Fayette County herald. [volume] (Washington [Washington Court House], Fayette County, O. [Ohio]) 1860-1???, 1879-02-13

your island New York; in broad day
light, the combatants take their stand on
each side of the ominOus monument, and
before the Inhabitants can reach the spot
the mischief is done.'' The monument
was taken down to remove such tempta-
tions
That anything funny should ever take
It's rise from so ghastly a tragedy seems
impossible, yet such is actually the case.
In BQrr's own "reminiscences a couple of
incidents are noted which show how far
the popular burlesque of the most serious
matter can go.
In 1919, after his return from his long
period of European exile, Burr received
the following communication, which in
lvestigation proved to be a forgery:
'EAARoN BURR-Sir: Please to meetme
with the weapon you chose on the Is of
May, where you murdered my father, at
one O'Clock with your seconds May 1913.
j. A. HAAuLToN.''
On another occasion, while travelling in
the interior of the State, he once came
upon "wax-work show' whose chef
d'9uUre was an execrably modelled group
representing himself and Hamilton in the
act of firing, and explained by the follow
ing doggerel:
so Burr o Burr! What hast thou doneq
Yn0q Tn0 Ing hsg sR2S5 shG0ted dead great Hamilton
Ana shooted him dead with a great hOrse-pistol."
Previous to the Burr-Hamilton affair
occurred one of the most determined and
diabolical encounters which stain our an
nails. The heroes of it were Captain
Thompson, Harbor- master of the Port of
New York, and William Coleman, the
editor of the Morning Chronicle. The
quarrel, as usual, was politico-personal
one.
The parties metin the twilight of a Bit
ter winter evening in lonely Love Lane,
now University Place. 1t was so dark
that they could barely distinguish one
another, and after the first fire they moved
closer together in order to take definite
aim. At the third fire Thompson cried
GIVE got itl'' and fell face down in the
snow.
His hurt was mortal. He was brought
to his sisters house in town. laid on the
doorstep and the bell rung. The family
came out to find him almost at the last
gasp. He refused to divulge the name Of
his antagonist, saying he had come to his
wound 'ffairly," {" and it was not until long
after his sdeath that Coleman's agency in
the affair became known.
In 1916 Major Greene, of the British
army, shot Benjamin Price, a grocer, for
resenting an insult to lady at a theater.
Some years later Captain Wilson, on his
way from England to Canada, boasted
over dinner table in New York that he
had been mainly instrumental in bring
ing about the duel in which Price had
lost his life. The dead mans brother
Stephen heard of this. He was at the
time laid up with the gout; but he paid
} such Difference to the orders of his ply
: sician that he was soon able to hobbIe
out. He sought Captain Wilson at his
hotel at once.
''My name is Stephen Price, he said.
ss-You see that can scarcely put one foot
:, before the other. am afflicted with the
J gout. My object in coming here is to in
! suit you. Shall have to knock you down,
or will you consider what I have said suf-
ficient insult, and act accordingly.
, The Captain acted accordingly, and the
: avenging brother shot him dead on Bed
: 1oe's Island two days after.
: During the Mediterranean cruise of the
E Java in 1816-17, the ssHero of Lake Erie''
, insulted and struck Captain Heath, of the
t Marine Corps, while drunk. After the
return of the Java to the United States,
: Heath obtained an exchange into another
vessel, and sent his former commander a
s cartel. They met at Weehawken on Oc-
| 4oh l,s
e together; Perry fired in the air. In less
than two years his second, Steven Deca-
r tur, fell in an encounter with Commodore
Barron at Bladensburg.
The most significant of all the duels of
: New York remains, however, to be told
= 1t is singular evidence of the lengths to
d which a fear of public opinion can drive a
e man, even in direct opposition to his own
r beliefs and principles.
k In 1927 w. G. Graham, Associate Edi-
n tor of the Courier and Enquirer, in the heat
ofa personal dispute, struck his opponent
a son of DIR. Barton, of Philadelphia. A
a challenge and meeting soon followed
i Graham fell. Some days after, lettel
:. was found among his papers, of which tn,
o. most interesting extracts follow:
4, FsI have forced him. Graham wrote
: F'into the position of challenger, and by
a not doing what he has he would have
= blasted his character as a gentleman for
Il ever. In common justice I am bound thu
to absolve him from all suspicion of I'M
# becoming conduct respecting the chal
n lenge. The provocation, though slight
+. was still prOvocation which 1 could no
y overlook. 1t was out of the question fol
81 me to explain, retract or apologize.
Is Mr.. Barton is a talking man, who dwell
IS very complacently on his own skill as
/. marksman, ,on his experience as a duelist
if and on his accuracy as man of tone.
d pretended to none of these, and therefor
impose the inf1exibIe obstinacy. Afte
IS he is perfectly satisfied 1 may perhap
II apologize-that is, if am fatally wound
t. ed. 1t is needless for me to say that
le heartily protest against and despise thi
absurd method of settling disputes an
r salving the wounds of honor, But wha
40 can poor devil do except bow to the su
,r premacy of custom?''
i What farce, then, did the man VIII
no wrote the above act out {?
o. The Graham was the last of the reall
e+ noteworthy duels which took place in an
i, o about New York, although there hav
of been several fatal and number of harm
o- less ones since. In one General JAIME
of Watson Webb, the well-known journals
M received ball in his leg. In another
,r. man named Bud was blown into eternit!
1