The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1896-08-22

stalked through the open door. Without
word the S tranger made for the head
of the table, where Gen. Reed was sit
ting. Instantly cries of "Alston! Ais
tonP' ran down the uabls. At these cries
the cloak was thrown back and Aston
was recognized Reed rose from his seat
and, whipping pistol out of his pock ct,
leveled it at his assailant and fred. The
ball struck Aston III his uplifted hand,
carrying away two fingers. This did
not stop him, but. brandishing bowie
men had been parted Reed was pretty
severely cut, and Aston wounded again.
Aston was taken from the room, and for
several months nothing more was heard
of the matter. One day Gen. Reed WAS
walking down the streets of Tallahassee
when he was fred upon by Aston. The
contents Of one barrel of a shotgun were
poured into his left shoulder, and as he
turned to front his assailant the other
load went into his heart. He fell and
died instantly.
Willis Alston went to Texas, where he
lived for some time. He settled near
Brazoria There was a d.. Stewart,
who, for some reason or other, pursued
the matter of the Reed killing and used
remarks derogatory to Alston. Alston,
hearing Of it, wrote the remarks down,
and, meeting Stewart on the prairie one
day, asked whether or not he was respon-
sible for those remarks. DIR. Stewart
took the paper. and, while pretending to
read it, put his hand in his holsters and
drew his pistol. He jumped off his horse
on the side opposite Aston and fired into
him. A desperate fight ensued, in which
Aston was shot twice and his stomach
SO cut that his bowels protruded. He
killed Stewart, however, pouring load
of buokshot into him after he was prone
on the earth. He was taken to Jail al
most dead.
He was famous fiddler, and, procur-
ing fiddle sat thcre playing the old tunes
of his boyhood His body servant gained
adm1ttancs to his oell, and had coil of
rope around his body. Suddenly mob
if, broke in the doors, and seized Col.
Alston. He was game to the last. and
fddled up to the very instant he WAS
seized. his dauntless face looking full on
his assailants.
He was tumbled into a blanket, the
ode
out OF Jail. Once out in the street, he.
was thrown to the gro ind, still enveloped
in the blanket, and a hundred bullets
were poured into his body.
Thus died the last of the "Halifax Ais
TONS" They were remarkably athletic
and handsome race of men. Gideon,
who was killed by Pelat, was always
cited ms the handsomest, youngest of his
day. 1t may be said here that the young
Castilian who killed him was put into
the navy rs a midshipman and was
drowned in the Mediterranean. Willis
Aston was man of wonderful strength.
He once shouldered a load of 500 pounds
dead weight, and carried it through the
streets of Sparta on bet. His life was
stormy one. HIS feud with the In
grams, a strong and powerful family,
was the sensation of Georgia for the time
it lasted. He always carried his Yager
with him. and escaped the whole diff
Guilty with only one finger shot away
The feud was dramatized under TIE
name of" The Watch, "and was sold large
ly. The authors Here never discovered,
or they would hive been killed, as the
heroes of that day did not tolerate the
publication of their troubles. The manu-
script was discovered one morning in the
yard of fearless widow, who published
it herself and sold it, making great
deal of money by it.
A friend of the late Col. Bob Aston
said: "Col. Aston was remarkable
man. Filled with all the ohivarly. fear
lessuess and hot-headiness of his race, he
dreaded above everything meeting an
end like his ancestors. 1t was not fear,
for an Aston does not know what fear
is. He was rs brave man as ever lived.
In the army, as one of Morgan's lieu
tenants, he was one of the most reckless
and daring of them all. He once actual
ly had biscuit shot from between his
teeth, but with q laugh he continued his
breakfast. He said to me: 81 have a
boy who is a t-headed fellow himself
and l have taken my wife's hand in
mine many time and knelt by his bed
side and prayed to God that might be-
quoath him a legacy of peace and a quiet
DEATH 1t was his highest ambition, as
he often said, to break the old traditi
that AN Aston must die with his boots
on. Yet it was the fate of this boy of
his to die few years later the death of
suicide"
When he was going to the field to meet
Capt. E. Y. Clark, of rival news
paper, he was just going to take the
night train. Suddenly he turned to a
dark wall and leaning his head on his
hand, prayed aloud that God might spare
him the death his people had died. and
l. 10 II