The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1879-08-21
AN ECCENTRIC FAMILY.
The Three Sisters Of the South
One Hundred Suffers Rejected.

Miss Grundy in the Philadelphia Times.
Since there has been so much dis
cussion in print about the will OF
the late Mrs. Dorsey, Of Missis-
sippi, making so large bequest to
Jefferson Davis, / think your read
ers may be interested to hear more
of the donors family and their &C.
centricities. have known and
now know several members of this
very talented family, whose talents
in two or three instances have been
misdirected by an erratic tendency,
which was skillfully portrayed by
one of the family, Mrs, Warfield, in
the well known novel "The House
hold of Bouverie." was assured
by one of the family not long after
the novel appeared that, strange as
its characters eeom, the story was
really founded on family history,
and that Mrs. Warfelds father, the
grandfather of the recently deceased
Mrs. Dorsey, was the eccentric old
man of the story. 1t is easy to see
how thinly "Beeuvoir," the name of
the family residence, is disguised in
'Bouverie." There were three
Misses Percy, who were, many years
ago, greatly admired bellies in Mis-
sissippi, and who also had literary
tastes. They published their poetry
jointly as the production of the
"ThreeSisters of the South" as nears
ly as can remember the wording OF
the title as repeated to me, for never
saw one of the volumes. One sister
became first Mrs. Ellis (the mother
of Mrs. Dorsey and of Mr.. Percy
Ellis, of Brooklyn, and Mrs. Inez
Peckham, of Louisiana), J, and subse-
quently married Geu. Charles Dahl
gren, who was the brother of the
late Rear Admiral Dahlgren. She
also had other Children than those
named. Another sister became
Mrs. Warfield, to whose novel L |
have alluded. She died two or
three years ago at her county place |
near Louisville, KY.
The third sister, though whether
or not / can not say, was so fully |
persuaded of her powers of conquest |
as to declare she would never marry
until she had refused one hundred
offers, and l have been assured she
kept her word. She declined that
but must have had at least
a sentiment in favor of No. 100, for
l have been informed that she a.
ways kept his portrait hanging
over her bed even after hei
to No. 101, which musil
have been a comfort to the lat
ter. 1 think No. 100 died young
and before Miss Percy had her 70.
mantle meeting with her fate. That
appeared after the fash
on so favored in novels. The fair
oiercer of one hundred hearts rode
orth on her spirited steed alone
,ne day from her fathers planta-
ion, near jackson, Miss. Her
lorse became unmanageable when
'he was urging him to cross a
bayou, and forthwith hero in the
ihape of SOLITARY horseman" ap-
,eared to rescue the maiden, and
ode beside her after the horse
Lgain became obedient to his mis-
ress. The stranger gave a good ac-
count of himself, and, being hand
iome nan, made such good use of
lis time that the courtship began
before they reached her fathers
louse. He was invited to be a
,uest there, and honorably con-
essed that he was too poor to ven
ure to ask Miss Percy to wed him.
3ut she said she had enough for
10Th, and her father gave them his
blessing and plantation near
Sreenville, Miss, where they resid-
ID after Miss Percy welded Major
Lee, for that was the name of the
me hundred and first who sought
Ter hand. fused to know two of
he children of this marriage. One,
Kate, married about the time
,he war broke out, a South Car
,linian, who became Colonel of
cavalry regiment of the Confeder-
ICY. His wife, as spirited an eques-
rienne as her mother, used to ride |
beside her husband iwhen his regi-
nent was marching. Her mother,
Mrs. Lee, died long before the war.
attended, as a schoolgirl in Lou
sville, the second wedding of Major
Zee, who was then married to Miss
emma Knight, well-known belle
# that city. Both are now dead,
)ut left children.