The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-10-19
THE HIDDEN BRIGAnIER.
A Confederate Generals Life as Reoluse,
and His Discovery by His Relatives,
lGinninuati Commercially

| lCincinnati Commercially
Confederate general has been discovered
living Isolated In n little stone house, all BY
himself, about q mile and a half from Mont
! geometry between that village and Keming-
ion. near the Marietta Railroad.
| The name Of this singular individual is
Gen. w. W. Metcalfe, who served honorahly
In the Confederate service during the late
war. and lost MI his property. which was
located In the South, during tile war He
waa quito wealthy, hut the war swept away
what property he had and he was left at the
age If thirty-eight without y sou. All that
wife died shortly after the close VI the war
and he had two daughters left TO him, who
are now married and live Ia Virginia in good
| circumstances.
| About four years ago Gen. Metcalfe came
| to Cincinnati to be cured Of diabetes, COM
plant that had troubled him since his re-
| iirement from the army service. He found
DR.. W. W. Dawson, and intrueted his case to
| him. The Doctor expressed surprise at meet
Ing him in m impecunions condition.
vous. The General said he would like 10 got
away from all of his associates. He had lost
everything during the war. aud he wanted to
settle down somewhere as q recluse and be
forgotten for the time by all who knew him
| The Doctor owned " farm near Montgomery.
and told him he could 90 out and live on the
| farm and cultivate 1t for him. This was LII
4 1875 The General accepted both the treat
| ment for his disease and the proposition to
cultivate the Doctors farm. Here he lived
some time MS a common farm hand under All
assumed name, the Doctor never letting out
1.-THE secret. Gen. MetCalfe made friends by
/ his transformations manners among the neigh
hors. and labored early and late After sew
eral months he went to work for another
farmer In the neighhorhood named Keller,
and managed to conceal his identity all that
| time He then went into the employ OF w.
II. Willis, near by. Iii the cultivation and
management Of his farm He occupied o little
stone hut away of in q field by himself. Here
he cooked ana ate his meals. and was nm
known to almost everyone around him. The
| house he now occupies was formerly used as
u millS-house. 1t IL only about twelve feet
high from the ground, and has only one room
with little garnet above, with the roof pro-
jecting In front at the gable end. and which Il
In n very dllapidatcd condition. The farm
house connected with II was burned to the
ground some months ago.
Il His identity was discovered about three
weeks ago i'll a singular manner From what
can be learned from the people who have con-
known ii appears that the General was born
in BarClstown, KY and was educated at Dan
viIle Ky. He claims that he graduated In
mathematics at Lexington, Va, under Stone
wall jackson. About 4 month ago professor
Iii the Danvillo College went to Montgomery
to visit Rev. Mr.. Cortelyou. the Presbyterian
minister at that place, and willis there re-
ceived the information that Gen. Metcalfe, a
graduate of Danvile was living rs Q recluse
J on a farm near the village. Upon his return
to Danville the professor informed Gen. Met
calfe's brother. who Is a merchant in Danrille
thai he had discovered the whereabouts OF hle
brother, and gave him the name Of Mont
II geometry, Hamilton county Ohio, near which
place the General resided
Accordingly. not long nfterward. letter
was received by the General from his brother,
whom he had not seen for several years. and
soon thereafter the General was hunted up
by one Of his married daughters, who lives In
II Virginia. Sifaee then ~ has shown 10 dlspo-
sition to conceal himself. and he visits Mont
gomery almost every day and converses with
friends connected with the Masonic order.
and has unhosomed himself freely to Mr..
Foster Todd. a grocer and dry goods mer-
chant Of Montgomery. He has expressed a
desire to tell him about his past life: Tnus
far Mr.. Todd has not availed himself OF the
privilege of visiting the General at his her
mt-lke retreat on the Willis farm, several
miles from nowhere; but he says the General
is a gentleman Of intelligence, and converses
usnty uEon Oh the ea apt h; TOPICS s Of
posted upon the political topics Of the
day, and he shows by his conversation
that he Is not behind the times. One of his
nearest neighborS Is Mr. Hampton. the agri-
cultural implement dealer in this city, who
lives about three-fourths Of a mile away. On
Sunday the General made short call upoli
Mr. Hampton as he was passing by. and eX-
pressed desire to have him call over and see
Il him. Mr.. Hampton told the General that he
must call and see him first, and let him know
where he lived The General replied that he
would come over and see him and have q long
talk with him. He wanted to tell him what a
big rebel he was, and give him the story OF
his adventures before, during and since the
war. He said he was the biggest rebel that
ever lived, and he expressed desire to sit
down and tell all he knew Mr.. Hampton has
not yet had the opportunity TO call on the
military hermit, late OF the Confederate army
" C. AZ
ii A representative OF the Commercial drove
out yesterday to find this singular man and
have conversation with him. After much
research and driving over twenty miles OF
roads he found where the recluSe lived, all by
himself. 1t was about 30 when the reporter
drove up to the little lonely house, away OF
in the fields, potato patches and a few scat
tered apple trees, by itself. A small light,
emitted W d little coal oil lamp, was seer
dimly through a diminutive unwashed VIM
dow. The name Of the General was called
but nobody responded. The premises wert
thoroughly secured and the straw barn ran
sacked but no one was found. Nothing ir
the vicinity indicated that there was living
soul around. The bed ia the little room was
! undsturbed, as the occupant had gone OIL te
return later Id the evening.
u Mrs. Belva A. lockwood, the female lawyer
OF Washington, has been refused permission
to practice in the Virginia courts. It will b
remembered that some time ago she was ad
mitted to practice In the Supreme Court q
the Tinted States.