PREME COURT OF GEORGIA. MEMORIAL OF HO . HE RY G. TURNER. ubmitted July 18, 1904, In obedience to an ord l' made at the pre ent term of the court, the committee therein named hal'e prepal d and now in truct me to p 'entth following ketch, commemorath'e of th lif, character, and public services of your decea d A ciate -Judge lIE:'inia wa as n, Archibald Adams Turner, then about ten year of a" who, soon after reachinO'manh od, married Mary Ann Ilowz, only dauahter f William and Elizab t.h Ilowz; f thi man'ia" was born on the _Ot.h f March, 1839, IT>;SI!\, Gil.\\" TU"~H:I<. Ther were oth l' chiklt n of tbe warria.... , and in ord I' to cur . uch edueati nal or p rtunities as they required, Arcbi bald Turner mo\' d with his family to t.llA villa"e f Ilend I" n the pre 'ent Clllll1tysite of Franklin count.y, T rth arolina; and Henry, then ight y al of ag , was wi th t.h other childr n plac d in the villa" cbool. f tb incidents of his hoolboy life, w have been able to I am little beyond t.he fact that he wa. dilig nt. in study, upri"ht in conduct, reserved in manner, and with some aptitude for declamation and debate. 'Vhen hi academic COUL w, compi ted, and in June, 1 ~i he mat.riculated a a Ulemh I' of t.lle fre Ilml\ll cIa at Ih 'ni~el ity of North arolina. But havin a b en pi vent.ed by sickn from joinin.... hi class at th beginning of til t I'm and I' al izin the disadyanta a s lik Iy to re 'ult to him from thi circum tanc , he withdr w from that in titlltion and ntered upon an el ctive COUI e of .tudy at the nivel ityof Vil'O'inia. Here disapp int.ment again defeated hi.. h P of continuing hi 'niver ity trainilw. In] ecember, 1 5i, his father died, and upon investigation his e tat wa found to be 0 h avily invoh' d as to lefwe litt.le more than a bar UPI ort f r th family. Imlll diately on learning the c ndition f affairs at hom, and unwilling to furt.her reduc th in ufficient re urc f hi mother and h I' til r childr n by ubj cting the tate to the expense f OUlpi 'ling his t;niv rsily COUI'llC. youna Tul'll 1', aft l' a hort vi it t til faulily hom , d t rmin d t .. k hi fortune el wher. Goin a fil t to the ":tate f Alabama he ur d temporary mp;oyment as teacher of a country school, and, at the expiration of t.he term for which h had been nO'aaed, accep d the po iti n of prin ipal of Pi ola Academy tn th county of Brook in this tate, and remained th re until th eady summer of 1 61, when h entered th military rvice of the onfederatp tat as private in a company Ulen recently organized at anll1nah. Th Acad my und l' hi' man "'ement njoyed high l' put for th effi iency of its III thod and the thor ughn of i di ciplin. A ignificant of tilat illl II ctual illli I' ndenc aud indiff l' nce to y tem that ha\'e little I than long u a"'e to comm nd th m, the yoUl1'" princil al di card d the text-books th n in general use for teach ina aritilmetic and ub tituted rule and formula of his o\\'n. It was while thu l1"aO' d in fitting oth I" for futur II efulne . and equip- ping him If in the interval of 'cholastic labor for the competition of that 1'1'0fe ion in \\'hi h h was aft rward' l win uch quick and lasting fam that h heard the ulllmon that called.' uUlern I atriots to arm . and unwillinO' await th compl lion of a c mpally then formlllg at Quitman hast n d to nroll hims If in Ule' 'avannah Yolunteer Guard and until Augu t, 1 2, en dured wiUl patience th toils and privation. of a . oldieI' in th rank of tilat heroic an I hi toric company. At th date last mentioned he was Iromoted to the rank of aptain and as igned to the command of ompa.ny H, 23d Regiment, NOl'lh Carolina olunteel, adand' Bri"'atle, Army of:X rth l'II Virginia. It would be a proud and grateful t, k did til ju t limit.: f a tribut such as thi permit to relate at length hi cal' l' as a Idier-t t II of hi unflinching fortitude, hi unexalllpt d patience under the inexpre ibl toil' and hard hip of bi\'ouac and march, and of tile con picuou gallantry with which the heroic youn'" capt.'