Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1906-06-08
THE RIVALS,

Following is the authors introduc-
ton to THE Rivals" the interesting
new serial the publication of which Is
to be commenced in The Enquirer OF
next Tuesday:
In the preparation of this work ] did
not confine himself to the life Of Aaron
Burr as written either by Davis OF
Parton. Both are unjust to him-Par-
| ton least 81. Put even he, while writ
| ing with an evident desire to do JUS
| tice, approaches the subject with 4
degree Of timid hesitation which proves
| that he dreaded to encounter the tide
of undeserved reprobation which Is yet
beating against the tomb Of the Illus
trious dead. The work of Matthew l.
Davis is a libel upon the man he pro-
fessed to honor, and whom he called
| his friend in life. ] went beyond these
and collected many old pamphlets and
documents relating to Burr and Ham,
ilton, and endeavored to extract from
them enough of the truth to enable me
| to form a just estimate of the char
Iacters of both. That estimate once
| formed the book was made to cores
pond with it, the main historical facts
alone being preserved, while all the
rest is the offspring of imagination.
The history of the war proves con-
lclusively that there was no better SOL
dier, or more devoted patriot, In the
long list of Revolutionary heroes, than
Aaron Burr: and all contemporary tes-
| timony agrees that no man ever lived
of a more genial, hospitable, and kind
| ly nature. Yet this man, unsurpassed
as a soldier, unrivaled as a lawyer,
pure, upright, and untarnished as a
statesman became, from the force OF
circumstances, the object Of the bitter
est calumnies that malice could invent
or the blindest prejudice could believe.
Persecution dogged him to his grave;
and, although the life of a generation
has passed away since then, justice
still hesitates to approach the spot
where the bones of the patriot soldier
repose. Under the garb Of fiction, l
have endeavOred to contribute my mite
unjust aspersions which imbittered his
life. If | accomplish nothing more
than to induce a portion of the rising
generation to search the records of
that life, | shall be amply repaid for
the labor ii has cost.
OF Alexander Hamilton l have writ
ten nothing Of which | do not believe
he was capable, after the fullest eX-
animation Of his own writings and
those of others. That have entertained
strong prejudices against him from
boyhood is true; that those prejudices
NAV have Influenced my judgment, Is
possible; but | tried to discard them,
and look at his character in the light
of reason alone. The more | studied
il. the more | became convinced that
the world never presented such a COM
hination of greatness and Of meanness,
Of daring courage and of vile malignity,
of high aspirings and of low hypocrisy.
Shrewd. artful. and INSCRIPTIONS, there
were no means he would not employ
TO accomplish his ends-no tool too
base TO be used when it's services were
needful. Loose i'm his own morals
even to RIGHTEOUSNESS, he criticised
those of Thomas Jefferson with a Sc
verify no other antagonist ever equaled.
Slander was his favorite weapon, and
no one stood in his way who did not
feel the venom of his tongue and pen.
All that part Of the work now sub
mitted to the public, which Is not his