Sullivan

“ The next morning the Sullivan family rose to witness another weary and dismal day of incessant rain, and to partake of a breakfast of thin stirabout, made and served up with that woful ingenuity, which necessity, the mother of invention in periods of scarcity, as well as in matters of a different character, had made known to the benevolent hearted wife of Jerry Sullivan. ”

“ Mr Sullivan raised up to his utmost height, and looking any thing but good humoured, he naturally started back, and stammered out something which was unintelligible. His behaviour did not allay the suspicions of Mr Sullivan, who requested, in a haughty tone, to be informed of the reason why he had been honoured with a visit. The colonel became more confused, and totally losing his presence of mind, replied:—
“I called, sir,—on Mrs Sullivan,—to offer an apology for my conduct last night; but as I perceive that she is not visible, I will take a more favourable opportunity.” ”

“ The last scene of a drama is best remembered. The picture as the curtain falls is stamped most clearly on the memory. Sullivan was not to be an actor in the war's closing scenes, and the valor that gleams the name of Marion, the splendor of Greene's military intelligence, and the glory that is linked with the name of Washington at Yorktown were not his. Neither had he the methodical madness of Wayne, the pusillanimity of the self-seeking Gates, the recklessness of Putnam, nor the aestheistic fatalism of Ethan Allan; none of these things had Sullivan to carve his picture on men's memory. ”

“ Sullivan was talented, agreeable, good looking, and rich; one who, in his youthful days, need not fear the frown of any damsel, and who now, in the prime of manhood, might still have won the fairest. But the heart of the handsome bachelor seemed invulnerable, for nearly forty years resisting all the charms of beauty. ”

“ Nay, more, I hope the day will come when every State House in the land shall hold a tablet such as this, when every schoolboy shall read lessons from his life, when every human being who seeks partnership and title in the freedom of his kind shall, in his memory, cherish the name of Major General John Sullivan as one who deserves a niche unshadowed and a fame unscarred among the scanty array of those great souls whom the genius of Liberty proudly calls her own. ”

“ Sullivan was a very powerful man, and though weakened by his long fast and fatiguing march, despair gave him courage and nerved his arm with strength, and with great presence of mind he seized the animal as it struck him on the side with its horn, drawing out his knife with his left hand, in the faint hope of being able to strike it into his adversary's throat. ”

“ Sullivan's my only clew. How can I force a statement from this fellow? What has he done? What hold can I get on him?"
The girl looked at him half frightened yet full of admiration.
"Don't try it, Mr. Ralston," she whispered. "Give it up. You can't do it. It's too late. Besides, Sullivan's a dangerous man—a man who stands in with all the politicians—a bad fellow to threaten. He's done things enough, God knows, to send him to jail a dozen times—but leave him alone! You've done enough for Steadman. If you try to monkey with Sullivan anything might happen to you. ”

“ Sullivan's story gave his chief still more occasion for thought, for this arrest seemed plainly "a frame," being absurd upon its face. The pugilist had huge, misshapen paws that could scarcely explore his own, much less another's pockets, and his stiffened fingers could not palm a coin in the dark, yet a stranger had accused him of deftly lifting a watch. It seemed significant that two plain-clothes men should have been at Sullivan's elbow at the moment. ”

“ In the list of Irish chancellors of the nineteenth century Sullivan is one of the most eminent. But he was more distinguished as a statesman than as a judge. His thorough knowledge of Ireland, combined with the courage, firmness, and decision of his character, qualified him to be what during the period of his chancellorship he was—an active champion of law and order throughout the country. Sullivan was also a man of varied accomplishments and scholarly tastes. Through life he was an ardent book-collector, and at his death had amassed one of the most valuable private libraries in the kingdom. ”

“ Washington made Sullivan an early visit, saw the situation there for himself, and during the day issued another of his fervent orders to the army. He formally announced the landing of the British, and again reminded his troops that the moment was approaching on which their honor and success and the safety of the country depended. "Remember, officers and soldiers," he said, "that you are freemen, fighting for the blessings of liberty; that slavery will be your portion, and that of your posterity, if you do not acquit yourselves like men. ”

