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I must give you some background because you can see that we are dropping in on chapter 25 and you might wonder what has gone on before.
My great great grand father, William Taylor, wrote this journal in 1884. He was 80 years old and this is his gift to his daughter, Gertrude who was my maternal great grandmother. I have the original journal and am putting it on my computer.
William was born in Sumner County, Tennessee and lived near Clarksville, Tenn. until 1818 when his father, for some reason decided to move the family to Mississippi. I think an older brother had moved to the area earlier and the parents were persuaded to come as well. William was 12 at the time and it was a wonderful adventure, building a boat and floating down the Mississippi.
They first settled on a creek named Topasaw, he says it is a Choctaw name and doesn't know the English. His father settled one side and his brother, John was on the west side of the creek. William was sent to school in Monticello.
It is from this place that they are traveling when chapter 25 begins. He is now 21 years old and he and his brother have decided to move to new land. I believe it is Yazoo County.
He has met again a girl he knew and didn't marry before because they were "too young" according to his mother, and married her before starting this trip. This was their "honeymoon" if you will. Imagine a girl today putting up with this kind of a wedding trip. Sally
Chapter 25
Everything loaded up we started, went by sister's and with father and mother in a little covered wagon, for father and mother to ride and sleep in. My wife and I either walked or rode on horses as we chose. Sometimes when father wished to walk, my wife would ride with mother and drive. Nothing occurred but pleasant traveling through a new and open country, riding or walking as we chose. We traveled slow (our baggage wagons was hauled by ox teams) and easy until the day before we reached our destination.
Oh, how I remember seeing father some distance before us ( he had started before our train, we had stopped to lunch) with his stick and hands behind him, his little dog, a constant companion, at his heels or by his side (the dog died soon after father's death, I must believe from grief of losing his master.) Father saw there was coming up a heavy thunder shower and exerted himself to reach a house he saw before him. This extra effort threw him in a profuse perspiration. When we came up he was sitting in an open passage. (The people in the south frequently built houses with an open passage between them, to sit and lounge in warm weather, and is certainly very comfortable, for if there is any breeze, it passes through and is cooling and refreshing to the tired husbandman who has been toiling in the hot sun. Before and after he takes his dinner, everyone, black and white in hot days rested at that time at least two hours at noon.) The cool wind passing through the open passage was too sudden form heat to cold and that evening, father took a chill from which he never recovered! His death I will record hereafter.
We reached the settlement the next day. Father being taken sick, my old mother and young wife decided me to buy an improved farm with good comfortable houses.
Father lingered for a month. There was a good doctor in a little town just started, called Georgetown, not far off. (The town was named for the family, there was several Georges, father a merchant and the doctor and several pretty daughters.) Doctor George was immediately called in, but with all the kindest attention day and "knight" the scythe that moweth both young and old conquered at last.
I had never stood at a death bed. (1826) Father was the first I had ever seen breathe the last breath. We all saw he was near his end. I was standing by him. He did not seem to be in any pain. His breath was weaker and weaker and the very last breath was a groan! Oh! God! how it pierced my heart. He was old, his time had come but he was my father! I can't think of that groan to this day without shedding tears! The last words he was heard to say was, "Do everything right."
I selected a handsome spot in my farm, a round "nool" too high to plow over, small shade trees, where his bones now remain if not disturbed!
Soon after I moved to this settlement, I was commissioned by the governor a magistrate and acted as magistrate four years. My district was large. It was then in the county of Yazoo. The section I lived in was in time taken from Yazoo and the county of Holmes established, but it was long after my appointment until the new county was established, hence my juristical duties extended over a large scope of country, and being the only magistrate, after the section began to fill up, had a good deal of business on my hands. Marriages and court trials, etc. My first couple was one long to be remembered, I had, as I thought, committed my marriage ceremony to memory thoroughly having abridged and left out all but the essentials to bind them as man and wife. Well, the first couple was my Polly Matchet and a young man named William Tisdale. When the couple came in and stood before me, what was it? Scare, want of confidence, timidity, buck fever, as the hunters call it. I never could tell what it was that possessed me! I certainly knew my piece, but whether I succeeded in delivering it correctly, I never knew! But I have no doubt I joined them tight enough. I know I pronounced them man and wife and they lived together as such as long as I knew them. I afterwards married many couples satisfactory to myself.
There is only one more occurrence that I will mention with regard to my magisterial duties. In the course of four years I had many cases in my law court some of the testimony as crass as could be. I had no law books but the statutes of the state and fortunately no lawyers to confuse, and strange to say although I had many appeals from my decisions never had one revised!
I have seriously considered whether I ought to insert the following religious experience of my life or not, but as I have set out to record the truth and nothing but the truth, I don't expect or with any of my dear children or their posterity to embrace my principles or faith, I have concluded to make a clean confession or my biography would have a blank unfilled.
