After a debate with the famous atheist, Robert Ingersoll, he wrote, "I was ashamed of myself, & make haste now to declare that the mortification of pride I then endured… ended in a resolution to study the whole matter, if only for the gratification there might be in having convictions of one kind or another." Lew Wallace's study resulted in "Ben Hur", the most influential novel of the 19th century. He also was governor of NM, and promised Billy the Kid amnesty in exchange for testimony against other bad guys. He did not keep this promise. Lew Wallace died this day in 1905.
