348 OCEAN TO OCEAN ON HORSEBACK. 



reconciliatiou. Barron refused this and threw down 

 the gauntlet, and when shortly afterwards the two 

 met to settle the difficulty " with honor/' both fell at 

 the word " Fire ! " — Decatur mortally wounded. The 

 affair was universally deplored, for his loyal services 

 had endeared Decatur to his country, and when his 

 remains were taken to the grave, they were followed 

 by the largest concourse of people that had ever as- 

 sembled in Washington. 



®ue f)unbnlr ani lourtetntl) Sap. 



Diincombe House, 

 Decatur, Michigan, 



Septembe?' Second. 



This was a great day for Decatur. With the morn- 

 ing came the completion of arrangements for a Repub- 

 lican mass-meeting, and a rustic band from an ad- 

 jacent village arrived at nine o'clock in a farm wagon. 

 The "Stars and Stripes" floated majestically over the 

 heads of the patriotic musicians, and the people were 

 drawn from every quarter to the stirring call of fife 

 and drum, eatrer to see their leaders and to listen to 

 their views upon the vital questions of the day. The 

 '^Silver Cornet Band" of Dowagiac co-oi)erated with 

 the " Decatur Fife and Drum Corps," in rousing the 

 dormant element of the place, and, as its imposing ap- 

 pellation would imply, did so with dignified and class- 

 ical selections. 



The political campaign which had been slumbering 

 since the nomination of Hayes and Tilden reached an 

 interesting stage of its progress at this time, and the 

 friends and champions of the rival candidates were 



