The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-01-29

trusted his best friends for fear they
might be the unwilling tools of
the vendetta. He is a monomanac on
the subject of this vendetta, and during
the past three years he has purchased
enough firearms to equip two dozen men,
so that he can repel his imaginary foes
should they attack him in the night.
His Authorizations render him a most
pitiable object This grand old warrior
who in his prime never knew the mean
ing of physical fear when principal was
involved is now afraid almost of his
shadow. The rafting of the windows by
wind at night is the Gathering of hoofs
which tells of the approach of the EN-
missaries of the vendetta. That the con-
slant dread of the vendetta has unsettled
the old Generals reason there is not the
least shadow of a doubt in the minds of
his neighbors. He never sleeps in the
same room two nights in succession, for
fear the vendetta will find where he rests
and will have. him assassinated 1t is
this fear of being killed which is no doubt
responsible in large measure for the de-
sire of Dora to be away from Whitehall.
She heard of nothing but vendettas, con-
spirators and assassins, and the simple
child, thinking MIR. Clay" as she calls
him, would not talk about such things UNI
less they really existed. actually grew
alarmed for her own safety and wished 20
live in more congenial and safer atmos-
phere, even though Ii be found in the
hovel of her brother, a day laborer.
The expression on the face of Gen. Clay
when he tells of the wrongs he has suf- |
fered at the hands of the vendetta is truly
touching. He says he fears no foe which
would come to his house in the daytime-a
foe that he can see-but when the ven
delta seeks to Stay him at night and to
destroy his child-wife. body and soul, it is
more than he can phiosophically stand
urbn hos kYao
Clay for many years and who was pres
ent when he killed ST Turner at Fox
town, talked entertainingly to your CORE
spondent about the vagaries of the mas
ter of Whitehall.
II am not superstitious," he said. ''but
have noticed that men who take the life
of their fellow -man neyerShaye any neaco
of mind. l hardly think however. that the
killing of 81 Turner had much effect on
Gen. Clay. But ST Turner is not the only
man Cash Clay had killed. He killed
Turner in a hand-to-hand fight with bowie
knives. He was unarmed when Turner
attacked him, and he snatched a bowie
knife from che hands of another man who
was attempting TO assist Turner in killing
him. Thus the killing of Turner was
doubly case of self-defense.
'In all that you newspaper men have
written about Gen. Clay, 1 have never
seen any mention of that other tragedy
1t occurred since Gen. Clay represented |
the United States at the Russian capital |
There was negro man who lived on Gen.
CIay's place-an industrious, worthy ne |
gro. One day he, incurred the displeasure |
of the general and he deliberately shot |
him with a rife. The negro died almost |
instantly. There were no. witnesses. Gen. |
Clay went 30 Richmond told the authori- |
ties what he had done, and was released |
on his own recognzance until an examin- |
ing trial could be held. At the trial he tes- |
tilted that the negro had attempted to |
take his life had made threats, and that |
believing his life in danger. he fired the |
fatal shot. There was no witness to dis |
pute the statement of the general, and |
as he had always been regarded as a man |
of honor, he was acquitted. Besides, it |
was only a poor negro who was killed OF |
course, no one knows why Gen Clay |
killed the negro save the general, and he |
never talks about this killing. He will |
talk by the hour of the Turner tragedy, /
of the bloody fight with Sam Brown, of |
his duel with young Wickliffe, of his quar-
rel with Thomas f. Marshall, which caus- |
ed the latter to attempt suicide of his |
narrow escapes from death on the Mexican |
battlehelds and while a prisoner in Mex
leo; but he will never say a word about |
the killing of that negro. 1t may be that !
he is now suffering for having shed hui |
man blood. His enemies are ell imagi- !
nary. I do not believe there is a human |
being in the United States that would |
harm a hair of his head, or who has any /
desire to kill his young wife. He is the |
victim of an Authorization. What causes
these distorted vagaries, 1 confess, is a |
mystery to me. But his life has been so
filled with storms and struggles and bat
ties that l wonder little at the condition |
his once splendid mind has reached. Cash |
Clay's career is certainly as peculiar and |
as full of tragedy as any play Shakes
peare ever wrote 1t reminds me greatly |
of Macbeth. and while I am 10th to be-
lieve IT, cannot but think that Cassius
NJ. Clay would not be harassed by ven
dettas if he could wash the blood spots
away.
What the end of all this tragedy and
heartache will be, opinion differs Some
think 1t win require still another tragedy
to round out the already long life the
general has lived. 1t may be that the
Richardson brothers will kin each other
or that they will kill Dora. and it may be
that Clen Richardson. half insane, and
who has been accused by the general with
trying to destroy Dora, will put a Win
chester bullet through the heart of the
master of Whitehall
Most Probable.-Penelope-A what
do you think? Marie writes me that the
Count has at last expressed his love to
her.
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