Nathan Morris, a Baptist Preacher, found out that Mother was a Baptist. Preachers are very quick to hunt up the straggling sheep and bring them into the fold. Mr. Morris was in my opinion the most able and elegant exponder of the Bible that I have ever heard, and I revere his memory yet! But he nor my parents caused me to believe in baptism by emersion. I had read the New Testament through and many times read it over for that was one of my school books, and I did and do now firmly believe that if we wished to follow the teaching of Christ and his disciples that baptism was by emersion and what could "express" a death to sin, and resurrection to a new life so completely as a burial in water.
Mr. Morris visited us often, sometimes preached at my house. He would sometimes sit and expound his views of the Bible. One "knight" I distinctly remember I thought I truly did believe! and told him so. He said that was all that was required and that I was fit for baptism. I had no doubt about the mode. The next day was Sunday. My wife being a better believer than I was, we were baptized in a little clear creek that ran near the house. I don't remember how long we had been settled in our home in the new settlement, but not over six months and by this time the Baptist had built a house and established a church in our little town, Georgeville, in which Mother, my wife and I was received as members. I was soon elected one of the deacons and church clerk. These offices I continued to hold until I moved to California. I was invariably ( I don't remember a single exception) elected one of the delegates to our associations where all the wisdom of the preachers of the State and some big guns from other States congregated. The very best preachers were generally selected for the stand, and one Sunday we had a feast of reason and sound doctrine. We believed and so did our preachers, in a strict construction of the Bible, latitudinarian views were looked at as dangerous, and a preacher departing from the "authordox" views was quickly hurled out of the church! But preachers with new and more liberal views began to create trouble and depart from the "authordox" views of that day. and now I don't know of a church even "amongst" the Baptist denomination of the same Calvinistic views. I guess, however, there may be some Presbyterians of the old Calvinistic creed, but they don't believe in immersion, neither does a large mass of Christ's following. It is considered indecent and that sprinkling will "clens" as well.
Well, my views have somewhat changed also. I have always, with the exception of the time of my confession, baptism, joining the church and for sometime afterwards been a "doubting Thomas".
There are many things in the Bible how could I reconcile to be the revelation of such an all wise, foreseeing, merciful, inventor, architect. How could he create an Adam and Eve and place before them a temptation that he "new" they would partake and thereby doom millions, millions and millions of his created, helpless creatures to be tormented for ever and ever. No, No, I cannot believe it. How could a God so wise and good say that a man; even if he had repented was in his heart, loved and crowned with glory, who had committed adultery and murdered his friend who was fighting for his interest and glory. No! No!! I cannot believe it. It must be the production of mortal man, and not the revelation from God. I firmly believe in God a creator, who but a fool could believe otherwise! Yes, in my estimation he would be a fool and idiot too!! Look at everything around you living and inanimate, the form and construction of the animal creation, even the tiny ant. Could all you see come by chance? No, there is a God. Look at the heaven within our view, planets, many, many times bigger than this little ball of earth, which have been distanced and spanned by astronomers. Think of space out of the reach of the most powerful telescopes vision, where possibly larger, brighter and more stupendous worlds exist; and still farther worlds without end. Who can contemplate, conceive or imagine the wisdom and power that can "ceep" in motion even what we see in the heavenly bodies, all moving so regular in their orbits, no clashing. The thought is too grand to contemplate! Yes, in this creator I resign myself. He created, his will be done!!
If it was possible for spirits to visit the earth, my angel father would visit his crying son and say, "prepare to meet me in the glorious inconceivable that I enjoy beyond the grave" but I don't believe in spirits.
You will no doubt be thinking that with my changed views why I remained in the church so long? As I said before, I was a "Doubting Thomas", and had become a member. Didn't know whether my doubts had any foundation and don't know now. I had often said to my preacher that I was not worthy but he always introduced me to strangers as his worthy brother!
But one thing I firmly believe that there is a Heaven and Hell on this earth! David, if alive, would be good evidence, if he had a conscience that most have tormented to his dying day. His sons tormented him, even Solomon, the wisest departed from the faith of his father. He must of all men been terribly scorched.
Men and women who contemplate the beauties surrounding them, living together in harmony, contented and love, doing to others as they would have others do unto them, living together without a jar, with a blooming family of obedient sons and daughters. Don't you think this would be heaven? Yes, Heavenly!
But, the wretches who would wrangle, cut with their tongues, like a two edged sword, devoid of feeling or reason, their children disobedient, here would be torment enough.The friend that would back-bite and slander their neighbor, tell lies, steal, rob and murder, do you think they are happy! No, they often go and hang themselves like Judas. What greater hell can you imagine? The commission of all crimes in my opinion is attended with a Hell. We may make a heaven or hell for ourselves here on earth.
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