The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1877-09-03
AN INTERESTING BIT OF HIS
TORY.
Who Wrote the Article that Nearly
Made Lincoln a Duellistp
mau0 44AOVAn . 0uoA14Sb(
From the New York W6rls


From the New York WCrlG
1t was somewhere about the year 1910
that the writer, then a small boy, living in
q little village on the line Of the old state
road running from st. Louis to Indianapo-
lis, met one morning as he was going to
market one of the colored boys who had
been house servant of his fathers in the
state of Alabama seated upon a first class
carriage. l asked Hlram-for that was
his name--where he came from and where
he was going to. He replied, From
Springfield. sir, and am taking one of two
gentlemen down to Bloody Island to fight "
Bloody Island" is now known as East st.
Louis, and from 1920 till l847. under the
first constitution of Illinois, there were
perhaps not less than one hundred duels
fought thereon. 1t turned out that the
gentlemen who were to slaughter one an
other upon this bloody field were none less
than Abraham Lincoln, of BLACK Hawk"
fame, and the then Captain Paddy Shields,
who had seen service in the British army.
Aud here let me say that it was because
they stopped for breakfast at our little viii
lage that perhaps Lincoln was spared and
saved to make for himself such grand
and glorious name throughout the world as
he afterward did, and that Shields became
true and honored soldier, not only in the
Mexican, but in the war to preserve the
Union, for the circuit court was then In
session for that county, and in attendance
were some of the leading lawyers of the
district, among whom were Lincoln's and
Shields personal and political friends, and
as soon as it was noised about-as it was
Immediately after breakfast-that they
had gone to ''Bloody Island" to fight, then
it was that Stephen A. Douglas-who was
at the time prosecuting attorney for our
district-R. W. English, our member OF
assembly, and A. W. Cavalry, our senator,
all three of whom were warm political
friends of Captain Shields; Colonel John
| j. Hardin, afterward killed at Buena
Vista. and Colonel Edwin d. Baker, killed
at Balls Bluff, friends of Lincoln. started
in hot pursuit to overtake the duellists. In
this they did not succeed until they reached
the ground upon which the fight was to
take place. Upon their arrival they found
both Lincoln and Shields ready for the
combat. They soon succeeded in inducing
Shields to withdraw the challenge for five
minutes, In order that Lincoln might make
an explanation, ana SnOulu IOlS De SatlS
factory to Shields, he (Shields) should mo-
10 future attempt to find out or discover
who might have been the author of the
newspaper article from which the trouble
arose. As soon as Captain Shields with
drew the challenge, Mr.. Lincoln at onct
assured him, on his honor as a man, tina
he had never seen or heard of the article
| in question until he read the same in tn,
morning paper, and that he was in no sens
responsible for the same, but had simpl
espoused the authorship to protect tn
good name of most estimable young gil
in Springfield. This settled what Nigh
have terminated in a bloody affair. Tn
would be combatan'S shook hands an
were ever afterward good friends Blu
for years the quest;o- vas, Who wrote tn
article? 1t is nov an open secret j
Springfield. 1t see that Miss Jayne
who had recently graduated from Mont
cello Seminary, and who was quite bell
at the capital, had three young lawyers a
her admirers. Mr.. Lincoln was one an,
Captain Shields was another, and she hat
written the article v hich the Irish soldle
thought was a reflection upon himself, 70
he, be it known, was a very vain man an
considered himself handsome. Neithe
Shields nor Lincoln married the girl, bu
she became the loving and honored wife {
Lyman Trumbull.