North Carolina Newspapers

4 'Sr 'X. r 5 iiiranl Tarbor&ngh, ' Edgetombe County, JYi Vatiday, Mily G i 30 n TOlffUtti itfi HI mum AM invaded even the sanctuary of the social ( soul, controlled his opinions and influenced his DoJitirnl The Tabovd Prcss BY GEORGE. HOWARD, v. circle." As in the late war with Mexico . ,.i,irliltffltTwo noi,i,Ans nar vear parties Were'nerfcel.v arrnvrl nrrnlrist mhVi . rintlllSlltU "J - -7 I " - , - V C5 -v.ii f aid in advance- Two Dotr.Atts and Fifty Other upon its general merits, policy and !v!t, at the expiration of the subscription year, propriety. : The conduct ofthe President Mvcnisemcnt3 not exceeding a square win do was assailed, in no measured terms.' Up- iv - n...t .n tliu (tret inaortinn onn Or . . ... - Inserted at OUoLLARUie nrsi insertion,? Qn a resolution ;ntrm,1Irpf1 ;ntn ,u0 iIni,(i ZTcoO and Judicial the war and pledg- "f per cent, higher. ,n l,le '.-operation of the State in its -''rr ' maintenance, an angry and protracted dc- "MiZdby Resolution of thS.Monu. te..al03e f republican instincts nat ublisncaoj , urally arrayed him on the side of the I nnnntan no.. 4. at 1 i wuuuj jauu iu mis resolution ne gave a OK1TIOIV, Pronounced at Tawborough, N. C '., Me 2 1850 011 tfie occasion of lay ing the Comer Stone of the Monu ment to the memory of Louis D. Wilson. By Wm. F. Dancy, Esq. warm and decided support; and together wan ucuiord lirown and others, who have since become prominent in North Caro lina politics, was mainly instrumental in securing its passage. From this period to the day of his death, with only an oc casional interruption, he continued to re present the people of Edgecombe, either Fellow Citizens: I have come for-: in the upper or lower House of the Leg ward on this occasion no less in obedience lslature. . o your commands, than to the prompt-j In 1824, he was for the first time elect ingsof my own heart. Jed a member of the Senate. If any have been drawn hither to-day In 1835, he was chosen a member of with the idle hope of hearing any attempt the Convention called to amend the Con- f at oratorical display, or the no less ambi Uious language of unmeaning eulogy, then i is the expectation vain. In the few sim ple and hurried observations I. am about to make, I empl jy no eloquence but truth, no embellishment but fact ,lI come to bury Caesar not to praise him." A wise, virtuous and patriotic public servant has been taken from us struck down by the hand of death, in the midst of his usefulness and in the very harness of his public labor. When such a man dies, it is meet that those whom he has served should do honor to his memory. It is meet that those who have enjoyed the fruits of his wisdom, and shared the benefits o his councils, should record them tor the benefit of the generation which succeeds. To unfold the examples and display the virtues of those, who have acted well their part in the great drama cflife, is a matter of solemn duty. It springs from a sentiment honorable to the j human heart.. It stimulates the young. to acts of generous emulation and rivalry, and encourages them to the performance of similar deeds of usefulness and honor. Louis Dicken Wilson was born in the county of Edgecombe, on the 12th May, 1789. The era of his birth was an vent ful one in our history. The A nicies of Confederation which had feebly banded the States together during the progress of f a seven years war, had just given place to a more firm and compact union under the new Constitution. The new Government had just gone into operation. What is now a well developed practical reality, was: polar star o then an untried and doubtful experiment stitution ofthe State In 1842, the only time his party had held the ascendancy since the amendment of the Constitution, he was elected Speak er ofthe Senate, and by virtue of his of fice Lieut. Governor oi the State. Enjoying as he did in a high degree the confidence of the party with which he acted, he was repeatedly placed upon its Electoral Ticket for President and Vice President During the whole period of thirty years, in which he was engaged in the public service, no man exercised a larger or more extended influence in the county of Edge combe, none shared so largely in the pop ular confidence and rccard and to the irom