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PAPERS OF MIRABEAU BUONAPARTE LAMAR
-choice; she turned and pointed to her lover. An objection was made. "'I will name no other"-said the thwarted damsel,-"you force me io choose; and he is my choice.' '-'-Her friends remonstrated-she was ,obstinate-they scolded-she persisted-and at length when it was obvious that ·she really intended what she said, all further hostility ceased; and it was not many days 'before the delighted lover was bailed in the family in the double capacity of guardian and husband. · -They were married on the fourteenth day of May, eighteen hun- dred and fifteen, the bride in her fourteenth year and the bride- groom in his twentieth.-And ask ye, who were the parties 1 The lady's maiden name was Jane H. Wilkinson, a near relation of the celebrated Genl. James Wilkinson.-She was born in Charles County, -:Maryland; and losing her fother at an early age, removed with her mother to the ,state of Mississippi in eighteen hundred and eleven. The hero of the story, is no other than the chivalerous General Long.- James Long was born in Virginia; and when quite young, emi- grated with his fa.ther to Kentucky and' thence to Tennessee. He was a merchant at fifteen; but being illy qualified for such pursuits, ·soon failed in business; and then acted as clerk in his father's store for two years, during which time he saved by great economy, six hundred dollars, with which he completed his education, and after- wards studied medicine under Doctor Holland of Tennessee. From the shop he entered the army; was a great favorite of General Jack- son, who used to call him his young lion.-He was attached to the medical Staff of Carroll's brigade, and distinguished himself in the battle of Ncw-Orleans. After this memorable victory, Carroll :md Coffee being ordered to Natches, Long accompanied them in his official character; and it was whilst he was at this place, in at- tendance upon Mr Ferguson, the invalid soldier at Mr. Calvert's, that he fell under the observation of the negro girl, whose favorable report of his personal appearance, had led to such an unexpected and happy result.- On the third day after his marriage-having resigned his station in the Medical Staff-our hero left Natches: with his fair young bride on a travelling excursion; and after the lapse of two months, settled at Port Gibson, pursuing his profession for a short time, when, at the entreaties of his wife, he abandoned the practice of medicine, and purchased a plantaton, known as Walnut Hill, in Warren County. He -subsequently owned the tract on which the town of Vicksburg is located. He soon, however, disposed of his farm, and commenced merchandiz. ing in company with W. '\V. Walker, at Na-tches, where he continued in business for two years, when he was called to other objects more con- genial to his enterprising and martial feelings. Long was by nature a soldier, and had always signed for a proper field for the indulgence of his military spirit. Texas presented such a field; and to the Inde- pendence an·d settlement of that country his attention was now di- rected. The project, however, of introducing a foreign population into those beautiful and fertile regions, did not originate with General Long. The same idea had occurred to others many years before. He bad been preceeded by Brady and by Bastrop, both of whom, very
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