The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1883-01-10
John Howard Payne in Georgia.

was once acquainted with Swede
who had been adopted by the Usage In
dams. He was friend of John Ross,
the celebrated chief of the Cherokees,
and his name in the Cherokee language
it was written } O. JQ, pronounced
Coh-wens-koh-wch, and means swamp
sparrow. His brother, Lewis Ross, was
named Te-tah-te, which means spoon.
My informant was himself called by the
Cherokee Te-kaw-wha-leeS-ky, which
signifies 1.-THE man who writes orders
for -four"
JohnHoward Payne, author of "Homes
Sweet Home" was a warm, personal
friend of John Ross, who will be remem-
bered as the celebrated chief of the
Cherokees. At the time the Cherokees
were removed from their homes in
Georgia to their present home west of
the Mississippi river, Payne was spend
ing few weeks in Georgia with Ross,
who was occupying miserable cabin,
having been forcbly elected from his
former home.
A number of prominent Cherokees
were in prison, and that portion of
Georgia in which the tribe was located,
was secured by armed squads of the
Georgia militia. who had orders TO ar
rest all who refused TO leave the coun-
try.
While Ross and Payne were seated be-
fore the fire in the hut, the door was
suddenly burst open and six or eight
militia men sprang into the room. Ross
wife was seated on a trunk containing
many valuable papers and a small
amount of money, and at the unexpect-
ed intrusion she sprang up and scream
ed wildly, Ross spoke to her in the Cher
okee language, telling her to be seated,
as she would save the contents Of the
trunk, and as she thus sat down again,
the intruders told Ross that he and
Payne were under arrest and must pre-
pare to accompany the squad to Mil
ledgville' where they were to be impris-
oned The soldiers lost no time in TAX
ing their prisoner away Ross was per-
mitted to ride his own horse, while
Payne was mounted on one led by a
soldier. As the little party left the
hovel, rain began falling and continued
until every man was drenchcd thor
oughly, Toward midnight, Payne's
escort, in order to keep himself awake,
began hummng Home, home, sweet,
sweet home,h when Payne remarked:
Little did expect to hear that song
under such circumstances and at such a
time. Do you know the author?'
mo" said the soldier edo you?n
Yes" answered Payne, a composed
it,"
The devil you did. You can tell
that to some fellows, but not to me. --
Look here you made that song you say;
if you dd--and | know YOU didn't-you
can say it all without stopping. Ii has
something in il about pleasures and
palaces. Now pitch in and reel it of.
and If you can't I'll bounce YOU from
your horse and lead you instead of it,
The threat was answered by Payne,
who repeated the song in slow, sub
dued tone, and then sang it making the
old woods ring with the tender melody
and pathos of the words II touched the
heart of the rough soldier, who was not
only captvatcd but convinced, and who
said that the composer of such a song
should never 30 to prison if he could
help it, And when the party reached
Milledgevile, they were, after prel-
minary examination, discharged much
to their surprise. Payne insisted it was
because the leader of the squad had
been under the magnetic influence of
Ross conversation, and Ross insisted
that they had been saved from insult
and Imprisonment by the power of the
"llomc Sweet Home, sung as only those
who feel can sing it.
The friendship existing between Ross
and Payneendured until The grave closed
over the mortal remains of the latter. -
Southern World
''Who was the first manpn asked n