The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1895-01-18
ONE OF GENERAL cLAYs FIGHTS


His Desperate Encounter With Sam Brown
In 1874 Described by a Spectator.
Il was present at the political meeting
at Russell's Cave, KY, in 1914, when
Cassius NJ. Clay had his sanguinary fight
with Sam Brown" said an old Kentuck-
ian. Fiery General Clay always declared
that the encounter was provoked deliber-
ately by friends of Robert Wickliffe, Jr.,
with whom he had fought duel three
years before. That duel cate about owing
to a speech Wickliffe hal made in his
campaign against Clay, who was his op-
ponent for seat in the legislature. Clay
challenged Wickliffe, who was one Of the
best shots in Kentucky, and Wickliffe 40
cepted the challenge. They met near
Louisville, and shots were exchanged
without effect. Clay demanded further
shots, but Albert Sidney Johnston, his
second refused to agree to the demand,
and that ended the duel. The two princi-
pals remained bitter enemies
I'm 1874 Garrett Davis was the Wing
candidate for congress in the Louisville
district. Wickliffe was the Democratic
candidate. Cassius NJ Clay entered the
canvass for Davis and made practice of
interrupting and oontradicting Wickliffe
at every meeting at which the latter spoke.
to Clay ON these occasions, and that made
the hot headed abolitionist all the more
bitter. Tho Democratic meeting at Rus
sells Cave in August, 1874, was big one.
Wickliffe was the chief speaker, and Clay
was present, as usual, with blood in his
eye At certain statement In Wickliffe's
speech Clay shouted:
THAT is not SO, and have the docu-
ments to prove my words
"As he spoke Clay drew paper from
his pocket. Sam Brown, a government
officer of some kind, stood near Clay aud
exclaimed:
"'You'r re ID liarl
"At the same time he aimed blow at
Clay with cane. Clay had a riding whip
In his hand and struck Brown with Its
butt Then, dropping the whip, he made
motion to draw knife. Instantly he
was seized by dozen men, who attempted
to drag him away. They did drag him
several feet, but he fought himself loose
from them. Brown yelled:
"'Clear the wayl I'll meet the ID
niger loverl'
The crowd around Clay broke away at
once, exposing him to Brown, who stood
with cooked pistol aimed at his adver-
sary Clay advanced toward him with his
terrible Knife drawn. When Clay was
within two PAGES of Brown, the latter
fired. The aim was good, and the bullet
would have gone straight into Clay's
heart and stopped his career then and
there, but the fiery Kentuckian's proven
bal good luck saved him once more. The
silver mounted scabbard of his knife was
in his bosom. Browns well directed bull
let struck the metal on the scabbard and
f., bo CHI oily ErnNlan
Clay down, but he quickly recovered him.
self and before Brown could fire again he
was upon him like panther. He slashed
his keen knife across Browns head. but
before he could use 1t again he was seized
by bystandors a second time. His arms
were pinned to his sides just above his
elbows, preventing him from using his
knife as he would have used it, but In spite
of this interference he continued hacking
Browns head and face, Brown oil the
while struggling to get at his terrible an
tagonist. Clay inflicted frfghtful wounds
on Brown during the struggle. He cut
out an eye slashed off his nose, severed
one of his ears and gashed his face in SO
many places that there was scarcely
square inch of uninjured flesh upon 1t.
All this time friends of Brown were ham,
mering Clay with chairs canes, cudgels
and fists, but even by the force of numbers
they were unable to beat down that great
est fighter that Kentucky ever knew or to
tear him away from his foe. AT last, to
save Browns life, his friends picked him
up, carried him away and tossed him over
a high fence into field. But even then
Clay pressed forward in the fray and made
last fierce lunge with his knife at Brown
as the latter went over the fence. The
knifo missed him, but the blade buried it
self in the board at the top of the fence,
and the great cash 1t made remained for
years an object of interest that the natives
proudly pointed out to visitors at Russell's
Cave.
After the disappearance of Brown Clay
pushed his way back among the crowd,
and holding his knife. red with blood,
above his head shouted
"'I repeat It'll The speakers statement
is false! And l defy any one here to dis
pute mel
1t Is hardly necessary to say that no
one disputed him. Clay was indicted for
the crime of mayhem and tried, but was
acquitted on tho testimony of Brown him.
self. Clay was so taken with the manli-
ness and straightforwardness on the wit
ness stand of the man he had tried to kill
that he endcavored to make him his friend,
but Brown refused the offer. In the Next
can war; only little later, the warmest
friend Clay had was Captain Charles
Brown, an officer under him and a son of
Sam Brown. Poor disfgured Sam
Brown, a year or so after his terrible en-
counter with Clay, had both legs blovn
off in a steamboat explosion on the Mis-
sissippi river and lived only few hours "
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