The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1921-08-16
STORIES OF OUR SOUTHLAND
Original Will Of ''Who Struck Billy
Patterson"

unanswered c0uaHufulliS III Auiei4Si
Ii, "Who Struck Billy Patterson?"
The recent death of Charles Jerome
Bonaparte, Of Baltimore, Md, ant
who was Attorney General unde
President Roosevelt, has brought tt
my memory a fact that is not gener
ally known. Billy Patterson, the mar
who gave this inquiry to the world
was grandfather or great-grandfathe1
of@this same Bonaparte, and his vii
containing that clause is on file in the
historic old town Of Gainesville
Franklin county, Georgia, and l have
inspected the document.
Billy Patterson was the father OF
the beautiful Betty Patterson, the
wealthy daughter of a Philadelphia
capitalist, who married Jerome Bona
parte, brother of Napoleon, and who
at the time was sojourning in the
United States and leading an idle
and vagrant hfe. st the time OF his
marriage to the American girl his
brother, while exercising great powe,
in France and winning victories undef
the Directorate, had not achieved the
eminence and fame he afterwards
won.
Billy Patterson, father of Mrs. Je-
rome Bonaparte, was not only a
wealthy man for those times, but ne
had acquired large bodies of land In
the South. Among his possessions
was a tract of. wild or thinly settled
land in what IS now the counties OF
Franklin, Hart and upper Elbert, in
the State Of Georgia. 1t was while
raid Billy Patterson was visiting that
section, to inspect his real estate hold
ings, that he CHANGED to attend pub
lie gathering of the settlers in what
id now Franklin county. The meeting
was around a still-house near
spring, and the entire crowd got
blind drunk, and which ended, as such
csrousals too often did in those days,
In a general fight. 1t is not known
how the trouble started, but Billy
Patterson got mixed up in the melee
and unknown belligerent hit
slifa blow behind the burr of the ear
and sent the visitor stem-winding.
But. Billy was game, and on gaining
hisSfeet began search for the pugil7ztt
istt But no one could be found who
would confess that he had delivered
the blow, tin spite of the fact. that
Billy, the assailed man, raging with
indignation, paraded among the.
crowd demanding to some one to
point cut to hm the fellow .sWho
struck Billy Patterson?"
=, sIt is said that the longer Billy
thought over the blow the angrier he
got. and that he prolonged his visit to
that section to try and discover his
assaiiant. Finally ne departed un-
satisGed, but with vengeance in his
heart: Before his death he had drawn
up last will and testament, be-
ousathing his property in Georgia,
which according to the law had to be
placed. on record in Franklin county,
where he held large possessions. In
said will he spoke of the lick he re-
refyed at that gathering and added
y clause setting aside 4 certain sum
ts be expended in ferretting out and
presenting the man who delivered the
blow: ~ { - = ~ - =.
FfassoM will, written. the latter:
part ~of tEe4 eighteenth century, is
ssfll On fls> in the Clerks Office in
Gainesville, Ca, and while the ink has
somewhat faded it is perfectly legible.
= will Be remembered that after
his elevation as Emperor, Napoleon
sent for his brother Jerome and fore
ca MIN to divorce his American wife
and marry an European princess, at
tet#ards elevating Jerome King Of
Westphalia; Betty refused to accept
the divorce, and insisted on her
claims; but Napoleon was then all
powerful and She was never permitted
TO again meet her husband. Her chill
dren, by Jerome Bonaparte, assumed
the fathers name and became emf
nent citizens of Baltimore.
<s.cBut when adversely overlook Ma
poleon, and his own family deserted
him, his American sister-in-law, and
whom he had repudiated, remained
true to- him in his exile and NAPOLEON
before his death at St. Helena ac-
knowledged that he had done Betty
q wrong.
Gainesville, while one Of the oldest
towns in Northern Georgia, is small
place, some miles from a railroad.
This old will is carefully preserved