Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1901-09-14
"a FUNNY INCIDENT.
A FRAGMENT OF HISTORY THAT is
FULL OF HUMOR.

Colonel Horns Letter to General Logan
Explaining an Attack on Grant - shau-
non, His Associate, Was an Ambitious
Fried Chicken Eater.
J Mrs. John y. Logan once gave to a
newspaper reporter i'll this city a letter
from southern editor that created a
lot of talk. 1t was Immediately after
the death of General Grant. The re-
porter had gone to the Logan residence
to interview the general about some
matter then before congress The gen
eral was in bed, and the reporter was
shown TO his room. In the course of the
evening Mrs. Logan entered the bed
chamber and took part in the converse
ton. In her hand she held a letter, the
contents of which her husband knew
about. She wanted to give it to the re-
porter, but the general objected. But
as the newspaper man started TO leave
Mrs. Logan slipped the envelope into
his hand. The next morning nearly
every newspaper in the country printed
a copy of it. 1t was rare and racy
document.
Colonel Alexander G.. Horn of Meridi-
an, Miss, then the editor of The Daily
Mercury, was its author. The letter
was intended as an explanation of an
editorial that had appeared few weeks
before in The Mercury. Colonel Horn
and J. J. Shannon were associates in
the publication of the aforesaid journal.
On the morning following the death of
the hero of AppomattoN The Mercury
contained one of the most cruel articles
about General Grant ever printed by a
press. 1t dared any true southerner TO
grieve or show signs of sorrow over his
demise. IL called upon the people of
Dixie land 70 eXult and rejoice at the
death of the man who had slain their
sons and burned their homes. The peo-
pie of Meridian We're astounded. They
went to the editor, Colonel Horn. and
asked him. in the name of peace, TO
write another article withdrawing IL.
He was obdurate and instead of doing
as his neighbors wished dictated anoth-
er one equally as fierce as the first.
At that moment the name of Colonel
Shannon was before the senate awaiting
confirmation as postmaster at Meridian.
An enemy Of his, knowing the love that
General Logan had for General Grant,
inclosed copies of the paper TO him, eX
pecting that Logan would oppose Shan
mons nomination. Shannon and Horn
had a dispute over the editorial, and
their relations became so strained that
n street duel was only averted by the
interference of mutual friends Colonel
Horns letter to General Logan was to
the effect that Colonel Shannon was in
nocent of the article and had known
nothing about it until he saw it in the
paper. l cannot quote the letter with
literal exactness, but part of it was as
follows:
"No; Shannon had nothing to do
with it. In the first place he hasn't
sense enough TO conceive such senti-
ment as was expressed in the editorial
and if he had he would be too cowardly
to write it. He is my partner, 1 am sor
ry to say, but by making him postmaster
you will afford me the opportunity of
getting rid of him.
"And why not take him, John? There
is a mighty narrow strip between the
radical republicanism that you repre-
sent and the Cleveland Mugwumpery
that Shannon tries to represent. He is
not Democrat, never was and never
will be. l predict that you will soon
have him over on your side, and God
speed inc udy! we OSuOCIdls NlONA
here don't want him.
81 am growing old, but am still in
possession of my mental faculties, and
i hope to live many years longer to tell
the truth from day TO day about the
despised Yankees and their politics. 1
am seriously afflicted with hemiplegia,
else l would have mauled HI out of
Shannon long ago.
logan, you ought to remember me
as one of the fellows that figured some
what conspicuously in the Kemper
county trials. 1 guess 1 can take the
credit to myself of having had the DEM
ocrats who killed the Radicals there
acquitted before the courts. l would
like another job of the same kind.
You and 1 ought to be friends. OPP
posites beget liking. You have been a
broth of u boy in your party, and have
been a sheol of a fellow in mine"
General Logan replied good natured-
" to this epistle, after which friend
" correspondence sprang up between
the cratic genius at Meridian and the
senator Logan read the Shannon letter
in the committee room of the senate,
and then laughingly said that inasmuch
as his friend Colonel Horn wanted
Shannon confirmed he didn't see how
he could oppose him. Colonel Horn,
unreconstructed, has long since passed
into silence, and few years later Colo
mel Shannon was buried at his old
home in Paulding, Miss, town once
made famous by the publication of The
: Weekly Clarion, many years ago, OF