JUDGE RICHARD H. CLARK.
MEMOIRS
JUDGE RICHARD H. CLARK
EDITED BY
LOLLIE BELLE WYLIE
ATLANTA, GA. . W. Harrison, Mana
MR. Z. D. HARRISON,
THE LOYAL AND LIFELONG FRIEND OF THE DISTINGUISHED AND THOUGHTFUL WRITER, JUDGE RICHARD H. CLARK, THIS COMPILATION OF THE WORKS OF HIS PEN AND THE TRIBUTE PAID HIM BY HIS FRIENDS, IS RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED BY
THE EDITOR.
preface.
So many encomiums have been passed upon the life and. character of the lamented Judge Bichard H. Clark, that, did I not desire to emphasize all that has been said, I should let this volume go fortih to his friends and the world with out an additional word.
That lie was a tocder-Uiearfred and sympathetic man, no one will dispute who enjoyed the honor of his acquaintance or who read the beautiful emanations from his graceful pen; but I think that nothing demonstrates these characteristics more clearly than a few linos, scribbled in. childish letters, in a journal kept by Alice, his youngest child. Like most developing lives, the child wrote innocently and regardless of outside opinion in her diary, -and looking over the pri vate papers kept sacred by Judge Clark during his lifetime, I found this leaf:
"Poor Guiteau! He was hung yesterday. The papers are full of t#ie details of the hang-ing. Father got hold of the papers before breakfast, and he could not at. He could not eat his dinner. He says he is always glad whetu any one kills himself to escape the gallows."
The sorrows of the dear old man had made him. sensitive to shame and suffering, and his kindly heart was always ready to respond to the moan of misery. If he ever erred in his decisions on the bench, it was on the side of mercy. If he ever saw an opportunity to pour the healing balm, the -wound was stra.ig-b.tway annointed.
Judge Clarks domestic life was peculiarly sad. He
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PBEFACE.
worked aloiic, the half of his life, bereft of that compan ionship which he most needed and yearned for. In Ma daughter Hallie he enjoyed an intellectual comradeship which was only lessened "by her physical disability. -With tenderest pride lie "wrot^ of lier: a M!any of her words and. writings will do to stand side by side with those of George Eliot. Her sentences are brilliant atid beautiful. My daughter has been an invalid since her fifteenth, year. This, superadded to a reserved and modest disposition, has kept Her from being widely knowu and appzeciated- In a letter she says: I am sure I do not .know where we could find happiness! Contentment is about all we can expect, and that depends mainly on ourselves. If the dew of happiness falls more generously upon one place than upon another, I have never felt its refreshing; sweetness. The mist of con tentment is all that ever moistened the desert. And it is true."
This daughter, gifted with great delicacy of thought and expression, writes to her father of the death of Mrs. Clark, lier stepmother., and says:
"I hope you are by degrees becoming inured to the silence made by death- Death, is awful and powei-ful. It is like entertaining a solemn guest whose watchword is God! He lays his hand upon us as well as upon the dead, and we are a part of the fearful liu&hl"
As a father, he was the tender protector of his loved ones, shielding t^em from all the hardships, privations and annoyances of life with the folds of bis great love.
His clesire was "To apeak the very truth, to perform a promise to the uttermost, to reverence all women, to he]j> the weak, to treat high and low with courtesy, to be con stant to one love, to be fair to bis bitterest foe. to despise
luxury, and to preserve simplicity, modesty and gentle ness in heart and bearing," and I know that in a large measure his pure life was governed by these axioms. He was all that noble knighthood required, and in the placid cur rents of his life were depths unfathomable of tenderness and sweetness, which sliows how exquisitely fine was his appreciation of good deeds and exalted aims.
iSpealdutg1 of the death of Dr. Taliaferro, which, touched him greatly, with ehar-acteristi-c sympathy for sufferm<g humanity, he said: "When, it came to me, I thought how marjy blanched faces there would be that day! This death was like the stilling of many rivers. The healing hand had been witiliclrawn. .Power and skill slept and the world -was silent, and none could appreciate this so much as those who clung- to the life that held life. An army of pallid suffer ers, strengthened for the conflict by the steady glance and positive tone that assured STICCCSS. The liopes that cen tered -about the handsome, manly form and graceful bear ing have forever perislied. A chord of loneliness was touched in. the suffering mind, and tears as summer rain marked tihe untimely fate."11*
Judge Clark was a devoted husband. In his private journal he wrote a touchingly detailed account of his wifes death, concluding- with these words: "~VVhen the dealih. struggle oa-niej it was xn-ost agonizing to see her place her delicate hands in front, as though in prayer, and to see her try fco -adjust, from time to time, the covering and clotih.ing. Ad then when, she died when her little wasted body was fully prepared for the grave she looked as we imagine an angel looks- There was nothing of earth in her appearance, but all of heaven. Any one who had never seen her, and not knowing who she was, would have said: There lies what is left of a refined and innate lady. A little, delicate
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PREFACE.
frame, which had held a soul .as brave -as the bravest, and a generosity equal to her courage/"1
This glimpse into the heart and home-life of the public man will reveal more plainly than I can describe the ma terial of which he was made.
He was ever helpful to the aspiring and hopeful young, and his words of counsel were ever ready to command in belhalf of distressed age.
On St. Valentines Day he died. As the evening fell he said: "Let in the light." His request was complied with, and through the blinds the golden glory of the setting sun flooded the room and fell liie a halo around that noble brow. Then God opened the windows of his soul, and tae spirit of the grand old man, that had been so long and so sorely tried, stood in the full effulgence of a light and life everlasting that fadeth not away.
LOLLIE i>EIjTjE \V YLIE.
EDITORS NOTE.
In compiling the manuscripts of Judge Clark, I found but few dated. This necessarily changes the color of some oi the letters- In many instances the actors pictured have diet], and some have mar ried and removed to other scenes. Owing to this much interesting in formation has been left unrecorded. Any reliable and authentic information that can be furnished for future use will be gratefully appreciated, and used in elaborating the second edition.
Contents,
MEMORIAL BY THE ATLANTA BAK. ................. . . ........ 1 IN HOSE HILT. CEMETERY ............ ......................... 19 IN ROSE HILL CEMETERY ....._,.......,...,,. ................ &7 FLORIDA THIRTY YEARS AGO .................. ............ . . 60 FLORIDA THIRTY YEARS AGO ............ ..................... (j8 FIFTY YEAKS AGO is SAVANNAH ......... ..................... 75 THE SCHOOLS FIFTY YEARS AGO ...-.-.... ................ ... 82 SOME OTT THE SCHOOLBOYS . ..,...,-., ...................... . , , 89 THE LAW FIFTY YEAUS AGO ....................... ........... 98 THE J^AvrYEns FIVTY YEAUS AGO ................. ............ 105 THE Orj> CWE-FEBY . ... ........................... .......... 113 THE STAGE "FORTY TJSA.RS AGO. .............. ................. 12S A VOYAGE iy 1834 ............. ....... ..... ................ ISO CULTURE OF COTTON . . ............................. .......... 352 WIT AT GKOJSGJAS SAJI ............................ .......... 15!?
OLD ACTORS .......... ............ .-,,... ,.......,.,....,., 174 THE I-.ATK WAUP MCALLISTER ..... ......... .... ,...,.,...,. 181 A HORSE SWAP. ................ ....... ..,......,,.....,.. , 137 THE LANIEK HOUSE .,........-,.... ..,.............,.,...-..,.. 205 C-iEOBGIA AN!) ALABAMA. ................... ................. 217 WVLT.V BARROK .............................................. 224 PREACHERS FIFTY YEARS AGO ................................. 228 GEORGIA SCENES " AKU " TRXTMPET MAJOR " ................. 235 A FACT OF ^HERMANS "RA.II>. ...... ..... ...... .............. 243 ANTE B^LT.UM LAW VEES ....................................... 249 GEORGIAS MYSTEBIOLTS tiovEKXOE . ......,,,,,,,.,.......... 2-54 TUB COLDEST DAY ............................................ 239 A KIXG OF BRIXKEUS ....... .......... .-..-.,... ........... 262
,7(JD<;E Joi-TK A. ClITHliEUT .......... ........... ............. 265
CHARLES F. JENKIXS ....................... ... ... ......... 272 H-BKdonKL V. Joiixso.v ..... .................................. 280 GEN. THOMA.S PINCKXEY SIHTH ................................ iJOS lioujsKT .RAYMONJJ R^UD ..................... ................. SOI TRAOYS WAR RKCOR.D ...... . .................................. B09 TTJE DotB/-^ MV&&B&. .................................. ..... 9X9 Ho:x. JOSEPH F. BRO^Y x ...... .......... ..................... 325
CONTENTS.
THE GEORGIA CODE ..... ......... ........... ................ 393 ................ 402
memorial
Judge Clark, oxir lamented brother, had the amplitude of a broad humanity, but with it a very distinctive and individual personality. He was a compound of marked traits and delicate shades of character, sonic of the former deriving their existence, apparently, from the latter, and being the result of their harmonious grouping and blonding-. For instanee? Ms simplicity was a permanent and prominent characteristic, yet it was a composite simplicity and not a single elementary quality.
!N"ature multiplied the large wheels in his machinery by adding small ones and combining them in a peculiar man ner. "With, all his nice complexity he was well-balanced. His gentleness was a dominant trait, and yet it was in such equipoise with, his firmness that it often took no part in the performance except in. his demeanor and tone of feeling. At the core of his mental constitution there was a hard and solid individuality, but it was so cushioned with a sympathy and kindness that it seldom jarred, though always making itself sufficiently manifest to suggest the independent thinker and actor. His matured opinions were deeply rooted and he adhered to them, not with animal stubborn ness, but with a spiritual loyalty which no opposition and no force of attack could weaken. It is doubtful whether, in a single instance, he ever accepted a reversal of one of his judgments by the Supreme Court with anything ap proaching full mental acquiescence. When reversed he
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MEMORIAL.
remained of the same opinion still -was not convinced against his will nor convinced at all. It some-times re quired all liis amiability and gentleness of disposition to keep him from breaking- out into open insubordination and treating the reviewing court "with official discourtesy. His political opinions were equally fixed, and immovable, and his allegiance to his party was constant. Yet in noth ing was he loud or violent. The born gentleman, refined and expanded by cultivation, ruled over his whole life and conduct. !N~or is it unlikely that he "was strongly In fluenced by religious feelings and motives. No man "was less pretentious in the externals of religion or more care ful to eschew religious parade or display, but if the es sentials of religion can be analyzed in the non-reverential, the devotional, the benevolent, the1 practically moral, and
the spiritually beautiful, he was certainly not wanting in any of these; so far as it is possible for men to judge other men, we should say he has seldom been surpassed. Doubt less multitudes have been more habitually conscious of re ligion than he "was, but whether many have, been more swayed by its real spirit is open to question. He was a quiet and silent member of the Methodist Church, but hia field of labor, as he viewed it and occupied it, was in the "world and in the affairs of secular life. That he per formed his part heroically and nobly none "will deny who knew his career and the circumstances under which it was prosecuted, patiently and persistently, to the end. He bravely "withstood the combined discouragements of ill health, poverty, and other misfortunes of a distressing na ture. Few men, in the church or out of it, could have accomplished so much under like conditions.
He was one whom men as "well as "women could "warmly love, for in. him the masculine virtues, without being en feebled, "were softened and exalted by feoninine delicacy. He "was gifted with that mixture of strength and sweetness
MEMORIAL.
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which, appeals always and everywhere + o the heart of hu manity itself.
All wlio knew him realized that he was not an ordinary man. Something about him. impressed those who met him with the fact that they were in the presence of a man far above the average, not only intellectually, but in character, manners, and general appearance. A more courtly gentle man, never "walked the streets, and a kinder h-oart never beat in (a human breast. He had peculiarities, but they did not grate upon you; they only impressed you the more with his rare ability and his unfailing kindness. He was by natnre fearless, morally and physically, and cowardice of any kind found 110 place in his make-up. A thought of dis honesty never entered his mind, and we do not believe he ever had a mean motive during his life. . We are prepared for the character of the man when we learn of his ancestry. Every stream that flowed into his veins furnished good and pure blood to make a true man. His father was Josiah Hayden Clark, a native of Dorches ter, Massachusetts, who descended from Richard Clark, an English emigrant to Massachusetts in 1760. The Clarks were gentle people in England and improved on American soil.
Judge Clarks great-great-grandfather established the first paper mills in the colonies, in Dorchester, Massachu setts, known as Clarks Mills, and its successor, we are in formed, exists there by that name to this diay. His son George, the grandfather of Judge Clark, married Lydia Surnner? a member of that noted family in MJassachusetts, and this marriage made Judge Clark a third cousin of the late Senator Charles Sumner.
Judge Clark inherited from his father much of that poetic temperament which he exhibited throughout his life. His father composed the odes sung in Savannah at the lay ing of the corner-stone of the Green and Pulaski monument
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MEMORIAL.
in 1825, arid also In tlie same year the ode sung in com memoration of tlie death of Jefferson and Adams.
His maternal great-grandfather was Henry G-iiidrat, who was a Frenchman, coming to the United States when ho was a child, and settling in South Carolina long before the revolution. J"udg;e Clarks courtly manner and extreme punctiliousness tare partly traceable to his French ancestors.
Judge Clark was born in Springfield, Hfrmglumi county, near Savannah, on March 24, 1824, which made him nearly seventy-two years of age at the time of his death.
When ten. years old he was so daring that his mother feared lie would "be drowned in the Savannah river, where he would venture on every opportunity, and for this reason she sent him to a school at Lynu, Massachusetts, but he was so homesick that she was advised, to recall him., and lie was educated in the Springfield. Academy, where many of Georgias prominent sons received their instruction.
Upon graduating at the academy he entered the law office of Ward & MeAllIster in Savannah, and was there prepared for admission to the bar. He AVJIB ambitious, and after his admission was anxious to become self-sustaining at once, and as this -was impossible in an old city like Sa vannah where business had. move-el for generations in wellestablished channels, he determined to try Ins efforts in the flourishing town, of Albany in thi=> State, rnd mounting a horse he made the journey from Savannah on horseback.
He lived in Albany twenty-four years, and he always felf; a peculiar affection for the citizens of that little cify and of Baker and Dougherty counties. He knew that they loved him, and in all his races before the legislature that section of Georgia always came solidly to his support.
He was married twice. The first time to Miss Harriet Gr. Charlton, on August 7, 1855. She belonged to the Charlton family of this State, being the daughter of Major
John Cliarltou of Springfield. Two children were bom to liini by his gist wife, Henrietta Louise and Harriet Charlton. The former died in 1886, and the latter, who lias been an invalid for years, a till lives in Macon.
Hia second marriage was to Miss Anna Maria Lott. Slie was a native of Florida, but was living In Lee county when he wooed and won her. Sis children were the fruits of this marriage "Richard Henry, Charles Clifford, George Townes, Anna Beveridge, Jessie Bertram, and Alice G-indrat. All of these children are dead, except the
Soon after the war Juderc Clark removed to Atlanta, which remained his home nntil his death. He died in his lodgings at the Markham House in Atlanta on the 14th day of February, 1806, and was buried in Rose Hill Cem etery at Macon on the day succeeding hie death.
When not quite twenty yeara of age Judge Clark, on the nth day of February, 1844, was admitted to plead and practice law. This took place in Chatham superior court, the Hon. Charles S. Henry being the judge presiding. Three other applicants were admitted at the same time. The examination was in open court and lasted from 9 oclock a.m. to 2 oclock p.m., the; committee conducting it being composed of Matthew Hall McAllister, Robert IT. Chni-lton, William P. White, and Francis S. Bartow. Lo co ting in Albany, he engaged in practice there, and so con tinued until he went upon the bench as judge of the South western Circuit, in the last, month of 1802. During the same year of this time he was in partnership with Richard F. Lyon. afterwards one of the judges of the Supreme Court, Of this partnership Judge Clark was the junior member, and it was in existence in July, 1848, when he was admitted to practice in the Supreme Court. After resigning in I860 as judge of the Southwestern Circuit, he
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MEMORIAL.
removed to Atlanta, and in so far as the state of liis health permitted, prosecuted his profession in that city until hid appointment to the bench of the city court, in 1876, his health in the meantime undergoing slow but steady im provement. Upon retiring- from the city bench at the close of the year 1883, he resumed general practice,, but being again elevated to the bench as judge of the Stone Mountain Circuit two years afterwards, his career as a practitioner terminated and the residue of his life was devoted to judicial labor. During a part of the time he practiced in Atlanta ho had a limited partnership or busi ness association with ex-Chief Justice Lochraiie. He was often employed to aigue cases in the Supreme Court at the instance of and to assist other lawyers. Indeed, these brought to him much of his professional business, for in his later life at the bar they more fully understood and appreciated his merits as a lawyer than did the public at large.
His mind was of a literary-legal order. To him the law was not dry bread, but a juicy and savory viand, and in dealing -with it he often made it so to others. In his prime his powers of advocacy were considerable, and he was no less effective with juries than with judges. He was indus trious and painstaking in preparing his cases for trial, and -was so conversant with the tricks and traps of litigant hu man nature, that he was rarely off his guard against wiles and wickedness. His suspicion, however, was only that which, is born of outward observation, for he was too pure and undefiled for it to have originated, otherwise. By capacity, learning, and diligence he was entitled to even a higher rank at the bar than that to which he attained, and the one obstacle to his onward career was the want of ro bust health. It was this wliich made a fixed income, though within the limits of a low judicial salary, so at-
MEMORIAL.
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tractive to him that he preferred to serve on the bench rather than struggle at^the "bar. Before any failure in his health his professional ability and reputation led to- his appointment by Governor Brown as one of the three com missioners to prepare the Code of Georgia. This was the crowning work of his life, and -will perpetuate his name and fame in our professional history. The labor of con structing out of slender and scattered materials found in a multitude of previous statutes, a connected, consistent, and complete scheme of "political and public organization of the State" foil to him as his special task, and Part First of the Code., substantially as we now have it under that desig nation, was the result. In -working up his materials, Judge Clark had either to stop when lie had assembled to gether and put in order a great mass of mere fragments, or else supply from liis own mind a large quantity of new matter for filling up chasms and connecting all these frag ments together. "Wisely, no doubt, he chose the latter course, although it involved a more extended and compre hensive performance than that indicated by the letter of the act under which, the commission to prepare the Code was .organized. In tins choice his colleagues, Messrs. Irwjri and Oobb, agreed with Lira, their concurrence, being* evidenced not only by not overruling him when it came to the work of revision, but by a similar practice by them selves, one or both, in executing their own special share of the general undertaking. The new matter originated by Judge Clark was very considerable in quantity, and the quality of it "was such that- after a trial of more than thirty years much the greatest part of it still stands, and is in daily and hourly use as effective law. Y\7 e thus have evi dence not oii]y of his fertility in legal production but of his skill in adapting the product to the wants and work of practical life. He was specially and pre-eminently a po-
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MEMORIAL.
litico-jurist, and to his ability as such the Code of Georgia is a magnificent and. enduring monument.
The judicial career of Judge Clark "began with his ap pointment to the judgeship of the superior courts of the South-western Circuit in December, 1862. He filled that position "with eminent ability until October, 1866, when he resigned on account of ill health. He resided in Albany during this time. He became so "well and favorably known throughout the counties composing his circuit, and through that entire portion of the State, during his incumbency of this office, that in 1885, "when he became a candidate for the judgeship of the superior courts of the Stone Moun tain Circuit, before the General Assembly, the representa tives of that section rallied to him as one man, arid made him so strong before that body that he easily defeated his opponent and was chosen judge of that circuit at every suc ceeding election until the time of his death, without serious opposition. He was judge of the Southwestern Circuit for nearly four years, and of the Stone Mountain Circuit for a little over ten years. Besides this he was judge of tne city court of Atlanta for a period of eight years, beginning January 20, 1876; a total period of twenty-two years. During this long judicial career he was distinguished for uprightness and ability the two cardinal requisites of a judicial officer. He possessed one of the most acute legal minds that Georgia ever produced. He penetrated deeply into the cases brought beifore him, and soon perceived the weak or strong points. His mind was active and inquir ing, and until he bad mastered, the case he was keenly 011 the alert, and plied counsel -with many questions. But it did not take long to probe a case to the bottom. If he had a fault it "was in coming to a conclusion too soon; but such was the intensity of his attention .and the quickness of his perception, that this fault was.hard to shun. A cause be-
MEMORIAL.
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fore him interested him f^rom its very inception, and liis diligence in quest of the truth, and justice concerning it never flagged until it was finally disposed of. He had no patience "with the idea that a judge was a mere legal au tomaton, bnt his conception was that he should take ac tive control of a case, bring, it down to the real issues in volved, and force them, and them alone, upon the attention of counsel and of the jury. His inind would become so occupied in this way, that he would sometimes lose sight of the restraints thrown around the judge by our peculiar system of jurisprudence and appear to invade the province of the jury by expressing his opinion of the case before him. Host of the reversals of his judgments by the Supreme Court were based upon exceptions taken to such alleged ex pressions of opinion before the jury, but it will be found on examination of the esses tried by him, as reported in the Supreme Court Ileports, that they were in furtherance of what he conceived to be the right and justice of the cause. He thought that a trial judge should be permitted to brush away all minor and unimportant issiies, and leave to the determination of the jury only the1 important and con trolling oneSj and that eve.ii on these the judges influence should not be entirely unfelt by the jury.
As already stated. Judge Clark was elected judge of the Stone Mountain Circuit when it was created in 1885, and held that office until his death. This circuit did not em brace ITulton county, but it was well known that the pur pose had in view in the creation of it was to furnish a judge to assist the judge of the superior court of the Atlanta Cir cuit. The criminal docket of this court was assigned to him in the division of the business, and the arduous task of trying nearly all the felonies that have been committed in this county for the last ten years has devolved upon him. He brought to that \vork the best efforts of his long and
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MEMORIAL.
useful life. He was always upright, able, and fearless, but he recognized, oftentimes, the provocation for the crime, too often overlooked by younger and less experienced judges, and tempered justice with that sweeter quality of mercy which made him see the man as "well as the crim inal, and caused his great heart to look with some leniency upon the human being who stood before him -when he pronounced the sentence of the law.
Judge Clark commenced his public life at a very early age. "Was elected to the legislature of Georgia in the year 1849 as a senator from the1 thirteenth senatorial district. This legislature was that chosen for the second term of George "WY Towns and was the first democratic legislature of the State for a number of years. In this legislature -was the beginning of the great political excitement which grow out of the settlement of the questions involved in the dis position of the territory acquired by the United States at the end of the war with Mexico. "With his entrance in this legislature upon political life there was with him Thomas T. Long, Lucius J. Gartiell, Liiiton Stephens, and Joseph E. Brown, who afterwards became so distinguished in the public service and shed great luster upon the history of Georgia. In the Democratic convention of 1857 be and Linton Stephens were conspicuous leaders in the movement which resulted in the nomination of Joseph E. Brown for the office of governor. This nomination -was the settle ment of the long "wrangle and contest by the partizaxis of Honorables James Gardner, Henry G. Lamar and John H. I/urnpkin for this nomination. These three party leaders had been, long conspicuous in tho Democratic party and bad exercised great influence in the politics of the State and in determining the policies for the Democratic party. At that time Governor Brown was not generally known to the politicians of the State, and the knowledge Judge Clark had
MEMORIAL.
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of him by Ids association in the legislature of 1849 -was most successfully used in securing for him the office of gov ernor, winch identified this remarkable man with the most eventful epoch in Georgia history. The public excitement originating in the legislature of 1849 culminated in the con vention of 1861 and the adopting of the ordinance of seces sion by the State of Georgia. Judge Clark was a mem ber of that convention, and with those celebrated statesmen and patriots, X A. !Nisbet; Thomas R.R. Oobb? and Robert Toombs, voted for that ordinance. During these twelve years of the greatest political excitement and of momentous events in Georgia history Judge Clark was one of the most consistent and devoted of that galaxy of Georgians who molded public opinion and carried out those policies born of the most ardent feeling of devotion to the peculiar rights of the Southern States.
In the years following that of secession, during the war period and in the after times of disappointment, alien in terference, and reconstruction wrongs, the memories of the past were dear to the heart, of Judge Clark, and in counsel and effort he was in the front rank of that illustrious num ber of Georgians that gave their lives for safety of the State, and whose fame is a precious iiilieritarjce of its peo ple. His political life was consistent in party and was spent in the pursuit and vindication of truth as he saw it, and in making1 better and brighter the lives of the people for whom he thus earnestly labored, His legislative career was conspicuous as to the men with whom he was associated and the measures with which he was identified.
It would take perhaps a dozen comfortable octavo vol umes to carry the contents of Judge Clarks scrap-books. Much that is cut. from newspapers, and pasted into these volumes, is the product of his own pen. The residue of it, also clipped from newspapers, consists of articles which
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MEMORIAL.
arrested his attention and appealed to his sympathies dur ing- a long lifetime.
The footprint of a bird in a Paleozoic mud-flat is so char acteristic that a scientist can take it, as found preserved in the resulting stone-shale, and construct from it the figure and semblance of the bird itself. The bone of an animal, deposited in the deepest dark of prehistoric times is un earthed from the dry, embalming dust of a long-forgotten period, and from the slim indications of structure and na ture it presents the animal itself is made to stand before the startled eyes of nineteenth century spectators. J3y anal ogy it "would seem that a scrap-book, extended, as Judge Clarks is, through so many years, and registering -with care ful fidelity the things he thought and said as the spirit moved him, and the things that other people, both grave and gay, thought and said pointedly enough to catch, his de liberate attention, "would supply abundant material out of which a philosophic mind might reconstruct the mental and emotional part of Judge Clark himself.
ITor instance, Judge Olark "was known to be possessed of a heart full of tenderness and sympathy for men. and women who had been jostled down in the rush of life and trampled under the feet of their fellow men. The criminals he sentenced loved, him even as he w:\s pronouncing their doom. The gentle-ness of liis disposition was so pronounced a trait of his character., that even, illiterate and brutal felons perceived it arid appreciated it. But a psychologist should be able to reason out this peculiar characteristic as beingone of the parts of Judge darks singularly compound be ing from the following scrap of poetry, which, with many o fliers of similar sentiment; or in like vein, is found among those scattered, as print of bird claw or mummied bone, throughout his remarkable scrap-books:
.MEMORIAL,
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"Give him a lift. Dont kneel in prayer, Nor moralize with his despair : The man is down, and his great need Is ready help, not prayer and creed.
To him than tomes of saintly lore ; . Pray, if you must, within your heart,
But give him a lift, give him a start.
" The world is full of good advice, OI prayer and praise and preaching nice ; But generous souls who aid mankind Are like to diamonds hard to find.
" Give like a Christian, speak in deeds ; A noble lifes the best o creeds ; And he shall wear a royal crown Who gives a lift when men are down."
Again, the friends of Judge Clark were frequently sur prised, almost to the point of consternation, at the quantity a.nd accuracy of his information as to the antecedents o almost any one "whose name was mentioned, and his fa miliarity with family connections even down to a remote degree of kinship. He knew so much more about ones kind than one knew himself., that many stood in dread that h knew some otherwise unknown something that would cut the price or bring a blush of shame to the check. Groundless fear, however, since his innate goodness restrain ed him from ever inflicting the slightest pain.
Judge Glarks memory was a sort of exhaustless "peer age," even of the poor, the humble and obscure a sort of personal "Bradstreet" of everybodys buried and -wouldbe forgotten relatives. But the habit of his mind, which made possible an attainment so difficult as the one now under consideration, is disclosed in these slowly and pa tiently formed and always growing scrap-books. Few people duly estimate how much newspapers contribute to the common fund of knowledge in the course of half a
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MEMORIAL.
century, and especially how much information they give about people, and their cousins and their aunts/ Judge Clark seems to have been an. omnivorous consumer of news papers. For fifty years he clipped personal paragraphs, autographs, biographs, and the like, himself often con tributing much of value in this direction, until he in part made, and in another part collected, a large encyclopedia of individuals, their connections, eccentricities, and exploits, so as to have them at tongues end when occasion arose call ing for disclosure. lie appears to have hung over, with loving respect, tombstones in cemeteries at Savannah, Macon, and elsewhere, fixing dates of births and deaths, grouping family names and connections, as if this were the chief business of his life. N~ot to be wondered at, there fore, that he could in a few minutes conversation so enlarge your circle of relatives that you felt smothered under a blanket of unexpected, and sometimes undesired, kinship. Pie devoted much time to the study of the local and personal history of the State of Florida, and much that he "wrote on this subject deserves to be preserved. The bench and bar of Georgia always appealed to him, as one of the chief "pleasures of memory" in his old age, and his knowledge of this subject far exceeds that of any of his contemporaries. How lovingly he lingered over the names, ability, and pe culiarities of his professional brethren, and with -what just estimate oft-tinged with subtle humor he has perpetuated their memories, let his brilliant series of letters addressed to the Savannah "jVlorning !N~ews," and entitled Fifty Years Ago," attest. Perhaps William H. Sparks alone com peted with him in this peculiar line of literary endeavor, and it is to be said in reference to ]\lr. Sparks himself, that Judge Clark has collected and preserved the only complete record of his writings extant. Bill Arp, Betsy Hamilton, and Montgomery M. Folsom, and many other well-known
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knights and ladies o the quill, will also likely find, among 3 udge Clarks clippings and pastings, a fuller collection of their contributions to the newspaper press of the day than they themselves possess.
We may -wonder, too, if any one of the many lawyers, who "were accustomed to view his venerable, grave face as it crowned the woolsack, imagined how much Judge Clark knew about actors and actresses, and famous mu sicians., and notable pi-each ere; and how fond he was of framing their printed images and preserving accurate criti cisms of their genius and methods. The great speeches, also, of Georgias great men, of every political or theologi cal creed, he read with care, and preserved with equal care, until it may be said nothing has been worthily proclaimed from fomni or pulpit for fifty years, and printed in the daily press of the State, that lie has not garnered for the convenience of the future historian. Scores of distin guished G&orgians will find many of their own utterances, winch they have themselves probably long forgotten, her metically sealed in the amber of Judge darks wonderful scrap-books.
So far as we know Judge Clark never attempted a line of poetry of his own invention or manufacture, but his soul was brimful of it, and a true song always found a re sponsive chord in him. Very few short poems or verses of merit escaped the snipping of his tireless scissors. His admiration for womanhood, and especially motherhood, was deep and tinged with holy reverence, and his love for children was so simple and tender that it was little short of pathetic. A volume of miscellaneous productions particu larly unfolding the sad and sorrowful side of "the mother" and "the child" could be printed from his collections, so varied and beautiful as to be esteemed a gem of any library,-
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for liis literary taste and discernment in this quarter were indeed exquisite.
As is well known, Judge Clark was a profoundly afflicted man, both in his person and his circumstances. His cheer fulness, his patience, at times flickering up into gentle hu mor and playfulness, was thus the more remarkable. No doubt he had consciously trained himself to endure adverse ills, and schooled himself to display toward others that ten der consideration which too often he felt to be denied to himself. The frequent occurrence of lines like the follow ing, preserved by him, woiild seem to indicate this:
"If we knew the cares and crosses Crowding round our neighbors way, If we knew the little losses Sorely grievous day by day, Would we then so often chide him
Leaving on his heart a. shadow,
"Let us reach into our bosoms For the key to other lives, And with love toward erring nature Cherish good that still survives ; So that when our disrobed spirits Soar to realms of light again, We may say, dear Father, judge us As we jiidge our fellowmen."
It has been remarked how grateful Judge Clark always was for the slightest mark of consideration and sympathy. A gentle touch of his elbow to sustain him in his feebleness, a slight smoothing of his sick pillow, a little bunch of flow ers,, any sort of loving trifle, would call forth earnest, even pathetic profusion of thanks. Perhaps something more than accident led him to preserve the following lines so ap propriate to this occasion:
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"When lam dead, Forgive Oh, this I pray far more than, all The ang-ulsh I have caused, the deed beyond recall, Think kindly on me as I lie so still,
Of hearts bound up I found all sad and broken Think gently, when this" last long; rest is mine, And g;\ZG upon ray form with looks benign,
When I am dead."
L. E. BLBCKLITV , M. A. CA^IVLER, E. jST. BKOYLES,
"VVM. K. HATVIMOND, MAKSHAijT., ?T. CT^AU KUFUS T, DOBSEY, HOWARD VAX EPPS JOHN T. GI^EXX, A. H. DAVIS.
In TRose Ibill Cemetery.
IMacon, in the State of Georgia, named in honor of the great and good Nathaniel jVTacon of !Nbrth Carolina, is a beautiful city. As it is located very nearly in the exact geographical center of the State, it is appropriately called "The Central City." Situated on the right, or west bank of the Ocmulgeo river, it occupies the lowlands, the plains, and the highlands of that river. Beginning at the lowest point on the river, it rises gradually by a succession of nat ural terraces, semicircular in shape, until it reaches and in cludes the high hills. Looking from some favorable point on those hills, the "whole city is in view, descending by reg ular gradations until it reaches the lowest lands capable of occupancy. Looking from some favorable point along the track of the Central road, in the lowest part, of the city, and the reverse of the other view is had. The city grad ually rises before the view amphitheater-like, until upon the highest encircling hills many of its largest and prettiest buildings cap their tops and delight the eye. It is diffi cult to decide "which is the more beautiful both are beau tiful and hard to be surpassed in views of cities. If a pho tographer should place his instrument at a point on Bonds Hill, -which, -would jusfc take in on the left a spire of Christ Church, and then would place it at some point near the track of the Central road in the lowest part of the city, the pictures thus made, taken together, would give a view of nearly all of Mac on all of its prettiest parts. The streets of Macon, running from the lowlands to the hills, are named
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after trees, and of these I remember Walnut, ^Mulberry, Cherry, Plum, and Poplar. The principal residence ave nue of the city is ^Mulberry street. The pride of the peo ple of Macon is the park in the lower part of tho city on the river bank, and PV.OSC Hill Cemetery in the upper part on the liigh hills and likewise on the river bank. .Each of these beautiful spots are in unison -with the beautiful city, .imd all together complete a lovely picture "which nature and art both combine to make. It is not to describe Alacoii and her beauties these articles are written, for that "would re quire the pen of an artist, but as introductory to the im pressions received and rellectioiis made, OIL a visit during the last summer, respecting her old citizens, who are tak ing their final and eternal sleep in Rose Hill Cemetery. _N~or will space permit, if I had tlie ability, to describe this lovely city of the dead. ]\Xa:ny descriptions of it have been written and printed, but to realize its beauties it must be seen.
It is nearly forty years since I first visited Macon, and for more than thirty I have known it well. ^larked changes take place in population in one decade, but when we can multiply that by four these are so many and so great, that the chronicler finds but few surviving who were contemporaneous with him in the business and struggle of life. The first change that impressed me -was, tluit there were but two men living "who resided on ilulberry street from Paines corner to College street twenty years ago. The two are William P>. Johnson, and Edwin Saulsbury. Among the dead I can call to mind are Dr. ICollock Green, Washington Poe, Thurston T31oom. ? Dr. Colling, James A. jNTisbet, Asa Holt, Eugenius j^isbet, William K. DcGraffenxeid, Cad"wallader llainea, Thaddeus Q-. Holt, Isaac Scott, Dr. Fra-nklin, Amos Benton, and Charley Campbell. To these can be added several who did not live on that
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street that far back, who are also among the dead, like Dr, Strohccker and John B. Ross. Those names aro notTonly some of the best and most prominent citizens of LMacon, but o.f the State of G-eorgia j such as Judge T^isbet and his brother James., "Washington Poe, Judge Thaddeus Gr. Holt, Dr. Franklin and William K. DeOrafrenreid. The realization o so many deaths in that length of time among men I knew suggested a stroll through the cemetery, tosear ch for the graves of friends and to see what memories would be revived by the inscriptions on. their monuments. In the latter I was more successful than in the former., for from the "want of even some "rude stone to mark the spot," I could not tell the graves of several dear old friends from others in the same vicinity. For such success as I had I am indebted to Colonel "Madison rTones, who accompanied me arid who was familiar with all parts of the cemetery. He has grown to like its holy calm and purifving influence, forthere he buried bis greatest earthly treasure his darling boy who died at Emory College, Greorgia, a few years ago, before his father and mother could reach him; and now that Colonel Jones is well over on the sunset side of life, his heart is in. the grave -with liis sou, and he is looking for the time when he shall be placed beside him in his tastefully ornamented lot in the beautiful cemetery. I read inscrip tions on many monuments, winch either revived memories interesting to the public for their particular merit or for their historical character, and I propose to say something on some or all of them. The first monument that attracted my attention, and will that of any visitor, because of its prominent position, is that of the Rev. John JToward. En tering at the principal gate, and going down the main aveniic, we soon came to a point v.rhere another avenue diverges to the left oblique. Upon a lot right at the point made by the divergence, and on account of that the open character
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MEMORIAL.
of the immediate surroundings, and its size and shape the monument is conspicuous above all others, on this main avenue. It tells us that
JOHN HOWARD
was born in Orislow county, JSTorth Carolina, on the 5th of March, 1792, and died at Macon, Georgia, on the 22d of August, 1836, having been a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church for nineteen years. The name of the Rev. John Howard is among the recollections of my tender years. My mother "was one of his flock when he was sta tioned at Savannah. She had most pleasant memories of him, "which she would at times relate." His father was a man of wealth, but losing his fortune and dying, left his son at twelve years of age in the charge of his widowed mother. Having, because of these adverse changes, to labor, lie at that age left school to serve his uncle, Henry B. Howard, in mercantile business. He there acquired those methodical habits that afterwards became so useful to his church. Soon after his conversion he joined the itinerant Methodist ministry. His first station "was at Georgetown, South Carolina, in the year 1820. From thence until 1831 lie was stationed at Augusta, Savannah, Charleston and Greensboro, all then in the bounds of the South Carolina Conference. While residing at Greensboro he served as presiding elder. In 1831 he was stationed at Macon, was the agent for the school of his church at Oxford, Georgia, and was among the first and niost active promoters of the "Wesleyan Female College. In 1836, just after his return from bis service as a delegate to the gen eral conference, he "was taken ill of malarial fever, and died from the effects of a relapse, while surrounded by his weep ing brethren and friends. He received them down to tbe
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last hour of his existence -with the most exquisite grace and tenderness, and had a word of cheer for every fresh arrival.
The Rev. John Howard -was gifted with a grand intel lect, imposing person, and charming -eloquence. His repu tation as a pulpit orator exceeded that of any other min ister of that denomination in the State. He was devoted to his pastoral duties, and convincing and captivating by manner and matter in his sermons. On revival occasions, when the fervor of piety and speech was upon him, he was brilliant and powerful. Many are the members who were added to the church by the influence of his min istry. He left a reputation which is vividly known and an influence which is felt even to the present day, although nearly half a century lias passed. "What minister of hia time can be called to mind who, from mere tradition, has cast his beneficent shadow so far into futurity? In every city "where he preached, either the old people who survive, or the- young who have heard from their parents, have something pleasant and profitable to say of Mr. Howards ministry. Before the "world. in his inner family circle, in his closet, everywhere he -was thoroughly in earnest and consecrated every fiber of his being and every hour of his life to the religion and the work to which he had given himself. This is a feeble description of the man whose brilliant and useful career was arrested by death at fortyfour years of age, and "whose ashes and monument honor the original clay of Uose Hill Cemetery.
But there is a fresh grave by the side of John Howards, as yet unmarked. Visitors must inquire whose can that be? It is that of the venerable widow, who remained such for more than forty years a rare instance of mingled fidelity and longevity. If she had lived less than two months more she would liave completed her eighty-sixth year. Her maiden name was Susan Poythress. She was
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MEMORIAL.
a native of jSTort-h Carolina and the niece of the late Dr. Ezekiel Hall of Orawford county, Georgia., who was the father of Samuel and Robert P. Hall of Macoii. It seems superfluous to say she was a devoted and consistent Chris tian, and yet the picture would be incomplete without. Her best encomium is devotion to her husband and his work in the ministry. It is not saying too much to assert that without her aid and sympathy he would not have had the success and even the glory he had. The world attaches too little consequence to the aid a man in public life re ceives from his wife, and yet, without knowing who the wife of such a man is, it will take neither the spirit of prophecy nor the endowment of wisdom to venture the as sertion that he owes his success to the help and encourage ment of his wife perhaps to his self-sacrificing., suffering wife. That so many women live a life of hard duty, selfdenial, and even pain, unattended with the slightest com pensation here, is of itself a good reason why there should be a heaven hereafter that Gods justice may be ecpjal to a just mans sense of the same virtue. Among the surviving children of Rev. John Howard are the Hon. Thos. C. How ard of DeKalb county, so well known to the people of Georgia; the wife of Judge HcKoy of !N~orth Carolina, and ilrs. Reagan of Savannah. Among his grandchildren are Thos. E. Walker of Atlanta, and the late Robert- A. Alston.
In an opposite direction in the cemetery the visitors at tention will be attracted by a neat headstone erected to the memory of two persons a man and his "wife. Ho will be astonished to learn from the inscription that they are
OLIVER HILLHOUSE PRINCE
M A R V R., I-I IS WIFE.
who perished in the wreck of the steamship "Home," Octo ber 0, 183Y. The Home" was the first passenger steamer
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from Charleston to ISTow York. On tier second voyage site was wrecked in a storm near Ocracoke bar, !N"orth Caro lina. Of ninety passengers only twenty were saved, anot among the lost were Major Prince and his wife. He had just previously made a digest of all the laws of Georgia in general operation up to 1837. It had been accepted by the legislature, itajor Prince went to the JSTortU in the sum mer of that year to supervise his publication, and thus lost his life on his way home. Fortunately the publication of his digest was assured, and it served the legal profession, and people up to 1S51, when it was superseded by the di gest of Thos. K. R. Cobb. For some thirty years the name of Prince was more often called in all the courts of Georgia than any other name, for previously (in 1822) he had published a digest of the laws of Georgia up to 1820. After the digest of 1837 the lawyers, by way of discrimi nation between the two^ called the first (a smaller book) little Prince. I remember with distinctness the first time I heard the name, when a hoy of fourteen I happened in a court-room while a case was being argued, and the lawyers on both sides frequently read and quoted from Prince. I did not know who Prince was, but the impression then made on my boyish mind "was, that he must be the greatest man in the whole State. His digest of 1837 is now re ferred to frequently in the courts, but there is probably not one in ten of the lawyers who know the history and sad fate of its author. It is nearly forty-five years since his death. It is safe to say that three-fourths of the present lawyers .of tlic State were then either not born or of ten der years. Our congressional delegation, Turner, Clem ents, and Speer, were not born, "while Black, Elount, and Hammond had not yet passed out of their babyhood. Mr. Stephens is the only one who had entered on his manhood career, and General Cook and Judge "Buchanan were boys.
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MEMORIAL.
Both, of our United States senators, our governor, the pres ident of tlie Senate were also boys. The speaker of the House was not born.
Major Prince "was a native of !N"ew Haven, Connecticut, and on his mothers side belonged to the Hillhouse family one of the oldest and best of the State. His uncle, James Ilillliouse? "was a United States senator of great distinction. A brother of the senator, David Hillhouse, made Georgia his home, and this brought Major Prince here in his youth.
By the aid of an act of the legislature in 1806 he was admitter to the bar. Ho took a high stand in law and poli tics, and sustained his reputation in every respect for thirtyone years, when his career -was closed by death. On the resignation of Thomas "W. Cobb he was elected in 1S28 to the United States Senate for the 1111 expired term. His competitor was Hon. Edward Paine, of Olarke county, and the contest was so close that Major Prince was elected by a majority of one vote. He was distinguished for his wit and humor. As a specimen of it, we can zead at tins day his facetious tale of an old Georgia muster in the "Georgia Scenes." His wife, who perished -with, him, was Miss Xorman, a sister of Mrs. Washington Foe of Macon. Of his children but one survives Mrs. James Mercer Green of Macon. His only son bore his fathers own name, in herited his fathers intellect, "with his shining qualities of wit and humor; -wretched health afflicted him all his life, and a few years ago he died suddenly, leaving many sweet memories to those who understood him. It will bo a long time before the traditions of his humorous words and acts will pass into oblivion. He left several children now grown, or nearly so. Among the grandchildren of Major Prince are the children of James "W. King of Roswell, Georgia.
The foregoing, relative to Major Prince, if viewed as a
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sketch of his life, is not merely incomplete but feeble. It is not so intended, but simply to revive -with the living the memories of the dead, and to trace the points of contrast between the two, that the dead may not, amid the exigen cies of busy lif e7 be entirely forgotten.
There is .a monument in the cemetery which, with its inscription, suggests many reflections and revives many memories. He whose life it is to commemorate came, like Major Prince, to a tragical death, but in a very different manner. It is the monument of
DR. AMOS E A B E R,
At the time of his death Dr. Baber, altlioug-h. in bad health, was engaged in the active practice of his profession. It was not long after his return- from Sardinia, where he had been residing in the official capacity of United States minister to that kingdom. Among his patients was a man "with consumption, named Jarrell, in East jMacon. On Saturday the doctor had made for him a prescription which contained cyanurct of potassium. This drug con sists largely of the elements of prussic acid, and is a deadly poison, if rakeri in too large a dose. The prescription was put up by George Payne, then and now a prominent drug gist of Macon, .and a most excellent man. Mr. Payne, seeing- that there "was a mistake, filled the prescription, but tied it to the valve and "wrote the patient not to take it, that it was a killing dose; and to show the proscription, with his note, to Dr. Baber when he arrived. . The next morn ing early Dr. Baber made his nest visit, and was disap pointed and irritated that the patient had not taken the medicine the day before, as his condition required it. The
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MEMORIAL.
dose -was a tcaspoonful. "To satisfy yon/ said the doc tor, on the impulse of the moment, to the patient, "there is nc danger in it, I -will take a double dose." He swallowed two tea spoonfuls, staggered to a chair, and in seventeen minutes drew his last breath. The mistake was due to a misprint in Elliss formulary. All that edition was called in and destroyed, but that slight error of the publisher had already destroyed the life of one of the most -useful and distinguished men in the State. Thus, at the age of fiftythree, Dr. Baber, while enjoying- a high reputation as a cit izen, physician, and statesman, "was suddenly cut clown "by death. On that fatal Sabbath morning, before the people had assembled at their several places of worship, the ex citement in the city was intense. The death of but few men in the State could have created such a sensation. Be sides his personal, professional, and political standing, he was conspicuous as a .Mason, having been Grand ]\ Faster of the State, and was much beloved by that order. His friends of all shades -were devoted to him, and he had the respect of his foes.
Just twenty years before, to the month, lie had the mis fortune to kill Colonel Thomas D. ^litchell in a duel. The latter and liobert Augustus iBealle had an affair of honor without bloodshed. Dr. Baber was present in the capacity of surgeon to Bealle. This was in December, 1825. Tlieduel between Babcr and Hitchell grew out of sonic com ments the doctor had made on the former due], to \vhicli ilitchell took exception. The latter, at the tune, was so licitor-general of the Southern Circuit, and resided at Hart ford, in Pulaski county. This duel is strongly illustrative of the tone of that time, whether viewer! from a. social or legal standpoint. Although Colonel ilitchell was the pros ecuting officer of the State against all lawbreakers, duel ing was above the law, and he was as free to engage in it, ac-
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.cording to the general public sentiment, as any other per son. A peculiarity of the duel was that Colonel jMitche]Vs brother, Dr. Isaac "W". Mitchell, was his surgeon,. hut he was saved the embarrassing duty of ministering to his brother through the different stages of gradual death from a mortal wound, as lie was instant] y killed by a, shot throngh the lungs. Dr. mitchell died many years ago, after hav ing acquired a large fortune, which is now enjoyed by his eon, a worthy and highly esteemed citizen of Tliomasvillc, Georgia. It seems the fate of some men, even while blameless, to live a dramatic life, so completely do circum stances conspire to involve them in a network of difficulty from which some such tragic event seems the only honor able Tray of extrication. Dr. _~Baber had a taste and a talent for politics. Sis intellect and information, were sufficient to sustain, both. He was an engaging talker and a forcible speaker. Ilia convictions were deep and decided, and his character positive. Ho had an ample supply of courage to back all.
Such a man would inevitably become more or less prominent in church or State. 3Te was the recognised leader of one party in Bibb county, while as able and up right a man as Charles J. jYIcDomOd was the leader of the other. He represented J3ibb county in 1820,1831,1835 and 1830. lie had been a soldier in tlic way of 1813 and was a surgeon in the army under General Jackson. In 1841 ho was appointed minister to Sardinia, and died, as I have stated, soon after his re burn home. It is strange that men of Dr. JJabera tastes and proclivities should choose the profession of medicine while that of law is equally open to them. I know other physicians of Georgia about whom the same may be said. A. good and able lawyer was lost when, the late Dr. Arnold, of Savannah, became a physi cian. Imminently may the same bo said of Dr. ililler of
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MEMORIAL.
Atlanta. Tlie same is true of Dr. Jieubin. !Nisbet of Eatonton. The avocation of these gentlemen appears to mo like yokes upon them, like unto noble birds with their -wings clipped. Their own profession does not give them the scope that the bent of their intellect and the yearning of their hearts require. Able and successful physicians of course they are, but so only because they have the intel lectual endowment for proficiency in any branch of learn ing they have the will to undertake. For a long time, now many years ago, Dr. Henry Branham of Eatontoii; Dr. J. G-. McWhorter of Augusta, and Dr. Tomlinson Fort of JVtilledgeville, were important factors in Georgia politics.
The most imposing and expensive monument in the cem etery is the one that is erected to the memory of
There is nothing in the brief description upon it which indicates the manner of his death. The uninformed, whether stranger or citizen, would infer he died a natural death, and yet it was deeply and sadly tragical. I knew him well, and the first information I had of his death -was a summons which came to mo in the country to go to Al bany, Georgia, and join Judge Lyon in the prosecution of his slayer. The overseer on a neighboring plantation had taken the liberty to beat one of his men servants. When it "was reported to Colonel Bond his -anger and indignation were so great that ho at once mounted his horse, rode rap idly to "where the overseer was in the field, knocked him off his horse with a stick and while beating him as he lay,, the overseer drew a single-barrel pistol and shot Bond, from the effects of -which he soon died.
The court of inquiry of Dougherty county, composed of
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the justice of the inferior court, refused to commit, and the grand jury refused to find a true bill, and so the slayer of Joseph Bond, having the law on his side, lias never been tried for the homicide. His case -was a strong illustration of both the power of the law and the equality of all men before it. The largest planter in the State, and one among her "wealthiest men, had been killed by one of her poorest and most humble citizens, and yet the law protected him. both in and out of the court-house, notwithstanding lie had brought the trouble on himself by a brutal -act which was a gross violation. But, on the other hand, it more strongly illustrated the relation of master and slave in the South. Here "was a lordly planter, with his hundreds of slaves and his thousands of rich acres, who sacnned his life in pro tecting and avenging a wrong done to his slave. It is true he placed himself legally in the wrong, but that does not detract from the noble sentiments which impelled him. To accomplish his purpose he imperiled his most valuable life, and lost it in the effort. His act was the full measure of self-sacrifice, to avenge a -wrong done his helpless slave. And such, a sacrifice! On that fatal day in March, 1850, he had just entered on his forty-fifth year. He was in the prime of mental and physical vigor. He had the love of thousands and the regard of all. He had a young and lovely wife, and three children yet in their tender years. He had numerous landed estates in the country, and a pal ace for a home in the city. All the comforts and luxuries of life that money could command were his. He had been the favorite of his father and was the pet and the idol of the family. His neighbors and the planters generally ad mired him, and accounted him as by spontaneous,, general consent the first among- them. His money obligations had as high credit as any government security, and he possessed everything a nobleman could desire except the title. He
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MEMORIAL.
had a fine form, a dignified carriage, and an elastic step. He -was a quiet, refined gentleman in his manners, but un der all there -was a reserve force -which, enabled him to excel in all trials of strength and sports of the field. The ambition of his life, to be the largest cotton-planter in the State, had been crowned with complete success. He had more acres in cultivation and made more bales of cotton than any other man. He looked f orward to the time when he_would take his planting to the "West, where, with more and richer and fresher acres, ho would own more land aucl mako more cotton than any man in the whole South. Out side his desire to be a good husband, father, friend, and neighbor, this was his ambition. Politics had 110 charms for him, and lie persistently declined to enter her arena for any object or for any consideration. Tlie future was bright to him one could scarce imagine that in his sky there was a speck, even a speck that might be seen with a telescope. JTe had had pecuniary difficulties, and had con quered them. He had had personal difficulties, and had come honorably out of them. He was young, fresh, lighthearted, hopeful, temperate, and luxuriated in healthful vigor. Though this is much, yet it is not all that could be said in depicting this specimen of earthly honor and happi ness, to whom this world, whatever it might have been to others, was ati Eden. Thus situated, thus circumstanced, one of the poorest of Gods human creatures, with one of the smallest and shabbiest of pistols, destroyed his life in an instantj and in place of the beautiful picture I have attempted to paint, put in its stead one of darkness and death one showing the most brilliant of hopes blasted, a young widow and children in grief; and xipon everything dear to him death had set his ineffaceable seal.
His wife -was Miss Henrietta jMonghhon of Jones county, Georgia, now Mrs. Nelson of Kentucky. And
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yet this man, who had such, sanguine expectation of a long and happy life, had written and left his last will and tes tament, which evinces that amid all his prosperity he had contemplated death. He had for a time to reside in mi asmatic regions, and he might die of malarial fever. He rode much on horseback his course led him over bad roads and weak bridges through, deep water, and to jump ditches and fences. He traveled much by rail, and from such and the like, he might have apprehended death by ac cident. 13Tit conltl it ever have occurred to him that lie might lose his life by a conflict with a man so far below him. in the social scale in vindication of the rights of one of his slaves? The cause of his death should have appeared 111 appropriate phrase upon his monument, that full justice should be done to his memory and the enemies of the old Southern slaveholders informed that here lies the remains of one of the wealthiest of them, who regarded his slaves as part of his household, and that a wrong done the mean est of them was a wrong done to him.
As shocking as that death was, who can now, with a feel ing of certainty, say, in view of after events, that it was not better for the victim? But two years more and the slaveholding States were precipitated into a war which resulted in the freedom of the slaves arid the ruin of the masters. "Who can say how he would have passed through an ordeal r,it.at had destroyed all his property in slaves, and nearly all of it in land? If he had lived, within less than seven years from the date of his death, he would have realized this, al though he might have escaped all the dangers incident to life and property during the war. I eannot call to mind a man who, in my opinion, would have more deeply felt the change. He might have conquered the difficulties, but the greater probability is that, like so many other noble South erners, lie would have been broken in health and fortune.
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Could he now see what remain of his slaves scattered through the country, enjoying their freedom, and some of his best land cultivated "by convict labor, he might say his death was timely and propitious., to be thus spared the knowledge of the suffering- of one and the desecration of the other.
Joseph Bond was the youngest., or next to the youngest, son of Lewis Bond, a wealthy planter of "Wilkinson county. There were four or five sons, and about as many daughters. lie had property enough to make them all comfortable. Joseph was his favorite, because his father saw in him, more than in the other sons, the elements of success. It was his wish and expectation that Joe would be his succes sor as a. large planter that when he was gone lie would take his place. He selected him from among his sons as the one for this purpose. Tie had acquired large bodies of new and rich land in the then newly settled counties of Lee and Baker.
By his will he bequeathed to Joseph all these lands to the exclusion of the other children. Such was the scheme of his will to execute the intention named, but alas, the will had only two subscribing witnesses, and was a legal will only as to the personalty. But Joe was determined to carry out his fathers wishes, and by purchases and ar rangements with his brothers and sisters, lie possessed him self of all the land bequeathed to him by the will. The wife of Dr. Harrison Jones of Lee county, and of Dr. Mar cus A. Franklin of I\iacon, were two of his sisters hus bands and wives all dead and of brothers and sisters there is not one living that I know of. For some years before hig death he possessed and managed sonic ten or a dozen large plantations, situated in Lee, Terrell and Doughcrty counties, and owned some five hundred, slaves. Lie was the only cotton-planter in Georgia who had made more than
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two thousand bales per annum. He was a model planter and manager. He conducted all of his affairs with system., and a system that proved successful. He gave as nearly as possible his personal supervision to everything. His overseers were men of the most solid character and intelli gence to be obtained. His slaves were of the best and well fed and clothed. His stock of every kind was the finest and the fattest. His mules., of which there were many, were noted for their large size and good qualities. His wagons and harness were conspicuous for their beauty and strength and kept in the best order. His lands were the richest, his fences the highest and the strongest? and his houses the best for their respective purposes. Having- the power and means, it was with him economy to buy the very best of everything lie needed. It became so that every citizen knew Joe Bonds plantations without inquiring, by their neat, substantial, and complete appearance. If wag ons and teams were passed on the road, and they were such &?. to excite admiration of the traveler, an inquiry was su perfluous he knew by their appearance they were Joe Bonds. The same was shown of his "wearing apparel. If you should meet him in the field he would be wearing a suit, of clothes adapted to that service and fitting him prop erly. If you met him in the woods his suit would be adapted to that. His appearance would be that of a neat and refined country gentleman. Should you meet liini in the city, at which time he would be off duty, his appearance would be that of a neat and refined city gentleman. Thus the mans good taste was to be seen in everything. There was nothing like display or an attempt at it. lie was as much opposed to that as he was to slovenness.
We had three kinds of first-rate planters in Georgia the rice-planters, the sea-island cotton-planters and the up land cotton-planters. Colonel Bond was among the best
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specimens of the latter. He -was educated, whether col legiate or not, I do not know. Certainly, though, he was educated i-n the best sense of that term. He had acquired the knowledge necessary to successfully carry on. the avo cation in. life he was destined to. Beginning- with a prop erty valuation of perhaps two hundred thousand dollars., the valuation of his estate in the first of 1860 -was one million, three hundred thousand dollars. Such is in brief a sketch of the man over whose remains in Rose Hill cem etery there is the imposing monument with the too modest; inscription.
lie was neither statesman, warrior, politician, nor noted in the arts and sciences. His fame has not heen proclaimed in book, magazine, or newspaper. He neither sought nor cared for such means of distinction. lie was simply a gen tleman cotton-planter of large possessions. But he won in his pursuit in life as much distinction as it -was capable of, and despite the- strong ties that bound him to earth and to ease, he sundered them all upon a righteous principle, and appeared in an instant before the judgment scat to give an account of his stewardship. .A.nd a noble stewardship it was and such as should give him a place among the dis tinguished dead.
In IRose Ibill Cemetery.
jVEy former comments upon the dead in Hose Hill Cem etery have concerned men wlio have monuments erected to their memory. I shall now write of one who has no mon-urnent, but who deserves one from the city of itaeon. His name occurred to me because his grave, almost in the shadow of Joseph Bonds beautiful monument, came thereby under my observation. _A.nd it seemed remarkable that the only man who, at the time, had the means and the enterprise to build the "Palace on the Hill," and the only man who had the wealth, and the liberality to purchase itshould be neighbors in death. At different times they had both occupied the same mansion as a home, and, after death, had come to lie clown, in eternal sleep together. But in this instance, as in so many others, "the last was the first and the first, was last!" He who built and sold survived him who bought nearly twenty years and was some fifteen years the older man.
The name of him to whom I have referred is
who was born in Sliaron, Connecticut, about the year 1808, and died in the city of ISTew York in the year 18Y5. His body was taken to ifacon for interment on his lot in Hose Hill Cemetery, where he had several of his children laid away, and among them two grown sons. Colonel Cowles belonged to that class of JSTorthern merchants "who came to the South during the first quarter of this century, and
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not having imbibed any antipathy to Southerners, were of a very different style from those who came in the third quarter. He first settled as a merchant in Eat on ton, Geor gia, and discovering t\ ie more rapidly growing town of !iracon a better location for him, he moved there. His wife was one of the daughters of John Williams, of Milledg-evillc, for a long time the Treasurer of the State. He belonged to a fine family of Bertie county, Xorth Caro lina, from whence lie moved to Georgia. Colonel Cowles having- married in Georgia, which, became both the birthand burial-place of his children, he identified him self with whatever promoted Georgias prosperity. liis energy, enterprise and wealth were such, that in finan cial and kindred circles he became the most influen tial man in Alacon. He was among the originators of the scheme to construct a railroad from ilacon to "Savannah, and was the active and influential friend of that enter prise from, its inception -to its consummation. He was equally efficient and conspicuous in the construction of the South-western Railroad, from jVtacon to Eufaula, Al bany and Fort Gaines. But his greatest success was his saving from destruction the road from Alacon to Atlanta, and securing- its completion by a company of Northern capitalists.
The corporation name of the first company that under took the construction of that road was the "Monroe Rail road and Banking Company." When the cars were run ning within twenty miles of Atlanta, over defective con struction., with imperfect equipments, the company, in 1S45, failed, after having spent two millions of dollars. The creditors placed the road and other property of the company in the court of equity of Bibb county for the liquidation of its affairs.
Commissioners were appointed by the court to sell the
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road and all its property, including the franchise. It was sold on the 16th day of August, 1S45, and Jere Cowles, solitary and alone," became the purchaser at, the low price yet large sum of $153,000. To properly explain and esti mate the importance and magnitude of this purchase, it is necessary to give, as briefly as possible, an idea of the sit uation at that time.
There -were then no through and great connecting routes to 2*J"cw York or any other large commercial centers. Rail roads were then, in their infancy, and theif capacity for good not sufficiently appreciated. As yet they were ex periments, and derived their chief support and consequence from the covmtry through which they ran and their respec tive termini.
Charleston and Savannah were competing seaports, and through the South Carolina railroad to Augusta, -and the Georgia railroad, to Atlanta, and the State road to Chatta nooga, Charleston and the intermediate important com mercial point of Augusta were assured of railroad com munications with the great West. Savannah, with the in termediate city of iCaeon, would be cut off from such con nection without the road from .Macon to Atlanta. The Central railroad had only a year before been completed to !Macon after a hard struggle could pay no dividends, and none were expected for many years. Savannah was scarce ly half as large as Charleston, and had exhausted her availble resources in the construction of the Central. !Macori was much less in population than Augusta and still less in property. In fact, the city could not pay her liabilities. This was the situation when the road tributary to jMacoii and Savannah, and upon which both were dependent for connection with jSTortli Georgia, Tennessee and the far West, was to be sold "under the auctioneers hammer. 5 The strength of purse was with their commercial enemy,
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and if the enemy bought., the iron and equipments would be removed and the road destroyed. And so much, had the enemy the advantage that he determined to give a .nominal surn for the franchise, road-bed arid equipments. If something could not be done speedily, the road would be lost and all the incidental advantages of trade and the like from the expenditure of two millions of dollars.
The rnan destined to solve the difficulty and relieve j\lacoii was Jere Cowles. The commissioners of sale would have until ^November (tlie next meeting of court) to account for the proceeds. They were the friends of jVlacon. To them Colonel Cowles communicated his scheme of purchase, which could not be carried out unless they would give him time in which to comply with his bid. if he failed to pay, the time was sufficient for a resale at his risk by the next court, and the commissioners were able from their private estate to make good the loss, if any.
"When the property was put up it was started low, and finally knocked oft" to Colonel Cowles for $153,000. The adverse bidders permitted it to be knocked off at that price under the impression that Cowles could not comply that it would immediately be resold, when thev would be sure to get it at a very low figure. To their dismay it was not again pnt up and they found thev had made a bad calcula tion. Colonel Cowles at once went to ~Ne\v York, made rep resentation of the value of the property and the amount of Ids bid. They furnished the money, the commissioners were paid, and there was a reorganization under the new name of the Macon and Western Kailroad Company. Money enough was subscribed and paid to put the whole route to Atlanta in first-rate order, and it soon, became the best equipped road and the best paying stock in the State. Of late years it has become merged in the Central, and there is now but one line and one corporation from At lanta to Savannah.
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.But for J~ere Cowleas purchase, this consolidation may 31 ever have taken place, for it -would have gone into hands inimical to the Central, and might to this day be running in the interest of another company. It had been supposed at the time of the purchase that Colonel Cowles was the agent of the JSTortherzi capitalists, but he was not. The ease was a desperate one and it required a desperate remedy, and while he had in view the probability of his organizing a new company on. the basis of his bid, yet when he bid he represented, no one but Jere Cowles with no backers but his own genius and pluck, He was possibly let in as a stockholder in the new company or in. some other way compensated, but that he ever reaped any substantial pe cuniary benefit, from tile transaction his friends do not be lieve. It was to him compensation enough to have orig inated and been successful in the scheme for securing the road for J\Iacoii and Savannah. To him glory was worth more than money. lie was a public-spirited, man, and the magnitude of an enterprise of public interest was his sole consideration. He loved to entertain schemes of a pub lic nature which involved hundreds of thousands and mil lions. He long ago foresaw the grand connecting through routes to ^STew York, and other important points, and it was a favorite phrase of his, -that there should be a railroad from the ice fields to the orange groves." At the time he conceived, this and similar ideas he did not have the. wealth to form the nucleus of a syndicate or it would have been done, unless it had been too early in the progress of railways and the growth of capitalists to enlist capitalists. It was perhaps his misfortune that his foresight was too much in advance of the proper time. Were he living and twenty yeazs younger, how he would glory in the consolida tion of large properties and the combination of the money kings, and with some of them he would be sure to be. Af-
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ter lie lost his fortune, about 1840, be never recovered his former financial status. There wero seasons of prosperity to be followed by seasons of adversity, but nothing like the prosperous condition of his early manhood ever returned. In. the late war he cast his fortunes -with the South, and here remained during its continuance and for several years after. Sis public spirit did not flow alone in the current of internal improvements, but he was the friend of educa tion, and religion, and was liberal in his contributions to both. He took great pride in relating his efforts in hehalf of the establishment of the AYesleyan Female College at Macon. Sis early education was limited, but he had such a bright and solid mind, had seen so much of the world and had acquired so much information, he would have passed for a liberally educated man. His frame was large and compact, surmounted by a head with a high, broad forehead, that gave him a commanding appearance in any assembly. He had a strong, fluent and distinct enuncia tion, a largo and expressive month, full of beautiful teeth. He was full of mirth, and had a fund of amusing incidents and anecdotes he loved to tell, and in telling them would laugh at them as heartily as any listener. His laugh was loud, ringing and contagious. A man with any humor in hij soul and not overcome with grief or trouble, could not hear that laugh and. not laugh with him. Generally a man should, not laugh at his own jokes, but it was becom ing in Jere Gowles, and added to the humor of the ?tory ho was telling. M.any he had of primitive days in Eatonton. He was one of the few men who did not grow old in heart as he did in years. He preferred the company of yo\mg men, and in deportment was as young as the young est. He had no use for the sort of men called "old fogies.^ They were too old for him to associate with, even if many years his junior. He did not allow himself to be cast down
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by his adverse fortune. In ^Facon, where he once reigned in prosperity, lie held his head high hi adversity. His family were secured by a competency which relieved, him of anxiety for them. His successful ventures were more profitable to others than to himself. He sowed and others reaped, and many arc now enjoying the fruits <rf liis skill and. labor without knowing it. Let his faults be buried in the grave with him, and let us cherish the memories of his virtues and live in the hope that his name will not pass into oblivion and his grave be lost for the want of a suitable monument to mark the spot where so much genius, enter prise, and mirth are now represented only by "the dust of the earth/*
In. my stroll through the cemetery, but in a different portion from that about which 1 have been writing, I found a monument which surprised me. I knew that the gentle man whose memory it was erected to perpetuate was dead, but did not know, or suppose, his grave was in Macons cemetery, for lie was not "a dweller in that city/' _H is name with me has been associated with a residence in Charleston and Xew York, or some of his many plantations, but not with the city of iilacon. A known fact, however, must overcome any opposition, or even a plausible theory, and I had to realize that before me was the grave and mon ument of
L E R C) Y M. \V I L E Y. Born in Hancock County, Georgia, October j oth, 1794Died April ibt/i, 1868.