\in led hi Ulen at :\[echani ville old Harbor :\lalvern Hill, hancellor ville, and a or of bloody fields be ide; and how at la t h ju tifled hi promotion and seal d hi COlllllli sion with hi. blood on the d adly 'lope of ettysburg, Desl Arately wound d on the fir t day of July, 1863, and left for dead on th batt! fi td, he w taken prj ner and confined alt 1'natelyat andusky and at John n' Lland until Kov mber, 1 64, when be w discharO' d from prison and ent t Richmond as a di abled Idier incapabl for further mili tary , r"ic .' To \"hat extent hi h alth was permanently impair d by wound and by th I' til ntial air of F d ral prison can only be conjectured, sinc whatever pain h may ha\'e suff red then or afterward wa endured with that silent toici III for which he was always I' markabl , 'When but partially recover d from the ffects of wonnd and impri. Onlllp.nt he made hi way to the old home at Hend rson, and, having a little recruited his strenO'th there, took up til 10l}O' and painful journey to hi adopted home at uitman, Georgia tra\'elinO' mo. t of th way on horseback and at night. n after l' achinO' Quitman he r umed the tudies tbat had be n interrupted by th call of patriotic duty, and by unremittinO' effort so far compl ted hi preparation as to cure admi ion to the bar at " hvill , Georgia, in tober, 1 65. On th 1 th of June in the ame year he wa married to Mi Lavinia . Morton, daught I' of Judge amuel Morton, who, WiUl hi Datural force but little abated, is still living at hi. hom near Quitman, in the njoyment of robust h alth and of all the pi , ant things that wait on honorable old age, The loyal lady who became his wife and with who~ he lived so 10DO' in perf ct peace and ex uisite enjoym Ilt, pl'O\'ed a true and wortily helpmeet. Dutiful, liIi nt modest, and incer ly rejoicinO' in the well-earned fame of her di tinguished husband; well-pleas I and proud to feel 'that while he knew a thou- and things, he was herself not larO'ely learned ave in all gracious household wayR.' And thou"'h adorned with all womanly ctllture, and accomplished be- yond mo t of her. ex, h rift and grace were wholly con crated to the happine s and honor of him whom sll d III d all hon rand ob dience due. f the fh'e chillren 001'11 of tho lllan'ialTe, th eld t, .Jame. )[ rton TU111 1', died in J i , at th alTe of tw 1\'0; another on, 001'11 in 1 .j, di d in infancy. A daulTht 1', )ILs India Tul'll 1', and th y unger of the two ur\'i\'in lT son (S. )lOl'lOn Turn 1'). resid with their lIIothel' at th hom of th family near Quitman. Th -Id I' n 11 my i a pI' perou. fa1111e I', mal'ri d and Ih-in cr n :II' hi. mother, and illutmtin lT in hi life and conduct th b 't ualitie of citizenship_ Th - younger SOil is a lawy I' holdin lT honorabl place at the Quitman bal'. f til . who had pel fend hi pcople again t the apr ion that had bcen heaped upon th m. Hi vindication was masterly and complete, and its effect upon the public mind can be easi Iy gather d from an outline of the evidence. t out in tht' 431 \'olum four upr me ourt Reports. His ucc in th condu t of appeal and in the pro cution of writs of rror uffici ntly atte ts hi excellence in that lin of professional work; and hi' infr quent appearanc b fore the upr me OUTt wa, probably due to the fact that conclu ion reached and verdicts rendered in c, e that had becn argued by him at u' i priu were, for the most part, accepted as final. C.\REER A LEGI. l.ATOR Al'D TATE )IA~. In 1 ;4 he was lect d to repr nt hi county in th lower branch of the tate le"'i~lature and, fulfill d the exp ct.ation of tJlC peopl of hi county as to cur r -elect.ion for three succe, iv term. A a legi lator h was con.. rvalive and cautiou., not. giv n to exp rim nt 01' t.o rash interm ddling with yt ms t.hat had been found rea onably u ful and ben ficial' but. z alou mth r to aid in the work of r pairin'" and r toring the foundations of, ocial ord r, and of clean ing the bo ly politic of the licen tiousne and cormption born of al ien domination and ctional hate. J[' th refore conc rned himself chi fly in the framing of such I!\w' and in the tn.bli hment of, uch policie , would purify official conduct, pr mote dom tic peac , and protect the tate' r sources from further inroad. by usurpers and ch!\r1!\tans who had found th ir opportlmity in the di rd, and di traction of!\ t.urblll nt time. Judge Turn r' con"'r i nat ervice covered a period of . iXI en years and long bef re it had end d h had mad good hi claim to a I lace among the foremo t ta men of hi. lim . and on t.hat xalt d ta"'e renew d the triumph of an earlier day, when bb, and Toomb ,and t Ith ns, and Hill, and all Ole long line of uLl, rn. a . and patriots illw trated ther the g nius of ,outh l'I1 civilization and outh rn state man. hip. Tru ting that, in givin'" omewha larger tr atment t a topic interestin, we hall not s em to have gone beyond t.h expectations of th court or to have "'reatly exce d dOle ju t limit' f an offi ial tlibute, we v nture t.o l' fer with oniet.hing more of detail to Judge Turn r's con"'re ional cart' r. In order to d termin hi. ri"'htful place in the catalo"'u of tat Ul n, con id ration DlUt first of all be giv n to the principl for which he tro\'e and the moth'e, hat in pit-ed hi conduct. He wa. by na.ture th inveterate fo and the implacabl pro ecutor of injustice of very sort, wh th r xhibited in t.he couduct f individual. or wrought ou by vii administration and political intri!!ll , or openly inflicted by ta ut.. I was ther f r not. urpri in that hi fil t !