i
j " HBKItTY AND MY NATIVE SOIL."
VOLUME IY. 1 1 TOM3BI5i
! ABBEVILLE C. H., S. C., JANUARY 5, 1848. 'Hr
i
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A ^CHARLES II. ALLEN,
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/ (WK1TTUX FOR TilK AU1IKVIL.LU IIA.N.VKK.)
T O T II E M K MORY O F
Liouit'iiuii! Jf. IS. IVorngiic,
Who fell 1 "it li September, 1817.
He hath passed away fro in his child hood's
An 1 from that groupe of love [home
Which clustered 'round the parent hearth
Ere any chanced to rove?
Those scattered ones m iy come again
To the place they loved of yore ;
Hut mournful will that meeting lu? ; ?
llrll meet with them no more !
lie hath passed away from the joyous throng
From the circles of the gay : ?
No eye than his more brmhtlv beamed
In the place of revelry.
They'll meet again?those friends he lov'd,
And wear the smiles he wore ;
13ut when they join in dance and song
lltll join with them no more.
He hath passed away from the martial host,
From his placc among the br.tve?
Their ranks are thin, their leader's ljst,
And yet their banners wave ;?
His oirn will mingle with the bands
That rush to meet the foe,
Hut when they march to fife and drum,
JWll march, with them no more !
No iiiurC'?iio ...ore ; for silent licw
Tho voice I hey once obeyed ;
And sadly on his pale cold brow
His dark brown locks are laid ;
?o beautiful!?so much like life?
Yet mournful tokens tell
That in th battle's fiercest strife
And deadliest front lie fell.
He fell!?and there arc some who say
'Tis glorious thus to die,
Whi-u the gallant blond is mounting high
In the clasp of victory ;?
it . " ?
Din uearer tar to mo, than all
The deeds of noblest birth
Is the gem that in his heart was worne?
The gem of modest worth.
They tell me?by the couch of pain
He lingered long and kind.
And that hi* tear-drops fell like rain
The broken heart to bind.
They tell me?that on comrades weal
His warmest thoughts were lent,
And that to soothe a soldier's woe
His little all was spent.*
Oh ! breathe no more the bitter boast
Of walls and tronphos <r:lirw?r1
So fondly loved?so curly lost?
lie lies among t/ie slain !
A lid many a comrade brave and true
Lies coldly by his side !
Ah glory ! palctPsl l/iou jwl, that day
Thy noblest victims died !
Build high?build high of marble dust
For the stern unflinching great,
Whose iron steps have left no trace
Of the heart's first tender weight?
Jh', needs it not:?within the Hulls
Where his early footsteps moved,
His monument is reared, and 'tis
A Monument of Lovk 1
When about leaving Jalapa, ho spent the last
dollar that he had?though he know it would bo
long before he could obtain any moro?to procuro
001110 comforts for the dying Gillospio.
From the Charleston Courier.
EPIGRAM
On the Expected Arrival of General Shields.
When Snarta's vouth athirst for fame.
Went forth to battle-fields,
(l With them?or on them!" cried the dame,
And pointed to their Shields.
In prowess of the Palmetto State
m To Spnrta nothing yields;
Fair darmvs, in conquest we're elate;
Now welcome back our Shields!
A Surviving Palmetto.
Juvenile DisonEniKNCE. <# William,
iL_.? ? _ .1
cicuii juiii buh, mai a momer ? uuuo
boy."
* I'm b'.ow'n if I do, ma,"
?
??
From lint N. O. Delta,.
GEN. JAMES SHIELDS, U. S. A.
A friend of Gen. Shields has furnished us
fur publication a short sketch ol his life and
history, the principal incidents of which are
taken from the Portrait (iallery of the NewYork
Weekly News, of the year 18-15, and
arc embodied in this noiice. We take great
pleasure in laying before our readers at this
time, the history of a man whose public ca
reer has been marked with so much honor
to himself and usefulness to his adopted
country, and whose recent brilliant military
exploits as leader of one of the most desperate
charges at the bailie of Cerro Gordu,
in which he received a dreadful wound,
have made him an object of general interest
throughout the Union, and enlisted a
deep and prcvading sympathy in the hearts
of his felllow citizens on account of his
wound, and the probability o( his almost
miraculous recovery.
