Returning to Nashville, he communicated his
intentions to his uncle; they met his approval, and in a short time he
was ready to leave in search of a new home.
He was about to leave every friend, to find his home in the midst of
strangers, without even an acquaintance to welcome and encourage him.
But he was young, vigorous, and hopeful; alive, too, to all he had to
encounter, and determined to conquer it. Still, to one of his natural
warmth of feeling, the parting from all he had ever known, and all on
earth he loved, wrung his heart, and he lingered, dreading the parting
that was to come. His kind and devoted uncle, his brothers he loved so
tenderly, his sisters, and the friends he had made, all were to be
left--and perhaps forever. There were then no steamers to navigate the
waters of the West. He might float away, and rapidly, to his new home;
but to return through the wilderness, filled with savages and beset
with dangers, was a long and hazardous journey, and would require, not
only time, but means, neither of which were at his command.
He met General Jackson again.
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