The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-08-18

without comment, provided he might have
his tiny pOnes OF hoe cake, which was the
only sort OF bread he could digest. Even
is these. which made the staple OF his
food. were not well prepared the only
rebuke he would administer was TO call
his cat, Barbara. who never by any
chance would touch any preparation OF
corn meal, and. rendering her bit OF
his special plat say gently, when she re-
fused II, Yes, Barbara, you are right;
II Is neither good for man nor beast"
turtner comment there was none. He al
ways offered some Of this corn bread 10
every one at the table. II visitors refused
ne was sorry, but II one Of his own family
declined he would begin, with twinklins
eyes, That reminds me Of Littlebury
Hawkins" which was the prelude to
story Of Mr.. Hawkins dislike to corn
bread. But when he, with a company OF
young officers, who were half starved dur
ing reconnaissance on the plains, had
nothing but little cOrnmeal out OF which
they made very poor bread. Hawkins
declared he would not give one piece OF
corn bread for his own use at one meal
for barrel OF wheaton -four" We were
brought up on this story, and understood
that IL was his pleasant way OF remind
ing us that he preferred we should join
him in eating hoecake, or at least make
a semblance of doing so. The introduction
TO the story was always received with
laughing protest, but the offender usual
ly ate his moiety OF the rejected dish af-
terward
Ny father reversed many of the accepted
axioms in pedagogics So far as ! was able
to observe after I grew up his theories
worked with remarkable success, and I can
vouch for their pleasantness when was
small Among them was the reasonable
maxim: III it is impossible for adults to
deny themselves what is injurious TO chill
dren when they are both at the same table
1t is unreasonable to expect children to
suffer such prohibition patiently" There
fore, when his grandchildren visited him,
he would not allow any dish served at
meals which they could not share. 1t has
often since seemed remarkable TO me that
this reasonable principle which justly
lays the duty of all self restraint on the
adult, instead OF the uniformed animal
mind of a child should have been so uni
versally overlooked.
His long and varied life had successfully
embraced so many professions and had
passed through such protean phases that
l used to be curious to know what portion
of IL had rendered him most happy. He
my mother and were sitting together one
spring evening at Beauvoir, and the con-
versation drifted on 70 the question of the
ACCESSIBILITY of teaching women fencing,
the exercise which he considered pre-emi-
nently suited to the development of grace
ana strength In girls, while IL laid no I'M
due strain upon any one set of muscles. He
began TO tell US stories Of the great fem
GERS he had known in the army. of their
queer lives and sometimes stranger deaths
and thinking. as l sat listening Of the vast
range of vocations in which he had strug-
gled VIGOROUSLY, ! asked him If he could
have his life to live over again what would
he best like to be. He turned to me, and
could see his blue eyes shine in the gloam-
ing without a moments hesitation, IT
would be a cavalry officer and break
squares" His love for the army lay in the
warmest corner of his heart
In my fathers estimation West Point
er was always a gentleman until he
proved the reverse, and he considered a
commission in the army or navy conferred
an undeniable cachet. Never have seen
him show more genuine delicate sympa-
thy than toward the son of a friend who
had the misfortune to be found deficient
In his examination at the academy and
was sent back TO civil life.
The first attention my father attracted
in congress was by an eloquent reply to
an attack unon West Point. His speech
so pleased and astonished the venerable
john Quincy Adams that he crossed the
chamber to listen and said: I'VE shall
hear more OF this young mana propn-
ecy which was speedily verified. A quaint
expression of his professional pride was
the Interpretation which he put upon that
incident in. the crucifixion mentioned in
three of the gospels, and specially by st.
Luke: And the soldiers also Knocked
Him, coming TO Him and Offering Him
vinegar" My father eontended that the
testimony Of st. John, as an eyewitness,
was much more creditable than that or
his fellow eYangelists, who were obliged
to rely upon hearsay evidence. st. John
refers to the presentation of vinegar ana
hysop as an act of mercy to a man SUI
| fering under the death thirst. Said my
father; The guard around the cross were
Roman soldiers, and no brave man would
ever torment a dying person Wantonly.
Iii much more likely that the legionaries,
touched with compassion by the heroic
endurance and patience of the Savior,
ran and brought him their own portion
of sour wine, the acidity of which was
corrected with hysop, and presented II
on a sponge as the only available way
of reaching his lips 1t is not like a sol
der of any period of the worlds history
to taunt or revile helpless person. least
of all one who suffers silently He al
ways dwelt upon the superb courage OF
our Lords character, quality that is too
| often overlooked in the pulpit
My father himself had a splendid indif-
| ference to physical pain, which was phe-
nomenal in SO high nervous organiza-
ton as MS ana ne valued fOrt1tude In
others only a shade less than he esteemed
honesty of purpose,
Where there is so much to tell, so
many noble and lovabe sides of charac.
ter to reveal, the difficulty is, not what
shall be written, but what shall be lief.
untold.
As look back upon his tenderness, his
fortitude, his unselfshness, his sterling
honesty, which neither enemy nor friend
ever doubted, his meroiful justice and his
indomitable courage, words fail me, and
like Hamlet, 1 can only say. "He was a
man, take him for all in all, shall not
look upon his like again."
AN HONEST ROBBER.