Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1875-05-13

|
circumstance Influenced the proprietors to
degrade West and elevate Joseph Morton.
Gro BE CONTINUED NEXT WEEK.
ANECDoTE OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN.
AS the President was passing through the
wards of hospital near Washington upon
one occasion, he observed in one of the BEDS 2
Young soldier whose pallid countenance and
expressionless, CLASSY eyes betokened great
physical and mental prostration, and ne IN
quired of the attending surgeon if there was
any prospect of his ultimate recovery.
'"Not the slightest" replied the doctor.
"His vital powers are rapidly ebbing away,
and will soon be exhausted '''''''
II am heartily sorry for the poor boy" said
Mr.. Lincoln, "aud I should like to do some
thing to make his last hours pass as comfort
ably as possible. Would there be any harm
in nv speaking to him?" added he. And
upon being assured there would not, he sat
down by the bedside, and taking the young
mans hand, in the kindest possible tone of
voice said, my young friend, am the Presi.
dent of the United States, and am informed
by the doctor that you cannot possibly live
but a short time. Now if there is any request
YOU would like to make in regard to your
family, it will afford me very great satisfac-
ton to comply with it. "T
The youth turned his dim eyes toward the
President but made no response until the
question was repeated, when, with great effort,
he succeeded in giving articulation to his
thanks, and expressed an earnest desire to see
his aged grandmother, who, he said, was then
living in Bangor, Maine. 7..' -. '7'"7"
The President, after assuring him that eve
ry effort should be made to crafty his wishes,
bade him kind adieu, and calling the medi-
cal officer aside, asked if there was any pros
pect of the young mans surviving until the
old lady could be telegraphed to and come to
Washington and he seemed good deal per.
picked on being told there was no hope OF
this but after moments reflection he said
the only expedient that occurred to him un'
de, the circumstances was the exercise OF
little of that harmless strategy which was al.
ways allowable in war times; that if he could
oniy find some old woman who would consent
to personate the grandmother, the boy was IN
such state of lethargy that he would not
probably detect the deception, and would die
with the consoling belief that he had received
the parting benediction Of his aged relative.
"That would certainly be a perfectly justi-
fable Device" replied the surgeon; "but
where will you find the elderly female to en-.
act the part of grandmother I?
"Let me see," soliloquized Mr.. Lincoln,
holding up his left hand while he enumerated
with the index finger of the right hand;
"there is old Mrs. B B-r, old Mrs. S *,
and old Mrs. Ms; they are all most be.
nevolent ladies, but am apprehensive they
could not be prevailed upon to undertake any,
thing which involved the faintest shadow OF
deception. No, no." continued he, "there is
no hope from that direction; but If l could
only induce my friend Gideon Welles to per-
senate the old lady, in suitable costume, the
object would be attained, and nobody harmed.
"But," remarked the Doctor, "Mr. Welless
long white beard would at once expose the
arti6ce"
"That all can be obviated by his wearing
night-cap, tied down so as to cover up the
beard" said the President Accordingly he
sat down at once and addressed note to the
Secretary of the Navy, begging him, as a spe-
cial favor, to comply with the request at as
early moment aS praCI1CaoAo, 90 '"o wy
hours we're numbered.
Now it happened when the Secretary re-
ceived this communication he was buslly en-
Gagged in official transactions, which, in his
opinion, we're of so much consequence that
thew could not be postponed for anything else,
and he replied that he entertained high ap-
probation of the honor conferred upon him
by the Presidents selecting him to perform
the chief role in the sad little drama indica-
ted but, unfortunately, he was at that very.
moment deeply absorbed in the solution OF
the difficult problem as to whether Noahs
ark or the new model gun'boat was best
adapted to the purposes of modern warfare
Editors Dra,oer, Harper's Magazine for Apr'I
"HA1n COLUMBIA -"Hail Columbia" is
said to have been composed under the clrcum'
stances as follows: In the year 1893, when
the patriotic feeling pervaded the country,
and when there were several parties in the
field, Mr.. Fox, young actor, called one
morning upon his friend, Mr.. Hopkinson, and
after stating that the following evening had
been appointed for his benefit, begged his
friend to do something in his behalf "lf,
said Fox, "you will write me some patnottlc;
verses to the tune of the presidents march,,
l feel sure of full house." Mr.. Hopklnson
in short time wrote the first verse and cho-
rus, which were submitted to Mrs. Hopkinson,
who sang them to a piano accompaniment, and
proyed the measure and music to be IN keeping.
In this way the second and other verses
were written. and when Mr.. Fox returned in
the evening he received with delight the song
as it now stands. The following morning,
the announcement was made that MIR. Fox
would sing new patriotic song The thea
tre was crowded the song was sung and re-
ceived with rapture; it was repeated eight
times and again encored, and when sung the
ninth time the whole audience stood up and
Joined in the chorus. Night after night "Hall
Columbia" cheered the visitors Of the theatre,
and in a very few days it was the universal
song of the boys in the streets from one end
of the city to another. Nor was the author
forgotten. The street in which he resided
was'on one occasion crowded, and "Hail 90
lumbia" broke on the stiffness Of the midnight
from 500 patriotic voices. .......
A LIFE THAT ENDED IN SMoKE.-lf the
lovers of the weed desire patron saint, they
ought to secure the canonization of deceased
bureher of Rotterdam, Chat is, if he was q
good Catholic,) who died a short time ago at
the age of eighty years. 1t is believed that
during his life he smoked more than four
tons Of tobacco, and drank more than five
hundred thousand quarts of beer. A few days
before his death, he made his will, in which,
among other provisions, be made the follow
inp ARRANGEMENTS for his own funeral: