VOL. XVIII. NO. 44
V//A
MARCH 31, 1951
Publication date. Saturday.
Subscription. $5.00 per year.
Carl Goerch, Publisher.
Lawyers Bldg., Raleigh. N. C.
Entered
ы
lecond-clat* matter June 1. 1833. at the Poelofflc* at HaJelsb. North Carolina, under the Act oi March 3. 1878
Polities in the Good Old Days
Was a Serious Proposition
Campaign
к
often were extremely bitter
affairs, and when they became too hitter,
personal combat frequently ensued, as is
described in this article.
By daniel m. McFarland
Dueling is a tense business to begin
with, and the cold mountain air of that
early November day in 1827, gave to
the atmosphere an almost electric
tenseness, "One — two — three — " two
men walked slowly away from each
other. Each held an up-raised pistol.
At ten paces they turned, and the
sound of a single shot echoed through
ihc mountain passes. A small, almost
grotesque man, with one leg some six
inches shorter than the other, half-
turned and tried to hold his lower ribs
as he crumpled to the ground. Mis gun
had never fired. The opponent low¬
ered his pistol and took several steps
toward the fallen man. but his seconds
quickly led him away.
After a moment of consultation, the
wounded man was lifted and carried
down the road to a near-by inn. Silent
observers mounted their horses and
rode away. The frosty mountain winds
moaned through Saluda Gap. Next
day, November 6. 1827, Dr. Robert
B. Vance, former member of Congress
and first trained physician in Bun¬
combe County, lay dead in a small
country inn on the North Carolina —
South Carolina border. The man who
killed him was Hon. Samuel P. Carson,
member of Congress and future Secre¬
tary of Slate of the Republic of Texas.
Among the spectators were Generals
B. Franklin Patton and Philip Brittain
as seconds for Vance, and Dr. George
Philips as his surgeon. General Alney
Burgin and Congressman-elect War¬
ren Davis served as seconds for Car-
son. This Warren Davis was a cousin
of John C. Calhoun, and it was at the
funeral of Davis seven years later that
an attempt was made to assassinate
President Jackson. Dr. Shuflin attend¬
ed Carson as surgeon. Among the other
witnesses that day was Congressman-
elect David Crockett of later Alamo
fame.
Robert Brank Vance was a member
of a prominent family in the Rccms
Creek section of Buncombe County.
(One of his nephews became a Con¬
federate general, and another was the
famous Civil War governor of North
Carolina, Zebulon Baird Vance. He
finished the study of medicine at the
school of Dr. Charles Harris in Cabar¬
rus County and in 1818, at the age of
twenty-five, began the practice of
medicine in Asheville. Due to his lame¬
ness he found it difficult to attend his
patients, and within a short time he
lost interest in medicine. Fortunately,
at about the same time he gave up his
practice he won a considerable amount
of money in a lottery and also inherited
some property. Thus he was able to
retire and devote himself to the study
of literature and history.
Hager to Enter Politics
But Vance was a restless man and
he had dreams of being a man of im¬
portance in his state and the nation.
He grew impatient and desired a more
active form of life. His chance came in
1823. Felix Waikcr, an old friend of
Daniel Boone, was a very elderly man
by this time and had already repre¬
sented the then Twelfth Congressional
District of North Carolina for three
terms. In spite of his age. old “Talking-
lo-Buncombc" Waikcr ran again in
August 1823, and Vance ran against
him and won. He served but one term.
In 1825, four men ran for the place
as representative of the Twelfth Dis¬
trict. Old Walker ran once more. Dr.
Vance hoped to keep his scat, and two
new men, Samuel P. Carson of Burke
and James Graham of Rutherford also
ran. In terms of present day political
tags. Vance would have been called a
National (Truman) Democrat. Car-
son would be a States Right Democrat,
and today Graham would be a Re¬
publican. Old Felix ran on his war
record. He couldn’t be bothered by
“political theory." Graham and Vance
ridiculed Walker during the opening
weeks of the campaign, but Carson
showed him great consideration. As a
result, Walker withdrew from the con¬
test and helped Carson beat the other
two.
So for two more years Vance was
forced to retire to his study and there
he nursed a grudge against this person
from Burke who had taken his con¬
gressional scat. Vance had enjoyed the
life and company of Washington, and
he disliked the inactive life he had
lived in Asheville. He peevishly wait¬
ed for August 1827, when he was
certain his constituents would return
him to Congress.
According to the custom of the time,
opposing candidates for office often
appeared in public together to debate
the vital issues of the day. Carson and
and Vance appeared together several
(Continued on page 20)
THE STATE. MARCH 31. 1951
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