the line of rectitude did not shake his faith". After the tempest of passion had spnnt its force, a season of-calm and sober reflection would come, when what ever irregularities had been committed, would be rectified. Accordingly at no period of his career, whether" at the flood-tide of his unbounded popularity, or falling beneath the censure of his consti tuents, hd priie however alluring, no hon or however dazzling, could shake his pur pose, or swerve him from the path of duty. Justum Unarcm propositi virum, Non cirium ardor prava jubenlium, Aron vultus in8tantis tyranni, Mentt quatit solida 'Twas this which gave him such unbound ed popularity with the -masses a popula rity which remained umimpaired in life a popularity so solid and enduring that: nothing could shake. But if a rigid and .inflexible adherence to principle constituted a prominent trait of his representative character, his labor- A distinguishing trait in the domestic character of Col v Wilson was his deep de votion to the county of Edgecombe The history of public men affords nothing like it. It was sincere, solemn and abiding. It was prominently displayed in every ac ofhis life and most touchingly exemplifi ed in the hour of death. In the prosecu tion of schemes of ambition, public men arc too prone to forget the steps by which they ascended to power and to turn with ingratitude from those who have ele vated them. Not so however with Louis D. IVitson. Ingratitude had no place in his bosom. Loyalty toEdgecombe was the ruling impulse of his heart. Born and reared upon her soil, possessing for more than a quarter of a century the al most unbounded confidence of her people, representing her interests in the public councils abroad and participating actively in all public matters at home, the feeling which had grown up in his bosom was deep, affectionate, and parental the love of a parent for his child. He was indeed the father of this people, and loved them ious business habits made his services in- with all the devotion which pertains to that valuable as a legislator. While hiseliorts in debate always commanded attention by his pleasing and persuasive style of elocu tion, and the sincerity of manner with which his convictions were uttered, it Was in the Committee Room, that work shop in the legislative laboratory, that his ser- most cherished relation. Public men may learn from his life a lesson to cheer them amid the many trials to which it. is incident, and strengthen them for the performance of its duties. They may learn that a long life of honest and devo tcd public service is followed by the most vices were acknowledged and appreciated, j substantial rewards. They may learn al Here his large experience and business ; SOjljlat gratitude is a cardinal virtue of the capacity found a proper theatre for their ' popular heart. The people reward with exercise, and here too the mature fruits of j confidence and kindness those who up- : :n a i .1 i- t - . . . . . . ... an ucuvumiuiicci, anu uic ncii nuasuics hold and maintain tneir cnerisiicd opm- ofa sound and" discriminating judgment ions. were brought to bear. In this connection Another marked and prominent trait in it may not be improper to add, that though : (1C character of Col. Wilson was his cha- he had never made the science of Law a : riVy charity of thought, word and der d study, yet he, was, in the .Legislature, un-i charity in all ihines a charity - which day of his death so potent was the sway lorrnIy assigned a prominent position on displayed itself, not in mere empty pro- he wielded, so strong was his hold unonilnc Jiiciary Committee -a committee fession and unmeaning parade, but in the exercise, of a liberal and enlarged be- raiscd and the honor ofthe State is saved Among the countless deeds of patriotic; devol'on to wliich the war gave birth, w& may safely challenge a companion with this.