Greenbrier independent. [volume] (Lewisburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1980, 1895-05-23

llemcn deciding Il difference of oniu
ION win rifles a. twenty PAGES. y
lie says: do not believe | nvn
would have the courage to FIGHT ,
uuei' II any man should wrong m,
To- thc extent Of my being willing {,
XIII nan, | would not be willing I,
give nm the choice Of weapons will
Whlch 1t should be done, and of th,
'lme, place, and distance separating
us Whcn | executed him. If
ShoIlld do another such a wrong y,
TO Justify him in killing me, | wouI,
make any reasonable atoncnCn,
Wlthln my power, if convinced ol
inc wrong done. place my oppo
SltIon to ducling on higher ground.
than any yet stated here. No doubt
a majority Of the duCls fought have
been for want Of sufficient mora
courage on the part Of those engaged
to decline"
Now that the ducllO seems to be
waning, it is interesting to pause
ana consider the judgment Of this
man, who unqueStionably possessed,
IN the highest degree, an indomita.
| bic courage.
After the excitement and fatigue
OF battle, or any time when no i'm.
mediate danger mcnaccd his army,
IN the retirement of his tent, General
Grant liked to be amused. | never
knew him TO laugh more heartily
than he did at GCncrnl Dodge, who,
ii Will be remembered, after tho oc.
cupation Of Nicksburg, was placed
IN command Of the city. At that
time cotton was worth a dollar and
ten cents pound i'm New Orleans.
farragut, with his gunbOats, con-
trolled the Mississippi river at Fort
Hudson and GazOo Pass, and pre-
vented owners from shipping their
priceless cotton down TO Crescent
City.
General Dodge was besieged day
and night by planters and owners of
the precious stuff, for permits to
ship their cotton below to a market.
AS he had no authority to issue per-
mltS, he was greatly annoyed by
these continued inportunitIes and at
length, on the verge of desperation,
he telegraphed Mr.. Lincoln the fol-
lowing: "Mr. President On Sat.
urday last / was offered fifty thou
sand dollars for permit to ship a
boat-load of cotton from this place
to New Orleans, on Sunday morn
ing, | was offered one hundred thou
sand dollars; before night, | was
tnDIprp1 twn bnpIroI tbnnoo,,l ,loI
lars in greenbacks. AS my price is
two hundred and fifty thousand dol
lars, for Gods sake, Mr.. President,
remove me before ! am offered that
sum-"
y copy Of this dispatch was shown
to Grant, who, as ! have said, en-
joyed it hugely. No one appreciated
good story or joke more than Mr..
Lincoln, and for long time he car
ried that honest telegram in his vest
pocket, to show it to his intimates.
Before closing, ! must present an
illustration of one more phase of his
character, which, no doubt, may be
familiar to many, as the story has
been going the round for forty odd
years, and has been told by Grant
himself many times. When he was
a lad Of about eight years, his father,
Jesse Grant, offered a Mr.. Ralston
twenty dollars for colt, but the lat
ter demanded twenty-five dollars.
The son Ulysses being, however,
very solcitous for the possession of
the animal, he was finally permitted
to go properly instructed by his
father) to bargain for it, and this is
how he carried out his fathers in
structiOns. When he arrived at Mr..
Ralston's house, he said to him :
Papa says | may offer you twenty
dollars for the colt, but if you won't
take that, | am to offer you twenty
two dollars and a-half, and if you
won't take that, TO give you twenty
five dollars"
l have cited this instance, old as il
is, because it furnishes an apt illus
tration of that guilelessness in busi-
ness transactions which character,
lied Grant through life, even to the
very end.
THE HAPPY-LOOKING GIRL
There are many plain young girls
whose faces are lined with discon'
tent and unhappiness. There is 6
drawn, perpleXed expression be-
tween the eyes, and the corners OF
the mouth have a decided drOOp
These are the girls who have a set
tied idea that that they are plain be-
yond remedy, and the distressing be
lief has deepened the line of dissatis
faction but in reality there is only
a cloud over the face, cast by the
habit of unhappiness.
One morning certain girl whose
face was under this cloud walked
out across the sunshine of the Com
mon. For moment the gloom haC
lifted, and the lightness OF the
morning and her thoughts were un
usually pleasant. What n pretty
happy girl that we have just passed, ,
she heard one Of two ladies' say u
the other.
She looked quickly around, witt
envy i'm her heart, to see the pretty
girl, but sho was the only girl II
sight.
Why they mean me! No on
ever called me pretty, before! l
must because was smiling"
Again as she was getting on
horse car she heard (the fates wer'
out in her favor), =" DO see tha
hapry-lO0king girl J"
" Well, | declare, | am always go
ing to look happy if this is wha
comes of it! have been calle'
bomely all my life, and here twic
in one day I've been called pretty
From that memorable day neV
beauty has graced her social circle.
WHAT DID SIZE MEAN. Feth