Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1882-03-12
MEN OF HISTORY.
A Glance at the Thinkers and Statesmen
OF the Southwest Who have Played
Prominent Parts
In the History of the COuntry-Prentiss,
Of Mississippi, and Crittenden, Of Ar
kansas-JeffersOn Davis.

WIS LulnHAb@ w A4iN t'l4FAiN me- "a -
Southwest yesterday, asking myself which q
them had been the most ioilucntisl on his
country'- civilization and development.
Taking the Southwest TO be every thing be-
low the Tennessee river, between Alabama
and the plains, we think Of several brilliant
people Immediately who lived or operated
between these limits II has generally been
said that Tenne ssee Is the mother OF South
western Stale7 The founder wa John
Sewer whose family controlled the politics
of Arkansas from It's admission into the
Union down to the civil war, with but few
intervals. Then came SEWERS youthful
opponent Andrew Jackson, who, in a mill
tary point Of view, was the Washington Of
the Southwest, and his anne waz formidable
until he died throughout Mississippi, Mis-
souri,, Arkansas and Texas. Almost the lsst
act OF his life was 10 issue private prociema-
ton to congratulate Texas on coming into
the Union, which was carried out under his
young disciple, james X. Polk. Although
Texas was admitted few days before Polk
came into Office, his election compelled that
event, and his administration fought the war
with Mexico, which not only protected Texas,
but gave Us powerful extensions OF territory
on her west.
Thomas Benton, Of Missouri, another Ten
nessee man, who lett Tennessee partly on
account Of bloody fight he and his brother
had with Jackson, was a remarkable char
aeter OF this region, but he had unpopular
qualities, stirred up unworthy an'mosItleT,
and his egotism was almost equal TO his
American historical scholarship. He re-
mains, however, the ablest general writer,
prophet and inspirator OF the Democracy Of
the plains, Tor he was not much an en-
thu7iast on the Texas question, having fol-
lowed Mr.. Van Buren,, who pronounced
against the government admitting Texas.
Benton turned his attention to a splendid
empire west Of Missouri, in Oregon, Califor-
MIA, Colorado and Kansas. He belongs,
therefore, to the North rather than the
South, and was so Disseminated against IN
Missouri when Jim Green and several other
small-fry divided his raiment. HIS young
proteges, Frank Blair and Montgomery Blair,
IN tue field and the cabinet maintained their
identity as apostles of the Northern idea.
A man rather overlooked in the Southwest
was Governor Claiborne, the first American
governor of Louisiana. Mr.. Cable introduces
him in faint sketch III his novel called The
Gr0ItdissiHeS. He died while the seua;or-elect
Of Louisiana, sitter having been both Teri
torial and State governor. 1t is his nephew,
| believe, who has recently written the HIS
tory Of Mississippi. Sam Houston, nOtwith-
standing his remarkable qualities and uni
form patriotism and success, is still very
much OF local character, because the rest
of the country is but slightly familiar with
H0dL mas Decu RJIIlZ on III & d5. ! he 1881
generation knew Houston much better than
the present one.
Two brilliant men ia the South were S. 5.
Prentiss, of Mississippi, and Robert Critten-
den, of Arkansas, both OF whom it is said,
shortened their days and darkened their tai
ents by that dissipation into which young
men from the Northern climate were often
drawn by their prominence in the far South.
Traditions say that Crittenden died a
ar,raa xuhiIa visiting PrautiSs and PrHntisz
himself bitterly lamented that he had ever
gone South at all and lost the restraints of
his New England education. The two cele-
brated men OF Mississippi-Jelierson Davis
and John A. Quintard-were both from a
more northern climate. Quintard was OF
German stock, born at Rhinebeck, on the
Hudson river, near the homes of the LiY-
iDgston family. Davis was born in Kentucky,
but few miles from the birthplace Of
Abraham Lincoln. Up to the rebellion Mr..
Davis's record in the Senate and the cabinet
was one of the best from the South. Since
the rebellion he appears to have been unable |
TO extricate himself from the series OF small
fatalities naturally attending failure like |
that Of which he WIS the head. Men can be |
far more right than he was, and yet lose his |
torical approval by the material triumph of |
their country in consequence of their over
throw. This has been the case in France, |
to come extent, with Coligny and the Hugue- |
nots. In the eyes OF all Protestants they were |
right, but they kept up civil disturbances in |
France, and that monarchy and nation could |
only be united and quieted by their suppress |
sion, which Richelieu accomplished. How !
much greater must be the personal failure Of |
the chief magistrate OF a slavery republic, |
particularly since he has had so little cheer
fulness in falling into the counter triumph |
in which his own people have shared. His |
book belongs to that class of publications |
which the Puseyites in England read with
deep interest, to whether, if the Reforms
ton had not stopped about one-Lhird OF the
way in its course, we should not have been |
better.
The physical heroes OF the Southwest dur
ing the rebellion were many, and there
was 80 little of an intellectual or moral kind
to distinguish them, that the whole mess is
in danger of being confused and forgotten.
One of the most remarkable OF them, per-
haps, was Hindman, of Arkansas, who car
petbagged into that State before the WARMTH
the idea of conquering it by union of his
talents and his terocity. Though he was a
military failure, he prevented the atrocities
in his department which were permitted by
Sterling Price and others in Missouri, Texas
and Louisiana, and he hanged rutfiaus of his
OWN command, as Burbridge did in Kentucky.
Arkansas, since the war, has been rather
more orderly than it was before, while the
ilsorderS OF Missouri since the war nave
been almost perennial. Hindman was assas-
mated, like Van Dorm, another capable man
n war, the latter by one OF his own tribe,
Who suspected him of intimacy with his vile.
Albert Sydney Johnston is claimed by
ome to have been the Robert Z. Lee of the
Southwest, yet | doubt whether he showed
my more perseverance or force OF character
han Pemberton in defending Vicksburg.
The romantic nature of Southern writers
eads them to suppose from the circum-
tances of a death like Johnston's that his
sreer, had he been allowed to live, would
lave been something immense. We only
;new that he made his mistake like the rest
# them, and lost his life, aud his fame will
'nly be kept alive By the enormous concus-
ion of Shiloh.
Few of the men whom have mentioned pos
essed the capacities truly called statesman ,
hip. A statesman is a man of thinking and
aboring faculty, with the knowledge TO have
lis principles sure from the start and the
olicy to get them full play in affairs. Re
arded in this light L think that perhaps
.dward Livingston was the greatest states ,
ian of the Southwest