GENERAL SHIELDS.
A KltlEl'* MOGUAPIIICAI, SKKTt'lf OF HIM.
Genaral Shields was born in Ireland,but
came to this country at a very early aire.
Having enjoyed the advantages of a finished
education, he determined on the great
West as the scene of his future usefulness
and labor, and took up his residence at K:is
kaskia, in the Suite of Illinois, about the
year 18:M, and entered upon the practice
of law. 11 is great and varied attainments
soon met their just reward at ihn hands of
the gcneious people among whom he had
cast his lot, and he quickly rose to nn eminence
in his profession, tie aiso took an
active part in the noliiies of the Statft. Iw>
came a distinguished leader in the democratic
ranks, and was called to fill several high
offices by his fellow-citizens He first served
in the Legislature, where he gained
great reputation by hi.s talents and industry.
Me afterwards filled the office of Auditor, I
in which station he contributed by a succession
of very many vigorous measures
to place the bank in a Slate of liquidation,
and reformed the deranged finances of the
State. In the year 1845, General Shields
was appointed Commissioner of the (Jenerul
Land Office by the President, the duties
of which he continued with great zeal and
ability to perform until the summer of 181G,
when he was appointed Brigadier General
in the army of the United States, and which
position he now occupies. A career so full
of success for so young a man is remarkable.
But it is the result of rare abilities, cultivated
by unwearied application. From his
earliest youth, General Shields has been tin
untiring student, endeavoring to qualify
1.: I r i : i - - i -? 1
iijiiiacii wtiriuiiy 10 mi me inosi elevated
station?. His scholastic attainments are of
the highest character. Well versed in the
classics anil the great writers of antiquity.
lie is also master oi several n?< dern language.
Amid the labors of his professional pursuits
and the turmoil of politics, the studies
of his eailier years have not been forgotten;
luit when tiino. and opportunity have offered
he has turned aside to cultivate his taste for
Jotters.
As an advocate, his standing at the bar
was of the first class, and his practice when
lie was called to the bench was among the
most extensive and lucrative in the State.
With a brilliant imagination, and great
command of language, he combines an inti
mate acquaintance with the learning of the
law and the principles on which it ri-sta.
He had fully appreciated, in his
researches into the ancient authorities
of his profession, the remark of Coke :
u That the reason of the law ; for though a
man can tell the law, yet if he know not
the reason thereof, he shall soon forget his
superficial knowledge." To these essential
qualifications of a lawyer arc added a gracefulness
and ease of elocution vouchsafed to
but few.
i? ioio n i ? ?
iii io-io, ui'iiiTui ouieiu.s was eievaieu
Jo the bench of the Supreme Court of his
State. Here his previous habits of thought
and study made him completely at home.
He brought to the discharge of his duties all
the requisites?knowledge and love of the
law, judgement, integrity, and evenness of
temper. No Judge ever felt his re.?ponsibility
more deeply, and that it was his duty to
weigh his decisions caJmly and deliberately
as thev were not onlv to<li?tr*rminp ilm mikp
before him, but to form a rule for the future.
He nee, both in the Circuit Court and the
Court of Errors, all his judgements were
well considered, and such as are reported
are distinguished for their precision and
their singular application to the points in issue.
His best praise as a Judge was, that
lie had the confidence of his brethren of the
bench and the bar, and the people of his
Slate.
This brief nvicw of the life of General
Shields as a civilian has been deemed proper
to the introduction of a short notice of his
recent military career. The State of Illinois}
ia which General Shields claims, and
has exceeised citizenship lor the last fifteen
years, was, with the coininendihlo patriotism,
amongst the foremost to tender to the
President four regiments of volunteers for
the service of his country, and it was while
on a visit to his homestead in Illinois, in
164(5, that he was tendered by the President,
a commission of Brigadier General in
the United States Army. General Shields
accepted his commission, and resigning an
olKce of high and important trust at Washington.
immediately engaged in the duties
of his new profession, and superintending
the embarkation of the Illinois Brigade,then
in an advance stale of forwardness, he proceeded
lo the Uio Grande. Upon his arri
val at Camargo, lie was ordered to join General
Wool's command, llien en route Iron;
San Anlonia to Chihuahua. lie started
immediately, and with no escort but his aid
and servants he traversed nearly two hundred
miles dI the enemy's country, sleeping
at Mexican villages and ranches, and passing
through bands of hostile Indians, not
only unmolested, but treated wi'li the respect
of an American officer of high rank.
