The Mathews journal. (Mathews C.H. [Court House]) 1903-1937, 1910-07-07
CONCERNING THE CLAY
RANDOLPH DUEL


ginia side of the river from Washing
tOn-it was the high-tonedest duel
1 ever Witnessed
And the colonel had witnessed a
good many of them in his day, some
times while looking into the muzzle |
OF long-barreled pistol and some |
times in the less eXacting role of at
,tendant. "-Philadelph Telegraph.
The duel referred to in the above |
extract was that between Henry Clay
and John Randolph, of Roanoke.
which took place on the Sth Of April, |
1926, on the Virginia side of the Po-
tomac, opposite Washington and Just
above the Little Falls Bridge. The
locality was chosen at the instance of
Mr.. Randolph, who said that if he
should fall in the duel he wished to
shed his blood on the soil OF Virginia
We reproduce this extract from the
Philadelphia Telegraph for the pur-
pose of correcting two errors in it.
Mr.. Benton, in his most interesting
account of the duel Gin his Thirty
Years View vol. L, PIP. 70-77), does
not use the sIangish phrase. The
high-tonedeSt duel 1 ever Witnessed"
But that il was among the highest
toned that L ever witnessed" This
may seem to some trivial criticism
but we had as well keep our history
correct as we go along.
Again the Telegraph says the col
onel' (Mr. Benton) had witnessed "a
good many of them (duels) in his day,
sometimes while looking into the muz-
zle of a long-barreled pistol and some
times in the less exacting role of at
tendant." Mr.. Benton was never so
tar as we can recall, an attendant in
the sense of a second in a duel, and
only once looked into the muzzle Of a
long-barreled pistol This duel took
place at ST. Louis when Benton was
about thirty-five years of age. In it
his antagonist was killed, and Benton
was accustomed to speak of ''the pang
that went through his heart when
he saw the young man fall, and would
have given the world to see him re-
stored to life"
Benton was born in North Carolina.
from which State his mother then a
widow moved with her family to Ten
neSsee, about the year 1900. Young
Benton, catching the "Westward-ho'
spirit. moved to Missouri, then a Ter
ritory, in 1915, and commenced the
practice of law at st. Louis. Four
years afterwards the Territory was
admitted into the Union as a State,
and Benton was in 1921 chosen one
of its first two United States Senator's
Monroe was then President, at the
close of his first term, and the Mis-
souri, compromise was passed that
year (1S21), the angry contention over
its adoption creating the first occa-
sion when the slavery or sectional
question divided the political senti-
ment or the country, and brought the
Union to the brink of dissolution.
\ few years ago the Richmond
TlmeS-Dispatch had daily small
space devoted to an interesting repro
duction Of Famous Words of Famous
People In one of these there was
an account of the Clay Randolph duel
II set forth that the occasion of the
challenge from Mr.. Clay to Mr.. RAN
dolph was the famous bargain and
corruption" charge arising out of the
TACT that i'm the presidential contest
OF 1925, when Clay. Crawford. An
drew Jackson and John Quincy
Adams were candidates, the election
failing before the people went to the
House of Representatives where, after
many unsuccessful ballots Mr.. CLAY
transferred his strength to Mr.. Adams.
who was thus elected President. and
appointed Mr.. Clay his Secretary of
State. Upon this the charge arose of
bargain that Clay's friends should
make Adams President i'm return for
which Adams would make Clay Sec
rotary of State. 1t was reported to
Mr.. Clay that Randolph, in a speech
IN the Senate, referred to this alleged
bargain, and denounced the Adams
administration as "a corrupt coalition
etween the Puritan and blackleg."
The word Puritan was applied to
Ndams as being a New Highlander. and
me epithet blaclleg contained a ref
erence to habit Mr.. Clay was al
eyed TO have had Of going frequently
down the Mississ'f III River to Or
leans, TO engage in games of card !
playing in that city.
The Srticle. Famous Words of
Famous Men" in the Times D .~patch.
Cd which we have referred. quoted
RanGolph's oPp:obrious language as
"a coalition between the Puritan and
.ackleS.' This was not all, nor
wen the worse part Of it. Randolph's
tAEjage was, "a coalition between
ne Puritan and the bIackleg; Bufl |
ma Black George" these (Bliil and
Biack George) being two Infamous
characters in Fielding's novel of Tom |
Jones'" regarded by many as display |
ing more genius than any work of |
fiction in the English language, not
ever excepting the Waverley Novels. |
AT the second exchange of shots
Mr.. Randolph received Clays fire, and
raising his pistol fired in the air, at |
the same time saying. II do not fire |
at you, Mr.. Clay"
"Thereupon," saws the narrative to |
which we have referred in the Times |
Dispatch, Mr.. Clay dropped his pis-
tol and with extended hands ran TO |
meet Mr.. Randolph" This is an |
overdrawn picture. Mr.. Benton, who |
was on the ground, saws that after
dischargipg his pistol in the air, Mr.. |
Randolph advanced and offered Mr..
Clay his hand; that he was met in the |
same spirit, and they met half way
and shook hands.
In the first exchange of shots Ran |
dolph fired at Clay; but he told Mr.
Benton that he did not aim at the life /
OF Caly, and did not level as high as |
his knees, not higher than the knee |
band, and then added with a beauty |
OF expression that no studied oratory |
can ever equal: Il would not have |
seen him fall mortalIy. or even
doubtfully, wounded for all the land |
that is watered by the King of floods |
and all His tributary streams"