"Sir, take note that in those years most of the affairs of the county were directed by the General Assembly-our state legislature-that sat first in Knoxville, then in Murfreesboro, and finally, permanently, in Nashville after 1843. The county court had but minor responsibilities in some governance matters and civil law under the old 1796 constitution."
He paused and zeroed in on my eyes "I was serving under the old constitution as justice of the peace, a judge in a Court of Common Pleas, when your Mr. Yell took it on himself to cause a peevish commotion. You know the book-knife ruckus? He took exception to a judgment I made and threw a book at me. I went for him with my sheath knife. We both were restrained before blood was wasted." His eyes twinkled like those of a mischievous child -joyful and defiant.
***
I had done my research on my Mr. Yell. Archibald Yell (1797-1847) hailed from North Carolina and settled in Bedford County as a teenager. He served in the Creek War and participated in the Battle of New Orleans in the War of 1812. He came to Fayetteville, Tennessee, after that service, studied law, and practiced in Lincoln County until 1832. He declined President Jackson's appointment as Governor of the Territory of Florida but accepted an appointment as Judge of the Territory of Arkansas in 1832.
Living in Fayetteville, Arkansas (another Fayetteville!), he served on the bench until 1835, when he was elected to the U.S. Congress, serving as Arkansas' first Congressman (1836-39). He was Governor of Arkansas from 1840-44 and returned to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1845. Yell resigned his congressional seat in March 1846 to serve in the Mexican War as a colonel of the 1st Regiment, Arkansas Volunteer Cavalry. He was killed in the Battle of Buena Vista in February 1847. His reputation as a take-charge, aggressive person was formed early in Fayetteville, Tennessee, in his book-knife confrontation with Mr. Jones in the winter of 1832. They were colleagues in the U.S Congress from 1845-46.
***
After his witticism about himself and Colonel Yell, Mr. Jones continued his story, "I stood for election as County Register in 1834, as my term on the County Court was ending. The new Constitution became the law of the state in 1835, and I was elected and served under its provisions.
"I had done well, I warrant, in developing my writing skills at the old Field School in Elkton. Mr. Robert made sure I sat and learned with the teachers he and others hired over the years for their children. You might say I got two primary educations." He smiled and continued, "I had an hour or so of instruction each day after supper during the school term. The teachers brought me books to read and had me doing my numbers and sums. Fennimore Cooper was my favorite, and Parson Weems' Life of Washington influenced me profoundly. Washington Irving's works also had appeal. I was good at sums and was drilled on abstract arithmetic. I took to it. I used that and applied it to matters financial.