- It stands out rrarked,' prominent, and almost without a parallel. Individ ual examples of, heroism and personal prowess on the field , of battle were nu merousj but here all the usual incentives which stimulate the young to a love of. glory honor, fame, applause in the world's eye were wanting. Jt. wasp generous offering up of life, a heroic self- . sacrifice on the altar ofdutj7 and devotion. In the humble capacity of a captain, he marches to Mexico and reaches the head quarters of thermy. Here, while at the post of duty, the President, in considera tion of his advanced age and high charac ter, tenders him the appointment of Colo nel of the 12th -Infantry After much hesitation, springing from a disinclination to leave those with whom he had marched to the tented field, he accepts repair to Vera Cruz, and while laborously engaged (in preparing his command for a forward movement to the Capital, is seized with the prevailing fever and expired on the 1 2th of Aug. 1847. He died , not as tho brave love to die, amid the din. of battle aud beneath the folds of his country's flag but by the slow hand of disease in a distant land far from home, its kindred and its comforts with .no familiar face or rheering voice to soothe the parting hour of existence. v "By foreign hands his dying eyes were closed, 'By foreign hands his humble grave adorn'd, By strangers honor'd and by strangers mournMi" Could it have been permitted us to unveil the secret sentiments of that dying hour to know the last pulsations of that pat riotic heart when the shores of time were fast receding in the distance, and the un certain future came looming into view what a world of thought, what anintensi- nevolence. It pervaded his thoughts, in- ,y of feeI -y cro.ded into that brie tfl J . . the affections of those he served, that noj most usually composed ol me ablest law amount of talent or worth however creat, 'crs lnc bouy. i i i ii i i i ltut if lii ritihlii crrv!rr? trpt-n vilmhto. n....A : 4 ,1 JI.. 11 is ociieveu, couiu nave avancti against: i . ... miuuuicu ms sannuems auu was ucrlJv moment of life' His far distant home him. The uniform and ardent support hC:his civii ones yrcrc no less so. In the va-j interwoven with every fibre of his "cart. ' Ilig?beloved Fd gecombe and the thousand received, was the grateful returnbf a con- ious civil employments in which he was It was the cap-stone -on the solid column; cnUcaring associations connected with her iiaing constituency lor services iaitmuuy j ...b..... . ii msmuiai uiui, uitu bwu this neonle whom he had served from' m . a At-r ii!-nl Ham r o in v 1 hit ItmAlinnO ril 1 C. : I a I " 1 4 I ' i ...It. and ctliciently rendered. 1 lie history ol, ?in aiwn 10 ihs cuaracier. uie boyhood to old age. with a fidelity which public men aDTords few examples of devo-' CAitf 0vr of. he Court or p?rl,c.pat.nRi and frailties of his felow men found in kew nQ cha elwere the ast ima. tion more true, of popularity more lasting1" ll'e concernsof every day Uto. he. nr. hlnl( onc ever rcaily to forgive, palliate wIlich flittecl before his dyine gaze a popularity not run after, hut that which the same sagacious, practical, useful citi- and excuse. The destitute and down- .,,.. lrobbin ffa f his hnnpst hWrt ''followed his good deeds a popularity, i zcn- 1 n arrogant anu trie sen suuic.eui, the result of noble ends bv noble means i ine imperious anu tneprouo, may sconai attained. i II is career as a representative ofthe i r r i . . 4 .. .1 nearicu 5onS o. m.Muuuuc vn tu.uuu citzemof Edgecombe! Irdieritors of unheeded from his door, and to the ta le of :.his namehis character and his fame!; sorrow and distress he listened with all the If you value, private virtue and public artless simplicity 'of a child. Numerous worthif you wouId set before the ris- polilicai gu the ever-varying and ever-veering opin- employments so unpretending, as unwor thy the aspirations of commanding intel- . . .. . . . . . .'Irtnt.lttititcltrvtilrlltn mm nm Vinrn t il-iot ifl!: . 7 ... 1 . 1. ! . K n people was rather distinguished by liigli;p.M- j inwau, comiug w.u.. .u F"J ing generation examples of principle, pat- and inflexible devotion to principle, than sober realities, of life, it is the useful, knowledge of the speaker, might be here tiotism and unwaverin devotion lo (iuty any dazzling display of intellectual pow- and not the ornamental, the solid rather detailed, but that which surpasses them all pomt them to Louis D Wilson Edge- er. Principle-eternal principle was the ! & he showy, that gives to character its ; and adds lhc crowning glory to his many CQmbe had nQ worthier son than he-none )f his political