Ashe, from a conversation with Judge Terry, is utterly
devoid of truth.
"I had at one time, many years ago, a letter from Justice
Field, in which he stated that he was going to devote his
leisure to preparing for circulation among his friends his
reminiscences, and, referring to those of early California
times, he requested me to obtain from Judge Terry his,
Terry's, version of the Terry-Broderick duel, in order that
his account of it might be accurate. As soon as I received
this letter, I wrote to Judge Terry, informing him of Judge
Field's wishes, and recommending him to comply, as coming, as
the account would, from friendly hands, it would put him
correct upon the record, and would be in a form which would
endure as long as necessary for his reputation on that
subject.
"I received no answer from Judge Terry, but meeting him, some
weeks after, on the street in this city, he
excused himself, saying that he had been very busy, and adding
that it was unnecessary for him to furnish a version of the
duel, as the published and accepted version was correct.
"The letter to me from Justice Field above referred to is the
only letter from Justice Field to me in which Judge Terry's
name was ever mentioned, and, with the exception of the
above-mentioned street conversation, Judge Field was never the
subject of conversation between Judge Terry and myself, from
the time I left the bench, on the 1st of January, 1857, up to
the time of Terry's death.
Pages:
318
319
320
321
322
323
324
325
326
327
328
329
330
331
332
333
334
335
336
337
338
339
340
341
342