“ General Sullivan when he was taken prisoner and fell under the influence of the British military power, and contrasting them with the meagerness that he had been accustomed to, for once his heart failed him and his soul sank within him, and it is no sorrow to his name to say that for the moment he thought the liberty of mankind in the Western continent was doomed. ”

“ "'Says O'Sullivan to me, "Mr. Fay, I'll have a word wid yeh?" "Certainly," says I; "what can I do for you?" "Sell me your sea-boots, Mr. Fay," says O'Sullivan, polite as can be. "But what will you be wantin' of them?" says I. "'Twill be a great favour," says O'Sullivan. "But it's my only pair," says I; "and you have a pair of your own," says I. "Mr. Fay, I'll be needin' me own in bad weather," says O'Sullivan. "Besides," says I, "you have no money." "I'll pay for them when we pay off in Seattle," says O'Sullivan. "I'll not do it," says I; ”

“ Something that bites 'em, drags 'em down and out! That man Sullivan, E Company, for example—you know?"
The colonel nodded a grave head.
"A pity!" he passed judgment.
"Lord knows where he is. If he'd only hung on another week, this whole business would have slipped off him like a dyspeptic dream. And now—! Nothing but some psychological twist could ditch a man that way. A twist, I tell you—"
"Or a woman," murmured the colonel.
"Same thing! It is a woman this time, by the way. Connors told me. You really ought to hear about it, from Connors. He's inimitable!" ”

“ Sullivan's army into the Indian country in 1779, their route being through the very finest portion of Western New York, and at a season of the year when vegetation was in its highest perfection; the beauty and fertility of these lands became the theme of praise, on the part of every soldier that beheld them. Their fame was thus carried to almost every village and hamlet in Pennsylvania and New England. ”

“ Yet such has been, in great degree, the case, and the name of Sullivan occupies a lesser space in the history of the Revolutionary struggle, than those of many others whose achievements fell far short of his in magnitude and importance. Sullivan has been made the victim of the intrigues and petty jealousies of his times, and while for this his own indiscretions may justly be blamed, the duty is none the less incumbent on the present generation to render due homage to one who is a brave soldier and a devoted, disinterested, self-sacrificing patriot. ”

“ The mild and gentle Mave Sullivan, with all her natural grace and unobtrusive modesty, was yet like many of the fair daughters of her country, possessed of qualities which frequently lie dormant in the heart until some trying calamity or startling event of more than ordinary importance, awakens them into life and action. ”

“ So I creeps upstairs, step by step, step by step, (here Mr. Sullivan walked on tip-toe all across the office, to show the magistrate how quietly he went up the stairs,) and when I gets to the top, I sees 'em—by the gash (gas) coming through the chink in the windy-curtains—I sees 'em; and 'Och! Misthress Sullivan!' says he; and 'Och! Misther Burke!' says she—and 'Och botheration!' says I to myself, 'and what will I do now?'" We cannot follow Mr. Sullivan any further in the detail of his melancholy affair; it is sufficient that he saw enough to convince him that he was dishonoured ”

“ Sullivan bring her to you here, or any where himself. The little man will carry your letter to him, as he has done it already I suppose he wont refuse you.
‘You sent a message for the pistols yourself, and as you had not given him the watch, he sent it, lest he should be accused of a design to keep it. We have no other Messages to send, since you have forbid us coming near you . . . for God’s sake Sir let me have an audience of you; I can say more than I can write.’
Thus, from the beginning, Charles’s friends foreboded danger in his liaison. ”

“ General Sullivan obeyed his orders like a man and like a soldier, and the result was from that time forward your people settled up these beautiful valleys around here, and look at their descendants here, a million almost. If it had not been for General Sullivan and the men who followed him from Easton, and Clinton’s forces that came across from Albany, probably some of you would not have been here today.’
“I still read: ‘Battles are not measured by their death roll, but by their results, and it makes no difference whether one man was killed or five hundred if the same result follows. ”