\PI e!\rnnce in ongr, h uld hav been ignaliz d by an ault on the ystem of tariff protection, whi h wru to him Ole e s n e of all injustice, t.he um of all admini trntive iniquit.y, and in i effec legaliz d robb ry; and befor th expiration of hi fir t terti) he t.hr w down the gauntlet and challeng d its auth rs an 1 ac1vocM to op n c mbat. With it and itll d fen del th r WM, 0 far as he wn.s concerned, to be n ither truce nor parley, but nly war, unc a ing and I Inti . war. From 1 2 to 1 05 it was the tb III of hi. b t II r ,th ubject of hi flerce t den lin iation ; and h contantly a ailed it with !\11 his r Ill' of I,arnin"', of I "'i , and of invective. It WM when, after a hort int.erval of reli f from the l-emo' Ie exact.ions of the protect.ive y tern (occasioned by a bange in political opinion and practic thr ughout the country), it had been a"'ain in tall d aJ t.he rule of admini t.ra. tion and a e -m nt that he turned upon it triumphant. a l\'ocates and with in- dignant scorn declared: II The Pretorians of the Tariff have expOlled the Presidential purple for sale at the up- t price of executive subserviency and offical infamy.' And on another occasion, when appeal had be n met with derision and remonstrance with ridicule, he uttered the agonized cry of an oppre d and helple people: I "Ve are villeins of the lord. of taxation; we wear the colln.r of the tn.riff-the shoddy livery of our masters. If we buy our clothing in some freer laud, we are fined; if the fine is not paid, we are impri oned. ur crime is poverty, and our proverty was impo ed by law." To whatever rank Judge Turner may be l\SSianed as a foren ic orator, there can be but one opinion as to the rank to be accorded him as a parliamentary speaker. Holding truth and ju tic to be in ub tance the same, and always thoroughly prepar d, his peeches never failed to command attention and to elicit applau even from those again t whom he contended. He was indeed a debater of the first order, and when he 1'0 to addr ss the hou e, II It was as when some orator renowned, in Athens or free Rome, To some great cause addressed, stood in himself collected." Invective was perhaps his mo t effective weapon, but its frequent use by him was not the result of natural bitterness; he was living in an atmo phere of opposition, and against inveterate abu es venom. shafts are legitimate weapons. "His were not hot from bow half-bent, But with the fulle t tension of the thong Hi singing shafts were ent. ' At the be/{inning of hi second term Judae Tnrner was made chairman of the Committee of Elections, and by the dignity and impartiality of his conduct, mo t notably di played in the ca e of ~lcKinley v. Wallace and Heard v. Romeis, won from the disappointed conte tants warm and voluntary encomiums on his I gal learning and judicial fairn His next assignment was to the Committee of 'Vays and Means, a mo t cong nial position, and one in which his indefatigable indu. try and his familiarity with all matters concerning the cus- toms and the revenue enabled kim to render couspicuous and effective service. Then came dissen ion and unhappy discord in the ranks of that party for whose integrity and snpremacy he had so long and so manfully contended. trange additions were proposed to the party creed; new text of ci vic instruction were promulgated; and this man, in the pirit of that iufl xible devotion to his con- viction that characterized his whole life and conduct, but with tmdiminished affection for those who had so trusted and honored him, went without complaint or reproach into dignifi d but sorrowful retirement. The next eight years of his life were occupied with th practice of hi profe ion and the care of his private affairs. He sought no other companion hlp than that of his books, and thought of no other recreation than was to be found in the charmed circle of his family; nor did he at any time manifest a desire to participate again in public affair or to revisit the scenes of official life. Amid these delightful surroundings his life was passing into a peaceful and quiet