The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-12-21

DR.. Conway is right about James Madi-
sons mother. She was Nellie Conway
and not Fanny Taylor. Fanny was his
grandmother But the good doctor is
wrong about Thomas Jefferson. He did
not marry Miss Martha Shelton, for she
was a widow and her maiden name was
Martha Wales. as said. Neither did
Andrew Jackson marry Miss Rachel Ro-
bards. She was not a miss, but a d.
vorced wife and her maiden Lame was
Rachel Donelson. Jackson had to marry
her twice in different States to comply
with the law. OF course George Wash
ington married the widow Custis. Every
body knows that. 1t was the typo that
made it Curtis. DR.. Conway says that
Willard Fillmore never married. He is
mistaken. His first wife was Abigail
Powers and his second was Caroline Nc
lntosh. 1t is singular how many of the
Presidents married widows. Madison s
wife, Dolly Payne. was a widow Todd
Her maiden name was Dorothy Coles.
reckon we will get this matter straight
ened out after a while. Mr.. Thaxton, of
Tennessee, writes me that the full list
OF mothers and wives can be found in
the World Almanac" of 1894 Friend
Thaxton is not mad, but he is grieyed
that I said Johnson's parents were too
poor and ignorant to be named in the
biography. That was not my assertion,
but was bit of sarcasm on the compiler.
who makes special mention of their pow
erty and lack of education and records
that Andrew and his mother and step
father moved from Raleigh, N. c., to
Greenville, Tenn, in a wo-wheeled cart
drawn by blind pony, but does not give
their names. Mr.. Thaxton says his wife's
father was an own cousin to Andrew
Johnson and Andrews mothers name
was Mary McDonough, but he does not
mention that stepfather. Who did Mary
marry the second time? The biography
in Appleton was written by James Phelan,
editor of The Memphis Avalanche, and
seems to be very fair and favorable to
Johnson and his wife and children.
1t says that Johnson's father
died when Andrew was only years old,
and Mr.. Thaxton says his mother had
many more children. Mr.. Phelan says
that Andrew learned his alphabet on the
tailor's bench. and his wife, Eliza Nc
Cardle, taught him to read.
My friend Thaxton says that he did not
know that poverty and ignorance were
tied together AS a general rule they are.
That second husband must have been
both shiftless and ignorant If he couldn' t
provide any better transportation for his
wife and stepson than a two-wheel cart
and blind pony for long journey. II
Mr. Thaxton was to see such cavalcade
as that coming down the big road now he
would say that poverty and ignorance
were tramping along together. But this
much we have learned from Mr.. Thaxton
that Andrew Johnsons mothers maid
en- name was Mary McDonough. All hon.
or to him who rose from poverty and
obscurity and all honor to his devoted
wife and to his accomplished daughter,
Mrs Patterson, who presided so worthily
in the White House.
And Roosevelt married twice-that's
right He ought to have good woman
at his elbow all of the time. l. reckon
he must have been a widower when he
wrote those ISLANDERS against Jefferson
Davis and the people of the South. I am
still waiting for him to retract and
apologize. But now that he is a candidate
and is scheming for the solid Northern
vote and the Southern negroes thrown