The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1895-10-01
AN OLD-TIME NORTH CARoLIAN
ROMANCE.

Cartons" series of historical sketches
of Northampton county public men sixty
years ago, being published in the Patron
and Cleaner, is an interesting contribu-
ton to State history. If some citizen
would perform the same service for every
county in the State that Mr.. D. @. Hardee
is performing for Northampton, he would
entitle himself to everlasting gratitude
There is not village or town in Massa-
chusetts of which history has not been
written, whereas it is the exception for
such histories to be written in the South.
The following incident in the life of
prominent citizen in the thirties, re-
corded by Mr. Hardee, is as fresh as
new novel:
William (. Crump knew well; saw
him frequently during the years OF 1854
and 1885 when he was running for the
Legislature. He was well educated and
rather good looking He rode fine horses
and dressed we'll. His political speeches
were among the best of his time. He
wrote them all off carefully and commit
ted them to memory. On one occasion
his affianced went to hear him speak.
On that day his memory failed him; he
had forgotten his piece. He was man
of no resources in a matter OF that kind;
he was completely at the mercy OF the
other side. Miss Mary Turner was the
Youngest of four sisters and was con-
sidered the second belle in the county.
She was deeply mortified at the failure
of Mr.. Crump's memory. Foolish girl,
she went home and wrote her
intended letter stating that the
engagement was off. Wiser coun-
sci induced her to change her mind
and she wrote him a sweet little billet
doux, saying that she would be glad to
see him; he never responded to that nice
little letter. He had been hOpelessly
mortified, and then to have his very
heartstrings trampled upon in the man
ner she had done, it untitled him for so
ciety.
In Mr.. Crump's time oratory was al
most as much esteemed by the manner
as by the matter. When | was at col
lege old Professor Dodd used to tell us
that a speech was never thoroughly com
mitted to memory until you could stand
upon your head and repeat it backwards
by moonlight If Mr. Crump had been
under the tutorship of Professor Dodd
Mary Turner would have become Mrs
Crump and instead of going to Alabama
as he did Mr.. Orump would have re-
manned in northampton county, and
the tax paying population of the county
would have been that much larger than
it now is.
This little romance was pretty well
known in the immediate neighborhood
OF the parties at the time. Neighbors
differed as to the propriety of Mr..
Crump's conduct in the premises. Most
of them thought that he ought to have
responded to the sweet little letter of this
proud Fountains Greek beauty; but he
well knew that she had been called
"Blue eyed Mary before she ever saw
him. He was of highly nervous tenn
permanent and was as sensitive as the
Mimosa, and although affectionate in his
nature he was in turn as proud as Luci-
fer himself. From the moment he re-
ceiged her cold letter icicles began to
form around his heart and no smiling
suubeams could afterwards melt them
away. In the language of Lady Bryon
he said to himself
"Thou art proud, but mark me,
Proud is my spirit as thine own,
Soft to love, yet hard as iron,
When contempt is on me thrown"
The letter which sealed his fate was
of all things the most unexpected to
him In his affectionate and hopeful
nature he had expected to receive from
her promptly true love letter of en-
couragement in which he expected her
to say, Though all tha world forsake
yet one true heart will praise thee. In
his own mind he had formed his answer
to such cheering lleetttc99r from one 50 !
dear to his heart. From one of the little
books of poems in his room he had
copied in his best penmanship little
couplet to inclose in his letter TO her in
his intended reply. Although old it was
good and was appropriate to the occas-
ion. The following is the couplet: