The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-03-08

. "
when he left college at 10 his net
weight was only seventy pounds. During
his whole life l venture he did not have a
moment which was free from pain He
was always cold, Notwithstanding the
fact that he wore two suits of silk under
clothes winter and summer He generally
wore gloves in the house and out, and he
had the most delicate stomach of any
man have even known. He was melan-
chOly in his temperament, and was full Of
fears and anxiety about himself and
his friends. He was the most tender
hearted man l have ever known. and he
had the greatest sympathy for his friends
and everything about MIN He was
sick Tor a week, when his favorite dog
died, and he lavished more love on his
dogs than many men do on their families
He was man of many friends, aud he
made his friends troubles his own I
loved him very dearly, and our relations
were very close. | was living near Bal
timOre during his congressional career,
and he wanted me to come and spend
my Sundays with him. / did visit him
often, but he always gave me an eldb-
crate dinner with wines, 10 which he
invited a number of his friends, and
knew ne could not afford IT, I would
hardly get out of the house before he
would begin to write TO me, and the day
after ! returned home 1 was sure TO get a
letter from him saying that he wondered
how l was feeling, and whether l had
gotten home safely, one uiEht | left
when the weather was old and sleety
and he wrote me letter tul! of anxiety
as to whether ! had gotten home safely
ana had not fallen or taken cod on tho
way When his brother linton died he
was Frustrated, and he wrote me TO come
TO MIN. He only recovered from the Ulow
by plunginy into work and by trying to
forget himself in his labors."
HIS CHARACTER.
"Was he a good judge of men, Mr.
Johnston?' 1 asked.
mot as Individuals replied Mr. John
stOn. He had broad ideas of mankind
in the aggregate, and his foresight as to
public questions was wonderfully accu-
rate. But the poorest, meanest, shabbiest
negro could impose on him, and he was
deceived again and again by beggars and
frauds. He was the soul of generosity
He made, | venture, as much as S31J,0U0
during his lifetime, but he died poor He
spent his money as fast as he made it and
he didn't seem to appreciate its value
His law practice was large during o great
part Of his life. and he received a great
deal of money from his books His Con
stitutionai View of the War must have
lished in two volumes. His royalty was
50 cents volume, and his receipts from
it amounted to S35, 600 He kept open
house at Liberty Hall, his place in GeOr
gia, and every train brought him guests,
some of whom he had never met before.
He was fond OF society and hyas most
charming talker."
STRAWBERRIES AND DEATH.
"Referring to Alexander II. stephens
friendships" continued Mr. Johnston,
'he was TO a certain extent superstitious,
and one Of his superstitiOns was that his
dreaming concerning fruit indicated the
sickness or death of one of friends He
might, for instance, dream of eating
strawberries. He would wake up in the
morning terribly worried, and if a friend
came in in the 9ourse of the day and told
him that one of his acQuaintances in the
back districts of Georgia had died, he
would say emphaticaly that he knew
something would happen aud that there
was the result Of those Strawberries.
HOW ALEXANDER STEVENS LOVED.
Chow about his love affairs? He never
married. Was he an admirer of women?"
Eyes, " replied Mr. Johnston, "AleXan-
der H. Stephens had al the chivalry Of a
knight of the middle ages, and all of the
passion of an Apollo. He appreciated,
however, that his physical condition
would not permit him to marry and
though he fell in love once or twice dur
ing his life, he never proposed marriage
to any one, and he kept his pass on a
secret. When he was teaching school he
fell in love with one of his pupils. but he
never spoke of it to her nor to any one
else until nearly forty years later He
was also in love when he was 40, and was
always an admirer of beautiful women. F."
From Alexander Stephens the converse
ton drifted to Gen. Bob Toombs, whom
Mr.. Johnston called the grea test intellect
uality he had ever known, and from him
to other great men of the south H. said
that he thought the giants of the south
were not as well known as those Of the
north. It was only during recent years
that the south had contained many lit
crary men. The southerners of the past
were more like the Romans. in that they
were men of action, and not writers The
nOrtherners Mr. Johnston compared 10 the
Greeks, who were poets and scholars. as
well as soldiers. He said that he thought
the war had changed the south in this
respect, and that the present era of liter
airy activity and OF literary production in
the south, was largely due to this change.
Throughout the whole conversation Mr..
Johnston exhibited the warmesJ of senti-
ments in regard to the north, and his
friendships are by no means bounded by
Mason and Dixon's line.
CHAINED III a CELL IN PUEBLO.
>