afternoon, when, in July, 1903, he was invited by the hief Executive of the t.e'l.te to occupy the eat on the bench of this court, lately made vacant by the death of the lamented Lnmpkin, and en- tered at once on the duties of that great office. The work proved congenial, his relations official and personal with his associates of the bench were of the most pleasing and sati factory character and there was fair promi e of a long continuance of a life of usefulness and honor. In the mid t of these agreeable urroundings, and when everything seemed lJropitious, unmistakable symptoms of the return of an old malady necessitated his instant withdrawal from judicial labor. HI. IC"~ES A~D DEATH. It was during a formal and wholly unnece ary canvass of his congressional di trict in the summer of 1804 that he experienced the first appearance of the disease which ultimately ended his life. At fir t the symptoms were not of uch everity as to cau e . erious appreh 11 ion, and it wa not until after his return from Europe in the latter part of 1895 that their increased frequ ncy induced him to se k the advice of phy.icians. Under skillful treatment and after a period of absolute re t it was thought that permanent relief had been secured. And when he went upon the bench of thi court much of hi old time vigor had returned. For orne time after his re ignation from th bench th re were favorable fluctuati n , but it was ob erved that each ucce ding paroxy III left his enfeebled frame Ie able to bear th next. By the urg nt advic of his family phy ician he went, on the third of June last to Baltimore to procure surgical aid. pon his arrival at Baltimore it was determined that, in view of his weakened condition and the critical character of the operation to be performed, it would be better to defer it until he could by rest and diet acquire sufficient strength to endure the ordeal. To his acute mind thi reluctance on the part of the trained and skilled surgeon to undertake the op ration at once must have been an omen of evil. Di appointed and dejected he began the long joumey to Georgia; but find ing the fatigue of travel too great, decid d to eek temporary I' t at the home of hi brother, Dr. Yin s E. Turner, at Raleigh, North Carolina. The day after hi arrival at his brother's home there was another paroxy m, so protracted and \" re as to greatly alarm hi relatives and the physicians who had been call d to attend him. Whatev I' sci nce could uggest or affection upply wa done for hi relief, but all to no pUl'pO ; and at two 0 clock in th momin'" of the 9th of June, attended by hi devoted brother and by a number of ympathizing friend, his spirit left hi outworn shell, and went Iorth unennin d and alone to meet that Judge whose. eat is on the circuit of the Heaven and from who e juogment th re is neith I' writ of error nor appeal. There was at no time even a temporary 10 of consciousness. His great mind remain d uncloud d to the last, and the imp rial intellect reIu ed to abdicate its function until the til' d ey lid. clo d in d Mh. The 10 of Judge Turner would under any circum tance have been a calamity to the commonwealth; but that he should ha\'e been taken away at a time when his commanding intellect. hi wide experience, his larg 1 arning, and his lofty integrity had just been returned to the servic of the tate, and in that department of goverment in which the welfare of all the people is mo t vitally concerned, was inde d a public di a tel' of no ordinary magnitude. The public resonrces ha.ve been permanently crippled; the eff ctive strength of the commonwealth seriou Iy for hortened and the 10 is irreparable. " ot all that aim or a.g or ophi. t ever writ Can build again the broken tower, the ruin d tenement refit. In early boyhood Judge Turner wa by bapti m made a member of the ~fethodi t Church; and while in after life not a regular attendant upon religious observances, y t hi. conduct wa conformed to the be t requirements of religion and morality. "He did ju tly, loved mercy, and walked humbly with his God." Doubtless there were at time grave que tionings - yearnings for light. by which to penetrate the solemn my terie. of death and immortalily.painful efforts to r conci! things. freely acc pted by mind Ie inquisitive, with the sugg stions of his own ubtle and exacting intell t. Th re i how- vel' con olation in the belief that th que tion were all ri htly Hied at the la t, and that b for his. ickne. took a mortal turn h W:lS I' ady to ay," I can not prove, yet I beli ,. ; I can not und I' tan