The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1865-12-01

sold HickOry''--An,In Interesting His
tOrleaI "Reminiscences.
4 y .FFohI 6te Jackson, AfSsissfppt Eeibs.l q
All Americans are. familiar with this
soubriquet Of General jackson;
yet very few know how it was earned
by theold hero. / happen to be ableto
inform your readers, s5e'i7s y -l'st-.E5
j In 1896 / was intimately acquainted
with Colonel Ohm Allen, United States
agent ofthe ChiekaSaw Indians, resid-
ing IN POntotoC, and with his brother,
Captain William A Alle1, then merchant
in that.town. Ilearned from Captain
l.Wtlliam Allen that his father was "a
near neighbor and devoted friend Jof
General Jackson, and that he and his
brother John served as soldiers in his
tescort, in all his campaigns, and cam ped
at theisame fire, and messed Jvithshim
during the Creek war, They were
certainly great favorites with him; and
he rewarded them for their friendship
nyl glXlng them lucrative appointments
IN The Chtchsaw nation while he was
ISHresldentGI In conversation with Cap
tain Allen about General Jackson, on
| one occasion, 4 I asked how he acquired
the name of ''Old Hickory ~ 1 give his
reply, as well as can remember, inhis
own words:
"During the campaign which included
the battle of Emuckfaw Greek; the army
was moving rapidly to surprise the
Indians, and we were without tents. In
the month of March, q cold eQuinoctial
rain fell on u.s. mingled with sleet,
(which lasted several days. The General
was exposed to the weather, and was
suffering severely with u bad cold and
sore throat. Alright We bivouacked in
a muddy bottom, while Il was pouring
down rain, which frozB asit fell. NV
brother John and ], finding thRthe was
unWe!l, became uneasy about him, al
though he did5not complain, and laid
down upon the blanket by the camp
hre with his soldiers. Seeing him wet
to the skin, stretched in the mud and
water In his suffering condition, we
Undermined to try and make him more
comfortable. g7s1tI 90 asIla .3Hhs
tt We cut down stout hickory tree, in
Which the sap was rising, and peeled
the bark from it in large flakes; cut two
forks and a pole, laid down floor of
bark and dead leaves, and rooted it and
closed one side, or rather one end ofthe
structure, against the wind with bark,
and left the other OPEN Wethen dried
our blankets, and made him pallet in
the tent we had constructed. We woke
up the old General, and with some diff1-
Guilty persuaded him to crawl in. With
his saddle for pillow, wrapped in our
! dry blankets, and his feet to the fire he
| slept snugly and sonndly all night, well
cased in hickory bark
| THE next morning an old man from
the neighborhood came into camp with
tajug OF whisky, with which, aTtsr i'm
bibing quite freely himself, he gave us
all ttTeat,' as far as the liquor would go.
He seemed ITO be a 4kindhearted. iovfal
and patriotic old Fellow; a sort OF priyi-
legged character in his county, While
staggering about among the camp-fires,
full Offun and whiskey, he blundered
upon ourlittle hickory bark tent, which
Immediately arrested his attention.
After eyeing 1t for a momenth he exclaim-
ed: What sort of an outlandish Indian
tiXin' is this2' and gaveit kick which
tumbled down the queer old-looking
old hero in bark. As he struggled out
of the ruins, and looked fiercely around
for the author of the mischief the old
topper recognized him and exclaimed /:
Hello, Old Hickoryr come out of your
bark and join us in drink >"
"There was something so ludicrous
IN the whole scene, that respect for his
kpresence and rank could not restrain
our merriment. He very good hunlored-
lyjoiIied us in laughing at the mishap.
As, he rose up, and shook the bark from
him, we gave him a UiUd "Hurrahl for
Old Hickory" This was the first time
he ever heard those words, which were
afterYnrd shouted by the millions of
his countrymen whenever he appeared
among them. ard HGgglNgfi0E
!, 4 viii only add that Captain William
\ Allen of DAWSON County, Tennessee,
| who died in Pontotoc, in 1887, was dis
tinguished for courage, integrity and
strict veracity; and the above may be
regarded as true account of the origin
Of the nickname of General Andrew
Jackson. -a4lasfH