her
independence from Mexico, and sought admission into the Union of States,
the slavery question was discussed in that connection in Kentucky as
heatedly as in any other section. General Zachary Taylor, a native
Kentuckian, born and reared near Louisville, was placed in command of the
American forces when war was about to be declared against Mexico. This and
the fact that William O. Butler and Thomas Marshall were commissioned
officers under Taylor, and also from Kentucky, served to increase the
interest in the approaching struggle with Mexico, and intensified the zeal
of both the slavery and the anti-slavery parties. Everywhere the question
was, "Shall Texas come to us as a slave or a free state?"

On the third of June, 1808, just about four years before our Kentucky
soldiers were called upon to enlist to do battle against the British in
the War of 1812, there was born in an old-fashioned log house in that part
of Kentucky where the town of Fairview now stands, a boy named Jefferson
Davis, who was destined to become one of the conspicuous characters in the
nation. As a child, he was mild of manner and rather timid, but possessed
a strong and resolute will. He willingly and easily learned the contents
of such books as the schools of the time afforded, and at an early age he
matriculated as a student at Transylvania Seminary, where he distinguished
himself as a gentleman and a scholar. A point of interest in Lexington is
the quaint little house where he roomed while he was a student at the
Seminary.

The spirit of the times led young Davis to choose a military career, and
he entered West Point from which he graduated in 1828. We find him soon as
a captain in the regiment commanded by General Zachary Taylor. While
stationed at Louisville, he met, wooed, and wed the beautiful daughter of
General Taylor--not, however, with the consent and blessing of the General.
A pretty story is told of Davis and Taylor concerning their
reconciliation. During the Mexican War, Davis commanded a company of
artillery. On one occasion, General Taylor ordered Captain Bragg to
unlimber and fire at the enemy, and Bragg was disposed to urge the
futility of the effort, since it would result in presenting the battery to
the Mexicans and he thought there was no hope of holding the position.
With the coolness for which he was noted, Captain Davis was seen to wheel
his battery into line, and he directed the maneuvres in such manner as
soon to be in