Arp Bill Arp from the Uncivil War to Date, 1861-1903

1. Auflage 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5378-1369-1
Verlag: Charles River Editors
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: 0 - No protection

E-Book, Englisch, 448 Seiten

Bill Arp from the Uncivil War to Date, 1861-1903 is a collection of letters penned by noted Southern author and politician 'Bill Arp'.  They discuss many events in the 19th century, such as the Civil War and the Cherokee Indian removal.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Arp, Bill

Leseproben

THE HOME LIFE OF BILL ARP
.................. BY HIS DAUGHTER. THE EVENTS OF MY FATHER’S life may be chronicled in a few lines, but it would take many pages to tell of the mental and spiritual gifts that made that life notable, and of its influence over a wide circle of known and unknown friends. Still more potent was the impress of his character upon those nearest to him, whose privilege it was to see him day by day and partake of the wit, wisdom, kindliness and humor that made him the most fascinating of companions to his children. He has himself told in this book the main incidents of his career; how his father, Asahel Reid Smith, a sturdy young son of Massachusetts, came South to teach school and married his fourteen-year-old pupil, pretty little Caroline Maguire, whose story as her son has written it, is most interesting and romantic. They were married near Savannah but later moved to Lawrenceville, Gwinnett County, where my father was born on June 15th, 1826, the eldest of ten children. My grandfather became a thriving merchant of Lawrenceville, postmaster as well, and my father has told us many entertaining stories of the days when he used to “ride the mail” and sell ribbons and things to the girls. After some time spent in a manual labor school, he went to college at Athens, where he was the classmate and friend of many of the notable men of later days. He held his friends in the greatest esteem and affection, and it was one of the sorrows of his long life to see them pass away one by one. After his graduation at Franklin College, now the University of Georgia, my father studied law in the office of Judge Nathan Lewis Hutchins of Lawrenceville, and was admitted to the bar. Here also he had the privilege of association with the noted politicians, lawyers and judges that made of Georgia history of that day a series of brilliant chapters. In 1849 he married Mary Octavia Hutchins, the daughter of his preceptor, then only seventeen years old. The following poem was written in her album while they were sweethearts: TO OCTAVIA. I’ve not the Bard’s rich gift or Poet’s soul To pen my feelings in a tuneful rhyme; I have no power that can at will control The thoughts and breathings of my humble mind. A heart to feel, and knowledge to discern The ties of friendship, and of love, are mine; May these, Octavia gain the kind return Of real friendship from that heart of thine. An album’s pages tell of many a friend Pleasant to sight and to the memory dear; Each loves to wish thee well, and to blend Thy destiny with joys and hope sincere. Thine be the lot that gives to others joy, For thus you’ll reap a harvest of your own; May no misfortune, pain, or cares annoy And garlands in thy path of life be strewn. When incense on the sacred altar burned Its odours seemed in prayerful clouds to rise; so may our wishes all to Heaven turned Procure rich blessings for thee from the skies. Charles. Fifty-four years they lived together, and all the days of those years were a continuation of that youthful devotion. Shortly after their marriage my father and mother moved to Rome, where he began the practice of law, associated with Judge J. W. H. Underwood. When the war began he became a staff officer with General Francis Bartow, later was assigned by President Davis to special judiciary duty in Macon. It was on his return to Rome in 1865 that he began to write regularly over the nom de plume of Bill Arp, but his first letter appeared in 1861, and is as follows: “Rome, Ga., April, 1861.