The daily sentinel., 1908-06-03
Especial to The sentinel)

tSpeclai 10 Inc Sentlnel-)
Washington, June 3.-Confederate
veterans and sons and daughters of
Confederates in the national capital
are today celebrating the centennial
anniversary of the birth of the
South's great leader, jefferson Davis.
1t was just 100 years ago today, on
June 3, 1908, that the first and last
president of the Southern Confed-
eracy was born in Christian county,
Kentucky, and his admirers through
out the reunited nation are today
paying homage to his memory. In
Washington the exercises were sim
pie but impressive, and were partic-
ipated in by many men who wore the
blue in the warfare between the
North and the South.
Many statesmen of the old school
remember Davis as a United States
senator and recall his career in the
national capital prior to the war-a
career that ended on January 21.
1861, when Davis announced the
from the Union and his consequent
withdrawal from the senate. The
speech is declared. by those who
heard it. one of the most noteworthy
ever delivered in the senate chamber,
and after its close every member
gathered about the Mississippi sena
tor and bade MIN an affecting fare
well.
The leader of the Lost Cause was
son of Samuel Davis, a Welshman
by descent, Baptist i'll religion and
a Democrat in politics. AS most of
the first families of Kentucky were
Episcopalians and Federalists this
shows that Sam Davis. like Abraham
Lincoln's father, Tom Lincoln, was
not bound by any rules of caste. and
was not to be reckoned an aristocrat.
The year after Jeffcrson's birth
June 8, 1S0S-Samuel Davis emf
grated to Mississippi territory, where
he settled on plantation in Wilkin-
son county. about mile from Wood
vile, where the boyhood of Jeffer-
son Davis was passed.
His schooling appears to have been
carefully looked after. When but Z
he was sent to the academy of the
Dominican Friars in Kentucky. and
remained there three years. Then
returning to Mississippi he matricu
lated at jefferson College, which he
appears to have left at the close of
the year for the purpose of going to
the new Wilkinson County Academy,
where he had for teacher John A.
Shaw, of Boston, under whose tute
lage he made much progress. In
1921, when entering on his 18th
year, he went to Pennsylvania Uni
versity at Lexington, KY, then con-
sidered the best institution of learn
ing west of the Alleghanies. In July.
1924, Samuel Davis died; and the
following September Jefferson was
appointed cadet at West Point.
Here he came into intimate relation
ship with Robert Z. Lee, Albert Sid
ney Johnston and Joseph E. John
ston-three leaders of the Lost Cause
whom he did much to recognize and
promote while serving as President
of the Confederacy
we are told that the President was
faithful to personal friends. Some
times the devotion was to the injury
of the public service; but 1t was
there. always; and it was not the
least lovab1e trait of his character. At
the end of his four years at West
Point, in which he displayed no re-
markable aptitude for his studies. he
was graduated No. 20 in a class of 2 8
shows that as cadet he
ranked lust one point above Gen.
Grant. But the effect of his school
ing at the military academy was Wis
of his life. He was always precise
in his attitude, something of mar
tinet. and decidedly military in his
bearing. Moreover, in very many
ways he evidenced his great love for
his alma mater.
In 1853 he resigned his commits
sion in the United States army and
a daughter of Col. (after-
wards Presiden) Zachary Taylor. In
1886 Betty Taylor Davis Died, and
Davis after remaining widower for
eight years, married for his second
wife Miss Varina Howell, of Vicks-
burg, the granddaughter of GOV.
Howell, of New Jersey-who had
been Governor of that state from
1884 to 1901. through the conclud-
ing years of Washington's admins
tration and through the whole of
John Adams. Gov. Howell was
staunch old Federalist, and Miss Var
ina at first found 1t difficult to un-
derstand how a gentleman and a
person. In the end jefferson proved
as much of an aristocrat as even
Howell could desire.
The year 1874 proved noteworthy
in Davis life. Besides wedding Miss
he was chosen a Presidential
elector on the Polk and Dallas ticket
and elected to Congress. When he
reached Washington in 1S45 he en-
tered into a coalition with the South
erners who acknowledged John c.
Calhoun as their prophet-and
whose particular representatives in
the House at that time were Richard
Barnwell Rhett of South Carolina,
and William l.. Yancey of Alabama. |
In June, 1876. jefferson Davis re-
signed his seat in Congress to accept
the commission of colonel of the First |