“ But General Sullivan, according to his own account in his letters to the commander in chief, to Congress, to his friends and others, spared no vestige of improvement and appeared little less proud of this war on nature than he was of his conquest of the savages. [See General Sullivan's account of this expedition on the public records, dated September 30, 1779.]
The difficulties, dangers, and fatigues of the march required courage, firmness, and perseverance. Hunger and famine assailed them before they reached the fertile borders of the pleasant and well-settled Indian towns. ”

“ Sullivan is one of the few young men raised in America who speaks the Irish tongue fluently. He is a member of several clubs, an enthusiastic horseman and all-around sportsman; is passionately loyal to his friends and possesses to a very large degree “that characteristic Irish pertinacity that never saw night too dark, hour too late or road too rough to interfere with rendering a favor to a friend—or a blow to an enemy.”
Sullivan, John J., attorney at law, 203 Broadway, New York City. ”

“ But I heard that your Ladyship wished to see me.”
“Quite true, Mr. Daly,” interrupted Lady Eleanor, her habitual tact supplying a courage her heart was far from feeling. “Will you be seated? Leave the room, Sullivan. My daughter and I,” continued she, speaking with increased rapidity, to cover the emotion of the moment, “have just heard something of a dreadful event which is said to have occurred this morning. Old Sullivan so often exaggerates that we indulge the hope that there may be little or no foundation for the story. Is it true, sir, there has been a duel fought near this?” ”

“ The British force of Loyalists and Indians met Sullivan in one battle, and finding themselves over-matched and beaten, they scattered in all directions. The Loyalists, for the most part, went home, but the Indians cleverly broke up into small bands, and General Sullivan's army had no sooner marched beyond the Wyoming Valley than some of these small bands were back into the valley plundering outlying cabins and shooting people from the thickets and woods that bordered the fields. ”

“ But the Sullivan of those moods of dejection is not the man whose portrait lives in the memory of those who knew him. It is easier to think of him in those earlier days when the constant urbanity of his outlook upon the world was lightened by a laughing humour constantly inspired by sympathy and affection. ”

“ Subsequently Sullivan engraved a fine plate of the ‘Temptation of St. Antony’ (after D. Teniers) , which he dedicated to the Duke of Beaufort. In 1759 he published a set of six views of noblemen's seats, viz. Oatlands, Wilton, Ditchley, Cliefden, Esher, and Woburn—all drawn and engraved by himself. Sullivan practised miniature-painting with considerable ability, and from 1764 to 1770 exhibited portraits with the Incorporated Society, of which he was a director. He led a disreputable life, and died at the White Bear tavern in Piccadilly early in 1771. ”

“ Sullivan of Wigley Street, the specialist, a clean-shaven big man, exactly like Mr. Blank here. Everyone has noticed the likeness."
"Dr. Sullivan of Newcastle has a beard," said the newcomer. "And he's a very old man by now. A great receptacle of miscellaneous learning. He showed me once his collection of coins and medals. He's got coins back to the Roman Emperors and stories about every one of them. His collection—"
"Yes, but—"
"—of idols is amazing. You never saw such comic figures as those natives worship. There's nothing he doesn't collect. He's got a mummy covered with blue beads. ”

“ Sullivan was a good though never a great or an inspired actor, of an old-fashioned kind, and held aloft the banner of tragedy in troublous times. In Ireland he stood, thanks in part to his birth and his religion, foremost in public favour. Admiration for him was not confined, however, to the catholic south, but extended to the north and across the sea to Liverpool and Manchester. In these places he played with unvarying success a very wide range of tragic parts, together with some comic characters. ”

“ Sullivan was to come by steamer from the North, without touching at The Buller or The Grey; and when the ship was signaled, the excitement of the population became considerable, the diggers asserting that Sullivan was not only the basest, but the most guilty of all the gang. As the vessel ran across the bar and into the bay, the police were marched down to the landing-place, and a yelling crowd surrounded them, threatening to lynch the informer. ”