The age-herald., 1900-05-01
INDEPENDENCE OF
 SENATOR PETTUS

From the New York Telegraph.
 Washington.-Here is a story Illustrating the independence of Senator Pettus, whose recent speech set the country laughing. The date of the incident is shortly after the civil war. There was county fair held at Selma, and feature of 1t was a tourna- ment, which was to be followed the evening of the next day by ball, at which the wn- ner of the tournament would be ruler and the young woman of his selection would be crowned Queen of Love and Beauty"
 The list of entries included the most prominent young men of Selma and Dallas county, and also young man who was well liked, but who was not regarded as of the best society set, for the reason, chiefly. that his father had been slave over-seer. It so happened that this young man, who may be called Johnson, was the winner of the tournament. It was a sad blow to his competitors, for they were forced to admit that his prowess had given him, for the time being at least, entree to the social life of Selma. They cursed the committee that accepted him as contestant in the tourna- ment, and they cursed each other for allow ing him to win. But they thought they would make the best of it.
 Johnson, however. gave them another shock by naming as the queen of the ball pretty young woman who, though of spotless character, was under the social ban because her father was county jailer
 This was the straw that broke the back of the Selma soical camel, and the young men of the town determined that they would boycott the ball. They went at 1t in formal manner by holding a meeting and resolving that none of them and none of their families would attend the ball. Thus the great social event of the season was in a fair way to be made failure, when Judge Pettus heard of the boycott. The judge was very angry. He hurried to his office and sent messenger with request for half dozen of the leaders of the boy colt to come to see him. The first one to arrive found him pacing the foor control- ling himself with difficulty. When all the young men had arrived Judge Pettus gave them lecture
 'Gentlemen." he said, "you have declared your intention of boycotting the ball to night because the young man who defeat ed everybody else at the tournament yester- day is not of your social standing. New, want to say this: If he is not good enough to dance on the same floor with
 
 the same tournament with you. When you admitted him to the tournament you con- fessed his equality with you' And I understand you object to the young lady whom he named as queen be- cause she is not of your set. The rules of the tournament give the winner the privilege of selecting the queen. Johnson has acted within the rules-and you want | f0 han of 'I think you young men should be ashamed of yourselves You haven't wis., dom enough to see the dangers you are in- viting, to say nothing of politeness. Don't you know that thiA- country is cursed with negro domination? And don't you know our only hope in Gods world is for the white people to stand together? Don't you know your action, if it is allowed to go through, will cause a split among the white people, and that the negroes will rule? Don't you know what that means? And yet you want to blunder into such a condition because the who beat you in foot race happens to be less aristo- cratic than yourselves.
 "Now, young gentlemen. you may go ahead with your boycott if you wish; but let me say this: I am going to the ball tOliSut, dHu IL lile young iduy WHO HdS been selected as the queen will honor me by accepting my offer, I am going to dance the first set with her.
 The boycott was declared off, and the ball was a success.
 At the outbreak of the civil war Judge Pettus was practicing law, being the senior member of the firm of Pettus, Pegues & Dawson. Both of his partners answered the first call to arms. and Judge Pettus, who was then 40 years of age, remained be- hind to take care of the law business. The first battle of Manassas excited him, but he fought against the impulse to shoulder a gun.
 When two or three battles had been fought, however, his fretting to be in the fray became unbearable, and he abruptly locked the door to his law office and went to the front. He was given a commission as major in the Twentieth Alabama in- | fantry. Then his colonel and others of his | superiors fell and after a brief term as | lieutenant colonel he was made a briga- | dier-general in 1863.
 He was a fighter of great impetuosity, l and his promotions were over the heads of l many who ranked him. But if there is an | old Alabama soldier who thinks the pro- motions of Ed Pettus were not deserved l he has yet to be heard from. 
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