I never had the pleasure of an acquaints nee with him, having merely seen him once, and never heard from others his personal characteristics, therefore regret: niy in compe tency to write of them. But from his success in life, and a public reputation which was scarcely limited to the bounds
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of the nation, I have no doubt lie was distinguished for his private virtues and. adorned, tne role of SoLTthern gentle man. He was distinguished, for occupying a financial stat us for which I cannot call an analogous case. He was a Southerner, but a prince of a merchant in the great North ern commercial center of New York. "While he was there a merchant., he owned many plantations and hundreds of slaves in. the States of Georgia. Alabama, Mississippi, and Texas. The latter were mainly the investments of his mercantile accumulations. Thus he was at the same time n merchant prince at the North and a lordly planter at the . South. Hence when emancipation and reconstruction came, destroying the values in slaves and nearly destroving tLe values in lands, he was yet, for our section, a very wealthy rnan. The difference between him and Joseplt 13ond was that the investments of the latter were entirely io. Southern plantation property. Just before the war Air. Wileys whole property must have aggregated from two to three millions of dollars. Notwithstanding such, destruc tion of his Southern values, his estate, after his death, realized $1,110,000. So great was his reputation for wealth in cmtc-bvllww, times that Governor Gilmer, of Geor gia, writing some years ago, published in his book called "The Georgians/ that "Lcroy M. "Wiley, of New York City, is reputed to be one of the wealthiest men in the world/
.Another peculiarity of j\Cr. "Wiley, with his large wealth in both sections of the Union, is that lie had never mar ried, and when in advanced years stood out as a rich "old baclieloi-," and perhaps "the richest" old bachelor "in the world." At his death Ins property went directly or ulti mately to his numerous nieces and nephews, not so numer ous, but that the lowest sum was a competency, while the largest made the possessor rich, as viewed from our modest
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45
Georgia standard. Among the nieces were the wives of John G-resham, James 11. Blount, Chas. J. Harris., of Macon, and Ttobt. McKay of Baltimore. The latter is a brother of Hon. H. K. McKay of Atlanta. Mrs, Baxter, of Athens, was one of his sisters. A year or two before the war Mr. "Wiley had withdrawn from active participation in his commercial enterprises in jSTew York, and had taken up his abode at his plantation, in Alabama, near Eufauln. It was there that he died after a lingering illness, and his remains were removed to Ma con. for interment. As he was a native of Georgia, and had many near realtives at Macon and vicinity, it was a thoughtful appropriateness that consigned his body to its mother earth in Jose Hill Cem etery. There he rests in his native soil there his grave will be tended by loving hands, and there every Georgian can be reminded of his life and the honor that life has been to G-eorgia. Mr. ~YV"iley was true to his native State and section during- the time of his troubles, and as a conse quence there were proceedings instituted in. the courts of USTew York to confiscate his large property there. These proceedings, through the intervention of personal friends in JSTew York city, lingered in the courts, and before final judgment could be obtained;, the terms of peace arrested further proceedings and restored his property to him. He descended from revolutionary ancestors. The family on his mothers side were from ]SI"ortli Carolina. Some of them were signers of the famous Mecklenburg declaration of independence made in May, 1775,, from which some of the phrases in the general declaration of July, 1776, were taken by Thomas Jefferson. The uncle of Leroy M. Wiley (James Jack) volunteered to carry that declaration to the Constitutional Congress in session at Philadelphia, and did so, making the journey on horseback. T3ut the congress was not then so far advanced as the patriots at
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Mecklenburg1., and it took them more than a year longer to affirm the Mecklenburg- declaration, and thus crown -with success the long, laborious, fatiguing ride of the patriot James Jack.
Mr. AViley began his career as a merchant in Milledgeville, Ga., then he went to Charleston, then the business was extended to ]STew York City, and a house was in oper ation at both places, and so confirmed until his retirement. The firm styles from time to time were AVilev, Banks & Co., Leroy M. AViley & Co., AViley, Lane & Co., and others not remembered, but they are yet familiar to the merchants and other busiiies men of the South and K"orth of twentyfive and more years ago.
From among the many distinguished dead in Tiose Hill Cemetery I have selected a few to comment upon, whose lives were dramatic or otherwise of peculiar interest. They are not all who deserve special notice, but there are so many equally deserving that they furnish themes for a book in stead of a newspaper. The cemetery contains the remains of an extraordinary number of men who were distinguish ed or prominent in every walk of life. There are states men and heroes, judges and lawyers, physicians and plant ers, merchants and mechanics.
George AY. Towns is there. His life at the bar and in politics had its culmination in the office of governor for two terms. If there were time and space to say more, nothing is necessary, for in "Millers Bench and Bar" an interesting sketch of him can be found. He must have been a favorite of poor Miller (now himself deceased after a life of sickness and sacrifice), for his heart was plainly in his pen in writing of Towns.
Judge Nisbefc is there. Likewise is fact or comment superfluous, for fortunately for himself, for truth, honor, and fame, he left a record of himself open to the inspection of all men.
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Judge Tracy is there. He is the equal of I3ooley in the impress he made in his time, and the traditions of him that come down to the present and will go down to future gen erations. But Doolcy has been embalmed in "The Bench and Bar of the State," while Tracy has not, although dead when. JMiller wrote. Some future edition of that work, but soiue competent hand, must chronicle the life of this jurist,, scholar, and writer, as it must of those eminent "Judges and lawyers "who since have "paid the debt of na ture." Likewise there lies his accomplished son, who bore his name of Edward D., and followed in the professional footsteps of his father until the war came, when lie "was killed while holding1 the rank of brigadier-general. An other gifted brother., Philemon, a Confedoiate officer, killed on the enemys soil, lies in the cemetery at Batavia, !N~ew T^ork, but as a coincidence, there also are the graves of his forefathers.
Judge Cole is there. The coob, calm, modest, retiring, yet learned., wise, and sagacious judge. He who was so long the beloved judge of the Southern, and then of the J\lacon Circuit, and for more than half a century an active and successful practitioner of law.
Judge Powers is there Abner P. called by his friends (of whom there were "legions.") "Ab" an able lawyer, an able and upright judge. Long a member of the legislature and long on the circuit bench, he was cut clown by death when a candidate before his people for a seat in the legis lature to which they had so often elected him in his earlier manhood. Large dark eyes he had, with the expression both soft and intelligent, that were made more beautiful from the background of an intellectual forehead, a fine complexion, and finely chiseled features. These were the accompaniments of a symmetrical form, that reached or went beyond the standard of six feet. ]\lan or woman
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MEMORIAL.
-would have pronounced him handsome. His heart was cheerful, and from his exquisitely formed mouth, adorned with beautiful teeth there was constantly flowing a stream of mirth arid humor. This quality, with an exquisite taste and a nice sense of propriety, he so threw into his duties at the bar or on the bench, as to make it pleasant instead of laborious to be in the court-room -where he was. He was "a friend of my bosom a man I loved."
Washington Poe is there erect, tall, stately, impressive. Powers was a bright brunette; Mr. Poe a style just the re verse a distinctly marked blond, but not of the delicate and effeminate tint. His figure was more slender, his per son more erect, and to symmetry there was added a grace seldom seen in man. He filled the full measure of the term a "perfect gentleman" if ever man did. He was my "first gentleman in Georgia." So deeply was this impressed on the masses, that there were very few who were ignorant enough or bold enough to dub him colonel or judge. He was simply Mr. Poe. Standing alone in. this respect, the genteel but worn-out old title of "Mister" became with him a distinction. I fancy from his general demeanor and his history he was of opinion, that to be a true and refined gentleman, and so recognized by every one, was a greater title than any official title. Elected to a seat in Congress when full of the ardor that belongs to youtli, ho declined his commission and continued over after to be lawyer and gentleman. lie was an able and successful lawyer, an effective and graceful speaker, and at times eloquent. It is sad that old age and death have to be the fate of such a man, as of common men.
Thos. P. Stubbs is there plain, benevolent, sincere, and industrious Peter Stubbs "the architect of his own for tunes." By energy, persistence, and fidelity, long before he died he was a successful lawyer with a large practice.
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lie was a good man with a feeling- heart. Everybody loved Peter Stnbbs. I surmise it "was because lie loved everybody. Tliere "was a magnetism about him. that all felt "who came in his society. From being in unusual health he was taken ill, which resulted in death a phase of death that, -when it comes to a popular man, and unex pected^, shocks the -whole community.
Samuel T. Bailey is there a different style of man from any I have named. lie -was not sociable, was reserved in manner, and "withal presented a haughty exterior, yet the few who knew him well loved him much, from which I in fer tliat he had more heart than he chose to show. He seemed to show by his presence and demeanor, "I have not loved the world, nor the -world inc." To quote a. homely figure, in his association and in his practice, "lie carried his own skillet." He commanded a large practice in heavy and important cases. He kept his own counsels, but -when he was hoard from he commanded attention. He "was thoroughly educated, deeply read in law and classics; had a solid intellect, and spoke always with force, sometimes with eloquence. He -was the son-in-law of the venerable
Judge Strong. "Wm. D. IJeGraffcnreid is there a younger man than I
have named (except the younger Trac-y), but a man of de cided ability, with much force and decision of character. He made much reputation in the office of prosecuting at torney for the J\f.acon Circuit. He was a born politician, and his influence on that line was felt in the State for many years. He had an imposing person, and before his de cline in health, which ran through many years, he was a handsome man.
Such a^c some of the judges and lawyers. Sterling Lanier is there. "Well named is he, for ster ling he was in nature and education as well as in name.
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MEMORIAL.
Tie "was better known and more beloved throughout the nation than any who sleep the eternal sleep with him in that cemetery. From him the Lanier House takes its name. .Long its landlord, and before and after of other hotels, he -was one of those -who came in direct contact with all his guests as u hospitable gentleman would in his own mansion. To Lave been such a guest, if but for a meal, is to love him ever afterward. The stranger, and especially the Immble stranger, he personally sought and made him feel welcome and at home. Tie "was the grandfather of Sydney Tanier.
El am Alexander is there. A native of ISTorth Carolina, and of Scotch ancestry, he bore in his person all the chara.ctcristics of that hardy and honest people so much so tliat he would easily have passed for one. Tie was a large, mnscmlar man, more than six feet high. Included in his large store of good sense was a fund of humor peculiarly his own. In fact he was "an original." lie amassed a large fortune, much of "which was made as railroad con tractor. He was one of the firm of Collins & Alexander, who completed, and by their contract secured the comple tion of the Central Railroad when its success "was doubtful.
Isaac Holmes is there so long a citizen of Macon, a sol dier in the Florida war, captain of the jVTacon Volunteers, an officer of the Georgia regiment in the 3Iexican war. He died during his service in jMexico, from whence his remains were brought and buried in Hose Hill Cemetery. He there has a splendid monument commemorative of him. He had a fine presence, a faculty for attaching men to him, and hence enjoyed a great popularity.
John B. Koss, the prince of Georgia merchants, and James Dean, a large planter in the counties of T3ibb and Houston, -are also there. The latter was conspicuous in local politics, had a great personal popularity and repre-
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sented Bibb in the State Senate. The monuments to him self and to his two only sons, are in good taste. They stand near each other, the tallest to the father, the next to the older son William, and the lowest to the younger son James, Jr.
Samuel J. Ray,- Dr. Henry Kolloch Green, and Dr. James Mercer Grreen are there. I name them together for they -were close friends and for a time owned and edited together the "jSdacon . Telegraph." The Grreen brothers were in the full and active practice of their profession. They took a deep interest in politics, and Dr. Kollock was elected to the legislature. They -were much together, were quite similar in appearance, were not twins in realty, but were in. affection. Ray died first, now more than twenty years ago, then Dr. l\ollock, and lastlv Dr. James AL, not, yet a year ago.
Samuel J. Ray, the principal editor, was a native of North Carolina, and began life in ilacoii as a merchant. He had .a taste for politics. While under his editorial man agement the "Macoii Telegraph" acquired a fine and a "wide reputation. Mr. Ray knew not only how to edit a paper himself, but he understood the value of procuring for his paper writers of ability. It was here that Tom Howard, of DeKalb, began his career as a political writer. Robert P. Hall and. Philemon Tracy, both young men of superb abil ity, aided Mr. Ray with their pens, and the latter became the political editor. Sam Ray excelled in his judgment. He did not himself write long articles, but he knew what subjects to write upon and how to treat them. He was of great assistance to younger men "who wielded more facile pens, and he took great delight in their companionship. Poor fellow, while yet in the meridian of life lie died of consumption. He has no monument to mark his resting place. Just before the war there was a scheme among his
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friends, headed "by Phil. Tracy to raise enough money to give him a monument worthy of his usefulness and his place in the . affections of his friends, but. the war came on, Tracy was killed, and the survivors were too poor to pro ceed. I have no doubt that Iiay7 s name will sound now truly like a voice from the tomb/ yet in his life he was a power in _ilacon. Like so many others in the cemetery, he was a native of the good old ^N~orth State. Situated be tween the more pretentious people of Virginia and South Carolina, she has given to the republic many of her best and brightest men.
It is time these articles on the noble dead in Kose Hill Cemetery were drawing to a close. ^\oi, because there are not otliers, who from their public career or interesting cir cumstances in their lives are worthy of being thus commem orated, but to notice all so deserving would extend them to a length that to the reader would bo monotonous and "wearisome. There are, however, two old and honored cit izens of !Macon, having beautiful monuments in the cem etery, who present themselves to my mind. jSTathan C. IMunroo arid James I~I. H. "Washington. In "the long ago" they, together with I. C. Plant, were respectively and for many years at the head of the only banking institution in. Macoii. The money pressure lasting from 1S3Y to 1848 had swept away the local banks and their places had to be supplied by agencies of Savannah and Augusta. The two first named have been "gathered to their fathers" for many years, while the latter (the youngest of the three) yet survives to enjoy in his old age the fruits of half a cen tury of toil, and the same fair reputation which has stood the test of all changes, whether incident to prosperity or adversity. To ilacon, "before the war," jSJiathan. G. Mumtoo and J. II. It. Washington were not only good, useful, and prominent but indispensable citizens. It cannot now be
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conceived that in those times any other men could have ade quately supplied their places. The former confined him self strictly to his banking business and passed his leisure time in the enjoyment of literary pursuits, while the latter took part in the public and political affairs -of his fellow citizens. He "was frequently a member of the city Council and was honored with, the mayoralty. He represented Bibb county in the legislature., and was one of its most in tellectual and useful members. JTe was a decided and positive character who had no compromise to make in ex change for principle.
There also rises before me in. the mist of the past that man, who, in liis time, was the man of all men in jVIaeon Thomas llnrdemaii, senior- Apart from his influence in business life he was famed for his probity and purity of character, and as a pillar ;of the ^lethoclist Church in Geor gia as well as iri !\tacoai. !F~Cis reputation in the latter was shared by his youthful friend llobert A. Smith, noted as well for his modesty and gallantry as for his pictv. As a colonel of a regiment he is to be numbered with the other precious lives lost in battle.
There are vet others who liavc had no public career, whose fame Las not gone abroad who have simply as good and. useful citizens pursued, the "even teiTor" of lifes way that deserve honorable mention. Of these some have slept the eternal sleep for many years, while others have the mounds yet fresh above them. The events of their lives, in the apt language of X)r. T-iipscomb, have not receded in the distance, so as to take on "the softened haze of remote ness." Among the latter are "Drs. Strohecker, Roosevelt, and 13oone, all distinguished in ]\Tacon society as worthy gentlemen, and eminent physicians of different schools.
Also there is "Win. F. Brown called familiarly Billy Brown cut off in his vouthful manhood when he was
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fast acquiring the reputation, oiico enjoyed hi the same avo cation by his worthy father mid the late Sterling T^anier.
Sliall I not mention that innate and amiable gentlenrau, in whose bosom beat tlie kindest of hearts, Z. T. Conner? .ft is the highest tribute I can offer to hiin, arid the most beautiful wreath that I ca.n lay upon his grave, to say, "for him my heart hath bled, for him my eyes have wept."
The question .now presents itself to my mind, shall I close thebe comment?! while they are confined to the socalled "lords of creation"? In the lovely cemetery of so many graceful monuments is there no mother, wife, or daughter worthy of appropriate notice? I\Feii who figure in the marts of trade, in the councils of the nation, on the liclds of battle, live a heroic life necessarily public, and their names become well known "to fortune and to fame." Women are destined to a laborious and monotonous round of duties, and to be distinguished onlv in society. JLu cither station there are 110 chronicles; the opportunities arc small, infinitesimally so, for Joans of .Are, (.Trace Darlmgs, or Florence ^Nightingales; yet, if we could know the secret history of each life, there are more real heroes among them than among men. And heroes, too, whose lives are not blemished Or darkened by even, a single vice, while it is common to find a heroic man over whose head a cloud hovers. The test of a true and refined civilization is the estimate in which women are held. It takes a long time to throw off all the relics of barbarism, but gradually we are being relieved from all of them. As it is in the tone of the tim.es to educate girls as well as boys, so it is fast becoming the tone to open to the employment of women departments that have hitherto been closed to them. In many employ ments and industries experience has demonstrated that they are more useful, skillful, and reliable than men. They are never sick or partially incapacitated from, a spree of
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the preceding night. They -waste no time in smoking cigars, and they cost their employer no extra expense for spittoons, The belief in the greater menial power of tlie male over the female is fast becoming less, and who shall say that it is not long until an. equality will, be conceded.
TLe strong philosophic miml of _Mias Mary .Ann Evans, wuo \vro:te as George Kliot", and its vast, actp.nron.ieiits lias done ivinch to shake tlie fairh of the svorM iii its belief that the mind of the icmnle is infeiior to that of the male. A philosophic or epigrammatic gem by the man. Bnlwci a touch of pnthos or humor by the man Dickens, or of sarcasm by tlie man Thackeray, will lind their equals in the literary work of that woman.
GonglL aa<.I other men have Lad their prominence and miruencc in the temperance reformation, but who shall say that with the force of her chaste diction jVIiss "\Villarcl is not as convincing and effective as they*
The world is fast settling down to the opinion that the same opportunities should, be given to women as to men, subject only to the qualification. Ihnt, they do nothing to imsex themselves. The difference that God and. nature has made will always exist and must be respected, while a trne sense of propriety and dcheaey can be preserved, under all circumstances. Then, why shonld I forbear to remark on a monument erected to a lovely woman who, notwith standing her loveliness, has had, like coarser natures, to apass through the dark Aalley of the shadow of death.?" Now a little more than twenty years ago, at a hotel in At lanta, I dined at the same table with a yonng bride and her husband, who were from a foreign land. I admired her beauty and rejoiced in her happiness. The war had just be gun, and more important matters took the place of this pass ing impression, and it never occurred again until some few years after I read in a newspaper an article written on the
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monuments in JMagnolia Cemetery, at Charleston, S. C., and among them was one to this very picture of loveliness. It was in the month of June, and she died the ensuing fall. The sitdden change from the beauty of life to the horror of the grave made a deep and lasting impression. Similar to this was my feeling in Rose Hill Cemetery -when I came to read the inscription to the memory of
CAROLINE MATILDA, WIPE OF PHILEMON T R A c Y , AND DAUGHTER OF
JOHN AND CAROLINE R A W I, F. S .
J3orn December i6th, 1833. Died March 36, 1838.
HER INFANT SLEEPS BESIDE HER.
The last line aroused in my bosom the feeling of sym pathy I have so long felt for the young mother who, after enduring all the pain, is deprived of all the pleasure of ma ternity. If -one of experience has never done so, if he will just look back a little he will bo surprised to find hoW many young married -women within his knowledge have died soon after marriage, and generally leaving at their death an infant or from two to five or six little children. Tins is death in its most terrible form. No matter what cemetery one enters, or where it is, the inscriptions will give testi mony that of this class of the dead there is an undue propor tion. It is bnt recently our own community was shocked by the death of a young married lady, distinguished for her beauty and goodness, who left, bereft of a mothers care, five little children as is said "just like steps." An eloquent di vine once, after drawing a vivid picture of the evil in the world, including the wickedness of man, reached his cli max by turning his eyes to heaven, and with a dramatic ef fect which, thrilled his audience saying, "Oh God! is this thy work?" In respect to the large number of young married
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women who thus die, and leave their tender babes to the tender mercies of a wicked, world, may I repeat, "Oh Grod! is this thy work?" Such is one of the forms of death which impressed itself as most agonizing upon Halleck, the poet, when he wrote,
Come to th. For the first
"And thou a The groan, And all we Of
As is stated in the inscription, Mrs. Traey was the daugh ter of Jolm and Caroline Kawlcs. The father, John KawleSj was a wealthy planter, having large ostatos in the counties of Pulaski and Baker. He, together with James l]verett and Hart well Tarvcr, owned much of their prop erty in common, and so acted in concert that the name of one suggested the other. Jointly or severally they had a financial status in commercial circles such as was seldom enjoyed by planters. Mr. Eawles died when the oldest of his children had not emerged from the condition of child hood. There were three of them, and he left property enough to make his widow and each of his children wealthy, 3Mrs. Tracy was the middle one in point of age. She soon grew to womanhood and was marked for her beauty, grace and amiability. She was known as iliss Carrie Kawles, and was one of the belles of IVtacon, where, at the time, there was as fine a collection of beautiful young ladies as could be found in any city of the same size. It must not be inferred she was a belle in the stunning sense of that term, for that was contrary to her native modesty and ladvlike reserve. She was simply that by the natural im press of form, features, and grace of manner. She was one of the fortunates
~I
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She first married "Willio Walker, a very bright, talented, and fascinating young man, the "first-born" of JMrs. Grovernor H. V. Johnson. Their married life did not reach beyond a long honeymoon "when "Walker died. She then married Philemon. Tracy, a companion of her childhood, but little her senior, and the duration of her married life was only another long honeymoon, "when death (fstole her away," and all (as will be seen by the inscription) hap pened before she attained her twenty-fifth year. In a lit tle more than four years therefrom her handsome, brilliant, and loving yoixiig husband., as ifajor Tracy of the Sixth Georgia Regiment (Colqrdtts Brigade), received his death woiiiid on the fatal field of Sharpsburg. And thus poor Phil, after "laying his darling down to sleep," with her baby "beside her," gave his own life for his country. Of him and her and their posterity not one is left to tell the sad story of their early marriage and early death.
Conspicuously in sigiit of !Mrs. Tracys monument, with a small vacant space between, including the crossing of one of the cemeterys avenues, is the monument of
M A R Y V ., W I "F E OF F. W I M B E R L V .
Died Odober i&t/i, jSjS.
AGED 26 YEARS.
This ladys maiden name was ]Mary Victoria Holt, a daughter of Dr. Holt, who was the brother of G-en. "Wil liam S. Holt. She became the wife of Ezekiel "Wimberly, of Twiggs, and then of Baker county, Georgia. I knew her not except by sight, but I know that naught but good can truthfully be said of her. It is enough to arouse for her
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all the sympathy of my nature to know that she is another of the young mothers 1 have been lamenting -who died so. young, leaving two little children. One of these is now her self a young married, lady o-f Atlanta. Mrs. ~W"imberly, also like Mrs. Tracy, has been, joined in the *spirit land" by her husband. His grave is beside that of his wife. He survived her just nine years, and never again married. Af ter her death life to him "was never the same again." He was a gentleman planter of much social worth, and content bh-Us to live, without seeking the empty honors of life.
This paper and these articles, already too long, must now be closed. They have been written simply to unburden my full heart; hence, it may be said for my own gratifica tion. If they have been gratifying to others, I would be more than human if it did not add to my gratification. If I have said anything, or have omitted to say anything, which is the cause of pain to any one, it could not pain such an one more than myself.
3Florfba
It is an indistinct memory of mine that that cynical genius, Thomas Carlyle, said on different occasions that Scott wrote for the coin of the realm, but Bunas wrote be cause the fullness of his heart had to have utterance. It is this fullness of the heart that impels me to write the in cidents of a trip I took to Florida about a third of a century ago. Prom the time I had intelligence enough to know of the then territory, it had about it the halo of romance for me. As its name indicates, it was the "land of flowers."
It was settled "by Spaniards, and was a province of Spain when that kingdom was the first-class power of civiliza tion. It contained the quaintest, the queerest, and the oldest town in the United States. Comparatively, it was iu the tropics. Its trees, plants, fruits, aud flowers -were tropical. There the skies were bluer, the waters clearer, the birds of gayer plumage and sweeter song, the flowers of brighter color and daintier odor. Thero the red man within these States made Ms last stand for his native land. There perished in the struggle for his tribe Osceola, the last renowned Indian warrior. Before the days of com munication by steam there settled the cavaliers of Virginia and the Huguenots of South Carolina the cream of the cream of both States. There yet lingered the civilization of the days of romance and chivalry, -with its distinguishing characteristics of the duel and the tournament. There was a grand succession of magnificent lakes for hundreds of miles, called by theSpanish and English the St. Johns river, but by the Indians the softer and more beautiful
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name of "Welaka. There the soft atmosphere and balmy breezes were supposed a specific for that prevalent scourge of civilized humanity consumption. There the north star was so low in the horizon as to suggest the appearance of the Southern Cross. For these, and many other considera tions, real or ideal, the faces of the people and the longings of their hearts were turned to Florida; but the means of communication were so limited few could enjoy the pre cious privilege of a visit to the favored land. Then there was not a mile of raihoad in that direction from Savannah or any other part of Southern Georgia. From Macon there was a tri-weekly line of stages to Tallahassec, a dis tance of two hundred and twenty miles. From Columbus and Albany thoa*e were river boats to Apalacliirola in "West Florida, and from Savannah and Charleston the coun try of St. Johns could be reached by steamers of small ca pacity, going either the outside or inside passage, accord ing to their build.
It was in early December, 1852, on a Saturday afternoon, I took passage at Savannah for Jacksonville,by the "Welaka, under the command of a short, stout, weighty, florid man named Captain King. X learned there was another cap tain or steamboat official of the same name, and to dis tinguish them with brevity, our captain was called Captain iNick King. "When we left Savannah, and throughout the trip, the weather was fine indeed, perfect, for in natural things perfection is attained, and especially is ones atten tion sometimes called to this in the "weather. jSTothing particular occurred that afternoon, except my wonder that so narrow a stream as the Romney jMarsh could float a steamboat ladcned with freight and passengers. Early next morning we were at Darien, but from the early fog, and perhaps the situation, I could see very little of the old town. It made an impress on me when a small boy from
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its being the third and only Scotch settlement in Georgia, and was the home of several Scottish clans. We soon ar rived at Brunswick, which about fifteen years earlier was the rival of Savannah. From what I then heard of Brunswiek I thought it would in a few years surpass Savannah. When I "was a youth a dear old lady who had my prosper ity at heart advised me as soon as I got to work for myself to go to Brunswick. "It is going clear ahead of Savan nah/ she said, "That bar and harbor are bound to make a large city." I believed what she said for was she not an old lady of much reading, knowledge, and intelligence? After some fifteen years I saw Brunswick for the first time, and it then flashed upon me that the old ladys prediction would not be fulfilled in nay day and generation. I saw at once the reason of it, and tliat was, it takes so many more things to build a city than a fine bar and harbor. Never theless I admired the faith and pluck of the Brunswick people. If ever a man worked hard for a result, and had faith in his work, he was Thomas Butler King-, to promote the prosperity of Brunswick. ^SText to him, and who lived the longest, is Colonel Schlatter. He has been compen sated by now seeing "with his own eyes" Brunswick take rank with other Georgia cities and placed on a substantial basis. In course of time there has grown up more people, more money, more lines of communication, and with further increase, more and more will the bar and harbor of Brunswick be "utilized. Fifty years ago such was the rivalry between Savannah and Brunswick that the char ter of the Central Railroad was first defeated in the legisla ture and passed by a small majority after reconsideration,
In a short; while after leaving Brunswick our craft, in the attempt to pass from the bay and to pursue its inland passage by entering one of those many so-called creeks (dekyl by name, I believe) ran aground and stuck in. the
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mud. The tide -was too low., and -we had to -wait tmtil that important force and feature of nature should come to our relief and float us off. TVe there remained some two or three hours. This, while vexatious, gave us more than compensation in our enjoyment of the scenery and the beau ties of the day. :It had been one of those clear, calm, frosty mornings of the lowland and coast country of Geor gia, which "with advancing day produces a temperature, a purity, and brilliancy of the atmosphere not to be sur passed. The bay in which we lay was a magnificent sheet of water. There was nothing then to make it a "troubled sea." There was not another craft of any sort in view, and onrs was distinguished in its loneliness. She was -without competition or company. The air "was filled with innumerable wild fowls of many descriptions, and among them flocks of ducks in every direction. _A_moiig the pas sengers there -were several fowling pieces, but not one was discharged at the choir of game. "Remember the Sab bath day and keep it holy" "was strictly observed, and neither the explosion of guns nor other noise disturbed the calm of that delicious Sabbath. The passengers came out and gathered on the upper deck in. the open air to enjoy themselves. Many of them perhaps the most of them, were consumptives from the ISTorth and South going to Florida to recuperate their waning health. At that time that class of persons made the majority of visitors to Flor ida. There were few, if any, on our boat who showed emaciation, and with many there was no appearance or other evidence of disease, yet there were some who were on visits of pleasure or profit. There was quite a party from Detroit, Michigan. Among them there was a Mr. learned, a lawyer, and his wife. In appearance they were more dis tinguished than any other couple. He was a stout, broadshouldered man; he was of a dark a very dark complex-
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ion; so much so as to have a lowering yet dignified look. I-Ie had a quiet, but severely deliberate manner. No Southerner to look at him would suppose he was a North erner. In all appearance and demeanor ho -was a good specimen of the typical Southern gentleman. His wife was just the opposite of him in figure and complexion. She "was a blond of almost the ultra type, and a "wealth of golden hair" gave perfection to her style. It is now thirty-two years since I saw this gentleman and lady for the first and last time. I do not know if now they are among the living or the dead. The pertainings of this special no tice "will hereinafter appear. The famous Colonel Titus was among the passengers. He had only recently located in. Florida, or -was thither going for the first time. As I re member, there was also a younger brother and sister. The latter was a brilliant brunette, handsome, large, and of im posing presence. As to her I can repeat what I said of the Laraeds. This topic suggests to me "what I have often said, that the animosity between the two sections might not have existed had the people of each known each other bet ter. In this respect I claim -we had advantage of the North. We sent there to schools and colleges our boys and girls. They sent none South. Our merchants made them annually at least two visits, and it was exceptional for one of their merchants to come South. All of our people who had pecuniary ability visited their cities, watering-places, and other points of resort. Their people, in search of pleasure or health, did not come South, and when they left rlif conn try went to Europe or Cuba, If these are facts, then OUT knowledge of them was better than theirs of us. Politicians and other artful persons took advantage of the Northern prejudice against domestic slavery to slander us. Thus a false judgment of us was made up from ignorance and prejudice. "When a small boy, at school at the North,.
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I heard our white servant girl tell a visitor of hers that I came from where the negroes were slaves. She proceeded to pity the slaves, and said how it would make her heart bleed to see one of the poor creatures. I could have re plied to her (but respect for her age and sex prevented)., that our slave domestics doing the same work that she did had an easier and happier time than she.
It must not be supposed that all the passengers on theWelaka were ^Northerners, or from distant portions of our own. State or the South. There "were several on their re turn home or on a business visit to Savaainah, who- -went ashore at different points on the route. They were plantersof the first class, residing on the islands or the main of the Georgia coast. They were either the planters of rice or sea-island cotton. Such planters generally had large prop erties, and were gentlemen of culture and refinement. In their youth their wealthy parents had sent them to the col leges of the South, the North, or of England.
On their return to the plantations, having the necessary leisure, they occupied that leisure in reading, hunting, boating, other athletic exercises, and in social intercourse. Thus educated and trained, they acquired the business of planting, and discharged their duties faithfully and grace fully, whether at home or abroad. Such habits also de veloped a peculiar type of physical manhood. The sound ness of the body kept even with the cultivation of the niind. This was manifested in the wealthy planters of the Geor gia coast. There "was a style of physique and manner, which was more or less common to all from the Savannah to the St. Marys. They averaged above the general medium size, had a courtliness of manner, and a military carriage. Such might have made an impression of the mere aflec-tation of pride if it-had not been palpably natnral. The large estates of these planters gave them unqualified credit,
5
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The failure of one or more crops made no difference in their style of living, for their estates of land and slaves made their paper as good as the best government bonds, and the -first year of a fine crop would set them even again.
Among the planters on the "Welaka were James ^fangin Smith of Camden, and James Hamilton Couper of GHynn. 1 had known both, of these gentlemen by reputation for years, and the first named personally for a few years. They were both distinguished in their vocation and in social .life ilr. Couper particularly so. In speaking of either an exception was made in their favor by calling each by his middle, as well as his first and last name, which was itself a general concession to their distinction.
Jjoth of them are long- since dead, and. in their time were representative men of that most superior class of Georgia planters residing on the seacoast. The first named was a gentleman of high intelligence and cultiva tion. He had a most griacious and affable manner, a courtly bearing, and was delightful in conversation. His life hav ing been, almost an entirely private one, he was not widely known, but "wherever he had contact he was sure to make and leave: the most pleasant impression. lie was, I believe, a native of lower South Carolina, and came to Georgia af
ter his majority. The second named (Mr. Couper) was in his vocation a
planter, and without political service or aspirations, the best known man in the State. Born and reared in the sec tion where he lived, a graduate of Yale College, of exten sive knowledge both general and scientific, of much practi cal usefulness, of fine presence and manner, he had im pressed himself upon the people of his section of the State to an extent no other man of his vocation had. A pecu liarity of his bearing, was that he made no difference in the courtesy -with which he treated others because of the so-
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cial position of the person addressed. To each and all lie was the same kindly, considerate, and properly communica tive gentleman. His courtesy was without the slightest af fectation and Ms conversation void of pedantry or preten sion. Except as he evinced the most thorough knowledge of the subject, and showed the gentleman by his demeanor and attire, he made no impression of his great wealth or eminent social station. His presence, manner,, and conver sation "were altogether so natural and unobtrusive as to reach the most exaltel ideal of eloquent simplicity. G-eiorge IV. was called the first gentleman in Europe, but he was not. If among the many fine gentlemen of the Georgia coast there could have been any first gentleman, that dis tinction would, have been accorded Mr. Couper; and there would have been no doubt of its having been deserved. He -was one of the passengers aboard that ill-fated steamer Pulaski., in dune, 1838, and saved the lives of Mrs. Nightin gale and her babe, and of Mrs. Prazier and her child. This success was clue -to his strong physical manhood, his expertness as a swimmer, his knowledge of the sea, and his courage and presence of mind in the face of the awful danger to himself and the pTecions lives he determined to save. (Vide ""Whites Historical Collections of Georgia.")
Jfloriba tfiftv I>ears Hgo.
After the digression in the latter part of my former ar ticle on the above named subject, I must go back to the cozy little Wclaka, which 1 left aground in the mouth of Jekyl creek. The tide did rise again, and ifc has ever since, and will until time shall be no more. T3y virtue of its floating and motive power we reached St. Marys at about 3 oclock p.m., -when we should have been there at about meridian. There was not then daylight enough to put us across the St. Johns !Bar before dark, and it was perilous to cross the bar in the night. The sky was clear, the air calm, and the sea smooth. The captain was sure his little craft could make the run of thirty miles from bar to bar in time to cross before the shades of night. The ran was a delightful one. To the right of us was the coast. Monot onous, it is true, but yet pleasant, for it kept us assured that although we were on the broad ocean, we were always in sight of the blessed and beautiful land. To the left a vast expanse of water to the shore on the other side, a distance we did not conceive of, or try to. Our passengers had been reduced to those bound for Jacksonville, or further up the St. Johns. "With few exceptions they were North erners, mostly in search of health, but few in search of pleasure. Bishop Verot, one or two Roman Catholic priests and myself were the exceptions. As we were fewer we came more in social contact. Por a long time I had been, a sufferer from chronic chills and fever, which caused the poor consumptives to regard me as one of them., and to a>k me what northern State I was from. I said not farther
riovih than. Georgia, when, the reply was they did not ex pect to meet a passenger with lung disease from Georgia. 1 had to explain that my delicate1 appearance1 was owing to malarial chills and fever. There was a disappointment,and 1 suppose upon the principle "that miscry loves company." Soon the sun. was sinking- "belo.iv the horizon, and. we were more or less anxious as to the captains calculation to cross the St. Johns Bar before night. ISToiic of us appreciated the shortness of the time in that latitude from sunset until dark, and directly night was upon us. 13 y the time this was fully realized, I saw a dim light in the distance and dark ness that looked like it might have been a hundred miles away, if visible at that distance. Around and below us was the inky blackness of night upon the sea.
There seemed no land, on either side, so wide was the entrance to the St. Johns. The little Welakas keel was all there was between us and a struggle for life with the wide sea in the blackness of a very dark night. And yet I felt very little fear; T put my trust in the captain; even though he had missed his calculation, I was sure he would not run the risk unless he knew in case night did overtake us he could safelvgo over the bar. "While in this mood, and with this confidence, suddenly the little boat received a blow that made her quiver in all. her timbers. Thanks to my lack of knowledge of the sea I yet felt no danger, but had a desire to know what that was. "From the aft part of the boat I made my way in the darkness to the forward, for there -was no light on the deck, and on going a few steps I was again shocked with another staggering blow to the boat. Proceeding, I came to where the captain was standing not merely steady but sturdy in the boat. My confidence yet remaining, T ventured to ask him what all that meant, but he kept his position, and answered me not a word. I had previously noticed that the captain had
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considered it Ms duty to sail the boat, and not to talk to the passengers. Yet on an important occasion like this I thought he would feel his obligation to disseminate useful information, hut he did not. Just then we had a third shock, and almost immediately the captain changed his po sition and demeanor. I did not know till the danger waspassed that we were on the breakers. The next thing in order after being stricken by one of those waves, was for the boat to strike the bottom, go to pieces, and the passen gers to fall into the sea. I have since always thought highly of the pluck and seamanship of Captain King. I& the charming little boat yet preserved and is Captain King yet living, and willing to take her on a dark night full of passengers over the St. Johns bar?
_A.bout eight or nine oclock we arrived at Jacksonville, and I domiciled myself at -what was the largest hotel in the city, but Jacksonville then had a population of about three1 thousand only. The hotel was an old-fashioned wooden one, such as at the same time we bad in our Georgia vil lages. The sidewalks were of plank, and the sand in the streets was general and deep. The next day was sunny, mild and beautiful. About 10 -oclock in the morning thesick of the hotel, wbo could, came out to sun themselves aurl breathe the fresh air. There were .all kinds of poor consumptives from those in its first stages down to those who could last but a short time. There had been a death in the hotel during the night, and two more invalidspast, rising or recovery- I looked around, and concluded that this was no place for one to recover from chills and fever? and resolved to return on the first boat. Things are far different there now. There are many splendid hotels patronized mainly by persons of health and wealth, and Jacksonville has grown to be a city sure enough with her 15,000 to 20,000 inhabitants. The landlord of the hotel
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had a name familiar to me it was Buffington. He was a son. of the Buffington "who kept a hotel for so many years at the capital of Georgia. Ho and his house were famous all over Georgia. It was there that Cone of Bulloch, and Cone of Camden, were entertained while so long members of the legislature. There reposed Swain of Emanuel called Governor Swain governor because Emanuel was such a large county, with a population -willing to he gov erned by Swain. A large per cent, of them were his kin, and it is said there were enough to keep the governor in the legislature. Many are the jokes about Swain and Buf fington, which come down to the present time. Both are long since dead, and it may be doubted if there is one of Buffingtons old patrons now living. All named were use ful and prominent of the olden time.
I was more than compensated by my trip to Florida in having met there, a guest of the same house, "William !L. Marion of Now York. He was there with a son a youtu of twenty summers. He had incipient consumption, and died of the disease within two years. The young man came into his fathers room, looking the picture of health. He had been hunting ducks, his feet were wet, and he changed his shoos and socks. I thought it strange to thus voluntarily wet his feet, and he threatened -with, consump tion. From this and his appearance, I doubted his dis ease, bxit it took but a little time to tell the same sad, sad old story of death for the "young and strong."
Governor Marions career particularly as governor of the great State of JSTew York, and Secretary of War in President Folks cabinet during the Mexican war, made him a very interesting character. The fact, then well known, that he had been selected by the President-elect (Pierce) as his Secretary of State, and to thus aid him in the selection of cabinet officers, made him yet more inter-
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ing lie wore seemed of the prevailing fashion, but just selr-cl:-o;.l because tlicy united n plain sailing-, unpretending o^jl.d^ gentleman. iSTot knowing him, I should linve taken hirn for some wealthy Georgia or "Florida, planter of the inferior. In size and appearance he reminded mo of GS-eneral I3ailey of Jefferson county, Florida. There is an old joke on
r Clarion, who, being on business for tlie State, had
of ?uch strict" business habits as to -charge it, and then in tegrity enough to report the true amount. I could not realize that that largo, l":ony, brawny man before me was 1 he di-M inguished G O! vei"nor of. _\ ew Y ork, Secretary of "War in the past, and to be a Secretary of State in the very near f atiire. !N~o cabinet offieer in the history of the govorn1.11 ent since early years" wins so diril-ing-uislied in his high oilice. TTis correspondence with General Scott and his llulsoman. state paper are documents that will live in his tory. To myself, personally. 1 esteem it fortunate that I saw and conversed with this great American, and that ex perience in such cases was reversed., for I found liim greater than T imagined -greater, that one of his greatness could be so plain and natural, just like hundreds of other good and plain men ? without intellectual endowment or achieve ment. Among his first questions were who were the pas sengers from the USTorth. I named such as I could remem ber. "When. I named "Air. Teamed from I3etroit he mani fested much pleasure, and said promptly, "He is my kins man, The I, in .my name is Ijamccl." This Air. L. is a lawyer of fine ability, but he had a near kinsman, the Trlev. Sylvanus Lamed, a very gifted divine, who died at an early age, while pastor of a church in !Ne\v Orleans.
As I said I world; T took the first boat- Lack. When fairly on the route I heard fiddling1 and dancing ori the lower forward deck. I went below to hear the music. To my horror 1 found on the same (leek two boxes of such size and shape to at once suggest their contents. They eonIamed the dead bodies of two who wont to ^Florida for their health, and there found their death. .Leaving home alive and full of hope, they -were returning d.cnd. The land of health and flowers broughI", no Lalm to them. The grim monster was there, as everywhere. The contrast between the dead and the hilarity of the sfeeragc passengers "was sad to the i?tle7-tnost. !Ft is useless to comment. Such is life, and a pity it is that its exigencies are sn.ch that often proper respect cannot be required for the dead.
"We again touched at St. j\Larys on our return. I early entertained a great regard for that old town. In. mv youth I was pleased to he:ar of Captain llalcy a:>d his revenue cut ter, of the old lawyer patriarch., Archibald Clark, and of "Dr. Curtis. It was the scene of a deep tragedy when I was a boy -a tragedy that made a commotion from Savan nah to Palat.kn. Tt was the homicide of Thomas Hardee, a gentleman of middle age, leaving a wife and many chil dren. Tie was a brother of General and I\oble A. Hardee. A short time after his death I saw in Savannah two of his daughters, then young ladies, dressed in the deepest mourn ing. The sight of them, knowing how they had been be reft of their good father, made a permanent impression upon my youthful heart.
At jBriiuswick there were many barrels of oysters on the wharf. They Irad accumulated because unsalable. Early in December, 1852, it was discovered that the oysters/both of the lower Atlantic and the Gulf, -were diseased. "Eating them made numbers sick and proved fatal to many. There were so many cases the disease was call the oyster
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cholera. It resembled the Asiatic cholera. It was supposed to have been caused by the unusual amount of fresh water suddenly emptied into the sea by a tremendous freshet in the Georgia rivers. For instance, the Ogeeehee was so high as to submerge the Central railroad, at dif ferent points, for thirty miles above Milieu. Several se vere and a few very sad cases occurred at Newton, Eater county. A steamboat from Apalachicola touched there with oysters. The superior court "was iu session. Judge William Taylor? of Outhbert, the presiding judge, and his wifes cousin, Colonel Littlebon Brooking, a -wealthy plan ter, partook of them, went to the letters plantation that night and the next day both of these illustrious citizens were dead. Shocking was the catastrophe, and loud were the lamentations.
And here the facts and comments of my trip to Florida thirty-two years ago must end. It will be perceived I have used it mostly as a thread upon which to string beads of in cidents. I hope the reader may find a pearl or two in the collection.
l!?ears Hgo in Savannah.
The progress of events, or the "gnawing booth of time," have finally disposed of all; there is not one hotel ex tant now which had. >a name a<nd fame in Savannah fifty years ago. The efforts to construct a new and a first-class hotel of sufficient capacity at the cite of the United States Barracks reminds me of your three first-class hotels; but one in its entirety was originally built for a hotel. Tliat is the Marshall House, which, fifty and more years ago, w-as Mrs.I3attey7s boarding-house, land the old part of the Serevcii House was Mrs. iPlatts boarding-house. These were two of the many really first-class boarding-houses then flourishing in Savannah. Mrs. Batitey and Mrs. 3?latt were "well known and highly esteemed ladies of the city, and their 1 houses were the homes of elegant ladies and gentlemen. The first named was the mother of Alfred M. Battey, a "West Point cadet or graduate, who afterwards became a Methodist and died at an early age. Mrs. Platt was an aunt of Rev. Dr. Platit, an eminent Episcopalian clergy man. She was a lady of imposing presence and would." attract attention wherever she might be. I give these ladies particular mention because first-class hotel accommo dations were then quite limited, and citizens and strangers had to have recourse to boarding-houses. The two named were the most central and prominent. I suppose, in the course of nature, both of these useful and admirable ladies have long since "rested from their labors," and are now en joying that happiness which is the reward of the faithful.. I never saw Mrs. Hattey as I can recall. There was a
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memorable event connected with her and her liouse. The house -was that part of the Pulaski that -was called the "ladles ordinary." From, there to V/hitaker street, on both sides of Bryan, there -were wooden houses. In flhe house,, a large wooden one, on the northeast corner of "Whitaker and Bryan, a fire broke out on. Christmas Day, 1833. It was about noon. Great preparations had been made for an elegant Christmas dinner. But that was one of the very few instances where a. fine1 dinner was pre pared that, in common parlance, "nefveir eara-e off!" It was, of course, a great disappointment, but there was abun dant consolation in the fact that the liouse and most of the furniture were saved if the fine dinner was Lost. That -was really one of those occasions at a fire we sometimes hear of, where fin furniture was thrown from up-stairs to meet the same fate it "Would have received from the fire -that is, destruction. I will not assert that the traditional lookingglasses and other glass or crockery were so thrown, but I will assort that tlie servants and others were so wild and panicky as to have done it. It was said it was done. As it, was Christmas day, it may be that beginning with eggnog early in the morning, and taking other drinks appropri ate to the time of day, may have added to if iit did not pro duce the demoralization. It ait least furnishes a faot for a prohibition argument.
At that time the only two hotels in the city were the City Hotel, o<n Bay street, between Bull and "W-hitaker, and the Mansion House, on tihe northwest corner of Brough-ton and "Whitaker, fronting on tihe latter, and extending to the lane. The first named was a small brick structure; the latter was a large wooden one, with double piazzas the full length of the house. The City Hotel was mosit patronized by the wealthy ajid refined., and the Mansion House by
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those less so. They were both for a period under tlie p>: roprietorship of Oapt. Peter "Wiltbergcr. He then had a monopoly in the hotel business at Savannah, which, he retained for many years. Later he bought the property from the northwest corner of Ball down to and including Mrs. Batteys boarding-house. He put one or two stories on the part from the latter named to the corner, and up Bull street to the lane, and called it all the "Pulaski House." There were two dining-rooms. The one on the wiest eaiJ he called the "ladies ordinary.," the one on the east end "gentlemens ordinary." Afterwards he relinquished the Mansion House, hut I think for some time he managed them all. He kept up the City Hotel for some time, but aristocratic headquarters became changed from the City Hotel to the Pulaski House. JSTevertheless, the foundation of Captain Wiltbergers fortune "was made at the- Oity Hotel, rand for hospitality, good cheer and conviviality, I doubt if the more pretentious Pulaski ever became quite equal to the jolly little City Hotel, under the management of Captain "Wiltberger.
Savannah then had only a popnlaitiion of seven thousand. The extreme southern limit of the city was the north side of Liberty street, but the litttle city had a monopoly of the sea-island cotton, rice and lumber trade. The wealthy planters of the Savannah (on both sides), the Ogeecb.ee, the Altamaha, the St. Ilia, and the St. Marys rivers and the sea islands, to tihe Florida line, very liberally patronized the hotel. There were large numbers of wealthy young men from the city and from the counties of Bryan, Liberty, jyTclntosih, G-lynn, anl Gamdeii who passed a large portion of their time at the City Plot el. An important feature of the hotel, as heretofore of all hotels, was the bar, where were dispensed a great variety of delicious but intoxicating
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drinks. These we may call the bane, but the antidote was near; in a dorr or two at the earner of Whdtakei was Ryersoiis drug store, and the transition from, one to the1 other as choice or necessity required, was easy. liyersoii was called bv his friends Tom, and it is to be supposed lie was a good social man, who- made a large profit out of Peter Wiltbergc-rs refined and accomplished guests. Besides the wellknown drugs useful in such cases, he had mineral -waters most abundantly Congress and soda. The soda-water brewed by Tom Hyerson. was very fine. It was the finest ir the city. It was the finest in the whole country. So tine was it, it had, like all other celebrities, animate or in.animate, a national reputation. Tire mere memory of Tom Ty ergons soda-water to a man "who has ever experienced the luxury of drinking it is better than, actually drinking some of the stuff that now goes by that name. The old anen drinkers of soda-water of Savannah will tell you there is no soda-water now as good as that Ryerson made. The art, he had must now add another to the list of lost ones-
A few old citizens can now recall the many -wealthy, stylish .and accomplished young men who passed the most, or a largo part, of their time at the City Hotel. They largely helped to make Peter Wiltberger rich. With a little study I could name a dozen, pcrliaps twenty, the most of whom, died the early death that ends a fast life. Then there were older, steadier men business men -who went !fSTorth in summer, and passed the business season in Savannah. They were northern men, sometimes called Yankees. The large majority of the merchants then of Savannah were either Northerners or foreigners. Among the former there can be found no better style of men than Loami Baldwin, Elias Keed, Elias Bliss, George Hall, Joliai W. Long, Wilson .Puller, Moses Eastman, Jonathan Olmstead, Otis Johnson,
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George I\"ewbali, Isasc "W. "Morrell., the brothers "Weed, Thomas Eyerson, D. U. JSTiohols, Samuel Philbrick, John Mallery, and many others whose names do not just now occur to me, but who, after living honest and useful lives, have gone to their reward. Those men -were born and reared before what is called progress had evolved the -ims which warp mens minds and mar their peace. There is nothing now left to show where the City Hotel stood, and it has not been, destroyed by fire or other agent of destruc tion. [This building is now occupied by Kayton & Her man., A. Haas & Bro., and Smith 13ros. Ed.}
The little gem of <a hotel, Lkc some conspicuous military officer., has been reduced to fche ranks, but, unlike the offi cer, for no conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentle man." It Iras simply been used and oast aside for a more pretentious rival. Its epaulets and sword and sash have been removed, and it stands in the ranks until no one can tell from observation where the hotel began or ended. It has been put to common uses, sadly in contrast with the high life which once made it tire abode of the grand and lovely of the land. If these old and stained walls could speak, what stories they would tell of a time when there was no giaSj no steamships, no railroads, no electric wires, no percussion caps, no lucifer matches, no tramways, but also -when there was no adulteration of food and medi cines, no speculation in the necessaries of life; -when there was but little fraud, trickery and dissimulation; when friendship was not entirely a name, and when some men and "women could be found wlio "loved their neighbors as themselves."
Oapt. Wiltberger moved his hoadquarters to the Pulaski House and made it famous among the hoitels of the Soiitli, He owned the building., the furniture, every equipment.
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and all his "men and maid servants." Perhaps he was the only landlord in the nation -who did. It was a grand piece -of property, and. was managed with clock-like precision. In. his earlier manhood he had followed the seas and com manded a merchant vessel. To tills vocation he probably o-wed his success as a caterer to the tastes of the refined. He was a very largo man and had a very large "wife. Their joint weight must have been five hundred pounds. This large, fine-looking couple had just one child a boy; and a boy of delicaito health a boy reared like a girl is reared. The parent* both died, and left their handsome property to this boy, then grown to manhood. He was managing the hotel well when the war came. The result took away the old servants ithe house was no longer like itself and the young master died. And thus the Mansion House, the City Hotel and the old-time glory of the Pulaski House. with that of their master and his heir, have passed intohistory. The world, about Savannah comes and goes, but few know, and. the many neither know nor care, about the history.
The Marshall House is of comparatively recent date. It is the only one of the three large hotels originally con structed as such. It is worthy of remark that a woman is entitled to that credit Mrs. Marshall, the wife of Col. James Marshall. On the site where it stands there were many houses. Among them, was Mrs. Sfebbinss board ing-house, another of the well-known and highly esteemed boarding-houses of the city. Mrs. Marshall is not merely entitled to credit for this, but for building in various ports of the city fine buildings in place of the old, many of them small and dilapidated ones, I had the opportunity when a boy and a youth of knowing the old, and there fore I can better appreciate the new. Mrs. Marshall was a
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wonderful woman. As fas: back as I ean.recollect she at tended in person to the renting and building o>f her houses. This wottld not have been so. surprising if her husband bad not been a good business man. But no -was, and yet the "wife took upon herself the management of their vast estate in SavarLirah.
jSTow Sa van/wall has a new >and large hotel, and thus keeps progress with, her growth, from seven thousand to forty thousand of popxilation. "Down the corridor of time" " i*-, too will have its history, for then it "will be old, and the children of to-day, and those not yet bom, when on the sunset side of life, will relate their memories of it, begin ning1 with the fact that it was once the site of the United States Barracks. But it will not acquire the fame o-f the City Hotel and the Bulaski House in ante-bellum days, \intil this, our new civilization, shall equal the old in its men of honor and valor, and in its women of virtue and refinement, which will take a long time, and then I doubt. if it "will ever be.
tEbe Schools tfittv l^ears Hgo.
Fifty years ago the high schools of Georgia ./ere limited to the few academies of a few counties, and the colleges to the single one of Franklin, at Athens, now the State Uni versity. . The academies of the low, or seacoast country, were those of Ohatham, Effingham, Liberty anil Glynn counties. To obtain a collegiate education at that time in Georgia, boys had to> travel by stage or private convey ance more than two hundred miles to Athens. The preference of many over this way was to go by sailing ves sel to New York or Boston, and enter Princcton, Yale, Harvard or Brown, there being then neither railroads nor ocean, steamships. In a few instances they "would sail di rect from Charleston or Savannah for Liverpool and enter one of the English universities. It often took longer then to make the voyage to JSTew York or Boston than from either of these cities now to Liverpool. We were then not blessed with the Iiome institutions of learning, nor with the means of rapid transportation "which came much later. The consequence of these; disadvantages was, that few boys went to college, and those who received wliat wa.^ called an (academic education were considered fortunate. jMany of the brightest minds in the State oould not even reach that, and had to be Content witli private eo-untry schools, generally called "old field schools. 7 The improve ment in educational facilities wiftliin the last nfty years is only excelled by the many scientific anid other use-fill in ventions within the same period. It is worthy of remark
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that the inventions and improvements which render the present era so conspicuous above all others in the worlds history have occurred within the last fifty years. The last half century has been blessed as the harvest to the seed-time of all the preceding centuries. "When in the future there shall be a harvest of the present seed-time, the imagina tion of the most learned cannot conceive its glory. Judg ing the future by the past and present, it seems possible that men may yet work out the origin of matter, and in this unlock the grand secrets of nature.
The low country academies named being within the Georgia of the Revolution were endowed by the proceeds of Confiscation, and amercementts of the estates of British loyalists. Our revolutionary ancestors thus showed their appreciation of education, From the g-eneral loyalty of Georgians to the colonies, the sparse population, and the non-accumulation, of wealth from the newness of the country, one -would suppose but a small sum of money could have been raised from that source, but when we consider thait the few JBritisih loyalists were generally men of "wealth, the amount -will increase in our estimation. The most notable of these loyalists were Governor "Wright and I/Leutenant-Governor Graliame, both of whom owned large and valuable property.
Ohstfhiarn Aoademy, in 1831, when I was first a porpil, was, for the times, a grand institution. The building was a large and imposing one, and of a style of architecture that gives it to> this day an air of consequence and gen tility. The principal of the Academy was Itev. George White, a native of Charleston, S. 0., and there -were five or six assistant teaeheirs, each ihaving has own room, and -the number of pupils, both male and female, were about 250. Of the boys and girls in Savannah, -old encxugh to go to
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school during the time of Dr. "White at the Academy, those who -were iiioit, his pupils make the exceptions. These were of nil ages, sizes :and sorts, from, the children, of the lowly up to those of the .aristocracy. Dr. "White was a rigid hut excellent disciplinarian and managed that largo institution of teachers and pupils with almost military precision. He was a-n industrious and faithful teacher. His first rule in tcaicln-ng was to give his pupil a good foundation for an
education, and to this end he practiced them of ten "in the three Ks/ even -when they had progressed to advanced studies, so they would -riot forget. His next -was to hare all ids pupils excel iu reading and elocution, and to teach the boy s military taicties. If a hoy left Dr. \Y~hite, after study ing under him long enough, and was not a good speller, render and cLeelaimer, then the faculties were not in the boy to bo gotten out of him. He had a romn of his own, and then gave his personal supervision to every other room, and never permitted .a teacher to chastise a pupil. He knew personally every pupil, his order, name, advancement and disposition. His fault was in using the rod, or rather the strap, too often, but belcloui. severely. Dr. "White was a believer in Solomons maxim of "spare the rod and spoil the child." So were all the teachers of that day, and com pared with some, Dr. Will it e was moderate. It is a saying that that m]a,xim makes Solomon responsible for a great deal of cruelty. Tt can be s^ald m behalf of Solomon, it is not his maxim that, has done the anischief, btut the misapplica tion, of it. SoloimOn meiant it would not do to spare the rod, when nothing but the rod wioidd save the boy from spoiling. IBecanse the rod in cases of necessity must be used, he did not intend to use it in every case. Later in life
Dr. "White took this or sonic similar view of Solomons maxim, because he changed his tactics, and expressed his
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regrets for 1 raving placed such a strict construction upon the maxim.
It, must also be said in favor of the doctor that lie was too gallant to strap the girls. "Vrirli them he resorted to the "fools cap" and similar methods. AB Solomon. \vas not o.nly a gallant m&n, but a man. of gnllnntries, tlie doctor seemed to think his anaxlm -\vas not intended for the girls, but solely for the miserable boys. On one o-ccasro-n a girl was .srait by her teacher to Dr. Whites room for punish ment.. She v/as -a little beiaut-y thait all the boys loved arid the doctor too. Ho either felt she deserved extreme pun ishment or he desired her to escape any punishme.nt. So he inquired \vlrat boy \vould take a wliipping- for her. ]\;taiiy were, ready for the sacrifice, but jMilton .Lufburrow was. the quickest, and he "won (ihe hoaior. Tlie lititle beauty ^vas Miss Valexa, one of the daugiiters of Captain Mercliant, of the U. S. A. .1 remembei Ire Iratl three diiugltters and one son at sehjool. Wh.ere are eacli and all of "tliem now? On eartili or in heaven?
"Dr. White is the a-uthor of the "Statistics of Georgia" and the. "Historical Collections" of Georgia. In these works he Iras done inost vahmble ^vork to tilie people of tlie State, He has placed tl>e proaninent parts of the States history in a shape to reach tlic masses, and every Q-eorg-iaii should be- grateful to> liim. T^ike most book-makers in Gcorg-iu, if -]re is not corrtpen^aited with, gratitude his pay lias been small, for I have no idea, lie has been sufficiently paid in either coin or currency. About, thirty years agx> the doctor gave up teaching -bo devote himself exclusively to the ministry. l^or the last twenty-five yea ITS he has been the rector of Calvary parish at Memphis, Teim., ^vhore ho yet is. He must be one of the best readers among minis ters of his denomination., and one of the most, eloquent
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clergymen. The fact that he has had a large and wealthy parish so long is conclusive evidence of his qualifications in every respect. The life of man is three score years and ten, and by reason -of strength, four score. Dr. White must have reached and passed the latter poinit. How much I shall not speculate, lest I make the doctor too old, for the world is apt to lose its interest in an old man, and if it takes my say to make the doctor an old main, I shall not say, ex cept in his wise, that of the number he has taught, and he has taught enough to populize a good sized city, he has out lived nearly all, and there are some who, if living, would be the "three score and ten" and more. Such a constitution as his is rarely given to poor mortals, and what makes his longevity the more remarkable is he has passed nearly all his existence in malarial atmospheres. He has lived through two or three epidemics each of Asiatic cholera and yellow fever since he has been in Memphis. He has stood to his post like a Christian soldier, and comforted the sick and buried the dead when no one was able or to be found. The destroying angel visited his own household; bore off his own sons; and for them he had himself to perform the ceremony of Christian burial. A fact perhaps yet stranger than the doctors longevity in the midst of so much danger, is, that his wife, his first and only wife, has been spared along with him. Occasionally only is there a couple able to celebrate their golden wedding. There are but few persons who can of their own knowledge name a couple who have been mar ried sixty years. This couple must have been married at least sixty years. The wealth of memories they possess must be lost when they die. In after years some chroni cler of past events must refer to them and to their lives as worthy of much more than ordinary mention.
I have said Dr. White as a teacher had only one fault.
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In that I may be mistaken. Pernaps he had another. About this there can be a difference of opinion. If it shall be decided a fault, it was one that showed the kind side of his nature. The fault was that of partiality. It was more than partiality. There were two boys who were his pets. For these two boys Dr. White had the affection of a father, >a teacher and companion combined. So the other boys thought and said these boys suffered very little
from Solomons maxim. Either they did not deserve it, or the boys were uncommonly good rather too good for boys this side of heaven. Their names were Dalton Sharpe and James Courvoisie. I have no doubt Dr. White of late years has often dropped a. tear to the memory of these boys. He took much pains in preparing them for college, and when the time came for them to leave he traveled all the way with them to Athens, and entered them in person. Such an interest and devotion is not often man ifested by teachers. Sharpe was a hard student, with a quiet, gentle manner. Courvoisie was bright, genial and humorous, and one of those boys who could get a lesson by looking at it. Alas, both of these boys are now in "the spirit land," while their old teacher and friend is yet in "this vale of tears. Sharpe, after graduating at one of the medical colleges of Philadelphia, went to Paris to com plete his medical education. In this vortex of fashion and folly he was taken ill, and, returning home, died in 1850 at Muir Hall plantation, and was buried at White Bluff church. This was some forty years ago. He was the only son, and, I believe, the only child, of a small, reserved and gentlemanly man, who was made somewhat conspic uous by his large gold-rimmed spectacles. He was the superintendent of one of the large rice estates on tthe Savannah river. Courvoisie, as so many know, lived up to
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this side of the war. He was long -an officer of the Central Railroad Company, and was sent .by that corporation to coniinnnicatie with Mr. AVadlcy, then in Louisiana. On tlia!~ mission lie oontractted in the swamps of that State malig nant malarial fever., and died at-HSTew Orleans on his re turn. His remains were brought [home and deposited in Laurel Grove oemotery.
I -went to school to Dr. White from my seventh to ray tenth year. About two-thirds of that time my walk to . the academy was from about Montgomery down South Broad street. Among tfhe boys I can remember whose habit it was to trudge along the same street to the school were Ben .and Tom Lloyd, Levi and Julian Myers, Robert and Palmer Griffin, Lewis and William Davies. Those named are all well-known to the present citizens of Savan nah, except, perhaps, the T>avies brothers., who left the city many years ago. Tliey were th-e grandsons of Judge Davies, of the old law firm of Davies & T3errien. The elder (Lewis) is now a most worthy and beloved member of tihe jSToirtih Georgia Methodist Conference. Of Wil liam I am not informed, amd know not if he is yet living. This brings me to treat of some of the boys of Chatham Academy, whose after lives were from some cause of more than ordinary interest.. Those named, except one, are either living or dead within tihe memory of most of your citizens, and therefore to discourse of them would be super fluous. That must be reserved for another article, that this one, already long, may not be bnrdensomely so.
Some of the Schoolboys.
One of the boys who walked the same streets I did to the Academy was Robert H. Griffin. "Wliile a juvenile schoolboy there "was nothing, as I remember, to distin guish hiru, except Ms isic beyond his years; but as he gi-cw older iiis mind and scholarship grew also, until he "was ranked among the smartest. As a boy and youth he did not look forward to one of the learned professions, and when quite young he left school and entered the countingroom of George W. Andenson & Birotlier to prepare himself for first-class mercantile life. While thus employed the intensely exciting presidential campaign of 1840 oarne on, which allured him inito politics on the Deanocratic side, and, as a result, to prepare himself for the law. At this time Mr. Griffin -was a. perfect specimen of tihe handsome physical man in form and feature. His oratoirical efforts wore of the first order, and he edified and delighted his audiences. His intellect was of the solid as -well as bril liant kind, whiclh, complemented by his handsome person and grace of manner, gave every promise of a most useful and distinguished career as lawyer and Statesman; but alas! to "use a common figure, before- the beautiful bud had bloomed, into the full blown rose, it withered and perished. Before Mr. Griffin could fulfill the promise of his youtthful mannood death cut off ull the hopes and pros pects of himself and friends, and ;he has lain in his grave for many years. His name is inseparably connected with that of his friend, patron and admirer, the late Hon. John ~W. Anderson, who was so much honored and beloved by all classes of citizens.
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As there are so f&w men who for any oan.se are worthy of mention above the "seething masses," so it must be with, the boy who is the "father to the man." Looking back to the many wlio were Dr. Whites pupils during my time at his school, I can recall but few who come within the pur pose of these articles, although I can remember many who made most worthy, and some distinguished men.; and yet whose lives are without any romantic or dramatic incident to mark them. Yet there arc a few it should be interesting to note. During my time there came, to the school a. large: boy whoso education, had been neglected. As -SL result he oOiikl not be classified, unless he was put into the classes with little boys. Every boy knows with, what disdain the ]irttie fellows look upon a big boy no farther advanced than themselves, and how awkward the big boy looks, and how mortified lie feels to be among the little ones, especially where there is "head and foot" and a little boy turns a big one down. This big boy was permitted to recite alone. Dr. White seemed to lmve a tender regard for him. The mo tive for it I do not know., except that which might arise from what was apparent his modest demeanor, his low scholarship and his large size. His clothing w-as of the plainest kind, and his whole appearance suggested that he was neither rich nor of hig-h social station. tie associated little, if any, with, the other boys, and was intimate with none. He was shy and reserved to the point of isolation. There was that about Mm which miakes a misanthrope of many natures. He was badly lame in one leg, and the limp it necessitated was not of that sort that made the possessor more interesting. After awhile he came no more to school. AVliy I know not, nor did any one else seem to know. We just missed him, and, perhaps, supposing he had only come to school to improve his education that he might be better prepared for the common business of life, we
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thought iiO more of him. It came to pass afterwards that I left tlie school and went to- the North, and returned to continue my academic course a:t Effing-ham Academy. This was located ;at Springfield, the eoutvty site, where, of course, the counts of the circuit -and county were held. Going into the court-room at ".May term, 1837, some five years after the large boy referred to had left Dr. Whites school, there was a ruddy-faced, well-dressed, refined look ing young man1 addressing the eo-ur-t in a very earnest, fluent arid attractive .style, having just enough of the. brogue to give zest to his enunciation. It did not take me long to discover that the young lawyer and the plain-looking lame boy I have been describing were one and the same person. In the meantime he had gone elsewhere to pursue his studies., including that of law, and had been admitted to practice. The case he was arguing is reported in R. ]VL Charlto-iis Reports, page 54-2. John Duggtar, Jr., had by liis will directed that certain slaves of his should be sent out of the Staitc to some place where they could be free. The court of ordinary refused to probate the will- because contrary to the laws of the State touching the manumis sion of slaves. The slaves found a friend in Mr. Henry Roser, of Savannah, who employed the young attorney t secure them their rights, and he succeeded in so doing. It had been the general opinion of the bar that such a will was void, but Judge R. J\. Oharlton, the then youngest judge in the State, at the instance of perhaps the youngest attorney at the bar, decided against that general opinion and in favor of the liberty of the slaves. The Georgia judges in convention rendered the same judgment in a similar case, and since our State Supreme Count has af firmed that ruling in many cases. That decision made reputation for boith the young judge and the young law yer. The latter immediately entered on a successful
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career at the bar, but in about tlhree years from tfliat date lie was dead. At the time of Ms death be was the partner of Hon.. Joseph. W. Jackson., a gentleman universally esteemed as "the "very soul of honor." It is n!ow needless to mention -the name of the big boy ait Dr. "Whites school, but as the lawyers say, It had better be done "bo eompletB the record." His name "was ISTioholas ilarlow.
