Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1877-05-01

with his Willy opponent. Ever
then his voice had failed him, Sc
that his side of the debate had t
be read from the rostrum by his
amanuensis. When the war broke
ont he seemed to hesitate long which
side to take, but the old bitterness
between himself and the Democrat
about Knoxville broke out anew and
this seemed to be the turning point,
Squads of Confederate soldiers
straying from commands going on
to Virginia in the spring Of 1861
frequently visited his house to take
down a small Union flag that he
had planted over the door, but were
always deferred by the frmness,
and, we might say, ausacity of the
occupants. On one occasion his
young daughter stood with a cooked
pistol in her hand and dared them
to touch it. Admiring her beauty
and daring they quietly withdrew.
In the fall of 1861 Parson Brown
low took to the mountains Of Sewer
county, as times had become too hot
for him to remain at home. On an
assurance of personal safety from
Captain Monsarrat, Of this city,
then commanding the post, he
came in, but was instantly thrown
into prison by Ledbetter, Critten-
den, or some high officer, and
kept there some time. This was
during a reign of terror, which was
not the least mitigated when
Brownlow afterward came into
power. He was passed through the
lines finally, and lectured through
the North, and published a book
Sketches Of the Rise, Progress and
Downfall of Secession. This
had a wide circulation North. In
1854 he returned to Tennessee, and
in 1865 was elected governor. His
administration was characterized
by intense bitterness toward for
mer opponents and enemies. 1t
was personal and partisan in the
extreme. All manner of violence
was countenanced or justified on
account of real and alleged excuses
committed by the Confederates.
All this has measurably passed
away, but it is a matter Of history.
In 1869 he was elected to the United
States senate by a Legislature which
for its servility he must have
regarded with inward contempt.
In the senate he never cut any
figure. His constitution, never
strong, was broken down by
the excitements and great strains
of the war, and for nearly
ten years he was a helpless para
lytic, but his mind was clear to the
last. He was true to his friends
and relentless toward his enemies.
He could express more vitupera.
tiveness and scorching hate than
any hall a dozen men that ever APP
psared in American politics. His
style has oeen initiated, bat never
successfully copied, by men of less
native intellect and courage. His
private life was an utter contradic.
ton of the nature he exhibited in
public. Socially he was genial and
sympathetic, in his family almost
idolized, and among his immediate
neighbors, especially the poor, he
was held in the highest esteem
The man was a strange compound.
and there are no more like linn
The style of journalism by which
he brought himself into notice and
became SO terrible to his enemie;
happily passed away before its au.
thor and is no longer tolerated By
an intelligent public. Whatever
his faults and the warp of his ma
ture he was honest, fearless an(
consistent in his way. For severa
years past he has not been able tx
speak above a whisper, and he ha.
been physically little more than
dead man. His candle burned
down through the very socket.
SHOW MANY eggs make
dozen?" This has become a seriou.
question in New York since tn