John Harrison Wilson, The life of Charles Henry Dana

The ride of something over three hundred miles to Knoxville and back had just enough danger and adventure in it to make it romantic. Camping at night, when we could, near outlying detachments of our own troops, or, when we must, at lonely farmsteads, gave us an insight into the manners and customs of the people. It was during this trip that we first saw the loyal east Tennesseean, and heard him declare that he had no sympathy with “the rich man's war and the poor man's fight.” At the end of the first day's march we put up at an unusually comfortable farm-house, where we saw several good-looking young women and small children “dipping snuff,” and apparently enjoying it. We were everywhere received with generous but unpretending hospitality. The best was placed freely at our disposal. Forage for our horses, with food and shelter for ourselves, were never denied, and it was often with difficulty that we could make our host take pay for it. In the latter part of our ride we had the company of Horace Maynard, a loyal citizen, who gave us much interesting information about the State and its people.

It was during this ride, perhaps the longest we ever took together, that Dana beguiled our journey with an almost continuous disquisition on history, romance, poetry, and practical life. His extraordinary memory for the great passages of both prose and poetry of all ages and all countries struck me at the time as phenomenal. His quotations were both apt and endless, and as they were delivered always in a pleasant voice and manner, and, when questioned, were followed by a prompt statement of the author, I found them most interesting and instructive. I did not know then that Dana had delivered a lecture on “Early English Poetry,” nor that he had compiled The Household