guidance. With;h,Knest va,ue- 1 ne at,le Ull0r 01 ; ine acts of beneficence and love, was his mu- morft , . devotpd to hr intPrPst, A JUlmington Commercial who in con-, nificent bcquest t0 the poor of Edgecombe, , ,.fe of uscfuIness and honor vvas ftiv. Mderationofhislongand valuable pub ic . in the ,ast ,10ur of existence. The sim en Q her service; For her he ,ived an( services lsjustty entitled to the appena-; pe statement ot this tact speaks its own tion of "Father of the N. Carolina Press"! prajse and constitutes his claim to the paid the following well merited tribute pr0ud title of benefactor 0 Edgecombe. to the character of Col. Wilson upon j I come now to the closing scenes in the 1 1 it . r 1 u T.nrtinv o c i r 1 a f.. ik.,: 7 the means ofa liberal educaticn were with-Uluct. Truth, in the investigation of pb-' "- u",- orama 01 ..o uuevem.u. -lis ing manner, in the hour of death, in the reach of few. Private fortunes ' lie measures, was the object of his anxious j they did radically upon the political mea- serVed his people for thirty years w.thfi-, Qenlicmen of the Monumental Com. were rare, and the schoolmaster had not search and diligent inquiry. This attain- 0 1 have sc'eclcd thls m every posttiontn-which :mUUt , a deed of duty is done, a wo'fk vet gone abroad upon his mission of be-! ed. from it there was neither variable- number of newspaper notices, as not li-jhe was called to act, an occasion arose of ,itude is acc6mplished ! and we havo nevolence and love. With such advamVncss nor shadow of turning." Accord- the- impotal.on of. h.v.ng been j which demanded, yet greater wcnBce. . (m t)e j..,,, .. m however as that unlettered -ra afford-! inVrlv few nublic men in North Carolina PnP uuer -F-y ctl, we find young Wilson, at the age of were more consistent in their course An nn h 1 1 r l Col. Louis D. Wilsoni It comes in so authen tic a shape that we have no reason for hope that it may turn out otherwisei He is dead a gal lant son of North Carolina, who abandoned the The country not yet recovered from the i ions of men, he held no faith. While effects of an exhausting war, a war in J men change, principles arc immutable, which her energies had been taxed to thej A constant recognition of this truth influ utmost, lay panting and prostrate. In the enced his opinions, controlled hisjudg- new and then unsettled condition of things,, ment and gave tone to his political con for her he died. - Masons! His whole life was the con stant practice of the cardinal virtues of your creed, exemplified in a most touch - j o - ci , - , eighteen, an occupant of a counting house few could look back upon a long public in Washington, North Carolina. Habits career with more pride and self satisfac- inuusiry, perseverance and punctuality,! tion. in the discharge of his duties, here formed, early won the regard of his employer It was the saying of Sir Robert Wal nole a distinguished politician in the sweets of domestic life, and the enjoyment of an habits which adhered to him in after life J reien of Queen Anne,-that every man 'ample estate, to perform that which he conceiv- and the constant exercise of which has his price." This remark, based upon ea 10 oe - - i . , . , . . . - 1 i , r.it i. 'Col. Wilson was not a man of brilliant tat niauu nun vvnai ne was in an eminent de- a protounu Knowieuge ui numou uudu, gree, a thoroughly practical and useful has lost none of its force by time; and the man. 'Twas here too he laid the founda- history of our own day affords many mel ton of that remarkable knowledge of ac- aricholy examples of its truth.. In the counts which he possessed, and which ever-occurring conflicts of interest and rendered his services invaluable in every; ambition, the immutable principles of public position he was afterwards called truth and justice are overlooked and dis to fill. ' regarded when they stand in the way of ine war wiui ivtexico ensues, in a.ru- . lhehoIv fires of affection. to com "Death of Col, Wilson.