Upon reaching the encampment of General
Wool, he was ordered to take command of
the advanced column. It was on this march
1 to Monclovia that Gen. Shields first demon- j
*1 rated those high qualities of a soldier,
which has since endeared him to the whole
army. Withan indomitable energy,he push
ed forward his column, scaling mountains
and fording rivers, himself always in the advance,
and l>y his personal example, teaching
thr> llivloi- liic I.i?ninni.<1
tlirit by perseverance and determination all
obstacles.may bo surmounted. When General
Wool's command joined General Taylor
at Saltillo, he was ordered by General
Taylor to report himself to General Scott,
end was then placed m command of the Illinois
Brigade, intended for operations asrainst
Taninico and Wr.-i rinm- A lii.r tl???
captureofTampico,General Shields became
Military Governor, and by wise and firm
government of the people, and strict discipline
forced among the troops, he soon bro;t
<^ood order out of confusion and anarchy,anil
Tampico became one of the best police cities
in the world. It was here that he had
an opportunity of blending and exercising
his rare qualities as a civilliau and General
and ilte best comment of both are to be
found in the admirable results, which in a
short time he produced, and the high character
which, as a man of nrobiiv and talent
I * " J
he then earned for himself, and the kindness
and regard with which his services are still
acknowledged in Tampico.
At the seige and capture of Vera Cruz,
General Shields exercised his usu.il activity
and energy of character, and among
other distinguished oflieers, earned and received
his share of distinction.
It was, however, at the storming of the
heights of Cerro Gordo that Gen. Shields
won his brightest military laurels, at the
expense of a terrible wound, of which he is
now lying in a precarious state at Jalapa,
*1 -i*.i i * *
uiu oujeci 01 me ueep sympatny ana prayttrful
hopes of the nation.
General Shields was shot in the early
pait of the action, while leading the 4th
Illinois Regiment in a charge upon a six
gun battery, suppoited by a largo body of
Mexican lancers and infantry. This battery
was the extreme right work of the enemy,
and the head quarters of Santa Anna,
as well as the depot of all their stores, officers'
baggage, &c. The ball, (which was
either grape or canister) entered the right
breast, about one inch and a half or two
inches below tlie nipple, passed through the
right lobe of the lungs and out at the back,
without, however, doing any injury to the
spine. He was at once borne from the
field by his friend and Aid-de-Camp, Mnj.
Davis, and carried two miles before medical
aid could be obtained. Ilis wo.ind was at
lenglh examined and dressed; but the physician
expressed the conviction that he must
die. He was subsequently removed to Ja
lapn, where he still remains, and strong ]
hopes are now entertained of his recovery, i
The circumstances under which General
Shields received his wound speak in his
praise a language more emphatic than any
which can now be used. The battery is
at least oik mile beyond the pass of the Cer10
Gordo To reach it, ho had to lead his
command over three miles through the
densest chappar.nl, without even the guide
of a footpath. He was on foot at the head
nf liu t Tf\r\1\G fin/1 Kflil n ! ron/*l%o/l
v,. -..w ?".>??
goal of victory, through a terrific lire of
grape, canister and musketry, when he fell.
His command immediately entered the
enemy's works, and drove the enemy be^
fore them in a general route. With the
battery, was also captured a large amount
of public stores, some twenty thousand dolf
! ?_ 1 1 I "11
lars in specie unci xuu pacic mines. j. ne
Mexican officers state that the appearance
oi General Shields's command, so far beyond
the pass, and immediately in front of
Gen Santa Anna's Head-quarters, produced
great consternation in their ran Us, and
did much to induce an early urrender,
ftp
u_
Gen. Shields having been borne from the
field of battle, ihc command was assumed
by Col. Baker, as brave an officer as ever
wore a sword. At the head of his victorious
troops, the Colonel charged the enemy,
who fled in the utmost confusion,closely
followed by the victors. In this pursuit,
oania Anna himself was chised so closely
as to be compelled to abandon his carriage
and to mount on one of the mules which
drew it; in this inglorious manner he effected
his escape.
