From Tennessee he went to Indian Territory, whither a large part of
the Cherokee had already removed, and once more took up his residence
near Chief Jolly, who was now the principal chief of the western
Cherokee. The great disappointment which seemed to have blighted
his life at its brightest was heavy at his heart, and he sought
forgetfulness in drink to such an extent that for a time his manhood
seemed to have departed, notwithstanding which, such was his force
of character and his past reputation, he retained his hold upon the
affections of the Cherokee and his standing with the officers and
their families at the neighboring posts of Fort Smith, Fort Gibson,
and Fort Coffee. In the meantime his former wife in Tennessee had
obtained a divorce, and Houston being thus free once more soon after
married Talihina, the youngest daughter of a prominent mixed-blood
Cherokee named Rogers, who resided near Fort Gibson. She was the niece
of Houston's adopted father, Chief Jolly, and he had known her when
a boy in the old Nation. Being a beautiful girl, and educated above
her surroundings, she became a welcome guest wherever her husband was
received. He started a trading store near Webbers Falls, but continued
in his dissipated habits until recalled to his senses by the outcome
of a drunken affray in which he assaulted his adopted father, the
old chief, and was himself felled to the ground unconscious. Upon
recovery from his injuries he made a public apology for his conduct
and thenceforward led a sober life.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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