Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1874-01-15
Death in the Eve.

~
many desperate deed. He
possessed such incredible skill
in the use Of all sorts of murder.
ous weapons, that it might be
pronounced virtual suicide tc
even think of encountering his
mortal aim. The terrible cog
'nOmen "death in the eve" told
truly the mark at which he al
ways fired-a mark he had new
er once missed-whilc such was
his astonishing quickness that
has antagonists usually fell ere
they pulled a trigger. An enc
my stood no better chance by
resorting 10 the sword or the
bowle-knlfe, against one in
whose hands the flash Of steel
was like lightning-as swift, as
mighty to slay-One who APP
Ipeared to surpass all other men
as much in strength as in activi-
! ty-a giant in stature, Il fiend in
courage. His biography in it.
selfwas more thrilling than a
novel, wilder than the widest
romance; and the very first act
of his dreadful daring revealed
i'll all their force and fullness,
the two essential elements of
his characteristic fcrocious az
dor Of his appetite for revenge,
and the iron pcrtinacity of his
indomitablc will. At the age
Of twenty he pursued the assas-
! sin Of his brother all the way
from Carolina TO Canada, and
shot him dead at the dinner ta-
bic Of a tavern i'll Quebec; yet
such had been the cunning Of
his previous arrangements for
The event, he effected his escape
safely to the South. The a.
chievement cost him ten thou
sand dollars.
From this time forward, his
life was one long war. Almost
every month in the year saw
him engaged in some fatal duel
fatal only to others, never hurt
ful to him-whilc each week
witnessed the occurrence Of casu-
al affrays. often as bloody as his
more regular combats. He was
the Napoleon Of the knife and
pistol, But the truth Of impair
. ;,ial history compcls us to record,
that this man, so fearful Of his
deeds, whose arm rocked with
gore to the elbow, was not
commonly the aggressor in his
countless quarrels. Often the
friends Of those he had vanished
in fair fight assailed him, from
motives ofrevenge. The fame
Of his prowess provoked the
vain jealousy of Others He
had acquired the perilous repu-
tation of a matchless hero-the
ardent, the desperate, the ambi-
tious would win, if possible,
his laurels. Every young Hercu-
les longed to kill the lion, so as to
clothe himself in his skin, and thus
was Borlin forced to maintain an
interminable war. 1t is SO in all
professions. There can be no
peace in high places-stOrm, hail
and thunder must break around
the mountains brow. s.a--
This duelist was one of the
earliest in eastern Texas, where he
became the chief of the Lynch
ing party. In his own county
of Harrison, he possessed bound
less influence; indeed, he would
not suffer foe to reside within
its limits. Hence he might have
openly defed the officers of the
law, had such been his pleasure;
but his shrewd and far-seeing sa
gacity adopted wiser and safer
course. After perpetrating any
homicide, he invariably submitted
his own case to the Grand Jury,
sure of triumphal acqui tai by
his friends on trial; and thus should
public sentiment ever turn against
him in the future, he would be en-.
abled to plead effectual verdicts
in bar of all past offences.
At length the time arrived
which the Colonel had so long an
ticipated. A wealthy and intelli-
gent class of citizens began to
change the current of opinion in
Harrison, SO that in the county
election the friends of order, by a
slight majority, gained their can
didate for sheriff. This was a
terrible blow to the Lyuehers, as
it deprived them of their secure
vantage ground in packing juries;
and TO increase their danger, at
this unpropitious eris;s, a new