The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-03-05

l hope to expect to quit public life at the
close of the Forty-seventh Congress" Thus
spoke Hon. Alexander II. Stephens yesterday,
just after he had finished his usual game of
whist. and was taking a little exercise by
rolling himself around in his invalid chair in
his room at the National Hotel. l spent an
hour or two chatting with him upon the in
cidents of his early and later life, and he gave
me many new and interesting facts.
My latest literary work" said he, "is a
history of the United States from the landing
OF the Pilgrims to the assassination of Presi-
dent Garfield book of about a thousand
pages. l wrote it last summer and it
is now running through the press
deal of my time to read and revise
the proof of it. l shall hardly undertake a
work of equal magnitude again, although it
is true that when l retire TO the quiet OF my
home l shall do some literary work to earn
money to live on"
1t sounds strangely enough to hear Mr..
Stephens speak thus OF the necessity for
working to meet the demands of life during
his declining years. Most public men in
these days with only 1.-THE of the oppor-
tuniIy he has had grow rich into the mill
ions, and yet live beyond their salaried in
come every year. But Mr. Stephens has
lived in different atmosphere and been
guided by very different impulses than most
public men. He has sought to impress his
name and thoughts upon the history of his
country rather than to gather dollars. Re
membering his early struggles for knowledge,
he has taken much from what came to him
as a reward of his literary labor and the
compensations of public service to help
young men to an education who deserved
aid and could not help themselves. 1t is
common saying in Georgia that alex. Ste
phens has not had less than dozen young
men at school at his expense during the last
twenty years" His charity in other direc-
tons has also been open-handed, and now
when the thread of life is nearing It's end he
must still work His greatest wealth is in
the respect of his countrymen and the pages
of history he will leave behind him.
81 go to Liberty Hall, at Crawfordville, as
soon as this session is over to take a little
needed rest and then begin some easy literary
work / am now under contract to furnish.
you have been there and know what place
for perfect peace and rest it is.
ALEXANDER II. sTEPHENss HOME.
Crawfordville is sleepy old town on the
Georgia Central railroad, between Atlanta
and Augusta. It's somewhat nearer the lat
ter than the former place. 1t contains but
few hundred inhabitants, and its principal
significance is derived from the fact that it
is the home of Alexander H. Stephens When
]. Edgar Thompson, who was at the head of
the great Pennsylvania railroad system
the beginning of his railroad career, he
bought the hotel and some other property
here, and he and Mr.. Stephens were fast
friends. A hundred or so yards in front of
this the only hotel in the place, and just
across the railroad, stands Liberty Hall, sur
rounded by few acres OF well-cultlvated
land. A large lawn, we'll studded with great
shade trees, stretches out in front of the old
fashioned frame house, and in one corner of
the lawn is a church. There is an inviting
air about the whole place. The broad porch
in front of the house. the great wide hall
which runs through the center back to the
library, and the large, airy rooms, all speak
of quiet comfort. The doors are never
closed and the liable is always set. The latch
string hangs down to the floor and troops of
| friends come and 90 at will The place is
well named Mr. Stephens has two work
rooms in the old house, one on the right of
the hall as you enter and the other in the
library, we'll stored with valuable books, at
the rear of the main building. Here, amidst
the scenes of his childhood and earlier tri-
umphs he will spend the balance of his
DAYS and complete his LIES work. The an
cestral home is but short distance away,
and the little courthouse, scarcely larger
than a country school-house in Pennsylva-
mia, is within a stones throw. Here he
studied and practiced law and Mr.. ONeal,
the old clerk of the court with whom he be-
gan to study law now lightweight years
All the surroundings of this place are as
queer to a stranger as the story of the life of
the man with whose history they are associ-
ated are strange and eventful. Beginning
here, without means or family relations to
help him. he has fought his way up to
worldwide fame from obscure beginning
and an humble home. This, too, against the
Southern caste prejudice that made the fight
so much the harder Life is a mist, and in
the darkness our fortunes meet us" This
is favorite quotation with Mr.. Stephens,
and it has broader significance for him than
for almost any man in the land
BEGINNING IN PENNSYLVANIA.
The story of Mr.. Stephenss life really be-
gins in Pennsylvania. In 1746 his grand
father, Alexander Stephens, came to this
country and found home with the Shawnee
Indians near where Chambersburg now
stands. He served under Washington in the
French and Indian war, and was in the
marches and fights which ended in Brad
docks defeat After this war ended he set
tied near Baskins' Ferry, where the waters of
the Juniata and SusQuehanna rivers JON.
Mr.. Baskins, who owned the ferry the island
in the river at the confluence of the two
streams and a large tract of land in the
neighborhood, was counted very rich man.
He had daughter. with whom young Steph-
ems fell in love- The girl reciprocated the
affection. and, despite the angry protesta-
tons of her father, married him. Her father
forbade her his home and refused to recog-
nize her thereafter. The young couple struck
out for themselves and made a rude home
some miles up the Juniata from the Baskins
estate. Here the struggle of life began, and
it never ended. When the revolutionary
war began young Stephens glad of the OPP
portunity to strike at the power that had
driven him from England for participating
in the revolutionary movement, known as
the Forty-ive, joined the army, and was a
captain in the Pennsylvania line when the