** ****-* -x- -*
While Dr. White was the principal of Chatham Acade my he had a military company formed from the boys of the scHiool. When I wenrt. there Henry Tjong was tlie cap tain a fine, manly-looking boy of the blonde type. He was a younger brother of the late William H. Long. Tt came around that he left school to go into commercial busi ness, being1 then nearly or qnit-e g-ro^vu. That made it necessary to elect a new captain. G-eorge Tayior, another large boy, was the first lieutenant, and by custom and seniority be Was entitled, to the captaincy; but there was a private, a liamclsome, stylish,, generous boy, who "was very popular. His name -was James Jones TayloT, a son of Gen. Robert Taylor, one of the wealthiest men of the State. He became a planter in Early coiinty, Georgia, and there ditd some thirty years ago, leaving a "widow and three children, who yet survive. He w>as voted for and defeated George T aylor by one vote. Mortified at such t<rearbmenit, George surrendered his ciommission and. was no more a member of the company. It was not long until he received the ap pointment of cadet at th:e United States Military AcadCiny, and I saAV him no more for many years, but knew he gradu ated and was commissioned as leutcnaiit of artillery in the United States army. He fougHit through th.e Mexican war; was a gallant officer and came out. of the war with the rank of captain. It took a sub-lieutenant then a long time to attain the rank of captain in the regular army. G-ewrg-e
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was not a brilliant or demonstrative man, but a man of solid sense, conscience and duty, thoroughly reliable and a perfect g-entleman. In December, 1852, - fnil twenty years since I had seen him, and not knowing then -where he -was stationed, or what were to be his future movements, I was a passenger on the steamer Gordon (outside passage) from Charleston to Savannah. My attention was soon drawn to a gentleman in citizens garb and no sign to point to a military position. He had no acquaintance among the passengers, nor did he evince any desire to have any. There was something about tthfe face that strongly impressed me I had seen it before, I tried, at intervals of three or four hours to locate him. It seemed I never -would, when suddenly, as if by inspiration, it came to me that the face was that of Greorge Taylor. It then became a serious question whether I should venture to speak to fchat re served and dignified gentleman, who seemed to desire to know no one. I finally mustered the courage" to ask his pardon for inquiring if Ire was not Oapt, George. Tayloir, of the TJ. S. A. He admitted lie "was, and in the coarrse of conversation said that his regiment had been ordex-ed to California that they had to take the long voyage1 around and through the Straits of Magellan, and he was going to Macon, Georgia, to take farewell of his fathers family.
As the sun was setting the steamer reached the dock. He went his way and I went my way, and I beard no more of. him, perhaps thought no more of him, until a short time thereafter, within a month I think, the news went through the whole country, with lightning speed, that the steamer San Francisco, bound from !New York to San Francisco, carrying about 300 soldiers, with their complement of offi cers, accompanied by their families, was wrecked in the Atlantic Ocean, and that there was a fearful loss of life,, in cluding men, women and children.
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Iii this catastrophe Oapt. George Taylor, of Georgia, while scarcely forty years of age, witth liis entire family, consisting of wife and children, ceased to exist forever in this world. The same Was -the case with many other offi cers and. their families, including Colonel "Wasliiiigtoii, the Commander of the artillery regiment. In a storm the upper part of the ship parted from, the lower, and all who "wore in the upper perished. -IMajor ilerchaiit, so long sta tioned in Savannah, as Captain Merchant, -was among the saved, -as was also the captain of the ship. The latter (Captain Atkins, I think) was saved -only for a time, for afterwards he lost his life in the China seas.
The Sail Francisco was a new, large and splendid steamer. She was selected for her size, staunchness and. appoint ments, and for the reputation of Tier -commander as an ex perienced, skilled and heroic seaman. Such precaution was used by thoughtful, prudent men to transport this precarious cargo of human lives aaicl property., .a;nd yet there must have been <a flaw in the construction of the ship, or in the lading of her, that evaded human investigation and foresight.
* * * -K- -7f -X- -X- -X- % V:
Savannah fifty years ago saw nothing of interior Geor gia, except the people of the surrounding counties. She was much better .acquainted with Boston, jSTew York and Philadelphia than with our interior towns and counties. The school was* entirely made up of the boys of Savannah, or of the vicinity embracing the South Carolina side of the Savannah river. Consequently, the appearance at school of a boy from the irpjcountry was an event to "be remem bered, as well as a boy to be noticed. That opportunity was given in a little, sprightly, cheerful, bold and aggressive boy from Augusta. It was soon, observed lie "was a character, and a character that -could not be subdued by the home
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boys, for it was the fashion to try the mettle of every new "boy. Such a boy could not be there long until lie would have the opportunity to-" fight or back down. If ho was game he was admitted into the schoolboy brotherhood. If not, he paid the penalty as a butt. There -was no more peace or happiness for him until he changed his sdhool. The Augusta boy I speak of -was soon initiated, and was permitted to take all the degrees at once. He was some what of a curiosity for his dialect <as well as the originality of his character. The loiW-cOimtry boys all had more; or less of tihC same pronunciation, but here was one whose pronunciation was in palpable contrast. That boy grew to manhood in Savannah, and became one of her famous citizens. Two incidents in his life wore of tragic interest. When a boy his life was saved from the wreck of the steamer Pulaski, while all his brothers and sisters perished. "When a man he lost his life in. defense of the Confederacy, and is said to have been the last man killed at Columbus, Ga., just about r/tHC, nineteen yicars ago. The reader will recognize the boy I am describing as Charles A. L. Lamar. He was a man who became life, and life became him. So full was lie of vitality that death would never be suggested in. connection with him. When such men die in youth, or in the vigor of man/hood, it seems it cannot be there must be a mistake; and. if true, that the insatiate archer intended to take .another, but missed his aim. Whenever I think o>f Charley Lamar, at once his twin brother with the same vitality in size, in figure, in feature, in expression and in manner OCcurs to me. I mean John A. Jones, of Columbus, Gra, ? son of Seaborn, commonly called Little Jack Jones. They were devoted friends. The Damon and. Pythias of the drama "were not more so. The fate of the two friends w-as the same. Colonel -of the Twentieth Georgia, Little Jack was killed at Gettysburg. When he
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died, as with. Charley Lamar, a dazzling, brilliant lighit ^vas extinguished, which should have continued to shine until the time had expired for which nature warrantor! it.
Here I hope I will be pardoned for an episode of a per sonal -and delicate nature. When a boy of ten years my mother sent mo to I/ynn., Massachusetts, to school. In May, 1831, I sailed from Savannah to Boston 011 the ship Pfi-nguSy whereof Moody was master. We were fifteen days making the voyage. There were quite a number of first-class passengers from Savannah. gentleimen, ladies and children. Among- tlio later was the oldest child of the late O. B. Xanrar. Site was perhaps twelve years of age, and she was going to the institution of learning con nected -with the Komaji Catholic convent at OharlestOwn, jMass. "FroTii Boston to T/yiin was an open, plain. One night during tlie same aumm&T tlie household was aroused by the appearance of a large firo at or near Boston. The next day it proved, to !lmve been, the burning of the Catholic convent at Cbarlestown. by a body of rioters, which im periled, the lives of the inmates and created great, excite ment throughout the country. Where Miss Lamar went from there to continue her education I do not know, HOT have I any other knowledge of her until just four years after, when, with Others of her parents children she lost her life in that fatal "only one night at sea." Only one night at sea. It really was but a rug-lit that for so mam lasted forever.
* * -x- ***** -x- -:<- *
Declamation -was a prominent feature in Dr. White-* course of instruction. Among tihe tiny boys, after pass ing the period of "youd scarce expect one of my age/ he was fortunate who could claim "Casabianca" as his own property. With the boys of larger growth there was the
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. same competition, for "Hoheiilinden," and a little further on came in "The burial of Sir John Moore." 3STo conquer ing; hero could have felt prouder of his conquests than a small boy -who received -a prize medal for excellence in declamation. There was a boy less than seven who re joiced, in "Hohenlinden." He was a pale-faced, lighthaired, delicate boy, but such a voice such a declama tion, and sucli manly ways as the little fellow had, it was a wonder to hear and see. I-Ie was a prodigy in the art oj: declamation. 1-Ie delighted the doctor in this respect .above all other boys. If the academy had a distinguished visitor, who had never hoard the little boy, he was sure to be called on. for (a performance. lie was from the South Carolina side of the river, and his name, as I remember it, Chisholrn. In this I may be mistaken perhaps it was Cheves pronounced Ghims. I have neither seen nor heard of the boy since that I am aware of, and it has been fiftythree years since. I have often wondered what became of -that boy. I should surmise lie died in youth, or very early manhood, or he certainly would have been heard from. A very little, delicate boy, with such a strong, deep, musi cal voice, and knowing; how to tune it, must have made a .great orator. I have lately been reminded of him in what Miss jMariari !Eva.ns (George Eliot) says of the linnet that "it has just body enough to hold its voice." 33ut per haps he was unlike the linnet, and did .not have enough body to hold his voice, and like the sword in the scabbard, it wore out the body, and that he has been for many years
using his voice? not for oratory, but for the singing of praises to Grod and the lamb in the realms of eternal bliss. TT ho will tell us ?
B.QO.
The law courts, the court-houso and its appurtenances, the judges, lawyers and county officers of fifj-.y years ago are interesting. My first remembrance- of a court-house was a hig-h pile of bricks, in 1831, on the lot -where the present county court-house stands, which was said to have been the bricks of the old. court-house, torn down to build a new one. That new one is the present old one between President and York streets, having its front on "Wrigiit square and its rear on Drayton street. It was not ready for occupation until some time during the next year, but in fact my rememberance of such only dates from. January, 1833. The jail then stood and for many years later on the commons and would have been on or near Drayton street had it been built upon that far. The city proper then did not extend beyond the nortli side of Liberty street. This period antedated the present United States Barracks. All beyond Liberty street, from its interces sion by Drayton, was an open plain to the forest growth on the outskirts, except as it was broken by the grim old jail, surrounded by higli thick walls on. all sides, which, presented a lonely arid desolate appearance.
To the right oblique, away from beyond the same point, to be soen through the small pines, was the old wooden bar racks of the United States, and about the same distance, to the left oblique, "Fair Tawn," the home of Major W. P. Bowen. Both of these structures relieved the view made by the monotony of the commons and the horror of the
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jail, with the sMning whiteness o t)he building and fences, through the interstices of the evergreen trees. The site of the old. jail (as informed) is now occupied with the man sions erected- by Ootavius Colicn and Andrew Low. The present jail, and possibly a portion of .Forsyth Park, is loca ted where the old barracks stood. These barracks soon be came untenantable, winch was at least partly the cause for erecting the new one at the junction of liberty and Drayton. For a timci during the transition the troopti occupied the theater. jMajor Bowen resided for many years at Pair Lawn, and there reared an interesting family of sons and daughters. One of them was General P-owen, a West Point graduate, who, during the late war, General Pernbenton dispatched with six thousand men to Port Gibson, Miss., to dispute the landing of Grant. It proved dis astrous and caused the loss of Bo-wens life and that of General Tracy.
Dray toil street was the Savannah "Bridge of Sighs" from tbe prison, to the place of trial, the court-house. AVhcn a little boy I often saw the disagreeable sight of a prisoner passing along there in. charge of the officer, and possibly witli d yvcs on his wrists." One I remember, and always shall, who was being carried to be tried for his life. The officer was mounted, and while they were en gaged in conversation the prisoner looked up into the offi cers face and smiled. To my childish mind it was aston ishing how one so situated could smile, but even I could dis cover there "was sadness in that smile, which I can now see as vividly as then, and it "haunts me still." There was a phase of prison life then that has long since ceased to exist, and very few now living have ever seen. It was ithat of a prisoner confined for debt. In my boyhood there was generally some one so imprisoned, if for only a short time,
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but tliere vra,s one or two instances that lasted for one or more years, and there was tradition of prisoners -who had endured many years of imprisonment. Perhaps even some young people Irave seen -at in-fcervals on Savannahs streets stones that might have served for mile-stones with the letters .J. 13. -on them. J. B. meant "jail bounds/ and that \vas the limit of a debtor prisoners walk, who had given bond and surety not to go beyond the limits. If he did, his bond became forfeited to his creditor, and the debt was collected out of the surety. Abolishing impris onment for debt has rendered such as that now impossible, but before its abolition imprisonment for debt had praeticaJly ceased. During the building of the new court-house court was held in the Exchange Long Room. The first co-iii1 1 I ever attended was in that room. It was in the month of February, 1832. I had not reached my eighth year. Then there was proceeding there a. criminal trial of extraordinary interest. One of the most prominent- mer chants of the city had committed homicide, and he was on trial for it. After tea my father went and took me with liim. I "well remember the scene. The judge was presid ing and the prisoner was sitting in the dock, but otherwise there was nothing to indicate an exciting trial, and there wore but few persons in the court-room. The judge was seated, at the eastern, end of the room. Since, I infer, ai that time the jury must have been taken out for supper or other purpose, because I learned the case was submitted to the jury ait a late hour that night, and resulted in an acquittal.
The leading counsel for the prisoner was Matthew Hall ilcAllister, who distinguished himself by a great effort, and when the verdict was readied the friends of the pris oner took JilJcAlIister on their shoulders and bore Mm
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down to where they could celebrate the victory. This case established jUcAllisters reputation as the first criminal lawyer of the city, -which he held up to the time he changed his residence., but it must not be inferred that his reputa tion as a lawyer was limited to this branch of the practice.
The judge who presided in this ease was a man whose useful, virtuous and pleasant life was spared up to a mod ern date, and, therefore, it is superfluous to say more- He was the Hon. William X/aw. Judge Laws first .commis sion was in May, 1829. His immediate predecessor was Judge "William Davies. As I never saw Judge Davies it is to be presumed that just before this he either died or moved from the city. I think he resided at some time of has life at J\f ill edge ville, or vicinity. Judge Law remained judge of rtie eastern circuit until ISTovember, 1834, but ifc so chanced I was seldom in his coairt. He was succeeded by Hon. John O. "Nl-choll. During Judge jSTicholls short tenure on the bench of the State Court, though yet a small boy, I was quite often in his court, both in Chatham and Emngham counties. Ho was a. serious, stern-looking man, with a strong voice, and I was afraid of him. "When I got to be a marliid a lawyer this awe of him to some extent still remained. During his official career as judge of the United States District Court, I had occasion to appear in his court as sole counsel for the plaintiff in a case of some importance. The defendants counsel were sure of gaining the case, and two or three friends of ability and experience at the bar had given me their opinion that that must be the result. I found a case to sustain me in the Eleventh Johnsons !N"ew York Reports, and felt very confident I ought to win, but felt uncertain as to the impression 1 would make upon the judge: The parties in the case I cited were Erastus Root, gentleman, v. Elijah Beardsley,
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gentleman. It was decided as far back as 1811, and in these democratic times such -a statement of the parties -would, be entirely out of order. It gTave me an opportu nity for getting -off -a. little humor, but hoW would so rigid a man as Judge j^icholl take it? Should I be fined or reprimanded, or both? But I Could not resist the temp tation., and so I svaid: "Your honor will perceive this case sustains my suit, and it is no common ease, but was -a con test between gentlemen-. In such a. case the judges must have given the legal questions involved mudh more than the ordinary consideration. It was due the parties as gen tlemen." I was awaiting my fate, whetn, to my agreeable surprise, Judge JSTieholl said: "Yes, Mr. Clark, I knew Erastus Root well, and know he -was a gentleman. I did not know Elijah Bearclsley, but I know the Bcardsley fam ily, and they were all reputed gentlemen." This made me feel quite comfortable, and gave me some assurance of at least a fair chance. When the time came for the judge to charge the jury, he charged the law as laid down in Johnsons Reports, and, as a legal and logical sequence, the jury found a verdict in my favor, to the great disappoint ment and disgust of opposing counsel. The verdict was signed John H. Johnson, foreman. Through subsequent years I became better acquainted with. Judge jSFicholl and found him as affable and considerate as I had supposed him the contrary. It is, perhaps, superfluous to say he was an able jurist and noted for the extent and accuracy of ihia legal learning. If I mistake not he succeeded Judge Jere miah Ouyler on the bench of the Federal court, the father of R. R. Cuyler, and of many other sons and daughters. I often saw him in his old age when I was a boy, but never in the court-house.
In December, 1835, Robert M. Charlton succeeded
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Judge Nichon, and con tinned the circuit judge "until August, 1837. He was one of the youngest (If not the youngest) men on the circuit bench in the history of the State, he being only twenty-seven years of age. He remained on tli-e ibeiiclj. a short time only, for the same reason thatmany now remain for so short a time oil the bench, or will accept a judgeship at all, viz., the meagerness of the salary. During Ms judgesiiip John E. "Ward was the solicitor-gen eral. In a few months afterr Judge Charlton. retired Mr. Ward^%l like-wise, and the two formed a partnership which continued for twelve or fourteen years. Judge Charlton "was an exceptional! man from any point o view that em braced the good and true. He was a lawyer and judge of the first ability, but great as that was, he exceeded it in the perfection of his private arid personal aharacter. He added to the virtues and graces of the perfect gentleman the un obtrusive piety of the true Christian. He was one of the very few :m>en- to whom the adjectives of sweet and lovely, so often used by one lady of another, would apply. The gift of poesy was his, to make yet more lovable his other gifts and accomplishments. This gift was consistent "with all his other attributes, and was no surprise to any one, as it may be of men who have it evert greater than he, but in contrast with many vices. He was also gifted with a re fined and generous humor, which was never used to wound, but always to heal or confer a pleasure. During the period of which I write the solicitors-general of the circuit "were Joseph W. Jackson, from November, 1831, to May, 1833, then William H. Stiles until January, 1836, fetien John E. Ward until March, 1838.
Each and all of these gentlemen were personally, as well a? by reputation, well known to me. It so happened that each of them had to discharge for the State weighty,
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difficult duties in serious and embarrassing criminal cases of the grade of felony. Joseph "W. Jackson, after having represented the State in Congress from tihc Savannah dis trict, occupied the circuit bench for a brief period, and died of the prevailing epidemic some itihivty years ago1. He -was one of the several sons of Georgias very distinguished Governor, James Jackson. He was of a style and type of honorable and- chivalrous manhood that cannot now be found. "William H. Stiles also represented his native State in the national Congress, and there won renown. He be came the minister of the United States government to the Austrian Empire. As an orator, he was noted for his faultless rhetoric and elocution, and as a gentleman for a grace and polish -of manner not to be excelled. Death, too, has long silenced foretver that tongue of eloquence and that voice of music. John. E. Ward was for many years a conspicuous figure in Georgia politics, and has beeoi theUnited States Minister to the Empire of China. Strange to say, that these two solicitors-general, citizens from the same city, should have been foreign ministers from their national government. Yet stranger, that another from the same city, and who was in later years a judge of the same court, should have been likewise a foreig-n minister Gen eral Henry H. Jackson. Mr. Ward is yet living, but in the city of ISTew York. He alone survives of the older and contemporaneous lawyers of the Savannah bar at the date of his admission. Judge Fleming, "who is an older lawyer, and much older man, was afterwards a member of the Savannah bar.
li?,ears BQO,
Those wfrose names -will follow I can recall as tJie mem bers of the bar fifty years ago, but, of course, of varying age, from tlie old and experienced barrister down to the youngest attorney. They -were Jeremiah Cnyler, Coun sellor J,eakc, William B. Bulloch, ilordecai .Sheftall, Sr., John M. Berrien, George W. Owens, Richard W. Ilabersharn, James TV. Wayne, Joseph S. Pelot, Levi S. TJelyoii,. Joseph TY. Jackson, William Law, W. H. McAllisfc&r, Charles S. Henry, Mordecai flyers, Georg-e Glenn, Jothtt C. Nichall, John II. Clark, lloberf, W. Pooler, William TV. Gordon, Richard P. Cuyler, Robert M. Charlton, John j\Iilleii, William H. Bulloeh, A-lexacnder J. Dry&dale, "Wil liam H. Killer, J. Be LaMotta, Jr., William H. Stiles, George J. Ivollock, Edward J. Hardin and John E. Ward.
Depending almost entirely upon memory, it is quite probable I have failed to recall .a few of the lawyers of that period; it is also probable that among; those mentioned there may be one or two "who were not admitted to practice as early as the year 1834, Vat come in the next year. But, nevertheless, the names of those given are substantially the lawyers of fifty years ago, without respect to age, al though I have had some regard to that in the order they are stated. When I was a student of law from 1842 to1844, Judge Beri-ien and M. Sheftall, Sr., were reputed the oldest among the lawyers in practice, with a small dif ference in favor of jYfr. Sheftall.
Some of those named were not in the practice nor other-
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-wise employed in the line of their profession. Wm. B. Bulloch was a bank officer. jMordecai ilyers "was an officer of the city government, J. De LaJMotta was an editor of the Savannah Rcp'U'blican, Wm. H. Bulloch of the G-eorgi-cun, and Robert W. Pooler was clerk of the superior court. Several of those named attained some distinction in politics, and a few much distinction. John ]\I. Berrien was a member of the Rational Cabinet, and served twio or three terms as United States senator. James W. Wayne -was through several terms a representative in Congress., and -was promoted to a judgeship of the United States Su preme Court, in which office he died. George "W. Owens, Richard W. Ilabersham, Joseph W. Jackson and William PI. Stiles represented Georgia in Congress. Robert M. Charlton was a United States senator. Ed-ward J. Haden was judge of the city court-, and afterwards the Confeder ate judge of Georgia. John E. Ward was speaker of the Georgia House, of Representatives, and minister to China. !N"early all of those named not occupying high positions were more or less honored by their fellow citizens with political positions of honor and profit. There are three old lawyers I can recall who are omitted from the list of law yers fifty years ago. They are William B. Fleming, Solo mon Co-hen and JVIulford Marsh. The reason for this is they were not natives of Savannah, and became citizens thereof after that time. The histories of most of those named are well known to the intelligent reader, and it is only necessary to refer to them because within the scope -of these letters.
There are a few- it may be interesting -to speak of, be.cause they have been so long dead. Levi S. Del/yon was directly descended from the immigration of Israelites "who -soon followed Oglethorpe to the colony of Georgia, as was
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also that oldest lawyer, Mordecai Sheftall, Sr. His per sonal magnetism, his fidelity to his clients, his fluency of speech, and his ability soon drew to him, both in the city and on the circuit, numerous clients. By his professional labors he made, a cp-m.forfcable fortune. He eschewed poli ties, except in the line of his profession., and was a long time judsjjfof the city court of Savannah. He had four sons and a daughter, but of these only two survive, and they are citizens of Texas Mrs. Dr. Hand all, formerly Mrs. Harby, and Loon or eon DeT/yon.
Richard "W. Habersham soon moved from Savannah to I-labersham county, Ga. "While a citizen of that county, in 1838, he was elected to Congress, and re-elected in 1840. He -was a member of Congress during the exciting Harrlson presidential campaign, which produced a reorganization of parties in Georgia, and he, "with five others of the nine elect ed in 1838, unitedwith the "White party, being called by their supporters "the faithful six." A daughter of his, the widow of the late John Milledge, of Augusta, Ga., re sides at Forsyth, Ga., and his grandson, Gapt. John Milledge, in Atlanta, Ga. I never saw Mr. Habersham that I can recall. Mordecai Myers retired from the profession and all active life, and removed to his country home in Cobb county, Ga., where he died many years ago. He was the father of the several Myers brothers of your city. He was a kind., genial, courteous and dignified gentleman. John. M. Clark lost Iris health, which compelled him to re tire from practice and go to the country for several years. Prom there, a few years before the late war, he moved to Covington, Ga., and from there fro Atlanta. He resided at Atlanta in the aotive practice of his profession until dis abled by the infirmities of age, -which occurred only some two years previous to his death. He died in June, 1883, at
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about eighty-two years of ago. He several times represen ted Chatham county in the legislature. In early life and in middle age he was a successful practitionm- and a fascinating speaker. Those lessons of 'high, principles he learned in his rearing he practiced to the I<ast, and thus maintained withal a reputation for that strict integrity "which 110 ad versity conld subvert. Before he died he "was on of the eight oldest lawyers of the State, which number embraced William Ezzard. John P. King, William T. Could, Hark A. Cooper, "William B. Fleming, Ohas. J. Jenkins, and Junin.s Hillyer. His wife preceded him to the grave by a year or two., and they left as sole survivor their son, Col. E. Y. Clark, of Atlanta.
Jotm Millen .has been dead so long ago as the fall of 184-3. In October," 1843, he was elected to Congress on the general ticket, and before taking his seat he died. His death at such time is the first -within nay knowledge, but within the last decade G-en. A. H. Wright, of Augusta, and Col. Garnett Mcilillan, of Clarkesville, died between their election to Congress and (their qualifioation. John Milieu ~nms one of the few men w*ho are oast in a peculiarmold. He was original, and so much so, it could be said of him, as of all such men, thcire never was but one John jYIillen. He was neither erratic nor eccentric, yet in his composition the two were somewhat blended. "What was wrong in others, in him would be right. While he could scarcely be called eloquent, he was an able and successful advocate. His speeches were brief, but, without super fluous thoug-hts or words, he went right to the point. He' cared little how he should begin or conclude an argument, but at once plunged into the middle, and when he was through stopped. His candor and directness gave him much influence with juries. Pie defended Adam and
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Bella (slaves) for tjbe murder of "Warren- (the master -of Bella), in Emngham superior court about the year 1837, with a zeal and -ability that deserved success, but the proof was too plain by their confessions. He pledged his personal character to the innocence of Adam, the prop erty of Mrs. llac;ue, and obtained his respite. Bella was hung-. On theggallows She exonerated Adam, and Colonel Milieu obtained his pardon. Some seven or eight years after, I settled in Baker county, Ga., a.hd there found Adam, -who had been purchased by General Tarver. Guilty or innocent, he owed his life to John Millen. "While Colo nel Millen enjoyed the defense of a criminal case, a politi cal speech during high party excitement was a luxury to him. In. .county, city or ward meetings, he was equally, self-possessed and effective. I have seen him in the big meetings in the Exchange, or the Lyceum Hall, and in the little meetings of the Fort, and of Yamacraw, and at either he was the same Jo!hn Millen, readily adapting himself to the number and quality of his audience. On one occa sion I heard him say to Irishmen, he was a piece of Irish man himself, and to Germans he might have said the same. He was a Jeffersoiiiaii and a Jacksoriiaxi Democrat, and "was often one of the nominees of that party for the legis lature. One of the campaigns gave rise to the refrain, "Shick, Millen and Gordon, the three hurrahs for the hickory tree." Shick was George Shick. He was a family .grocer on the west side of Montgomery, between Congress and BroTighton. lie was a very large man. One leg was shorter than the other, so he wore a heavy boot with a very high heel on one foot, which he would stamp with, unc tion as with a loud and commanding voice he would pro claim the democratic doctrines. His politics was his re ligion, and "prince or peasant" was alike to him. As he
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-would, weigih sugar or flour, lie took the opportunity to in doctrinate the customer m -the virtues and policy iof old Hickory, and if necessary lie would have mauled his poli tics into him as the preacher is said to have "mauled grace into the blacksmith of the mountain pass." John JMillen never married. He was a first cousin to Dr. Arnold, and an uncle of Ool. John M. Milieu, a Savannah lawyer of a late period, who fell in battle on the Confederate side. The law firm was Millen & Kollock, now residing in Habersluam county, Ga. Alexander J. Drysdale was an -ardent politician, of the same school as John Millen. He was a judge of the city court and several times elected a member of the Legislature from Chatham county. He was a small man, of symmetrical form and brunette com plexion, with >a gentle and winning manner. He was a lawyer, but had no taste for the -wrangles of the court-house. The Kev. jVCr. Drysdale, the Episcopalian clergyman, rector of Christ Church, _N~ew Orleans, who has a reputation foJ impressive pulpit reading and preaching, is his son. Robert "W. Pooler, although a lawyer, was, when a young man, elected to the clexkabip of the superior court of Chatham county. It was a lucrative office. Its income, added to his other means, enabled him to live in a luxurious manner. He had his house in the city and his country-seat at Springfield. He held the office for twenty-five or thirty years. A predecessor, Job T. Bolles, held it for a long period. The people then held on to a good office for a long time. There were but few attempts to defeat Captain Pooler, Which all failed, until John IF. Gruilmartin, a young lawyer, under some favorable circumstances, accomplished it. Captain Pooler was of Irish lineage. He was a noble, generous, high-toned man. He was one of the democratic nominees on the general ticket for Congress in the disas-
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trous political campaign of 1840. The whole, democratic ticket was defeated iby some 4,000 majority. He was at his country (home "when the election returns were beingreceived. "When about forty counties we-ro heard from I was at his house, where several of his friends were assem bled. The captain made a calculation and gave up his election. His fgiends tried to encourage him, but lie- said it could not b|fpoth:erwise. I was astonished to see how coolly and cheerfully he took his defeat. He got his mili tary title from having once been the commander of the "Re publican Blues." He was their captain when I first saw them iii the year 1831. He took into his office, in the year 1835., Edward G-. "Wilson, who was then a youth, of some sixteen summers. He made an excellent clerk, and in a few years carried on the office without the presence of Captain Pooler, and was with him up to his defeat. Cap tain Poolers wife "was JVIary Wuyne, a niece of Judge Wayne. They had but one child a. son. He married, and dying left a child a daughter. So the name of Fooler has become extinct. It is curious to notice how many names in course of time become extinguished. To realize this, one only has to look over the names of the first set tlers of Georgia and see how many of them have entirely disappeared. In the very early years of this century there was a lawyer of Savannah named Flyming. In the old cemetery there is a tomb to a lady of that name, who lived to be nearly a hundred. Is the name now extinct?
The only names connected with the sheriffs office fifty years ago I can recall -are th ose of John J. Dews and George Millen. Dews moved to Southwest Georgia about 1840, and from there to Forsyfch, Ga., where he died since the war. His "widow yot survives, together "with several sons and daughters, among them ilr. John Dews of Savannah.
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Dr. George Millen was the father of ifcPherson j\Iillen. He was not related to Col. John jMillen, but his wife, who was a Miss Dennis, w<as his cousin. It is only stating1 a fact, which, is clue to truth, to say that Dr. Millcn was one of the handsomest men of liis time.
It will be perceived I have only named the lawyers and officer* of court wbo were of or preceded the year 1834. Tlicre are a few I can recall who came to the bar within the next few years, namely, "William P. White, R. G~. Oiierard, jSIdcholas Marlo>w, Frances S. Bar tow, Hichard AY. Owens, William !F. Law and Henry Preston. Then, .-a few years later, comes Henry "Williams, Tom Lloyd, .J-ohn W. Owens, Kobert H. Griffin, John H. Goodrich, William J. Bulloch, William T. Goodwill and John Bilbo.
Of the lawyers named fifty years ago, George J. Kollock .and John E. AYiard are the only survivors. Mr. Ward may have been admitted as late as January or February, 1S35; but at the time he was yet a youth not out of his teens. Of the next set William 1?. I>aw is the only survi vor, and of the nest John Bilbo. Thus it may be said of the lawyers admitted in or prior to 1842, there are only five living. Possibly there may be one or two more not recalled, for the human memory is not accurate, however much it may retain. Soon there will be none left of the sets named, nor even of a later date, including "myself .among the rest."
ttbe Ib Cemetery.
It was on a bright beautiful day in jSTovember, 1872,. that 1 found, myself in tlie Forest City, with part of the afternoon. to bejprjoyed. I chose to visit the old cemetery, whither I had||ot been but once, for a few moments, for thirty years. Among nay very earliest recollections is this sacred spot. From a child, too young to realize, until thecares of manhood dawned, I was a frequent visitor to it,, and was familiar with its e.very feature. Since1 then time and distance have made it but a memory. ~K.iiowing that since 1854 it has been abandoned as a buryiiig-place, .and not keeping informed as to its condition, I had supposed it -was surrendered to weeds and briers.
Imagine, then, my agreeable surprise at the smooth and spacious pavement on the south side of the street, along the cemetery to its main gateway. This gratification was greatly increased by the grass nicely cropped, and the graveled Walts which greeted my eyes on entering the cemetery. Expecting the time would soon arrive when it would become a prey to the grasping spirit of a so-called progress/ I was elmrnied to see that the city fathers had held out" against it, and had added another to their many beautiful parks. It was the Jfirgut cemetery I had ever seen, and although I have visited some of the loveliest in the United States, there are none more beautiful to my eyes. Such is the effect of beautiful sights upon the mind of a child, and prominent among tho reasons why man. loves his native land, whether it is a garden or a desert.
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Equally associated in my mind, with tlic cemetery is its first and only sexton, whom 1 ever knew. As I saw him then I see him now a slender, genteel old man, attired in black; whose head -was bowed with age, and shaken with, infirmity. He was one of the "old-school" gentlemen, now so rapidly passing1 away, for, to the honor of the city I be lieve* it may be said, no one but a gentleman has ever filled that station. He was eminently fitted for it. Kind to the living, he "was tender and veiicrative to the dead. The most abject pauper had in. him a mourner. He never re peated "earth to earth, ashes to ashes, and dust to dust/ with, unnaoistened eyes. This was Mr. LabaTi Wrigut, and the year 1831. He died in the year 1844, aged eighty years, and had been a Protestant Christian for fifty years. As I have seen no other graveyard to please me like the "old cemetery," so I have seen no other sexton so good as Mr. "Wright.
On entering at the South Broad street gate, I turned to the right and strolled to the wall on Abercorn street. About midway of this walk are the oldest graves, and in consequence the oldest part of the cemetery. This I will show before I conclude my correspondence by reference to the record. jMany of the oldest slabs and vaults were as familiar to me as any other scenes of childhood. I do not propose to name or describe them, for this has been done before, and they are not only well known to all your citi zens, but to many of your readers. But I shall mention a few, either on account of their connection with, historical facts, or some other -cause. On the route, strangers eyes would soon be attracted by a row of marble slabs, in mem ory of as many of the family of the late Senator Berrien.
The first and oldest is that of Major John Berrien, who died November 6, 1815, aged fifty-six years. He was
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Judge Berriens father, and a soldier and officer of the Revo lution of seventy-sis:. He wintered with Washington at Valley Forge fought gallantly at Monrnouth and else where served till the.close of the "war and attained the ra.nk of major, aJ&hough a mere boy when he entea-ed the service and scarJ^ly a man in. age when he left it. His first wife was Margaret McPherson, a sister of John and Wil liam. John was aide-de-camp to General Montgomery, and fell at Quebec. William "was a British officer, hut surrender ed his commission, escaped to the American lines and ren dered efficient service. Judge 33errien was the only child of this marriage, : and he was born on the 23d of August, 1781, in the State of jSTew Jersey, and "in the house, occupied by General "Washington, for his headquarters when he issued his farewell address to the army. "For the benefit of your readers in distant parts of the State, who arc interested in .anything -which concerns their renowned fellow citizen, Judge Berrien, I will mention the other names and dates there inscribed: Richard M. Berrien, ]VLD., died SOtih of September, 1820, aged twenty-five years, a half brother of the judge, and, I believe, the father of Mrs. Wm. I3uncan of your city; Eliza, wife of Judge Berrien, died 27th of August, 1.828, aged forty-two years; William Berrien, a .son an officer of the United States army, who died while on duty in Florida, 2d December, 1840, aged twenty-seven; ."Nicholas Ancieux Berrien., infant son, died June 17th, 1817. Knowing that Judge Berrien himself is numbered .among the dead, the stranger -would "wonder why his re.mains are not also here, and would require the information that since the closing of the old cemetery, the distin guished statesman and jurist reposes, along with his other dead, in !Laurel Grove. In the many allusions to the his tory of Judge B., I have never read anything as to the
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time or place of his mothers death, except that she died when he was of tender years. A friend informs me that she died at Baisden Bluff, Mclntosh county., about the year1790, then a summer resort, and was buried in a private cemetery on the old Bailey plantation, since the property of Dr. Troup, twelve miles from Darien, on the old Oglethorpe road. The grave, inclosed by a brick wall, was pointed out to him by one of the old citizens of Mclntosh.
The next group of slabs, in close proximity, and as I re member in contact, "which would attract attention, are those of three Episcopal clergymen, two of whom lived, and died in colonial times, and the other very soon there after. The inscriptions make the impression that each suc ceeded the other, as the parish clergyman. They areBartholomew Zoubcrbuhlcr, died 2d September, 1776, rector to the parish twenty-one years; Samuel IT rink of the parish, died October 4th, 1771; Edward Ellingtori, died. 1795.
If any one is curious to examine the statutes of the State, he will find that the Rev. M. Zoubcrbuhler was the subject of the States solicitude, or rather the estate which he left "was. This gentleman, left &. will devising his lands "to be nevolent purposes," but up to 1788, twenty-two years after iris death, it remained unexecuted. On February 1st, of that vear, it was enacted by the General Assembly that the sher iff should take the property, sell, pay debts and expenses., and pay the proceeds to the trustees of Chatham Academy. On the 3d of February, of the next year, as Jacob and Bar tholomew Walburger -were in possession of said lands, claim ing- as heirs of the clergyman, it was enacted that the trus tees should bring ejcctment for them. Two years there after, on the 18th of Deccmbcr, 1701, the legislature, find ing that the Walburgers were "hard to handle," enacted
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that the.y and their sister Henrietta, the wife of Zaelvanah Hoskins, should have said, lands, on the payment of one hundred pounds aiiTnually, for four years, to the trustee* of Chatham -A-ca.c^piiy. "Wlie tlier this ann uifcy was ever paid by the.ancient Walburgers, or the modern Walbnrgers, the laws say not, and so doth this deponent. The legal mind Is here open to inquiry on two points. One is, upon "what principle did the legislature assume to execute a mans will, and in that assumption to take the property from his heirs? _A_nd the other is, what "was there about Mr. Zouborbuhlers will that made such legislation neces sary? If ever probated or recorded in Chatham county, this latter may be answered.
There is a small, tasteful monument within an iron rail ing, that is sacked to the memorv of -Toseph Clay and other members of his family. This gentleman, of revolution ary fame, is well known to all intelligent Georgians. "We arc here told that he was born. 16th October, 1741, died aged sixty-two years. His name is suggestive of his numerous and gifted posterity. ^Many of them are prominent in this generation, and many were likewise prominent in the pre ceding one. The most conspicuous named, are the Cuthberts, the Stiles, and the Ouminings.
The tombs alluded to are not all thus deserving, upon the narrow line I have adopted, but to mention them will, perhaps, make this communication tedious. In my next I will trace the history of the "old cemetery" as obtained from legislation, and in that connection snow its relation to Christ Church, whose "Gods Acre" it originally wag.
The present "old cemetery" at Savannah, was originally the cemetery of Christ Church. On the 15th March,
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1758, the Colonial Council passed, an act for laying of "theseveral districts and divisions of this province into par ishes, "and for other purposes. They constituted several parishes by names and boundaries. The parish in which Savannah was included was named Christ Church Parish.
By the second section of said act, it was further enacted, "that from and after the said 17th day of March, 1758, thechurch already erected in the town of Savannah, and the ground as now used for a cemetery or a burial-place there to, shall be the parish church and cemetery of Christ Church." Both from the language of the section, and the known custom of the time, I infer that the first building of Christ Church was on the cemetery grounds. Tf not, where was it? And if so, when was the1 church removed elsewhere? The first legislation upon the statute book is an act of April 7th, 1763, announcing, thalt "repairing the parish church in the town of Savannah, or rebuilding the same on the present foundation, is found to> be imprac ticable," and appointing commissioners "to cause the build ings and stalls now erected and used for a market in f he center of a square of said town of Savannah, called ^Wights square, to be removed from thence, and in thesame place to lay out a sufficient space of ground for the erecting of a parish church, which said portion of ground so to be laid out shall be and is from henceforth., allotted and appropriated to and for the use of purpose aforesaid."
By the next section, the market was removed to another square, called "Ellis square." "Weights square, I believe, is the square on which the county court-house is erected, and I suppose the name of the present Market square is Ellis. It was there the market "was at the great fire in 1820, as ascertained from late legislation, and if rebuilt on the same spot, it has been the market place for more than
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a century. In m) odern |ijfpines these squares have been re
spectively known as the "Court-bouse/ and the "Market square." Thus there must be many citizens who do not know that the true name of the one is \V right and of the
other Ellis. Christ Church is not now, nor has it been for many years,
in "WVights square. In what yeai" was it moved from thence, and in the meantime has it occupied any other than its present location? This may seem digressive, but it is pertinent to ascertaining the period of time at which the church and its cemetery were separated. The next legislation on the subject of the cemeterv is on the 7th of &.pril, 1763, when the act of 1758 was amended, -and ainon^ other things it was enacted, "That the cemetery be enlarged and extended to the line of Abercorn street to the westward, and one hundred feet to the southward, the "whole to con tain two hivndred and ten feet square." By the same act, a parcel of ground of two hundred feet square was ordered to be laid out and inclosed in the line with the said coine-tery, towards the live-acre lots, for the convenience of a burial ground for negroes. "WliM the size of the ceme tery was before this extension we can only infer, but cer tain it is, that as enlarged, it was only one acre. As it was extended one hundred feet to the southward, we may infer that it was about the same distance westward to Abercorn
street,, and that before 1703 it was about half an acre. Savannah had been settled thirtyjone years before it
required as much as an acre in which to bury its dead. Had yellow fever made its appearance as an epidemic up to this time? It seems that now the necessity for more burial ground rapidly increased, for on the llth of April, 1768, there is another act, providing for another exten sion of the 170 feet adjoining to the westward, and "from
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the ROTn 111011 of the town of Savannah." In both, these acts the power arid the duty of extending arid inclosing are given to the "Church Wardens and Vestry of the said Parish for the time being.," and in this latter act it. was thenceforth forever to be and remain a public burial ground." This is the first reference to it as a public burial ground, but in that reference it is nevertheless treated as corraected. wit>h and under the cliarge of Olwist CliAireh. lu those days there was a g-overnment religion. There was nothing inconsistent in this. So we see thait the true name of the "old cemetery 7 is "the cemetery o>f Christ Church," and if it ever has beeTi formally changed we do not know it. After the Revolution, the government religion having been abolished, this ground, and all like it, became sub ject to> legislative action. The action generally was to place them under the control of the municipal corpora^ tiOns where situated. But was not the title to the ground on. such condition in Christ Oburch, and if so, how could it he dives-ted without consent, so long as it remained a bury ing-ground?
It was not subject to confiscation, for Christ Church, through, its members, joined the rebellion. These ques tions can, I presume, be readily answered from the action of the church and the city council of Savannah "in the early days of the republic."
I desired to add my comments on the monument to Joseph Clay, who died ^STovember, 1803, aged sixty-two years, that a son of the same name survived him. He was a rarely intellectual man, and made himself famous as a lawyer, stateman and clergyman. During the later years of the last century he was the most eminent lawyer* of Sa-
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vannah. He was also the legal preceptor of the most emi nent lawyer of the next generation at the same bar, and in his time, of the whore State Ax> wit, Judge Bcrrien. The firm -of Clay & "Woodruff, in its day, held about the same position in Savannah .as the firms of Berrien & T^aw., McAllistcr & Cohen, and Charlton & Ward held at a more modern, date. During the legal career -of Mr. Clay he was Judge of the United. States District Court of Georgia, and was a member of the State convention, that adopted the Constitution, of 1798, under which her citizens lived until 1861. Tt is tradition that he made the original draft of that instrument, and it was the opinion of the wisest that the amendments made did not improve it.
When only thirty-eight years of age, in 1802, and in the full tide of worldly fame and prosperity, he surrendered all his earthly honors to enter upon an entirely new- career that of a Baptist clergyman. Tie became as eminent a divine as he had been a lawyer, judge, and statesman. His brilliant life "was cut short by death, at the eaily age of forty-seven, while sci-ving as a pastor in the city of Boston. That -was a time when a spirit of Christian fraternity ex isted between the !North and South when abolitionism was not more sacred than the Bible and the Constitution; and when there was no thought of invading the South by em issaries to destroy her peace and prosperity.
A son of Judge Clay, Mr. Thomas Savage Clay, an ele gant gentleman., -well and most favorably known in Savan nah, died in Bryan county., on the family estate, some
twenty-five years ago. jSTot far from the Clay monument is a marble slab to iden
tify the spot where rests the remains of G-corge Cuthbert, who died 14th April, 1.768. Cuthbert is an ancient Geor gia name. Tlie family came here from lower South Caro-
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lina, where the name is yet extant, and one of them "was a brigade commander in the year of 1812. Conspicuous on the rebel side during the revolution at Savannah were John and a Seth John Cuthbert. It is probable that this George, who died seven years before, -was lineally or collaterally nearly related to them, and that John and Alfred Cuthbert, distinguished Georgians at a modern period, were of the same stock. The latter named are the sons of Mary Cuth bert, !a-daughter of the elder Joseph Clay, -whose name is in scribed on the Clay monument, with the date of her birth as 1803. As John, and Alfred Cuthbert have long passed out of the public life and passed out of the public mind, a brief reference to a few points in their history may interest the coast-county Georgians of the present day. They were, as perceived, the grandsons of the elder Joseph Clay, and were either natives of, or reared in, Liberty county. Alfred Cuthbert moved from Savannah, to Jasper county, in this State. He and his brother John were politicians on the Clark side, and on a reconstruction, of parties adhered to the then so-called Union party. This organisation simply sus tained "Old Hickory against Air. Calhoun and his theory of nullification. He was appointed by Governor Ijumpldn in November. 1834, to the United States Senate, to serve out the im-expired term of John Forsyth. He was elected to the same position by the legislature for the ensuing full term, beginning March, 1857, and ending March, 1843. He is represented as a man :of a high order of talents, and ex tremely gifted in conversation. His learning and informa tion were extensive, which made his society delightful to the appreciative. At the expiration of his senatorial ser vice he lived in retirement at his country home, with his books for his companions. That home was on. his planta tion in Jasper county. It consisted of two thousand six
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hundred acres of as good upland (as the limits of Georgia
contained. IMore than half of it was the1 natural forest, and in the midst of this was his mansion. He was scrupulous to preserve and to "beautify the native growth, and had a park that would have gratified the taste of an. English nobleman.
Here, about the year 1855, he died, leaving but one- child, a son, surviving. He had a large number of slaves, ap proximating two hundred, about half of whom lie emanci
pated. The homestead has passed into stranger hands, and it is now the property of Ool. Pugli, of Madison, G-a. "While Mr. Guthbert resided at Savannah, he for a. while-
commanded the Republican Blues, and during the time that Edward F. Tatnall commanded the Guards. It was
under their respective commands that the rivalries between these companies began., and continued up to the war.
John A. Ciithbert was likewise a man of talents, took a high rank in the State as a lawyer, and was a brilliant po litical writer. He moved from the low country to Eatonton, tlien to Eorsyth, then to Milledgeville, where he edited the Federal Union -with great ability. About the year 1835 he moved to Alabama and resided at Mobile or vicinity for many years. He was elected to the United States House-
of Representatives from Georgia during the times of Clark and Troup, arid became a member of that body.
Ijike his brother Alfred he brought to Middle G-eorgia a
large property, but unlike him did not succeed in im proving it. He is represented as more social and affable than Alfred, and had a strong as well as political popularity. His old surviving legal and political competitors remember
him with pleasure, and speak most kindly of him, which displays his kindly nature and brotherly -affection. At ITpson court some lawyers were disputing as to Mr. Oal-
liotins powers of conversation. To settle it one made the
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ho was the "best con
"ay, 1766, aged sixty-four. From the names Mary and Joseph, I supposed this ancient lady to have been of the well-known family of Jonathan JJryan, but while from the locality it is believed to be so, yet it is uncertain. .At the iirst settlement of Sa-
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,JP vannah there was a J\lr. Joseph Bryari of South Carolina.
who, with others, rendered great assistance to Oglethorpe.
It is in honor of tliis gentleman that Bryan street has its.
name. The old people who might know are all dead, and
there is no information to be obtained, but is it not prob
able that she is the widow of that man? She was thirty-
one years of age when Savanna11 was settled was born
in 1702, during the reign of Queen Anne, and might
Lave heard from an eye-witness an account of the xccutaoii
of Charles I., and even of older events. From the possi
bility of such, we can realize how tradition, for even cen
turies, may become reliable history. I know a lady more
than eighty years old, "who in her youth conversed with a.
lady, then in the possession of all of her faculties, aged 102.
Irom these two persons we can go back nearly two centu
ries, and by the proper links, could, in this way, connect
with remote antiquity. It is thus we can appreciate the
data derived from the patriarchal age.
There is a tomb in. the old cemetery that from, the name
on the marble slab many memories are awTakencd with both
young and old. It is that of Guerdon Isaac Seymour, a
native of Hartford, Conn., who died at Savannah on the
12th September, 1814, aged forty-one. The name is nearly
identical, and brings vividly to mind Col. Isaac G-. Sey
mour, a distinguished Georgian. A friend informs me it
ia the grave of his father. At least, certain it is, that Col.
Seymour was a native of Savannah, and that Ids father
lived and died there. He was engaged in printing1 and pub
lishing. Thus, the Georgia Djgcst of IVTarbury and Craw-
ford was published in 1802 a.t Savannah by Seymour,
Woodhopter & Co. It seems that at that period and for
some time before and after we were not so dependent upon
the jSTorth for publishing our books as we subsequently be- -
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MEMORIAL.
came. Tlie Seymours of Connecticut are an old and hon orable family. To them belong Governor Horatio Sey.mour of JSTew York, and the United States senator, Thomas Seymour of Connecticut. Jjike the AValworths and the Tracys oi ^New York, who likewise came from Connecti cut and are of tlie same blood, they remain true to the an cient faith and integrity of their patriotic ancestors. Col. Isaac G-. Seymour w-as educated at Princetou, and there married. In early life he became a citizen of Macon, G-a. ; and for many years edited the Messenger. He served -during the Mexican war as Heiitenarit-colonel of an infan try battalion raised by ^eorgia upon requisition. After the war he moved to New Orleans, and edited the Bulle tin. There "the war between the States" found him. As the colonel of .a Louisiana regiment lie. "went to the field, .and -was killed in the battles around Kiohmond. He was on the old mans list, being about sixty, but sucli was his patriotic zeal and military ardor he went from his retire ment voluntarily to battle for the South, and died the
death the true soldier covets. In the y&ar 1840 there was .a grand military display in Savannah of the military corps of the State. Among them was the Macon "Volunteers, commanded by Captain Seymour. It rivaled and, in the judgment of many, excelled the best Savannah companies. I know, as a youth, I then realized that there were fine com panies in the world besides the Guards and the Blues.
I felt that Captain Seymour was taking away their laurels. It would have completelly reconciled me had I known he was himself from Savannah, and had there im bibed that military spirit which he had imparted to his company, and had made it so excellent. like all native Savannah men, he is said to have had "the big-head" about his native city. He had never seen any city which could
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compare -with it, nor any building which, could approach the Exchange in dimensions or architectural beauty. And from this comparisonj I do not exclude the capitol at Wash ington, or any of the magnificent structures of the old world. The Exchange is the largest building a Savannah boy sees, and it always so remains.
I hope I have not exhausted the patience of the reader with this mingling of the past with the present. We should keep fresh and cherish the memory of our old illus trious dead. In this^we do them the honor they have won, and simultaneously purify our hearts for the struggles and temptations of this now bitter life. Our colonial and revolutionary ancestors, with their immediate descend ants, were infinitely better than the present generation gives promise of being. By them while in life we were taught, by example as well as by precept, all ahe virtues. and now that they are dead, they speak to us from their graves. . If we listen we can both hear and profit.
These precious memories and the beautiful lessons they teach are about all the Yankees have left of the best blood of our land, and these were left because beyond the reach of conquest or pillage.
Note.--Subsequent investigation has disclosed that the law to- move Christ Church to "Wrights square was repealed the next year, and that the church stands now where it was first erected.
Stage J^ort^ l^ears Bgo.
I was much entertained by an article taken from the !N~ew York Star recently, entitled "'Lights of the old Bowery.," and giving interesting items of "The jSTew York stage fifty years ago." Prom sonic of the names and incidents therein stated, I am reminded of theatricals in Savannah for the same length of time in the past not for quite that long- in my own. expeiience, but for as much as forty years. For the other ten I will have to draw a little on tradition. Aty interest was first awakened in this direction by hear ing my mother, -when I was not out of my "tender years," relate to others the wonderful performances 011 the Sa vannah stage of Tom Cooper and "Old Booth,- the trage dians; of the brothers Placide, comedians, and of Gilbert and his wife and others. jSTeither of these ever played upon the Savannah boards since I was old enough to be enter tained by the drama, but they were fresh in the recollec tions of all the playgoers and "their names were on every tongue." ily mother then laid aside theater and jewelry for the church, and never afterwards through a long life re turned to either, but lier experience at the former filled her with, pleasant memories, -which at intervals she would nar rate. "While I am sure sh e gave nip the theater wit! i regrets" perhaps "with a sigh" -I never heard or saw anything which made upon me the same impression with, respect to the jewelry.
The first, observation I have to make about the theater then and recent.lv is, that then the Savannah stage had
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the advantage of the best talents of the country, domesticor foreign, -whether we have reference to the "stars" or the "stock." New York had not then, nor fo-r a long time afterwards, grown to such pro-portions that the best actors could do "well enough there without recourse to the provin cial cities. As a result the said cities had the same oppor tunities Gotham had. Later it became different, and there1 was a marked and felt decline in the traveling companies.. While we have had the opportunity of gazing at the stars that shine on the metropolitan boards, we see very little of the stock. That which travels has declined, until it is sim ply miserable. Every season -we witness the superb per formance of first-class actors and actresses, sustained by a1 company that would not do credit to the Thespians of a country village. It was not igo fifty years ago, nor forty,, nor even twenty, but "since the war" the decline is pal pable. How is this, and what has the war to do with it? 1 Xhe large northern cities lna<i beexi for a long time gradu ally monopolizing the best dramatic talent, and this has been largely aided by the poverty which the -war brought on the South.
J\Iy first remembrances of performances at the Savannah theater is of W. C. Forbes as the lessee, who continued formany seasons. How long I cannot say, but my memory serves me -as early as 1838 and as late as 1844. He was a large, heavy set man, and in his figure and general stage ap pearance resembled Edwin Forrest, who had then just be come a star of the first magnitude in the northern firnrament. He was a stock actor of the best class, and "where the cast suited him his acting gave as much satisfaction as if lie was an acknowledged star. The comedian of the com pany was named jLarismg. He sustained himself through a series of years, and was so good that the professional play-
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goers never tired, of .him. This should stamp him as an actor of superior merit. Such was likewise the case with the leading gentlemen and ladies of the company. In these there was very little change. How many stock actors now would -wear through a second season? One of them was named Pe arson. He was one of those actors who never -went above or fell below a. certain point, which was simply the standard of a respectable stock actor. 33ut he made a great hit, and became very popular in Savannah fYom his personation of General Jackson in the play of "Laifltte, the pirate of the Gulf/ or in a play -where Ijafitte was tlie prin cipal character. Pearson was of the height and figure of the general. These advantages, together witih his "make up," were so much like "Old Hickory," in the judgment of those who had seen him, or liis full length pictures, that whenever he appeared he "brought down the house." So lifelike was the personation that the play -was several times repeated, just that the audience might have one more sight of the general whose fame civil and military had then reached its climax in his successful presidency of the United States through two terms.
As the same leading stock came out every season, so did many of the stars, "but of course only for a wycek, or it might be for a few nights. To those who made this regular or semi-regular appearance, belonged Barnes and his wife, and their daughter. He was popularly called "Old Thames," she ilrs. Barnes, and. the daughter Miss Charlotte I3arnes. .She so inspired respect that the modest called her Miss Charlotte. The, parents, especially the father, were quite .advanced in life, and iliss Charlotte had possibly entered the "melancholy thirties." 'No such combination in one family have I ever seen or read of. There were three of them, and each capable of sustaining- the leading characters
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in almost any play in tlieir lino. This was genteel eomedy 01: melodrama. They made specialties of such plays as "The Love Chase/ "The Honeymoon,," also the "Hunch back/ and all Sheridan Knowless elegant dramas. Mrs. Barnes was -what is called "well preserved/ and could be so "made up" as to represent a character that need not be under thirty. Miss Charlotte could represent any, from a girl in her teens up. On or off the stage she was a refined looking lady, -with the face of an artist. She had black or very dark hair and eyes, a delicately pale complexion, and with otherwise comely features, she was blessed with what very few persons have. a handsome nose of the feminine Grecian type. Her form was above the medium height, slender, but lithe, symmetrical and graceful. As was the case with Julia Dean in every part that she acted that did not. call for disguise, she looked as much the lady as if in the first society assembled in handsome parlors. N~ot even a .breath of scandal sullied her immaculate private character. While the old lady and gentleman were at no discount, Miss Charlotte gave life and zest to the combination. How often have I witnessed their admirable acting in the same play 011 the same1 occasion, where their several parts were just the reverse of any relationship, and 0110 not knowing, would never have suspected. Miss Charlottes fame in theatricals then "was enjoyed by Eliza Logan and Julia Dean. The Uarncacs were English the latter American. "Old Barnes" and his wife, in the course of nature, must be dead. "What was Charlottes subsequent career and fate? The transmission of talents to posterity seems more common, in the theatrical profession than in any other. As far back as the first cast for Addisons "Oato" we find a Mr. J3ooth. There are the illustrious examples of the Keens .and the Kembles, of the old Booth and the young Booths,
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and of late days if you find great dramatic talent the pos sessor is almost sure to have been "born in the purple," as was the case with Mrs. Lander, the Logan ladies, and that little prodigy, Fay Templet on. About the same period" of time there was another old Englishman and his "wife of the name of Davenport, who traveled through the IJnited" States to make money and reputation by the performancesof their phenomenal daughter." She "was only eleven years of age, and yet took the parts -of Shakespeares heroesin his deepest tragedies, and made a specialty of the de formed, disgusting and hateful Richard III. Recurring to* the performance of the latter now at a distance of nearly forty years, and it is impossible for memory to realize -what really transpired in the1 transformation of a girl-child of eleven years into the old, vicious, arid villainous king. But I thought then of the adage: "Soon ripe, soon rotten," and concluded like others so precocious, that mature minds would find the phenomenon scarcely a woman of ordinary talents. But not so, for Miss Davenport, now Mrs. Lander, has stood the test of the severe theatrical critic, and hascut her name high in the niche of theatrical fame. It was my great pleasure, if not any good fortune, only some five or six years ago, to witness on the same stage, in the sameold city, where as a child she had performed "Richard III.,". her performance of "Cleopatra," in the full maturity of womanhood. "While witnessing that performance I won dered if the mind of the actress recurred to her first appear ance on those boards, and if so, if it occurred to her tliat. any of the present audience might have been of the first, for I believe in the long interval Miss Davenport had not again .appeared in the Savannah theater. If that thought did occur to her, I wonder if it further occurred how many of the old audience survived and was present? Perhaps-
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the only person, who made a part of both, "was the writer, ifor on inquiry I could, not find another, ialthoiigh I consul
ted one of the oldest, best informed and most presistent playgoers in the whole city. ISTot that all were dead, but that death, "with other changes made by time, had so ar ranged it, that there may have been but one to> do honor to the sun in its meridian splendor "who admired at the rising.
In verification of my assertion, that in those days the -best dramatic talent visited Savannah, I can cite the engagement of ilacready in the early spring of 1843 or 1844. In about ^our months to come, and that "will have been, thirty-five or thirty-six years ago. The length of that time can bo ap preciated by the realization that the girl child, not then, boom, may be now a grandmother. MJacready honored the "Southern Atlantic cities to an extent that Forrest then had not. To St. Louis, Louisville and jSTew Orleans he had been, but not, I think, to Savannah or Charleston. And Edwin liooth, on "whose shoulders the mantle of Forreet has fallen" in this country, was like him, slow to leave for a brief season the populous cities of the TJnited States. In the great contest and rivalry between Macready and Forrest, those who. had not had the opportunity of seeing 3?orrest in some distant city, could not judge of the difference between the great actors. Macready performed four nights :.at his first appearance in Savannah. The plays -were "Werner," Kichclieu," "Macbeth," and, I think, "Ham let." I saw him only in the two first named. It is more than superfluous to praise his acting that -would be like the .compliment of beauty paid to a reigning belle. It is more subtraction than addition, by treating that as open to dis cussion on which judgment has already been taken. Of course the acting exceeded any that the young of the audi ence had seen; some of the old Could draw comparison be-
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tween him and. Keen, and Cooper and the oldest Booth.Those who have traveled may have seen Forrest, and could1 judge how the tw*o rivals compared, and whether it was truethat j\Iacready, Toeing all that Forrest was excepting1 his ra;n<ting, was therefore the "better actor. Hacready brought with, him, as his supporter, a Mr. Ryder. ]\lr. Ryder was a tall, large-framed man, with black hair and dark com plexion. Ile seemed distinguished for his size, for knowing 1 his part, and for a strong, loud voice. His enunciation was distinct but not clear, because he spoke as if he had just a little Something in his mouth, which acted as a slight im pediment to a perfect utterance. I know nothing of Rydersave his support of Macready. It might be supposed from this that he was an actor of much merit an England, but" this necessarily does not follow. It is said that stars re quire queer qualifications in their supports. First, he must not rate above a certain standard; second, he must not set up for himself at all but act in complete subordination, to the star; and thirdly, he must never do Ms best; in the in spiration of some moment, <on same fortunate occasion, hemight rival his master. Dr. Holmes, in one of his humorous poems, has said "he never dared to write as funny as he could." So the rector who supports a star must never daroto act as well as ho can. Maicready was said to be very ex acting with his support and with all who acted \vita him. They must do just as he commanded, and he "would so com mand as to bring out all of jMacreadys fine points. I judged that in any contingency 2\lacready 'was in no danger from Ryder, and that he showed fine judgment in selecting him. I remember distinctly that in "Werner" Ryder played Gahor, but in "Richelieu" I have no distinct remem"brance of his part. I suppose it was either Baradas or Deilauprat. The reason I do not remember, I pzcsume, is-
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"because in that play the Old Cardinal so overshadows all the other characters. In that part- of the play -where Hichelieu draws around Julic the; sacred circle of the church, I was sure I saw tu!e flaming circle follow his hand as he per formed the jesfcure to make1 it. In "Wemer" Ryder as Gabor made a deep and lasting impression upon me, and in my memory I can sec him as distinctly as I really saw him then. It is said, by those who know that the tragedy of "Wemer, as written by Byron, does not make a good stage play. JVfacready himself adapted it to the stage for him self, and it was rated among his ibest performances. I had read the play and it did not much impress my youthful mind, but when -acted I saw its beauties, and it .has ever since been among my favorite readings. The most impressive of the aH-impressive parts of the fine drama, .and the best act ing of all the fine acting, was in the second scene of the sec ond act, and especially where Werner becomes impatient and indignant with Ulric, beginning with "Ulric ! before you claro despise yoitr father, learn to divine and judge his actions/ and ending with, "Ay! I thought so; you have now on]y one parent; I have1 lost alike father and son, and stand alone." I have emphasized the latter member of the last sentence, because in the elocution and in the acting there came to the audience one of those rare- and grand oc casions when all are lost for tltc time in the solemn reality. I should surmise that if Macready excelled in any parts, where he acted all superbly, it would be !as "Richelieu 7 and as "Werrier." JMac.ready was the original ^Richelieu" of the play. When .Bulwor wrote it lie liad in his mind Macready as the actor, -who would illustrate the part and the author. They must have given him a great advantage over other acitors, in that he was trying on a garment cut for him, from accurate measurement, by a skillful artisan. In
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" Werner " lie altered tlie garment to suit himself, and a misfit was impossible. If Shakespeares plays were composed with a view to any actor then living, after a cer tain time, it -was just as though it had not been. Among Shakespeares great historical plays, for stage effect, !Macbeth is the greatest, if one can venture on any distinction between that and a f ew others of the same sort; and I should conttlude tha!t Maebeth suited Macready, and 'Dice versa, better than any other, from my observation of the man and his acting in the two characters named. He was too large and Solid, and not accompanied by activity and litheness for Hamlet. It has been reserved for Ed-win Booth in. the memory -of the living to have those physical ajid menltial features which fit him for Hamlet. Tfhe same may be said of him in that character as was said by Byron of Sheridan "Nature formed but one such man, <and Stroke the die in moulding Sheridan." "Why certain actors in certain char acters are unapproachable is owing, I should surmise, to the gifts-of nature. "With reference to actors of the present date, Jefferson is a natural born Kip Van Winkle, and Ray mond a natural born Col. Sellers. Actors "who have not within them -the natural elements suited for the parts, can not compete with them. By this, I do not, of course, mean that Jefferson is a vagabond, or that Raymond is a humbug, no more than a successful detective must of necessity be a criminal. John Owens furnishes an example of a firstclass comedian in every part. He cannot be such a Rip "Van "Winkle !as Jefferson, nor such a Col. Sellers as Ray mond, but taking him in all his parts and the average is in }iis favor. This it likely was between Forrcst and ]Vtaoready. While each played most parts equally well, there -were certain parts which one could not possibly plerf orm aa well as the other. As Forrest could not rival Macready in.
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"""Warner/* so Macready could scarcely approach. Forrest in "Metamora" or the "Gladiator." I never saw Forrcst perform until nearly thirty years had passed from, the time I saw Mac-ready. I had heard that the marked difference "between tliem to the favor of the latter was the rant in Forrest, and the entire absence of it in Macready. If this once existed it has ceased to exist, if comparison was a test. Forrests .elocution and acting were more like Macreadys than I thought possible. The similarity, as "well as memory could serve, astonished me, .and I think my memory was true, for I listened to jVIacready with reference to the com ing opportunity of hearing Forrest, and I listened to Forrest "with reference to my memory of having heard Macready. But this memoiry was ovca1 a waste of nearly thirty years, so slowly did my opportunity conic. But "early impressions are the most lasting," and having heiard Macready when yet in my latest teens, bis manner, his style and his tone were so impressed on my mind as to be niear of kin to stereotyping. .If I iam right, Was the Change fflne effect of years, or bad Forrest been improved by Macready ? Forrest was them .an old man, suffering from bodily affliction, and was on the last tonr of acting he ever made. But these unavoidable conditions "were not apparent on the stage in the part he performed that of Dannon, in "Diamom and Pythias." If a non-adept may be allowed an. opinion, his acting was .all the most fastidious taste could have reasonably desired. Those who have known him in his best days might have said ho was a wreck, biit he was too grand for the wreck of a great actor. It is true his brilliant sun was then setting, but the sunset was so beautiful as to leave it a question of doubt, or taste, whether it was most to be admired then, or "when in its meridian splendor. It seems a pity that neither lie nor Macready act again in their children.
