The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1902-04-23
Da o. COL. D.AAl| 8 i DlJl|eAEA IelA.
EMD OF As9 ERF2ATEE

louisville, yourier journal.
#os poverty kept b IN. from be-
ing great man so an old TREND.
summed up the life Of Col. Blanton.
Duncan, news OF whose death IN Los
Angeles, Cal. reached louisville yes
terday. Brilliant, alert, quarrelscaae,=
strenuous. he Jumped about all his
life from one thing TO another, never
striking long enough Al any one
scheme to- achieve success. And at
tie last, ne died, cut of from his
friends and engaged ina bitter legal
FIGHT with his only daughter. Had he
been poor, his poverty might have
compelled nim toswork out to compile
ton some of the many primary plans
shisierti1e brain conceived.
Col Duncan wassborn seVenty-hye
wears ago, his father being the Hon
EGarne Duncan, onesof the most. bril-
liant Congressman ever seat rom Ken
tue Sttuckv. Young Duncan was graduated
first first from Centre College, then from from.
the law Wdepartmen Of the University
#of Louisville 1850 and Immediately
entered upon that strenuous career
fhatSwas to fll & out his life. He dab.
sbled as a lawyer, but disisking heart
i llvsthe drndge.y Of the profession, took
sup politics 5nstead. The Known Nothlng.
spartywas. j1stsconing IN about tnat.
I time oungs Duncan became interest
ed IN that a born agita TOR, he rose.
quickly TO beaone offthe leaders, and
zbysnany was held partl responsible
forsIhas terrible Bloody Monday IN:
1885, when the Know Nothings tried
TO take the town.
After the collapse Of the Know:
sNotthings Young. Duncan vas quiet
for time.
HIS aggresisye, spirit, however,
could not long remain qlsescent, SO he
fell IN love The yGung woman wass
MISS Atkinson, cf Henderson, a
famous beatty and an heiress. Her
parents refused absolutely to near Of
The match. Enc strenuous young nan
from Lousgiille could not sbeas being.
baked The young woman you'd no5
marry without the approval OF der
father and mother. lessSd determined
oerson than young Duncan might have.
given up, but he only cane backbone
TO plan some scheme for winning the
Old people over. n his dilemma he.
hunted out George D. Prentice, the.
famous editor, to whom he told bis
troubles.
Well, Duncan, said H1slrPrentice.
So shesola story runs. couldn pos
siblv writ anything about you alive,
but If ron we're only dead g d get you
up an obituary to make her wear crepe.
all her lie ~
righ5, die. replied Dun
can prom
And two days later the report came
cat that Blanson Duncan, the ag1ta-s
Tor, was dead True TO his agreement.
Prentice wrote beautiful and
touching obituary Then. IN a lew
days, young Duncan came 60 tie Win
"a story Of how: the mistake had soccar-#
red. TIE next week he set o1t for
Henderson with the obituary neatly
packed IN his grip On his return trip
tie register showed and NJ IS.
Blacton Duncan.
Then the war cazno on and within
three weeks alter the firing cf the shrsts
gun. young Duncan had the formation
OF a regiment well IN bana. Ee enlist
ed and equipped iitt5e1tirely az his oWn
expense and sthen hurried away to VI =
sginia as It's Colonel But the Colonel
was not soldier. BE quarreIed with
the officers and men under nm, and
in a short tine was removed to the
lead Of the Confederate Printing Bu-
reau at Columbia, G., where he
wrote newspaper articles and printed
Confederate money With the close Of
the Civil War Col Duncan retained
TO become one of tie picturesque.
6gares off Louisville.
He vent into politics again and
started paper merely to boom
Charles O.goanor, the famcg1s New
ork lawyer, for the presldencs.
Failing this as he dId IN other
political projects, he moved to Texas
for awhile ana from there went to=lcs
Angeles, Cal
That was fifteen years ago. Coming
into California the Kentuckian an
nc1nced that be was going to reclaim
part Of the arid lanes BY irrigation.
He bought hundreds Of acres sppa-
reatly IN tie district with 20 water
for miles around, and proceeded to
sink artesian wells The knowing
ones laughed a. him, bit the laugh
changed when the arteslaii wells Gid
bring water in almost unlimited
quantities and he did rsela I'M the land
That was one Of tie few successes in
that storm life.
IN 1892, when NJ. Cleveland raE for
President, friend OF MI. Duncan
VINO conducted a strong Republican
papec in Southern California went
away on a I'll and left the kentuck-=
ian IN barge Duncan reversed
the papers poliesy, made a tremendous
fight and always afterward claimed to.
have carried California for Cleveland.
He took his claims to Washington
with modest request for a blgzellr.9,
and when both claim and request We're
laughed at he kicked upsa trenae-.-'s
row.
The lassyears of Col. Duncan We
embitterea aysqaarrels with his only
daughter, Mrs. Lewis, of Los angeles
4 year ago his wife died and since
that time father and daughter had