—Mr. Linkhorn: Sur: These are to inform you that we are all well, and hope these lines may find you in statue ko. We received your proklamation, and as you have put us on very short notis, a few of us have conkluded to write you, and ax for a little more time. The fact is, we are most obleeged to have a few more days, for the way things are happening, it is utterly onpossible for us to disperse in twenty days. Old Virginny, Tennessee, and North Callina, are continually aggravatin us into tumults and carousements, and a body can’t disperse until you put a stop to sich onruly condukt on their part. I tried my darndest yisterday to disperse and retire, but it was no go; and besides, your marshal here ain’t doing a darned thing-he don’t read the riot act, nor remonstrate, nor nothing, and ought to be turned out. If you conklude to do so, I am orthorized to rekummend to you Colonel Gibbons or Mr. McLung, who would attend to the bizness as well as most anybody. “The fact is, the boys round here want watchin, or they’ll take sumthin. A few days ago I heard they surrounded two of our best citizens, because they was named Fort and Sumter. Most of em are so hot that they fairly siz when you pour water on em, and that’s the way they make up their military companies here now—when a man applies to jine the volunteers, they sprinkle him, and if he sizzes they take him, and if he don’t they don’t. “Mr. Linkhorn, sur, privately speakin, I’m afeerd I’ll git in a tite place here among these bloods, and.have to slope out of it, and I would like to have your Skotch cap and kloak that you traveled in to Washington. I suppose you wouldn’t be likely to use the same disgize agin, when you left, and therefore I would propose to swap. I am five feet five, and could git my plow breeches and coat to you in eight or ten days if you can wait that long. I want you to write me immegitly about things generally, and let us know wherebouts you intend to do your fitin. Your proklamation says something about takin possession of all the private property at ‘All Harzards.’ We can’t find no such place on the map. I thot it must be about Charleston, or Savannah, or Harper’s Ferry, but they say it aint anywhere down south. One man said it was a little Faktory on an iland in Lake Champlain, where they make sandbags. My opinion is that sandbag bisness won’t pay, and it is a great waste of money. Our boys here carry there sand in there gizzards, where it keeps better, and is always handy. I’m afeered your government is givin you and your kangaroo a great deal of onnecessary trubbul, and my humble advice is, if things don’t work better soon, you’d better grease it, or trade the darned old thing off. If you don’t trade or do sumthin else with it soon, it will spile or die on your hands, sertain. “Give my respekts to Bill Seward and the other members of the kangaroo. What’s Hannibal doin? I don’t hear anything from him nowadays. Yours, with care, BILL ARP.” My father has already told how he came to use the name which he has made famous throughout the South. The original Bill Arp, an illiterate countryman, moved to Texas, and for some years after newspaper paragraphs confusing his identity and my father’s were both annoying and amusing. We have long since lost trace of him. In October, 1877, we moved to Bartow County, my father having purchased a farm which he subsequently sold to Sam Jones, the evangelist. The new home was called Fontainebleau, from Mr. Francis Fontaine, the previous owner. As the boys grew up and left the farm for more congenial occupations and my father’s duties as writer and lecturer took him much from home, it was decided to leave the country and settle in Cartersville, where we have since lived at “The Shadows,” and where my father died on August the 24th, aged seventy-seven years. The family tree is one which has now many branches. There were ten children in the original family; there were thirteen of us, ten are now living. The children and grandchildren may be thus de-scribed: 1. Hines M. Smith, civil engineer, Rome, Ga., married Miss Sparks, of Athens, Ga., five children. 2. Royal Randolph Smith, civil engineer, Cartersville, Ga., married to Miss Ayer of Rome, Ga., three children. 3. Harriet Hutchins Smith, married to George H. Aubrey, Cartersville, Ga., five children. Mr. Aubrey, is a grandson of Hon. John Forsyth, former Governor of Georgia. 4. Frank Clifton Smith, civil engineer, San Antonio, Texas, married to daughter of Colonel Stanwood of Ohio, two children. 5. Victor Smith, with New York Press, unmarried. 6. Marian Smith, living at home. 7. Stella Smith, widow of the late R. H. Brumby; living at home; one child. 8. Ralph Smith, physician, Marietta, Ga., married to Miss Sara Keely, of Philadelphia; one child. 9. Carl Smith, in Mexico; unmarried. 10. Jessie Smith, married to William Young, of Cartersville, Ga.; three children. Besides these there were two nieces of my mother, brought...