The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1881-03-31

O~AAAASNA -A1SASAAs9 SSs~OssS
this time along with a man Of whom
ali the southwest had heard-Dr. Ben
nett, noted gambler of Mississippi in
early days, but who also lived near
Shreveport, and who died there in
1856 during the cholera that ragged at
that time. The arrival Of the BOWies
caused something of sensation. Ben
nett's reputation was well known, and
James Bowie had recently s'won his
spurs - by killing man at Natchez
with weapon Of his own invention
and which the grateful community
promptly recognized as an invention
of wonderful value. To testify their
appreciation of the gifted genius to
whose intellectit was due they called
this invention the Bowie knife.
In all the stories that ever heard
Bowie tell he never boosted Of his
personal prowess or Dragged Of his
victims. Yet at this time he was
known to have killed eight or ten
men. The time of which now write
was in the summer of 1884, and for
time lost sight of the redoubtable
Bowie. In the latter part OF the year
which was uneventful save for the
coming and going Of mysterious
strangers, whispers began to be heard
of the contemplated expedition against
Mexico. A party of men came from
Tennessee, and remained during the
winter in Little Rock, doing nothing,
apparently but spending money freely,
and causing brisk times in the numer-
Gus gambling saloons with which the
town abounded. in the spring of
1885, however the Tennessee colony
was augmented by the arrival Of an
other party, many of them men of
considerable notoriety. Two of them
were celebrities whom I saw for the
first time. They were Sam Houston
and Col. Davy Crockett. Crockett
was there in daily conclave with the
leaders Of the wild and rather ungov-
ernable mob that had assembled, and
no secret Of the fact that he held a
federal appointment signed by Presi-
dent Jackson. At this time I began
to know a little more of the project
on foot, and from what I then learned
I confidently believe that the whole
scheme of territorial ACKNOWLEDGMENT
was planned by Gen. Jackson him
self. Here is where I first saw Sam
Houston. I lost sight of him until
the invasion Of the Mexican territory
was an accomplished fact.
r. AN ANECDOTE OF HOUSTON.
Houston was man who cared little
for the amenities of society, and while
he was in Little Rock an incident
occurred that gave me an insight into
at least one of the characteristics of
the man-his utter contempt for the
conventionalities oflife. With party
of other young men, all enthusiastic
admirers of the great leader, we had
arranged to call Oh him at the hotel. It
was one of the hottest days of sum.
| mer, the heat of which was a subject
of constant conversation. Houston
was stopping at the hotel. The party
having arrived and the announcement
made that we were waiting to pay our
respects to Gen. Houston, we were
told to wait for a moment.
Almost Immediately afterward the
landlord himself appeared, and with
a rather curious smile on his face said
"Walk up, gentlemen; you will find
Gen. Houston waiting to receive you
on the piazza in state.' Like all
southern buildings Of any pretensions
at time a broad piazza ran entirely
around the house at the second story.
We assembled the stairs and entered
the piazza. Houston was in state,
sure enough. He sat in a corner of
the piazza in the shade, lolling back
on one chair, while his feet were on
another, and he was stark naked, his
only protection being a newspaper,
which he had been apparently reading
but a moment before. The papers
then were not the size of the Times
to-day. He was half drunk and in a
savage mood and this is the way in
which Gen. Sam Houston received the
gentleman who kindly offered to intro
duce our delegation, Col. Davy Crock
EFT. The interview was short and
unsatisfactory one.
ALL READY FOR ACTIVE SERVICE.
All this excitement in Little Rock
consequent upon the arrival Of
hundreds of daring adventures could
not be long without producing it's
natural result, especially as the object
was no longer secret. ''We are all
going to Texas was the constant cry,
and it became evident to the leaders
| OA1cSO OlAOl . lOAAOWO1o COulu llOU w uluCll
longer restrained. The necessity for
concentrating all the available force
for active service became imminent.
Men sworn in the cause were in Mis-.
sissippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, and
Tennessee awaiting the orders to start
and the signal that they were sum-
moned for the desperate venture.
These men, many of them the lowest
cut throat gamblers and thieves, had
been in their season Of enforced in
activity inaugurating, in the several
sections where they were, something
for reign of terror. No mans life
was safe, and the free-booters, for
they were nothing else, were every
where engaged in a regular carnival
of crime. Murders were of daily oc-
currence; scarcely a week passed that
Judge Lynch was not called upon to
supplement the work of the courts;
such things as stabbing or shooting
ARRAYS, where death did not immedi-
ately follow, were of so common &C.
currence as to excite no particular
comment. Affairs were in this state
when business called me from Little