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Overview
"Full of adventure, startling." -Princeton Review, 1872
" The characters depicted in this volume are the most uncouth and original specimens of humanity." - Theological Review, 1872
""It will be even more interesting a hundred years hence." The Nation, 1872
"Valuable as a reliable picture of scenes, and circumstances, and characters which are rapidly passing away." - The Eclectic Magazine, 1872
General Marcy evidently made the best of the hardships to which the duties of his profession called him and finds a natural delight in recalling adventures which had some grotesque or ludicrous phases.
General Marcy's 1859 book "Border Reminiscences" is a portfolio filled with sketches of life upon the frontier. His "Reminiscences" are mostly of the humorous order, and depict the odd characters of remote army stations. Here are described the major of the old régime, the braggadocio, the eccentric cadet, the army belle, and the practical jokes and drolleries which make up so large a part of station life during times of peace.
This volume is mainly composed of lively and well-told narratives of personal experiences and adventures in the service, in which the varied and oftentimes picturesque and absurd characters with whom the author was brought in contact are admirably delineated with his pen. Some of the stories are exceedingly amusing, and others have a serious tone and possess peculiar interest.
Some of the stories which he tells have a serious interest, as, for example, the story of the woman on the Texas border, whose capture by the Comanches, her escape and recapture, and second escape, seem almost incredible if they were not so well vouched for.
In one anecdote "General Sam Houston " had promised his support, in an approaching Texan election, to each of two opposing candidates for office. He was a frequent visitor at the farm-house of one of these candidates. One morning this gentleman astonished Houston by showing him a letter, in Houston's own handwriting, in which he had denounced his entertainer to the opposing candidate, and urged the latter to make every effort to defeat him.
Houston saw that he was caught in an unpleasant predicament; however, he read the letter very carefully in order to gain time. Perceiving, at last, "that it would be useless to deny its authenticity, after a moment's reflection, he went up to his host with the letter open in his left hand, placed it before his eyes, and, significantly shaking the index-finger of his right hand at the paper, said: 'Who would suppose that I could ever have got so beastly drunk as to write such an absurd letter? You know me too well to behave for an instant that this letter expresses my real sentiments.'"
About the author:
Randolph Barnes Marcy (1812–1887) was an officer in the United States Army, chiefly noted for his frontier guidebook, the Prairie Traveler (1859), based on his own extensive experience of pioneering in the west. This publication became a key handbook for the thousands of Americans wanting to cross the continent. In the Civil War, Marcy became chief of staff to his son-in-law George B. McClellan, and was later appointed Inspector General of the U.S. Army.
Other books by Marcy include:
• Exploration of the Red River, (1853),
• The Prairie Traveler (1871)
• Thirty Years of Army Life on the Border (1855)
Marcy's "Border Reminiscences" is a well-regarded historical resource, cited in the following modern works:
• Colonel Richard Irving Dodge: The Life and Times of a Career Army Officer
" The characters depicted in this volume are the most uncouth and original specimens of humanity." - Theological Review, 1872
""It will be even more interesting a hundred years hence." The Nation, 1872
"Valuable as a reliable picture of scenes, and circumstances, and characters which are rapidly passing away." - The Eclectic Magazine, 1872
General Marcy evidently made the best of the hardships to which the duties of his profession called him and finds a natural delight in recalling adventures which had some grotesque or ludicrous phases.
General Marcy's 1859 book "Border Reminiscences" is a portfolio filled with sketches of life upon the frontier. His "Reminiscences" are mostly of the humorous order, and depict the odd characters of remote army stations. Here are described the major of the old régime, the braggadocio, the eccentric cadet, the army belle, and the practical jokes and drolleries which make up so large a part of station life during times of peace.
This volume is mainly composed of lively and well-told narratives of personal experiences and adventures in the service, in which the varied and oftentimes picturesque and absurd characters with whom the author was brought in contact are admirably delineated with his pen. Some of the stories are exceedingly amusing, and others have a serious tone and possess peculiar interest.
Some of the stories which he tells have a serious interest, as, for example, the story of the woman on the Texas border, whose capture by the Comanches, her escape and recapture, and second escape, seem almost incredible if they were not so well vouched for.
In one anecdote "General Sam Houston " had promised his support, in an approaching Texan election, to each of two opposing candidates for office. He was a frequent visitor at the farm-house of one of these candidates. One morning this gentleman astonished Houston by showing him a letter, in Houston's own handwriting, in which he had denounced his entertainer to the opposing candidate, and urged the latter to make every effort to defeat him.
Houston saw that he was caught in an unpleasant predicament; however, he read the letter very carefully in order to gain time. Perceiving, at last, "that it would be useless to deny its authenticity, after a moment's reflection, he went up to his host with the letter open in his left hand, placed it before his eyes, and, significantly shaking the index-finger of his right hand at the paper, said: 'Who would suppose that I could ever have got so beastly drunk as to write such an absurd letter? You know me too well to behave for an instant that this letter expresses my real sentiments.'"
About the author:
Randolph Barnes Marcy (1812–1887) was an officer in the United States Army, chiefly noted for his frontier guidebook, the Prairie Traveler (1859), based on his own extensive experience of pioneering in the west. This publication became a key handbook for the thousands of Americans wanting to cross the continent. In the Civil War, Marcy became chief of staff to his son-in-law George B. McClellan, and was later appointed Inspector General of the U.S. Army.
Other books by Marcy include:
• Exploration of the Red River, (1853),
• The Prairie Traveler (1871)
• Thirty Years of Army Life on the Border (1855)
Marcy's "Border Reminiscences" is a well-regarded historical resource, cited in the following modern works:
• Colonel Richard Irving Dodge: The Life and Times of a Career Army Officer
Product Details
| BN ID: | 2940185654675 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Far West Travel Adventure |
| Publication date: | 08/17/2022 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| File size: | 2 MB |
About the Author
Randolph Barnes Marcy (1812–1887) was an officer in the United States Army, chiefly noted for his frontier guidebook, the Prairie Traveler (1859), based on his own extensive experience of pioneering in the west. This publication became a key handbook for the thousands of Americans wanting to cross the continent. In the Civil War, Marcy became chief of staff to his son-in-law George B. McClellan, and was later appointed Inspector General of the U.S. Army.
Other books by Marcy include:
• Exploration of the Red River, (1853),
• The Prairie Traveler (1871)
• Thirty Years of Army Life on the Border (1855)
Other books by Marcy include:
• Exploration of the Red River, (1853),
• The Prairie Traveler (1871)
• Thirty Years of Army Life on the Border (1855)
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