The Tupelo journal., 1905-08-11
PEN.pICTURES OF THE OLDEN TIME
BY COL. W. L. CLAYTON.

Some ne j you meet and pass
and others again of no more ca
pacity, you linger with and de
light to own as friends; and agar
there are others with whom vol
are pleased for the wonderful
fund Of good humor and aptness
to spread sunshine, joy and laugh
err wherever they go, and In
whaterer company they may
chance to be. In the neighbor.
hood Of old Richmond there livee
a man in the olden time before
went there and while | was there
by the named Of James M. Arm.
strong, whose goodfellwship
used to enjoy very much. Wher
I went to Richmond he livec
about two miles from there in 9
south-e lastly direction
near the Bob Burt place, ano
lived all through the years III
that neighborhood till few years
ago when he was called to pass
over the river, and | hope to 'res1
under the trees. Jim Arm
strnong was a man of capacity
for public affairs, and if he hao
turned his attention in that way
and been trained in that direction,
he would have made a valuable
public servant. The great trouble
with our people, both those who
send and those who are sent,
those who serve and those who
are served, is that they do not
put enough stress upon training
and preparation. Many seem to
think no special preparation, or
adaptation either is necessary to
make a good officer, but that you
can pick up a man from the pillow
or the wood pile, and get from
him first class service as a legis-
lotor, or sheriff., or clerk of a
court, without anything but a
few days, or afew months prac-
tice. And in those olden times,
when our Legislature was elected
every two years, and ordinarily
had a session of two months,
the men who sent their represen-
tatives to make laws for them,
not seeing all things done which
was either promised or expected,
they rejected them if they offered
a second time, or sometimes male
it so hot for them that they would
not again offer. Many men who
have had ability and aptness
for positions of honor and trust
have failed because the people
would not give them a chance
for preparation and training. II
is acommon thing for an English
man to spend his whole life in
Parliament. all by that means
ae is SO much the better enables
to ser1e well and faithfully his
constituents. Nowif Jim Arm
strong had had that sort of prep
aration, he would have made a
valuable public servant. He had
the same genial disposition to
make and keep friends, SO nee
essary for those in public life,
and if he could have added train
ing and special preparation, he
could have been powerfor good to
his people. You might go into
any crowd where he was, and he
always attracted attention. He
had a fund of anecdotes to please
the crowd, and his laugh was con-
tageous, and his personal appear
rance was prepossessing. When
| first knew him in 1855, he was
a man of leisure, attending all
the courts for the pleasure Of
associating with the lawyers and
Judges, with all of whom he was
on good terms, and in order that
he might meet and associate with
his friends from the whole coun-
try and even beyond it's borders.
In all the May day an
Fourth of July .cele
brations, and at all picnics and
other social gatherings, and
at all Fairs, he was a leader.
And altho the labor Of his farm
and the care of his family for
many years of the last part of
his life required and took his
time, he would always take time
any way to be social and enter
tain his friends, and, attend all
the public meetingsof his county
Unselfsh, generous to a fault, a
man of many friends and few
enemies. A man Of splendid ap-
pearance, and one who at sixty
could have passed for forty.
James,I have passed many pleas.
ant and happy moments with thee
and / remember we'll the last
letterI had from thee, and that
which | wrote thee in reply, anG
how the older scenes were there
in depicted.
A little further off from ole
Richmond, but still near by, lived
David H. Traylor, a man of means
a kind and noble hearted man
at all times ready to lend a help