The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-03-21
LAMAR FONTAINE.
DECLINING YEARS OF A NOTED Old
WARRIOR.

Took Pant in Twenty-seven Pitched
BattIes-Private I'm the Ranks. Yet
He Had Carte blanche on the Con-
federate Treasury wounded
Sixty-Six Times.
From the Louisville Courier-Journal.
Memphis. Tenn, March 14-Fonowing
the peaceful and monotonous avocations
Of a planter and a man OF letters in the
secluded hamlet Of Lyon. in Coahoma
county. Mississippi. not far from Mem
phis. lives Lamar Fontaine. who in his
day and generation was perhaps the
most destructive and sanguinary war
rior. single-handed that the world ever
saw, and who in his declining years de-
votes himself to the muses. and from
time to time contributes to the daily and
periodical press literary articles of such
fine merit as no one would credit TO a man
who carries the scars of siXty-seven bull
let's and has slain so many fellow crea-
lures that he cannot make even an ap-
proXimate estimate of the number there
Of
The Marquis of Lothian. in his history
of the war of secession. published several
years ago. being conversant with many
Incidents in the life of Fontaine, says in
effect that none of the historical or ira
ditiOnal heroes of the chivalric middle
ages. no soldier the world has ever known
whose deeds of valor have come down in
story. song or fable, can hold place
alongside this man in the qualities OF
bravery, perseverance or devotion TO
duty; and the marquis laments that the
confederate states produced no poet or
biographer capable of embalming the
memory of this nineteenth century war
rior.
was this. He began as chief of scouts and
courier for Gen Stonewall Jackson. lie
served in the same capacity with Gens.
Stuart and tombstone and briefly with Lee.
He took part In q pitched battles,
forty-seven skirmishes and over a hum
dred individual skirmishes in which blood
was shed. Although he was but private
in the ranks, he was once entrusted with
a carte blanche order on the treasury OF
the confederate states. He was known In
all branches of the confederate service
as the best marksman with rifle or reVoN-
or in either army Five times in the course
of the war he was reported In the dis
patches as dead. On two occasions he
was able, with the aid of mtrros, 70 look
into aDertures in his flesh and watch the
beating of his own heart. These state
ments might appear fabulous and alto
gether incredible, but for the fact that
the man is we'll known by all the veterans
in these parts, who fully vouch for al
these details, and aver further that II
Fontaine were not SO modest his own
recital of his career would seem even
more remarkable.
Lamar Fontaine bears in his veins the
best blood in the south. He Is OF the
same family as Senator ana Associate
Justice Lamar, who died couple OF years
ago while occupying a seat on the SUI
preme bench.
ut occurred .at Waterloo Bridge, near
WaEeptsRt sPT2as' al fnf he RThat was
about the first time | ever met Gen. Lee,
though | had often seen him before and
knew him by sight. ! was then acting
AS courier for Gen. Jackson, who. II
seems, had been telling Gen. Lee about
my skill with the rifle. On this day |
carried dispatches to Gen. Lee from Gen.
Jackson. When / had performed my duty
Gen. Lee expressed a desire to see IF
what he he heard about my ability as a
marksman was true: | told him I'M l would
the valley was ridge upon which was
stationed federal battery that was pour
ing shot into the confederates as fast as
the guns could be loaded and discharged.
Drawing forth and opening his watch,
Gen. Lee ordered me to proceed. be-
gan to shoot.
gun No. l., and the man would drop at
the crack of my rife; now No. on gun
No. A. and that man would drop. And
so the work continued. AS fast as a
man on the battery fell over another
would take his place. Finally Gen. Lee
closed his watch, That win do said ne,
0iAtg AhSh IL SANty ihiiANA'E - goaA ANA7
"On later occasion when we met Gen.
Lee asked me if my conscience did not
trouble me.
What for? said |.
. Because of the people you have killed.
" General said /, does you conscience
why do you ask that2 he replied,
with that peculiar smile that everybody
noticed about him.
The writer met Fontaine i'm Memphis
this week. He had come UP to attend
gathering of the local confederate
veterans post and read a paper commea-
datory of the South Battle Abbey pro-
ject He Is active and sprightly, and
seems good for another quarter of a
century at least, Notwithstanding his
body is so badly SCARED that scarcely
a patch of the original skin Is visible.
He is under the average in stature,
wears a jaunty costume, the most con-
spicuous features of which are a broad
brimmed hat and a short jacket. He
talks entertainingly and evinces unusual
erudition on all topics of up-to-date in
terest, but is not at all loquacious con-
corning his personal adventures. All eff
forts to draw him out along that line
We're quite barren of results. However,
some extraordinary admissions were
made in the Course of an extended con-
versation.
Have you any idea of the number
of men you have killed in the course of
your war careerY' he was asked.
II could not estimate. But on one &C.
casion / shot sixty men in sixty minutes
and the record was kept and Is vouched
for by Gen. r. e. Lee himself"
Fontaine was induced to narrase the
circumstances of this slaughter.
=" Because / answered, when i enlisted
for the war / made up my mind that 1t
was my duty to kill every federal soldier
/ could, and | killed federal soldiers from
the same sense Of duty that you would
kill rattlesnake.
Fontaine was asked how he acquired
such fine skill in the use of firearms
"Among the Indians in Texas" he re-
Piled when / was a small boy / set
tied with my parents in that state. Later
went to live among the Comanches, and
for thirteen years | never saw the face
of a white man."
Beyond doubt the most remarkable feat
accomplished by Fontaine from the point
of view of the historian was the carrying
of dispatches and caps into the city Of
Vicksburg when that city was infested by
the federals. At that time Memphis was
in the hands of the enemy. and Fontaine,
acting as a spy and under disguise, had
been in this city for a month or so pick
ing up what information he could for the
benefit of Gen. Joseph F.. Johnston, who
had his headquarters at Jackson, Miss
One day there came summons for him to
report to Gen. Johnston at once. Simu;-