The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1872-04-05

: An Old Mans R0mance-JOhn Tyler
Interesting "reminiscences by Henri
A. Wise-An Old Mans Love Mattel
that turned out Happily.
1t is generally held that there is very
little of the romantics element in fhe
American Presidency, and not without
reason, for men enter the Presidential
Office so late in life that they have be-
come as matter-Offact as soap-suds
and saleratns but ex- Governor Wise,
of Virginia, in his recently published
volume "Seven Decades of the Union''
which well deserves reading-giyes
an account OF President Tyier's second
marriage that is very entertaining.
Mr.. Tyler became widOwer while he
was President, losing a wife who was
a very noble woman, member of the
well-known family of Christian, in the
Old Dominion. He was q domestic
meu, and pure man, and q second
marriage is the most natural thing in
the world when a man has been happy
| in a first marriage; but then it is
thought that y widOwer should marry
lady of experience not unlike his
own. Mr.. Wise says that he was in
Mr.. Tyler's coach taking drive with
him, in March, 1874, when he soon
discovered that his friend would talk
only of love and ladies. We had
always sheard,n said Mr.. Wise, that
an Old.fool is:the worst of fools in
love sickness, and he showed the
usual signs of its contortiOns into
hideous shapes of seeming. He
got it out at last that he thought
of marriage, and wanted to know our
opinion on the subject. well, of
course, you have sought and found
some hOnored dame of dignity, who |
can bring grace to the White House
and add to your domestic comfort /?
oh, no dame, but sweet damsel.'
Who, pray, of damsel degree could |
or should an old President VIM He
told us; and we uttered establishment
by asking, Have you really won her?'
He replied, Yes; and why should /
not? We answered that he was two
far advanced in life to be imprudent in
a lOve-scrape. How imprudent?' p he
asked. Easily; you are not only
past the middle age, (he was then
fifty-four), but you are President of
the United States, and that is a
dazzling dignity, which may charm
the damsel more than the man she
marries.' Pooh y he cried chuckling,
Why, my dear sir, l am just full in
my primev 'Ah, but has John Y.
Mason never told you about an old
friend of his, on the south side of the
James, rich and full of acres, calling
his African waiter, TOney, into
council upon the tender topic of mar
rying miss in her teens Tony shook
his head and said, Massa, you think
you can stand dat? Yes, TOneyE
why not? She Is so sweet, so beauti-
full, that she would make me rise from
q bed of illness and weakness to WOO
her for a bride; but am yet strong.
and I can now, as well as ever |
could, make her happy H.'Yes; but,
said Toney, you is now in
your prime, dat's true; but when she
is in her prime, where den, massa,
will your prime be?' He laughed
heartily at Tcney's philosophical OBJ
servation, but afterward, in serious
ness, said that he longed for the
renew wal of bis domestic life, and had
been fairly caught by the fame of
Miss Gardiner. We demonstrated that
his life was renewed in his children
that he had daughters, lovely
full of grace, fit to do the
honors of the White House, and some
Of them were the elders OF his in
tended. What if family dissent should !
make domestic jars, and his days be .
He had, he said, always
been too tender to the pledges of his
past love for them ever to withhold ,
from him their filial confidence, or
deny to him the parental authority to
Judge and act for his own happiness!
We saw the game was up, and
then said: We see you are bent I
upon your last love, with or without ,
and you have ever been too
lucky for US now to doubt or distrust ,
your fate. You are going to marry the |
iamsel, and we are not foolish enough
% make two enemies by opposing the ,
passion of the woer and won.'" The |
took place on the Goth of
June, 1914, President Tyier being {
hen in his fiiity-fifth year, and the
bride Miss Julia Gardiner, about ]
,wenty, and whom we remember
being much spoken of as a beautiful
girl, and Washington belle of those
ong-gon days. She was a New
York lady, of good family, as the 1
phrase is, and descended, we have /
heard, from old Lyon Gardiner, who /
1Ourished in the colonial age, and I
who gave bis name 10 Gar1iner's Bay :
md Gardeners Island, no and in Long j
Island Sound. The marriage proved /
, very happy one, and Mrs. Tyler, {
who has survived her husband more :
han ten years, is not old. Mr.. Tyler, !
'ofne years after the marriage, said to
Mr.. Wise, when the latter noted that |
lis friend kept a" double seated, four {
wicker carriage for small
"Yes, you see how right I
was; it was no vain gbeast when L 8
old you was in my prime. have !
,ouse full of goodly babies budding !
sround me, and if you will go up with {
ne to Sherwood, / will show you how I
and rapidly 1 have been I
blessed. They are all 80 near in age .
hat they are like stairsteps, and the
wo youngest are so much babies alike $
hat each requires the nurses coach, c
.Id we. have to have one with two 8
eats!" So that marriage turned out .
veil, despite the fact that the gentle |
nan was old enough to be the lady's !
and we are glad Of 1t, for [
Mr.. Tyler had 90 much Injustice done {
lin as public man that he was en- {
tiled to compensation in his private /