The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1892-03-09
THE ILLINOIS OF LINCOLN'S TIME.
A Legal Plea That Failed to Win Lincoln's
Choice of Dueling Weapons.

SOPHIE B. Herrch, in the Century.
There was in those carly days q curious
character who presided at the bar, his name
l have forgotten. but l remember my
fathers characterizing him. in Lord Chest
erfelds phrase. as dizziness laundering
upon vivacities. In certain case In W lch
this person acted as counsel for the plant
III. five-dollsr note had been stolen. The
fact was proved beyond question. The
point at issue finally was one of grand or
petit larceny. The counsel for the defend
ant made the ingenious plea that the bill
was an Indiana BILL and worth 1895 cents.
and therefore was below the limit of
petit larceny, IS being that limit. The jury
seemed quite impressed by the argument,
when the counsel for the plaintiff rose, and
in the peculiar drawl and nasal information
characteristic of his speech, said: Gentle
men OF the jury, II any OF you was to take
that lndlany fve-dollar bill to market.
there's not butcher there that would not
be glad to take 1t at pa-a-ar. If you was
To go to any of the stores on the square
here. they'd be willing and more'n willing
TO take 1t at pa-a-ar; but this mean. con-
founded sneak couldn't afford to steal it at
pa-a-ar.' The jury rendered verdict Of
guilty of grand larceny
After General Shields had challenged
Mr.. Lincoln, and before the preliminarIes
had been arranged, Mr.. Lincoln came into
my fathers otiice. He said: i don't like
i can't show the white feather and don't
know what ought to do My father said:
Lincoln. you are the challenged party
and can choose the weapons. Choose
will never fight yOu.' Mr.. Lincoln was
very much amused with the notion, and in
structed his second to name brOadswords as
the weapons. When the seconds met and
brOadswOrds were proposed. General
ShieIds's second demurred. He said Bar
barous weapons for the nineteenth GEN.
tury.' Yea said Mr.. Lincoln's second,
they are barbarous: so is dueling. for that
whole thing of a piece or words to that
effect. When the time for the duel came,
my grandfather. father. DE-. Merryman,
and some others went to the scene of
action. In those days stage-coaches were
the only public conveyances overland. and
the party had to spend at least one night
on the way. The men. as was not uncom-
mon In those days, found very limited
accommodations. so four. l think. had
to sleep in bed. My father said that
during the night he found himself in very
narrow quarters rs to the shoulders. while
below there seemed ample room to sxpa-
tiate. In the morning he discovered that
his right-hand bedfellOw, q perfect stran-
ger, had lost his left leg. DR.. Merryman
called out in the night to my grandfather:
Wake up, Bledsoe, wake up Grandpa
said: DIR. Merryman. are you a doctor and
don't know that when a man snores 1t is a
sign that he Is asleep, not that he Is dyingP
Yes. know said the Doctor. When most
men snore know it Is a sign that they are
asleep; but when you sDore it is a sign that
nobody else in the house but yourself is
asleep.
The news of the proposed duel was
noised abroad, and q crowd had collected
on the Illinois side of the river, awaiting
the return; il seemed to this merry party
that the termination of this threatening
affair would be unbearably fiat if they just
came homo and announced an apology as
the 'upshot in the end So they put log
of wood PROSTATE in the bottom of the
canoe. covered it over with General
Shields's cloak. or something equally eff
fective. and then clustered around the 81 o.
posed victim of the tight, one tanning, an
other supporting, etc.. till the crowd gath
cred on the opposite bank was worked ND
to a great pitch of excitement aud sympa-
thy. When the log was lifted out the
duelling party had effectually turned the
laugh from themselves"