Goldsboro weekly argus. [volume] (Goldsboro, N.C.) 1885-1909, 1902-05-22
A GENTLEMAN OF THE OLD
SCHOOL.
Those Who Knew DR.: Davis in
This City Will Recognize the
Accuracy of This Peu
Picture.

Mr.. Council S. Wooten, Of La
Grange, is writing a series of most
delightful and instructive articles for
the Sunday edition of the Charlotte
Observer, on his "reminiscences of the
men and customs of ante-bellum
days. These sketches read like Ma
caulay or Blackmore might have
! written them, so ornate are they in
diction and minute in descriptive fea-
ture, showing close observation and
r%etent1ve memory on the part Of the
writer.
Recently we published in full Mr..
Wooten's pen picture eff the late
Hon. w. T. Dortch, of this city. In
Sundays Observer Mr.. Wooten
writes charmingly of ante-bellum
plantation recollections in the La
Grange section, and in this article
we find the following fine description
of the late DIR. A. C. Davis, which
will be readily recognized by all who
remember that cultured and most
lovable gentlemen as true to life
CDR. A. C. Davis, the father of
Col. A. G. Davis, a prominent lawyer
of Goldsboro, was the physician OF
the ne~ighborhoOd. / remember read
ing, some 80 years o r more ago, an
article in some magazine on the
good old name of gentleman
When I read it [ concluded that
there were very few men who could
come up to his standard OF what con-
stituted a gentleman. / at once said
l did not come up to it. Yet if you
were to tell the commonest man
that he was not a gentleman he
would become insulted and want to
fight. [ am sorry / have not
the article SO as to read it
again. My recollection was that
a gentleman must be courteous,
kind, polite, cultured, respectful to
those in authority and to those be-
meath him, and in discussion never
wrangie and treat with Difference
those who disagree with him. When
/ read the article at once WenttODr
40 ID EtAAO tO1NR LII IN q liz LII
man / knew who could in any way
come up to the standard of a gentle
He had, it seemed to me, all
the requirements. He had a hand
ONE person, dignified, cultured, po-
lite, easy and graceful in manners,
fluent in conversation, smooth and
even in temper, and at all times re-
spectful to the rich and poor alike.
lie died few years ago at the ripe
old age of SO years.
Elsewhere in this article Mr.. Woo
ten writes Of a citizen of Wayne
county, the late Mr.. Thos. Uzzell,
father of Messrs. Atlas, Tom, w. S.,
Kirby-and the other Uzzel1 broth
ers, as follows:
"To the west, across the creek, was
Council Best, with over 800 negroes.
! His land adjoined my fathers. He
was a good neighbor, and was al
ways ready to lend a helping hand
when it was needed. Beyond Mr..
Best was Thos. Uzzel1, with over 100
negroes, and his brothers, John and
Joshua Uzzell. He was a large, fine
looking man, weighing about 250
pounds, and had the bearing of a
king. He was a man of extraordi-
nary common sense, of a genial,
cheerful disposition, and delighted in
| company. He was a fine manager
on his farm, and when the war be
gan, there was no man in the State
who was more prosperous or who
was making more money than he. He
left eight boys, who are all fine look,
ing men and r among u best
citizens"