(^en. Shields is at this time about forty
years of age. His intellect and its triumphs
have already been sufficiently considered.
Of a frank bearing, a disposition kind and
friendly, a character pure and spotless, his
heart is full to overflowing with every
manly and generous emotion.
In this land, a man thus constituted cannot
fail of triumphing in the end over every
obstacle to a laudable ambition, and of
winnning a name, such as that now on
joyed by Gen. Shields. Long may he live
to add to the reputation he has already ac
quired, and to earn further elaims upon the
affections and gratitude of his country.?
The memory of services will adorn the remainder
of hid days, and embalm his fame
when dead.
In closing this notice of (Jen. Shields, it
is deemed appropriate to pay a passing tribute
to his gallant and faithful friend and
Aid-de-Camp, Maj. CJeo. T. M. Davis, to
whose kind attentions, unremitting care assiduous
nursing, (Jen. Shields, if he sur:11
- 1
...w, inn in n yiL-ui measure, uuuer the
j blessing of (Jod, owo the preservation of
Iris valuable life.
Muj. Davis, upon his return to Illinois,
will receive, as he deserves, the gratitude of
the people of that patriotic State, a reward,
to him of all others, the most acceptable.
Columhia, S. C., Dec. 4, 1847.
To Maj. B. Blocker, Edgefield, S. C.
My Dear S<.r,?The sequel will fully
explain the object of this communication.
1 am just in receipt of a h'tter from my
tie r i r*T 1 - ** - ?
sun,1 vjccorge o. James, dated .[National iJulace,
Mexico, Oct. 24, 1847.
Yon have, ere this, received intelligence
of the fall of your son, Sergeant Blocker, of
ihe Palmetto Regiment.
To the patriot father, it cannot fail to be
a source of consolation to know that he fell
at the head of his company, nobly and gallantly
striking for the rights and honor of
his country: While to the Christian parent
doubly consoling must be the fact, and
beautifully sublime the emotions which
arise from the reflection, that although
bleeding' and dying on the buttle field in a
foreign land, amid the cannon's roar and
the clash of arms, many of his last and
cherished thoughts were turned towards his
Bible, and his Mother. To the following extracts,
please allow me to direct your attention
:
"Five of the Edgefield Company fell together
at this time. Among them was 1st
Sergeant Blocker, who was then in command
of the Company. * * * *
" I carried Blocker and Goode some wa
ter, where they were lying mortally wounded.
Both seemed conscious that death was
at hand, and wailed the event with Christian
fortitude. Not a whisper of complaint
escaped their lips Blocker told me he
would die in a few hour, and gave me a
Bible (a present from his mother) to give
to sergeant Brooks, who would carry it
home to her. He also requested me if I
should ever return to South Carolina, to toll
iiis lather * l died in command ot my company
with my companions ; tell him 1 did
maj' duty. If you should see any of Serg't
Blocker's friends, you will please re-state
the circumstances of his death. It will bo a
consolation to them. It is due to the memory
of so brave a man. Sergeant Blocker
and Corporal Goode died that night.?
All loved them. Their sad fate is universally
lamented."
The gnllant Sergeant Brooks has also
fallen in the same campaign, and cannot
therefore perform the above pleasing but
mclnncholy service requested of him.?
Should my son's life be spared, I am sure
he will scrupulously observe the sacred
charge committed to him.
Your ob't servant, John S. James.
#A member of the JuniorClassat Erskine
College, in Abbeville when lie volunteered.
Melt a little isinglass in spirits of wine,
adding thereto about a fifth part of water,
and using a gentle heat; when perfectly
melted and mixed it will form a transparent
erlue. which will unite class so fust that the
Fracturc will be hardly perceived.
Tobacco in the Army.?An army correspondent,
writing from San Angel, says:
u I havo ceased to use American manufactured
tobacco, as our sutler wants four dollars
a pound for his stock. The same quality
might be purchased for twenty cents ft
pound in the States,"
4
"> . ^ *^Vr,
To the Stockholders of the Greenville k (Mont.
RAIL ROAD.
The failure, as I anticipated, to ok tain
! Legislative aid for this great work, makes
it iiccessary to enquire what is to be done.
