Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-03-16
TALK WITH TOoMBs.
Some Opinions Which a Man Long il
Public Life Now Has.

Some Opinions Which a Man Long in
Public Life Now Has.
The village, or as we say in this State,
| the town of Washington, is one of the old
/ est and most beautiful in what is known
/ as Middle Georgia, says a correspondent
\ OF the Philadelphia Times. The country
/ around it is filled with substantial and
/ wealthy planters. Into this country over
| a hundred years ago came Mai. TOOmbs.
4 He had been revolutionary officer.
/ Pleased with the new land, when he re-
/ turned to Virginia he brought out his old
\ father and settled a plantation. and on
this place, still owned by the family. in
/ 1911 Robert TOOmbS was born. His father
| died before he was five years old. He
was educated by an old ScOtchman until
! he was fifteen, and then, we'll pre-
pared for college, he went to the Uni
/ versity of Georgia, then Franklin College.
/ George, now Bishop Pierce, the CObbs and,
/ L think, Mr.. stephens, were in college
with him. He was a handsome, wealthy,
rollicksOme youth, and got into some
trouble with the faculty, and lett Athens
! tor Union College, New York where he
/ graduated at eighteen. He then went to
/ the University Of Virginia, just then es-
/ tabhshed, and studied law, and was
/ admitted to the bar in 1929, when he was
] not tWenty-One years old. Not long after
/ last summer, and settled in Washington.
and few years after he located there BEE
/ built the elegant mansion in which |
| found him.
His home IS a typical Southern home;
a beautiful flower garden OF an acre.
/ thanked by barley lots. fronts "A three-story
wooden house with large chambers. wide
\ halls and rOOmy piazzas. The Generals
/ Office is in his dwelling. but he generally
/ receives his company IN the cosy sitting
room of the second story. lie is ALWAYS
/ cordial and gives all, friend or stranger
a kindly %CicOmc. Sitting in a large
/ arm chair, with his books within
( easy reach and the well-used Bible
/ among them. BE sat the last of the
/ old line. He is a and he is broken con-
/ siderably since the death of his wife, but
/ is still a vigorous old man. Our CONVEX
/ satiOn took a wide range, and without
/ claiming the accuracy Of professional
| reporter in our interview give such parts
/ of it as l remember. We were in the
army together and we wandered over the
/ same fields again, and / reminded him OF
/ the last time | saw him before / was my
/ self wounded as be rode beside us in the
battle field of the second Manassas, and
! so the conversation drifted on and / said
! to him: "HOw did you get out of this
/ country after the WARP
Well" he said, "when Mr.. Stanton is
. 4
I quietly IN Washington, protected by the
! terms of capitulatiOn. The Federal officer
/ who received the order was indignant at
/ the breach of faith and let an old comrade
I then an eX-COnfederate, know of it. He
/ sent a courier to me. ! kept my fine mare
saddled and standing in the stable. The
soldiers came and Mrs. TOOmbs went to
| the front door, while l went out of the
/ back door and through the plantation.
81 then went up into Ebert and over to
! Tallulah, where l spent the time until /
could get out of the State. | went to Cuba,
| then to England and finally TO Paris,
where | remained till / returned to Amer
! ica."
Where are the TOombses from original
1 ", General"'
! ''The family are English, but have been
| in Virginia for long time. My grand
| father was in Braddock's army, and my
/ father a Major in the revolution. He
! came to Georgia with the Virginia troops,
/ and being pleased with the land, after the
/ revolution settled four miles from Wash
/ ington. In the old graveyard on the home
place there are i've generations Of my
| family"
do you remember W. II. Crawford! p
sob. yes; he was on the bench when l
| began practice. He had already been
/ stricken with apOpleXy, but he was a great
man still. He was my fathers friend, and
/ for that reason was quite favOrite with
/ him. lie was man of magnificent ap-
pearance, splendid manner and very great
1 intellect. No man ever more impressed
| the French, and we had great men at that
/ court. l think he was perhaps the
| greatest of Georgians."
"Who was the greatest man you ever
met in public life?'
''Mr. Webster. He was a noble. genial,
warm-hearted gentleman withal."
I kXOu know Mr. Calhoun ipfiOo foIr- 50
"Why, certainly. We messed together
I in Washington"
'Did Mr.. Calhoun have any vicesr
''NO, sir, not one. He never drank nor
/ gambled. Mr.. Archer. Of Virginia, was
/ once at my house to dinner and we were
| speaking Of Mr.. Calhoun. who, bv the
/ way, was no faYOrite of Mr.. Archer. |
/ had remarked that Mr. Calhoun never
drank anything but claret. why, Mr..
4 IOOmbs.' said Archer, Mr.. Calhoun never
tasted wine in his life But, Mr. Archer
l have seen him drink claret' well. |
don't dispute that, but he never tasted it
IN his life l said l thought that was
! likely.''
'What about the tariff, General?"
'Of course, he said, | am and have al
ways been an 0Ut-and-out free-trader A
protective tariff Is an outrage on Justice,
I but am not in favor of doing away with
/ protection all at once MOrris0n-s bill is
J ABOUT Tl-lt.
/ DO you think, General, it is possible
! for this government to remain in its pres
/ ent state, neither a cOnfederacy nor
/ natiOnY
"Why, no, sir. The principles Of Mr..
/ Jefferson are the only true principles Of
/ government. and while the United States
| Governmentshas left them it has not
/ adopted the mOnarchial views Of Mr.
+ Hamilton. To remain in this position is
] hrs 80
/ Of sovereign States or a nation. State
/ rights have been given up and this GOV.
eminent cannot stand as il is.
4 But how shall we get back:
by revolution"
I "Blo0d!ess | h0pe?'
'1cs, blOodless. perhaps. as was the
revolution Of loss, but revolution, never
/ theless."
'.What about these great railway mono
/ polies?''
They must be controlled by commits
! sions, like the one in Georgia."
What was the largest fee YOU ever re-
! ceived?"
Forty thousand dollars was the largest
| single fee. The hardest legal fight | ever
had was with the railroads about taxa
| ton, but won the case.0
Dinner was announced and the pleas
/ ant two hours of conversation were over.
l have not given the old statesman's ex-
act words, put MS general views are only
snatches from an exceedingly interesting
/ talk.
The General has long been a Methodist
in conviction, but only recently has he
become communicate of the church.
His determination to connect himself
| with the church was expressed in his
| usual style. Meeting his old friend, Bishop
Pierce, one day, he said: George, l want
you to baptlze me. l have no religion,
but l am afraid some Of these young fools
who prate about infidelity will say when
| am dead L did not believe in Jesus
Christ and / wish to avow my faith,
He is much beloved by his neighbors.
and especially by the children, to whom
he is especially tender. He says life IS
too short for animOsities, and that he has
no foes and cherishes noresentments. He
has made all things ready for both worlds
and 1t matters little with him how soon
he leaves this. G. G.
Cured by Faith and Prayer.
Miss Mary billiard, a well-connected
young woman, says a Pittsburg special to
[ tho DhiIoHolptafo .