The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1894-02-08
SOME NOTED DUELS.

+ Dickinson instead. This attempte
murder fell out in this way:
Jackson, born in North Caroline
was in Tennessee as a young ma
with the purpose of practicing what
generous public sentiment was please'
IN that day to call law. At his board
Ing house young Jackson became &C
quainted with a beautiful woman. hi
landlady's daughter. Jackson's fai
young friend had an incumbranoe il
the shape of a drunken cur of a hus
band, whose wont it was to fill up OF
corn whisky and then beat his wife
This engaging persons name wa.
RObarts, and he had been a Kentucky
gentleman before he had adopted corr
whisky ana wife beating as pastime
Robarts drunk or Robarts sober, he
didn't like jackson. And even in his
grave he bears fame as the only mar
who couldn't coax a fight out of the
hero Of a subsequent New Orleans
Time and again Robarts urged Jack,
son to take unto him a rifle, Robarts
following the example, and repair tc
the woods with this victim of jealousy
and corn whisky and shoot it out
But jackson never saw his way clean
to accept Robarts' proffer of battle
The two never fought
At last Roberts went back to Ken
tucky tie and his wife were separat-
ed Then came the news that Robarte
had achieved divorce. Jackson led
his brown-eyed young friend to the
rejoicing altar After many months
as happy man and wife came other
news from the blue grass. Robert
had not obtained a divorce. but some
thing like four tardy months after
Jackson and the former Mrs. Robarts
had supposed they were wed. Jack
son and Mrs. Robarts again sought
the kirk, and this time they succeeded
in marrying each other OF course,
these four dubious months when they
thought they were man and wife, but
weren't, must be admitted as irregular.
But the country was new, sentiment
was liberal and slander slept, and no
one found the slightest fault with
jackson and his bride 1t was the
fault really of an imperfect postal sys
tenn, and this the world readily saw
and admitted. The admission came
ali the more easily, as jackson at once
invested every dollar he had in a
splendid brace of pistols and solemnly
destined them to be the death of the
first man that blew upon the stainless
Of his wife. These pistols
he had when he died Only one of
them realized its purpose. That was
the pistol that did young Dickinson.
Dickinson was a young lawyer at
Nashville. He was twenty five, and
as handsome a figure as the admirable
Crichton, and with it all Dickinson
was called the best pistol shot in the
world. This last of Itself ennobled
him in the day in which he lived
Jackson had grown to a towering
popularity. He was consequently and
correspondingly hated in certain quar-
ters. A coterie Of his political enemies
resolved he should die. A duel was
the natural Anglo-Saxon suggestion,
for your Saxon is a citizen by whom
seldom resorted to. Dickinson, as the
surest and quickest of living pistolers,
was put forward to do the red work of
death. How could they get Jackson
to fight? That was the question.
One would not suppose that to be diff
cult. But Jackson was aware of their
design; that they knew. He might
avoid their trap unless such lure was
used that he himself, rage blind,
could be made as bloodily eager as
themselves. They concluded TO bait
their deadfall with the stabbed honor
OF Jackson's wife,
Dickinson was willing for his foul
part To kill Jackson, a man Of his
tribe, appeared a romantic and honor
aDie adventure, and one to clap fame
on his shoulder. So he put himself
forward at a Nashville race meeting
Jackson had a race horse. 1t canter-
ed in the scrubby winner of some
scrub race Mrs jackson was there,
and in the usual feminine raptures
over the victory, exclaimed to some
friends:
oh. our horse is running away
from them
Dickinson hanging about, the arrow
Of premeditated insult laid ready OF
tee bow and only waiting the oppor,
tunity, was enlisted to say:
Yes, and about as the horses own
er ran away with another mans wife
Nashville's whole race track heard
the insult. Public sentiment opened
but two gates to the situation. One
swung TO Jackson's passage to the
field of honor and certain death The
second opened for cowardism to seel
contempt and ostracism.
Yet jackson didn't fight Dickinson
for almost a year. He looked into hi:
grave for one whole year. He wa.
bound 20 fight, and expected Dickin
son to XIII him. His two purpose:
were to SO focus his affairs as to Civ,
his wife competence and to so man
age the meeting ss to kill Dickinson
while he died himself
He called to him Maj Overton, al
old friend and Indian fighter. Fac
! looked at this Dickinson Insult as par
Of a plot to kill Jackson. Overto
was one of the same inveterate ten
per as Jackson, only slower Nigh
after night Overton and Jackson cor
sidered the coming fight They work
ed on plan as if it were a campaig
against the English. The time cam
when jackson was ready to die. Th
cartel found Dickinson agreeable, bu
whimsical. He put the fight off thirt
days. jackson was already celebrate,
| Dickinson must send for certain /,
markable and well known pistol wher,
with to kill him. The pistol was ava
back in North Carolina. 1t woul
take month in those slow DAYS I
get it. But Jackson must wait. An
| he did wait.
Jackson and Overton planned tn
way. They agreed that Dicklnsc
was so quick that he was infalhbly