There is but one answer?" Go ahead, and
do all which can be done. " By so doing, public
confidence will be secured, and the road
ultimately builded. My continuance, for a,
day, as President, depends upon this.?
Whenever the work is ordered to stop, I
shall cease to be the head of this great enterprise.
I have already more to do than I
ought to have. Nothing ever induced my
acceptance of the Presidency of your Road,
without money and without ])rice, but the
hope that by so doing, [ might contribute
something to the good of my country.?
Nothing induced me to remain after the location
of the Road at Newberry, but the fact
manifested to my own mind, and that of all
my friends, that my retirement must greatly
n-iuiu, (Kiu jiossiujy preveni me Duikling ot
the Road. Under these ciicumstances,and
after receiving the assurance that the work
should go on, 1 have consented to remain
and on Inc. xvork will go. Sixteen miles east
of the Broad Itiver, will be put under con-tract
as soon as the survey of location is
completed. The whole line of the Road
Will Ko nn t nn/l/^r ^ ^" J -J ? ?
..... uv |iu? uuuvi t/uiuiuti iu uo gruuuu us
suon as the surveys of location be completed,
if the Stoc/choldcres icill take the contracts.
They are entitled by the charter to work
out half of their stock on the Road. It is
hoped that even small stockholders will arrange
themselves iuto companies so as to
take sections, and thus have the benefit intended
by the charter. The whole subscription,
as it now stands, and available to us,
will not exceed six hundred thousand dollars.
This i.s not one-third ?if
the enterprise. Still with that sum, if
stockholders will take the contracts, we
can grade the entire Road, and complete
thirty or forty miles. This done, we can
mortgage the Road, and finish as much
more. When this is doing, can it be that
our fellow-citizens of Charleston, Columbia,
Richland, Fairfield, Newberry, Abbeville,
Laurens, Anderson, Pickens, and last and
not leant, Greenville, will stand by and not
help more, much more than they have done?
Lot every man come to the rescue, do as I
have done, sacrifice previous predilections ou
the altar of the common good, and then we
can build the Road, whether the Legislature
will or will not kelp us ? Let us kelp ourselves*
JOHN BELTON O'NEAL,
President of the G. & C. R. EL
Columbia, Dec. 20,1847.
A new Methodist Church -was recently
dedicated at Watertown, Massachusetts.
The vane which surmounts the spire of the
Church was presented by the Unitarian
Society, and is an interesting historical
re ic, being the identical one which graced
the spire of the building in which the first
?? 1? J
wiiiiiibiiiui vuujjicaa wua iiCIU.
Tiie whole of the President's Message,
containing about 18,000 words, was telegraphed
to Pittsburg, Cincinnati, Louisville
and Vincennes, Indiana.
Long Nosks.?A Boston editor, alluding
to the long noses of Julius Caesar, the Duke
of Wellington, John Tyler, and other dignitaries,
says that ho recently saw a nose
that Kpnt ihpm rt 11 Ti and
?IMO iUIII UIIU Chi U<gUI>f
snubbed at tho end, and all of afoot long.
In concluding, however, it occurs to him
that " it may bo as well to state that it belonged
to a pair of bellows."
From the 6th to the 16th of November,
inclusive, there have been gazetted in
England 116 bankrupts and 62 insolvents,
and in Scotland 30 bankrupts.
Tiie President, in his Message, says,
>u. i * c J-I
uuiiny uto iasi yeur iwumy 11111 nuns ui uuilars
have been re-coined at the mint.?
There is a great operation.
The census of New Orleans, just completed.
gives the total population of the city
at 79,998, a decrease of 16,000 since last
year, and 23,000 since 1840. The Delta
thinks there is a gross mistake somewhere.
/vT fit A A
a iijcj * ui uto aiu^uvau vvatu vi
Foreign Mission in October, amounted to
826,798 13, and for the two preceding
months $32,882 10.
A celebrated physician in France has
discovered that Vinegar,. taken in large
doses two or three wine glasses every hour,
is a certain cure for the hydrophobia.
PudoF of Marriage.?Before the revising
barrister, the other day, a witness being
asked how how he knew that a man and
woman were husband and wife, replied because
" he had often heard the lady hlpw
tho gentleman up." The evidonce xm held
| to be conclusive.
t