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MEMORIAL.
While witnessing Forrests performances, my memory for" a brief momesnt "wandered to other scenes o< the past in which Charles OOonnor and John Van Buren, and John. "W. Fomey and OeoTge Jamison, and the great divorce 1 suit, and the great wrong done -the great -actor, passed; before me.
H IPo^aoe in 1834.
"When I was a boy only ten years of age ray mother sent" me from Savannah to Boston -under the oare of tho captain of the ship. The name of the ship was the Pangus, and the name of the captain was Jacob Moody. The Pangus was propelled only by the wind and her sails. "Wo en countered, much head -winds with very rough weather and were fifteen days in making the voyage. !N~ow it can be made from J^ew York to Liverpool and return in less time.
At that time (May, 1834) there was no steam naviga tion on the ocean. It was three years thereafter before it was attempted, which resulted in failure and disaster. Another attempt was made the following year with a like result.
It must astonish those who are not acquainted with the history of steam navigation and know its present perfection, that it is only fifty-seven years since -the first ocean steam navigation. "We read that a steamship crossed, the Atlan tic from Savannah to Liverpool ^Ome twenty years before, but tlta-t was stoam navigation only in name. The ship was mainly propelled by her sails with steam in connec tion, and at intervaOs. The experiment must liavo been far from satisfactoi-y, or even hopeful, because it was not soon followed by other attempts. We wonder that Europe, with its learning and civilization, was for so many centuries without steam navigation, but we need not be-
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MEMORIAL.
thus astonished when we reflect how long the (world stood wi&iout printing, gunpowder and the mariners compass.
All the inventions which now add so much to the com fort, convenience and substantial interest of man, such as steamships, railroads, telegraphy, (telephones, stenography, typewriting and many others too numerous to mention, do not extend "back beyond an average of fifty years. The one which antedates all is the match, and I can remember when the first match was invented. How >could men with .genius and learning live through so many centuries, even years by the thousand, without thinking of the simple principal which practically applied produces ignition. They used flint and steel in connection "with tinder boxes or the flash of powdecr in the pan. -of the gun, to make fire, and .every co-ok was careful to cover up (the coals in the kitchen before retiring at night, that fire might be there the next morning. Sometimes the live coals became dead ones by morning, and tlien the resort was to the tinder box or the shotgun, or musket, or by going to a neighbor, arid if this was in the country, it involved traveling1 one or moro miles to go for and bring fire. I remember when there were no percussion caps, nor metal pens, nor ruled pa-per, nor blotting paper. A much younger man than I am can re member whon there were no envelopes, no postage stamps and no cooking-stoves.
Kecurring again to steam navigation on the ocean, the first attempt was in. 1837, ;by (a steamship called The Home, .and which -was to ply between Charleston and ISTew York,
On her second voyage, in October of that year, on her
way to Charleston, she was -wrecked off the coast of ^STorth -Carolina, and of ninety passengers only twenty were saved. Among the lost were Oliver H. P:rince, of Georgia, and his .wife. They had gone north (by the slow and weary process
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of the stage. Mr. Prince went to supervise the publica tion of his digest of 1837. He was a distinguished citizen of Georgia for thirty-one years, but a native of Connecti cut. He had compiled the digest of 1820 and served theremainder of the term of Thomas W. Oobb, upon his resig- nation, in fche United States Senate. He was the author of the "Militia Drill" in the "G-eorgia Scenes/ 7 which Hardy transferred almost literally to his novel called "The Trumpet Major/ published in 1850. His wife was Miss !Norman, of Wilkes county, G-eorgia, and the sister of Mrs. "Washington Foe, who yet survives. He left a son of the same name, but now deceased, who was a very bright man, with literary taste., and the close friend of John B. I^amar and Howell Cobb. There are yet many -who remember him.
One of Colonel Princes daughters married Dr. James Mercer Greeiro of Macon, and she yet survives. His other daughter married James Roswell King, now of At lanta, but has joined her father, mother and brother in the "spirit land." Although the remains of Colonel Prince and wife "were not rescued from their "watery grave," there is a monument to them in Rose Hill Ceme tery, >at Macon. One who does not know might suppose their bodies reposed beneath the monument, but the monu ment is a cenotaph "a tomb -without a body." It is a sad ; witness to the disaster attending our first attempt at ocean steam navigation. The inscription is "Oliver Jrlillliouse Prince and Mary R. Prince, who perished in the wreck of the steamship Home/ Monday, October 9, 1837. They were lovely and pleasant in their lives, and in their death not divided. This tablet is erected to perpetuate the be loved memory of our parents by their bereaved and sor rowing children."
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MEMORIAL.
Another attempt at steamship navigation was made the very next year,, 1838. The name of the steamer was "The Pulaski." She was to ply between Savannah and Balti more, touching at Charleston, and had the voyage so ar ranged there was to be only one night at sea. The adver tisements were headed "Only One Xight at Sea." On her return trip north, as I remember, having many passen gers, about the middle of June, she was "wrecked by the explosion of her boiler. The ship, of course, sank, and the passengers had to get in boats or improvised rafts. Those who survived heat and hunger for many days and reached the shore were saved. Some were drowned in landing. Conspicuous among those "who were saved and helped to save others "were James Hamilton Cooper of G-lynn county, and Gr. 33. Lamar of Savannah. Mr. I^amar had with him his entire family, consisting of his "wife and five or six chil dren and two single sisters. Of his immediate family, ho and. his eldest son Charles were saved. His sister;?, thought to be lost, after many days of suffering, reached the shore and survived. Mr. IJa.mlar and his son were taken care of by a Mr. De Ttosset near Wilmington, IN. C. This contact was the foundation of -a lifelong friendship be tween these gentlemen, and each named a son in honor of the other. Derric I^amar, lately of Augusta, was one, and the father of tho "wife of J. W. Harris, Jr., of Cartersville, is the other.
Among Mr. L/amars -children on the Pulaski and lost was his oldest child and da.ughter Martha, a beautiful young lady of sixteen. On my voyage to Boston I referred to, and as made three years before, she was one of the passen gers on her way to school at Oharlestown, Mass. I will" -again refer to that in the progress of this article.
Apropos of my voyage we left Savannah at 5 oclock on
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.a beautiful afternoon in May. Before the setting of the sun. the tea-table "was prepared and was provided, with all the usual cold dishes. There were preserves, jellies, cakes .and cheese and the like, all beautifully distributed over the table. I got 11 sight and at once felt I had a good appe tite. I anxiously awaited the time when I should be alJowed to partake . Tbe time did arrive and I made the best of mv opportunity, as only a hungry boy can. Tea was over before .we crossed the bar. The ship soon began. to rock from the swell in the sea and I began to feel curious ly about the head >and stomach. I bad not anticipated sea sickness, but soon, the feeling developed into nausea, and I ran to the captain, stating my distress. lie took me to the side of the ship, holding my head over, and right there I lost all the nice and fine things I had had for supper. If I had been, taken with seasickness at some other time- it would not have gone BO hard with me. I had to take my berth and keep it for three days. I was not seasick any more. I\Iy appetite increased and. I soon, made up for the loss of my supper. _A_ similar occurrence prevented me from learning to smoke cigars, and which prevented me from learning to smoke cigarettes "when they made their appearance. Three or four gentlemen from Savannah were the guests of my mother, at Springfield, Gra. After .a supper which I had. enjoyed, a gentleman pulled out his cigars .and passed them around. I took one. I had often tried to smoke, but invariably it "would make me sick. How ever, as I "was in such good company, who were smoking such good cigars, I determined to make another trial. TVhen about half through I had feelings similar to that on shipboard, which so developed that my good supper was lost in the same "way. I was then about fifteen, and I deter.xniried that should be my last attempt, and I have "been able
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to keep to my resolve. I am glad of it, if only for onething-, it has saved me from annoying ladies and gentle men by smoking mean, cigars even "two for a nick." "When I ceased to 'be seasick, I passed the most of my timewith, the sailors in the fore part of the ship. There was no other boy to play with. The sailors made a pet of me, and I was surprised to find what good-hearted men roughlooking sailors could be.
As I said, we had hard winds and rough weather.. These made heavy seas.
I will try a.nd describe a sailing ship under such circum stances, for I do not suppose tihoee "who have only made a voyage in large and splendid steamships can have a proper idea of it, unless they have happened to encounter a very severe storm. The ship would frequently stand almost straight up, and it seemed there were only a few feet fromher bow to the sky. It seemed that she would fall back as horses have done in rearing. The very next moment" tho stern, would be "where the bow was, and it seemed as if the ship wooild plunge head foremost into the ocean. Then. rising from that upon another wave, the ship would cereen first to one side then, to the other, with the edge so near the water you "wonder she didnt capsize. "While in this-position a sea would break across the deck. "We also en countered a thunderstorm. It was about midnight. The lightning flashed and the thunder rolled almost constantly. In the panic the captains Commands could be heard, which increased the feeling of fear. There is scarcely anything more terrible to hear iand see than a thunderstorm at sea and in the nigjht. This experience of my early youth gave me an aversion to the sea and all ttfie praises of it I havesince read, whether in prose or verse, is only poetry to me. There are some fine nautical songs which, taking in. the-
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music, I like, but "none of the reality in mine." There is on by Allan Cunningharn. called "A Wet Sheet and a Flowing Sea," in which he says:
" Oh, for a soft and gentle wind, I heard a fair one cry ; But give to me the snoring breeze And white waves heaving high, my boys."
And again:
" Theres tempest in yon horned moon, And lightning in yon cloud;
Hark, the music, mariners, The wind is piping loud."
Then .Barry Cornwall has tried himself on "The Sea,"" and begins thus:
" I love, oh how I love to ride On the fierce, foaming, bursting tide, "Where every mad wave drowns the moon, Or whistles aloft its tempest tune ; And tells how goeth the world below, And why the souwest blasts do blow."
I prefer one of this style:
" Some love to roam "Where the dark seas foam,
And the shrill winds whistle free ; But a mountain land With a chosen band
And a life in the woods for me."
It would be natural for any one to inquire, why was a boy of only ten years of age sent on such a. long and peril ous Voyage. It was thought to be necessary to save me from destruction. My mother, through, what she knew herself and "was informed, was alarmed for my safety, and the only sure remedy was to get me away from Savannah. She had a niece but near her own age, who had married a INorthern gentleman, Mr. Otis Johnson, and after ainass-
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ing a fortune in merchandise, -he retired to his native town of Lynn, Mass., to pass the remainder of his life. That was my destination. My home was to be with them while I "went to school. Lynn was then nine miles from Boston, and I suppose it is the same distance yet.
A Savannah "boy at that time was nothing if not a good swimmer. In the canal he learned to swim, which might be called his primary. In the river he received a higher education, because of its greater depth and scope, and it might be called his academy or high school. That pre pared him to ride the waves of the ocean, where he was graduated, and which might be called his college or uni versity. "When, a boy had learned enough to be promoted to the river he had three aspirations in the line of swim ming. On^e was to dive from a spring-board, and if he could, in plunging, to turn a somersault; another, -when a river steamer came along to make for it, and as it passed to swim upon the waves made in the rear as far as possible; another was to be distinguished by swimming across the wide river. I was an expert swimmer for my age, but not near as much so as I "was reported to my mother. The boys, finding out she was alarmed about me, would (boy like) tell her all sorts of stories about the risks of my life I took. Her lady friends, hearing of my reputation, -would go to her and say, "Sister Clark, if you do not get Richard away he -will certainly be drowned." Mr. ]SToyes was my uncle by marriage. He Soon book me in a gig (no buggies then) to show me something of Boston before I shonld leave by stage for I/vnn. Of course, he showed me the Btatejhouse, ITaneml Hall, Boston commons, the frog ptond, etc. As We rode along he pointed me to a large dwellinghouse, saying that was the home of Mr. "Webster. "Oh, yes," said I, the man th^t made the spelling-book." I
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remember that I was surprised that my uncle made no re ply. I suppose he thought an explanation "useless to a boy so ignorant as not to know the difference between Noah and Daniel Webster, especially as it -was some time after the great debate in the United States Senate between Ifayne and Webster.
Within a day or two I reached Lynn, and the next week became a pupil of the L,ynn academy. Mr. Johnson had two sons who went to the same sdhool, one about my age and one some years younger. Th latter yet survives, and is one of the prominent, citizens and business men of that city, "whose name is Enoch S. Johnson.
Th principal of the academy was a very kind and thoughtful gentleman named Adams. There were about sixty boys, all from Lynn or vicinity, except myself and two others. These were John Gibbes Barnwell, now of Floyd county, Georgia, and William Henry Habersham, both from Beaufort, S. G. Both of these were nearly young men and they made a pet of me. Habersham is
dead. After a very short while I got homesick and could not
throw it off. Because of that I could not learn my les sons. One afflicted with a very bad ease of homesickness is to be pitied. The technical name the doctors give it is nostalgia. In the war between the States many died of it, and of nothing else. It was almost entirely confined to those soldiers who had resided all their lives in the country. The city men generally escaped. 3>esplairing of getting any better, I applied to ray uncle at Boston to send me home. I told him if he did not I would run away and secret myself in the hold of some vessel. I told Mr. Johneon >and wife of my feelings and purpose, and there was a
general consent that I should return.
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Fortunately at that time there was a Savannah lady in Boston accompanied by <a son and daughter, "who was a special friend of my mother a friendship formed in their schoolgirl days. Sire readily consented to take charge ol me, and in the latter days of October we set sail in the brigRome, Gaptain Atwood. Tlhe lady was Mrs. Davenport, and tilie daughter alluded to became the wife of General Henry R. Jackson. The son. was Archie, so long an offi cial of the Central Railroad Bank. The voyage back was smooth, -and made in eight days, the usual time.
As we neiared the bar -and were needing a pilot, the cap tain discoursed of a tragedy I had heard of. It came front the capsizing in a squall at sea of a pilot- boat. Thereby two brothers, named "White, -who were pilots, were drowned. !N"ot long after 1ftie tragedy I saw the two little daughters of one of them dressed in the deepest mourning, which, connected with the cause for wearing It, made a sad and pathetic sight. I wonder what lias been the fate of the two little moxtTners? The captain said the morning of the day of tihe catastrophe he hailed the pilot boat to get a pilot to take him over the bar and up the river to the city, that he and one of the Whites had a misundersbanding which resulted in a quarrel,, and that the last words spoken "were by himself, and that h told White to "go- . to h, 1." He sadd when he heard of their death it smote his conscience, and had been a sorrow to him ever since. Soon after my absence my mother, with three other and younger children, moved to Springfield, twenty-seven miles by dirt road from Siavannah, where there was a first-class (aademy and where tuition and living were much cheaper tfhan in Savannah. Efnngham was her native county. I proceeded thither as soon as I could, and of course there w&s quite a rejoicing. I remember
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that the meeting the realization that my life had not "been lost at sea, that I was at home again and in tiho "bosom of my mothers family" caused me to cry as. I never had before. Not merely this, a crying fit would come over me at any time so often that I got ashamed of it and would hide myself to cry. Jt should bo borne in mind that I was then <a little boy of ten iand that the con trast between the conditions of ten and seventy are too great to grasp. It was very lately I saw at the Maarkham a little boy. Noticing him, I wondered if I could ihave been as small as he was when I made my voyage- of fif teen days. -Cfertainly not.
"I am eleven, sir." "Good heavens," I said to myself, "is it possible I was as small as that boy/ In reference to the happiness of getting home again after a long absence, my feelings "were exactly described by a touching incident of <our late war. It is related of G-uyton McLeridon, who was the uncle of the present GuytOn, of Thomasville, that he said to his comrades: "]3oys, I tell you if I do1 live to get home I will be a yard dog or a house cat for the balance of my life/ In the very next battle the dear fellow was killed, and when he was as kind and noble a heart as ever throbbed in the breast of man, was stilled forever. After the lapse of seventeen years and I had become a lawyer and had been a member of the Georgia senate, I made a visit to Lynn. Of Course, I was entertained by Mr. Johnson and my cousin, his wife. Hr. Johnson re marked >as I had not b-een drowned in the Savannah river, "it developed that to let me return to Georgia was the best. I inquired after the academy boys of that time. There "Was but one remaining in the town. They had gone to
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the South, to the far West, as far -as the Pacific, to South America, and even to Europe.
The importance of Lynn is increased because of its -ad jacency tio the Island -of iTaihaut. At low "water there is a beach connecting the two. 3STahant has been the summer resort for the wealthy of Boston from time immemorial, and notwithstanding the multiplication of such resorts, it is yet so. Senator Lodge is now one of JSfahants summer citizens. X)r. Holmes once said that iNaliant was "the cold roast of Boston."
WJhile in. Boston I passed a week >at the "Revere house." I liked the accommodations and the courtesies better than I did those of the ISTew York {hotels at that time, 1851. About ten years ago I was talking in Atlanta with a South erner, who after the war lived for many years in. !N"ew York city, -and expressed to him my agreeable surprise -at the hotel comforts and hospitalities of Boston. "Yes/ he said, "in. that, as in everything else, there is nothing so good this side of Boston." Boston hias been the hotbed of the anti-slavery agitation. Boston has done the South great injustice, but we must not forget to give lier the credit she deserves, for there were many then then and now ^who took no part in the tirade against the South, and condemned it. In a conversation with General Toomibs on a visit he once made to Boston, and where tie made one of iiis ablest speeches, he said he was surprised to find gen tlemen there who -would not socially recognize Charles Sumner, and he had met many who never saw Anson Burlingame. He also1 said there -were quite a numiber of Bostonians who "were so disgusted -with the politics of the city and State that tihey irad ta&de their domicile in different parts of Europe. I "will conclude this -article by relating an incident or two appertaining to my schooldays at lyymn. A year, or two, or perhaps more, before the war, a gentle-
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man sat opposite me at the table of the Milledgeville hotel. I was sure I once knew him, but /could not place him; time had made such a change in his hair and features. On in quiry I was more than surprised to hear he was Mr. Adams, Who was the principal of the Lynn academy when I was there, and I -was yet more than surprised to hear he "was the brother of the-second wife of Richard 5. Orme, the veteran editor of the Southern Recorder. He (Mr. Adams) was a brother of some near relation to Rev. Dr. IN~ehemiah Adams, who so endeared himself to th Southern people by his able defense of them at Boston, surrounded as he was by their numerous and aggressive enemies.
-While at Lynn I -was -aroused one night by a commo tion in the house. It was caused by a largo fire at Bos ton or vicinity. Then, from Lynn to Boston, was a plain bereft of forest. The fire was seen distinctly. "We ascertained the next day it was the conflagration of the Catholic convent at Oharlestown, burned by <a mob because earne well-known Protestant lady had become a convert to Catholicism and had followed it by entering the convent as d. nun. Attached to the convent was a school for young ladies that acquired a national reputation. Miss Lamar, to whom I have referred as one of the passengers to Boston, had, on arriving, become a pupil of that institution. It was with, difficulty the girls were rescued from tho fire. Thus, she who had escaped death by fire in the summer of 1834, met it by water in the summer of 1838. She "was two years my senior. She, as I said, at her death
was a beautiful young lady of sixteen. It is hard to real ize that if now living she would be an old lady. Her brother Charles, who was saved from drowning in 1834, was killed in an engagement with. General Wilsons com mand at Columbus, Ga., in 1865, and is said to have been the last man killed in battle on the Confederate side. It it sad and strange how fatalities follow families.
Culture of Cotton.
Ooifrton is, >as I remember, a. very ancient plant, and ihas been a product of th.e earth, for years, which can be num bered by the thousands, and "was grown in ancient Egypt. It was only valuable for domestic use, and honce raised in email quantities until the invention of the cotton-gin by AVhitney. I say by "Wliitney, and will never say other wise., although fads have arisen "all along the line," giv ing the credit to others. Lately is the idea that General Greenes widow was1 the inventor, and WMtney stole it. Mrs. Greene allowed Whitney the exclusive use of a room in her home to work at his invention, and would some times make suggestions. She also boarded and lodged him free of charge, because she sa.w his idea -was a good one and knew how much the Country needed the gin. This was not at Cumberland, but at Mulberry Grove plantation, on the Savannah, river twelve miles above Savannah. I have talked about it "with P. M. ISTightengale, her grandeon, and what he $aid he got from her, and he did not claim it for Tier, nor did he say a -word against the com mon understanding that Whitney was the inventor. Ivike BO many inventions, fche inventor could not utilize it, and it was many years before the gin became a practical piece of machinery. At this time Georgia and South Caro lina were practically the only States of the Union, who had a climate suitable for the growth of cotton. Then it was more profitable in these States to raise indigo, a<nd
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that wiaa confined to the extreme south of eiaoh. To this "was added, by tliose who livied iveaor enoaigli to a navi gable stream, wood and timber, which were floated down in rafts to the different seaports, such as. Charleston and
Savannah and a few Otiher smaller towns. Cotton being only required for use rat home, was raised
in very small quantities, just as much as could be manufac tured into -cloth by the use of the loom iamd tihe spinningwheel, which, tog-ether with wool, should be necessary to clothe the families and their slaves. Henco, spinning and "weaving was a necessary part of farm and plantation indus try and was carried on with system. This furnished the farmers with all feheir wearing apparel. I have seen rich farmers clad i<n jeans and homespun, even. iat court and other public places. Every garment they wore was woven at home except their shoes and. hats even the socks "were knitted at hlome. It did not take much cotton to accom plish this, and the acreage required was so small, compared with that required for loom, that the ground it gre-^v on "was called the1 "cot-ton patch." It thus received that name1, and was so called long after the patch had grown into the field. It was only raised in patches, because of the diffi culty of separating the seed from the lint. The old people, mostly -the old women and children, were detailed for that purpose, which they had to do by the hard sand tedious process of picking the seed out with their fingers. AVhen the cotton gin "got to going" this process was stopped by all who were .able to buy a gin and place it in position., .and of course there were not many who had to continue the old process. But after getting the gin the planter was puzzled to know how he should pack the lint to send to market, and the only way to get to market then, unless by -a navigable stream, was by wagon, and in most instances
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after several days journey. This problem was solved by getting such, "bagging as was then to be had, and making out of it bags in which to pack the cotton. These were necessarily round, and that they might be -handled after the packing, at e-aoh end of the bag a portion of the bag ging -was left loose and fastened around so as to make a knot to be taken hold of by which to handle the bag. A hole was left in the floor of the lint room of enough capac ity to let the bag down, and then it was fastened so it would hold the "weight of the cotton after packing and the weight of a man during the packing, wlto -would get in the bag and stamp it down with his feet, aided by a crowbar or other heavy instrument. When these bags were well packed and sewed each weighed about 300 pounds. At least on a crop of from fifty to 300 bags the average was 300 pounds. When I say bags I mean bags as distinguished from bales, as they were called after the invention of thecotton screw and the box which went with it.
An important effect of tlhe invention of the cotton-gin, was to raise tihe price of slaves. They -were then very low from two causes. One was that there was a large per cent. of them native Africans, and the otiher was that there could be nothing raised from their lalbor that would pay except rice, and that was limited to a small extent of the terri tory comparatively. In tihe days long before- the cottongin a gOOd horse was worth more than a slave. A gentle man told me the had read the "will of one of his ancestors, who bequeathed his horses, mules and other live stock tohis daughters because they -were so much more valuable than his negroes. Tihe increased culture of cotton, by means of -the gin, had so advanced the price that it in creased the price of slaves, and the planters went to buying more land and more slaves until many planters got to
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owning them by the hundreds, even up to the thousands, aided, of course, by their natural increase.
The invention of iihe cotton, screw with its box appurte nance ended the days of the round bags and began that of the bales. I nave never read or heard anything of the in ventor of the screw, and if any one knows its history I hopehe will tell it, because I consider that inventor as second only -to the inventor of tftie gin. That invention gave cot ton another impetus, because it placed it in a condition where so mucn more of it could be transported in the Same space, and thus largely increasing the cargoes for northern and foreign markets. The square bales averaged at least 450 pounds, and from that to 500 or 525. Then came railroad transportation and the invention of the compress, where by the latter cotton Could be placed in a yet smaller com pass, which further increased its production without dimin ishing its average price. Thus the cotton belt of the South grew rich as the effect of the gin, screw, compress and rail road, until in 1860 and 1861 able-bodied men slaves aver aged $1,000, atnd the average land $20 per acre, not to in clude the rich lands of the Mississippi and its tributaries, where lands and slaves "were largely more valuable. In connection with cotton-planting conies the nistory of itsprogress as to the number of bales made by tlbe largest cot ton-planters of Georgia.
We have it by -tradition that in 1825 to 1827 the largest crop raised per annum by a Georgia cotton-planter was 300 round bags. Because of making 300 round bags the planter who made them, ilr. "William "Walker, was called "rich Billy Walker." His plantation was in Putnamcounty, not very far from Milledgeville. He 'was an ar dent personal and political friend of Governor Troup. While in office the governor would make visits 60 his
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friend Walker. On his first visit, according to tradition, "rich Billy" took the big governor over Ms large planta tion. On reaching the top of the hill he said, ""Now, gov ernor, from tJhis spot you "will have the most scopious view of my plantation/ -and tihen. h-e called the governors atten tion to a stream at a distance. "Now, governor," he said, "the beauty of the plantation is, that that branch ^triangnlates all through it." Then, as now, the "wrong word sounding like the right, makes a more forcible expression.
At that time, ias it "was for many years before, "the school master was not much .abroad" and the ancestors of many of us were not experts at speaking the kings English, but when it came to action in all utilities they could take the premium.
In illustration of the rapid progress the Greorgia cot ton-planter made, I will say tflmt -when I went to what waa then Baker county (now Dougherty) about twenty years later, the largest cotton-planter in all Southwest Greorgia had planted that year for 1,000 bales aoid he made 969. Continuing year by year to increase his acreage, thirteen years later (1857) he made 2,000 bales, and at that made more cotton than any man in Greorgia, and, perhaps, more than any cotton-planter in the South this side of the Mis sissippi and its tributaries. I have heard there were plant ers in that region who made from three to four thousand so much that "when there was a heavy crop it could not be picked in time for the next planting, and then many bales were destroyed in the planting.
The chief of the Greorgia planters was named Joseph Bond. I forget if ho was a -colonel, but if he was he was >a .gentleman who prized the plain title of mister more. His home plantation was in Lee county? within ten miles of Albany, but he had three plantations in that county, and
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as many more in Dougherty. His plantations in both counties adjoined those of Colonel Benjamin Jordan, that ^afterwards descended to his son, Leonidas, commonly called X-ee, who "bought one or more of the Bond plantations.
The Jordans were near relatives of Bonds wife, who was a Miss HVToughon, the daughter of anotfher rich cotton-plan ter residing in Baldwin county. Joe was one of the several sons of Lewis Bond, <a very wealthy planter of Wilkinson county, Georgia. He left a will and gave Joe -a larger legacy than the others. He must have been a man of con siderable humor and largely of the satirical kind, for in his will he struck at the weaknesses of his sons -and sons-in-law by giving each a special bequest to indulge them. One was a certain sum to be invested in blooded horses, another for game chickens, etc. He had a son-in-law who spent a good deal in fine -clothes and jewelry to him he be queathed $1,000 for the purchase of perfumery.
The year after Joe Bond had reached the maximum of 2,000 bales (1858), it.is most sad to say he was shot am-d killed in an encounter -with an overseer on a neighboring plantation. He had beaten the faithful old family servant of Bonds wife. Immediately after hearing it he mounted. his horse and sought, him. He found the overseer in fads field mounted also. He rode up to him, knocked him off his horse with a stick, dismounted and was giving him a severe beating "when he drew an old-time, ctommon onebarreled pistol, shot up and Bond was a dead man. What a pity! What a pity! At -tfhis time he was just fortyseven years of age ajid a fine specimen of the gentleman and the athlete combined.
Two successive grand juries found "no bill" upon the indictments, and the overseer stood acquitted of the crime. Bond left a young wife with four children. He also left
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a. will,, and. to the -astonishment of every on , directed that all his vast estates in lands and negroes should be sold and the proceeds invested in securities, and they "were &o sold and eo invested. In the changes of time the widow mar ried, and so did the oldest child, a daughter, and likewise, in the changes the most of this great estate was lost. Had Joe Bond lived until after the "war, he would have been among1 our very few ante-bellum planters "who prospered under the new and perilous condition, of affairs. Again, I say, what a pity he so sacrificed his precious and valuable life. His home at tihe time of his death was ait MJacon, Ga. He owned what for a long time was the grandest home m MJacon even in G-eorgia built by dear old Jerry Cowles, and is now the home and property of Mr. Samuel Ooleman.
Wlft at Georgia's Bar.
"From history and tradition we know bli:at wit and humor have been one of the features of the court-room. We read of it in the highest courts of England, before G-eorgia was even a colony, and -we read or hear of it in the Supreme Court of the United States, the highest courts of the diferent States, including those of our own State. All the varieties of human nature and human action appear in the trial of cases and other court proceedings. Taking a series of years, and it surpasses the stage, for what we see and hear in the court-room is from real life, while that of tibe stage is imaginary, although based upon reasonable possibilities.
It is the privilege of the lawyers in argument to indulge in humor as much as they please, but the judge can only do so to a limited extent, lest the dignity and the propriety of the court may be compromised. Nevertheless a judge with a nice or good sense of humor having a good opportu nity, may act his part, and indulge occasionally in a pleas antry that is humorous. This habit of former times, in dulged in by the best and wisest judges, seems to have niucii declined. The lawyers possessing wit and humor are few in number, or somehow they do not occupy the bench, or if they do, consider it improper to indulge their tastes.
In my earlier years I "was always contemporaneous with foonie humorous judge, and heard of others who had lately passed from that stage o-f action, so that I became impressed with it as a fine quality and one often of utility. In fact, as one phase of the humorous, I enjoyed it very much.
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~N'<yw I hear very little of it, and if a judge should occaeionally make a humorous point, it seems to be only par tially appreciated by the audience., including even the jurors. Evidently they have not been accustomed to it, and so, if matters progress as they are, it will n>ot be many years when wit and humor from the bench will be classed among the "lost arts/ if art it >can be called. Some of our judges have adjudged "law an art," and if so, the manner of its enforcement should be part of the art. Nevertheless we sometimes read in the papers or magazines -of some judge who ventures into the field of humor. I will quote two instances, as they serve to illustrate the kind of humor which might be called judicial. A, juror asked a judge to excuse him from duty on the ground that he was diseased. The judge said, "You look remarkably well for a diseased man." "I know I do1, judge, but it is for tfhe sake of the other jurors, not for myself, I desire to be excused." ""What sort of disease is that," said the judge, "that affects others?" "It is the itch, judge." The judge caught on at once, and promptly and emphatically said: "Mr. Clerk, scratch off that man."
In another instance ja man in the court-room in a state of intoxication became noisy, and, of course, disorderly. The judge began an investigation by asking the man his name. "My name, judge, is Old Horse." Then tihe judge ordered the sheriff "to put that old horse in the stable."
Prom the standpoint of the declinie of Irumor upon the bench, I think it might be entertaining to mention some of our Georgia judges, who, in the discharge of duty, acquired a reputation for wit or humor, or both. I sliall take them up chronologically as nearly as I can. The first I recall is Thomas Peter Games, wiho was a superior court judge in the very first years of tihis century. He was the judge who
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asked a young lawyer friend -who was a candidate for the legislature in Tlabersham ooiunty what his chances for elec tion were. He said he "would be elected if he could get over the objection tike people had to him because of his being a lawyer. I will fix flhat, said the judge, an.d he at once gave him a formal certincaite as judge of the circuit, "that he was-
no lawyer."
The next is John M. Dooly, who was a wit as well as a humorist on or off the bench, and concerning wihom raianysamples of humor have oome down to the present time bytradition. I select as an illustration of his quality of humor the following: He had held court at Washington, G-a., all" the week, and while he was taking his dinner rh.!e called to him the keeper of the hotel, and said: "Mr. Landlord, I am through -with the court except one judicial act whidh I will now perform, and that is to discharge this pig until the1 next term of court, upon his own recognizance." The point of it was the pig had made his appearance at every meal during the whole week, and for some cause1 a good part of the pig was yet present. Akin to this is what Judg- William H. Underwood (the father of Judge John W. H.) said to the tavern-keeper at Spring Place, Murray county. The fare; was wretched, and cooked, sobadly it was difficult for his guests to appease their hunger. The judge, on completing his dinner, or rather after he had finished the attetm.pt, veiry solemnly asked tlhe landlord to come to his room, as he wished to talk to him confidentially. When he came, the judge said to him: "Have you ever served as bailiff to a petit jury?" "Yes, judge, often. Wiry do you ask the question?" "I thought you had, and I fear you are under a hallucination that your guests are jurors you are guarding!" "Why so, Judge?" And then tflie judge answered: "Because you are keeping them as nearly
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as you. can without meat or drink/ candle light, fire and water only excepted." The landlord assured the judge that if he -was under such hallucinations he would at once -dispel it, and give him substantial evidence of it. My con clusion is from, such evidence as I have had, that Dooly was the greatest wit and humorist combined of all the Geor gia judges, and that Underwood -was equal to him, if not superior, in the separate quality of wit. Whether you can call it wit or humor, or both, in Dooly, h was genial, even at times congenial, but Underwood was solely a wit, for there ~was in all his bright sayings a sarcasm that was stinging, sometimes crushing.
The nest judge I shall name "was _A_ugustin Smith Clayton. I have mo samples of his judicial humor only that in private and disconnected with his judgeship. He had the reputation of being a man of "infinite humor" which came to the surface all the tirno, whether in or out of court, and "whom to know was to love." My next judge noted for his wit or humor "was Edward 1). Tracy, the father of Phile mon, the major of the Sixth Georgia, who was killed at Sharpsburg, and of General Edward D., who was killed in battle near "Vicksbiirg. The most of Judge Tracys wit ticisms 011 the beimh -were gotten off in colloquies with his solicitor-general, Augustus Wing-field, Galled for short "Gus." He was also a bright, humorous and appreciative man, and was generally equal to the requisitions the judge made upon him. It is said that tlhe courthouse humorous talk between tfhese twio was entertaining to t?he last degree. Onoe the judge "caught ooit" Mr. ~W~.
It was at Monroe Court. (Eorsyth). The judge was making his genetral charge to the grand jury. There was no supreme court, and parties wetre allowed one appeal from the verdict of a traverse jury to a special jury stricken from
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the grand jury. The judge stated to the grand jury that the appeal docket was immense that thei-fe were 300 cases on it, and he had no doubt nearly all of them were frivolous , appeals; that the dockets hald to hiave a cleaning out like the Augean stable had. Just at this time he turned to Solicitor "Wingfield and asked him the name of the river Hercules turned through the Augean stable. G-us answered very promptly, "The Styx, your honor." "The Styx, you Say I I thought you were a scholar, ilr. "Wingfield. I will tell you now, so you will know it hereafter. It was the_river Peneus Hercules so well utilized."
Judg-e Tracy was the judge of the Flint circuit, a part of "which Bibb county tlien was, but there was a new circuit formed, in which Bibb was embraced, called as now the ^Vlaeon circuit.
In the course of two terms after leaving the bench Judge Tracy had a successor in the quality of wit and humor, who was Abner P. Powers. He could get, and get with pro priety, more fun out of the dockets of Ms courts than any judge I ever knew. His humor was like Tom JVToores poetry it w>as all so goiod there was but little that (to use a common phrase) "stuck out." He was kind, genial and gentle. It was owing to one of his rulings that the law was passed against what was termed "wife-beating. A man was prosecuted in Dooly county for an assault and battery upon his wife. The judge determined that the law of as sault and battery did not apply to fusses between man and wife. It was thoughit at the time erroneous, but upon re flection it was concluded the judge was right, hence the law against "wife-beating." The argument of iftiis case was about the most amusing scene. I ever witnessed in a court-house. It was in vain the lawyers read from the books that the husband had a right to chastise his wife if he did
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not use an instrument larger tlian his thumb, had been done away with in the more polite reign of Charles II. Judge Powerss criticism upon Charles II. was rich beyond de scription, and as true as it was botlh just and amusing. Thatvicious fellow, Charles II. should make no precedent wor thy of observance.
The most modern humorist among our Georgia judges was John "W. H. Underwood, and in his day, perfhiaps, the only one on the benoh who could !be so called. He must have inherited this quality, for, as I said, his father in that respect, was superb, and it was much of the same sort as his fathers. The lawyers who practiced in this court relate many of his humorous sayings and many humorous scenes occurring in his Courts. In a paper read before the last State Bar Association, by Hon. Charles H. Smith, Commonly known as "Bill Arp," he narrated several of his humorous sayings and scenes, which paper I do not have before me, or I would select a. sample. I know- of a few, but there is too much of the ad hominem in them to be published, lest the objects of his jests might be offended. We now- have in office and in the active discharge of his duties as >a solici tor-general a lawyer of great -wit and humor. Those who know him. and :of him will at once say I mean Charles IX Hill, of the Atlanta circuit. For nine years I have pre sided where he performed the duties of prosecuting offi cer. It would seem that in that time his resources would be exhausted, but not so. They seem inexhaustible. It is very rare that he tells the same anecdote, incident, or makes the same quotation a second time. His (anecdotes are "rich, rare and racy." He is very happy in those appertaining to our Colored fellow-citizens, although he often says, when he meets a genuine "befo de -war darky," he feels like taking off his hat to him." In illustrating the thickness
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arid hardness -of the skulls of the descendants :of Africa he said a negro man was sitting1 in. front of his house under a tree asleep; that he was doing some heavy nodding to the right, to the left and in front. A goat came sauntering along, -and, looking -ait the nodding negro, he supposed lie was challenging him for a fight. So he rose on his hind feet and gave the negro a butt in the head. The effect simply was that the goat lay dead and the negro kept on sleeping and nlodding. Another of his colored anecdotes is that a negro and a white man got into a dispute over the sacred scriptures. The white man got out of patience witih. the negro and angrily said, ""Well, 220 matter how that is, no negro will ever get to heaven." "Why so," said the negro. "Why, simply because tOie negro is nowhere men tioned in the Bible or Testament." "He isnt, eh?" re torted the negro. "Id like to know what you gwine to dc wid Nagger Demus?"
Sometimes I asked Mr. Hill questions to> draw him out, a la Tracy and Wingfield, and lie was always equal to the emergency, except once, with which exception I "will con clude this article. To illustrate, when, our long criminal term was drawing to a close, John MJonagan, the solicitors bailiff, assured me he would get through in two or three days. I congratulated myself that my long and difficult labor of nine weeks would soon be over. On going to the court-room the next morning, the first thing Mr. Hill did was to order the sheriff to bring out tilie remaining prison ers, "when, to my horror, there were just fifteen of all shades, from nearly "snowy white to sooty." Among them were the rough burglars and the delicate demi-mondes of tihe colored "four hundred." After they were seated I asked JVTr. Hill why was our court like Tennysons brook. He promptly answered, "because it runs on forever." At tone
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recent session of Our court we tried a negro charged with burglary, whose name wias Ivy Green. I could not resist reminding J\Ir. Hill that he was prosecuting a man who bore the same name as a poem by his friend Dickens. I Baid his friend Dickens, because he oftener quotes from Dickens than .any other author, and has an enthusiastic admiration for him. But now, for the exception: On the first day of every session the prisoners are all brought into the .court-room to see who is the lawyer of each, and if a prisoner has none to appoint one. The basement where we hold court is fitted up church-fa&hion. The Central Presbyterian moved the pews of their old church there and held their services there while the new church was being constructed. When they moved into their new church the county bought their old pews. The prisoners are seated on the two pews in front, and as the name of each one is called ho tells who his lawyer is, or if he wants one appointed. When the last one in the row stood up his clothing was all in shreds, and it seemed that he aoid it would at once part company. He had no lawyer and I had" to appoint one. Taking the idea from his tattered condi tion, said I, "Mr. Hill, is there any lawyer at this bar named Sans Culottes?"
"I know of no lawyer of that -name, he replied, but why do you ask the question?"
"Because," I said, "if there is a lawyer at this bar named Sans Culottes, he is the very one who should defend thisman."
With perfect seriousness Mr. Hill replied, "I assure your honor I know of no lawyer of that name."
For the first time I discovered that Mr. Hill had not "caught on." I simply said three times in a distinct and solemn tone: "Lost! Lost!! Lost!!!"
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Perhaps I had better 'explain, for the benefit of some reader -who might be in Mr. Hills fix, that the rabble, the ragged republicans during the French revolution, were called the "Sans Culottes," the literal meaning of which, is "without breeches." Under a cruel <and unscrupulous leader this part of the Paris population committed many atrocities and they "were much dreaded by both friend and foe. I do not know if Mr. Hill knows to this day that he failed to take my idea, which might be my fault for making such an application of the phrase, "Sans Culottes."
Lest many may not know who I mean by Mr. Hill, I will state that I mean Charley Hill. "Mr. Hill" is my court-room name for him, as "Captain Myers" is my court room name for Frank.
pattfs Cbilbboob.
One day dose on forty years ago I happened to meet
the late Maurice Str-akosch in some piano ware^ooms in To
ronto, Canada.
"I have been telling ,a friend here" said he to me when I
-entered, "th-at I have had for some time Tinder my instruc
tion a little relative of mine, not yet out of short dresses^
& sister of my wife, who is destined to become one of the
greatest singers in the w^orld. She is yet scarcely ten
years of age, bnt so phenomenal is her voice, her execution
and her musical genius generally, that I have already
brought her out in concert, and am now arranging for her
appearance at Hamilton in conjunction with Ole Bull,
3VTme. Strakosch and myself. Come and near her, and one
day when we meet again, you "will tell me that I prophe sied truly."
Years rolled by and Patti was in the zenith of her fame when Strakosch and I met again, but this time in !N"ew
York, and on the occasion of his last visit -to that city.
With wondrous tenacity of memory he referred to onr con
versation of long -ago regarding the famous Spanish diva.
"Yes," said he, "she has realized all my expectations as
far as her art is concerned, and so proud was I of her I tad
determined to never take another pupil. ^N"or -would I have
taken one h-ad I not been betrayed in Vienna into breaking1
my resolution. But," he continued, "more on this sub
ject when I see you again, for I must now be off to keep an
engagement."
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Tlio other pupil referred to at tide conclusion is now a young lady named JSTikita ISHoholson, but sings under tae name of "IsTikita, and although "not yet twenty years of age, she has sung1 almost everywhere in half a dozen lan guages with uncommon success. In Russia she created siich <a fiiror that at Moscow the students almost wrecked the interior of the opera house "because the management would not suffer them to encore her as much ias they pleased." Her r^ame is Marguerite Louise ISFicholson, and she was born at Washington, D. C., August 18, 1872.
3STot long after the meeting of the Worlds correspondent with Strakoscli "close on forty years ago" perhaps as much as a year, and in this very month of February, 1854, he (Strakosch) visited Milledgeville, Ga., during a session of the legislature, with a concert troupe. It consisted of Ole> Bull, Strakosdh himself, and his wife, known to the stage as Amelia Patti, and the prodigy, Adelina, called then the "Little Patti," to distinguish her from her two grown sisters.
She was said then to be nine years of age, ;but according to the date now given of her birth, she had accomplished her tenth year. She did not look older than nine, and was perfectly childlike -in her appearance and behavior. Her sister had an infant, "a child in arms," and it was evi dent th-at it -was a part of "Little PattiV duty to "nurse the baby." She would roll it in the baby carriage up and down the sidewalk, in front of the Huson hotel, where the troupo were guests. The house .and servants were the property of Mrs. Huson, an aged lady, and she was also the landlady. Her attire was of the fashion of an ancient date, and as a part of it, she wore regularly the Martha Washington cap.
It would make a picture for -a painter, or photographer,
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to take the old lady as she sat on the veranda, and -watched1 little Patti roll the baby backwards and forwards along theside walk. There was much of substantial comfort in theOld ladys hotel. So was there -at McCombs (her son-in law), and at Beecher aoid Browns the three principal hotels of the town.
Mr. Toombs remarked, after his first visit to Europe, that the Milledgeville hotels furnished fare at a dollar and a quarter a day that would cost ten in London or Paris. Then, the servants were superb. They were trained totheir duty from small children by their masters and mis tresses. They were an essential part of the population of the old capital, and are now well and kindly remembered, Most of them are lamented, for now there are few remain ing wlio "were on duty from thirty bo forty years ago.
The concerts were held at night in the senate -chamber, and Tittle Patti had to be placed upon <an elevation to befully seen and heard. "When nothing else oould be found she stood upon a chair. Of course the .audience wascharmed with the singing of the child, but I suppose no onethought or imagined she would be the prima donna of the world. Her sister, Amelia .Strakosdh, had a superb voice and a well-earned reputation. Ole Bull was a violinist without an equal, and altogether the lovers of fine music were delighted. In these days of so many fine opera houses, it is strange that less than forty years -ago, the worlds greatest violinist and greatest prima donna traveled through the small towns of the Soutlh. At the time I write of Max Strakosch, the brother of Maurice, was the opera manager of New York city the Maplefcon of laterdays. Mapleton spirited Patti away at the age of seven teen from her brother-in-law, and gave her the send-off" that culminated in her unprecedented triumph. StrakoscK
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was the better trainer, but Mapleton the better showman, and while the musical world are grateful to ilapleton, care should be taken to concede iall honor to Strakosch, "who was a father as -well as teacher and trainer to Patti. Maurice," poor fellow, is -dead, and "ISTikitei," who is taking Pafctg place in opera, is singing under the management of his son, who is Pattis nephew.
Thus it is that gifts and employments descend from parent to child, and even to later generations. Patti her self is .an illustration of this. Her mother, Madam Barilli, was in her day not less famous in Europe than her daugh ter. It will astonish one who is not already informed to know that she was the mother of twelve children eight of the Barilli, and four of the Patti marriage; and Adelrna. was the last and youngest of them all.
The circumstance of her birth is worth mentioning. The mother was playing an engagement at Madrid. She went through with her part .as usual one night, but before she left the opera house she added another to the number of her children, and the babes voice was first heard in the "green room." Kings and queens -are said to be "born in the purple," and that figuratively is applied to those who follow the professions of the parent, but Adelina was not only "born in the purple," but in one of the ap^fenients of the royal palace. Here we should pause and salute that great mother, "who could pursue her vocation while she bore and reared twelve children.
To sing in opera was her business in life, and she had the children and disposed of them <as if they had been so many little "side-shows." How often has the observer noticed the same in the ordinary affairs of life, where the mother would have so many children, and yet keep up with her domestic and other duties. Some of them would have
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from ten to fifteen, and after nature had relieved her of further duty of that kind, she would get her a new black dress, a clean collar, brush her hair, put on a new "white cap, and preside at the table, looking as innocent as if she hiad nlot had more than half a dozen.
In reference to actors and authors and others being "bom in the purple" the Booths are a. notable illustration. Among the d-rwnwtis personw in the British drama will be- found the name of Booth, and as far back as the very -early years of the eighteenth centuiry say 1705. Apro pos of this as to Patfti, the same, perhaps, may be said of her Ihusiband !N~iccohlini.
Colley Gibber, an actor,, author and scholar, has written -a book which be calls "an apology for his life." He began his career as an actor moire ilhiain bwo hundred years ago, .anid later in his life wrote the book. He gives his expe rience witih itlhe stage and tfhe aictoins and actresses with Whom he came in contact. He it "was who revised the play of Richard III. to better adapt it to the stage, and his version is the playing copy used to this late time. In his book he gives us the history of the opera in London, and the best and most famous of singers was a man named ^Niccolini. He says: "The first opera that appeared was Pyrrhus. . . . The chief performers in this were Niccolini, Valentine and IVIrs. Tafts; and for the inferior
parts the best that were then to be found. Whatever praises may [have been given to. itihe most famous, voices til/at <have been heard since ^Naeeolini, upon the wholo I -cannot but concur in the opinion -that still prevails among -several persons of condition, -who are able to give a reason f oo- .their liking, that no singer since Ms time has so justly and gracefully acquitted himself in whichever character Sa-e (appeared as Niccolini."
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The critical cen&or > Great Britain Bays of him in Ms ll&tih. Tattler: "Kicoolini seta off the character he beiars in. an opera by his action as much as he does the "words of it by his voice; every limb and finger contributes to the part he acts, inasmuch (that a deaf man might go along with him. in the sense of it. There is scarce a beautiful posture in an old stiatue which he does 210* plant himself in, 'as he cir cumstances of the story give reason for it. He performs the most ordinary action, in a manner suitable to the great ness of his ciiiaracter, and shows the prince even in tfhe giv ing of a letter or dispatching of a message."
JSTicoolini flourished in the early years of the eighteenth1 century, say 1720, and -can it !be -tihat Pialttls ^Naccolini de scended from him, or is it only a coincidence? If merely a coincidence, it is interesting to mention,
The beautiful lilttle gfcrl child itbat I first saw in 1854still retains her place and her fame in opera, but her pres ent engagement in the United iStiaites may be her last tri umph, for in less than two years more she will have reached the half-century mile-post in the journey "from the cradle to the grave." How sad it is for a singer to lose voice, and how much sadder for a woman to lose her voice and her beauty. When both of these is the fate of a lady, it is a calamity, and one that all must deplore. Nevertheless, the humiliation may be averted by bearing it resignedly and gracefully, for it is according to Gods laws.
Hctors.
During tihe midsummer of 1851 there weire only two theaters open in the -city -of New YOTk ISTiblos and the Bowery, "William E. Burton was the star of !NibIos; even his o<wn theater on Chambers street was closed. Edward Eddy -was the star of the Bowery, lightly these -two re sorts w&re crowded. At that time Burton -was the greatest American comedian. One night he -would appear as Mr. Toodle, in the play of "The T oodles," being- supported by Mrs. Hughes as Mrs. Toodle. The next h<? would appear in some genteel comedy, supported by Miss Lizzie Weeton, and so on, each night alternately. Mrs. Hughes was a middle-aged lady and made a fine Mrs. Toodle. Miss "Westom was a beautiful young woman "with dark hair and eyes and Tanked higjh as an laotress. She scvon married Adolphus Davenport, commonly called "Dolly/ >an actor and brother of E. L., the father of Fannie, In a few years there came the usual divoa*ce. Just :a!t this time, alsO, came Charles Matthews to New York, an eminent English actor. Miss Lizzie was his support. He loved and married her. Soon the pair went to England and never returned to the United States. Several years since the husband died, and now the widow is en-joying in England a serene old age, "While sur rounded by all the comforts of life. An amusing incident occurred shortly after Matthews returned to England. He and his wife were playing "London Assurance" at a Lon don theater; Sie as iSir Hair-court Courtley, and sihe as Lady Gay Spanker. The Lady Gays husband in the
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play was named Dolly Spanker. There is a point in the play where the Lady Gay rushes on the stage exclaiming, "Whercs my Dolly? wheres my Dolly?" She received .an answer from a cockney gallery god, who answered, the inquiry and said: "Your Dolly is hover in. Hamerica.* The effect -can better be imagined than described. As will be remembered, her Dolly "hover in Hamerica" "was Dolly Davenport. Burton gained yet greater reputation in his character of Toodle, and played it as long as he lived, but .alas, after his deafth no actor succeeded in ithe part. It was found that Burton was the only Mr. Toodle. It took a man of his style and genius to please the public in that role, and so when. Burton diied the play of "Tlie Toadies" died. He was a man of culture and fond of literature. He ~was a writer himself, and has left an interesting book .a compilation, of humorous stories. Several are drawn from, our Southland, and among them "Polly Pea Blos soms "Wedding," by John B. IJaniar, and some short stories by Judge K. ]M. Charlton, of Savannah. How few of our young people now know anything of "Billy Burton." And yet he was the Joe Jefferson of his day. He and Ijogan, the actor, were1 devoted friends the gamje who "was tihe father of Eliza and Olive >and other sisters. They made, when young men, a compact that their children were to bear the same names. Alas, all of the Burtons died, and all of the Dogans lived., and have made their mark in the world. Thirty years ago Eliza Logan and Julia Dean were the two great lady actresses of the United States. Both married, and alas! both soon died, and .each before reaching the age of forty. Eliza had the most superb elo cution of any woman whom I have ever heard. 3S"ot Macready <as an aetor, or Berrien as an orator, excelled her. Her address to the statues in Shields play of
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MEMORIAL.
"Evadne" was grandeur reaching sublimity, Mary Ander sen fell far short of her in. that role.
When the play of "Our American Cousin" was first written so little was thought of it thalt it was difficult to get a cast for it. The actors were afraid of it. At last one was made up and it was played. Sothern -was one, but he did not fcake the part that the author intended as the great one of the play. In the part he took he did not fol low the author except as he chose. He changed the words in many passages, but above all he changed the character and the acting. He made a great hit, and thus SotOiern demonstrated how superior acting may make an inferior part the superior. His conception was substituted -for the authors.
Sothern, after acquiring fame -and riches playing "Our American Cousin,"was taken away by the relentless hand of death. Since his death his son essayed to take hia place, but did not succeed. 3Sfo one else has succeeded, and thus when Sothern died the play of "Our American Cousin 1 also died.
"Who tihiat has seen him does not remember with pleasure John T. Kiaymond in his character of Mulberry Sellers? Haymonld played the part irntil he was tired. Tt became mo notonous. He tried first one substitute !and then anottiher, and neither succeeded. He made such a hit as Mulberry Sellers, his acting in other characters, though good, did not satisfy ihis audiences. He suited Mulberry Sellers, and Mulberry Sellers suited him. He was a natural born Mul berry Sellers. When he played it he excelled himself, and he could not help it, for he felt and looked the part. He was, to us a slang phrase, "just built that way." John Owen played everything well, but stuck out in nothing. Yet he held audiences as long as he played. Pie could
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give satisfaction in other parts as well as lie could as Solon Shingle.
It came poor Raymonds itime to die. He followed Bur ton iand Sothern, and wQien he died Mulberry Sellers alsodied. It seems there is no resurrection for Mulberry. We have plenty like him in life, but nobody to play him. It as all serious -work -with tfbem. Whether it is booms or minerals or inventions, tiberre is always "millions in it," but
th<e millions never materialize. This brings me to Joe Jefferson as "Rip Van Winkle."
Many have attempted "Rip/ but none (have succeeded. There is but one Rip Van. Winkle and never will bo an other. Jefferson, like Raymond in "Mulberry/ although he is a fine performer in every character, cannot come up to "Rip Van Winkle." When we have seen him in that, we do not care to see him in any other play. This way of an actor exceeding himself is somewhat of a misfortune. He wishes to play other parts, but his .admirers prefer him. in the same old part. It must be very tiresome. Some thing very like eating a quail very day. It is Very pleas ant eating, but becomes so monotonous as to destroy all relish for the quail, and yet every one who does not have to eat a quail every, day, likes a quail any time especially on toast. The contemplation of Joes death is sad sad every way; sad for the pleasure he has given us; sad for the pleasure he will give us no more. He has made us cry one moment and laugh the next. Then he has made us do both at the same time. How can we part "with little Menie, the dog Sehneider, and even Gretehen, who would lecture Rip and "Scare de Ducks." Then tliose dumb men in the mountains, -who had no sisters dumb like them, for they would have made sueh good wives, so different from "Gretchen."
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MEMORIAL.
We have not arrived there yet, but there are those who will live to see that when Joe Jefferson dies, Rip Van Win kle also dies. These remind me of some plays of the past that died with the players. Edwin Forrest had no superior as an actor in tragedy and kindred plays. He too was a peculiar man. "Mature had formed but one such man." He was large, tall, stately. Tie had a strong, deep, musi cal voice. His intellect was as grand as either, and his whole style and manner suited all. Seeing his peculiarity, his friend Dr. P>yrd, of Philadelphia, wrote for dim "The Gladiator." How lie captured audiences with it and added to the fame of both auijhor and actor!
Forrest has been dead for more than twenty years, and .so has "The Gladiator." There is a play of that name now up011 the sfrage, but a different one, by some Frenchman. It. is not Eorrests Gladiator no one can play that but him, and he is dead. There is yet another play that died with Forrest. It is "Metamora," written especially to suit him by >a youth from !N"ew Hampshire, who came to Phila delphia and was captivated by Forrest. His name was John. A. Stone. It is sad to have to say he committed suicide by drowning himself in tlhe Schuylkill, and sadder yet to say, at the early age of twenty-nine. Forrest res cued his body from its watery grave and gave him a funeral and a monument. ISTo one can play "Metaanora" now, be cause Forrest is dead.
These are not the only instances of plays being written to suit the style of particular actors. We have glimpses that it may have happened as far back as Shakespeare. The most beautiful of the modern dramas in English -were writ ten by Sir Edward Bulwer-I-ytton, tJhen Edward T/ytton Bulwer, and he is no>w mostly known as "Bulwer." The most beautiful of these are "Kichelieu" and the "Lady of
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Xyons." In Bulwers time JM-acready was in his glory and he wrote a play especially to suit his style, and he called it "Uichelieu," no less or greater personage than the "old car dinal." Having so "written it, Macready was the original Uichelieu that is, he was the first to play the part: the first to present it on the stage to the public. But the play of Richelieu did not die with Macready. It was within the power of other .actors to play it, and to play it well. P/ooth arid Barrett were good in Richelieu. Bulwers plays, nor Sheridans, Knowless or others of the modern British drama, that once -were so popular, are put upon, the stage now. "Why? Because the pufo lie/taste Has Changed. The trashy and the flashy the sensational and the spectacular have taken their places. To say this is to say the public taste has changed for the worse; has become in short vitiated. How can this be when education is higher and more general? It does not prove that higher and general education accomplishes all that is claimed for it. A.S witih the plays, so it is with tho dances. For the chaste, quad rille and the beautiful lancers, the dance called, "the german" has been siibstituted. The german affords the op portunity to waltz nearly all the time, without seeming to
design it, and yet that is the purpose "all the same." The older and -wiser heads do not think it is good for the
young gentlemen and ladies to waltz too much, only occa sionally, and then decorously. Eight here some smart fel low will rise up and cry out pessimist! and who can stand before such a charge? It puts the bravest to flight. so I retire in as good order as I can.
A single piece of acting, that cannot be reached by an actor in any other play, is akin to ifhe one piece of literarturer that so elevaites the author that neither he nor another can reach, it. That is well illustrated in Grays "Elegy," and
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yet Gray has writitoen la bowk of poems. !No one cares ainything about the book because they know no other poem can approach the "Elegy." If one wishes to read from Gray, he or she reads the "Elegy" again, and every time he reads it sees new beauties. Another illustration is the "De serted Village," by Goldsmith. If one wishes to read a poem from Goldsmlith he reads "The Deserted Village" over again, and, as in Grays "Elegy," he finds new beau ties eivery time he reads. Our own Richard Henry "Wilde is the author of -a long poem, making a good^sized book itself, and containing throughout many gems, but "JVty Life is Like the Summer Hose" is enough for the most fas tidious. They care for nothing more from Wilde. Whittiers tribute to Burns came very neiar placing him along with Gray and Goldsmith, but there is "Maude jVIullcr" and others nearly or quite as good, "which saved him from that distinction. Longfellow came yot nearer it in his "Psalm of Life," and might have reached it had he not writ ten "The Day is Done" and "The Footsteps of Angels." It seems there is no danger in doing better than others, but there is in doing better than ones self.
%ate Warb flftcHllister.
Some short time ainee I sent to your paper a contribu tion by Ward McAllister to tth:e N>etw York World, request ing its reproduction, and you kindly granted the request. I also prepared it with a few introductory and explanatory remarks, which you published. The subject of the piece1 substantially was the present Condition of the Democratic party, and its prospects in the future, in which "Ward took a more hopeful view than is entertained by many of our party leaders.
The perusal was a guarantee that Ward understood the political situation, and that although a leader of the aris tocracy, he was politically a genuine Democrat a combi nation I suppose many would doubt. Ward has been con tributing at intervals, perhaps weekly, to the !N~ew York World articles ion various subjects, and, of course, society, its customs and usages "were not neglected. The best of them I have read, and comparatively of recent date, and since the one alluded to, is head-lined, "Can a Trades man be a Gentleman?" I have intended for some time to send.that to you, with a request similar to the other, but my court duties for the last four weeks have been so heavy that I could not find suitable opportunity. I determined the day before I would attend to it last Friday, but reading your paper early thlait morning I was amazed and horrified to find therein a telegram announcing his death. That was a coincidence psromoltive with many of superstition. His dealfli necessarily changed iJhe manner and mlatter of my
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proposed contribution, and I delayed it a few days for fur=ther developimenfcs.
A paragraph from tilie New York ~W-orld of Sunday lastr after "Wards death, said:
"llr. McAllister was a social, not ian intellectual influ ence. He had a profound belief -that really good society in the social sense must be founded, even in -a republic, on something1 better than mere wealth; that it must havecharacter, distinction, conservative cohesion, and must be in a .sense exclusive. He has said over and over .again that "what is known to us as the best society does not get itswarrant from birth, or from money, but, from the ability to separate (himself from every tilling -that is vulgar and igno ble, and to exercise with absolute independence the privi lege of refusing to associate "with .anything -that did not come up to its own standard, no matter how arbitrary that standard might be."
The same piece says: "McAllister rode into recogni tion upon a phrase" the stereotyped four hundred, but from time to time it has been claimed that this is not origi nal -with MeAllister, .as it appeared in a small book in verse "written twenty-five years ago, by Edmund <C. Stedman, called The Princes Ball/ inspired by the visit of theIPrince of "Wales to N0w York. There "was an organiza tion to give a formal reception to the heir to the British: throne/ called the council of four hundred. It is prob able that the term ^four hundred was taken from facts in history which anltedalted by certtuTies both Ward and Stedman." Borrowing from the erudition of a friend, Hon. A. II. H. Dawson, of New York city, I "will state "they had four hundred senators or pulblic officials that administered the government of iJacedsOTion; also in Thefoes, in Oarthage and in Home." So it seems the term "four- hundred""
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is both historic and classic. If four hundred were so often selected to run the government., why may not the same number be selected -to run "the beet society"? Tf this is sor Ward may not have meant there were actually four hun dred, but the whole >of tihe elite -were to be called, in -defer ence to history, "the four hundred."
As while T write Ward is dead, it may be appropriate to state his genealogy and his surroundings, at different pe riods of his life. The original McAllister, that is the American ancestor, was a native of Scotland. His son was Pvichard jVIeAlliater of Pennsylvania. This son Mat thew came to Georgia., perhaps in colonial times. He mar ried ;a Miss Gibbons, land tihoy are the parents of Maifctihew Hall McAllister, a distinguished Georgian, who was ap pointed by President Pierce the first supreme, count judge for the States and Territories on. the Pacific. His wife was Louisa Cutler of Boston, Mass., a daughter of Benjamin Clarke Cutler. While -a ]Sfew Englander on her fathers side, she was Southern on her mothers. Her mother was the daughter of a sister of G-erieral Francis Marion of South Carolina. The children of the marriage of Matthew Hall McAllister with Louisa Cutler were Julian, who graduated at West Point, in 1846, in the class with McClellan and died, while -coimmandJant iat Governors Island, some ten years ago. Since the -war -he had the rank of colonel but he should have been a general. The reason of this is he was not in the field during the whole war, because he was kept detailed for tlio ordnance department. The next was Hall. The Matthew was omitted at his christening. He "went to San Prancisco with, his father, and becoming one of the first, if not the very first lawyers of the city and State, he re mained there until his death, which occurred about seven years ago. Hall was the most intellectual of all the sons.
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Indeed tihere "were very few of any family his equal. He was one of <tihe few wihloee intellee-t could "be called prodig ious. My brother (Rev. Dr. Clark) was in icollege with Mm at Yale, but HJall was two or three years in advance of him. .He said Halls class had to write a thesis. Hall prepared one and read it to his roommate. After readiing it he was not satisfied, oven disgusted with it, and pitched it towards the fire. It did molt readh the fire, because the roommlalte intercepted it. He preserved it and adopted it as his own. Hall wrote another, and when the selections were made ttlhe one Hall wrote <was pronounced the best in tfhe class, aaid the one Ms roommate claimed and he wrote first, the next best.
There Was a large sitreak of the Wag in Halls make-up. His father had a private tutor, a very learned German, es pecially in the languages, but ve<ry peculiar. Hall was occa sionally satirical to the teacher. Therefore he did not like him. He oould do nothing to please the teacher. He was particularly severe on Halls -compositions. He would in variably enter on the face of them in red ink and a large hand, Miserable." Hall, knowing this was from preju dice, determined to play a practical joke on the teacher, so for his next composition he copied one of Addisons essays. It came back to Hall marked "sVIore miserable itihan any." Seeing ilt, Hall said: "Yes, tlhiat proves my judg ment was right, for I have never admired Addisons style as others have." The sequel may be imagined. Hall was or dered out of the school and kept -out for a week.
iNext to Hall was Ward. Then came Francis Marion, now and for many years itlve rector of an Episcopal dhurdh in Elizabeth, !N~. J". The next was Benjamin. Cutler, who became a lawyer and practiced with Hall, but died while yet a very young man. The sixth and last was a girl. She
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was beauitiful, sweet and lartlesis. Bhe raarried her cousin, Francis tne young-en-, of Ne-w York city, and hlas been long dead.
Wards "wife was a Miss Gibbons $ and that being the maiden name of "Wards paternal grandmother, she is his second consin. Her father, although a citizen of !N~ew Jer. sey and interested in steamboat navigation on the Hudson with Cornelius Vanderbilt, was a native of Savannah, G-a., an;d owned a .large rice plantation on the river of the same name and slaves by the hundred. A sister of jVIr. McAllister ("Wards mother) married Samuel "Ward, of the old bankers,, Prime, Ward & King, of New York, in the early years of this century. "Ward jVIcAllister was named for him, but in early manhood he dropped the Samuel. A son of that marriage was Sam Ward, a noted society man and lobbyist, who gave elegant entertainments at Washington, Mrs. Julia Ward Howe is a daughter of the same mar riage ; so is the wife of the sculptor Crawford, who "went to Rome to pursue his art. A son of these is ~F. Marion Orawford, ^tihe famous novelist of the present times. He is perhaps to be raited first at feh-e present time of all the novel ists in England or Ainetricia. Any one doubting ithis I aidvise to read "jBaa-tacineisca" and the sequel "Sant llano." Ward McAllister was, therefore, the second cousin to Orawford the novelist. Tt will be perceived that Ward paternally and maternally belonged, to a very distinguished family, both as to pedigree and intellect. His mother was one of the best and noblest of women. If it were admissi ble I could give incidents in her life that would define lier as among the most exalted of humanity. She and her gifted husband have long since passed into "the spirit land," and as each died it could b truly said that no better man or woman survived them.
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"Ward lias quite a number of relatives residing now in Georgia, and some of them in Atlanta. They are all the lin eal descendants of the Richard MeAllister before referred to. A daughter of his married John Orme, of Maryland, and they moved to G-eorgia. Dr. I\ BL Orme and his brother Aquilla, of this city, are the grandsons of that mar riage; sio is RidbJard II. Orme of Savaiinia/h, known in literaiture as R. !M. O. Likewise are Mrs. Bnrlow Campbell of Atlanta, and Mrs. Charles T. Crawford of Milledgevillo. These named are second cousins of the famous Ward, and whatever distinction there -is in that tihey have it. Per haps there is more distinction in being nearly related toWards father and brothers. Besides those named, the Osbonies of Savannah and Augusta., and I believe there are a few in Atlanta, are likewise descended from Richard McAllister, Toe present State senator from the first dis trict is One of ithem. He is wot nearer than. fourtih oousio- to Ward, but as Mark Twain said .about our relationship toAdam, although very remote, he is "nevertheless a. rela tive."
H Iborse Swap.
On the 5th. of February, 1844, at Savannah, I -was com-mlssioTied to plead and practice law in the State of Geor gia, whidh was before I had completed my twentieth, year. As the praeftice of law was then in tlhait city, it took ia young lawyer about three years before he could make enough to support him. I could not afford to wait, and., therefore, determined to locate in Albany, Ga., then in the county of Baker. I -was induced to select tiluat place because the beat friend of my life had changed his residence to that "vicinity., He was a planter and his name was Robert Lrunday. Long ago he lias paid the deJbt of nature, and if a good man is sure, of heaven, there is his abiding place.
