The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1893-02-16
HON. w. n. KITCHIN.
His Services to the Democratic
Party Recalled---A Deserving
Tribute From an Uninterested
Source.
baskerville Citizen.

EDITOR THE CITIZEN My atten-
| ton has been called to an article in
your issue OF the 25th inst, headed
Plain Talk" and which was copied
from an exchange.
The article states in substance that
it appears from the Raleigh correspon-
dence in several papers, that Mr.. w.
H. Ki,chin, OF Halifax county, will
probably be appointed collector of
internal revenue for the eastern dis
trict of North Carolina, and says:
&c We can not credit it, for in all
candor this gentleman has already re-
ceived all the honors from the Demo
cratic party that he is entitled to for
the present"
Some time since, my attention was
also called to a paragraph in another
paper in which fling is made at Capt.
Kitchin, and especially his imprudence
was alluded to.
trust that you will pardon me for
what l shall say in these few lines. l
do SO without any suggestion from
Capt. Kitchlh directly or indirectly.
do not know all the different can
didates for collector ofinternal revenue
for the eastern district; 1 do know,
however, that some of them are my
warm personal and political friends,
and l am sure that none of them
would object to justice being done to
one who has accomplished as much in
behalf OF the Democratic party and
people of North Carolina as any man
within her borders. Surely, our people
can not so soon have forgotten that
when the eastern section was in a
state of anarchy and distress; when
her bravest and best people were in
terror and despair; when her women
and children were in daily peril, that,
foremost amongst all the men in that
territory, absolutely at the peril of his
life, Capt. Kitchin babe defiance to
radical power and authority, and re-
CARELESS of any and all consequences
to himself, took the lead in restoring
white rule in those counties, and con-
tributed largely to their rescue from
degradation and ruin.
The character of the man is shown
by this incident: In 1884, whilst l
was canvassing the State in company
with Judge Faircloth (whom it affords
me great pleasure to say / regard as
one of the purest and best of men)
late one afternoon, in an extreme
western county, l met Capt. Kitchin
on horseback. As he rode up to US
/ noticed that his face was exceed
ingly pale and showed evidence of
physical suffering He said that he
expected to meet Trull, d Republican
speaker, the next day, about twenty
five miles distant, and that he would
have to ride the greater portion of the
night to reach there. l told him that
l did not see how he could make the
trip. l then noticed that his pants
had been cut open at the knee and
that his leg was enormously swollen.
| called his attention to the condition
of his knee, and he said: "It makes
no difference; l will fill the appoint
ment if it kills me-"
mention this, which is a very small
matter as compared with many Incl
dents in his career in Eastern Caro-
lima, and l do think that it is unkind
and ungenerous for any man within
her entire borders to say one word
which could injure Capt. Kitchin in
any way.
They say, that he is imprudent.
Well, it was i" imprudent" when
the Light Brigade rode to certain and
glorious death upon the Russian bat
teries at Balaklava! 1t was " impru-
dent when the matches legions of
Lee hurled themselves with loud
cheers upon the intrenched heights of
Gettysburg! 1t was imprudent"
when Col. Duncan K. McRae led the