Page:The Biographical Dictionary of America, vol. 02.djvu/102

 CABELL.

CABLE.

years. In February, 1754, at the beginning of the French and Indian war, he raised a troop of horse, of which he was made captain. About 1755 he became a lieutenant-colonel of the Albe- marle militia, and on Oct. 11, 1760, was promoted colonel. He was also a justice of the peace. From 1757 to 1761 he was a member of the liouse of burgesses. In 1760 he subscribed with others to a premium to be given for the purpose of en- couraging tlie production of wine and silk in the colony. In 1761, at the first Amherst court, he qualified as the first presiding magistrate, the first county lieutenant, the first county surveyor, and the first county coroner, holding the ofiices until 1775. He also held the ofiices of burgess from Amherst county, of vestryman, and of sur- veyor by appointment of William and Mary col- lege, thus ho-ding all of the leading ofiices of Amherst covmty during the colonial era. On May 2, 1763, he received, from his father, a deed to 1,785 acres of land in Amherst county, which, with the 460 acres already patented, an addition of 579 acres in 1764, and many subsequent addi- tions, made a large and valuable estate. Colonel Cabell was one of the original subscribers to the stock of the first James river canal company, and was prominent in all plans for the improvement of the covintry. From 1774 to 1776 he was chair- man of the Amherst county committee, and from September, 1776, to March, 1781, he served as state senator, when he was appointed a member of the council of state. He was elected to the house of delegates, in 1783, in 1783, and again in 1787, being one of the few members to oppose the adoption of the Federal constitution. In 1788 he was again in the house of delegates, and in 1789 was made presidential elector, voting for George Washington. His wife was Margaret, daughter of Colonel Samuel Jordan, by whom he had seven children. At his death he left an estate of about thirty thousand acres of land, many slaves, and personal property, althovigh he had given several of his children fair estates. His death occurred March 23, 1798.

CABELL, William H., governor of Virginia, was born at " Boston Hill," Cumberland county, Va., Dec. 16, 1772, the eldest son of Col. Nicholas and Hannah (Carrington) Cabell. He w^as edu- cated at home and at private schools, studied at Hampden-Sidney college from 1785 to 1789, and at William and Mary college from 1790 to 1793. After taking a course of law in Richmond, Va., he was admitted to practice, June 13, 1794. The following year he was married to Elizabeth, yoimgest daughter of Col. William Cabell, and lived in the family until the death of his wife, which occurred Nov. 5, 1801. In 1796 he was elected to the assembly, and served again in 1798, 1802, 1803, 1804, and 1805, In March, of the last

named year, he was married to Agnes Sarah Bell, oldest daughter of Col. Robei't Gamble. From 1805 to 1808, he was governor of the state, and in the latter year was elected by the legislature a jvidge of the general court, holding the ofiice until 1811, when he was appointed judge of the court of appeals. This office he retained until the time of his death, being elected president of the court in 1842. He signed his name William Cabell prior to 1795, when he inserted the letter " H" to distinguish himself from the other William Ca- bells. Among the events which occurred during his administration was the trial of Aai'on Burr. On the division of Kanawha county, in 1809, the new county was named in his honor. He died iu Richmond, Va., Jan. 12, 1853.

CABLE, George Washington, author, was born in New Orleans, La., Oct. 12, 1844. His father was of Virginian parentage and his mother was a descendant from the Puritans. In 1859, tipon the death of his father, he obtained employ- ment as a clerk in a New Orleans store. In 1863 he enlisted in the 4th Mississippi cavalry and remained in the Con- federate service until the close of the war, when he returned to New Orleans and ob- tained employment in a mercantile house. From there he went to Kosciusko, Miss., where he studied civil engin- eering. Later he went to the Teche country on a surveying and ex- ploring party. He be- ^ ^

gan his literary career by making occasional con- tributions to the New Orleans Picayune under the pseudonym " Drop Shot," and subsequently became editorially connected with that journal. Meanwhile he produced a tale entitled "Sieur George," which attracted favorable comment and was followed by other short tales of creole life, which were given a warm welcome as something entirely new in literatvire. In 1885 he accompanied INIark Twain on a tour of the cities of the north lecturing on creole life, and reading from his own works. He afterwards made his home in Massachusetts. Among his published writings are: Old Creole Days (1879, '80, '95) ; The Grandissimes (1880, '95); Madame Delphine (1881); The Creoles of Louisiana (1884); Dr. Sevier (1885, '94); The Silent South (1885) ; Bonaventure (1888) ; Strange True Stories of Louisiana (1889;; The Negro Question (1890); John March (1894). He received the degree Litt. D. from Yale, 1901. '

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