From Savannah Across tine country by wOiait is called the 1 dirt road, and then there was no other road by which Albany CouM. be reached, there wetre itwo routes, one two 1 hundred and ten miles and frhe <olthe.r two (hundred and fifty. The shorter and lotwer route was <to cross tihe -Altiamialia at" Manns ferry, in Tatiiall county, and go fro.m there tv> Irwiniville in Irwin. COuntty. The longer and upper route was via Hawkiiisvi-Ilo. llhe ~m&t{h<od *hen 'of. making long jOumeys was by (hlorseback or sulky. The latter I believe ihas now gone ouft of fasili/ion, and -Was like umfro wihat is called ia "road cart," but with only room enough for o-ne. "WTien ia man went on horseback (he carried all he could in a saddle-bag laid across the saddle, upon "which he sat as he rode. I mention tfhis because now I as seldom see a pair of saddle-bags as I do an old-fashioned sulky.
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It was (blie habit then for men "bo make long journeys all over the State in one or the other of these two ways and be absent for from, one fro three months. These long- jour neys were mostly performed by the land speculators, oi whom there "were then and for <a long time before, and gome years after, many in Georgia. If a man had to make a long journey by horseback or sulky (and the sulky was the ex ception), he "would get some man who know the route to make out for him what was called a "waybill. This was a brief statement of the roads he should travel, together with the bridges und ferries upon them, and more especially the houses where he could put up for the night.
These were generally about forty miles apart, that being considered a good days journey by horseback. If one should miss getting to the regnlar stopping houses, he would likely be put to more or less inconvenience, either for want of any house where necessary, or being ia house -where the resident was not equipped for "taking in travelers," as iwas called; but our Georgia, farmers would not turn off a stranger, but would "be sure to say you might stop "if you could put up with the fare." By next morning the traveler might fully appreciate why this qualification was made.
The class of men next to the lanld speculators who made long journeys on (horseback were t(he Methodist preachers of that time, who belonged to the Georgia conference and -were called "circuit-riders." Georgia then held but one confer ence, and was liable to hold a conference in the extreme northern part of the State and the next in the extreme southern part. 3Tor illustration, when the conference was held at Athens, the preacher, to get to his appointment, might have to travel to some1 country bordering on the Florida line; and when the conference was held at Savan^nah, the preacher migiit have to 'go to some country in the
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mountains of Georgia, and perhaps bordering on the Ten nessee or North Carolina line. It was from this latter necessity that John B. Ijamar wrote his. story called "The Blacksmith of the Mountain Pass," in which t3ie black smith, being lan -unbeliever, picked a quarrel with the circuilt-rider, and finally forced -a fight on. Gaiim an wMch the preacher got him down, land as Lamar says: "Literally mauled the grace of God into him," for lie would not let Him up until Ire promised to insult no more preachers and promised "to seek ;the grace of God that all other blessings might be added to him."
This is an exquisite story, land OUT newspapers should reproduce it once every ten years, that the young people may read it. Also they should reproduce at the same inter val that Otiher exquisite -story by titoe same author, called "Polly Pea Blossoms "Wedding1."
In respect to the latter I am tempted, en passant, to say that in a story written by one of our modern Georgia humorists, the names of the persons figuring in the story were the names in "Polly Pea Blossoms "Wedding" with just slight alterations, and it was evident that the writer throughout had drawn his inspiration from the same story.
There is an anecdote also illustrative of the Methodist preachers long journey on horseback to reach his circuit. One of these stopped one night at a farmhouse in the mountains. He was a revelation to the family, for he had on store clotihes and a stovepipe hat. His horse suited his clothes, for he was a very fine one. It used to go for a say ing in my youthful days, for a man when he wished to de scribe a particularly good horse to end by saying: "In fact, genltlemen, he is just as fine as a -circuit-riders horse." The curiosity of the old lady of the house was greatly excited to know who the stranger was, and she tried every way except.
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"by asking his name; but the preacher stood out and would not take the hint. Finally the old lady came right out and .asked him "what moiight be his business up in these parts." The preacher answered: "Madam, my business is to search -for the lost sheep of the house of Israel." The old lady at once said to her husband, "Thar now, old man, Ill bet that that ar black ram thats got -among our sheep blongs to this ere gentleman!"
In "writing so much of the horseback journeys of others, I realize I am making no progress with my own. In de scribing it I may have to state some commonplace matters, but I hope I can state enough that will interest to compen sate for such. I started on a little mare with my saddle bags crowded with articles of "wearing -apparel. There was crowded into it a new brown cloifch swallow-tail coat -with "brass buttons. This swallow-tail was not designed for a coat to wear to balls and parties, but was simply in conformity to the style of many years ago when ,a s.wallow.tail was the every-day coat. It was also the fashion to put plain, smooth brass buttons on brown and blue coats. It is since then that the swallow-tail has been promoted to the dress coat, and that, I take it, came from necessity, for the Prince Albert and the sack ha-d driven the swallow-tail .clear out >of use as a business and an every-day coiat. Since there was no room for the swallow-tail, it was held on to by making it the dress coat for balls, parties and -weddings. ISTow a man would no more be seen on the streets with a swallow-tail than he would be seen at a swell entertain ment without one. But tlhis is modern, while I am writing ancient history.
On the 24th of March, my birthday, after dinner I started from. Springfield, in. Effingham. county, for the home of Major Clem Powers, which was directly on my route,
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"but only fifteen miles distant. If there was any man in Effingham who could be called the very first citizen of the comity he was Major Powers. He was a leader in politics and all county -and State affairs. He was one of -the largest planters of the county, and resided in a fine dwell ing for the times, with all the comforts of life around. He was the father of tlie "Virgil I^owers who is now one of Georgias railroad commissioners.
I got a late start the next morning and traveled only twenty-five miles, and juat on lie hill over the Caoiooch.ee I was graciously permitted to pass the night at the home of ]VIrs. Ball, an -old lady then, and the mother of James M. Ball, .so -well known in Atlanta. I took an early start the next morning, but I fliad .not goue more than ten miles when a very hard rain began. It was so severe that I found I could not ride in it "without being- saturated, but what was I to do? There was no house or other shelter in sight. I rode on in a walk, taking the drenching rain as philosophi cally as I could, when, to my profound relief, I discovered thi-iough the pines a house about a quarter of a mile from the To:ad. Of course I inacte direct for it, and the gentleman gave me a welcome I have never forgotten. In a few min utes I was drying myself by a fire made for the purpose. The gentleman of the house was named Tippins. I never saw him before, and I have not seen nor heard of him since. From the lapse of time, I suppose he "has passed over the river and is resting under the shade of the trees."
But the rain. Oh, how it did rain, and continued to rain until the middle of the next afternoon. We often say we have never seen so heavy a rain, and y-et we have. We are simply full of the present and forget the past. But I can safely say that never have I witnessed such a ram, and it was general all through South Georgia. The branches
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and creeks vrare higher than ever known not the rivers,, because the rainfall was not far enough north. Had it been there "would have been a freshet that would have exceeded; that -of the "Harrison freshets" of March and May (I think), 1841. To give one some idea of the heaviness of tihis rain, I rode from AJlbatny to !Newton the first week in June thereafter, !aud in the low -places ioif the road -the water was -tlhen asmuch as saddle skirts deep and nearly up to that time wasswimming, and roads had to be opened -around them. I dwell on this rain becauge it "ciits the greatest figure" in my journey, and was the factor t-hat caused me to change my route and to ride forty miles more.
I left Mr. Pippins the next afternoon, wlien the rain had ceased .and t(he sun was shining just as innocently as if it had never heard of the rain. There was a little branch near Mr. Tippins that never got deep enough to be an ob stacle, but he said he was afraid it would swim me in the main road, but there "was a place to cross where it was shal lower. I took his advice and when I came in sight of thewater I feared it would swim my horse, Tt was with diffi culty I could disting-uisih the track of the road, and I pro ceeded with fear iand almost trembling, lest my horse would step into a hole and submerge us both. But I got through with not quite half saddle skirts deiep. Tihat night I stopped at K-eidSville, but I ciannJot -recall tlie name of the person. !My impression is she "was a lady.
The next morning was Sim day, and a beautiful, bright day it was. The spring had been early and the trees, shrub bery and flowers looked beautiful from the cleansing of therain. After a while I came to Perrys mill, -where there ia a large creek. The bridge had been carried away and there was a man engaged in putting people over in a bateau andt making t!he horses swim while the bridle was held in the-
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boat. In this way I got across. Either before or just after crossing I "fell in" witih a gentleman, -wih-o lived just in the edge of Montgomery, and my route lay with his as far as he went. To got to HJawkinsville T had bo cross the Oconee river at Belles ferry., which is not far from its junction with tjho OCrnuilgee, making- tili-e Altamiaha. This was not only good luck in finding a (traveling companion in my lone liness, hut. I was much entertained by a most pleasant con versation during our ride of about fifteen miles. This was ilr. Joseph Ryals, tilue faither of the. late professor at Mercer, and the grandfather of the young lawyer of that name at Maeon. I crossed Belles ferry without difficulty. The next waiter-course Was the Little Oconulgee at wthatt was called Lumber City. Some northern owners of large bodies of pine land had erected a large sawmill, but the enterprise had proved, a failure and there was nothing remaining of the mill but portions of the large frame. I arrived at the river a lititle before sundown, and I soon saw that the little river, really only a big creek, was swollen into the propor tions of ia considerable river. I saw incither bridge nor ferry-boat. While I was wondering; .how I could get across, iaind fearing I might [have bo pass 1ihie night in a small shelter I sa-w, I <heard tile noise of_ itlie -boalt paddlo. I halloed, and soon there came to me t\vo gentlemen, in the bateau of course. They had come across the river with some feed for some stock that in ordinary times could -.easily ford the river. One of them proved to be Mr. Steele, the proprietor of the house just beyond where I expected to pass the night. They took me and all 1 had except the horse into the boat, tied the horse under the shelter and then returned with corn and fodder.
I passed a very pleasant night with Mr. Steele and fam ily, which is one among- my many very pleasant memories.
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The first tiling to do next morning as necessary to my jour ney was to got the horse on the same side o;f the river the rider was. The horse, which, by the way, -"was a mare, "would have to swim. I know nothing of her swimming qualities, for now and then >a horse was to be found who either would not or eould not swim. Then I felt apprehen sive that although !she might swim, she might pull loose or be injured in some way in crossing, but the little mare, as she always did, behaved beautifully. When she was led to the bank she seemed to understand what she had to do and raised herself on her hind legs, made the plunge and swam over -well land safely. The present. Lumber City on the East Tennessee, "Virginia and Georgia road is a. miledistant from the Lumber City I write of.
As soon as possible I left IMr. Steeles for old Jackson ville. On my route I was confronted with another diffi culty and really more serious than. any. I came to a bridge over a creek, and from the foot there had been washed -away by the rain several of the planks.. The water underneath was deep, land the gap was too "wide to be stepped over by man or beast, but I had to get across somehow. There was no house .nor person near, and the chasm had to bo passed. As I had not known the mare as a swimmer, I also did not know her fas a jumper; having bought her only a little while before I started. As she came. to the chasm, nc my urging, she arose as before, and safely leaped upon the bridge. While I was gratified at this, yet it caused me to dread other and perhaps worse difficulties [kba!t might confront mo :as I journeyed along.
1" arrived at old Jacksonville before or by noon. Some court was in session either the inferior or the ordinary and there I first met William \V. 3?aync, who became well known in G-corgia and finally moved to and died at Savan-
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mail. I have passed many pleasant hours with him and ob tained from him much, interesting information. There I also made the acquaintance of Mr. John Jjokey, a promi nent citizen of Telfair, and of General Mark "Wileox, whose home was on the direct road to Hawkinsville, eighteen miles from Jacksonville. We rode that .together, and on his in vitation. I passed the night and the next day, -upon his ad vice that in a day more the creeks between, there arid Hawkinsville could not be forded. He took me the next day to see his father, John Wiloox. He had the reputation of being one of Georgias old Indian fighters, and ho was the father of many stalwart sons, then all grown. Those sons became representative men wherever they resided, and all, or nearly all, have at different times, before and since then, been members of the Georgia legislature. It was my in formation and my opinion that "Wlleox county was named for John "Wilcox, but at the last session of the legislature I was .surprised to hear from Senator "Wilcox that it was named for Mark, and lie is either a. son or nephew of Mark.
The wife of Mark Wilcox -was a Miss Coffee, the daugh ter of General John Coffee. Ho "was also one of our old Indian nghteirs, and an influential citizen of Southern Georgia. As proof of his worth and celebrity he was elected to Congress by the general ticket system in the year 1834. He "was renomiuated in 1836, but died the Satur day night before the election, which was the next Monday. There "were no telegraphs in those days and mails mostly only once a week. So the death -was niot known outside of Telfair county, and John Coffee, although dead, "was elected to Congress. It is, perhaps, the only instance in the his tory of the United States where a dead man "was elected to Congress.
William C. TOawson was the highest man on the defeated
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ticket. At tlie final election to fill the vacancy made by Coffees death he was elected, and that was tlie beginning of his congressional -career. At the next general election, in 1838, T>awson wias reelccted, together with eight others of his side of politics. Among these were Oolquitt, Cooper and Black, who, on the reorganization of politics in 1840, dissented from tfheir colleagues in joining the Whig party avid their support of G-eneral Harrisoii for the presidency.
To return to the narrative of my journey. Although I was defeated in going to Albany by way of Manns ferry, the smith side of the Ocnmlgee and IrwinviUc, yet in July afterwards I returned on ia visit to Southeast Georgia "by that route. The most attractive part of the journey was in that part of Telfair eoainty south of the Ocmulgec. It is now Coffoe county, in honor of G-eneral John Coffee, whom I (have written of. Along there on adjoining plantations were the Ashlcys. The first one comes to going west, is ".Matt Aslileys, the next is Cornelius Ashleys, the next is the widow Mannings, who was a sister to the Ashleys named; the next is tftre widow A&hloy, the widow of a deceased brotilier. Tlueso were alii good old-time fasmily mansions. On that journey I stopped at Mrs. Man nings,, -and did so on two or three other- journeys over Southern Georgia from Savannah to the Flint. There was comfort there, I assure yon.. I found damask table-cloths napkins and china, all presided over by a grand dame with, gold-rimmed glasses thiat reminded me of Virginia and South Carolina dames in colonial times. There I slept on tho biggest and tlie heaviest bedstead I ever saw, and it was all mahogany, and heavy mahogany. The husband -of Mrs. Manning was the brother of the older Governor Man ning of South Carolina. No one resided with her but her son William, then, a man at his majority. Later, and I
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suppose after the death, of liis mother, lie married and became a citizen of Lowndes county. From there h went to the war, and was colonel of a regiment. H~e is dead, and for any man to be a better man. he, would have to be a saint. The Asbleys -wore a, good, old-time South GeOo-gia family, scattered from. T elfair to Oamden. Mrs. Dunwoody Jones, of Atlanta, is a descendant of one of them.
I started from General "Wile-oxs for HawkiriSville with two brothers named. McLeod (pronounced McTjoud), who were going to Texas, or some other State in the far West. They were familiar with the road and creeks to Hawkiiisville, and I felt safe. We waded two or three formidablelooking streams, both wide and deep, but there was 011-0, and the last one, we could not wade, the name of which I forget-. It was the creek on which, was Lancasters mi]"I, five miles southeast of I-Iawkinsville. "We had to go up the creek to the mill to cross, and they knowing Mr. Lancaster, we passed the iiight there. The Lancasters., who were in the trouble in the Dodge county complications, "which re sulted in several being sent to the Ohio penitentiary, "were of the same family perhaps his nephews. The next moming pretty early we went through where old Hartford had once been, the original Hawkinsvillc, >aiicl after crossing the ferry, entered the main street of the town. The McLeods were going to pass the night afc ^Norman McDnffics, a kinsman residing south o ilawkinsville, a well-known and prominent citizen, and then resume their journey to the far West. I have neither seen nor heard of these brothers since. They were very young, like myself, and can either or both be living, now that half a century has intervened.
The j\TcLeods having left me, I was again alone, and did not know the road from PTawkmsville to Albanv. I saw
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a gentleman standing in the door of a store. I rode up and asked liim. He answered: "You see that man. un hitching his horse near the court-house? That- is Squire Farnell, and he is going nine miles on the same road and he can tell you."
""Well, well," said I to myself; "is it possibile that I am to ride with Squire Farnell?"
Just before leaving; home I had read an amusing account of how Squire Farnell conducted his court in the third dis trict of Dooly county. The third lay adjoining Pulaski, and "was the most populous district of the county. It -was so populous and so prominent that it was called the "third kingdom of JDooly." /Squire Farnell had ia way of doing as he pleased, -without regard to law, if the people of his dis trict sustained him. Principal among his eccentricities was that if times were hard he would not give judgment in the spring., but would wait for the next crop, and times were hard all along there. In ^MJarch, 1837, cotton fell from 17 to 6 cents per pound, and the lowest quality brought but four. This state of things lasted until 1849, when cotton suddenly went np to 9 cents, land ruled from then until within the last few years from 8 to 12 cents per pound. One Saturday of court the Hawkinsville lawyers went out in force to have Squire IVimell reverse himself, but he could not be moved. He said: "If T give judg ment against my friends and neighbors yon can levy at once, force their property to sale, and they will be ruined; whereas, if you just wait till fall you will be no worse off, for you will get, the interest, and then you will get your money and they will be Saved. Upon principles of patriot ism I cannot give judgment. The court is friendly to all you Hawkinsville lawyers, and the court will be glad to see you at any time. .As for you. Squire Branltley" he was
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the principal speaker "the court likes you very much. The court hopes you 'will OOTO.O out every court and you may speak as much as you please, for you speak "well, and the court likes to hear you, bint I cannot give judgment until fall."
Although it was only a. justices court, and the jurisdic tion only thirty dollars, yet creditors got into a habit of -splitting their denmnlds into thirty dollar notes,, and judg ments in many cases meant judgments for large amounts. The squire stood by his friends and. fellow citizens until fall, and no one proceeded against him for malpractice in oifioe.
^N"o one would suppose from appearances that the squire "was so positive and firm a man. In fact, he had a look of meekness, and -when I saw him, as I did several times after at DOOly superior court, going labout 'with, his saddle-bags in his arms, he looked like any other sorit of man than the potentiate of the "third kingdom of Dooly."
In t,lie conversation that we bad during our nine miles ride, I made no allusion to bis method of administering justice, nor did he. If I talked I might offend him, and then he might turn me over to the tender mercies of his bailiffs. The gentleman "who pointed out Squire Faruell afterwards resided, for many years at A-lbanv. I came to know him well and counted him among my friends. His name was JSTeiedham "W". Collier ain uncle -of the Virginia Colliers.
A son of the squire has of late years been a member of the legislature from the county of Decatur.
I bade the squire adieu, and proceeded according to his directions, on to Vienna. Just as the sun had declined behind 13je phr<e treetops, and tihcai when within four miles of "Vienna near -a place called The Cross Heads, and where
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the road has two parallel tracks close together, I suddenly heard the sound of horses running. I looked and saw two men coming toward me at full speed, on caeh of tire tracks. I supposed races were sometimes nun there, and it -was a race, or -the men were .trying the speed of their horses. To my surprise and horror, just ias they got near mo they reined up, and when opposite me suddenly halted. I saw at once that one of the men. showed intoxication. That one hal loed ito me: "Strangeir, how will you swap horses?" TT_e was riding a fine, large bay horse, while my horse was small and only suitable for the saddle. I replied that his horse was worth mudh more than, mine, and I could not afford to pay the boot. He siaid: "How much would you give?" I replied I could not afford more than $5, not supposing he would take that. To mv horror he said: "It is <a trade. Light and let us exchange saddles and bri dles." In the tiine that I could tell it, he was going his way "with my little mare, and I was going my way with his large horse. As bad as it was to part with my little marc, whom I much admired for the fine qualities she had shown on the journey, yet that it was no worse "was a relief. I apprehended the horse-swap iand giving boot was a ruse to get what money I had, and I had $75 and some change in my purse. I had no1 -weapon whatever, and if even a pocket-knife, I forget it. I afterwards learned they were two brothers, named Bush. About eight years after the one- who forced tlie .horse-swap on me -was killed in Dooly county by a man caamed Lewis G-olding. G-olding was found guilty of voluntary manslaughter and. sentenced to the penitentiary for four years, the maximum limit at that time. Somehow, his ease was not taken to "tlie supreme court. "When a member of the legislature, in jSTovember, 1853, I saw Golding in the penitentiary. I could not help
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feeling that -a great -wrong had been done Mm, and Tic only gave Bush wbait lie deserved a killing. Although I at tended Dooly court genertally for seventeen years from. 384:5 to 1862 I was iiot present when. Grolding was tried. Tt was hard for me to realize how soon things are forg-oitton. I have asked many incn from Dooly, -and among <tliem the two members from, that county lasit session, and no one can tell me anything of cither I3ush. or Q-olding in fact, never heard of the homicide.
I arrived ait Vienna after dark, and put np at the vil lage tavern, kept by an old gentleman named. J\Ieriwether.It was said he was -a brother of the famous Judge James A. iteriwethor, of Putiiam. county.
From. Vienna to Albauv the distance is forty-sevCn miles, and I took a very early start next morning, that T might ride through that day, for it was a long ride to make in one day on horseback. My horse was brought out next morning before sunrise by n white man. Ho said, "Stran ger, where did yon get this horse?" I told him T got him by a swap four miles from Vienna on the road to Hawkinsville. lie said. I thought so. "I know this horse," said he. "lies old Niat Wades horse, and there is a bushel of executions against -him." Then. I nnderstood it all, and expected the horse to be levied on before I could get out of tlto county. I had to ride thirty-eight miles before I could get out of Dooly. Uooly then bad a panhandle, and a long one it was. The panhandle was taken to make the present coim-ty of Worth. IMy ride -that day -was neces sarily an uneasy one. I expected to be followed by a sher iff or bailiff wiho would levy on, talce the horse out of my possession and leave me and my sad die-bags in the big road far from n house., a:nd I would have to foot it to Albany. I found myself often voluntarily looking back,
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-and then, if I hoard, any sort of noise behind me, I -would have "to look Lack. In that way I traveled the long, weary thirty-eight miles.
I wias told I -would know I -was out of Dooly when I got to -the Parker place, -and how I would know the Parker place. Oh, how I longed for the Parker place. "Welling ton, did not look more anxiously "for night or I31dcher." I knew when I got out of Dooly .and into Baker the execution would have to bo levied by an officer of Baker, and. "before such an officer could be found I would have time to ride to Albany.
The sun was almost setting when I reached the Parker place. I welcomed it and drew a long breath of relief, for I knew I need not look back any more. It was lime miles to Albany, and considerably after dark when I arrived, on the banks of the Flint, with. Albany on ih& op posite side. The only means then of crossing the river was by a ferry-flat. I halloed land Ihalloed, but could .not arouse the ferryman. In looking around, I saw at a short dis tance a dim light. It was as if made by a tallow dip or a whale-oil lamp. I m-ade for tihe light. I found it came from a small cottage. A white woman answered my call. She stunned me by telling me the ferry-boat did not run .after dark. I realized bow near I was to Albany and "yet so far." I a:sked to stay all nighfc. ISTo, I could not stay. Her husband was away and she the on]y person on the lot. Well, was there not some other house close by? (Yes, but only one. Mr. Alien Sellers lives thar, but he is jest married and foucht home (his wife, and I dont think lie will let you stay." Thait "was discouraging, but It was my only chance, and, following" her direction, and feeling my way in the darkness, for it was a dark nigftit, and it seemed -to get darker than it was, I got to Mr, Sellers. I prepared
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my mind to receive a denial. I told M>. Sellers my tale
of woe; how I ihad ridden forty-seven miles that day and
-couldnt get over the river; how myself and horse llrad had
nothing to cat since daylight, and (how (hungry, tired and
scared we were. He granted my request witfli ,a -welcome.
Ever since JVIr. Sellers Iras been very dear to me. He
-was long a citizen of Baker and Dougherty., and. I got to
know ihim wall. He moved to a farm, seven, miles distant,
and it so happened that ten years after I bougilit liis farm
and he moved to Mitchell ooumty, Adhere lie was living when
last I (heard of him, and at every stage of life was a. good
citizen.
ISTexrt morning I was up by tlie break of day and hurried
to the ferry. By the tame the ferryman arrived the sim was
rising. The ferry was right at the foot, of the main street
of the town, oalled B;road stroet. I rode the ^7holei length
of the street to get -to Mr. Lindsays residence, -which was
jnst outside of tlie city limits. A_t that time there was no
store open nor was any one Tipon the street.
Xhis "was the beginning of my life at -A-lbany, which
lasted twenty-four years. Albany was then, and up to the
war and during the war, tho biggest little town in Georgia.
All of my young manhood life is identified with the little
city, and to her citizens and those of Baker and IDougherty
I am indebted for whatever success I may have had in life.
I have not regarded the events I have related while a
young- man as o any importance, but, looking back at
them through the mists of -fifty years, they seem at least
interesting-. That verifies what X>r. Xapscomb so beauti
fully says, that to be interesting "events must recede into>
the distance., so as to take on the softened halo of remote
ness."
But before closing, I should tell about my horse. I
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kept him until Juno without molestation, when I sold him to Dr. Fowler Holt, the grandfather of j\lr. Charlie T^aniar, for $125 cash, by which sale I made $50. The little mare cost me $70, to which should be added $5 paid to 13ush in the1 swap. This was the first, last and only horse-swap I evor made. I now wish some other swaps had been forced upon me, since it seems it is the only way by which I can make a profit.
tlbe %anfer ffoouse.
A .short time since, while on a business visit to Macon, Ga., I found myself for the first time in many years a guest of the Lanier House. Prom time to time, and for shorter or logger periods, before and during the war, beginning; with its construction, I have been, familiar -with, this house, its landlords, arid many of its patrons. It was completed in the year 1848 or 49, and began, business Tinder the late Sterling Lainier, -who was its first landlord, -and in liomor oi whom it was named. I*rior to this, !Mr. Tanier kept the old Floyd House, and made of it a first-class hotel, with a reputation as such from New York to iSTew Orleans. That hotel and the "Washington Hall were the two of the city, but neither -was of sufficient capacity or of a style to supply the public demand. That being the case, several -capi talists of tlie city formed a joint stock company to build a hotel of modern style -and suitable capacity, to be kept by Mr. Lanier., and which would advance the citys pros perity. At this time there were no railroad connecitions at 3facon, nor through the schedule of travel from the south and southwest to the north and west, and as a consequence, travelers had to remain at jVfacott. for several hours, perhaps for >a night or a day. This situation, gave the Jjanier House almost a monopoly of the patronage from travelers, besides :a liberal local support, which re mained undisturbed by formidable Competition until the erection of the passenger depot and the Brown House just across the street the latter built by Judge E. E. Brown,
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who became its landlord as -well as proprietor. In after years lie succeeded to the place and reputation of Mr. Lanier as tine most popular landlord of tike city and of the State.
My recent sojourn -at the Lanier House brought to my mind these and many other and more interesting memo ries. The central figure of memory, <and around "which, clustered these other memories, was Sterling Lanier. ISTatnre and education had qualified him -well for his avocation. The first requisite of the landlord of &, first-class hotel is, that he should be a gentleman and have fully developed among the qualities which make him such a kind regard for the rights and feelings of his guests. This quality was conspicuous in Mr. Lanier, and as a consequence, all his gueslts, from the most pretentious to the most unpreten tious, felt ait home in his house- He had great success with the Lanier House, and after four or five years , felt that Macon did not afford sufficient opportunity for his gifts aixd desires. He had many friends and admirers in jSTew York city. They desired him to take a hotel in that city. He secured the lease of the La Farge. Most unfor tunately for him, he had had it but a short time -when the hotel was entirely destroyed by fire. JEtc could not obtain any other suitable hotel at that time in that city, and re turned South to Montgomery, Alabama where he had relatives .and many friends. There he continued in his usuial business until 1870 f "where, on the 31st January of that year he died. His remains were brought to his burial lot in the Rose Hill Cemetery of Macon. His -wife survived him. and lived some seven years longer, dying on the 3d of ^November, 1S77? being then nearly seventy-five years of age. Their children, including four sons and two daugh ters, except Robert L. Lanier, of Macon, are deadj and so
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are several of his grandchildren, among them the artist, Sidney Lanier, the son of Robert S., thus adding another to the many "children of genius and misfortune," who died in his youthful manhood,, but fortunately not until he had won a national fame, and of whom Mrs. Hugh Colquitt tenderly and poetically wrote:
"Musician, poet, gone to cfranit in. higher spheres The heavenly harmonies too ftme fo,r mortal ears."
On Mr. Laniers lot in the cemetery are the remains of" and a monument to Abram P. Patrick. He died at the Lloyd House, while kept by his friend Lanier, October 28th, 1846, aged thirty-eight yeairs. The. business men of the Soutih of that day <who yot live, especially the merchants and lawyers, will remember tlhe old jSPew York firm of North, Manning & Pat-rick. The latter was in the habit of visiting the South, -and while at JMacon would pass his time with his old friend Lanier. "While on one of those visits lie sickened and died. He was likewise <a native of North Carolina.
"When. Mr. Lanier, so much to the regret of his friends and patrons, left the Lanier House, Logan a.nd. Meara, in the year 1853, became his successors. The regret for the de parture of Mr. Lanier -was compensated in the full satisfac tion given by the new landlords. They were both warm hearted sons of the Emerald Isle. Major George M. Logan had served all his prior manhood life as a merchant. More recently he was the head of the first dry-goods hcraso of Maoozij doing business as Log-an & Atkinson. He liad an extensive acquaintance, ;and was popular with all classes. He was gifted with taste and refinement. He "was a large man, but "well proportioned^ which, with his scrupulous neatness of person and tasteful dress, gave him an imposing presence. James Meara was a small, pale man, likewise
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MEMORIAL.
neat in his person, and affable in his manners. He had "been "brought up" in tire hotel business, and thus the qual ities of the two made a fortunate a.nd Successful ooinbination.
3tTy memory of their administr-ariaon is very pleasarnt. They held tike house for some fifteen years, and kept up its fine reputation until the very last, "when it ceased, by the death -of first one -and then, the Other, within a short time. During their career the house continued to be patronized by tlie very best people of Georgia and other Southern States. Particularly were there choice guests at the house, and a gay time during the State fairs and the com mencements of the Wesleyan Female College. The three spacious parlors, all connecting, would -then be filled with the fair women and gallant gentlemen of our then happy and pTOSperoiis South. Tthe largest dining-room in the State would be honored with ias gay, liaippy and refined guests as would sit to any hotel table in. the whole nation. As the ladiesand g-entlenren were finely appareled., so tihe carriages, th:e horsos, and itihe fhiarness standing at the door, or coming or departing, were of a sort to suit those tihey . accommodated.
An attraction of the Lanier House, -\vhich brought to it many additional gueslts, and which yet more contributed to their enjoyment, I can-not forbear to mention, and yet as she is in life do not know how to do so in terms that shall be faultless in their propriety. This attraction was the wife of IMJajor Logan. Sire -was reared in Ma-con and had an extensive acquaintance in Georgia, and beyond it. She was in e\rery sense the lady of the house, and could dispense hospitality and lead or preside in any duty or pleasure which tlie ways of refined society required. This memory is saddened by the realization that two of the cliil-
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dren, who were of tender years and pets of the hou^c, sire with their father in the spirit-land.
T-liO transition in my memory from those who presided over the Lanier House to those whose habit it was in the ante-bellum days to visit it, is easy and. natural. "Well do I remember -a large number of young men to whom the present "was joyous and the future brilliant "with hope, "who made that house for years their home. Out of thast number I can recall but two "who yet live, and they are now5 in the category of old men, and unfortunately, look it too so uncertain is life, and so1 certain, is it, if we live long enough, (and it is not long either), we shall grow old, and perhaps ugly. Among this number was one whom a sad fate did not permilt to grow old. I allude to Frank Bloom. He was -a perfect specimen of health and strength. Scarce thirty-five years had he lived, when he "went to the -war." He served as staff officer during the hard .campaign of 186162, in northwestern Virginia. In. May, 1862, while tihe troops were being transferred to eastern Virginia, he came home >on a short furlough. Immediately he pulled off the heavy flannels and -woolens the rigors of that climate required, took a bath, and puft on his usual citizens cloth ing. The change gave him a violent pneumonia, and in less than a week he who so luxuriated in a redundancy of life and spirits was a tenant of Rose Hill Oemetery. He was a younger brother of Thurston Bloom, the very first cotton-buyer of Macon, and a -prince of a man. He, too, alas! has been numbered with the dead for many yeaxs. A very pleasant memory of the Lamer House is a private dinner party given in honor of the Irish patriot, John ititehell. On that visit he delivered a lecture in Miacon. I remember how very unlike he was to any of his sountrymen whom I had ever seen. He was slender, pale and deli-
14
210
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cate, with, not a bit of the brogne. He was gentle and auiet, without -any evidence of the aggressiveness that be longed to his nature. He was an interesting talker, exhibiting no effort at display, whether yon tested, him by his lecture or his conversaition. He amused us -with his expe rience in East Tennessee. He then resided there had gone there almost incog., and lived so secluded thait th-e curiosity of his neighbors "was excited to the -highest pitch. He said 001 one occasion numbers of them gathered at the post-office "were discussing him, wondering who he could be. One man said he had been told thalt the mysterious stranger was a British subject. Another made reply he knew that could not be,, for that government bad been wiped Out of existence ait the battle of Kings mountain. The point of this is that the man or his ancestors came from Western Worth Carolina, and all lie knew of the history of the ^Revolution was the battle of Kings mountain. J\Iost
of thosei at this dinner aire also dead. Among them were Phil and Ed Tracy. Both were military officers of the Confederate service and were killed in battle. All the living I can recall are Judge Loenrane, Maj. Josepli Ganiahl and myself.
One of the moat pleasaait memories of my whole exist ence is connected with the Tjanier House. It w^as in the late summer or early fall of 1850. It was during the ex citement created by the effort to a,pply .the Wilmot proviso to the territory acquired from 3-Iexico (by the -war against her. The result was the compromise measure of 1850, wliicih. the ultna Soutihern HigOits men foc 1/he Sofuitfli re sisted. As a part of thie potoganam of resistance a conven tion was called a<nd assembled at Macon. The regular speakers^ of the ocoaeion were Robert Barnwell Khebt, of South Carilina; Williaon L. Yancey and John Cochran, of
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Alabama; and Walter T. Colquitt and William H, Stiles, of Georgia. I was present at a consultation between these distinguished gentlemen in the parlor of the Lanier House. I was so favored, being then a very young man, by the conntesy of my friend Sam Kay, then editor of the Macon Telegraph. Sam. -was a political power in those days, had Hhe ear of all the distinguisihdd Southern statesmen, and the entree to any place where political ideas of the party were to be discussed, or political work to be cut out. JUiett had become so Conspicuous in Congress as ia Southern Eights leader and a South Carolina celebrity, he "was the lion of the day. There was a great curiosity to near his speech. The thoughtful were not disappointed. His full ness and clearness of statement and points, argued closely and compactly, with a distinct enunciation, made his speech a success. His florid complexion, brown hair and fashion able attire, all sot off with gold-mounted spectacle^, gave him a pleasing and distinguished appearance. We had seen and heard the leader for so many years of the ex treme pro-slavery sentimenlt in the United States House of Representatives against the leader of the extreme antislavery sentiment his distant kinsman, the accomplished and fanatical old John Quincy Adams and -were gratified.
"William L. Yanoey and Walter T. Oolquitt were two of the very few orators among the many fine speakers of the South. I mean orator in the true sense of the term not including even the splendid declaimer and able debater, nor do I mean the speakers who on some occasions have been, or may be, eloquenlt owing to conspiring circumstances, but those who are born the orator as poets are. The most marked feature in Yanceys appearance was the beauty and benignity of his countenance. His face had
212
MEMORIAL.
more of womanly than, manly beauty, yet there was nothing effeminate, in it or its expression. If it were possi ble for some painter to draw upon his imagination to com pose the face of a man as a companion piece to a Madonna, then lie might produce Yancey?s. It was .astonishing tikat behind such a mild arid smiling face there should be hid den the fiery spirit of the typical Soutihern revolutionist.
John Gochran, although little known out of his State, was a great intellect of the sound and solid sort. He was no o-rator, not even a good speaker. The charm of his speaking -was in his unpretending manner and the deep thought shown in all he said. He could, without an effort, soon gain the attention of an intelligent audience, and in terest them like Dr. Pierce for hours; and it seemed his words, like Tennysons "Brook," with, gentle ripple and velocity might "flow on forever."
"Walter T. Colquitt is so well known to Georgians, any description of him would be superfluous. The truth is, lie cannot be described. He is, one of the few of -whom it may be said there has been, and never can be, but one such, or in the poetical language of Byron otf Sheridan, "Nature has formed but one sucfh man, and ibroke the die in mould ing" Oolquifit. If the hearer preferred the pathetic in tihe orator, Colquitt would have satisfied him. If the humor ous, (he -would have been gratified to the extreme. If he fancied vehemence, like a mountain torrent bearing down everything in its way, ihe Would fo!ave been, accommodated. If, to the contrary, lie liked a lo-w and gentle tone, as of a murmuring stream, he "would have found that to his grati fication. If he liked to witness in ithe great orator the great actor, he would have had it to perfection, and in the same degree of success, whether the acting -was in the deep
est tragedy or the highest comedy. If a man could be
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created with the combined mental powers of Garrick;, Sher- idan and Spurgeon, lie might be like Colquitt. His hair,
originally black, had become sm iron-gray, .and stood up from his head in the manner of ir. Galhouns. He was of brunette complexion, with a tinge of sallowness. His mouith and jaws were of "that shape, size and compression that showed great firmness and determination. The gen eral mobility of his face was suoh he could make you under stand his feeilings and meaning by metre pantomime. His most marked and observed feature were his eyes, -which could assume the fierceness of the eagle or the gentleness of the dove. To support his strong mental powers he had a strong body. It was not oversize or undersize. He was neither stout nor slender, short nor tall; finely propor tioned, he -would have weighed about 170 pounds. His physical "make-up" gave him great muscular strength, com bined "with an elasticity of movement tihat made all his efforts appear easy. He excelled in physical as he did in mental strength, arid yet this almost perfect man. died while his physical axid mental faculties were in their full maturity, ait the age of fifty-six.
"William H. Stiles was a polished gentleman, and his oratory "was polished like himself. He was master of a soft, melodious, and magnetic voice. His speeches were all finished orations, -and fell delightfully upon the ear and the understanding. If you had heard and not seen and known th speaker, "Youd have sworn itwas silver flowing." He was tall and symmetrical. His form, features and man ners denoted the thoroughbred Southern gentleman of the tide-water country. All those I have named, and so saw and heard in 1850, are dead.
Another memory of the Lanier House, interesting be cause of the important personages it recalls, was the appear-
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ance there of President Fillmore and John P. Kennedy, of Maryland, the -well-known author of "Horse-Shoe Rob inson," and "Swallow Bam." He was one of the four who could without detriment to either blend literary taste and labor with tihe duties of ia statesman. He was President ITillmores Secretary of the Navy, and, of course, on. of the cabinet. Mr. Fillmore -was a large man of benevo lent cioamteiran-ee, with a large* and elean-shlaven face. Both of these gentlemen addressed the masses from the veranda of the Lanior House. This was about the year 1853, and both, of these disitiirgiuisli/ed men are likewise dead.
An extremely pleasant memory I have but I am not sure if of ifhe Lanier House, but certainly of MJaeon is of the great English novelist, William Makepeace Thackeray, I (heard 3iislectures on the four Oeorges tfhe same that are now in book form. He was tall over six feet I should say; his form was little, but not much rotund. He would weigh possibly two hundred pounds. His hair was gr-av beyond his yeiars his complexion was fair, with a good color, but tihe wQiole expression of "his face was spoiled by an indentation at the bridge of his nose, which gave it the appearance of having been broken. On this nose were mounited spectacles with very large glasses. His style of speaking -was conversation al, but clear, distinct and em phatic. He impressed me as looking the kindly man he was, whose satire was gentle and humorous, though effec tive, as is conspicuous in "Vanity Fair" and (Pendennia. jr I consider it one of the dearest privileges of my life that I have seen and heard Thackeray, which I value next to having witnessed the acting of both JMacready and Forrest, the incomparable rivals, and without an equal since David G arrick.
As I have narrated my memories of political and literary
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celebrities connected with the L-anier House, it would be strange if in such a length, of time I had not seen eminent theatrical people. I remember William H. Crisp and his wife, natives of England, who stood high in (their profes sion and characters. Mr. Crisp was manager as well as actor, and was at MaCton several seasons in succession, per forming to the delight of the citizens. Among those whom he engaged, and for more than one season, was Eliza. Logan. She was the sister of the present Olive, and per haps of Celia. She was a. "star," and not excelled, if equalled, by any cotemporaneous American actress. She came of a race of actors, and was therefore "born in the pur ple." She Was so much oversize as to have a poor figure. Truly and candidly speaking, she was ugly When her cOUntenance was at rest. She neither had the figure nor the grace of her sister Olive. But notwithstanding these physi cal defects, she overcame them all on -the stage with tihe good taste of her wardrobe and the magnificence of her acting. She played mostly in genteel English comedy or melodrama, and although ungifted in form and features, &lie could play in parts requiring pretty women, as Julia in the "Hunchback," and jPauline in the ".Lady of Lyons," and would seem as pretty as the prettiest,. This was a great triumph for her, and a tribute to her as an actress. The principal charm of her acting was her elocution that had the tone of the female, but the distinctness and emphasis of the masculine voice. Her enunciation, was clear, dis tinct and deliberate, whether the exigency required a (high or low tone. The audience lost not a word. The elocu tion of Judges Berriern and Joseph Henry Lump-kin -was much admired in Georgia, and I did not regard Eli^a Logam. in that respect inferior to either, although she was a womian. She afterwards married Mr. "Wood, a theatrical manager of Cincinnati, and of her it is the old, old story
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of so many young1 married -worn-en she soon died. The Crisps who engaged her atre also dead. They are more .identified -with Georgia than any -other -dramatic people, because they once made Georgia their home, and now have in the Siftate >a son wht> has been a judge, and is now a congressman. The rival -of Eliza, but of course of a friendly kind, -was Julia Dean a very different style of woman in every respect. She had beauty of form and features, and the grace of manner to make both, conspicu ous. She never played at IVfacon that I remember. She was a. great favorite in 3^-ew York and "Washington City, and w*as >a superb actress. She too married (a Dr. Hayne,, of South Carolina, and she too, like her contemporary Eliza Logan? soon died.
A few years later, but before the war, !M>. Crisp was suc ceeded in the management of the Georgia theaters by Mr. "W. JVT. Fleming. He too made his home -while in Macon at the Lanier House. He was one of those actors who just missed being; a star, because he sustained himself in what ever role he took, and Sometimes exceeded himself. His name will be found in the cast of Bulwers plays when first performed in 2STew York, and Macready played the princi pal parts. "When "London Assurance" was first performed at Savannah it had a run of many nights, and the chief attraction was Flemings Dazzle. Later, he took the part of Sir Haroourt Oourtley, iand performed it well. He was particularly neat in -his person, and gentlemanly in his manners. He was prospering in the South when secession became an accomplished fact. The beginning of the war found him here, and broke up his business. He made his "way back to the ISTorth, <and rumor says entered the I^orth.ern service, and while the purser of a "war vessel on the ^Mississippi river, he, like all of whom I- have written, died. I have no doubt of his death.
Oeorgfa anb Hlabama.
In the latter part of the last century, most likely early
In -the seventeen-nineties, there came to G-eorgia from Vir
ginia, their native State, two educated young men. Their
names were Charles Tait and William H. Crawford. Tihe
former preceded the latter, and became the principal of the
Richmond county academy, located in the city of Augusta.
The latter, after teaching awhile as assistant to Dr. Waid-
dell, in South Carolina, came to Georgia and accepted a
place as assistant teacher to Charles Tait in the Richmond.
county academy. These two young men were or became
good and steadfast frietnds. "While teaching school they
studied law and were admrbted to plead and practice law
in. the State of Georgia. Tait located in Elbert county
and Crawford in Oglethorpe, adjoining counties. BOth
rose rapidly in their profession. Grawford -took an active
part in politics, and soon became a party leader. He filled,
various public offices of the most exalted kind. He was a
United States senator, a cabinet officer, and minister to
Prance. In 1824 Georgia cast her vote for him for pres
ident of the United States, and had it not been that just
before this he fell into permanent ill health he would have
been president of the United States. This was Mr. Clays
only excuse for giving the casting vote of Kentucky in
the House -of Representatives to Jolm Quincy Adams.
*-5f**-X-
******
3STow, contemporaneous, with these men, there were re siding in the county of Wilkes, another adjoining county, two other young mon. These were John Clark and Duncan G. Campbell. Clark was the son of that noted revolu-
218
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tionlary officer, General Elijah. Clark. He was a man oi great ability, great courage and firmness. Oampbell was a man of yet finer intellect. One of the most famous of lawyers, and person-ally perhaps the most popular man in the State. They were also close friends, which "was made yet closer by having married sisters, the daughters of a patriarch of that time., named Ivlicajah AVilliamson. Tlio people of Georgia then did not differ oil political princi ples, and their only points of difference were personal preference and personal ambition.
There soon sprang up a dispute between factions (not parties), and Crawford was the leader of one faction and Clark of tihe other. This was the foundation of tihe after wards Troup and Clark parties. Crawford removed froi.i the State on account of his various official duties., and Troup Hook his place. It so happened that Crawford and his adherents "were "Virginians, and Clark and his were North Carolmians. On Crawfords side were, of course, Tait, supplemented by the Bibbs, the Gilmores and others, and on Clarks side the Oampbells, Williamsons and others. It became a Contest, to a great extent, as to leaders between the settlers from Virginia on one side, and those from Korth Carolina on the dther. The battle waged furiously from, the very first years of tihis century imtil the election of Troup over Clark in 1825, Olark toaving previously been elected and served as governor.
***********
Strange to say, at that early time so soion after the close of the Revolutionary "war, there was in Georgia, and in Al bert county, -a young lawyer named Peter Lawrence Van Alien. He Was from Kinderhook, ISTew York, and a de scendant of the original Holland settlers of that State. AYhat brought him to Georgia, or how he came is not
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known, but New York was :then as far from G-eOrgia as Alaska is now. He soon became prominent, and. Was elected by the legislature the solicitor-general of the west ern circuit, amd while Thomas Peter Carnes was its judge. He took sides wMi and was. one of the partizans of the Olark party. He and Charles Tait had a personal differ ence, but somehow (the manner not coming down, to these times) William H. Orawford became involved, which led to a duel between Van Alien amd Crawford. They met at Port Charlotte, twelve miles below the old town of Peters burg, on the Carolina side, and Van Alien was killed. This was in the year 1802, and while Van Alien was the solicitor-general of his circuit. At that time Georgia was too high-toned to have a law againist duelling. It is "tra dition that Va,n Alien Was the first cousin of the whole blood to Martin Van Bnren, but tradition is wrong. A hrotlber of Van Alien named I>avid married the cousin of Martin Van Buren. To show how far party spirit can, go, and have thaJt spirit founded on an error, Governor Giloner, of Georgia, long- alter, in lam address made before the col lege at Athens, said substantially, Van Alien was put for ward by the enemies of Crawfard, to kill him and get him out of polities, and this was acting so nmch like his consin, "The Political Magician of Kinderhook."
The truth further was tfhat Crawford and Van Buren were good friends. They were mutually interested in " downing" Mr. Calhoun, who at one time was considered certain for the presidency.
JJe was vice-president undor John Quincy Adams and Andrew Jackson, and had been in the cabinet of Mr. Monroe. Jjt was divulging the secrets of the cabinet by some body that caused the breach between the general and Mr. Calhoun, and destroyed the latters prospects for the presi-
220
MEMORIAL.
deney. When Crawford was disabled from disease, Lis friend Van .Bureti traveled all the way from Washington City to Ms plantation home of Wood-lawn to visit him.
****#*****
The feud between Clark and Crawford continued, and at last tihere Was an opportunity to bring tfheon in #o a per sonal collision. They all resided in the western judicial cir cuit. The presiding judge (Games) resigned, and the then governor appointed a brother-in-law of Clark (Judge Grif fin), to the office Iftiat is, ne had married axDotlier sister of Clarks wife. This w*as in the earlier part of the y0ar, and as was the law in Georgia, there had to be an election to fill the vacancy at the next session of the legislature, that fall. Crawford backed his friend Tait in opposition to Judge Griffin, and at last it became a question of Clark or Crawford suprcrnacy in that election. Clark heard that Crawford said he (Olark) had used questionable means to get recommendations of Judge Griffins election from the various grand juries of the circuit. It broitght about the usual correspondence, and the correspondence the usual challenge. Clark was the challenging party. They met near the high shoals of the Apalachee, opposite the county of Clarice, then in tlie Indian Territory, now tOne county of Walton. Dr. Gilbert Hay was Clarks second, and. Cap tain George Powell was Crawfords. Crawford. was shot in the right wrist, which, disabled him. This was in De cember, 1806. "When Crawford got well Clark challenged him again. This was in about six months, but Crawford having killed Van Alien, and having given Clark one chance to kill him, declined to give him another. The per
sonal animosity between these men is an illustration of now two high-toned men, from misunderstanding1 the con duct and character of each, can charge each with acts either
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would scorn to commit- From history it appears the Crawford faction ultimately predominated. Somehow it embraced more of <the talent and wealth of the State -than the Clark did, but my conclusion is that John Clark -was "the worthy son of a noble sire," and. was one of the noblest men of which Georgia can boast in her entire history. Both these distinguished men died within, a short time of each other, about the year 1834.
-x- * -K- * # * w * *
I have said that Crawford and Tait were close and con stant friends, and that the Bibbs were of tho Orawford fac tion. The loader of the Bibbs was Dr. William Wyatt Bibb. He and Crawford were also devoted friends per haps dearer to each other than Crawford and Tait. Craw ford named one of his sons for Bibb, and Bibb named one for Grawford, and there are now living Dr. Bibb Craw ford, of Madison, G-a., and Colonel Cnawford Bibb, of Montgomery, Ala. Permit me to sltate oliber evidences of "these friendships, which do such honor to all, biit particu larly to Crawford. I>r. Bibb Was in Congress, I think, in the senate, from Georgia, "when the salary bill Was passed that gave tt> each member of Congress $1,500 per anorum instead of $8 per day. They now get $5,000. He voted for the law, and as a consequence, like so -many others, lost his seat in Congress. It came very near defeating Henry Clay in Kentucky. His competitor (Pope) had but one (arm, .and a voter told Mr. Clay lie thbng<ht it safer to vote for a man who had only one hand to put in the
treasury. When Bibb was out of office Crawford was a member of President Jfonroes cabinet, and he had him appointed territorial governor of Alabama, and he was afterwards elected the first governor of the State. BuS what as to Tait? After serving six years as circuit judge
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MEMORIAL.
in Georgia, which brought him to 1800, he Was elected United States senator, and in that august "body served ten years. At the expiration of his term (1810) Crawford had him appointed United States judge for Alabama. This provided for him, so far as that office was concerned, for life, but I think Judge T-ait resigned, and died a citizen of Alabama, about the year 1835., -at the age of sixty^eight.
***********
The most interesting parts of this history, in my estima tion, are yet to come. It will be gathered from what has been, stated fllmt Judge Tait was the runic-cent cause of both the duels Crawford fought. It is also certain that in after life he became an official and a citizen, of Alabama, and lived there until he died. When Peter Lawrence Van Alien fell upon the "field of honor" he left -a young widow with a girl baby only six months old. The grandchildren of that baby of 1802 are now citizens of Alabama, one of whom I can name, JVlies Sudie Van Alien Hunt, of Selma. Eigilit or ten years back, when Georgias antiquarian, Colo nel William H. Sparks, gave an account of the duel be tween Crawford and her great-grandfather, she made a public correction of big statement in some material par ticulars. The descendamts of Van Alien and of Tait were not only in Alabama, but in the same county, that of Wilcox. In view of the sacred past, and of the "vanity of earthly things," this old history should be made, if not already, tine foundation of an enduring friendship. But I have riot yet told, perhaps, the strangest, land that is, after all (this acrimony befrween Tait and Clark, and Tait and Griffin, in the sequel Judge Griffin, died and Judge Tait married the widow, the sister, as I said, of Governor Clarks wife, and the daughter of Micajah "Williamson,
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All of Judge Tails children "were by a former marriage. James Asbuiy Tait, of Wilcox county, was '& 3on.
I cannot Conclude this hasty and imperfect sketch with out a tribute to the patriarch. Judging from his noble daughters, he must have be^en a grand character. He is the grandfather of the late justice of the United States supneme court, John A. Oampbell, and grcat-grandfather of one of -tho present justices, Lucius Q. C. Lamar. "Who can name another man -who has furnished from his de scendants two of the judges of the greatest judicial tribunal in our gOTcimment?
Barren.
In a conversation "with Judge Richard H. Clark, he said the announcement of the death of Wylly J3arron and the manner of it, touched him deeply so much so, that his sight became too dim to read it through without pausing. For a man, who had seen so much of the wealth and luxury of life, as "Wylly Barron, to die in poverty, at the advanced age of eighty-seven, is sad indeed.
The judge said, while having no personal acquaintance, he had seen him often and at nearly -all the principal cities and watering-places Lof G-eorgia, and knew well his reputa tion. He was among tlhe most distinguished looking men. in his prime he had ever seen. He was tall and slender looked more than sis feet high, -and carried .himself like a prince. He had black hair and a dark Complexion, of the typical brunette kind, tihat suggested Spanish or Italian. He dressed elegantly; observing strictly the fashions and its changes., and "was adorned with ornaments of diamonds, gold, and gems of preciOUS stones worn appropriately. His whole makei-up "was impressive even picturesque. "Whether in a crowd or alone he attracted attention, and when on some bright, mild, sunny day he made his stately treiad alone on the- sidewalks of Georgia cities, lie looked more like a vision than a reality. He is no doubt the last of the type of "gentleman gamblers," as they werecalled, who nourished "before the war." They were called gentlemen gamblers because they looked and acted the stylish gentleman of that day. They had the reputation of
MEMORIAL.
225
playing "a fair and a square game," and would not permit minors ito play, nor young men knlown Co have large amounts in trust, like cashiers and tellers. If one of their number was caught cheating he was ostracized aird never allowed to play again with the gentlemen set. This repu tation drew to them as customers prosperous professional men and rich planters, and as a consequence, that kind of gambling was largely tolerated. Since all kinds of gam bling with cards, dice or the like have fallen into disrepute of late years, the present generation can have no adequate idea of the state of affairs in this respect then existing.
Happily, this condition of affairs has long since ceased to exist. There are no gentlemen gamlblers left, and all kinds of gambling1 with cards or dice orthelike have been reduced to the minimum in Greorgia. But are we not practicing other forms that are just as demoralizing and just as sad or serious in their consequences?
Quite a per cent, of our wealthy planters patronized the faro and the poker-table. They did mot stop Lat this, but they engaged largely in horse-racing and chicken-ngnting. This was mostly the case in. G-corgia in the counties from Richmond north, lying on the Savannah river. The dis trict just over the river ajn;d along the river in South Caro lina "set the copy," and among these, Edgefield was -the most distinguished. Not withstanding this, Edgeneld has been arid is now felt in the politics of the State to a greater extent than any other County. She had the former gov ernor, and has both the outgoing and the incoming United States senator. The iriost distinguished Georgia county in those days was Columbia, but several other counties were not without distinction. The mos/t famous man of that time who has come down to us by tradition had His
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home in the grand old county of Wilkes, and numerousare his present descendants, "who are allied to the best blood of botli States. Persons not related to him. named their children for him, and about ten years ago there died a gen tleman so named, at the age -of more than ninety, a scion of .one of our grandest old Georgia families.
But retiirning- to Wylly Barron, the judge said he was surprised to find that he, like Tvawrence L. Wilson, known in his lifetime as "Beau Wilson/ who was .alsio one of these gentlem-an gamblers, was a native of the sound, solid and steady old County of Elbert, where he was born as far back as 1807. Elbert has furnished Georgia with her two most illustrious gamblers. Wilson, as iriay be generally known, was the author of the present and prevailing version of the old song -called "Rosin (the Bow." That song is now made immorfel by finding- its way into our books of standard music, is also made instrumental under the title of "Rosin the Bow Varieti," and is among the selections in the pro grams of concerts.
These two old gamblers, nsed as samples, will give an idea of the style of m!en the old "gentlemen gamblers" were. It must be admitted that being gamblers did not prevent them from having- many virtues. This reminds one that several years ago a Ihotel in St. Louis was destroyed by fire, in which Kate Claxton, the actress? came near los ing her life, and there were several Who- lost th:eir lives. A gambler named Tieman mado himself conspicuous in his efforts to save the lives of the inmates, and after rescuing several ladies, he went into the building on his holy mis sion, just one time too inany, and never came out again, thus sacrificing his own life in !tho effort to s-ave the livesof others.
Byron writes of the Corsair as having "one virtue linked
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227
with a thousand crimes." OVTay not tihat be1 reversed, so tbiat a man, though a gambler, may have- "a thousand virtues linked with, one crime." The best*o human nature may be only lower than the angels, and the worst only a little above the devils; and between the two extremes there is an infinite variety.
preachers jjfift^ lJ?ears Hgo.
The laying- of the corner-stone of "Sisters of Mercy" was in the early forties, and -while I was yet "in my-teens." I made o.ne of the large audience assembled to witness the interesting exercises. It was a great day, a grand occa sion for the Roman Catholics of Savannah. A decade beforc their church "was a small, a veiry small wooden edifice, that stood on tine iiortJh side of President street, facing the square on Montgomery. The lot afterwards became the property of Mr. Benjamin. Snider, ia prosperous dry-goods merchant, and upon it he erected his family mansion. Now their church was a brick structure of much larger propor tions., situated on Drayton street, near Liberty andAbercorn. The increased prosperity of the Catholics of Savan nah, and also of Charleston, was mainly due to the direction and energy of Bishop England, technically known as bishop of Charleston. He had been the bishop since 1820, and his . diocese consisted of South Carolina, North. Carolina and Georgia, so limited were the Catholics in those States in population and "wealth. To those of this generation that must seem strange, but yet stranger it may seem when I tell you that, within my memory, Oeorgia belonged to the Protestant Episcopal diocese of South Carolina,, and my life touches the time when G-eorgia belonged to the South Caro lina Methodist conference. Just before, as I remember, the laying of tifoe c*orni rHStonie referired to, Bishop England, so beloved by his f ollowtesrs, and so respected by all denomi nations, departed this life, and at the comparatively early age of fifty-six years. Some men live more in ten years
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than most men. do in twenty or thirty, land this -was the ease with Bishop England, but time >and space will not admit o a proper reference to his life-work, for it would take1 spa^e enough for a long neiwspaper article.
At the time there appeared upon the scene one of -tine bishops priests, who, in the course of his longer life, also became a bishop, and he delivered the address of the occa sion. He TrVtas Father Lynch. Imagine the surprise of a Protest-ant boy, when, he saw in the orator a. slender young man of refined form and features, made to appear yet more refined and clerical by a pair of glittering gold-rimmect spectacles. I had never seen nor known of but one Catholic priest, who, at first, was old enough to1 be1 called, old, and then became in reality, -and in my time, (a sure1 enough old man. .He was the priest of the little wooden ehurch and of the larger brick church. He was known actually, or by sight, by nearly every man, woman and child of the city. He did not confine ihis good offices nor his intimacies or friendships to tlhbse of his own cihurdh. The rieh. and the poor, the old and the young, of all classes and races loved him.
The boy of seven years could scarcely be found who did not know him. Either walking or riding, he was to be seen in all parts of the city. "Wherever one "went he might safely count on seeing him. This man was nay boyish ideal indeed, my ideal of (a Gaitholic priest, who was en titled to be called father. He was Father OjSTeill. He was fatihor of everybody the father of the city there he lived his whole priesthood life, and there "was gathered to his fathers." Hence, my surprise may be imagined when the youngster before me, delivering the discourse of the occasion, wha looked not exceeding twenty-five years of age, was called father too. Of course I malde inquiry
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MEMORIAL.
and "was enlightened. The young father, in the opinion of the youth, acquitted himself -well. It was from him I first heard or knew cx Ignatius Itoyola, and of St. Vincent de Paul.
I have said the young Father 1/yncfh. became Bishop Lynch, or I might say old Bishop Lynch, for such he "was when I next saw him, after an interval of forty years. As bishop he officiated in the services of his church here in Atlanta, and I made it ia point to be present. But what a contrast! The slender, refined young man had changed to a fleshy .and heavy old mian. He yet wore gold-rimmed glasses, but they appeared n<o more like those I saw before than, he did like his former self. G-reat is the change of most per sons in the transition, from youth to age, while only a few retain their original form and features. For from five to ten years prior to this, and when. I was yet a small boy, I occasionally atitenided the Catholic church and often heard Father OJsTeill preach. This was -caused by my associa tion with several Catholic boys of my own age, and "with most of -whom I went to school. They were the Dillons the OByrnes, the Eileys, tthe G-uilmartins, the. Pendergasts, the Blois and the Graudrys. Through this associa tion I got to see and hear Bishop England on his Dio cesan visitations. His name and fame were great, and his audiences, consequently, large. He was a large man, with corresponding head amd face, and florid complexion. He spoke deliberately, in a voice of great compass, clearly and distinctly, and was made more pleasant to the ear by the brogue of his native land. He "was, in short, all over a typical Irishman. His sermons were noted for their strong logic, and, ias I remember, free from efforts of oratory. In previous years "h!e had endeared himself to the people of Ohairleston by His heroism during seasons of yellow
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fever, and the spectacle "was sometimes witnessed of the Catholic bishop preaching on Sunday in a Protestant
church, to a PTOtestamt Congregation." While Bishop England, of Charleston, -was so distin
guished <as a Catholic clergy-man, Hev. Richard Fuller, of Beaufort, an eminent -and eloquent. Baptist divine, was equally distinguished amiong the Protestants. Dr. Fuller, as he afterguards became, would occasionally preach in the Baptist church of Savannah. He also drew large congre gations in which all denominations were represented. He was truly an eloquent preacher of imposing person, and a voice like the deep, soft tones of an organ. He was tall more than six feet "with arms of corresponding length, and he could use body, airms -and voice in. unison, so as to produce a wonderful effect. A favorite attitude of his was to look upward, to uplift his arms to their utmost ex tent, and in that attitude pronounce an invocation or a Tjenediotion thJait would seem to. rdaoh heaven itself. Saint A-ugTistine was his beau-ideal of ian insprped man. I pre sume the saint of the fourth and not of the seventh cen tury. H would often quote after him, and even appeal to his spirit in heaven, which he could do. with great effect. There would be a perfect hush in the church, and e^ery eye would be riveted upon the commanding figure, and every ear would be- delighted and awed at the same itime by the deep and sonorous voice and attitude of the elo quent divine.
Then he "would gradually withdraw his arms and lower his voice until it Would reach its lowest tone, but yet dis tinct and musical and "with same effect as the higheelt. Sometimes tftie tears would course down his Sleeks without his changing his face, attitude or voice. His sermons were interspersed with a series of startling surprises. He would
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MEMORIAL.
be speaking in an ordinary tone and in a commonplace way for him, when suddenly there would be an unlooked-for burst of eloquence that would seem to lift the congregation from their feet. He could pronounce his text with such pathos amd emphasis that it would seem a sermon in itself. I remember one distinctly. It was, "]Vfy son, if sinners entice tthee, Consent thou not." It was my fa.vo.rite of his sermons I heard. In it he seemed #o draw every one to him, and ito be the real, the loving father invoking Ms son "not to be enticed by sinners." Biographers say his "ser mons in style and delivery were formed upon the models of the great French -preachers, and of their style have sel dom been equaled." Dr. Fuller was reared in the Protest ant Episcopal church, and was a communicant. So were his father and mother, but believing immersion !to be the only scriptural mode, -they connected themselves with the Baptist church, and itheir son followed. He was admitted to the bar after a full college course before h e was twentyone and beeame eminent in his profession. During a re vival he joined the Baptist church, was at once ordained and called to a pastorate in Beaufort. He was born in April, 1804? at Beaufort, and died in October, 1876, at Baltimore, MxL He had accepted a call to the latter city as early as 1846. He was contemporaneous with, reared with, and a kinsman of the distinguished Bishop Blliotlt, of the Episcopal church. A -cenitury or more back an Elliott and a Fuller married sisters named Bamwell, and the numerous descendants of these marriages are, of course, related in some degree. As in the case of Father Lynch, after an interval -of many years, I saw Dr. Fuller in Atlanta at the dedication of the First Baptist church, and likewise -with him as with L,ynch, lime had made a great change in his appearance and action. During the times I
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saw him -at Savannah he had not more than reached his thirty-fifth year. He was eighteen years younger than Bishop England, but he lived a niuch longer :time, fo<r the bishop died at fifty-six., while he died at seventy-two. Dr. Fuller had during these same times, say in 1839, a contro versy with Bishop England. It was carried on through the newspapers -of Charleston and Savannah, and the sub ject was: "The Claims of the Catholic Church." I was only a youth, of fifteen, but I read every word each had to say. It "was a courteous and dignified eonitroversy, and the only exhibition of feeling on either side, was upon. the alleged "Sale of Indulgences in the Caftrtolic Church," which Dr. Fuller positively asserted, and Bishop England as positively anl indignantly denied. I presume the con troversy is published either in the works of Bishop Eng land or of Dr. Fuller., and may be said to -contain all that could be said on either side. Throughout this long con troversy Bisihop England signed himself as he did in all his official publications, thus: "John, Bishop of Charles-ton,." Dr Fuller likewise had a. remarkalble controversy con ducted in the public prints -with. President Wayland of Brown University, on the subject of "Southern Slavery/ 1 that created ia profound sensation. These controversies established his reputation to the same eminence with the pen as witih the tongue a gift possessed by very few men,
Keligio-us and kindred controversies in those days were common, and in debate as "well as in .writing. Practically, they have fallen into disuse, -and wo have reached a time when men are more tolerant in the ma>t!bers of faith and opinion, and "have agreed to disagree." It was, and per haps is, a popiilar idea with our northern fellow citizens, that the existence of slavery tended to dwarf the minds and the bodies of Southerners; but taking Dr. Fullers
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physical proportions land title way he sustained himself on that subject, with one of their first minds ? and "with Bishop England born, reared and edoioaited in Ireland, on a broader and ftirthe/r-reiadhing subject, should be a complete refutation. He -was bam and reared in the very midst of slavery in its most intense form, "where men owned as many ias 1,000 slaves, and in point of population the free man was in ia very small minority, Prom this same locality, sur rounded by the same supposed-to-be baleful influences, came the good and grand Blishop Elliott. He too "was large in body as "well as strong in mind. Those named are not the only aible and eloquent preachers of the same period, say fifty and more years ago. There nourished in those days IBisihops Amdrewls and Capers, Dsr, Pierce and his son George, the bishop and others, -each of whom I heard in my boyliood days and since. Verily, "there were giants dn those days." Can the preachers I have named in this communication be matched iat this day by those iioiw in their prime, man for man, or, if you choose, one against all? Perhaps so and perhaps not. It will do to think of.
"(SeorQia Scenes" anb "trumpet
Thomas Hardy is an English, novelist, who has come to the surface of late yeaa"s, and has taken a. Mgh pla.ce in the estimation of the literary public. One of his more (recent novels is called "Trumpet-Major." The scene is in England, during the reign of the Emperor Napoleon, when the peo ple were apprehensive of :an invasion by him, and were consequently much excited. The novelist takes advantage of this crisis, and the state of the public feeling, #0 intro duce into his book a description of a militia drill which took place at a church, and on. the Sabbath day.