-U our Mexican news; gant and vain-glorious power, in; the im-1 m vir.ueo r denarted worlu the reader will find an account ofthe death ofupe:i:tv nf its race and blindness of its;-., cr ,t.. r --j c7 -j it ai,u lu uuer upon uie auar ui uevoiion our passions, invades our country, and sheds ! last 0biaV,ons of loyalty and love. Tho the blood of American e.t.zens On Ameri'f v ,, j. , w fc . n i nt. ti -it i K i can SOU. ine acuuuiiu cans nur auiis iu apprenticeship ended, he returns to selfish aims and personal aggrandizement. Edgecombe and commences the business The people are lost sight of in the strtig ofa mnrMmrtr ?n ihU i.irro mhifK was rltt fnr nower and place, and their inter- sueccFst'ully prosecuted for many years. csts instead, of being paramount become In 1 s 1 5, he was; elected to represent subordinate to the end in view. Polities the people of Edgecombe in the lower becomes a trade, and the most vital public house of the General Assembly. This was concerns are articles of traffic among cpn-t-hc commencement of his public career, .tending factions. Politicians are the man Thc period of his entrance . into public agers behind the curtain, and the people life was not well calculated to heighten his are the puppets who dance for the amuf-e ideas of the profession in which he had menVof t he crowd. Not so however with embarked. : It was. an era of uncommon Louis D. tVilson. Confidencejn man was bitterness pf feeling a bitterness engen- with him a rrfatterof fith a living princi dere( fjy the then existing wTar and which pie, a passion which took possession of his ents, but he was much above mediocrity, and his assiduity and integrity, in the various impor tant stations which! he filed commended him to the high esteem of his fellow citizens. He had a reliable judgment, a concientious perception of right, and much firmness of purpose. His man ners were peculiarly agreeable equally devoid of haughtiness and the Frenchified frippery so popular with many 'lf he was somewhat of a warm politician, it is lo be attributed to the ardor of his feelings and not to the corruption of his principles We have been with and against him in the political" arena and never found that he permitted political hos tility to encroach upon the boundaries of social kindness or personal amenityi We join with those who most deeply regret the death of Cob Louis D. Wilson, and sincere ly sympathize with his afflicted family. To the people of his own county Edgecombe, the loss will be .severe, for there hi3 usefulness was ap preciated and his worth acknowledged by those arms. A requisition is made upon our own State. The incidents connected with that call are tooTamiliar to be here repeated. The delay in answering it, produced the most gloomy forebodings for the result. All felt that our honor was at stake, and upon the issue depended the continuance of our title to that patriotic renown won by so many glorious revolutionary achievements. Amid the hopes, the doubts, the anxieties, the fears that pervaded the public mind, one who stood conspicuous in the eyes of the State and high , in the confidence of his fellow citizens a man holding ah elevated public position a man of delicate frame and feeble constitu tional vigorone whose head was bleach ed by the frosts of near sixty winters "an old man broken, by the storms of State" this man, (shall I name him ?) this man threw himself in the breach The influence of his example is magical It stimulated the wavering and encour aged the irressolute. His own county it- whoknew him intimately in all his -social as lhe field the Regiment i? 1 base the corner stone of which we this day erect while it records the simpfe tale "of his virtue and his worth, does hon or to the zeal and industry you have brought to the discharge of your duty; and long after the animated forms of those who are assembled here to day shall bo numbered among the "sheeted deader his noble example of patriotism will speak to your children from the sculptured marble, animating them to deeds of usefulness and honor! ; """" - Dreadfil Steamboat Occident. The steamboat Griffith, from Buffalo, bound up Lake Erie, took fire on the 17th inst., when about twenty miles from port, and burned to the water's edge. About two hundred and fifty persons perished either by fire or vvater On the succeeding day two hundred and twenty victims of all . ages and both sexes were buried in one trench dug in the high bluff, nearly oppo- site the Scene of the tragedy. The sight must tive been melancholy; in the ei txeniC' ' ' "' -ftS f ti ... 4