COL. JOHN WALKER AND FAMILY
purchased several droves of negroes.
T was now much in the spirit of the
world, and like to have forgotten I
was purged from my old sins, but
on reflection, collected my scattered
fragments and little remaining
strength, abandoned the iniquitous
practice of buying and selling hu¬
man beings as slaves, which I found
to be a violation of my conscience,
in direct opposition and in the very
face of all mortality and religion, and
have ever since that conviction ab¬
horred the principle and the prac¬
tice.
In the year 1795 I engaged in a
large land speculation in the west¬
ern counties of Buncombe and Hay¬
wood, calculated I had made an im¬
mense fortune by entering lands. I
was not mistaken, and had the line
between the United States and the
Cherokee Indians been run accord¬
ing to treaty, I would have realized
a fortune indeed ; but it was run other
wise by the commissioners, and di¬
vested me of 10,000 acres of the
best land I entered. What I saved I
was forced into a lawsuit with Col.
Avery for 12 years. Although I
gained it, it profited me little, hav¬
ing expended so much money in the
defense of the suit.
In the year 1799, I was again
elected to the General Assembly by
almost a unanimous vote, and con¬
tinued, with the exception of a few
years, to represent the County un¬
til the year 1806, which was the last
year I was in the Assembly. At
length, becoming weary of the
drudgery of legislation, I fled from
the scenes of popular solicitations
and removed to the mountains of
Haywood in 1808, warned by the
langour of life’s evening ray,
thought I would house me in some
humble shed, with full intention of
lasting retirement for the remain¬
der of my life. But, as says a great
man, the spider’s most attenuated
thread is cord, is cable, to man’s
feeble ties, I consented to have my
rame announced for Congress. The
competition was with Governor Pick¬
ers, late Governor of Alabama. He
beat me by a small majority. I was
Hen opposed by Judge Paxton. I
obtained my election by a good ma¬
jority, and continued to represent
the District of Morgan for six years
in succession.
My situation was so enviable that
I was opposed at every election, but
so feebly as scarcely to be felt.
In the year 1823, Doctor Vance
of Buncombe, Genl. Walton, of
Rutherford, Col. Reyburn of Hay¬
wood, all offered for Congress. Wal¬
ton had 978 votes, Reyburn, 492,
Vance and myself tied at 1913
votes each. The Sheriff of Burke gave
the county vote to Vance and elect¬
ed him. It was well known that Wal¬
ton and Reyburn bore on my inter¬
est. Had Vance and myself met sin¬
gle hand, I should have beat him
1,200 votes; and it was afterwards
ascertained I had a majority of 71
votes over Vance, although in count¬
ing the ballots they made a miscount
or misdeal. The next election my
name was announced as a candi¬
date, but on considering my age
and growing infirmities, and consult¬
ing my feelings, which seemed to
fcrbid the bans, I withdrew my
name from the list and dropped out
of the circle, to the disappoint¬
ment of the great majority of the
district. Such was my standing when
I shut the door on public life*.
22
|4©fih Carolina State Library
Ealeighl
