey passed Mr.. Hills
| seat on the way to the door an angry word or
two were exchanged, and Mr.. Yancey received
severe blow his left cheek, which. how
ever, did not knock him down. Senators in
| terposed and separated the combatants. The
matter was kept quiet, and few persons in
| the city, except the members and officers of
| the Senate, ever heard of the occurrence
| Immediately after the adjournment Of the
Senate the journal clerk called on the re
porters of the city newspapers, and prevailed
| upon them to suppress the debate. Three
days aiterward Mr.. lancey appeared in his
seat with black eye, but in other respects
looking in his usual health.
| 'More than month subsequently, when all
| traces of the recontre had disappeared from
his person, and the angry debate had quite
| passed out OF mems minds, he. one dav, being
| evidently in superb mental and physical comd-
| ton, rose IN his seat to Il personal eXplana-
| ton, and replied to Mr. Hills attack upon
him in a studied, bitter phllippic of over two
hours length. His remarks We're almost en-
tirely personal, but there was nothing of tenn
per apparent i'll his manner, which was calm,
cold and elegant. He analyzed his opponent
might display over an nanimate subject. Mr.
Hill had the reputation, whether deserved or
not we do not decide, of a want of fixedness in
his convictions and opinions. Mr.. Yancey
compared him at length to the little joker of
the thimble rgger, so difficult, he declared, was
it to tell where really he was.
''The survivor of these two gentlemen will
doubtless be amazed to learn that he is man
OF wonderful muscular Development Mr.
Hill is between thirty-tive and forty years OF
age, is about six feet one inch in height, with
much more bone than muscle, and will weigh
about one hundred and fifty pounds. Mr..
4ancey was perhaps an inch less in stature,
but of full habit, and weighed between one
hundred and sixty and one hundred and sew
enty pounds. At the time of the difficulty
Mr.. Yancy must have been fifty years of age.
When his death was announced in Richmond
twelve months or more after the rencontre in
spoken of in connection, and were never, we
believe, thought of as cause and consequence,
except by the writer in the Nashville RepubH.
can Banner"