It will be found in. chapter 23, at page 195. As soon, as the novel had obtained circulation, some curious person, with a taste for res^arcth, sustained ;by a good memory, charged the author with (having made -a palpable plagia rism in .his description of the militia drill, and whatt is more interesting, proved his assertion. The book from which, it w!as taken, was the modest little volume called "Georgia Scenes," by Augustus B. Longstreet. Mr. Hardy must have thought, as "-Georgia Scenes" had been, published so long ago, and had Come a way from, the wilds of America, that no one who would read his book could be familiar with the rustic stories therein related. But Mr. Hardy underrated the circulation of his own book, as well as that of "Georgia Scenes," and he may from that receive some compensation, or rather consolation, for his detection.
The discussion of the plagiarism has produced a curios-
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ity to pursue "Georgia Scenes," and in some of the book stores it can be found alongside of "Trumpet-Major." This new notoriety given to "Georgia -Scenes" has caused many paragraphs to be published in the various papers of the United States and of England concerning Judge Ivongstreot, its author. It would, be superfluous to say any thing to Georgians, or e^ven to -the people of the Southern States, of this distinguished lawyer, judge and divine. "When the judge became pious, it is said he regretted having written and published, the stories of "Georgia Scenes," and would ha,ve had, if lie could, the precious little book suppressed. But his friends, .even among the clergy, did not share with him this regret. If he wrote no more he had set a precedent which was followed by younger Geor gians, and notaibly we call <to mind "The Blacksmith <of the Mountain. Pass," and "Polly Pea Blossoms Wedding," by the late John P. Lamar; "The Dukesborough Tales," and "Puss Tanners Defense," by Kichard M. Johnsfcon. If any one would like to laugh, and then cry in quick tran sition, let him read "Puss Tanners Defense," to be found in a number of Harpers Monthly during last year. Indeed, if he has any humor and pathos in his soul he will so do, whether he likes to or not in fact, he will both laugh and cry at the same time, and cannot help himself^ as many have done in witnessing Joe Jeffersons persona tion of Rip Van Winkle. This reference (to Lamar and Johnston may be more than an episode, but I cannot help the departure any naorre than I can help enjoying the fun to be found in "The Blaeksmith of the Mountain Pass" and "Puss Tanners Defense."
But to return to the subject. It turns out after all that it is said and written, that Judge Longstreet did not write the "Militia Company Drill," nor is it oiecessary to his rep-
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Titatdon to have it so. The claim-for him is founded in a mistake that any one not an old Georgian would be likely to make. In ithe preface of the book written by Judge Tongstreot he said: "For the Company Drill I am in debted to a friend, of -whose labors I "would have gladly availed myself oftener," and in .a not at ifcbe bottom of page 145, "where will be found the beginning of the "Compaiiy Drill," he -says: "This is from the pen of <a friend, who has kindly permitted me to place it among "Geor gia Scenes." It was taken from :the life about twenty years ago. That edition "was published in 1840, which fixes the time of ithe drills aibOut tilie year 1820. There had been a previous edition of "Georgia Scenes" with out illustration, while this was illustrated.
We have Judge Ijongstreets express authority for stat ing he is not the author of <fche "Militia Drill/ and, relying on memory, I felt sure the name of the author "was given somewhere in the book. But every old Georgian knows as well who the author "was as if it had been expressly stated by Judge Longstreet, for before the book was pub lished, ait the time it was published, and ever -since, the author was and is known to <be Oliver H. P<rince. It is a tradition "whereof the memory of man runneth not to the contrary," a:nd tlhere never has been ra counter-claimant. Tbe author attached no importance to t-he story and did not desire his name published in connection with it, but yet the authorship was well known, and now, after the lapse of nearly three-quarters of -a century, it Iras received now interest by its substantial appearance in Thomas Jfardys novel of "Trunipet-Major." But this has served only to perpetuate Judge Long-street in tttie public estimation, as its supposed author, "while from this circumstance, jus tice and the truth of history, require that the authorship
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should bo properly placed. Oliver Hillhouse Prince "was a native of Connecticut, but came to Georgia while a child with, his father William Prince. He became a la^wyer, took high rank at the bar asnd in the politics of the State. He has represented the State in the senate of ;the United States. He was the author of two digests of tihe laws of Georgia. Tlic second appeared in 1837., and was ttthe only digest of the laws in. use up to 1851. He became quite celebrated for his wit and ihumtor, of which, tihe "Militia Drill" gives some illu9tratian. His fate was a gad one. While re-turning to his home at Maco-n, Georgia, from the [North, whgre he Irad been to superintend the publication of his digest, the steamship "Home," upon Which he was a passenger, was "wrecked in a storm off the coast o JSTorth Carolina, and ho thereby lost his life. His -wife was with him, and sbe perished also. She "was a Miss ^Norman of Wilkes county, Georgia, and a sister of Mrs. Washington Poe, no<w of Maoon, Georgia.
Mr. Prince -was fifty-five years of age ;at the time of his death, Mrs. Dr. James Mercer Green, of MaeOn, Geor gia, is his only surviving -child.
Below will be found first, the extract from "Trumpctllajor/ and then from Georgia Scenes." By compari son the reader can see the points of resemblance. The general scfheme and ideas are essentially the same. Much of the language is exactly the same, but Sometimes varied by the substitution of another word, or words, which have the same meaning. Indeed, it is a clear case, that Mr. Hardy when ihe wrote the twenty-third chapter of "Truinpet-Major" -had the "Militia Drill" before him, and made free use of it. It is not the first instance by several "where men of intellect and eminence have appropriated the thoughts and language of others. From such sources it is
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not expected, because there is no necessity for it. The public will have to forgive Mr. Hardy in view (of the pleas ure and instruction he has given them in -his delightful novels, and the good taste he has shown in drawing on "Georgia Scenes."
" TRUMPET-MA JOH."
"Men, I dismissed you too $0001 parade, parade again, I say!" he cried. "J^ow, -all of you tihafc hasnt got fawlocks, fall in at the loWer end."
"Eyes right -and dress!"1 As every man was anxious to see how the rest stood, those -at the end of the -line pressed forward for that pur pose, till the end of the line assumed (the form of a horse shoe. "Look .ait ye now! "Why, you are all a crocking in. Dress! Dress!" They dressed forthwith; but impelled by the same mo tive, ithey resumed their former figure, and so they were despairingly permitted to remain. "Now, I hope youll have a little patience," said the ser geant, as he stood in tOie center of the arc, *(and pay par ticular attention to the word of command, just exactly as I give it out to ye; and if I should go wrong I shall be much obliged to any gentleman wholl put me right again, for I have only been in the army three weeks myself, and we are all liable Lto mistakes. "Poise fawlocks! Very well done. "Yon middle men that are armed witih hurdle-sticks and cabbage-stalks rnust of course use1 them as if they were real . things. 3srow then, cock fawlocks! Present, fire! (!N~ot shoot in earnest, you kmow; only maike pretense to.) Very
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good. very good indeed; except thiat some of you were a little too soon, and the rest a little too late.
"I ought to have told you before this that at handle; your kartridge/ -seize it and bring it with, quick motion to your mouth; bite the top well >off, and dont swallow so much, of the powder as to make ye hawk and spit instead of attending to your drill."
"Ask your pardon, Sergeant; but what must we infantry of the awkward squad do if Boney comes afore we get our fawloeks?
"Tention! To the right left -wheel, I mean no, uo right wheel. Mair-r-r-Tcih!"
Some wheeled to the right, and some to tihe left, and some obliging men, including Cripplestraw, tried to wheel both, ways.
"S top, stop j try again. Grentlemen, unfortunatetly when Im in a hurry, I can never remember my right hand from my left, ian!d never Could as a boy. Practice rriakes perfect, as the saying is; and, much, as Ive learned since I listed, -we always find something new. 3STow then, right wheel! mareh! halt!
*' MILITIA DRILL."
"All Captain Clodpoles company parade here! Gome, gentlemen, parade luere!" says he. "All you thlat ihasnt got guns fall into the lower end. Look to tilie right and dress!"
As every mian was anxious to see how the rest stood, those on the wings pressed forward for that purpose, till tflie whole line assumed nearly fche form of a crescent.
"Why, look at em," says the captain; "why, gentlemen, you are crooking in at both ends, so that you will get on to me bye and bye! Come, gentlemein, dress, dress!"
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This was accordingly done, but impelled by the same mo tives as before, tihey soon, resumed their former figure, and were so> permitted to remain,
-"Now, gentlemen/ says the -captain, "I am going to carry you through the revolutions of the manual exercise., and I want you gentlemen, if you please., to pay particular atten tion to the "word -of command, just exactly .as I give it out to you. I hope you -will have a little patience, gentlemen, if you please, if you please; and if I should be a goingwrong, I -will be mucfh oblijed to any of you gentlemen to put me right again, for -I mean all for the best, and I hope you will excuse me if you please."
"Poise foolk!" "Cock foolk! Veiry handsomely done." " Tetition the whole! Pleaso to observe, gentlemen, that at the word fire you must fire; fchat is, if any of your gun^ are loaded you must mot sthoot in year-nest, but only make pretense like; and you gentlemen, felloW soldiers, whos armed with nothing but sticks, riding-swibelies and corn-stalks, need not go through the firings," "Handle cartridge! Pretty well, considering you done it wrong and foremost, as if you took the tobacco out of your mouth and bit o'S the twist with the eiartridge-box." "Order foolk! Handsomely done, gentlemen, very hand somely done I And all together, too, except that one-half of you were a leetle too soon, >an*d the other half a leetle too late." "Charge bayonet!" "That cant, be, captain. Pray look again; for how can we charge bayonet without Our guns?" " Tention the whole! To the left left, no, right -that is, tone left. I mean, tihe rigtht loft wheel, march!" In this he was strictly obeyed some wheeling to the
16
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right, some to the left, and some to the right, -left, or ways.
"Stop halt! Let us try that again; I could not just then tell my right hand from my left. You must excuse me, if you please. Experience makes perfect, as the say ing is. Long as I have served I find something new to learn every day. But alls one for that."
H, 3Fact of Sbetman's IRaib.
About three-fourths of a century ago one of the prom inent citizens of the Blackswamp neighborhood, near the village of Kobertville, then in Beaufort district, now Hamp ton county, South. Carolina, was Dr, Thomas Harris, a native of !Nortih Carolina. He was one of the two or three practicing physicians of that locality. There was also there and at Robert-villa .another prominent citizen, He was a merchant, and perhaps the only merchant, for in those esarly -days wlien t.ransposrtation was &o difficult, the people needed hut few goods. This merchant brought his goods from Savannah, and carried his country produce there by pole-boats o<wnied by himself. His name was Benjamin Brooks, a native of Connecticut. Both these gentlemen were bachelors, land had reached an age when they would soon bo on the list of old bachelors. Brooks, feeling (the need of a. (housekeeperj (and it not being in hda plan of life to marry, "bromght out from his native Slfcate his sister Maiy, then a young lady of twenty. This event, I will say, occurred in Hire year 1810, for JVI-arys birthday was on May 10, 1790. It came to pass within a, few years thereafter that Mary Brooks, the Connecticut giirl, and Tbomas Harris,, the !Nortih. Carolina doctor, w^ere -married. Some time thereaf ter Benjamin Brok>ks died, and iMjary was, BO far .as blood relative went, left alone in that county, then so far distant from flier native lamd. 3Sfo dhiH Was born unto her, and except her husband she had no tie of
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relationship to bind lier to her adopted home. The -hus band and -wife lived (harmoniously together for years, but some time before* the late "war betweeoi the States" Dr. Harris died. His wife, having- no family of her own, asslated '-the doctor in his pii-aetJiee, and when occasion, required would nurse his patients. At the death of the doctor sheinherited all (he had, whidh. ctmsiated -of the farm they re sided upon, -a few slaves, .and the- live stock required to carry on -the farm. Here she resided for quite a number of years, contented with her ihome. Her trusty slaves pro tected and supported her, atnd she continued to- serve her JieigJhjbors and friends whenever possible, for having been so long the "wife of a doctor she knew of miany remedies aind was skilled in nursing.
The home of JMrs. Harris was in t(he >cen!ter of one oif the richest plantation sections in the State of South Carolina. A large area of land was suitable to the production of cot ton. The invention of the cOititiOn-gin, of steam navigation on tlhe river, (the chieapness of labor and ^vork-animaisStjai*tcd these enterpidsing* and energetic planters on a career of prosperity that soon made tibjem nearly all wealthy. So rich "weo-e they in lands and negroes that the planterwho did not own more than a -hundred negroes considered himself pdoo*. Education, inltelligfence, refinement and luxury followed m ibhe fOOtstteps of "wealth, until for many miles in every direction ttueire were palace-like mansions, furnishjed in the latest and costliest style. In these a g-eneroiis and Inxurions hospitality was so constant as to become tJhe daily routine. Tthese people (having wealth necessa rily had leisure. This leisure they employed in making each, other h-asppy and in beautifying their homes and grounds. They and thieir lancestors had lived so long in one neighborhjood, that, from, ^marriage and intermarriage,,.
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they "Were nearly all related bo each otlier by blood or affin ity. The community presented a picture of contentment seldom fonnd in any civilization outside of ftbJatt which rested on a foundation of fertile lands and domestic slavery. They were ardcmftly (attached to their neighbors, their homes, and their State. To tliein there was no State so good as South. Carolina, no city eo. good as Charleston, no papers so good as the Courier and tihe Mercury. Tthis was the home of the Martins, the Koberts, the X/awtons, the Staf fords, the jBosticks, the Tisons, and of others, the degcend.ants of whom, in tiheir respective abodes, and many in dis tant -States, iare now conspicuous in .church, State or Society.
This was th -charming situation appertaining to. JVCrs. Harris, or to the community in wthicih she lived, when: .Shermfan began -his march from Sav-annah through Soiitih. Carolina. It suited his plans to cross the river at the old and historic Sisters Ferry, and from thence his march, led him directly and at once ltihrougih tShe earthly Eden I have referred to bait niot described. As I have n!oi described that, I will not attempt tihe more difficult task of describ ing th-e wholesale land indiscriminate destruction by fire .and pillage of all tbat was good, beautiful or valuable in tih at community. The mansions of the ridh, tlie cottages oi" the poor, and the cabins of tihe slaves were alike1 de stroyed, -with- their conteaits. What coiuld not be destroyed \vas approprialted, and tjhe rich, and the poor were alike left witbJout food, sOielter, or tihe work .animals with -which to .acquire the one or recionstruot the other. The destruc tive march of Suerman through Sontlh Carolina has been so ^vell iand so often described., it would be worse than superfluous to comment upon it.. It is, however, Worthy of mention, perhaps, in veirificaitfion of the old adage of
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repeating itself," tlhat South Carolina was once before treated .as she was by Sberanan.
She was as Conspicuous in the Kevolutioniary war as she was in the war of Secession, and for that Oornwallis reeorved to make her people feel the effects of war in all its savage cruelty. I\>r tihe smaller opportunities offering1 on lhis march, and Dhe softer tone which time has given to the history of it, he was only ia little less cruel, if any, ithan Sherman. Sherman, following tho example of Oornwallis, resolved to punish South Carolina because she was con spicuous in secession, but without appreciating- that seces-. sion was simply, according- fto h<er faith, >an -assertion of the same principles of liberty -dominant in the revolution, as against those who had seized the reigns of this Grovernment to violate tihat and the principles upon which it was founded.
!From the preceding narrative it -will already foe underStood thiat Mrs. Harris in her old age was loft by Shcrman homeless and destitute, with no blood-relation any nearer than tho distant and antagonistic State of Connecticut. 3STo friend in the neighborhood Was aible to relieve her, and she made her wiay to the .nearest ptart of Georgia tlnat Sliermain. -had spared, w:hero slxe found <abicl ing-place with one of the descendants of the friends of her youlth. There, a nephew of her deceased husband, Kev. Framklin Harris, went for her and brought her to his liome in Atlanta. In tttie course of a fe-w years he died, and thus the last link in the way of a relative had been broken, and the old lady felt very desolate. By this -time she was eighty-two years of age, and she could do nothing but look with an earnest and constant longing over the hills in the direction of her old home, and have her heart go out with, e-very train she saw go in that direction. She Was in reality homesick, and
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for a home which. Consisited of only two or three negro cabins. But hers was not tlie ordinary homesiekness. It w.as mtore than .that it might be said she was grave-sick. She wished rfjo reach. Carolina before she died, thait she might be buried where she had lived fifty years or more of her Womanhood. She w*as a feeling illustration, of Goldsmiths lines in "The Deserted Village."
With tlie aid of a small legacy left her by her faithful and loving nephew, and the personal kindncss (of a few new friends, the old lady began her journey back. She traveled portions of the journey at times and finally reacihed her destination. AVhan she got there, ralthcr tiban be a burden in her old age upon friends, most of whom were "themselves in poor eircumstaoiCes., she took a cabin on her own land, under the protection of a faithful neg^ro man and his family. Some distant relatives sent her small sums, and with tlie aid of the neighbors and her own exertions she was able to subsist; but later she became bedridden, and was a burden, upon the faithful negro. Finally she was taken to the home of a kind gentleman and his wife named Kiley, and there, at the advanced age of ndnetythree, she died died at home at last, and at last found the home for many years so desired to have.
At this point the reader might inquire what is there in this more than lias happened so often to unfortunate humanity? If no further merit, it is another of tlie many cases, which show that "truth is stranger than fiction," as I will try and prove.
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Xn Coamectieutj (a/bout (t#re middle of the iast Century, there were two sisters named Mary and HaamaJh. Raymond.
One of tliese sisters mar<ried >a man by the name of Brooks, and the other married <a man named Hoyt. The Mrs. Harris of -wftiom. I am -writing was a daughter of the first
named marriage. A daughter of the second mamed married Charles Shieriman, and "Wm. Teeuin&eh Sherraan is a son
of this last mamed marriage. Thus, Mrs. Harris was a first cousin, of the wOiole blood^ to General Shennans
mother, tajid Greneral Sherman, without knowiiig it, burned and pillaged tflie pr^oiperty of his mothers first cOusin, and
she an ,ag-ed lady, as perfect a specimen of .a non-com batant among adulte ras could be found.
Bnte Bellum OLaw^ers.
At the age of nineteen I was admitted to plead and prac tice law in the superior court of Chatham county, and at the present Court-house of Savannah. You might ihere well respond, " What of fjhat ? Wluat interest have my read ers in that unimportant fact.?" Your point would be wei] taken if that faict stood alone, but -connected, as it is, "with the officers and lawyers of the court at that time, and the changes since, it may prove interesting to many. The judge of the circfuit was Charles S. Henry; tOie solicitorgeneral, "William P. White; the clerk, Robert "W. Pooler, -and his only deputy, Edward G-. "Wilson; the sheriff, John E. Davis. The committee of examination were Mat thew Hall MoAllister., Kobcrt M. Oharlton, Frances 6. Bartow, and William P. "White.
It -Was the custom then for the judge to set aside Some special day or days during a term for the examination of applicants, <aoid to appoint the most eminent lawyers of the court on. the committee. ISTo examination, "was !had except what occurred in open court, and that was as tJhorOugh. as practicable. If u law student of Saviaiinah should apply for admission on tihe circuit he brought upion himself a sus picion of bad preparation, and at least for ewhile it af fected his standing at the bar, and snould one go out of the circuit to be admitted, that was taken as strong evi dence of his unfiitness, and perhaps in more ways than one.
On -tihe day I write of there were four applicants, in cluding myself. We were examined together like a class
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at school. The examination began at 9 oclock, and ended at 2 oclock, and the result was, that having teen found by the committee "learned and skilled in the laws," we all received our commdssioms signed by Edward G-. Wilson., deputy clerk, and countersigned by Charles S. Henry, judge.
The three others "were Leonorem D. DeLyon, Louis Le Conte, and William H. Griswold. Mr. DeLyon was the oldest son of Judge L. L. D-eLyon. Mr. Le Conte was the brother of tfhe Professors Le Corute, now of California, and a citizen of Liberty county. He was a graduate of the law department of Yale or Harvard. Mr. Griswold had pre viously been admitted to practice in tihe Btate -of X-ew York. Mr. DeLyon and myself were the only students of Savannah, and we are fhe. only survivors, unless Mr. DeLyon has died within a few years. When last I heard from him he was a professor in an institution of learning at Dangerfield, Texas. Since his admission ho was the edi tor of a paper at Valdosta, in Lowrudes county, Ga.., and has the credit of naming that place the then site of that county. He so named it in honor of Governor Troup and his home plantation in Laurens county, which the governor called Valdosta. There are some who will remember how famOiiB Valdosta became in tihe exciting presidential cam paigns of 1840 and 1844, by reason of the published politi cal letters emanating1 from Governor Tronp, and dated V-aldofSta. !Mr. Le Oonto, not many years after his admis sion, was killed in Liberty county, Ga., by the accidental discharge of his gun while getting nn or omt o his buggy. Mr. Griswold "went immediately to St. Marys, in Camden county, there located as a lawyer; married, and, as I am informed, died many years ago. He proved to be an able lawyer and -worthy man.
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Of the officers of court and the committee of examina tion there is not one surviving; all are dead; and as you and many of your readers know, three of them died a tragic dea<tih. That of Mr. MoAllister was nearly so. lie was the first Federal judge appointed for California, and had he lived would have been tlhe judge of the Supreme Court of the United States for the Pacific States. The labors of the court were very heavy, and he had no assistance. The cases were important and intricate. He devoted himself to his duties ;and brought all the powers of his mind to bear upon them. The result was a disease of the brain which in a short time ended his life. He died in the city of New York. From his ability, his attainments, and his age, he was for many years the only lawyer, except Judge Taw (Judge Berriens law partner), then recognized as capa ble of contending -with Judge Berrien, who by friend and foe was then conceded the ablest lawyer at the Savannah bar. H was some twenty years the senior of Mr. J\IcAllister. Judge R. M. Oharlton was several years younger than MeAllisterr. If you have not already realized the shortness of human life, and desire to do so, just inquire foow many lawyers now ut your bar were admitted prior to the 5th of February, 1844? I think there arc just three. I "was upon the point of naming them, but knowing how many men, and sensible men too, arc sensitive about their ages, I shall not name them. I do not know that these gentlemen are, but I had better be on the safe side. Then inquire how many of those named are natives of your city or county, and yon will find but one. The result of it all, so far as it concerns -myself, is that except one gentleman who lias been out of practice for many years, I am the old est lawyer in Q-eorgia -who is a native of your city. You and yoirr readers nrii9t suppose from this I. am an old man.
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It is only human life that is so short. I notice, that several members of the editorial corps who have spoken. kindly of me on my leaving the judgeship are seemingly under a mis apprehension as to my age. IMemory is a faculty which, "with some persons, runs far back into their youth and child hood. Some persons reonemiber from their third year, and from five to seven the memory is general. Hence a man of only forty-five may remember forty years, but because of that it is not safe to put him at seventy. In self-de fense purely, permit me to say tniat I am, younger than Chief Justice Jackson and his associate, Judge Hall. I am .younger than Judge McOay, of the United States Court. I am younger than Senator Brown, and the same* age of Senator Colquitt. Those named iare aill as active as neces sary, and as useful .as they have been at any stage of their lives. A man may have a long memory for things great or small -without being old. It is "well that some men have such a memory and -will give others the benefit of it, but such is a damaging proceeding if for that Hie sfhall be raited older tham he is.
It is wonderful how, from short memories on one hand and an indisposition to tell wnat is remembered on the other, important men and events of only a generation ago become lost and pass into oblivion! Who of tihe bar of your city iand I may even go outside among your intelli gent people of all classes remembers ijhat James A. Bartihelofc, a disfcingTiislheid lawyer of TiallaQnaase. , !Fla,, -was a native of your city? How many of like sort remember that Joidge Leslie A. Thompson, of Florida, later of Texas, one of the most intellectual of men, -was likewise a native of your city? How many of your present members of the bar remember, and now many even ever heard of, Nicholag JMarloTV? And yet he was born in your eifcy, was a member
MEMO RIAL.
2 5 3:
of the Savannah bar, rose rapidly into .practice and dis tinction, and died late in toe summer of the year 1839 or 1840. He "was of Irish, parentage, and the adopted son of" Patrick Marlow, a. storekeeper on Market square. At his death he was the l>aw-<partaier of the late Joseph "W. Jackson. Tie was refined and intellectual, and from his pro found thought and felicity of expression was formed by nature for a lawyer. Had he lived and been true to him self, the topmost round in the ladder of legal fame would have been his, and yet to mount higher -were there any higher rounds. He could not have been more tihan twentyseven When he died, perhaps not exceeding twenty-five. His death was remarkable, from the fact that another young man died in the same house on the same day, .and! there was a double funeral. JVIy remembrance is, his name was Mills., and he was a- clerk of Hiram Roberts at his wholesale dry-goods store, in Gibbons range. They died at Mrs. Stebbins boarding-house, which occupied the west ern end of what is now the Marshall Hcmse. Who rememibers Counselor Leaflte, called so in "the days off his decline, but for a long time he was a prominent member of the Sa vannah bar? His name will often be found in the reports of the elder and younger Charlton. The old counselor spent much of the time of his declining years at Luddington & Thompsons, then the only first-class restaurant in Savannah. He had the misfortune to become a very loyal. subject to "Old King Alcohol," and for this reason his prac tice left him, but he was an interesting talker to tjlie very last. "When a youth low down in nay teens, -and I went there to get an oyster stew or ham and eggs, I listened with pleasure to the old counselor wihile he talked fo Others. In memory I see him now as vividly as I did then in reality,. and there is a kind place in my heart for the old counselor,.
Georgia's flfe^sterfous Governor.
It -Las been stated that Jolhn Adam Treutlen, the first governor of tihe State of Georgia, -was a Salzburgher. There is no doubt lie was an, official member of the church of the Salzburgher at Ebenezer before the war of the Revolution began, as his name appears .among the twelve deacons of that church during the pastorates of Rabenliorst and Tribner. He was a citizen of that part of Effing-halm, county which was then St. Matthews parish, and his home was about eight miles from Ebenezer, in the immediate neigh borhood of Sisters Ferry. "Whether he was a Lutheran from choice or because "tihat was the only accessible Chris tian church, is uncertain, because it is by no means certain he was a Salzburgher. Indeed, tfhe weight of such tes timony as I have is that he wag not.
It is equally strange land unfortunate that so little of the history <of Gbvernlor Treutlen is known. What was his native country, -when he came to Greorgia, ihow his youth and manhood were passed up to> the Revolution, -are all un known. And stranger yet, although he was among the earliest and most conspicuous of the Georgia revolutionists, and was the first governor of the State, his subsequent his tory has been lost. There has been no. one to record the date, place and manner of his death, and his grave like almost everything eooinected with his history is unknown. In consequence of this mteager information the name and fame of Governor Treutlen has been neglected. Georgia itas given his name to no county or town within lier lira-
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its, nor done anything else to perpetuate her first governor. This neglect could not have grown, ont of -any personal disqualification or the rendering of inconsiderable service. lie Was a member o-f the Provincial Congress from the Par ish of St. Matthew, which assembled July 4th., 1776. Among the co-delegaites is to be found the very distinguish ed mame of Georg-e "Wart on. In that Congress were such men as the Habersihanis, Bryants, Telfairs, Houstons, Clays, Cuthberts and IMdntoshes. Afterwards, in 1777, he was selected from among such men to be the governor of the State, and from tlhe niecessities <of the situation, it -was neces sary to confer upon him arbitrary power. "When he was elected governor hfis executive counsel embraced such men. as John Houston, William Ibw, Arthur Fort and John Jones. During his administration there was a controversy with the neighboring province of South Carolina, in whicfh he bore himself wit/h. distinguished valor aoid (wisdom. South Carolina attempted the absorption of Georgia by making both one province.
The citizens of Georgia had become infected by her einis^ saries, and the occasion called for great firmness, courage and energy. Governor Treutflen was equal to the emer gency. Had the movement succeeded (there would have been twelve instead of thirteen States, and the present em pire State of the South might have had no. existence. But the term of office was only for one year, without re-elec tion. It Was only idle third yeiar of the Revolution Governor Treutlen retired from -office, and this is the last history has to say of him. The -war lasted four more years. Great events of a political nature immediately followed its close, and yet, neither during these interesting and exciting times, nor since, is tfhere anything recorded of Governor Treutlen. He was -a true patriot and a fearless man, and could not
256
MEMORIAL.
have remained idle. He could not have done so had he so chosen., for the country has need for tihe services of all her patriotic sons. The only reasonable solution is that he must have died soon after retiring from office. In sup port of this the tradition coining down to his descendants, and of which there can he no doubt, is that on a visit to Orangebairgjh district, S. C., where he had near relatives,, he was folio-wed by brutal Tories and murdered in the most horrible manner. He was tied to a tree and hacked to pieces with swords in tJhe presence of his family. His body, or what remained of it, was buried, either "by the Tories or his own people, at some place, "where, either from not knowing at first or from being foirgotitein. amid the troublesof tihe times, nio one now living knows. Governor Treutleii having in this sad way departed from, the scone o public action ? and it being so long until tihe independ ence oif the State -was achieved, and liaving no> son or, other descendant in the State in public life, he was for gotten. If not forgotten, certainly neglected, for Georgia to this day owes him the debt of some appropriate recog nition. It is never too late to do right, and tae State should on the first opportunity take some action which, will perpetuate the name of her first governor. It was no lititledistinction to have been such, for to our governors on the original organization of Itttie State during itihe Revolution all our governors since owe their official position and repu tation.
In view of Governor Treutlens celebrity his whole per sonal histo-ry becomes interesting, and tfhis, sad to say, isinvolved in more doubt than his career immediately fol lowing the expiration of has term of office. While tiie name has a German sound, yet it is also tradition -among his cle- scendants that he was a native of England, and had been
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a soldier or officer connected with, -the British army. If tfhis is true lie may have come directly to Georgia, as other English emigrants. But whether he is English or German, the greater probability is he came first to the province of South Carolina. He, or his ancestor, may have been among the German settlers of that State. Erom the earliest knowledge of him ho had near relatives in Orangeburg, where some of his descendants yet reside. In. the neigh borhood of Sisters Kerry, where Governor Treutlen re sided, were many settlers from South Carolina who "were attracted there by the albundance of wood and timber on that side of the Savannah river, with a market at Savannah. This wag before the days of cotlton. The Carolina side had been longer settled, and there -were few or no high bluffs, while there were many on the Georgia side. Either theory is more probable than that he was a Salzburgher. There is no appearance of the Salzburghor in any of his descend ants I have seen, and I have seen many. The Sal^bnrghers have well-defined features, accent and charadtoristicg not to be mistaken by those familiar with them even to this day. Substantially, there is mothing- in Stephenss History of Georgia or "Whites Historical Collections except what I have stated. Whiait makes the paucity of has history yet stranger is that there is no old Georgian whose descendants are better defined, arid more than that, tJhey are quite numerous. I shall mention several who bear the relation of great-grandchild (or yet farther removed) to John Adam Treutlen. There are Col. John E. Treutlen, who was re cently of Columbia, S, O.; Dr. Walter S. Dudley, lately President of the Agricultural and Military College -at IVlilledgeville; Mrs. Maris E.Provost, arid Dr. Harvey Cleckley and wife, of Alabama; Mrs. E. C. Corbet, of Macon, Ga.; Mrs. Judge Mallette, of Effingham county, Ga.; the
17
258
MEMORIAL.
"Wilkina brothers, of Burke and Jefferson counties, Ga.; the sons and daughters of Albert O. Porter, of Effingham, wto was during the late war taken prisoner by Sherman and sent to Point Lookout, Maryland, where the poor fel low died from the effeets of prison life. \VIhe4iheT or no^ his grave, since the -war, has been by Ms family identified X do not know. An interesting fact to me is tfhat when I was only ten years of age, the colonel (William J. Dudley) and the major (Christian Treutlen), of an Effingham mili tia regiment, were botih. the gran-dsons of G4oive.rnor Treuitlen. "Phis suggests that the governor may have been past meridian of life in 1775. Captain ^Frederic Tebeau, of S-avannah, long since deceased, was in eome fway related to Gov ernor Treoitlen, and, of course, his descendants are like wise. There are others I cannot recall,, and I have no doubt there are many I have never heard of.
Colbest
The winter of 1855-56 was distinguished for its con tinued and extreme cold. . In the nionth of January, 1856, .all the water on. the eartihs surface remained frozen for a long time; how long I shall not say, lest I overstate it, bm I will state a. fact and its incidents, from which you may judge. Yom" oldest inhabitant and many younger, will remeniber a pond in Ithe rear of a livery stable and in front of Mr. Arch Greers residenice, then on Broad street, Albany, Gta. It covered, "when full, perhaps two acres of _ground, and in the middle was quite deep. At one partic ular place, where the water passed off by an underground passage to the river, it was very deep, perhaps fifteen feet. This was the ptond yonr city authorities for many years were anxious to drain. Finally, it being- known there was a subterranean passage to the rivea", it was suggested, and I think by the late James M. M!ercer, Dbat if la well -was dug on the edge -of the pond down to the passage then tEhe pond could be ditched Into it, and thug drained. The "well was accordingly dug, but ^aifter digging quite deep withtout reaching 'the passage it was abiandoned, and the dry well remained for some time. At last there came a wet spell, in which, the rain fell heavily and for a long time, and to su-ch an extent tihat the pond cohered more ground than was ever kn^wn. Its waters were thus spread to the dry well and "pifched in." The force and weight of the water caused tfhc well to "fall out" iatio tlie underground ssfcreaxa, BO anxiously sought for. Thus by accident was the pond
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drained.. Tliis interesting- circumstance is stated to identify the pond. -"Well, -the weather "being freezing cold for a good while, there, camo an unusually cold snap in addition, to the existing cold. The pond described became so hard and so thickly frozen that it -Would bear up the weight of a man anywhere. There were no skates, but for amusement; one man would sit in a Country-made, splitbottomed chair, while two others., one on each side of it, would send the sitter as far as tiheir strength would permit, so that^with the forced used and the slickness of the ice, he would go out :fco where the wafeer might have been five or six feet deep. The thermometer was down to six degrees above zero. I eamnoit call to mind that I saw it myself, but I well remember that tfhat was the figure it Was then generally understood fco be at. This was on the 19th day of January, 1856.
Precisely four years before (in 1852) there was another of the coldest spells within my experience. I started from. Albany to Elakaly on. Sunday morning to attend an ad journed iterm of Early superior court. The day was an. unusually warm one for flhe season. I stopped that night just across Spring .creek, and wiithin. eleven, miles of Blakely. There "was a rain, and a cib.ange of temperature dur ing- the night. I shall always remeoxiber the driv^e to Blakely tihe next morning, -with a hard and freezing north west wind in my fa!ce, and therefore suffering more from tihe cold than -at any time before- or sinice. The weather continued cold. On the following1 Thursday I began my journey from Blakely to Columbus, G-a., by way of Guthbert and I>umpkini, to- attend a session of the Supreme Couo^t. The shallow water in the road in Early was frozen solid t!o the ground, and the buggy wheels in going over would only make a rut in h ice, without breaking through.
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"When I reached the Hll country in the upper part of Ran dolph and Stewart counties, where the public road was worm and cxit down through the halls, so that there were banks on each side of tho road many feet high, say in places from eight to twenty feet, these banks bristled and glistened wri/h icicles, from top to bottom, of huge dimensions, hang ing dowin .and arranged side by side like the barrels of ian organ, only innch larger at the base, and tapering off to a point. Such long journeys on the dirt road must sound strangely to the young lawyers of the present day, who can now go comfortably by railroad to -every place court is held, or -within a short ride. ^Nevertheless, tibe journeys were performed, amd from them tfhe young lawyers may learn something of what "we old fellows" had to endure when we were their age. And I have said nothing of the deep "waters we had to wade or swim, the dangerous bridges we had jto cross, or oif the (hard rains and. storms we had to encounter, because this letter is about the severe cold. And in reference to this, I should say iihat in making a days journey in very cold Weather we would sometimes stop in the woods and make up a fire to "warm by, lest a longer endurance might be attended with serioiis conse quences.
I do not know who your "oldest inhabitant" is, but- it seems to me at tihis distance that (he ought to be either JsTeleon Tift, John Jackson., Alex Vason, MJarick Barnes or Hamlin Cook, for they are all I dam think of among the " oldest" male "inhabitants" of Albany -wiho yet survive. In tho years einde I have ceased my citizenship of your city many of the oldest inhabitants have been laid away in, their graves, and it is^ only recently ;th:at three, of the oldest and most promierat and useful, James Hercer, Judge Strozier aoid !Dr. Jenningis, all my friends, have been added to the numbers who have preceded thiem.
H Iking of
The name of IMaj. J. H. Steele calls to mind an interest ing incident, of which he was the principal personage. But before I relate it I moist premise a little. He was a man of much dignity. G-etiting along in years, his hair" was quite gray. This gave him a venerable ias well as a dignified appearance. "Whatever lie did, from the greatest (t;o the smallest, he did it with an air of elegant leisure, so in keeping with his imposing presenJce. He could smoke a cigar or take a drink, from the first wine down to the eommoinest "whisky, with a grace of manner beyond any oth-er nian. In doing the latter, it ^was his habit to hold (his glass until he related some pleasing anecdote or incident, and then drink "with a deliberation that was elaborate as well as dignified. By this time each of his companions had swal lowed their potation with more or less of haste, and could look serenely on tihe major while he was enjoying his.
It -was at the session of 1859-60, the place the room of the Muscogee members, at the old McCornb hotel. There woro present some eight or -ten friends -who had gathered to pass an evening with poor Emmett Dix:on and his col leagues. It was about ten oclock at night, when all had simultaneously risen "to disperse to their respective abodes," and thus separate until morning. There "was, ;as was theCustom then, the usual glass at parting. As "was also usual
with thait company, the major had the floor discoursing to his young companions, for Hate was old enough to- be tihe father -of every man pr^ffib, unless Uncle John ilaund o
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263
Talbot slhould have been, there. There was nothing to break tlie silence tut tfliSe maJOTS mjeloklious voice while 0*001cluding1 liis discourse. Wheoi She ceased (tihere was profound silence. There was ueditiher speech, nor ^action to breiak it "until just when ^he glass touched his lips, arid -all eyee were upon, him, Albert Lamiai- foroke forth to the surprise of every one and repealed in a low deep tone, these lines from Hamlet":
"Let the kettle to the trumpet speak,
Tlie trumpet to the cannoneer without,
The cannons to the heavens, heavens to earth,
The King drinks
"
It was so sudderLj so unexpected, so appropriate, that it "brought do^vn liftie -house," ^and the major drank the con tents of his glass lamid deafening ap^laus-e. I have never known a private incident of so trivial a nature to have such a drainatiic effect. It will be appreciated the more when I say the major was really, from his aig>e, his dignity, -and the respect shown him by his young companions, "the King among us a." On ordinary occasions he would tower above us like an Indian chief in the midst of his tribe, and thus impressed, Albert Lamar would sometimes, on convivial occasions, call him "Tuste ISTuggee." The title of major suitdd Shim, and ho the title. He began with that rank, retained it for many years, and repeatedly refused!
promotion. Albert Lamar and Phil Tracy were his pride, his pete,
his idols. They were brilliant and he was proud of them kind and considerate to him and he loved them. When
they called him major it was a term of endearment, and he called them Albert and Phil with the same tenderness. He loved the company of young men and as a rule asso
ciated with no others.
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MEMORIAL.
But at last the old majors happy career had to close. When the principal editor of the Atlanta, IntelUgewoer, in November, 1870, he was taken with a lingering- illness from Vhich he never recovered. He died in the early part of January, 1871, in .the sixty-fifth year of his age. I saw him on his death-bed, and attended his funeral, Rev. Dr. Brantley officiating. The last time I saw him was a few days .before his -death. He was calm, patient and resigned. He would not speak unless spoken to. The sit uation, the subject, was to him too deep for speech. If you spoke to him he Would answer intelligibly aind with his man ner in health. "While I was there his sister Mrs. Brewer left to return to her home near toy, and in bidding him good-bye, said: "Brother John, look to the great Physi cian/ He replied, "I am looking." These -were the last words I heard him speak, and I am told he maintained the same silence, although alble to speak, until death de prived him of that and of every other faculty.
H. Cutbbert.
It is now very generally known this aged and distin guished gentleman departed this life on the 22d of Septem ber, 1882, at his home on Moil Louis island, near the city of Mobile, in the nfinetyJfburth year of his age, having been born on lthe 3d of June, IT88, in this city. In considera tion of his nativity, lineage, public services, pure charac ter, great ability and extreme age, -we feel strongly inclined to write an extended sketch of his life, which should serve bo tin as truthful history and deserved eulogy. But "within the last two years &o much from time to time has been pub lished of him, until he occupies the1 exceptional attitude -of one whose obituary has been, written and wliose eulogy has been pronounced before his death. As the oldest sur viving member of the National House of Representatives in all the land, and as the sole surviving member of the Prdnceton graduating class of 1805, the eyes of all reading people have ibe>en turned to him. for at least the last five years. He has thus been conspicuous in a manner that has fallen to the lot of few men since the dawn of Christian -civilization. A late instance -otf this kind is Thomas Oarlyle, but he was a decade his junior. And there was a greater difference foe-tweem. them than age makes. "While -one, with all his ponderous intellect, his vast attainments and his world-wide reputation, has loft unpleasant memo ries of his deep prejudices and his rudeness of speech and .action, of the other there .are naught but pleasant mem ories of the refined, olden-time gentleman. Just why
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MEMORIAL.
Judge Cuthbert thus became the abject of sucih special in terest cam. be better illustrated by a short extract from a. notice oif his connection in Congress with the Missouri com promise, "written by Hon. W. T. Walthall, of Biloxi, Miss., for the !New Orleans Times-Democrat:
"He (Judge Cuthtbert) -was foorn before the Constitution. of the United States went into operation. The old articles of Confederation were tlhen in foroe. All the settled partsof the country now constdtutmig the States of Florida, Ala bama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas were then Spanish territory. It was before the outbreak of the French revo lution. iNkpoleon Bonaparte -was an dbseure lieutenant of artillery, and Walter Scott an apprentice in his fathersoffice. Edmund Burke and Benjamin Franklin "were still living. George Canning and Henry Broughman -were -col lege students. -Caltuaun -and Webster were little children, and Henry Clay was riding astride of his meal bag in theHanover slashes. He was horn in the same year with Byron and Peel. He was nearly twenty years in advance of Bulwer and 33ea.conefield and Robert F. Lee. Just twenty senior to Jefferson Diavis, and still more to. Lincoln and Gladstone. Ho was a. member of Congress in his second session wtbeoi John O. Breckinridge -was born, and .a man of middle age at the birth of Garfiold. He was in Congressduring; the -agitatiion of the Missouri compromise, and was the associate of Clay, Macon, Lowndes, Randolph, and the PineSneys of South ^Carolina and Maryland."
The pertinency and brilliancy of the foregoing array of historical ic*haraotera may be the better realized if we select from them Byron, and say that al though he died nearly sixty years ago, yet it is among the possibilities that he could be living now, for lie and Judge Cuthbert were> born in tihe same year. Thus, how is the character of a man
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267"
fixed, and how I& the public weal or woe ^affected by that arbiter deatih, who at once pronounces and executes his judgments without the utterance of a word, and from whom there is no appeal? Byron should have lived long enough to be ashamed of "Don Juan," and to reap the giory of "Childe Harold." It is becoming that this papershould, next to those of Mobile, commemorate the de ceased, for our city is his birthplace, and here, or in our vicinity, he passed his youthful manhood. Here and viciiii ty yet reside many of his blood rel ations, but of many a generation this side of the one to which he belomged. On. Ms mothers side he is the grand son >of Ool. Joseph. Olay of the Revolution, <amd his fatfherwas iSeth John Cuthbert, a colonel in the same war. In this connection, so far as concerns the descendants of Joseph. Clay, we will substitute, as better than we could write, an extract from the Sim-mf 8o,ut1i, of Atlanta, G-a., published1 more than a. year ago:
"The descendants of Col. Joseph Clay are remarkable for 1 their talents and distinction.. They present one of the few illustrations of the transmission of talent.. His son Joseph Clay, Jr., was a lawyer of eminence during the latter years of the last -century in Savannah., Georgia. He was the legal preceptor of Judge Berricn, and if Judge Berrien were now liviiiig he would have entered on ibis hundredth year. Judge Olay was an orator an eloquent advocate, having great power over juries. There is a tradition that at the close of one of bis most effective appeals in behalf of a criminal, the presiding judge, in tears, said to the sob bing jury, "Beware of tiie cloquen-ce. of that man." He sud denly became pious, entered the Baptist ministry, accepted the pastorate of a chuTch in Boston, and there died in 1811, at tlhe early age of forty-seven. One of his daughters
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MEMORIAL.
married Mr. Kufus Gray, a prominent citizen of Boston, and their descendants are now among the most wealthy, refined and cultivated people of that city. After the death of Judge Olay his family returned -to Georgia and resided on their estate in Bryan county. There, many years ago, died -his only son, Thomas S. Clay, an elegant gentleman noted for his piety and bencvolence, and there now resides his only surviving child, jVliss Eliza Clay.
"A daughter of Ool. Joseph Clay married Samuel Stiles, and by this marriage came Rev. Dr. Joseph C. Stile and Hon. William H. Stiles, a member of Congress from Geor.gia. Botfh Wetre m!en of talent and distinction. Dr. Stiles was in the very front rank of able and eloquent divines of the South. He and Hi-chard Fuller were contemporaries and twin brothers in pulpit eloquence the first a Presby terian, the second a Baptist. Another daughter of Col. Joseph Clay married Thomas Cumming, and by this mar riage we have William, Henry, Alfred .and Joseph Cum ming. All were men of note, and some of the first order of abdlity. "William distinguished himself as an officer <yi the United States army in the war of 1812, and. afterwards as a lawyer. He became known to the whole nafcion by his duel "with George MJcDufBe."
Among- the descendants of Joseph Olay not named in the above "was Albert Cutihbert, the brother of our sub ject, who -was a United States senator of Georgia from 1834 to 1843, and died in Jasper county in the year 1855. A correspondent of this paper some ten years ago> called .attention to the Cultihbert brothers in an article -written for the News, which, after allusions to Alfred, said of John A.:
"He was likewise a man of talents, took a high rank in the State as a lawyer, and was a brilliant political writer.
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269
H moved from the low country to Eaton ton, then to Torsyth, then to Milled geville, where he edited the Federal Union- with, great ability. About, the year 1835 lie moved to Alabama and resided at Mobile or Vicinity for many years. He was elected to t(he United States House of Rep resentatives from Georgia during the times of Clark and Troup, and became a member of that body. Like1 his brother Alfred lie brought to middle1 Georgia a large prop erty, but unlike turn, did not succeed in improving it. He is represented -as more sociable and affable -tfhan Alfred, and had a strong personal as well as political popularity. His old surviving legal and political competitors remem ber him with pleasure, and speak most kindly of him. An incident is related of him which displays his kindly nature and brotherly affection. At Upson court some lawyers were disputing as to Mr. Oalhouois -power of Conversation. To settle it, one mad the proposition to ask John A. Ou.thbert who was the "best conversationalist he had ever beard, feeling .assured he would say Mr. Calhoun, whom he had lately parted with at Washington City. It was accepted as the solution, and Mr. Cuthbert was called from his room and the question, propounded. He had known nothing of the conversation or of iftie purpose of the question. He manifested embarrassment and with hesitation he replied, "My .brother Alfred." With equal delicacy on the part of the propounders he Was never informed of their object. This is very like th -warrior whose toast on a convivial occasion has been immortalized in. verse because, it was the simple but touching words, "My mother."
Im the year 1808, before: he -had completed his twentieth year, he embraced religion and was baptized by his uncle, the Eev. Joseph Clay, in the city of Boston. From then
270
MEMORIAL.
until deatli lie was a prominent, consistent and zealous mem ber of the Baptist Cliurch.
In 1810 he was elected from Liberty county to the legis lature of the State, >and for many years he represented the .same -county both in the Senate and in the House.
In the war of 1812 he1 commanded -a volunteer compatny to protect the coast of JLiberty county.
In. 1814 he married Miss Louisa E. Ch-oft, a most lovable .and estimable lady. This was his second marriage, but his first "wife lived but a short time and died without issue,
In. 1819 hie "was first elected to Congress. After his ser vice in the House of Representatives he was put forward by his party as the competitor of John. ITorsyth for the United States Senate. The vote was a tie, and it was oiot uriitil iihe next day fctet <a solution was rea-cihed by the elec tion of ]VIr. Forsyflh. ^Nothing could betiter evince the .standing of John A. Oufchbert in Georgia at that time than that he was considered worthy to contest for so> high am honor -with, such a Celebrity as John Porsyth afterwards became. But for the dominancy of the Troup party in Georgia from 1823 to 1833, John A. iGufchlbert -would have received the highest honor it was possible for Georgia to bestow on any of her eons. The reformation, of parties into the1 Union and State Rights parties in. 1833 plaoed his brother Alfred in the United States Senate the following year.
In 1837 he moved to jVlobile, and in 1840 he was elected to the legislature otf that State. The last office he held was ith-at of judge otf the circuit court. Then, grooving old and weary of the very active political life lie had lived, Ke confined himself to the practice of has profession. His last appearance in politics was his participation in the uKno>w ISTothing" campaign of 1855. The nature of that
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271
issue aroused iine slumbering fire -of his patriotism, and foe made speeches replete -with eloquent denimciation against that secret "political order.*1 He continued the practice of law until witlhm a few months of his death., whan, ihe had to yield to bodily infirmity. A strange part in con nection with -his practice is that in the last ten years, off his life there ihad been a revival <> it. Instead of declin ing more and more toiwards the last, like most old persons, he experienced an increase of mental strength and energy. Like unto1 th.e "sebond sight" -which comes to a few of the aged, there was "with liim a second, physical and mental man hood. Within t!he last year his (name will be found in the Alabama reports.. "When that :ageid and venerafble lawyer -would rise to address the court the presiding judges must have felt like yielding to him while Ire spofee their own places in token, of ^tfoeir profound respect.
Thus has this great old gentileonan live^d and died. His life was so long spared, that at his death, of a famliy of .seventeen, tihere snirvived only two sons and one daughter.
Charles 5. Jenfcins.
In the eulogy upon Clias. J. Jenkins lately delivered
before the General Assembly of Georgia by Col. Ohas. J.
Jones,, ho makes reference to that incident in Col. Jenkinss
life "when he alone of all his party refused to "withdraw
from the House of Representatives and leave it without a
quorum for the purpose of defeating an adverse political
measure. Thetre is no1 act. in Governor Jenkinss "whole1 polit-
ieal career "which so "well illustrates his high sense of honor
and his invincible moral courage. At least itihere is no act
-which can better illustrate both. Those who now read or
hear of it, however they may appreciate, can form no idea
of the heroism of the act and the sublimity of the scene
like those -who were present and --witnessed it. I happened
to be among that fortunate number, and, although just a lit
tle over a third of a century ago, there are not many who
yet survive and "who can describe it as an eye-^witoess. It
should be> described by such an. one, and in the absence of
one better qualified to do so, I shall undertake it, that
greater justice may in this way flo some extent be done the
rnoble character to "whom -Georgia owes so much for what
hie has done in illustratrmg their State, and in leaving- so
grand an example for their admiration and emulation. For
proper understanding1 of Governor Jeoikinss conduct on
the occasion referred to i!t "will be necessary to relate som
historical facts of u political nature which, preceded and
surrounded it.
;
The Cons-titulion of the United States says: "The times,
places and -manner of holding elections for senators and rep-
MEMORIAL.
27 3
resentatives shall be prescribed in. each State by the legis lature thereof, but the Congress may at any time, by law, make or .alter such regulations, except as to the place of choosing1 senators." Tip k> and including- 1840 representa tives w&re chosen, by the regulations of each State, and as a result some wore chosen from the State at large and some by districts. Georgia was one of tftie States which chose her representatives by the first named method, and had done so for many years. The Congress of the United States determined there should be -uniformity in choosing representatives throughout the United States, and, as the direct system was one which gave all the people represen tation and secured that right to the minority of a State, adopted tihalt system. This cOmnge was repulsive to flhe people of Georgia, -who had become accustomed to tihe other system. The first opportunity by Georgia to comply with the new law df Congress was at the session of 1842. At that session the Democrats had their governor, a good working majority in both branches of the legislature, and could have districted the State as might suit them, but they took exception to the law of Congress and refused to com ply. At the next election (1843) there was a complete change in the politics of tfhe State, >and the "Whigs had their governor, and a good Working majority in both branches of the legislature. Like sensible men they complied with the law of Congress and districted the State. The Demo crats were indignant ait the political complexion of the dis tricts thus made, as tested by the election of 1843. They said the Whigs had laid off five certain districts for them selves, two for the Democrats (which they could not avoid), one doubtful. Coiipled with their indignation <was the promise, uttered with all the solemnity of an oath, that when they should again, get control of the State they would
18
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undo the wrong-. One of their specifications was putting Toombs and Stephens in different districts, although, they were in a section of tlhe State where the interests ot the peo ple were identical, and resided only eighteen miles apart. These two gentlemen had for some years been conspicuous for their ability and their enthusiasm in the "Whig cause. To put them tooth in on district was to shut one of itihem out of Congress. Had the Democrats used the power they had the year before they could have put both in. one district and there could have been no just cause of com plaint. To get Toombs and Stephens in one district, the la tiers district (tire eighth) had to run too far dowsn the country and embraced Screen, where Edward J. Black resided, a Democrat and member of Congress, This the Democrats regarded as a double -wrong. Tie same law whidh assured Toomibs and Stephens of a. seat in Congress ousted Black by burying him under a "Whig majority of three thousand. Black was a brilliant man, amd the Dem ocrats loved and admired him. He made a gallant fight against Toombs, who admired liis courage and his talents., and speaks well of him to ;t)h:is day, but of course Ire could not defeat sucii a main, as Toombs with such a majority at his back. As a consequence at the first election in 1844 under the new system Black was defeated. He w-as the father of Q&orge K. Black, and died in the year 1849, aged only forty-four. He was first elected to Congress at the age of tJb.irty-three. Mr. Stephens was first elected to Congress at >frh;e age of thirty-one, and M>. Toombs at thirty-four. Thie Democrats, seeing they had promoted Toombs and Stephens and lost Black by their own folly, were furious, and .as Absalom Ohappell used to express it,
were "full of resentment." A maix of less propriety than Col. Chappell would have
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said they were full of revenge or viudictiveness. Although Georgia "was a doubtful State one year Democrat and the next Wlhig, having generally sa margin of votes to "play for" of some fifteen hundred the Democrats never got control of the Gtalte again until >tlie Session of 1849-50. Then they had only three majority in the Senate and only four in the House. ISTotwitfhstaniding this meager majority, it was their first opportunity sinca the -great wrong had been done, and might be their last for as many years to come. So they took steps early in the session to redistrict the State. The law so doing had passed the Senate and only lacked the concurrence of the House to become effectual, for Grovernor Towns kept his pen and ink always in a eondition to promptly give his assent to that lajw whenever presented to him. After running tfoe gauntlet of various committees and parliamentary motions as obstructions, until the previous question was sustained and the House had to vote on. the question, shall this bill now pass, the1 "Whig members stampeded, and the only one who remained to vote was Charles J. Jenkims. Upon a call of the House the only Whig member who aoiswered to his name was Charles J. .Jenkins. This was the 13th of February. The session was nearly to its close, and as a result from leaves of ab sence and other causes, the Democrats found themselves without a. quorum. Tttie House met daily at the usual hour, both morning and afternoon, with yet no quorum, until the 18th, when the speaker, John. W. Andersen, of Chatham, deeming the situation, of sufficient gravity to give the governor official information thereof, addressed to him, having his official signature, the following commu:nication:
^'His Excellency, Geo. W. T-owns:
"Sir: I have delayed communicating to you officially
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the disorganized state of the House of Representatives,.. hoping- from day to d:ay tfliat the hig-h duty and obligation due the State would induce at least a portion -of those who have deserted -their trust to return and proceed to busi ness. Sudh, however, has not been the case. On Wednes day morning the whole Whig party, -with the exception of Charles J. Jenkins, "withdrew from the House, and have continued since to absent themselves, thus leaving the House without a quorum to transa<?t business. I liaye sent messengers several times to warn and summon the absentees to return to the House. The orders they have altogether disregarded. Some of the most important bills for the interest of the State are yet unacted on, amongst which are the appropriation iand the tax, and if this latter is not perfected Georgia must be discredited and disgraced. In this exigency I call upon your Excellency for advice and co-operation."
The address of the speaker to the governor discloses that the legislature was now in a disrupted, even revolutionary condition, which threatened tHie honor anid stability of the State. This condition of affairs continued until the after noon, of February 20th, for eight days. In the meantime the Democrats had sumanoaied their absent and sick, but having only <a. majority of fonir, ait was impossible to pro cure &, quorum witihoult further <aid from the "Whigs.
At this critical moment the Hon. James A. USTisbet, of Bibb (a brother of the judge), returned to the capitol and resumed his seat. With his preaenice there was a quorum. The stampeding members returned to tSheir seats, the bill was passed, and both, sides seemed gratified. JMr. Nisbet had solved the difficulty by sacrificing piarty to country. An appeal had been made to ham to return Tby his party friends from different portions of -IJh State, to which he
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patriotically and unselfishly yielded. This triumph of th.e Democrats, obtained 'by so inucih perseverance and througn so much tribulation and danger to the State, bore no fruit. Tlhe districts migftit as well (have remained as they were. The close -of that year brought a reorganization of parties upon the compromise measures of 1850, which broke entirely the Georgia democratic slate. The next year, 1851, found the Democrats divided among therneselves, and Bowell Cobbj Democrat, defeated Charles J. MJcDonald, Democrat, for governor, by a majority of nearly twenty thousand.
In the foregoing niarrative we must not lose sight of the then Mister, afterwards Grovernior Jenkins. It "was thie custom foar the Democrats to sit on one side of the middle and dividing aisle and the Whigs on <tfhe other. With a difference of only four, the one appeared as numerous as the other, and each, nearly filled their- respective spaces. It w(as a sublime sigflit to see Governor Jenkinss form, tShfe only break to *bfoe vacanicy, aoid his Vioice in answ^er to his mame upon the calls the only break ^o the sil-en-oe on tlhat side of the Shouse. I -would oceasionally look in to see for myself the condition of the Houso and what progress had "been made. As I would see him alone and hear his soli tary voice my feelings were those .of mingled admiration and sympathy. Admiraitiion for the man -who in tihose hot and bitter party t&mes hald the courage, "solitary amd alone/ to sever nimseltf from ^b.is party in obedience to prinlciple and sympathy, for I knew the agony he was en during in. thus condemning his friends in the presence of their enemies, whale there -were perhaps few of either capa ble of appreciating his noble and patriotic conduct. If history either before or since, has ever "repeated iteelf" in this particular I am not informed. And yet sucih mignt iiave been expected -of a man wno, seven years before, nad.
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refused to explain or apologize for liis vote in the legisla ture to retain his seat therein and the confidence of his^ beloved eonstituenits-. Had the prize been tihe governors seat, -or the presidency, or a crown, or millions of treasure, his conduct would have been the same. Mr. Jenkins had not ithan quite reached the meridian of life, or tihe full maturity of his faculties. A lilttle more than a month before he had reached Ms forty-fifth year, and yelk he !had been in public life, more -or less, for more than twenty years. At this time he "was walking in the shadow of a great grief, indeed, overwhelming sorrow, having consigned to the earth his only son in 1843. He had then remain ing his wife latnd two daughters. Ttiese died within a "week of eaeh other, in 1848. And as if to make his cup full of bitterness his wife died within ia year afterward. The crepe upon his hat and arm were suggestive emblems of his afflic tion; and tihe ordeals through. whicQi he had passed, and was passing "were discernaible in (his lberievolent features. In all my hearing and reading of jVIr. Jenkhis I had never met him. "WTien I did at the session referred to I wias astanisihed to find he was lame. This was never men tioned, and now I will venture to assert it "will be news to thousands of Georgians. It was never spoken of in former times. It is seldom, if ever, spoken of now, and yet tis true. As sometimes a foreign accent gives a charm to the voice, so does lameness make more attractive some persons. This was the case wiifh Governor Jenkins. I know of ran aged lady xtOW in life, and in the ninetyfourth year of her age. Some fifteen years ago she said: "I saw Gov. Jemkins often wneri he was a child of tender years. He would attend (his parents to cOrurch at Beaufont District, South. Carolina. "I was a liitJtle incredu lous, but wOien: I knew she could noit have seen him since his parents moved to Georgia, and described hrm as
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a lame little boy, I was sure she had. I have given some of these particulars that the reader may the better under stand the picture which I now present to their minds of the reality as it appeared to me that week in February, 1850. It made a vivid and permanent impression on me. It has often appeared and reappeared to me since, and I feel it a duty to convey to others the impressions I have,, although I may fail in the attempt. All I have said., whether near or remote, has been with that view, and not in any manner to sketch Grov. Jenkins, or his life. That has been and will be done by one more competent. But I will venture to add this as to his general characteristics. While be may have been excelled in some particular qual ity by others of his contemporaries, yet there was an even ness in his moral and intellectual faculties; a soundness of the heiad and gentleness of the heart; a nice balance in Ixis mind and temper; a merit that no other had to the same perfection. His feelings were completely in subjection to his intellect. He might be often indignant, mit seldom if ever angry. He was addicted to what was very rare ii) a politician, to the "soft answer which turncth away wrath." Ho certainly had the least to regret or retract of any public speaker. He would not wound his adver sary, if possible to avoid, even in defence and tinder prov ocation. It is almost a conceded maxim, that a useful or effective man must have enemies. Grov. Jenkinss char acter and career is a refutation of it. His conspicuous moral development was sustained and perfected by the religious element of his mature. He was a consistent Chris tian in principle and practice. He felt it his duty to give to his fellow men the benefit of his example, and to Grod and the church the loyalty due to both. And thius he was the f ortnnate possessor of all tire qualities necessary to make the perfect man, if such there can be.
Iberscbel ID. Johnson.
In contemplating the career and character of Herschel "V. Johnson, tthe mind immediately and involuntarily asso ciates with. 1dm "tihree other distinguished native Georgians. From the oldest to tne youngest, thore is only the short, even infantile period of four years, and two of them drew their first "breath in the same year. All of them, either wholly or partially, and together as to two, and nearly so as to the others, received their eollegiate course in their "beloved State at her oldest land most dherished seat of learning. All of them chose law for their avocation all engaged in State .and National politics all became famous and all began their careers at an early age, and within a shorter time than separated them at birth. All acquired distinction with the same, or almost the same rapidity, and soon became the "foremost men" of all the State. Their names and fame likewise filled the Nation a Nation that reveled in the grand intellects of Clay, Calhoun and Wefoster. Four suidh men at the sarnie period -was a dis tinction enjoyed among the States of the Union alone by Georgia. The reader need not be told that the three who thus kept pace with Herschel Johnson were Robert T combs, Alexander Stephens, and Howell Gobb. No men since William H; Craw^ord, George M. Troup, John Clark, and John ForsytJh have had so mudh innuence over the people of the State. As all were Contemporaneously successful, I would that the parallel yet remained; but alas! the young est Howell Cobb, and only he is numbered witli the noble dead. His was the large brain, acting responsive to
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the yet larger heart that made Mm the beloved "younger brother" of this quartette. In 1842, at twenty-eight, (he was elected to Congress on the last general ticket presented for the suffrages off (the people of Georgia. Then, myself a boy of sixteen, anxious to leam the history of my native State and her prominent citizens, I well remenibecr the prediction made of him to me by jVlatfclrow Hall MoAllister, -while in the zenith, of his career, and at "Whose feet I sat," anxious to be taught. He said of the nine (and he knew them ail), he is the youngest and the Ablest, and would soon become a leader in Congress.
The four bad but well entered on their career when, par ties in Georgia underwent a reorganization, <and the people became divided into the Wlhag and Democratic parties. - It was strange, .and perhaps fortunate, that Oofob and John son espoused the Democratic, and Toombs and Stephens the Whig party; .and thus the four for a long time in the future were politically equally divided, and battled against eta eh. other.
In giving these gentlemen such prominent position I have not forgotten that both parties had other very able men, but they were very much older. I certainly "would nOt overlook (who could?) "Walter T. Colquitt, -whose great and diversified talent culminated in genius. So varied and full -were his intellectual gifts that if he had devoted himself to the ministry he would have rivaled Spurgeon; nad he chosen the Stage n<o srutch comedian "would have ap peared since Garrick. As it was, in (his role of lawyer and advocate, he was as able as Erskine; and as a statesman he was as eloquent .as Ghatham.
Neither could I forget Berrien, With Ms clear and bril liant intellect; his stately person a;nid manner; his perfect rhetoric and his splendid elocution; all creating the pleas-
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ant illusion that Cicero had been bom again, and to Geor gia was given the honor.
And though much younger, yet Berrien had his rival in law and politics at the Savannah "bar Matthew Hall McAllister. The native powers of liis mi-rid were strong- and versatile, and .a more perfect and imposing specimen of physical manhood was rarely to be found. His talents -were of such high, order as to give him. just claims to genius. He was appointed United .States circuit judge for Califor nia and Orgcon, and had he lived would have been on the Supreme bench., but death, soon stilled his great heart forever.
Among the celebrities of that time was also Charles J. Jenkins, whom it is now superfluous to praise; and others who -were stall older than Governor Johnson and his con temporaries referred to; and yet others who, whether older or younger, and however gifted, -were not representative men not tribunes >of the people.
The Hon. B. II. Hill, who is so justly distinguished for intellect and oratory, and fills such a large spaice in the public mind, never began his political career until 1855, and is more than a decade the junior of the eminent four.
But while I have felt constrained to pass rapidly in review all thlat I have named, it is of Hcrschel Johnson I am specially to speak.
His native County is Burke a county that attained a population and great wealth. His natal day is the eight eenth of September, 1812. It is an honor to G-overnor Johnson to have the old and historic county of Burke for his birthplace, and a greater honor to Burke to have so dis tinguished a son. His father was Mosies Johnson, a Burke county planter of most sterling worth, and Burke was honored by many siucih, citizens. Governor Johnson grad-
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uated at .Franklin college in August, 1834, >and in a montli thereafter was. admitted to the bar at Columbia superior court. II& at onice begatn practice in Augusta, Georgia, and there remained until 1839. On the nineteenth of De cember, 1833, he was married to Mrs. "Walker, the daughterof Hon. William Polk, of Maryland. In the fall of 1839 he removed to Jefferson county, Georgia, land there re mained uritil the early part of the year 1844, "when he re moved his family residence to IVHdway, near Milledgeville, for the purpose of educatling his children, still retaining his plantation .and planting interest in the county of Jeffer son. That was the year of a presidential campaign. Party spirit ran high, a.nid Governor Johnson "was drawn fully infco politics, having; been plaoed on the Polk and Dallas electoral ticket. Immediately he was spoken of in donnection "with the office of governor. His friends desired to present his name for nomination at the State Democratic convention of 1845, but he declined to gratify them. Then Hall McAllister was the Democratic nominee, but was de feated by the then incumbent, George ~W". Cra"wford. At the nest gubernatorial convenifcion, in 1847, Governor Johnson allowed his friends to use his name1, bnt after a. hard Contest and a close ballot,, Geoirge "W. Towns received the nomination. Governor Johnson "would have been nom inated but for the fact thait Southwestern Georgia a grow ing and populous section of the State, casting a large Dem ocratic majority, claimed the nominee, and presenting one of the most gifted and popular men of the State, he re ceived the nomination. P*ut this happened well. Townswas .a noble, generous man, and soon, in his administration, ho had the opportunity of recognizing Governor Johnsons eminent talents and services. Hon. Walter T. Colquitt in 1848 resigned (his seat .as United States Senator front
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Georgia, and Governor Towns at once <ecxn&rr&d that dis tinguish, ed position on Governor Johnson. He1 "took his seat on the fourteenth, of February, 1848, and held it until the expiration of the term.
While a. member of the Senate he "was a delegate to the Democratic ^National convention that nominated Oas& and Butler in 1848. Also, while a member of the Senate, he made .several able and elaborate speeches on. tire question of the times, which at once placed him in the front rank of the debaters of that august body. Clay, Calhoun and Web ster were tlien memlbers, and just next to tihem were a num ber of the greatest minds of the Nation like Oass of Mich igan, a&d Clayton of Delia-ware.
In ISTovemfber, 1849, Governor Johnson was elected judge1 of the Ocmulgee circuit, and. thus succeeded to a position that had beien adorned by such men .as Peter Early and L. Q. O. Larnar. The compfromise measures of 1850 were not satisfaictory to the great body of the Democrats of the State, and the schism this made led to a temporary disorganization of parties, and to the. calling of a State convention in 1850. That convention by a large majority acquiesced in the compromise, but without yielding the principle of State rights. The differences upon submission to these measures continued during the year 1851, when the .action of the convention was submitted :fe> the people of the State in tihe shape of Howell Gobb for governor, on the plat form, of the convention, sand Charles J. McDonald against it. The contest j-esulteid in the election of the former. Grov. Johnson belonged and did able service in the ranks, oif the party that opposed tthe convention and supported Gov. JVCcDonald, but on the prinjciple often proclaimed by him by speech and "writing, "for the preservation, not the de struction of the "Union." The next year, 1852, was a pres-
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idential election, and Governor Johnsons wing of the party, acting unJder his advice, gave up their temporary organization, united with the National Democracy by sending delegates to the convention, and by putting out an electoral ticket in support of the nominees, Pierce and Kang. This ticket, despite the Strong and "bitter opposi tion to it, through a regular Whig ticket and an irregular Democratic ticket, was elected, and at the head, as one of the electors for the State iat large, -was Herschel V. Johmson. In June, 1853, Governor Johnson received the Dem ocratic nomination, for governor. His opponent w^as Clhajrles J. JenMns. They stumped the State together, and after a hard and close contest, during which their old friendly re lations were preserved, Governor Johnfeon 'was elected by 510 majority. Perhaps in no gubernatorial contest G-eorgia n;ad ever had were the opposing eanidiildiates so equal in all the elements of true mianhodd. Socially, morally and intellectually, either "was the peer of the other, and of any man in the State Or out of it. It was the greatest triuanpii of Governor Johnsons life1 to defeat so> good a man as Chiarles J. Jenkins, but a triumph, nevertheless saddened, by tlie deep regret on Governor Johnsons part that the issues of life should bring nim in conflict with Clhiarles J. Jenkins.
In 1855 Governior Johnson was again the Democratic nominee. OBy thfe tiine the old "WTiig party, from various causes, had become disintegrated, and instead tnereof Inhere was set up the native Aimerican partly, commonly called "Know NotHng." This p^arty liias swept everything before it in almost the entire I^orifli :and West. It seemed that it would carry its triumphs into every State, until, the hopes of itis opponents :were revived by the check it re ceived by the election of Governor Wise in. the State of
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Virginia. It remained to be seen if it should capture Georgia, 'the next most important Southern State. This placed a great responsibility on Governor Johnson. If the battle was lost in 1855, the probability was it -wooild be lost in the presidential campaign of the next year, and that was a stake tlie South., in her then condition, could not afford to lose. Governor Johnson met this responsibility .ably, faithfully and energetically, as was his habit, and it resulted in the defeat of his strongest opponent, Judge Andrews. There was also a third candidate in the person of Hon. T>. H. Overby, as tfhe candidate of the temporary party. "With the aid of prejudices again&t foreigners and the bias for temperance., the enemies of Democracy hoped .and -worked hard for its overthrow. For the first time in their political Career, Toomfbs, Stephens, Cofob land John son battled side by side under the Democratic standard. I cannot with m!ore brevity and perspicuity give the reason for this than by quoting the words of Judge. ISTesbit, another old "Whig, -written the next year, when he said, "The Democratic party was the o.nly refuge that the perils of the times had left for honest men," a sentiment now almost unanimous in the South, and .must largely prevail in tJhe North during tlhe next presidential campaign-
The most distinguished features of Governor Johnsons administration were the maintenance and elevation of the States credit; to perfect our new railway system already begun, and to reiacih new and hidden sources >of weialtli; to make the Western and Atlantic Railroad a source1 of rev enue to the State; to foster pnblic education; to sustain .and perfeict the institutions for the insane, deaf and d^umfe, and blind; to reform the imperfections >of oiir militia sys tem and imbue the people with a military spirit; to hold v$he banks to a strict adcoTintaibility, withooit .emJbarrassing
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them, on the idea that a sound currency "was necessary to a sound credit; to our}} special, private and local legisla tion., as dangerous in policy and wrong in principle; to discontinue rings formed to control legislation and to ac complish jobs by lobbying and bribing; to place the par doning power on its tame basis, and to maintain the rights, dignity and -equality of the State. His was a successful administration of our State government, and was the cul minating point of stability and brilliancy in. our States history, counting from our first orgianization until we were called to contend with the war.
In November, 1857, Governor Johnson retired from the executive office and to private life. "While governor in 1856 he received a nattering vote in tJhe Democratic ISTotional convention for vice-president, but John C. Breckintridge received the nominatioii.
During the interval from 1857 to 1860 Governor John son lived in. retirement at his plantation home in Jefferson county. In 1860 the disturbing elements that had been at work resulted in the division and disorganization of the ^National Democratic party. It resulted in the nomina tion of two Democratic tickets. The one supported iby the m-ain body of Southern Democrats was John C. Brecki-nridge for president, and James A. Lane for vice-presi dent; the other was Stephen A. Douglass for president, and Herschel V. Johnson for vice-president. I shall recur to this hereafter. The result was the election of Abrahiam Lincoln, a sectional president from tihe nortihem division of the Union, and as a. consequence, the secession of eleven Southern States, the organization of the Southern Oonfederalcy, and a war between the sections of gigantic, pro
portions. When the convention of Georgia was assembled to decide
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"what action tier people should take, Governor Johnson was returned as one of lihe delegates from the county of Jeffer son. I snail also hereafter allude to Governor Johnsons participation in this convention. In 1862 Dr. John W. Lewis, "who w>as. One off title Confederate Senators from Georgia, acting under the appointment of Governor Brown, realigned, and Governor Johnson was elected unsolicited to fill the vacancy. In December, 1863, Governor John son was again elected by the legislature to the Confederate Sen>art>e7 -and remained a member of tihJat foody until the surrendier of General Lee. Governor Johnson was elected to the State conventlon of 1865, called into existence by the proclamation of Andrew Johnson, then the president of the United -States, mid was chosen as the president Of that body. After the reorganization of the (State upion the plan of President Andy Johnson, Governor Johnson was elected in 1866 to the United States Senate, until the fourth of March, 1867, and again at the legislative ses sion of 1867 was elected for the succeeding full term of six years. Because of the action of the United States Congress in repudiating President Johnsons organization of the seceded States, Governor Johnson never took his seat under these elections. During all these -times, and until the ses sion of the legislature in 1872-73, Governor Johnson held no official position, remaining a citizen of Jefferson county. At that session he was -appointed and confimied judge of tihe superior courts of the middle circuit for eight years, which position he now holds and adorns.
I believe I henre referred to all the positions, official and semi-official, which Governor Johnson has held. As the reader will perceive, they are many and varied. His life lias been an eventful one, aoid to make proper record of it would require a book instead of a few col-amns in a news-
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paper. I can call, to mind other distinguished, citizens who have been longer in office or official positions, bait none who have held so many different places of public trust, and yet have been nearly iall the time in the public service. The prescribed limits for this sketch will not admit of elabora tion, and yet the right idea of Governor Johnsons official life cannot be given, without it, 13,rief reference and con trasted simimary must suffice. There are points in G-overnor Johnsons earecr that must receive special notice, or justice will not >be done him.
The first is the difference with a large majority of his personal and. political friends in 1 860, and accepting a nom ination for vice-president on the ticket with Stephen A. Donglass. Whatever niay have been thought of Governor Johnson at this time, and for years subsequently, it is now patent that lie was right, and that his course was owing to his superior political sa.gaoity, prompted from the stand point of true patriotism. He was a dear lover of his coun try, and of the Union as the only true means of preserving it. The- process of dissolution had for many years been going on rapidly. All the protestant churches save, one had been sectionally divided, and the National "Whig* organ ization had been entirely destroyed. All -was the result of the an ti-slavery agitation. I1rani the ashes of the Whig party had sprung a sectional party, organized to wrong and oppress the South, that, ;but for the vote of a single State1 and that State was saved by less than, a thousand votes would have elected their president in 185G. The proba bility is that if the Democratic nominee had not been a >citizeii of Pennsylvania that State would not have been se cured, and the sectional candidate would have then been elected. Against all these potent elements of destruction there remained but one brake it was the Unions last nope;
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thatwas the JSTational Democratic party. Mr. Calhonn in his speech in the Senate of the United States on the slaverv question, delivered March. 4th, 1850, had defined and pre dicted this very state of things. In substance, he said that the ecclesiastical and political organizations of the Union were the "cords" that held it together; that these had beer/ snapped one by one, and if the process continued until tffae two great political organizations then existing were divided, the dissolution of the Union would follow. In only two years more the National Whig party -went to pieces, a wreck o;n the anti-slavery rack. In 1856 the Democratic party had so suffered in numbers from the anti-slavery excitement, that it "was saved from defeat by less thian a thousand votes in the second State in the Union. In this condition the presidential campaign of 1860 presented itself, -with. Stephen A. Douglass as the only man who stood any !chan!ce of eonteenitiratdng on himself the Northern Democrats. Q-overnor Johnson saw and realized the situ ation. He ignored <what seemed to him minor issues of principles and policy, and advocated the nomination of Douglass as a measure of relief, instead of the selection of a man. I do not TIOW discuss the issues of the times, and pro nounce who was right on the principles involved. As a Democrat, I differed "witli Governor tlohnson, as did most of hia personal iand political admirers; but regarding his action now, in the light of subsequent history, I am conpelled to admit his was the better policy. I also believe if the Democratic organization had been a unit on Douglass he would have been defeated; that it was already written in the book of fate thiat the Radical-Abolition party was bound to succeed in the presidential campaign of 1860. Yet this belief does not change the wisdom of G-overnor Johnsons course. If Douglass had been elected, as
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Buchanan liad "been, by a most meager majority, and we oould not iiope for moro, it would only lia.ve postponed tire crisis four years longer, Tlie oSTortOiern people, who had tihe numerical power, and had Avoided it with the solder of the anti-slavery sentimerit, were determined that as soon as possible African slavery should cease to exist in the United States. The issue would have soon been upon us, backed by a majority of States sufficient to change the Constitution, to accept emancipation with governmen tal compensation, or resist unto arms the decrees of the government. If there was ever a point of time, then or since, when the Southern people would not fight for their negroes, I cannot discern it. Yet we did not try the effect of a concentration on Douglass as a means -of preserving the only true conseirvative party then existing for the pre vention of disunion, and we seceded while there was a I>emoCratic majority in the United States Senate. As a matter of pure judgment, such policy, pronotmcing from the standpoint -of a historian, was unwise1 ; but hope was gone, the issue of forced emancipation by a violation of or a fraud upon the Constitution was imminent, and prior and subsequent events esteblisli that the only remedy wa.s forci ble resistance.
The other point in G-overnor Johnsons career, of which special notice should be taken, was his vote and action in the convention of January, 1861, against secession. G-overnor Johnsons lionieist, strong conviction was tfhat for exist ing causes secession was unwise,uTinecesisary arid destructive. Plero, as on .all occasions, he responded to this conviction by alble and earnest efforts to defeat secession. He pre pared an able and elaborate report and resolutions against separate State action for present grievances. It -was the only regular counter proposition presented, and made the
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issue clear and complete. He supported his policy with Lis usual candor, force and .ability. But a majority had resolved, a.nd it "vvas voted down. Finding the destiny o " his State fixed for secession, lie yielded acquiescence as a cit izen thereof in conformity with his long-established and cherished, opinion of the rights of the States under the Federal -compact. As I witnessed Governor Johnsons action in the convention, I likewise -witnessed his conduct in the privacy of his room.. His heart was heavy and his face was sad. He then foresaw, as well as human, vision could, that which was to transpire all the calamities that have befallen us as a people. In the future, whether in private or public station, he directed all his efforts to miti gate the horrors of that horrible war. Judged by the re sult, and having regard, to the conscientiousness of his mo tives, (Governor Jolinson again gave exliiibitiou of his supe rior political sagacity in opposing secession.
The first political campaign that brought forth Governor Johnsons powers as a thinker and speaker was that of 1840. It "was the most exciting* one this nation has ever expe rienced. Those who have only knowledge of our presi dential campaigns since 1848 can have no adequate idea of that. There is no space to describe it. Suffice it to say that party rancor was at its highest pitch, and the people, including women and Children, were wild with excite ment. Governor Johnson was then, but twenty-eight years of age. His form was large and bulky, his face was smooth and beardless, and his entire make-up gave you the impression that he was only an overgrown boy. Expect ing not much when he arose, and from his evident trepida tion having this expectation yet more modified, you were soon to enjoy the surprise of listening to OTIC of the most powerful orators in the State or the Union. His bulky
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form gave tyefc more force to his sledge-hammer blows. His oratory, although powerful, -was -without seeming de sign or knowledge of it on the part of the speaker. His words escaped without :the labor of utterance. His style was animated, but the animation of the speaker, like the effect of his telling oratory., was -unconscious. He simply discharg-ed his duty to the best of bis ability, and left the effect to take >care of itself. Tills campaign gave him. a State reputation.
In the next presidential campaign, four years later, Gov ernor Johnson, found himself located at iMilledgeville, his name on the electoral ticket., :and in Alexander Stephcnss district. It was a AVhig district by an overwhelming and im reducible majority. "Little Aleck" was master of the situation and the pet of the district. It was Governor Johnsons duty and fate, from his locality and position., to confront Mr. Stephens on the atump. He (M!r. Stephens) had hitherto had comparatively an easy time of it, but no>w that he had to meet Johnson, all the powers of his mind were brought into requisition. He knew Johnson well. Classmates in college and close friends., he had met him in the society debates and other elocutionary exercises. He knew his native powers and the sprrng from which he had imbibed his learning. He knew that he had "to meet a. foenran worthy of his steel." Stephenss friends were con cerned as to tfhe conflict, and Johnsons were elated that "Little Aleick" was at last to "find his match." ITroHi Johnsons success in 1840 his political friends had named him the "Ooon Killer," that is, "Whig killer, -and they pro posed to make "Little Aleck 7 one of Johnsons victims. The debates began. It was soon, discovered that if Ste phens used ;a Damascus blade, Johnson ^vielded a batfcle-ax witfli the strength of -a giant. If he -chose to charge it was
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with, tlie force of a battering-ram; if to defend, "the rocks would fly from, their firm base as soon as he." Just thirtytwo summers each had seen; both were born in the same year; both had graduated .at the same college; they -were friends in boyhood land members of tlhe same church. They were under Cireimisrfcances tlhe State champions in that con flict for their respective parties. All eyes in the State were turned to this .battle-ground. The J3emocrats, de spairing Of defeating "Little Aleck at the polls, hoped for a compensation, in his overthrow by Johnson in debate. The "Wings, knowing their champions election was certain, were only Concerned tbat he slhould sustain himself as heretofore in debate, and had every confidence he would. "WTien Stephens would get the advantage at one meeting. Johnson would set it off at the next. At various, times the fight was pronounced "<a draw." If Stephenss hits were keen and witillering, Johnsons were heavy and crush ing. If Stephens exceeded Johnson in the certainty and precision of his weapons, Johnson exceeded Stephens in the weight of tire metal in his. One of Stephenss arts in debate was to surprise Johnson by an entirely new speech on a new line when he had to lead off in debate. This would disconcert Johnson, and then "Little Aleck/ havingthe reply, "would be sure to get the grin and the "hollow" 011 Johnson; but whenever the debates were narrowed down. to iflie merits no man could excel Johnson in the expound ing of propositions he had studied; and being, as I think, on the right side of the questions, the victory was his. J3ut when you come to tactics in debate, or any other sort of controversy, if there is any man can excel Aleck Stephens I have not seen or read of him. ISTot Jolm Randolph, on the hustings in old Virginia, "when in the prido and prime of his thrilling oratory," could do it.
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Of course such a deibate by such men, witih a crowd at the back of each, in a time of intonsc political excitement, was obliged to lead to personal difference. There watt for a time an estrangement between these friends, but that has long since passed laavay, .and they are now closer and better friends, if possible, than ever. Both are in the last decade of the "three score and ten" allotted to man, and can now look back to their old conflicts, in view of the vanity of life and the life beyond, as the mere "follies of youth."
In the presidential campaign of 1848 Governor John son continued his labors before1 the pecxple for the success of the -Democratic nominees. During that year, at Forsyth, Georgia, a grand discussion "Was had with Johnson and Colquitt 011 one side, and Toombs arid Stephens on the other. It was a contest of giants. So well was each side maintained it -was not followed by the usual exultation of political friends.
I realize that in thus exalting the oratory of Governor Johnson and other .noted Georgians I may be considered, ex travagant ; but excellence in oratory was characteristic of the whole South, and Georgia ihas had inore than her share. John Quincy Adams on one occasion in Congress, from the very depths of his regrets, inquired: "By "what fatality does it happen tihat almost all the -eloquence and oratory in this body are on the slavery side?
Governor Johnson has succeeded >as well -as a judge as in any other sphere die has filled. His mind is eminently judicial, and his administrative capacity is fully up to his mental standard. He there-fore prefers the quiet of the bench to the wrangles of the bar. He is just as strong a writer as he is an orator. He was specially employed by the party to edit the Federal Union during the guberna torial contest of 1845, and his editorials were admired by
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friend and foe as models of thalfc kind of writing. Ills stylo is taken from the English classics of the days of Addison, andhence is distmgaiished for its combination of force and elegance. What is unusual with most men of his pro fession, he writes a. beautiful baivd, -and all his manuscripts arc wit/hout interlmeaitions or erasures. He is social in his nature and "given to hospitality." "Wliile governor he and his excellent lady entertained with u liberality and an elegance unsurpassed at the governors mansion. His lead ing Iraits of dharacter are integrity, firmness, Candor., a strong religious sentiment, and a courage that -will dare do T\Jhatever conscience dictates. In illustration of (fftic latter quality, in ea\rly life he selt his face against dueling, and no provocation or temptation could Shake him in his pur pose. Ho is, in short, one of those grand men wlio illus trates the past civilization of tho South. His is a type of manhood peculiar to the Sonith, and tfhc apprehension is that when he and. kindred spirits shall have passed away tthere will be none as good to take their places.
.A sketch of -Governor Jolmson., however long or short, would lack completeness if there was not reference to tho elegant lady who Iras been ft lie sharer of his joys and his sorrows. Of the former they have had their full share, and of the laitter en-ougli in tihe dcatili of talented sons and lovely daughters. Governor Johnson has experienced the felicity of having his wife devoted to the gratification of liis laudable amibition. to make for himself >a uame and to live a. life of public usefulness. She is possessed of a supe rior mind, a,nd it lias received ithe highest culture. She graced the executive mansiJon and the plantation home -with the same simple -eleigance each rcc|uires. She is at onoe an ornament to refined society and tihe useful head of her domestic household. She has been to her husband an
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indispensable friend arid counsellor, never failing to cheer and encourage him out of his naitura.1 p-roneness "to look at the clark side." She is one of the, Celebrated and numerous Southern family of Polk, which embraces among its mem bers a president of the United Spates and a bishop who drew his sword land fell in fihe cause of the South. Her father was a most distinguished citizen of Maryland, hav ing been for twenty years a justice of the supremo court of that State. Great -talents and sterling integrity are the family dharacreri sties.
It is happy for the coimtry that Governor Johnson is enabled to continue his usefulness in the office of judge of the suprieme court. It is an office not, beneath tfbe dignity of tihe most exalted, and it is to be hoped that his health .and strength will enable him to discharge his duties as long as he desires, unless called by his fellow citizens, as he deserves to be, to some higher sphere of distinction and use fulness. This may be so, for Governor Johnsons popu larity Was always an unsought on!e. The people appre ciated and called for him.
<5en. Thomas HMncfene\> Smith.
I do not know if Gen. Thomas Pinckney Smith claimed the title of general, but he certainly was lawfully entitled toit. Away back in !tlhe forties wihen yet >a young man, he was. elected brigadier-general of the Second Brigade, thirteenth division Georgia Militia. The brigade consisted of all the arm-bearing citizens of the then counties of Baker, Thomas, and, "i think, Decatur. Tie succcded General Thomas. !E. Blaekshear, who resigned and moved to the far west. The real generals of the late war have superseded the militia generals of the ante-bellum peace establishment,, but there are yet lingering among us a few who trace mililtia title to that era. The general was elected when lieyet had aspirations to distinguish himself among his fellow citizens by success In law and politics, but alas, affliction soon laid its weighty hand upon him, and life had to aban don his profession, and every other pursuit for which he was fitted. The condition of his eyesight became such that lie conld not read or "write sufficiently to pursue any vo cation which required much of either. As mig-ht be in ferred, the cause which produced this affected his whole system and rendered him in fadt an invalid. An incident of his affection was peculiar so peculiar that I never knew or beard of any one similarly afflicted. He could not bear any illuminaltion. The brilliant electric, tlhe g-as, the lamp or the "tallow dip" were alike to him, and he had to retire to cornplelte darkness. But the brightest sunligvht he could stand by shading his eyes -with colored Spectacles., which he never used however until the latter Years of his
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life. I first knew iilin in tlie spring -of 1844r, when lie re sided ait Albany., Ga., then in the grand -old county of Baker. That was his home when he Was elected general. I>uring -Ms residence there lie was prominent as a lawyer, but "was not adapted much to politics. He was too inde pendent in his demeanor, land too candid and caustic in his speech for a politician. He moved from Albany to Macon. Soon his physical infirmity alluded to became so great -as to force Ins retirement from practice. He was a native of the county of Laurens and Scared there when Laurens was one of the finest counties in the State. He studied law at Milledgeville, and I think under "William H. Torrence. This put the general in contact with the then very able local bar, and gave him knowledge of distinguished men in the various parts of the State. He personally knew Sanruel Rockwell, William H. Torrence, William Y. I-Iansell, Judge L. Q. C. Lamar, Judge John G. Polhill, Joel Crarwford, Seaborn Jones, John H. Howard, and many other distinguished larwyers who^e names I caniiot just noW recall. His memory of men and events datled as far back as the beginning of the political contest between Clark and Troup7 and being .a bright and appreciative youth, there grew up a friendship between him and GoveniOt Troup w^liicfh continued unitil tihc death of the governor. Valdosba, bhe governors plantation home in Laurels, was the political Meeca to Which many Georgians made tlrcir annual or semi-annual pilgrimages to have their faitih rene-\ved and strengthened by that eminent Georgian, and among the most faithful was General Smith. And such would come from distant Stlates to visit him. Tlie first time the writer saw the governor was in. the summer of 1849, when he was in the company of Mirabeau B. T^amar, of Texas, who had come from that State to visit his political father.
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As long as General Smiths eyesight lasted him he was both a student and a reader. His information, derived from books as well as men, was extensive and interesting. He had a distiiictiveness of enuii elation, .a fluency of speech .aiid a fund of information that rendered him one of the most entertaining of talkers. He -was not more widely and better known because of his -affliction. His knowledge of old Georgians., of family history, of in feres1 ting topics that, it may do to talk of but not to publish, was greater than that of any one in my knowledge. Pie knew incidents in the lives of British and American celebrities that could be found nowhere except in the rare old books of the Astor library, or had been related to him by some old antiqua rian long since sleeping the eternal sleep under the daisies. JVfaTiy young men. and yOUiig women, noticing this quaint old gentleman upon some street of our Georgia cities, and not kilo-wing who he was, would be surprised beyond description to learn that lie knew more of their ancestors than they did. He could perhaps tell each arid all the maiden names of their grandmotheirs, and perhaps of their great-grandmothers what they did not know themselves, nor could -knjOW in any other way. The death of General Smith makes the third in the course of a few years of itihe best informed upon modern Georgia history and Georgia people. The others are "William H. Sparks and Cinciniiatus Peoples. I had the pleasure of having several conversations with the latter during his last illness. fie was more mtcr^ltimg than lie over had been, and I could not help reflecting upon the precious mconories that mufet with him soon perish, never to be revived.
IRobett TRa^monb IRcib.
Very few of the "living have ever beard of Judge Reid, for he has beexi in his grave for more than forty years. While lie ridhly deserves to live in the memory of men, like many other Celebrities of preceding generations., he has been, except to a few, either forgotten, or never known. The appreciative reader -who has never heard of him will be struck with a name so alliterative and melodious. It furnishes one of those few instances in life where the real name is as bcau!tifnl as any the prolific brain -of Idie novel ist -can produce. The coincidence does not stop here, for this euphonious name was linked with high gifts of person and mind, and a roiiuantic as well as -a useful life. The career of Jiidge Reid is another illustration of tihe old. adage "that truth is Stranger t-han fiction." He died at the age of fif ty-Oii;e, and yet there was crowded into a eornparatively short space of inamhood life more events than pertain to any other civilian ^vithin my kno^wledg-e. These events, whether of a private or puJblic nature, are important enough to record; and when taken altogether, read like romance. 1 shall only briefly refer to them, for the extracts from his private journal herewith published will give a better idea of his life and character than the best I coTiM write. He -\vill be best known and nrvdorstood when lie speaks for himself. He was a ivative of Prince Williams parish, Soutih Carolina, and his birthday was the eighth day of September, 1789. He went to School at Beaufort, Savan nah and Augusta, and was graduated at the University of South Carolina. Before lie had atrtainec! his twenty-finst
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year .lie was admitted to the bar and beg-an <to practice at Augusta, Ga. The rapidly recurring subsequent events will .attest bis success. In 1816, at the age of twentyseven, he was elected judge of the middle circuit, which then embraced the County of Richmond. This was one of the three original circuits of the State.
The bench had been, occupied by the best lawyers of the State. The term was then three years. Just before the expiration of his term, in the latter part of 1818, he was elected to the Congress -of the United States. Tllms he lit erally stepped from tfhe bendh irito Congress. In 1829 he was reelectcd bo Congress. Just -as his last congressional term expired, in 1821, he was replaced -on the bench of the middle circuit, continuing there tiritil the expiration of has term, in 1825. His retirement from the beu-db at that time was due tb his betiing a Ta-OUp man, for wnile the Troup men elected tiheir governor, the Clark men carried the legislature, The majority tolok care tibafc opposition should be made to every cireaiit judge who was for Troup, and their places supplied with Olark men. As a conse quence Judges Held, Longstreet, Clayfcon, Shorter and Thaddeus Goode Holt -were retired.
I think this was the first instance in the history of tflie State where party politics enitered into the election of judges. The precedent, with very few exceptions, has "been followed ever siiice. Two years thereafter, in 1827, and before the expiration of the term of Judge William Schlev, the incumbent of the circuit bench, Judge Eeid was elected by the legislature judge of the city court of Augusta, and was reelected in 1829.
That court was then very little inferior in dignity to the superior, and its bench before and since has been filled by men of equal worth and -ability. For one or more terms
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he was mayor of the city of Augusta, but here my record is silent.
While tire oofeupaut of the bench of the city court 'he, in 1828, was elected one of the presidential electors of the State, and aided in casting tihe vote of Georgia for G-encnal Jackson for his first term. In January, 1831, Judge Reicl had the misfortune to lose Ms second -wife. By this calam ity it is said "his days of happiness "Were "gone. Plis house "was sad -anid a place of misery the presence of old Objects
even old friends gave him pain, all reviving the mem ory of the pa^t and his own dedolation." To change tihe scene his friends applied to President Jackson, and. on the 2 4 tin of May, 18 S2, he was commissioned judge of the United States court for the eastern idistrict of Florida.
He continued in that office unltil 1839, when he was appointed by President Van Buren territorial governor of Florida. This neeessitiatted his rennovial to Tallafhassee, the seat of government. By tihe election of General Harrison to tihe presidency a change itiook place in the politics of the ^Federal administration, and in April, 1841 ? Judge Heid -was superseded -as governor of Florida. He tben retired to his plantation home, Called Black^vood, seven, miles from Tallahlassee, and -tlhere, as I have stated, died on the succeeding l^t of July, before lie had attained Ins fiftysecond year. This chromolOgy of Juidge H-eids political and of&cial life suggests a prodigious personal and political popularity. From tihto beginnling of his career as a judge in 1816 to within a few irioniths of his death, he was almost continuously in (Jiigh official position. Whenever his 0001stituency of city, county or Stialt-e had the opportunity they put him in office. Ont of a manlhood life of thirty yeao-s he was twenty-seven years in -office, and this leaves as a blank :tibe five or six years from the time ho became of
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age rintil lie first became judge, during wTiieh lie \vas likewise sent to tlie State legislature1 . The personal "wforth and mag netism of such a man ntuslt Ivave "been beyond description. JDurmg tho time that Judge _Reid was thus-in. popular favor and held these dignified official positions, lie was doomed fo much sorrow in the sickness and deatli of wife and. chil dren. 1-fe was three (times married. He was first married to Miss Anna JVC. 5i:a_TJaWB, :of Augusta, (ra., in 1811. She died in 1825. Jn 1829 ilie married IMiss Kliaalbetih Via-ginia l?andolp}) ? of Columbia county, (-ra., and she died on the 22d of January, 1831. In 3837 ho- married iliss TVTary jMai^tha Sniitsh. of Cairiden. eo.unt.y, Ga., whto survived him, and is probably yet lining1. His first wife was tilie sister of James UcLawe, of Augiista, and tlie aimt of Gen. TL.afayetite -\IcTja\vs. l^rotn. his first n"vaiiria,ge niitil liis death is just thirty years, and yet lie was .a wiido-wcr >at one itime f OUT years, and at another six years, reducing (his Whole married life to twenty years. There were five cLildren of the first man-ill ere, none of the sedoincl, -and one (Surviving -of the la;3t
a son. mamed RaymOnd Jen-ekes. Tlie oldesit dan-gtlitermarried her Cousin, Charles -Blaek, who removed to Florida and soon died. His widow married Oapt. James Graharn, of fhe TJniited States anmy, ibut died before her father. Jnrlg-e lleids son, James W. 1-.., became inidshipmaii in tlie Ignited States navy, aind *\v:as i-oist in a gale off Oape Horn, witJh every Sloul on board. The diaugliter Rosalie died at the age of Seveiilteen, and liis daiiglnter JTloPida FOTsyth married Lieulteniaiit _F. L. Dancy. !Both yefc survive, and are residing on the St. Johns river. The son Kobert Raymond is, X think, yet living, and at Falatka, Tla. I do not know if theother son, KiaymOrid Jenckes, is living or not.
The Charles Black named Was the brotfheir of Edward J..
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Black. They were orphan iiephews >of Judge Reid, and were reared by Mm. Edward J. was much like his uncle in tfhe brilliancy of his intellect,-tfhe polish of Ms manners, iirid his chivalrie bearing. Judge Iteid lived to $&e Ms paternal care >and lalbor rewarded in tlhe high stand EdWard J. took at tihe faar, arid in Ms election I bo Congress in 1838. He was gerrymandered out of Congress in 1844, and died in 1849. His life, though, shiest, Was full -of interesting <>vents. For expei-ta ess in debate, and readiness and bril liancy of repartee, lie had no superior, if indoed an equal, in Georgia. I cannot trust myself to write of him. When I was a boy of twelve he Won my admiration, which in after life reached enthusiasm. Some day I may sketch him, but cannot hope to do him justice, so exalted is my opinion of him. George R. .Black is his son.
After tiiis episode, and as appropriate to Judge Reids marriages, and likewise illustrating his poetical tempera ment and nobility of soul, I will introduce a few lines from some verses lie wrote at his last marriage, which he styled
THE OLI> MAIN'S WEDDJKQ.
Alas ithat deatCh sltould ever set His seal on such, precious clay,
Alas tfh<at thOUig-ht o>f fond regret Should elDiid my weddling day.
There are tT\no graves in a. distant Land, And tears have watered them we/11;
Even wMle I clasp this lovely hand "Wlh!at ita-Tes does memory tell.
Oh, I love the dead, the old man said, The more wiaen, I look on thee,
For tne blighted blossoms that long- have fled Cofme back and blo'om for me.
These were not this only verses, for the poetic sentiment and idea are inseparable from one of his culture and emo-
20
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tions. Occasionally lie yielded to the impulse and -wroteshort; poems of merit. One called the "Sick Mans Dream" is peculiarly so.
The most touching incident in the life of Judge Iieid? as deduced from his journal, is the pride that he showed in the promotion o> his son James to command in the n;a.vy, and the anxiety manifested for ihis safety while in danger, and. his grief <at the realization of his tragic death.
There is a. nark? in-omimcttt at Alomift Auburn #0 comnrvemomte tlhe officers -who perisihed OH the Wilkes explor ing expedition. A description of it at the time, in the lan guage of itihe Boston: Mercantile; Journal, will l>e worth re peating-, <a;nd is here ciopied:
"A now ctharra is added to this sacred resting-pllaoe for the deaid. A he&iitiful cenotaph of native irVatfble has just beeii erocted <by -the officers and seientific coz-ps of th!e lato exploring expedition to (tf}ie memory of four of their prom ising" young associeOtes who lost ;tlicir lives in rthie service of thcdr Gountry. This chivalry of feeling -whioh embalms the meanory of their brother officers is (a noble trait in, the character of brave mem, and is touchingly displayed in the plain but beautiful iand appropriate monument, on which, nmder ohapldts of exquisitely wrought fioAVicrs, eacO.L form ing the sLhape of an urn, is insioribed the following simple
story: "On the first .slide To the memory of Ivieut. Joseph A.
Underwood, Midsnipman Henry, United Stiates ISfav^-." On the second side To the memory of Past Midshipmen James AY. A. Keid. Frederick A. Bacon, United States 2NT<avy. On the tihird side "This cenotaph is erected by their -asaociates, tihe ^oinicers -and scieivtr&o Co>nps of the United States Exploring Expedition. On the fourth side Lieut. Underwood and Midshipman Henry fell by the
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jhand of savages while promoting Hie Cause of science and philanthropy at Mololo, one of the -Fiji group of islands^ July 24, 1840. "Past Midshipmen Read and liaeoii werelost at sea oft Cape Horn., 1839. "
For most of tlio facts given I am indebted to tihc beauti ful and intores ting sketch of Judge Keid by Stephen. i\ Miller, in his ".Beiicllv and Bar of Georgia." I will let tliat noble and kindjhea.rted gentleman tell the story of Judge lieids death, and of two other members of his house hold.
3Eillcr says: "The reader will at oiice cOnlclude that toa heart so affedtio-nafe as t-hat of G-overnor Keid, to a nature of siioli. exquisil;e sensibility, this bea-eiR. vein cut (the loss of his son. at sea.) \vas iiiirleod over\v*l)_el ruing. JSTo attero.pt will be made to describe tire aiig-uish of a father oai such an oeeasiom. He continued bo discharge his official duties, and those of a oiitizen, huslbaiid and fatiher, in. liis iiswal bland and faithful manner. But the ladt. scene is at, hand, and the earthly Career of Ilobert Kaymoiid Keid is soom to close..
On. the 28Uli day of Time, 184-1, be \Vas seized \vitli fever at -Bilackwood, his residence, seven miles from Tall-ahassee. PTis .daughter .Rosalie was likewise ill under the same roof. ^iiodical aid was cabled in witliout effect, and on bhfe tlhircl day G overnor Keid wilth a tranqu il spiri t yielded ihis soiil to his maker. Without knowing her orphanage, tlio gentle "Rosalie, in her seventeenth year, fol lowed her father to u better "world the next day. On the 10th of July his graniddaughter, Rebecca Black, a lovely girl in her twelfth yea.r, also passed away a.nd rested in the third fresh, grave at Blackwotod ! Tt was indeed a horvge of mourning;.
Tdie death of Governor Reid credited a deep sensation in the public mind. Ho was a mlan of exalted qualities." If
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history is of any value if at is pleasant, enitertaining or profitaible ito read, of persfcms and events of preceding- generat-ionis, having a loOaT <as well as a general interest, then the people of Georgia owe Stephen IT. Miller -a deibt of g"ia!titude vvhicli they ha^e not and I fear will never pay. When I realize how mnch he accomplished through so much bad health, and how poorly he has been paid, in either money or appreciation, my deep sympathy for hirn begeits indig nation for unappreciative Georgians. His sufferings are at an Ond, and his gentle spirit is in the ^better land." He \tfas one of the few to whom a well feeling was a stranger,
yet he was always striving and always the gentleman.
War IRecorb.
If a stranger, happening into tlie city of Batavia, State of IsTew York, were to take a stroll in ttae puiblic cemetery, he migtht read upon a beautiful but plain eJlab the name "Philemon Tracy," w^th nothing additional but his a.ge and tibe time of his dcatfh. It -would not excite liis curiosity o.r any other emotion to note that the time was the ITth of September, 1862. ]VTen have died, men may die as well on the 17th of September as any Otfhler day in the year; indeed, it is a month when death has his harvest, if the grim, monster., "wlllo has "all seasons" for his havoe, oan be said to have a harvest-time truly he has no seed-time, unless birth arid death are one.
Tf a Georgian, were to take the same -walk and find the same inscription lie would be struck with amazement, per haps with lion-or. He would say to himself: "This can not be the last reslting-plaoe of th>e Phil Tracy I knew, for he was killed at Slrarpsburg and buried on the battlefield. If his remains had ^ever been taken away tiney wOuld nave been carried to the lovely Rose Hill Cemetery, Macon, Q-eorgia,iand would be beside .those of his brother Ed, embioso^med in ifJhcir native soil." The Georgian, -would tKen surmise that the slab must marfk the g-rave of amotlier man of the sanio name. But then, there is tliat aoincidence of date of death that 17th of September, 1862 Sharpsburgs bloody day; the sigiiificance of that cannoit be reasioned away. "liut if tbe sleeper was slain at Sharpsburg, as we Have it, or at Antietam, as the Federals have it, why not eay so? Truly, death in batitle is the noblest of all deaths;
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and if -this is not put txn <t>he soldier's tomb the dead is rdbbed by the living of his laurels. The solution !tftien becomes easy. Tracy is a northern name; the battle-date is only n Coincidence. Here lies a man of the same name who died on tilie game day, but is a different, man, and died the death of nature.
Uirt, stranger 01* Georgian, whoever you may be, your conclusion, is svrong. Ik is the grave of Phil Tnacy. of jMacon, Georgia, -who was killed ait the battle of Sharpsburg; .ami, reader, I will make tihe necessary explanation.
After the successful repulse of ilcCLellan, General Lee, with bis wasted and wearied array, had to cross tlie Pofo-iiiac with all possible celerity. This left tlie enemy in pos session of the field and our dead, and tilie on;ly access fneret j for a long time was from 'the Federal side. Phil Tracy had a kind miolc residing at !I3artavia, X0w York, -w>io, liear ing- of his sad fate, dispatched a trusty messenger in search of his remaiirs. That messenger was successful in finding them, where they had been iirterred with oitiTier officerc.miradeg. He knew Phil well, and the identification. wa,s free from, any doubt from a iriark winch v/ill be made to appear in the sequel. The whole country from there to Washington and Baltimore swarmed irith Federal troops. Tlie aitiiiiOsity engendered by Avar -was then in full frui tion, iand it was not only certain that the body of a rebel would not be permitted by tlie soldiers to -be taken 3STorth, hut the life of the messenger would be endangered. Every thing for tran&porfcaltiori was prearranged with as much cau tion and secrecy as possible, and when the preparations were all made the body was passed through the lines as thait of a Federal officer who had fallen in the late bloody battle. In this guise it was escorted to Batavia and so buried; not, however (uotwithstanding the delicacy and difficulty
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of the task), without "-Christian burial/ for the service of the English Church was performed over the remains. The monument, in the style described, was soon placed over the grave, and the inscription was th/iis meager because in the then, state of the public mind there was imminent dan ger that the stone would be rased or defaced. It 13 not so now. The time has at last arrived \vhou these interesting facts may be made public. ]STo one will now desecrate the grave of the dear and gallant dead; and Phil will there rest unmolested until "the arch an gels trumpet shall sound," uii1]ess his friends or relations should oho-ose to bring his precious dust to mingle with his native soil.
This state me nt would fail of completeness unless some reference is made to Phil Traeys career as a soldier, in cluding the circumstances of his death.
At the election of the officers of the Sixth (Col. A. H. Colquitts) .Regiment, Mr. Tracv was elected major. Tilthor to he had paid no attention to military matters; physical infirmities had prevented.. ITe was tOO lame to march, and his vision too defective to sufficiently see. jSTevertheIcss, when the strife came he claimed no exemption by reason of either or both, and came promptly to the fronlt to undertake the duties of an. able-bodied man. He applied himself diligently, and soon made himself a proficient offi cer. At the battle of "Seven Pines" or "Fair Oaks" he was twice wounded. The first was in the fa.cc, stunning him; and before ho recovered from this he was shot through the log, between the knee arid the hip, and fell. This was in May or June, 1862. Pfc was furlougibed and. came home to have his wounds healed. Before he got well the second battle of Manassas was fought and our army had marched into Maryland. Major Tracy chafed to return to his command, and such was his zeal and anxiety that he
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left While the wound in (his log "was yeit unhealed >to return. to his command. He went by way of Richmond, and tarried there for days perhaps. His friends, seeing his condition, and knowing that with his wounds he was physically dis qualified, for a soldier, tried to pcrsiiade him to apply foT and obtain a discharge, about which there was not a doubt. But the same pride, courage and patriotism that caused him to enter the -service "would not accept an honor able discharge, altihough. bearing upon his person the scars of two "wounds received in one battle. Forward tfo the front was his word, and laiotion.
At iiighJtfaill, or a little (thereafter, on the night just before the battle, he, with several other officers and men, arrived at Harpers Ferry. It was miles : to -the line of battle. It -was night, and the rivers to cross; yet some time between midnight and day this wounded, lame, and almost blind Southerner reported himself for the terrible duty of next day at General Golquitits headquarters. He, -with the gonei-al and other officers of the Sixth G-eorgia, took before it was yet light his rough. Confederate camp meal, and then -went to his death. The fight began ait early dawn jMJdClellans seventy thousand fresh, and rested and well-fed troops against General Lees thirty-five thousand wearied and hungry. The battle ^don became general iand sanguinary. The regiment and brigade to- which jMJajor Trac-y belonged suffered with exitr&rn)o severity. All the field officers in command of tJhe regiment were killed. These were Ueuteniant-Colonel ISTewton, Major Tracy, and the senior .captain acting aa maj-or, Captain Plane, I believe; true it is, anyway, that Captain Plane was among the slain. There Levi Smith and Mar-eelhis Douglass, "both colonels,, received their death-wounds, and died upon the field. There were other distinguished Georgians killed not now
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remembered; and in fact, in that battle -the Georgia blood shed was plentiful and e>onspicoious in 'the nobble men from whose veins the life-streams poured like water. It was there that General Lawton received his very painful, dis abling and permanently^affecting wound; (and General Gordon his five, so deep and so dangerous that his recovery may stand comparison with miracles. All things con sidered, it was the hardest battle of the m-any hard ones of that fearful struggle. There the Confederates showed not only their usual courage and daring- in an unusual man ner, but a spirit of subordination and a power of endurance unequaled before or since. Conifrouted by more than double their number of well-appointed and well-equipped troops, they, worn and hungry, with the broad Potomac between them and their territory, saved the fortunes of. the Confederacy, bu)t saved, alas, only to be lost at Gettysburg and "Vicksburg!
The best account we have of JVTa jor Tracys death is that about nine oclock -a. m. he was shot through the: thig^i, sever ing the artery. Falling-, u less wounded comrade hobbled to him and offered his assistance, but the major told him to save himself, it was all over with him. Purer or brighter spirit never "winged its flight from the carnage of a battle field than when Phil Tracy drew his last breath. A;t that moment, my friend, you might have been in the midst of comfort and enjoyment at M-aeon. -or RicJiinond, and no one would have reproached you in deed, word or thought! If you only had not been so swift to arrive at Harpers Perry, or had tarried there (as others did) till the coming dawn, your sweet life, your genial temper anld your sur passing mental endowments would have been saved to fam ily, friends and country! But no! you chose to follow the lead of conscience and duty, to sacrifice your life with all
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its present charms and yet brighter future, that your prin ciples might prevail and your Country be saved from the heed of "tlio conqueror. Looking to what is now sad his tory, and you chose the better and happier part. The un fortunate Southerner now is lie who is cursed with life the fortunate, he who is "blessed with death.
It is meet tlhat a few of the more prominent facts in the history of such .a heroic soul should accompany this plain but heartfelt tribute. He was the oldest son of Judge Ed ward T_). Tracy, of HVTaoOii, Georgia, and was there born about the year 1830. His brother, and only brother of that marriage, was ~R. T3. Tracy, Jr., a brigadier-general in our servic^ who was killed at Port G-ibson, Mississippi, whither Member ton had dispatched G-cneral Bowcii with six thou sand, men. l!o dispute Grants passage of the river "\virh sixty thousand. 13o1 wen was there also killed another gallant natrve Georgian (of Savannah). General Tracys remains being within our lines liErve been borrie to Rose Hill Cemetery. Phil, after taking his academic course at home, was sent to Yale. Returning from thenee he was admitted to the bar, but bediorc entering on tlio practice edited the Macon Telc.gra.ph^ first under the wing of that nestor of the Georgia press, Samuel J. Hay, and then by himself. ^Retiring from the paper, be began the practice and became eorineicted with TToii. Barnard Hill and Hon. iliomas P. Stubby under the lirni name of Stubbs, Hill & Tracy. "While in this connection, and rapidly rising in liis profession, in th e year 1859 he was elec ted to the State Senate. He had married the beautiful and wealthy Miss Gariic Ea^vls, then Mrs. Walker, but before the tocsin of war she and their babe had seen the last of earth.
Major Tracy 011 his fathers side was descended from the Traeys of LitcHfield; Connecticut, who were among the
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original settlers of that place. A few years "beforethe war, .at a centennial celevation of tftie settlement, Donald G. jSlitchell, more generally koiown as Ike Maryel, delivered the oration and referred to Jndge Tracy of Georgia, and liis "broijhers of !N"eiw York, as desceoided from the Original Tracys. The brothers of [TSTew York were Albert- and l*hmeas, -botih of "whom have represented tlieir State in Congress. Both were men of magnificent minds, and tho form/er made great fame as a lawyer. There is no G-eorgia lawyer of m-udh experience but lias found in liis researches the finished and scholarly judgments ol the ISTew York Senate ;as pronouneed by Senator Tracy. Judge Tracy (Phils father) -was a man of the first order >of ability, and excelled as a wit and humorist. Many are the anecdotes of him tradition brings to the present generation of lawyers,
ifajor Tracy on his mothers side was a Oanipbcll. His mocher -was a sister of Duncan G-. Campbell, an able law yer and politician of Georgia, belonging- to the generation preceding this. H~e was ^the right arm" of old Jack Clark in his terrific contests witih Crawford and Tronp, and his memory is beloved by foe as -well as friend. Pfe -was the father of our John A. Campbell,, n:ow an oppressed sub ject of !Louisia.na, but a judge of the Supreme Court of the United States when it was the tribunal of a constitutional republic. Philemon. Tracy exhibited a large share of the talent which legitimately -was his birthright on the pater nal and maternal side. As an orator, ho approached the best; as a conversationalist he was brilliant; but as a writer he excelled, including1 himself in his departments of ora tory and coTiversiaitroii. To give anything like an accurate idea of his excellence as a writer in thus surpassing1 (him self in CoalversatiOii, it can be stated that he was one of the very few we meet in <a lifetime to whom -we are -willing to
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play the part rof IkltencT all the time; and. yet, as much as we loved to .hear Mm talk, we prefer to read Ids writings if compelled to make choice, yet, having the chance of both, enjoy both. He was ha youth of rare gifts. I say youth, for it must be realized tdrat at his death, now verging on thirteen years, he was not exceeding thirty-two, and that his reputation was made "before he had attained his twentyfifth, year. He was certainly the miost gifted man I ever met among his contemporaries, with one exception and it might well be .considered who had the advantage and he "was Julian Gumming, of Augusta, now also, alas, in the spirit-land. When tihese two young men would meet in con versation an a propitious occasion,it was a rich, treat to every intelligent hearer. Their minds were as highly Cultured as endowed. Their reading was extensive and well treas ured. A gentlemanly refinement gave a fascinating tinge to every pleasant pieice of knowledge, every maxim or epi gram, and every sally of wit or humor uttered. One might shut his eyes, and forgetting for a moment where he "was, lliink that he was present with that splendid corps of talkers that made that famous literairy dub of London, of whom old Sam Johnson was dhief, and that there was a tilt between Burke and Grarrick. When it went around that Julian Oumming was in jVJDacon, there Was instantly a gathering of the clans bo "witness the intellectual gladiatorship between ihim and Phil.
I have said that ]\J?ajor Tracy had physical defects of limb and sight. Is it not Strange that a mam who was too lame to march and too blind to shoot <eould succeed in the rolo of a soldier? And yet he did, as his commanding officers will any day attest. He was so near-sighlted that without the aid of glasses he could not tell his "best known, friend six feet. His lameness was, according to Trelaw-
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iiey, the same as that of Byron. There was just limp enough to interest you an his gait, aoid yet too much to make a pedestrian. It appears that nature docs try to correct her own mistakes., and hence, if a dluld is born lame you may expect compensation in extraordinary intellectual gifts, as was ltihe case witih Byron and Scott. So, too, if blind or of defective vision approaching blindness, the child is apt to be gifted in music or poetry, where the tongue or fingers can serve and delight without or with very little sight. In Major Tracys case nature had so bountifully compensated him for his lameness in his intellectual supremacy that there was no niazgin to make other amends iu the way of the fine arts for his want of sight.
In the rescuing of Major Tracys body and placing it in a spot where there is an enduring memorial, we have another illiisfcration till at "blood is thicker -than water!" \"es, "thicker" than much, thicker things than water. Some o the leading families of the North are of southern origin. Likewise, many of the South are wholly or in part of northern origin. There was a time when even South Carolina and Massachusetts fraternized socially, a.Mhoiigih widely differing politically, wheoi politics wore honorable and gentlemanly. As we find John Adamses, John Hancoeks, iiogcr Shermaiis, and !Klbridge Gerrys at the South, so wo find at the North likewise given the names of Charles Piiickney, John Ilutledge, and Arthur Middleton. Even Charles Summers father was named in honor of the old veteran Charles Pinckney, and was known all Ms life as "Pinckney Sumner." The son, I believe, was likewise niamedj but me "became so aggressive, -as well as progressive, in a wrong direction, that he dropped the south ern part of his fathers name when he dropped his fathers principles.
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!Not withstanding the gulf the war lias mado between the J\rorth and the South.,, tiharo yet remains that feeling of sympathy which exists "betiwoen tnie gentlemen every where; and. -when these gentlemen happen bo agree upon the trae principles of the government, they arc bound to each. Othea- as "wibh h:ooks of steel/ and when, as in the case of Phineas Tracy, the niatn of either section rises ami aseerts "the nature that, is in him/ despite of war find liate. to that man we tender every (honor.
H)ouble
Every lawyer of many years practice, and everv cir cuit judge "who lias served as much as a full term, ean re call some !one or more cases, either Civil :or criminal, which were of more than ordinary interest, because of their dra matic or romamtic interests. Of such some are tragic, while others are comic. 1 have hoard ]\!r. Stephens say he would like the Opportunity to -write a book to lie enti tled "My Oases," that he might thus perpetuate the many interesting court trials in -which he had been counsel dur ing his long professional experience.
When the writer of this w>as judge of the Southwestern circuit of the State of Georgia, in which was embraced nearly all the counties now marking the Albany Circuit, he had the largest experience with murder cases in the county of Mitchell.
Amorig the trials in fliat county at -\vhicli he presided was -one whe^e the prisoner, &. farrruer, sihot another farmer, a prominent citizen of the county, in the broad light of day at his own door, with, -a double-barreled shotgun. Another, in which a highly respected citizen had shdt in cold blood a young physician for a suspected interference: with his do mestic rights. Another in "which a son had killed his father in a fight that the old man of sixty-five had been prexnoditatedly proVolced into by a conspiracy of tho son with his sister, who added -arid abetted, to prevent his con templated marriage. In the cases first and last mentioned the prisoners were found not guilty, and in the second there -was a mistrial. But it is not about either of these
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cases I propose to- write, but yet of another of a darker hue, in which, two murders had been. ooiiMn.itted iat different
times, the second as a, means o" -concealing the first. There resided at the then small village of Camilla, $ie
county seat of Mitdhell county, Ga., not very long" ago, that since children hiave been bora arid married, and have had children born unto thorn, -an elderly -widow named "Wooley. Her humble abode was in the northern edge of the vil
lage. 13ut huanble as it was, it was her own, and there she lived in all the -comfort she desired, surrounded by her cows, her pigs .and her poultry.
Another citizen of Camilla "was the "village blacksmith/ an honest and hardy sort of the Emerald Isle, named Timotihy OBryan. Timothy, somehow and somiewhere,, liad the misfortune to los! one of his legs, for which he had sub stituted -&. rude wtooden. one, and thus the "even tenor of his way" was always roughened by the limp and the noise of his wooden, leg.
There had grown up between Timothy and the widow, arising 110 doubt from their mutual sympatSiy in their loneliness, an attachment of a plationic or friendly nature. At least, from the kind -of feelings the villagers had for both, it "was seen Only in that light, except when some evildisposed person w^onld venture ian insinuia^tion, for wihadh he was sure to be reproved in such manner that he quickly became ashamed -of himself and never repeated the offense. Tinrothy hoarded with the widow. The home of -one was the home of the other. They interfered witth no one; did all the good they could, and nobody disturbed them. They were getting along quietly, peacefully and happily. While during hours of labor Timothy would be pointing the plows of tftie planters or welding tihjeir broken axles, the widow would be working in her garden or attending to her Varians
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domestic matters. It was suspected by some that sTre, by a life of thrift and economy, had feomtewhere secreted in lier house the traditional stocking filled "with coin. Such was the condition K>f these two humble Citizens when Salban entered their rustic paradise, and entered it nat bo tempt, but to destroy.
Suddenly., witboult news of his coming, or explanation after his coming, there appeared among the hlonesfc and happy villagers a man. wlio called himself John J. Taylor. ITo was a large, rough man, without an attractive quality of any sort that could be seen. But, nevertheless, from the foundation of Ithe World evil spirits have exercised a control ling- influence over good ones, and -the ervil spirit of Xaylorcharmed the good one of OBryan, and won his friendship and -confidence. As a consequence, -he was given shelter -and food at the home of the widow, and there for :a short period the three lived in apparent harmony.
The month of October or ^November, 1863, came in the round of time, and found this to ibe tihe situation, but a separation soon too-k place by the departure of OBryan on a mullet fishing expeditiOn, as Wias ihis yearly halbit, tio tihe gulf coast of Florida, which preceded the tragic events I am to relate. OBryan and the widow by tihis time had every doaifideaiee in the st^a.nger, -aji!d OBryan left him in charge of his business until his return :ait tihe end of the month. N'O't long after OBryans departure Che neighbors missed j\Irs. "Wooley. rJjhiis coniti-imed from, day to day, "until they, filled witlh aipprethonsion, sought -an explamation from Xayltor. He said rat Mrs. "Wooleys request he had taken her to tihe village of ^Newton, ten miles distanit, where sihe had taken the stage for her former home in South Carolina, and bad le*ft him to sell he*r effects anid forward proceeds. T^aylor was selling all tihe property he could find purdhasers for.
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At this juncture OBryan. -was -written of the startlingchange in affairs since liis departure. He -came back as fast as lie could and Taylor made him the same explana tion. OBryan satisfied himself that this was false, and then. Taylor told him other stories, but finally said he had. taken her to a certain house in the upper portion of Lee couuty, Ga.j and stuck to :tfhat. OBryan, yc-t unsatisfied, demanded he should go With him to Lee county to find jYFrs. "Wooley, and they started on the journey. Albany, in Dougherty county, "was on the route, arid the tiwo passed through that town on their way to Lee. Ou the next day in the afternoon they came again to Albany on. their re turn, and while there, OLVyan having, as some brother Irishman, kenned it, "the failing so common. rto his country men," "went with Taylor to a, barroom to drink. While there OBryau got "in his cupis," and could talk of notliing else but the disappearance of Mrs. "Wooley, and gvot up a so mi-quarrel with Tavlor. Irinally the tiino came ivhen they must leave for Caonilla. On crossing the bridge over Flint river the road to- Camilla in ia very short dis tance turnis directly to the right, -while the road to Isa bella, in AVorth county, is the straightforward road. After several clays, when tHie circumstances of their leaving Albany had ceased to be talked of, a citizen com" ag to Albany by the Isabella rdad discovered about six miles from the former a nocik Of bux^ards perdhed on a log a few hundred yards from the road, and on going there found a dead body, which proved to be that of OLSryan. It was evident he bad been murdered by being knocked in the head with ;a bludgeon. Taylor drove down, to Camilla and there explained tlie aibsence of OBryan by anOther lie. The finding of O.Bryans body led to his immediate arrest and imprisonment. The people of Oamilla were then
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satisfied, lie liact murdered Mrs. Wooley, and they set about searching for her remains. They looked everywhere they TOiild think of, but "without avail. At last, on a Sabbath, afternoon, while a few citizens were taking a Walk through a small field on the south side of the village, Where small grain had been planted the preceding season, a small area of ground without stubble, and that had the appearance of having been turned up, (claimed their attention. They grabbled in the ground, found the dirt loose, went a little further, and in. some two feet -of the top f oumi the head of a corpse, which proved to be that of Mrs. "Wooley, buried in an upright position, a.nd pressed down as far as possi ble. This field was in an exactly opposite direction from Mrs. Wooleys house, with the village intervening, and a mile therefrom. The supposition was that he had mur dered her and at night had carried her body around tlie village, a distance of a mile arid a half. As Mrs. WooleyJ s body had not been found, arid there was no positive evi dence against him, and as neither had any relations in the county, lie argued that if he could kill OBryan and suc cessfully hide his body, he would have all they both had and would escape detection. Besides, knowing he had mur dered Mrs. Wooley, if he took OBryan back he would persist in the investigation as to her whereabouts until her body might be found, and the murder thus discovered. The murder of OBryan was in. the county of Dough, erty, but the superior court of Mitchell coming on. first, T aylor was there put upon his trial for the murder of jMrs. Wooley, and -was easily Convicted.
There was ..no incident of his trial worth relating, except when asked why sentence should not be pronounced upon Lim, he charged the murder upon a respectable citizen of the county as the perpetrator, aided by one or two others.
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Horrified at (the mans brutal crimes, he intensified the in dignation of every one by accusing innocent men -of it. Tliis was the climax of his brutality, and I recall him as tile only being I had ierver seen in trouble for whom I did not have some pity, however criminal he may have been. "When the law gets sucli Creatures down they stand helpless in the presence of its vengeance.
Taylor wias executed as soon ias it could leg-ally be done on "the spot where lie buried his victim, poor Urs. Wooley. On the scaffold he denied that murder, but in a general ^v-ay Confessed to many otheirs. He, however, gave no account of himself, or -clue to tjhe ascertainment, and to this day it is not kno-wn -inhere he came from, -what had been his business, or any lof his antecedents. It is not even known that his name -was Tiaylor. The supposition is t>hat be was some man steeped in crime, who was hiding from justice, perhaps .an escaped convict. And it is tfbese facts wbich give to his horrid crimes the tinge of romance.
Them* Joseph 16. UBrown.
EDITOR'S NOTE.
It may truly "be said that the real beginning of ex-Senator Joseph E. Browns political life was when, unsolicited and unsought, he found himself in 1857 the democratic nominee for Governor of Georgia.
His name was not before the convention, which had met for the pur pose of nominating a gubernatorial candidate, and it was through a series of unlocked for circumstances that the mantle of nomination found its way to the late lamented ex-Senator. It was to him as great a surprise as it could have been to any one.
The balloting occupied two days. When it began the first ballot was cast with the following named gentlemen in nomination :
J. H. Lumpkin, 112; H. G. Lamar, 97; James Gardner, 100; HWarner, 53; William H. Stiles, 3-5. The balloting continued until the twentieth ballot was cast. It was plainly a deadlock and something was necessary to be done in order to secure harmonious action. Mr. Hope Hull, of Clarke county, moved that a committee composed of three from, each congressional districl be selected by the representatives of the various districts. This motion was carried, and the following named delegates composed the committee.
First District R. Spalding, of Mclntosh ; G. A. Gordon, of Chatham; William Wiohola, of Clinch.
Second District C. J. "Williams, of Museogee; N. MoBain, of Sumter; J. A. Tucker, of Stewart.
Third District R,, H. Clark, of Bibb; J. Ramsay and B. F. "Ward, of Butts.
Fourth Disttiot--H. B. Cannon, of Coweta; W. T. Thurmond, of Fayette; W. Phillips, of Cobb.
Fitth District J. W. H. Underwood, of FLoyd; E. W. Uhastain, of Fannin ; W. Shropshire, of Chattooga.
Sixth District S. J. Smith, of Towns; J". B. Roberts, of Hall; H. Hull, of Clarke.
Seventh District L, Stephens, of Hancock; William McKinley, of Baldwin ; J. M. Lamar, of Newton.
Eighth District I. T. Irwin, of Wilkes; A. C. Walker, of Rich mond ; E. II. Pottle, of Warren.
Of all this committee there are now just three alive Judge lli.cb.ard H.
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Clark, Weslcy Shropshire, who is ninety-four years old, and W. Phil lips. It is Judge Clark who is "best ahle to tell the story of the nomina tion of Joseph E. Brown, and he does it over his own signature:
Govern/or Brown tand Z met for title first time in. the Georgia Senate of 1849, He was twenty-eight years of iage and I was twenty-five. His service in -tihat body at that session was the foundation of his future reputation. He showed himself to Tie a man of great firmness of character, of great wisdom and a fine logician. He could not be called an orator in t(he usual acceptance of that term, but he spoke upon nothing1 >of importance -without exhausting the argument. Subsequent to that he became the judge of what is now the Blue Ridge circuit, and in that position added to his already acquired rep-uteri on. He occupied that position in 1857, when the State Democratic conven tion, met for the purposie of nominating a candidate for governor. Tlie then most prominent candidates were Jolin H. Lumpkin, <o Floyd county, who had been a representa.tive in Congress; Henry G. Ijamar, of Bibb county, and James Gardner, of Augusta. There "were two or three other candidates, but the issue "was confined to the three gentlemen named. Lnmpkin had a decided plurality, Gard ner was next, and Lamar third, botlh near together. After two days balloting it was found impossible for either of those gentlemen to receive the majority vote of the conven tion. An emergency nad arrived, in which something for harmony was necessary to be done.
Hope Hu]J, of Clarice, moved, that a Committee of three from each congressional district, to be selected by the del egates from each district, meet and propose terms of agree ment. I "was one of the delegates to that convention, and the congressional district which I represented selected me as one o the three, I sought the selection because I tliought it was impossible for the convention to agree
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on any one of -the present candidates. My purpose in seeking to be on the committee was to propose that we should all unite on Judge Joseph E. Brown, of Cherokee county. It was conceded "by the Democratic delegates from, all otlier sections of the State that Oherokee county was entitled to the nominee, because the counties lying north of the Chattahoochee river had always furnished a Democratic majority, and that that section of the State had never had a governor. The unanimous choice of the delegates from that section was John H. Lumpkin, with a support scattered all over the State. Lumpkiri was not acceptable to the States Hights wing of the Democratic party, which made a large majority of tJhe party. It was just at the time that the contest was whether the territory of Kansas sho-uld become a free !or a slave State. The immigration to that territory from the slave States had the majority, but President Buohanan, fearing that the ^rational Democratic party -could not stand the strain of having Ivansas a slave State, sent, a distinguished citizen of the -nation for the purpose of preventing that consummation, and it was prevented.
Ho well Cobb was secretary of the treasury during the ISuehamm administration, and we used to call he and LumpId n the Siamese twins of Georgia politics. ISTot only were they political but close personal friends. Hence, the States Higlits wing of the delegates to that convention suspected that sending the delegate to Kansas was decided upon Mr. Bur-banians cabinet, and. that Cobb was a party thereto; and if he was, that John Lmnpkin. .was in sym pathy with him. It afterwards developed .that this sus picion was groundless, and. that neither Oobb nior lAiiiipkin had. any participation, in the scheme to prevent Kansas from becoming a islave State. ISfotwithstanding this was
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the basis upon which the States3 rig]its Democrats acted in refusing to ratify Oherokees choice.
Lantern Stephens, afterwards a jiidge of t.he supreme court, was a supporter of John Loimpkin, although, he was from, the center of middle Georgia. As I was going up to the committee room in the hall of the old state-house, T met Mr. Stephens, who was also one of the committee1. He proposed to me, ;as a method of compromise, that the com mittee should recommend to the committee that after three more- ballotings the lowest man in the nomination should be dropped, and so Continue it on each, balloting until the choice bo between the two (highest.
I said to Mr. Stephens that fchat plan simply meant th e certain, nomination of John. Lumpkin, and tlhat th e whole difficulty was that he was not acceptable to the large majority of tilie party. I said to him: "There ean be no agreement except upon a man, and that my proposition was to say to tihe six delegates from Oherokee, Georgia, to name their compromise man and llhat we -would all support him." Mi. Stephens siaid: "If we do tliat tlhey might name an in competent man."
I said: "There is no danger of that, for I am sure from iriv knowledge of those members of the committee, that if
they give up John Lumpikm they will name Joe Brown." "Well," he replied., "I have not an accurate idea of the
styL of man Joe Brown is." 1" assured him that I had; that I had served three months
with, him in the Senate of our State, and. that there was not a man in all our party, throughout all Georgia, who "was
better qualified to discharge the duties of the office of gov ernor than was Joe Rrown, and that I proposed that we>
outside -of ;Oh.erokee, Georgia, make tihat proposition to the
committeemen from that section.
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"Widen we met in committee tftiie proposition -was made that we select a eamdidate on the white basis., -winch, was but .another method, of arriving at the nomination of Jolin lamipkin. I -opposed that, by saying, fas I had to ]VTr. Stephens, tlhat the only method of pacification was to name a man, and tihat tire delegates from Cheroke should have that right.
George A. Gordon, a delegate from tihe county of Ghat ham, proposed that <we recommend William H. Styles.
Oharles G-. Williams, lof iluscogce., proposed Alfred H. Oolquitt. I Said to them onipliatically, as I had before, that we Could -not h annonize on any but a Oherokee man^ a-nd that I had intended, if the Oherokee cOmmitteemen failed to select a man, to suggest Joseph E. Brown.
<Tast at this juncture Mi', Stephens rose and himself proposed fTiosepli E. Urown. The proposition came with more force from him than from me, for he had been a sup porter of John I/unipkin, while I had been of Henry G. La mar.
At once I seconded IMr. Stopheiiss motion and made a speech in support of it. The committeeonon from -GheroIces all acquiesced, .but with reluctance, exeept John W. H. Underwood and Augustus I. Wright. Underwood finally came in, but Wright.never did, arid niado a protest in the convention against the report <y the committee.
The repiort of the committee was adopted by the conven tion and Brown was placed in. nomination. The commit tee selected Tucker Erwin, of AVilkes, to present the report to fjhe cotiventioii, which, he did in <a short spieech, recom mending its adoption. I also did the same, and there may have been others -who did the same. This is the story of Governor Browns first nomination, and any other version of it is error.
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The analysis -of it all is, ifhat if I had not been a mem ber of that convention Brown would not have -been nomi nated, and, indeed, I have no doubt, that if I had not had the conversation, with Binton Stephens referred to, and liad not said and done as I did in the committee, that Brown would riot have been nominated.
The friends of John Bumpkin at once suspected that Governor Brown had played for the nomination, bint it is untrue, and there is no man in Georgia to whom his nom ination -was a greater surprise than it "was to him. It "was impossible- that lie could have accomplished anything by any management, for the Cherokee delegates, who -were those frtom. tfhe fifth and sixth eongressional districts, "were as a Macedonian phalanx for Bumpkin. They could not be moved. I consulted two or three of such, whom I knew to .bo Governor Browns personal friends, to devise some plan whereby :lie might be nominated, but they said ""We cannot be a party to su-dh an arrangement. Gherokoe is solid for Bumpkin. We are instructed to vote for hina and must do so, notwithstanding Brovra might be onr per sonal preference."
When Governor Brown was informed of his nomina tion, as it has been said so often., lie was cutting wheat in his field, arid his friend, iTr. Samuel Weil, now of this, city, was the first to inform him, -and the information was a complete surprise to him.
G-overnor Browns opponent was Benjamin BL Hill, and a lively canvass they made of it. Brown was then a yonng man, only thirty-six years of age, and Hill was yetyounger by about two years. From that on to the .close of the war, and since, Governor Browns occupancy of the executive chair for four successive terms and all since are matters of history.
Ifoomet
In the roster of tlie Trish Jasper Greens, as they vnlnnteered for the Mexican war, in tire summer of 1846, will be found the name of H. V. Morel. His name, with all the others, officers and privates, appears in Whites Historical Collection of Georgia. lie was simply >a private, and there is no-thing to show in the roster nor otherwise any difference between him and the other privates. He, like nearly all, perh apS every one of that organisation, now makes one ii\ the roster -of lli-c nations dead. A few years before the death of Gaptaln McMahon there were only five sur vivors, and lie the only officer. The organization yet flourishes, but we presume contains not a man who went to Mexico wMi it, which Shows hoW, while all tjhe men must die, the company may live. Morel has beesi dead nearly forty years. He left ITO record of himself, and there are but. few living who remember him, and yet he makes one of the thousands of heroes who die "unhonorcd and unsung-," and for whom no tears are shed except by the very near of his own blood. He was a native of Effingham comity, and one of the many ehildreTi of Benjamin Morel and Susan jVLorcl. His father was of the stock of the Os- abaw Ivlorels, and his mother a daughter of Henry Giriflrat a iraime once well known, but now nearly ex tinct. Morels full name "was Homer "Virgil, and he went by the mime of Honncr. Parents of the olden times were prone to name their children for great prophets or great poets. Tf it was not Moses, or Daniel, or Jeremiah, or Elijah, it would be Homer, Horace, "Virgil, or Milton, and
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occasionally all eombined. These were more popular even than WashingfcoTi and !N~apoleon. He was only a country boy. His duties were to appropriately serve on tire planta tion., where there were -a moderate number O<f slaves. His sports were hunting, fishing, treeing the squirrel, and rid ing. He would "ch/ase the deer/ flush the birds, hook the bream, and break tthe colts. There was nothing rem arkahle in this. Tli ey were only what nearly every country boy did. But he was distinguished from the otncrs by his love of danger, and his spirit of adventure. In this love there was no element of ambition for distinction. He delighted simply in theni, and in them he made no preten sion just acted like they were duties he had to perform. The natural consequence oif such, a disposition in a youth would be t-h1 impulse to volunteer when the toesin of war was .sounded. It would be his delight to be "in the thick est of the fray," and dare the danger he loved to risk. But beyond this his desire did not go. He cared not for the liotiors. It was glory enough for him to gratify the long ing of his spirit to be "a full private in the rear rank."
When the Seminole war and the rTexan revolution began in 1885 he wished to go, but he was too young to be re ceived, though it was not long before another opportunity offered. Soon after the independence of Texas was assnrcd a renewal of the civil wars in Mexico began. Santa Anna was president. His faction was called the Cen trals, the other the Federals. The Texans, fresh froon their own. Struggle agaiiist bhe ^ruel and treacliero-us Santa Anna, were glad of the opportunity to continue hostilities against him. As a result rof this feeling a force was raised, and the command given to Generals Tisher and Greene. ]\Iorel was one of its private soldiers. They offered themselves to General Canales, commanding the Federals in that part
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of Mexico, and were accepted. After the junction -was
made with him this infamous Mexican, actuated more by his spirit of revenge towards the Texans than fidelity to his principles., basely betrayed thiem and his comrades by ra sur render of his army to the opposing commander. The Texams finding- themselves thus sold to the enemy like so many sheep for slaughter, fought their way out, and began their retreat for home, a distance of more than two hun dred miles. They were pursued by the Mexican army, and after several days march, being exhausted by hunger and fatigue, were mostly captured. But before the sur render iJhe Mexican commander gave his pledge they should be treated as prisoners of war. They were marched to ilier, a f ortined town of Mexico, and "were there put to the terrible ordeal of drawing for their lives, it being so ar ranged that every tenth irnan should be shot.
The requisite number of Mexican beans were placed in a gourd, and every tenth bean was black, so that whoever drew a black bean was doomed to death. As I remember, there were seventecn of the poor fellows -who drew their death, tokens, and were taken just beyond tihe wall and shot. The remainder, numbering about one hundred and seventy, were marched the long weary -way to the City of Mexico. IfrOUi thence they were senit to the great Mexican fortress, called the Castle of Perote, a distance of some seventy miles. There, as might have been expected, Utiey were cruelly treated, and there they remained for the long space of twenty-one months. Santa Anna mainly occu pied them in constructing a macadamized road from the Castle to tire City of Mexico, and upon it had the com bined vanity and heartless-ness to have erected a monument with inscriptions telling the whole story of tihe prisoners degradation and his cruolty. This band of Texans are
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known in history as "The 2vlier Prisoners." They were finally released on. the intercession of the Government of tire United. States tlirouign our minister to Mexico, Gen eral "Warldy Thorn-pson, of Greenville, South Carolina, and the fattier of tHe recent governor of that State. He -was sent there -with, special reference to his force of cih.aracter and diplomatic ability, that -lie might "he the means of liber ating the Mior prisoners.
Tlio plain country ibov we are writing of was one of these prisoners, an!d shared i their dangers1 and sufferings from first to last. "With them there -was but one other Geor gian, Capt. "William ]Kaigler? then from the county of iCacoJi. He lived a sufferer from his impi-isomnent up to t\vo or three years since, When he died in the countv of T)ooly. A;s soon as possible after Morel was released he returned to Eflingjham, to the house of his oldest "brothpr, Johiij wtlierc all the yoiungjer brothers and sisters found a homo after the death of father and mother. During" his absence his favorite sisiter, Gooigia, bad died. Before lean ing- for Texas she had giveai him a small eopy of the ]N~ew Testament witli iustruetloiis to r<ead and -profit. This lit tle book he carried about his person all the while he was away, and brought it safely back with. -him. He so did that he inig-ht sfliow his sister he had been faithful to his trust. It must not be inferred from this that Homer was, in the true sons&, religious. Has love for his sister was the active motive, and for her sake (he would treasure and read the precious volume, and ito the -extent that this be-got a spirit of devotion, he was TOligiOUs. But, alas, the sister was not present to feel what would (have beeiv a joy aiid consolation to her. She had passed to the great Beyond. Much, of courso, did he liave to toll of ii;his fhair-breadtli escapes" and perils by sea and land. We remember one
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incident that was mysterious. On!e night while returning" from tlie Mexicans lie took shelter (for it was raining) under a large fallen tree, elevated a few feet from the ground, by adhering to th;e stump, and in liis sleep he dreamed the tree had fallen upon him. From fche fright caused by tlie dream he made an involuntary effort to roll from under it, which lie succeeded in doing, and on awak ing found tlhe tree Iliad fallen. Most persons, peiihasps, would not believe this, but I had a somewhat similar expe rience. Sleeping in a, hotel u Hundred feet from the rail road track I dreamed the car -was about to run over me. I at once awoke and heard the whistle and noise of tho train. It was plain that the dream was oaused by the roaring1 of the train heard in my sleep. It was like the cracking of the tree Homer heard. This proves that in sleep through oair senses an impression is made upon the brain, which manifests itself in a dream. If we meet one unexpectedly we arc apt to dream of the person that night. The thoughts that pass through our minds in the day become the basis of a dream at night. There are impres sions upon the mind "when awake, pciftiaps some not real ized because for an instant, which reappear in dreams, but this of eoYirs e >ae counts only for this s ort of droams. I have in my dream looked down a long dining-table at which wore seated -elegantly dressed ladies and gentlemen never seen in real life and the countenances of every one 1 would take in. In a dream I have been, in a gallery of paintings great in number and variety took them all in and remembered some.
My imagination is incapable awake to create eitfher the countenances or the pictures. Where is the foundation in nature or reason for /such dreams? Hay not some ancestor near or remote have seen such, and tliey are inherited im-
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pressions which cam only "be manifested by the involuntary powers of the mind? And yet there are otiher kinlds of dreams that cannot be accounted for thus, as per illustration those dreams wMdh come to piass and. the real events come after instead of be-fore jtihe dreams. After all, dreams are among the great unsolved mysteries of nature. The lesson taught by experience -aaad history, however, is wo ought not with certainty to set down as false miraculous dreams because we cannot understand them. MJay iihey not be the temporary evidence- of the spiritual part of the Im-man the coming event that casts its shadows before?
"WiPh an apology for this crude episode, we will resume the narrative of our adventurous country boy. After get ting homo from the Gasltle of Perote he had not more tihan time far recuperation, from his long imprisonment and hardships when, -war was declared bdtween the United States and Mexico. This was most joyous news to Homer. ]STothing1 claTinte-d or dlishearfcened by his long and bititer experience, he quickly put himself in condition to again invntle JVIexico. {Perhaps his adventurous spirit was some what quickened by the desire "to get even" -with "the greasers," and, to a certain degree, he did, as the sequel will show. He went to Savannah and joined the Irish Jasper Greens that old oonnpaiiy had gallantly volunteered for the service. That accounts for his -name on their roster, lie served with, theim during their term of enlistment, but ac the end of one year file regiment to whidh that company belonged "was mustered ;oufc of -service, dust at tihat time General Scott "was organizing an :army of invasion for the City of Mexico -via Vera Cruz. Morel, with some other mustered out troops, re-enlisted in the regular army. He rras in the march from Vera Cruz to the Gity of Mex ico, but only as Private Morel. It was glory enougSi for
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his nature to Carry a musket and fight in the ranks. One of the battles, that of Ghuirubusco, -was near the monument reared to the glory of Mexico and the shame of the Texans. A eoonpany of soldiers, under Captain McKInstry, leveled it to the ground and scattered the fragments so that as a monumenlt it no longer existed. In that company was Morel, (and others of the ilier prisoners. It -was strange it "was like retribution on this earth. that in a short time the men Who had suffered as prisoners, and as such were liberated, should return and participate in fthe demolition of that monument intended to perpetuate, their disgrace. At tiho close of the "War he again returned to the home of his nativity to rest and -recuperate. He again engaged in the work and sports of his boyhood, and so continued until the event I shall soon state. It was not long, perhaps not a year, when after a. hunt in tlhe Savannah river swamp, he was returning home carrying a double-barrel gun. To get home he had tto go up a steep and marrow paith, worn, deep into the ground until >a mans head would be hid, used at <3rindra>tis Landing1, one mile below" Sisters Ferry, to go on foot down to the river, when he stumbled and fell. The fall caused the discharge of the gun. The load went into his body and killed him instanitly. Here we have the in stance of a man who had returned unscathed from six years of active military service, divided into two terms, . killed by <ain adcidcnfc. Similair events have happened be fore and since, but their mysterious ness is ever new. "When they happen we acre reminded among others of the saving" od> Hamlet, that a man "miglit his quietus make with a bare, bodkin"; or of the ill luck described in the hook of Amos, "As if ;a man did flee from a lion and .a bear met him, or went into a house and leaned his hand on the wall and a serpent bit him."
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This casualty Oceurred in 1849, when tfhe deceased lacked aiboiit a year of .being thirty years of age. Nearly forty years h:a.vo passed since his deatfh, and but few arc living "wilio remember him. Soon there "will be none, and the dramatic story of his life would never be fold. Of four rhroit!lvcrs and four sisters comprising the family of his parents, but one brtotlher amd one sist.er survive. He was as I said a plain country boy, but he was the typo of many, of that day who went out into the world and by their own exertions made tihemselves fatine or foT-tu-ne, or botli. If lit had had ambition added to his other virtues he might have been distinguished. His education -was limited ob tained at the country schoolhouse and the county academy, but nevertheless sunreient as a foundation for a useful life.
He was fall, slender, erect and manly in his bearing. "While amiable in his temper, loving in his heiart auid soft in. his manners, he had the courage of the bravest. He hjas, as I said, left no record of his achievements and held no office, but nevertheless ho was as genuine a hero as the most distinguished. He performed his part, with valor and fidel ity and tillat is as much as tihe best and bravest can do.
There aro -tfhose who love [his memory las mUCh as if he had acquired disltinetkm. And this is tlic story of Private 3Vf orol of Qacnw lie engaged in the military expedition from Texas against the Mexieams, <and hOW he left for the war against Mexico as Private Morel, of tfhe Irish. Jasper Greens, and as Private Morel returned at the end of tihe war.
Colquitts.
Alfred H. Colquitt was tlic son of AY alter T. Colquitt. Alfreds mothers maid-en name was Ann Tjane. She was of the same family as General Joseph. -IT. Lane, once a celebrity in the Undted States., both :as soldier and states man. A sister of hers married T)r. Hill, of T^aQ-range, G>a., and they -wore the parents of the first Mrs. Joseph Thomp son and of Mi^s. IBroiwji Morgan.
AValter T. Col quit t was a lawyer, -a circuit judge, a ropresentaltiv and senator in -the United States Congress, and a local MetHiodist minister. His motiher -vvas.a Holt, on:e of a numerous old Greorgla family, to wfhioh belonged Judg-e "William W. Holt, of Augusta; Judge Thaddeus G. Holt, General "William S. Holt, both of Maeon- Ho>n, Hin-e& Holt, of Oolnmbus, and the mother of Judge Hutch ins, the present judge of ttlhe"Western circuit,and otf Mrs. "Bill- Anp," besides numerous Others, and perhaps some as distinguished as those named. The original George Holt was the father iof eight or ten. sons, and just one daughter. It is curious that several old Georgia, patriarchs, many.of whom I can recall the Harrises, the Thomases and the Hills had from eight to a dozen sons, and only one or -no daughter. Such a daughter was the mother of Judge Colquitt, and having been left (a widow, sihe married a Tiaxveir, the father of a very weialthv and widely kaioTvn planteo* named HaTt\vell H. Tarver. That marriage made Walter Colquitt. and Hart well Tiarver step-biT^tihers. The significance of this T.vil1 hereafter appear. To. more fully appreciate Alfred Oolquitt it will he necessary to know the manner of man
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his father was. After a most useful and distinguished pub lic career he died nearly forty years ago. Consequently there tare but few living- who- knew him, or who have art adequate idea of (him. Therefore, I will attempt <bo de scribe him. I say attempt, because the truth is he cannot b& described. -He ~was orte of the few of "whom it may be said, there has been, and never can. be "but one such." If, in. hearing him speak, tibe hearer preferred the pathetic in an orator, Oolquitt -would have satisfied him. If the humor ous, he "would lhave gratified to the last degree. If hefanci&d vehemence like a mountain torrent, sweeping- away everything in its path, he would have been accommodated. If, on tlhe -coratrairy, he preferred -a low and gentle tone, asof a murmuring brook, ihe woufld have found that to tris delight. If he liked to see in the great orator the great actor, he would have had him to such, perfection that he could iniagine noting soiperior, and to the same degree of success, whether the acting w&s of I1ihe deepest tragedy orlightest comedy. If a man could be created with, the com bined raenlfcal powers of Sihieridian, Griarrick and Spurgeon, he -\vould be like Oolquitt. He "was gifted witib. extraordinarAr versaltility. "While attending the courts of Georgia he (hasbeen known to make a wonderfully eloquent defense of the prisoner in the day ain!d preach a-n eloqirent sermon at nigOit. While a mem/ber of Congress he has electrified the body of whicih. he -was a member in the day and preached a thrill ing sermon at night, a.nd if it had be&n lappropriate he could have stepped -an the Stage some other night as a star actor, either in tragedy or comedy. His hair, originally dark nearly to blackness, had become an iron-gray, and stood rip from this head like *hait of John G. Oalltouns. His com plexion was brunette. His mouth, and jaws were of that shape, size and expression that indicated groat firmness and.
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determination. His general mobility of features was such! that :lie could make .Ms hearers understand (him by mere pan tomime. Has most marked and observed feature was his eyes, which could express tlhe fierceness of the eagle or tire gentleness of the dove. He -was one of the few born ora tors Georgia has produced; Joseph Henry Lumpfkin was another. The two were alt Princeton together, and ftheo-e formed a friendship which, lasted through, life. Ijumpkiii with all tfhe ardency of his nature not only admired but loved Oolquitt. To support his strong menfcal -powers lie had a strong body. He was neither stout n_o.r slender, neither short nor tall. He was finely proportioned, and was in weight about 160 pounds, and in height about five feet, nine or ten indies. His whole physical make-up gave him great muscular strength, combined with an elasticity of movement and action that made his every effort appear easy and graceful. He excelled in physical as in mental strength, -was an athlete, and yet this almost perfect-man died when this physical and mental faculties were in tiheir full maturity ait thle age of fifty-six.
Judge Oolquitit was married three times. His second wife was Miss Fauntleroy, an .aunt of Dr. J. S. T-odd, but .she lived a very short time. His third was Hiss Rosa of jVTacon, the sister lof jVCaicons "merchant prince," John B. !Ross. Alfred was the oldest of four of the firsit msaa-riage two sons and two daughters. The (other son was Peyton, and the two daughters were Tjizzie and Emily. The first married Congressman O. !B. Picklin of Illinois, and is no^v the only survivor of the four. Peyton. Was a -colonel in the late wao- and "\vias killed in battle. He left a widow who Was la 3/Iiss Hurt of Columbxis, -and whto after wards became the wife of Xeonidas Jordan, the rich G-eor,-gia planter, bdtih before an!d after tihe war. TOie otShier ch.il-
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clreii of Judge Oolqiiitlt were of 'the last marriage, among Whom was tlie well-known "Wellborn. Of Judge Colquitlts first set of children, it was a common saying that his daughters inherited more of liis vivacity and other pecu liar characteristics than, his sons. POmily married Samuel Cart-or of Wliitneld county, and is tne mother of the first Mrs. Ben Hill, of Mrs. Kaltie JVritchell. and parter Colquitt.
To come back to Alfred, his first public position, entered on when he was twenty-two years of age, was an officer in the Mexican war with the rank of major. After that he entered upon the practice of law in jVEaeori.
The home of General Tarver was in. Twiggs county, a Sliorfc days ride from Al/ackm, and it w>as quite natural that Alfred should visit the home of his fathers step- * brother. His family consisted of one daughtei" and four sons of his first marriage. The daughter \vas named Doro thy, but called Dollie. She was a lovely arid excellent younglady. The tissoc-Kvtvo-n between. Alfred and the iaTnily erf. General Tarver resulted in ihis ^n-arriage to Dollie in -May, 184S. Of tiliis marriag^e tire-re was Olily oive fhild a1 daughter. She is now the wife of Captain Thomas F. ^Tcwell, and the mother of Alfred Colqnitt JSTewell, who isone of the C-onfttifM-tioii corps of writers. Gesn-cral Tarver, called so because he was a major-general of milivia under our mite-bellum military svstem, was, as I said, a very wealthy man. "Wheii he died his seven children each in herited -a plantation and tan average of one hundred slaves. This plantation, property AVEIS in. T\viggs and .Bakercounties. lie gave Alfreds wife one of his Baker co-unty plantations, near _N"ewtn ? tho eonnty scat. Alfred fheii moved to the plantation, wlhich was near enough to the COUirt-hOusie to pursue tlhe practice1 of law in that county. He became a. Democratic orator iu the political campaigns-
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in 1850 and 1852, whi^h brought him. prominently before ttbe people. As on:o of tlie results, lie received the Democratio nomination for Congress for the second diatrict in 1858. Ho made aii active and vigorous campaign, throughout tho district, and was .elected -over H!on. James Johnson, ex-provisional governor of Georgia during; recon struction times, who Was tlien a member of Congress from that district. Alfred was ably assisted iu tiliat campaign, by liis spiecial friend, Colonel Tom "Howard, then, residing in Crawford .county, Georgia. Tliey reinained the closest and most eoTttidential friends as long .as filiey lived. TThey i\vere close neiglibois as well as friends prdor to tlic deaith of Colonel Ho^vard, The result of that election in the scioond district saved .Uerschol V. Jolinsoii froiii. defeat in his coiitost tbat y^ar for governor -witilv. Gbarles J. Jorvkin. JOlui&on.s majority in frbe whole State was only 510. If the district had gone us it had at the previous election, tho majority wonlrl have been more tlhan a match for <Jenl-cins. This fixes Alfred as Orie of the members of: OoiigresS from Geongia7 serving1 his first term. Time went -on, and there had to be an election for his successor in 1855. Pie con Id have been ronominated, to be followed, as the result proved, by re elect ion, but, vmfortniiately, he found him self confronted with a Sad and serious embarrassment. During Lhe time ho was in Congress his wife had become an invalid, and nather -t.hn.ii make the canvass and oontintie his seat in Congress, which would have taken him from his wife, iioblc man ;ari be "\vas, be declined .a renomiriatio-n. This made a critical period in bis p-oHtical care.eT, for, re tiring then, the probaibility was he never would resume his then vstatus, for, according to the very truthful saying of Shakespeare, hegimiixig \vitb "there is a tide in the affairs of men which, taken at the flood, loads to fortune," and the
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possibility was that had. it not been for "the war between the States/ Alfred Colquitt might never have again come in the political line of promotion. His wife died in April, 1855, during" his successors iterm. He was ^Vtartin J. Crawford, afterwards judge of the supreme court. This brings me up to Alfreds career, during and after the war, that is so well known that it would be a waste of time and space to nan-ate it. That he married the second time and who lie married, asnd who constitute his present family, is also well known. It might not be amiss to say that his last days were made the more sorrowful from, his wifes condi tion of health, which, causes her to have the sympatihy of his friends and constituents, but with the (hope she may long be spared to (her family and lonely daughters and her near and. dear friends.
My first close contact with. Alfred was at the session of 1849-50. I/utherr J. iGMenn, the father of Tom and Howell, was the chief secretary of the Senate, and Alfred was his assistant. He was then, as he remained until his health failed a few years before his death, a very handsome man. I was honored ibeyoncl my merits in being at the1 early age of twenty-five a mom/ber -of ithjat body from the thirteentih senatorial district, then consisting of the largo and rich -counties of Baker and Early. I was the youngest of the forty-seven senato-rs, and there were thirteen of "us from. twenty-five to thirty years old. Joe Brown was twe<ntyeight. It was then. I .discovered his extraordinary good sense of tihe practical kind, and (his qualifications for liigb. office, which -was the factor that -caused lids nomination for governor in 1847. This is so, wihatever opinion may be entertained to the contrary. What I know, I know, and it may be safely received as true. Of the senators at that session there are only six in life Joseph E. Brown,
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Blount C. Terrell, David I. Bailey, Albert O. Manley, Daniel F. McRae, and Richard H. Clark. This was dur ing the second term of Governor Towns .administriation. Mrs. Towns was a Virginia lady, and was one of the gen uine "first families." She was the daughter of J-oihn AVinston Jones, who was the speaker of the Unibed States House of Representatives when George^ ~W. Towns was a first member. Mrs. Towns inhiorited a large, fortune from her father, Which, together with her ladylike ele gance and refinement^ gave her tihe very highest of social positions. That sudh .a lady as the wife of Georgias governor should have drawn to her a host of friends, "vvho.ni she enter*tainted with a queenly hospitality, is not strange, and that she should Wield a great influence, both socially and politically, was to. "be expected. The executive man sion, during her occupancy was the center -of attraction in Georgia. Of icourse Alfred Oolquitt was samooig the most welcome of the guests. Mrs. Towns entertained as members of her household quite a numJber of young ladies. The oldest of her Children, was ^Qo yioung for so-ciclty, so she adopted her young lady friends. Among such I casri reeall iliss Sallie Gullatt, the governors niece; Miss Callie and Miss Lon JMorton, and Miss Emily Oolquitt. These young ladies all married, iand .alas, there is only a possi bility that One may be now living. There arc three gen tlemen who were frequent visitors at the mansion. They are Colonel M. O. Felt on, Willoughby Lumpkin and Billie Morton. Billio \v/as .called "Tittle Billic/ to distinguish him from Ms father, of the same name. He looked then as if he had three or four years to live before he would get out of his beens, but he looks now like he had. grown out of that. Willoughiby had not -only a very youthful look, "but was slender and svmmetrical. Those Who see him now
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can tell if ho !hJas undergone any change. Oolonel Felton was tall and ^leiidcr >tben, and lie is tall and slender now; and when I last, eaw him bis original features were well preserved. Also William Tatem "Wofford was then a member of the house, and was only twenty-two. He was almost a frequent visitor at tihe mansion. After making a good lawyer, a good citizen and a good soldier, ho now sleeps "under the daisies."
Soon, after returning from the executive mansion, Grovernior Towns and family moved, from Talbottoii to iCa-cou, but in less than four years lie finished his earthly career, and his grave is m beautiful lio&e Hill Ceanetery. This was the beginning- of the breaking up of the (home in -Macon, and. the removal of iifrs. Towns to Enoxville, Temi., where s(he died -sevCral years after the war. Their ma.nsion and grounds in iTacon were at that time (taken altog-ether) the finest and most spacious in the city. These were on. an eminence that overlooked the city, and are wOiat is now tihe site of "Mont 'die Sales Academy. The Governor was an. opulent plain tor, having- a large plantation and a large number of sltwes in. originally Talbot, now Taylor county, Which, of course, went the way of all such after tlic war,
I luavc purposely refrained from commenting upon the career and character of Alfred Oolquitt, because it has already and very recently been fully and effectually done. I will, lio\ve.ver, take enough space to -say that the promi nent, and most esaential characteristic of him was his per sonal integrity, his sincerity of .purpose., his fidelity 'to- duty, and his aversion to ostentation. The glare of the footlights or a play to the g-allcnry were his detestation. His heart \vas always in toudli with. oommOn burnanity, and lience h-e felt no better tban the most humble, and equal to the most ex-
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alted. Whatever slhoiild bo the issue, tlie unofficial people could i"ely upoai him t!o represent wnat he regarded as DbeiT" best interest, to the best of Iris ability. Added, to this ciharaeter as a man, a soldier <an.cl a. statesman., therei was :a strong religions feeling- always present to strengthen eadh. "When a young man. lie discussed with himself for two -or three years wiiether or not it was Uiis duty -to enter the active ministry pormanciitly, which, he did partially, and I be lieve if at the critical timie ho had not been nominated fo^* Gong-reisa he -would feave done sO. His entrance upon polit ical life was niOre tb please his fricndy and relatives t-han liimsclf. lie -\vas on:e of those men tbat -would h>ave been in a tempioral sense a good man if he had not been a Chris tian, and hence it was natural for him to let the good man pass into the better man7 becoming a sincere and hnmble (Christian. TTe has now finished his career on oarth, and h.Q8 remains repose^ by the side of the wife of his youth an-d a deceased, eliild. As was staged., his famous father was not iiitCTred on "liiis lot, bu;t was taken to Columbus, altilroug-h h :o died in -MJacoai aftor >a loiig and snffornig illness. By a seeming-ly straiige -coineidence tlierc are in Rose Hill Cemetery five burial lots anil only five1 in tJluat ro>w. In going toward the1 rJTer froan the main entrance the first OTie of these lots we eome to,is tliat of Samnel Hunter, a worthy man, and -a promising young la"\vyer of Ma^on that 1 knew well. Tlie next, is that of Goi v:ernoa- Towns, the next Al fred Colquitts, tiho next Richiard II. darks, and the next and last Judge Orfeshaiins. Theso nvo men knew each othcr, -\vcro friends in life, and in death will be: neighbors, liose Hill Cemetery is one of the most beiautiful in tihe World. It is situated on a high bank of the Ocmulgee, in the midst of a forest of fine trees. There is very gently a decline from litre main entraiiee :to. the river until -we get
348
UEMOltlA r*.
near tihe river, when tiliere is a. sudden and more abTnpt de clivity. .Standing upon the point where tibe decline be comes s keeper, and looking over the grass -and tfhrOugh the trees, the river below flowing gently presents -a beautiful scene. Jusit at this poinit there is a large and magnificent irioivu.metLt erected to John B. Lamar, the -brother of Mrs. Howell Cobb, who was killed in bat-tie at Hampton Gap, Md., the day before. .Slharpsburg, while acting as the aide1 of General Ho well iQoibb.
The life of Alfred Golquitt has passed into history and ;his funerail is -OVGT. I -will oonclude tihis tribute pertain ing to him by quoting from a letter written me by my daughter ITallie at Maroon, as better tlhan <wiliat I have writ ten or cian write.
aWe have tlhis day laid to rest in beautiful Rose IB.11 Cemetesry that noble patriot, Alfred H. Oolquit-t. 1 de plore the fact tihat this style of the Sou:th!ern gentleman is rapidly passing away. The old landmarks are being ob literated. The galaxy of stars is fading fast, arid we never can replace the old. Tfheirs was a peculiar light a lignt that casts its effulgence over the old South and the new like the serving of two epochs, or the balancing jof two worlds. The church was as beautiful as Easter blossoms iti the hands of a skilled florist could nmke it, and. I thougftit of how the stainless soul had floated out on the Eastertide. The cemetery presented ;tfhe soene of a decoration day, and it came to me, that Southern braves had welcomed a Soutihern ohief."
'IRosin the Beau."
"Wlhen the writer of )tfhis was a boy he often heard sung" Old Rosin the Beau/ tfhe foeau supposed to be spelled Bow, and to refer to the custom of nibbing rosin on thebow of the fiddle. But it was sung only by men and boys, and not considered proper ,to be heard iby the ladies, or other "ears polite." It was generally sung by men on a frolic or in that mood in short, it was- a bacchanalian song of the coarser sort. Imagine, then, my surprise to find re cently that it has.a place in a book of music to be found in. parlors and drawing-rooinis on. a ladys piano.
As late -as 18 BY th!e well-known music house of OlivierDifcson & Go., off Boston, published a music book called "Xhe GnOOd Old Songs "We Used to Sing, with Accompani ments for !the Pianoforte, Oompiled by 3. C. H."
I only know one J. C. H. ? and hie is "Uncle Riemus" Harris, and until it shall ibe made to appear to the con trary, I shall take it for granted he has added this to his other acdomplishments, and for tihe additional reason that , " Old Kosin the Beau " is a Georgia song, amd Uncle Remus is a Georgian per se. It is not only in the book named, but is !the seiCond piece, aoid domes just after "Sweet Home," and just before " Oft in the Stilly Kight/ -withbut giving the name of the author.
This suggests the inquiry, Wlio is the author of " Uwsirt. the Beau," for the man -whose song is sandwiched betweeoi John Howard Payne and Thomas Moore, and appears ina book along with Burns, Lomgfellow, Mrs. Hemans, Mrs,,
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MEMORIAL.
^STorton, Walter Scott, George P. Morris, Francis S. Key, Eliza Cook, and other celebrities, deserves to be known,.
From the "beginning and .ever afterward during his life, it was attributed to a man well known in nearly all parts of Georgia, and even in several otheT Southern States, named Lawrcxi.ce L. Wilson. It -was claimed by him, -and from the evidence then ia.ll his con-temporaries conceded it to him. There was no one to diispuite the title with him. He went by the name of " Beau Wilson," and the authorship of this song1 was supposed, to be the -cause of this prefix. He was recognized as a professional gambler, and likewise there was no one to dispute this, for wfherever there was a gath ering and a collection of this class of sports in Georgia, there was Bean AVilson, auid he Was a conspicuous figure .among them. Those Who do not know oaimot realize the situation, tihen. The gamblers were a distinct iand welldefined class. Tii summer they traveled from one water ing-place to another, and in the winter from one city to anothcr from race-course to race-course, from legislature to legislature, anil even from count to cOUrt. They aippe<ared at each place iii full force, and did not disguise their pur pose. This was the Custam even as late as " tlhe ^\viar," which scattCTed them, --and they have never rallied in force since. During the "war " Beau Wilson " disappeared, and has never since been iieai^d of, except that some tirnle within the fonr years ho died ait ShrevepOrt, La. Pie was born at old Petersburg, Ga., in 1801. He received >a good educa tion, for tihe times, and was a marx of good presence and good manners. He ^vas popular with ihis sort, and had many friends outside of them.
In his early manhood the resided in. Augusta, Ga., had a respectable Standing in business and other circles, but his love for cards and aill other games of chance led him from one step to another, until he reached tiho level of tihe pax)-
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fessional gambler, and so Continued until his death. HeSipce table relations survive him, some of whom reside in Montgomery, Ala., some in Greenville, S. C., some in "Galveston, Tex. ? and. also in otfhor States.
Wilson -was inspired to write the song- from finding- owe morning am old fiddler whom lie [had of ten met and be friended dead and laid out 011 the counter of one of the saloons he frequented. He read and sang the verses to his friends, aind they persuaded him to publish them. Those "verses, as they appear in the music book, >are as follows :
I live for the good of my nation. And my suns are all growing low,
But I hope that my next generation Will resemble old Rosin the Beau.
Ive traveled this country all over, And now to the next I will go,
For I know that good quarters await me, To welcome old Rosin the Beau.
In the gay round of pleasure I traveled, Nor will I behind leave a foe,
And when my companions are jovial They will drink to old Rosin the Beau.
But my life is now drawn to a closing, And all will at last be so,
So well take a full bumper at parting To the name of old Rosin the Beau.
When Im dead and laid out on the counter, The people all making a show,
Just sprinkle plain whiskey and water On the corpse of old Rosin the Beau.
Ill have to be buried, I reckon, And the ladies will all want to know,
And theyll lift up the lid of my coffin Saying, " Here lies old Rosin the Beau."
Oh ! when to my grave I am going, The children will all want to know,
Tbeyll_run to the doors and the windows Saying, " Here goes old Rosin the Beau."
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MEMORIAL.
Then pick me out six trusty fellows And let them all stand in a row,
And dig a big hole for a circle, And in it toss Hosin the Beau.
Then shape out two little dornieks, Place one at my head and my toe,
And do not forget to scratch on It The name of old Kosin the Beau.
Then pick me out six trusty fellows, Oh ! let them all stand in a row,
And take down the big-bellied bottle And drink to old Rosin the Beau.
"While it is true that Wilson is the author of this sang, it is also true that there was an older song, wOaich Wilson must (have seen, and from Vhicih he got tbe idea of compos ing it when he saw his fiddler friend dead. This is evi dent from the similarity, yet slight -difference in name, and tthat his two last verses are substantially <tihe same as the older version., and %t!h*ait the tune to ids is the same as tihe -tune to tihe other. That other, and the first, is "Kossum the Bean," and was written by the late Colonel William H. Sparks, the -author of " The Memories ot Fifty Years," and. other literature. I will let Colonel Sparks relate the his tory of his song in his own words:
Letter from Colon-el W. EC. Sparks to W. H. Moore, dated Atlanta, Ga, August 21, 1874 :
"Hy Dear Sir: I iam obliged to you for tiiie little para graph from, tihe Oolmnbu paper, ascribing to me the authorship of this song, once so popular throughout the couutsry
"It is very true I wrote the Hues I send you, and they were the first tlhat were ever sung1 to the (air wfhidh. be
came famous. "I will give you a. brief history of the writing, aoid of the
man. "Who dnspir&d ^them. Wlien I first "went to tftie West
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in 1825, I .was some time in selecting a domicile. Why, it is not necessary for me sto state, as the reason and causes for tihe delay will form, a theme for a chapter in. th1 second volume of tihe 'Memories of Fifty Years.
Finally I located, in Mississippi and conaiiieircecl the prac tice iof law. It was in the midst <otf the noblest people I Iiave ever known. Among tOiese -were two equally remark able, but very unlike. One was a schoolmaster who was quite old, and. wihio -had been, teaching in the neighborhood over forty years. His name was Jaimes Rossum. He was peculiar in his habits. On Monday morning, neatly dressed and cleanly sihkven, he went to his duties in the old schoolliouse where two-thirds of -his life (toad beetn spent, and assiduously devoted himself to the duties of Ids voca tion, until Friday evening. On "the morning of Saturday he arrayed himself in his best and devoted the day to visit ing the ladies of the niedgHboTfhood. He was -a welcome .guest at every house. Tiiis thabit had continued so long that he had acquired the soibrdquet of "Rossum the P>ea.u." The others mame was Cox, who was a rollicking good fellow, and t?he best vocalist I ever knew. Pie was in song what Prentiss was in oratory, and they weo-e boon oomipanions. B-otili died young1. Oox ivas frequently at my office, and upon one occasion While he was there, Rossuin walked by the door, amd ihis age was apparent in. !his wialk. Cox Idoked at him? >and, after a pause, tiirned to me and remarked in quite a feeling tome, which h<e could assume ait -pleasure, and its eloquence was irresistible, Poor old Rossum ! Some of these sunny mornings he will be found dead, when, he slhall have a noble funeral, and all tihe ladies will ihonor it with being; present-, I know."
"Soon iafteo* he loft the office, and, being in the humor, I seized the ideas and wrote the following doggerel lines.
23
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MEMORIAL,
Soon after Oox returned and I (handed them to him. Hegot up, -walked and hummed different airs, until lie fell upon the old [Methodist hymn tune in which they have ever since been sung.
I have always considered Cox more entitled to the au thorship than, myself.
Hundreds of lines have been written to the >air by asmany persons, and almost as many have claimed the au thorship of the lines, but this is of no moment. I claim nomerit for my lines, -but everything for Coxs singing of -them. I, "have seen \him (ckfaw tears from the eyes of old. and young "with the feeling he: threw into the song."
Now, soon on some soft, sunny morning, The first thing my neighbors shall know
Their ears shall be met with the warning, Come, bury old Kossum tlio Bean.
My friends then so neatly shall dress me, In linen as white as the snow,
And in my new coilin shall press me. And whisper, poor Kossum the Benu.
Arid when Im to be buried, I reckon The ladies will all Like to go.
Let them form at the foot of my coffin, And follow old Kossum the Beau,
Tlien take you a doxen good fellows, And let them all staggering go.
And dig a deep hole in the meadow. And toss in it old .Kossum the Beau.
Then shape out a couple of dornioks Place one at the bead and the toe ;
And do not forget to scratch on it Here lies old Rossum the .Beau.
Then take you these dozen good felloivs,. And stand them all round in a row,
And drink out of a big-bellied boitle, Farewell to old Bossuin the Beau..
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It necessarily follows from the evidence that Colonel Sparkss "Ilossum the Beau" must have "been -written at least as far back as 183O. Wilsons must have been written between that time and 1840. I cannVot exactly remember When. I first hoard Wilsons version, but I know it wasbefore April, 1834, for then I first saw the venerable beam at Albany, Ga.. present at a great horse-race, and who was pointed out to me as the author of the song, then so gener ally sung.
It is true tihat Wilsons song1 struck itihe popular chord, and superseded Sparkss. Why was this, and indeed why should eitfhe?r take with tifre populace and have "such a^ ran"? There is no genuine poetry in either, and there islanguage in both that should not be repeated in the pres ence of ladies, and is even indelicate in the presence of geoitlemen, I take it that, first, it was on a subject even. the ni^St ignorant and coarsest of m-ankind could appre ciate ; and, secondly and mostly, the tune wias its charm,, as in the coarse song of " John Browns body lies buried in. the ground," which was so much sung during- the war and; soon after by the Federals, and was paraphrased and much sung to the same tune by tihe Confederates. Colonel Sparks says it was an "old Methodist hymn tune." If so, I cannot recall it, but if it was, I am sure it was excomxiiumeated as soOn. as it "was thus profaned by rowdies and; "worldlings. So if Colonel Sparks is right, his friend Cox robbed the church of a good old tunfe when he appropri ated it to "Old Hossum. the Beau." I am not sure Dhat Colonel Sparks is rig-lit, but I am sure there must be now living a few good old brethren and sisters who do know. Whatever Credit there is in tthe verses belongs to Gheorgi-a, for both Sparks and Wilson were rrartive Georgians and born within six months of each o!tfher Colon-el Sparks in.
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MEMORIAL.
Putaam oouiity in 1800, and "Beau. Wilson" in Elbert in 1801. Both, are dead, and I hope are singing the Bame tune to very different -words, if indeed it was " an old iletinodist hymn tune,"
. IRatbaniel (Sreene.
The centennial of our national existence suggests a TGcurrenee to important or interesting facts in OUST national history. Among iflie latter, a little reflection reminds a Georgian that Savanmah, the principal seaport of the State, and li<er point of most [historic interest, lias two public mon uments, commemorative of twfo distinguished officers of the groat American revolution, both. <o>f wihtom -are in un known graves. This gives to liistory sometihing- of the spice -of romance. In regard to Pulaski, ^ve feel assured nie remains, -after initerment, weire not disturbed by human hands ; but <as to Grenieral Grieenes, -we kno^r tbey were rutlilessly tiaken from their place of finial rest -and carried we kno?w not "whe(re. It -was in tho-nior of these two -wortliies the t^vo SavaomaitL momjments wr re reaifed. In. oonneetion "with the disappearance of General Gxeemes reimains, rall thtat has been, -hitherto, positively known is that in Jui^e, 1786, they -were deposifcod in a vault of the old cemeitery at Savannah, and ^Vhe-n songht for some thirty years after, they were not where they were placed, nor, after the most diligent search, ttheii and subsequently, could they be found, or -could any olue to where they were carried fee obtained. Thore is t(hus no doubt of the fact tthat they were se-cretly, -vvitlioTit a^ltihority, aind unlawfully remaved. As to where, tihere cann.Ot be even conjecture, for the want of the slightest tfaict to begin with. Why they were sOdeported is a. subject for conjecture, land from ceirtaiii eetablMied facts cooinedfced -with the life, death, and obse-
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MEMORIAL.
-quies of General Greene, make that subject an interesting one. That this misfortune sibould have befallen him -who was nex?t to "WaishiingitiOn in the magnitude of his services, and in the estimation of the American people, and who held the high rank of major-general, will never cease to be lamented. USText to the pang of losing a " loved one," is the knowledge that "ii!o man bnoweth his sepulchre." Indeed, time c^oaiverts such, grief into a hallowed memory, but a lost grave is -a lifetime Borrow. Beyond this, -where it: is known that there has been an indignity -offered the holy and honored dead, and grounds exist for suspecting that desecration has followed, the lifetime soTtrow becomes a -never-failing fount of bitterness. Tihe insult to General Greenes dead body was an, insult to the whole nation, and so it has been and ever will be felt. It is literally a ease where the whole people mourn. The ingenious malice whicb. sought revenge by robbing the dead of his grave and tihe living of consolation, overwhelms ITS with mingled horror and wonder. But it wias not to write an essay this article was begun, but to recur to ifhe interesting historical fact, to offer some reflections upon it, and to adduce <a few new facts -which will place this national calamity in a new light. Anld preliminary thereto, it will be interesting to reproduce the different versions of the lost remains that have passed into history, to show how error will originate, and even grow and nourish. ]STone of these, whether written or traditional, although so much time has elapsed for gathering information, present the true state of the case, while some are umtrue in whole, and some in part.. Lossings Field Book of the devolution says of General Greene: "His body was bLiried in. a vault in Savannah on the day of his death, but owing to negligence in des ignating the one, a search for his remains in 1820 was un-
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^successful." In a biography of General Greene by Professor Grecne, of Eh ode Island, ome of his grandsons, he .says, a lr is not even known, in. what vault General Greenes remains -were placed." Only -a fesw years since Greneral Robert E. Lee visited the grave of his fatter, Lignt Horse Harry. on Cumberland Island, and returning to Virginia, began writing- his fatihers life, lamd. therein stated that he died at the house of General Greoiies widow, and that he was consoled in iMs last hours by the reflection -tin at fee v^as to reipose by the side o Iiis illustrious commander., General Greene. These statements tOU<^liing the grave of Gen eral Gicene., written and printed, -will go down to the latest time, and are all erronoous.
I pass from these to What is tradition in the city of Savaiiniah, and rwhile> it comes nearer the truth, and when originally put forth perhaps took tlhe true ^hape, yet error lias so crept in, prdbably from lapse of time and defective memOry, tfhat it la-dks miicli -of the true version. Before giving that, it will aid in the understanding of it to state that General Greenes body, after (having been brought to Savannah, "lay in state" iat tftie residence of his friend Judge IST.ath.anicl Pondleton. It is BO stated, I believe, by Professor Gieene. I suppose the professor appl ied. to I^afchaniel Pendletan the title of judge that he after wards acquired. He was then the attorney-general of the State of Georgia, having been appointed thereto by Gov ernor Telfair the March previous. Judge Pendleton was on General Greeces staff during the "\var, or, at least, dur ing G-reenes services im the Carolinlas, with the ranik of oaptain. It is to be inferred that the making of Georgia his home by the general was the cause of Captain. Pendletons citizensihip. Having sei"ved tilaree yefars in the office > f attorney-general, he Tvas, in 1789, appointed chief jus-
360
MEMORIAL.
tioe of tihie Stia.te. He, .perhaps, iheld ;fch-is office up to1 1792, for he is put down as the last of tftie Georgia chief" justices. He was succeeded by John Houston, in .that year, under a different judicial system, <Wh.O "was the first judge of tihe SUperior court. A/bout this time Judge Pendie ton, was appointed by President "Washington United States judge of the district of 'Georgia,. This is the same Judge Pendleton who was -Alexander Hamiltons friend, sccOuid in. tibe duel with BUTT, and Ms executor, in t-ne Stateof jSTew York, ioi tlie year 1804. Tnis episode is deemed apipropriate to show Tvhy and Ihow Oeneral Grreenes body lay in state at ithe -pesidence of A^tomey-Cf-enjeral Pendleton. ^From t/his residence tih.e funeral procession nioved? and "Kne last rite was perfornied by consigning the Corpse to a vtaiilt in the old cemetery. F^oni thence, until very re cently, nothing is known, or if known, not made public,, except the printed versions given, and wthat I call the Sa vannah tnaditiom that I now give in substance.
At the time of Oeneral G-reencs death the feelings en gendered by tihe war -were rife. From tinte ug<ht between, the Whigs and Tories, followed by confiscation, the latter Yv"ere bitter and revengeful. Prom some cause not ex plained, General G-reencs body was placed in a. vault owned by a loyal family of the name of JVCossman. From this vault tsho remiainfe "Were secretly and steal tihily reniOfved. The suipposiition, was, aoid is, that the. family were indignant thkt t)he remains iof a rdbel general should repose in tfheir family tomb, and that tHiey had them re moved. The sftory further was that the remains were re moved at nigtht, and sunk in ia pond then in the soutliwestera part of tihe city. The pond appears on an old map of" the cdty drawn in 1818, when the improvements did not extend beyooid Perry street. Persons nlow living remember
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361
the pond. It was -at .the intersection of a line drawn from Major iBowen old. Fair Lawn -House and Jefferson street" oxtemded. The spot is now built over, or fiBed up as a part of -a street, and must :be near tine intersection of JeffersOn and Wayne streets, or some other of the contiguous parallel streets.
Several years ago General Pinckruey Smith, a nativeGeorgian, of the legal profession, who was in ill health, arid had for a long time retired from practice., had in Macon, G(a., a discussion "with a friend, as to the placfe of General Greenes grave. The general maintained, in conformity rwith history and tradition, that "the place of his sepulchre was unknown. Having resided in Baker 1 county, Georgia, some twenty-five years before, where also the late Phineas M. Nightingale, a grandson, of General Greene, resided, and [between whom and General Smith a friendship "Was formed, he -wrpote to Mr. JST. to furnish him with a written statement of (his version of <tfbe onattier. Mr. jSTigh tin gale complied, and fumisiheid the paper whicih fol lows, but enjoined on General Smith that if he published it, he would state that tihe paper was furnished -by request, and not voluniteered. General Smiith. assents to its pub lication , deeming Ch a t by this explania tdon he h;as c ottnpli-ed substantially with the request. With those whokne\v Mr. ISTigTutinigale, anything in oomniendation of him would be superfluous. He wae born and bred a gentileman, lived a life of honor and probity, and died universally lamented. His word, spoken or "written, ^was always such guaranty of its truth that no <3O>nifirrQ.altibn of any sort was1 needed. In prosperity or adversity he proved worthy of" his lineage by oomtinuinig steadfast to .tihe principles in which he was reared.
"General G-reene died at j\fulberry Grove, a plautaJtion "art,
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MEMORIAL.
"the banks o;f the Savannah river, in Chatham county., of what was supposed at the time to be a stroke of tlhe sun, but niOre recent experience lias led to the eonclusiotn. that tlhe . attack "which, laid, him low in >th very prime and vigor of manhood "was -one of congestive- fever, brought on by ex cessive -exposure to the sun., whiie attending to the laying out and cultivation of the gardens and grounds about Jus residence.
"His body was laid in the vault belonging to the Mul berry Grove estate, which had originally been ifche property of J^ientenant-Governor Graham, and was, after its confiscatzoiij presented to General Greene by the State of Georgia. It was the impression of the family at the time -of General Greenes death that this vault beTomged to the estate, and passed into General Greenes possession with the rest of" "the Mulberry Grove property, at the time of its presenta tion to him by the State autlhoirities. Upon the return, ii owever, of Governor Grahams daughter to Savannah, after the termination of the revolution, a claim was laid by her to the vault as property not included in tfhe act of confiscation. Her right to it was, upon examination, es tablished, but no .formal possession being given or taken, the bodies of General Greene and his son, George "Wash ington Greene, the oldest son of General Greene, were not. immediately removed. George W. Greene was drowned in th-e Savannah river very soon after his return from .France, where he had completed his education., under the supervision of General JJafayette. It is known certainly that ;at tlie time of his interment his coffin was placed by the side of his fathers in this vault, and it is supposed that both thus fell inifco the possessioii of Governor Grahams daughter "when she established her claim to this portion of ;the property ; at least, suoli is the family belief, from the
MEMORIAL,
363
fact that when tlie vault was examined some years after for
the purpose of removing the body of General Greene, his
coffin, which was certain of identifieaition by means of a
silver plate upon the lid, with his name, age, and the date
of his death engraved upon it, and also that of his so-n,
were found, to he missing, withoUt a trace of tihe clause or
tame of their removal, or of the place to which they had
been taken. A_t the time of this discovery tihere was no male
descendant of General Greene residing at fhe South, and ain
investigation had to be postponed nntil some years after
this fact came to the knowledge of ihe family. Most thor
ough search has been made -without throwing any light
whatever upon, the place of (his burial. All the facts and
circumstances developed by the investigation lead to the
belief that the coffins of General Greene and his son were
secretly removed and purposely interred in some unknown
spot, as an act of personal hostility, by the daughter of
Governor Graihlam, <when the vault passed again into her
hands.
"Her character is said to have been one of great personal
vindictiveness, and undeir ithe strong excitement of party
feeling it may have appeared to her a justifiable act of
vengeance to place the remains of those whom she deemed
unjustly benefited, at her expense beyond the reach of fur
ther honor? in -an unknown grave. This solution of the
mystery which envelops General. Greenes last resting-
place, though deemed the true one by those most nearly in-
reresred, is only traditional., as all parties immediately con
nected with tlbe transaction had either died or left the
country and been lost to sight before any thorough inves
tigation could be accomplished.
"(Signed)
P. M. NIGHTINGALE."
364
MEMORIAL.
From 'the foregoing statement of Mr. K"igih.itingale? it is clearly proven
1. That the vault in which the body -was placed -was known.
2. That it was, the vault in tihe old cemetery that be longed to Mulberry Grove plantation, that had "been thepropert-y of the Georgia colonial lieutenant-governor, John Graham.
3. That after General Greenes body was -tittus deposited, an;d while ~Mirs. Greene was yet residing at Mulberry Grove, a son of General Greene came to his death by drown ing- in the Savannah river, and his body -was placed by the side of has fathers.
4. That wiheii General Greenes body was missing-, ifliat of his son was also missing1.
5. That there was no mistaking the -coffin of the general, as it had a silver-plate with his niame engraved thereon.
6. I know, as a fact derived from autihority equally as near the reliable as Mr. 3STdglhting^ale., that Genieral Greenes son, at fetie ag<e of nineteen, years, returned to the United States at tfbe breaking out >of the French revolution, his -education in France KaviTvg been oommitted to G-ener-al 1/afayette, and. hen>ce his arriv.ajl in :tibis -eoim-trv must have1 been in 1792 or 1793.
7. That for six or seven years after ttihe Generals deatfo 3iis remains w>ere undisturbed.
Conjecture must now oome in only to determine who re moved the- remains, and. why they wore removed. The tradition in the immediate family of General Greene, that the removal was ordered by the daughter of Governor Graiham, either before or after she recovered the vault, is strong-ly sugg-estive of truth. It is not known Ghat any other being had a motive for such an act. It is known
MEMORIAL.
365
that she had a motive, and not merely a motive, but "tfhe opportunity.
It -will .be perceived that in -cionsideration of the wrongg she doubtless felt, and. from (her standpoint these wrongs were of the deepest cruelty, Mr. ^Nightingale almost pleads for her pardon. SQie did not pause to reflect tlraifc tire holding of the Graham confiscated esbalte by General Greene did not alter her .condition, for it "was first confiscated, and then conferred upon (him by the State. If it lhad not been given to General Greene, and, like osiers, had gone into the " general oofPers," it would likewise have been lost to her and hers. The repose of tihe inanimate body in. tihe vault could not hurt any one.
"Where, then, iw^ere the fbodies renuoved? That has been,, and is, and, -we fear, always -will, remain an unsolved myatery. It may be that they were placed as the Savannah tradition has it, and oomd.n:g down to us .at this length of time, tihat much truth has been preserved. "We see there is -a close resemlblanCe between -the g-emefral fact that the body was placed in a To.ry vault, and the special one. tihat it -was placed in the vault of thfe loyal lieutenant-govecmio-r, Who had owned ilulberry G-r-ove. llhe questions recnmining to be solved may be a family secret ii;ow kniOWn among the descendants of Governior Graham in England. If so, at this date there is no reason why iall the facts sQiould niot be^ disclosed. In this way -the plaoe. to whicih G-eneral Greenes LTemairis \vetre removed may yet ibe discioveired. If the appearances ajg-ainst the G-rahams are deceitful, and the Grov&rmor's da.iigh.ter did nofc have an agency in removiri'g the remains, where are we to Idok for a cause or a mo tive? Human ingenuity at tfhis day can discover nothingelse, and human, knowledge at that day ascertained that, or something close akin to it.
366
MEMORIAL.
From the foregoing there -will arise a curiosity to know more iof Lieutenant-Govet*n.or Graham and his plantation of " Mulberry Grove." The plantation is on the Savannah river, above Savannah, in the up-per part of -the county of" Chatham., within tide-waiter, and to "get there by land, one rides -twelve miles on the old Augusta road, and then. takes the plantation, avenue to- tihe right for another mile. The oonimuni cation then .and since with Savannaih was mostly by -water. It was there that General Greone lived, and received Ms deatdnatrfoke ; there ihis widcnv resided for a long1 time; there it was tOmt "Wnitney invented the cottongin ; there it was tihait IMirs. Greeme entertained General "Washington on liis visit to Georgia, and there the old man sion remained until destroyed by Sherrnans mem in 1864-. At the "beginnioag of tire lievoluition the plantation and appurtenaxtces must hlave constistuted a large and very valu able estate, .as the following mernorial by tihe lieutenaintg-o-ver-nor -ft^ill sliow. It like^visie sihiows that he had long beeoi a citizen of the colony of Georgia, and for thirteen years a member of Plis Majesitys Council ; that he "was a man of large family., consisting od: tw^elve members (exclusive of servarits),, and tih^at he an;d his famdly lived in. iaffluence. ."But the memorial %vill speal^ for itself :
itJSMORIAI^ OF LIBUTKNAjSTT-GOVK-RNOR GRAHAM,
REAi3 JANUARY, 1777.
To tlie Right Honorable L>ord G-eorge Grermain, His Maj esty's Principal Secretary of State for America:
The humble memorial of Jolm Granam, Esq., LieutenantG over.iiOr of the ^Province of Georgia, sho^w^eth that your iiif morialist has had the honor of being one of Tlis ^Majestys council iii. Georgia siue the year 1763, and with, zeal for the Jvings service ever faithfully discharged his duty in that
MEMORIAL.
367.
station, and humbly hopes his services were acceptable toHis Majesty, having been lately honored -with his commis sion of Lieutenant-Governor of the said province.
That your meniOrialist, having from his steady and uni form opposition, to the measures pursued for involving ;tihe- province of Georgia, in itlhe presenlt unnatural rebellion, rendered himself particularly obnoxious (to the- leaders of that party, he was pointed out by them as fan object for tibe resentmeut of the people, and on the 19th of January last was made a prisoner by the rebels, witlh Sir J;ames "Wrighlt, His Majestys General-in-Chief, and though he was withhim released, yet in a few days afterwards he received private information tih:a>t it was again determined to> confine him, upon -which he was obliged to conceal himself night and day in swamps for a Considerable time1, exposed to all the inclemencies of the weaklier, nntil he fortunately made his escape on board the Kings ships, whe<re< he remained till ready to sail for jBoSlton, during vvhicli time Gapfcam Barkley .and Hiis Maj:estys ship Soarboroiig1!! and Major Grant., commanding a deitachment of the Kings troops, hav ing in the course of their opeiratioms taken three prisoners who were deemed by tihe rebels of consequence to tihieir" party, a, negotiation Wals Seit on foot for tiheir release, which, on certain conditions, ^vas .agreed to, and, amongst othei things, it was an express stipulation made that your memo rialist should, on giving ten days notice to their committee, be allowed to bring away his family, <and was at great ex pense obliged to freight a vessel for that purpose. And on the ISteh of May last hewas, in Consequence of the stipula tion before mentioned, permitted to leave the province witJh his family, being twelve in number (exclusive of servants), but was -absolutely pa-evented fr.om.bringing any of his prop--
368
MEMORIAL.
arty. Thiat before yaw memJorialist (toad loft tfhe province
the rebels (had Wantooily burnt four Hundred bushels of
rice, part of (Ms last years crop, had also in a great measure
destroyed a valuable dwelling-house in the town of Savan
nah, and otherwise greatly injured his property. Your
Ix>rdsJhips memorialist Waving, from principle and attach
ment to His Majestys person aind government, ever asp-
proved himself a loyal subject iand faithful servant <of
the crown, claims no merit from having done what he
thinks Was no more tth-an his indispensable duty, but never
theless (humbly hopes his conduct may be the more favoura
bly received When it is Considered that it was at a period
when he well knew tituait he- was -tihereby resigning his all,
and has in consequence thereof been actually obliged, to
leiave ait the mercy of the rebels a fortune of fifty thousand
pounds sterling value, which, consisting chli&fiy in negro
slaves, -will, in all probability, be disposed of by the rebels,
so as to be forever lost to him and his family.
Your meniOrialist being thus cut off from all prospects of
etipplies from has own estates, land being- necessarily sub
jected to a great expense for the support of (his family here
(hitherto accustomed to live in the greatest affluence), is
laid under tihe very disagreeable njeciessity of making this
application., and humbly hopes your Lordship, from a con
sideration of the losses -wMch. ife fhas alreaidy sustained, bis
present embarriassed siltualtioin., and the peculiar circum
stances attending his ease, may be pleased to reconnmend
Dliat a salary bo allowed him as Lieutenant-Governor of
Georgia from the time of ihis lappoiinitment, ias some relief
and assistance. And your memorialist, as in duty bound,
shall ever pray, etc., etc.
JOHN GEAHAM.
It may be noted in passing that Governor Grahams me-
MEMORIAL.
369
morial furnishes evidence that the Georgia colonial officers -were men of largxs wealth for ithe times. Sir James WVight, tlie then, governor, must, have possessed, more prop erty than, tihe lieufenant-g0V.eriior. It appears, from, tlio case of "Wright -vs. Simipeon, in 6th Ves. R., that lie niortg;aged property that was taken, as security for a dobt of ten thousand pounds.
GrovernOr Grralham returned to Georgia -at >a late period of tjlie -war, and entered the service !of " His Majesty " against the rebels. In, the disposition of the British troops at the- siege of iSavanmiah., in October, 1779, it appears in the. plaii of attack tfhat- "the Georgia (lojial) militia and detachment of the 4tih tebtaliori of the 60till " was com manded "by LieuteTiian.t-G^OVerfnlor Graham. At the same siege t3iea*e was also a Major GrraWarn, of the- regular army, who oommandod the " ligjlnt infantry." It is to be pre sumed that after :t;he siege lie retoolc -possessicwx of his e&tates and maintained it so far as -was then praotioaible, bnt fche rebellion being suoceissful, (he Qmd to abandon tJhe coaifntry and seek refuge in England. Of hie .after life, anid when and ^vliere he died, I know nothing. His govcirnftnemt., witihout doubt, made- i-eparatioai to1 him for tlhe ^oss of his estates, as she contributed iand distributed large sums to lier loyal snbjeots -of America.
His estates, eStiniafced by him -at fifty thousand pounds, then iait least to\vo hxindi-ed and fifty tihiousand do-liars in coin of our present money, "was pr-dbaibly the heavieist co-nfiaeiaition miade ;by Oeorgia. jB ing a civil and military of ficer of the .British, crown, he received ma mercy. The tenor of his mromorial, tog>eithier "\vitih his bearing-, suggest that he was a most wortihy gentleman, and at this late d-ay, after *tihe asperfties of fche Revolittion liaVe all passed away, the generous CT^erj^Where must sympathize with him and his
24
370
MEMORIAL.
in their misfortnrnes of person, and estate. He had a val uable home in Savannah. "Where was it located ? Can his vault in tho old cemetery, where- General Greenes re mains were first deposited and then stolen away, be iden tified? AVhto succeeded the Grahams in >tihe proprietorship, for it is plain ifhe Greentes -were ousted and never afterwards asserted ownership? It was standing- as fete as 1815, and perhaps as late >as 1825, oii Lafayettes visit, ra,nd was then well kntown as the vault "where General Greenes remains had been placdd. In -what court was tihje title to the vault tried? Is the record of tfhe suit yet remaining? But perih-aps the controversy may have foeen settled by asrbitration, or by a board of honor, or, after investigation, ithe propiexrty surrendered. It m-ay also here be asked, can the house or ground from Whiidh Gemeral Greemes funeral pro-ces-
sion moved be now identified ? This is all I have to say -upon, tlie subject of Geoieral
Oreenes lost remains, "but -will take occasion to recur to a fact or two in his history transpiring after he became a citizen of Georgia. In March, 1786, he was tendered by the Governor and Council the position of -asaiociate jus tice for Chatham comity, which he declined. He received in 1785 a challenge from Major Ounu to fight a duel, which he also declined, and referred -tflie niafcteir to his dear friend, General Washington, who approved his course. General, afterwards Governor, James Jackson "was Gunns second, but after learning the grounds of the .challenge declined to act further. While a niarrative of General Greenes life or any commentary thereoin is :bot1i -unni&eessary and outside of >the limits of this subject, yet, to revive the public recollection of the estimate in which he wtas and slioiild "be held, an extract from the eulogy pronloUincetd
MEMORIAL.
371
on turn by Alexander Hamilton before the Cincinnati So
ciety in 1786, appears appropriate:
"LA.S long1 as tlie measures wKidh. conducted ITS siafc-ly
through the first amd miost critical stages of (the -war shall
bo remembered Fwitn, approbation; as long as the enterprises
of Trenton, land Prmceton shall be regarded as the dawning
of that bright day whicOi afifcerwards broke forth "witli suclh
resplendeoit luster; as long as rtftie almost magic 0perationB of
the remainder of tli(at remairfeaibile winter, distingnished not
more by thlese ev-exriB -tibaii by the extraordinary spectacle of
a powerful army straitened -witfliiai oiarrOW limits by the
plianitom of military force, and iiever permitted to trans
gress these limits with, impunity, in which skill supplied the
place of inea-ns, a.nd dispositiooi wais <tihe substitute for an.
. army; as long., I Say, as these operations ^hall conltiniie- ttti-e
object of wonder, so long ought itthe name of Green to b
revered by a grateful country. To .attribute to fhirm a por
tion of the praise Which is due too the formation as -well as
the execution of -tfhe plans that effected ttbeee importaiiit
ends, can be no derogation from, that wisdom and magTia-
nimity "whi.cn kniew noiW to select ^and embrace counsels
wo-rtliy of being preserved,"
The purpose off this article h-as been to state facts, and
not to comment On them. Besides the paper written by
jVTr. Nightingale, much of the otihter niaifcerial luerein lHas
be.eoi obtained from my friend General Smith, who is pos
sessed of miore curious and interesting- historical information
than any gentleman of my acquaintance.
,
Hffaius at the Capital.
"Writing of tibe first legislature that assembled, at Milledgeville in 1866, Judge Clarfe says:
It is soon to !be observed tlhalt it is composed mostly of new men by that I nieam, those who have had little or noexperience in legislating, and not with regard to age. The two extremes bad there met, for -tihe two houses were mostly composed of old and young men, the middlo-agcd being- in tne minority. Tfc was also astonisiliinig to find so few who -were TninTis -a leg1 or >an .arm from the laifcoitcmfic .starciggle, and. niot rrvany who had Tipoii their per sons wars honorable scars. Taken altogether, tl^ey were a highly TeSpecJttible body -oif raen in lappes^aTiee, ancL wo^tld favorably compare witih. any of our former legislatures. "\Vhile there was a lack of experience, there was, no doiibt, plenty of honest purpose aind. good sense, which gtavo an assurance of wnse legislation. Tt is true many of tfhe de feated candidates do not agree, with me-; but they must re mombor7 entire strangers oannoit, in so ^liort ia time, ascer tain the merits of every aspirant. On :the contrary, I am informed Judges Harris and "Walker, tire- successful can didates, whoso judgments in this matter camnot be re viewed and reversed, believe the present legislature to he the very best "Georgia .has had since fthe days of "Troup and the Treaty"!
The question of the inost iiiiteresit yet "before tihe G-eneral Assembly ivas the proposition, in the Sanate, to abolish the^ ponitentjary. It was thoroughly and ably discussed in thait body, and was lost by a majority of only four votes. I
MEMORIAL.
remember Messrs. ,J. A. ~\V. Johnson, Grcsham, Stnozier, .and Redding as speaking- againsf the abolition, and .Messrs. Turner, SinmioiiS, and O. ~L. Siuiv.li in favor. Tlie effort of llr. Sfrozier was the ablest and most elaborate argument T heard on. any question, at trhe capital; and to him, and that unpretending, plain and lia rd-seiise -old geiitloman ]\I>. Redding1, of Harris we are indebted for preserving the old institutiion, which has :hid away from society so many malefactors. T say indebted, for I believe its abo lition wonhl be -a calamity. The leading arguments were the heavy expense to the State, and the failure to produce reformation to .any grc!a;t degree. "W^uut -nii-f/J^t be a con sequence of the penitentiary system is mistaken for the original design. That 'icc/s the proper pnnishinent of cijim:e, and if it should be an entire expense, and never reform ott'C man, the OOiiim unity, in self-d efenso, must keep it, up. It is true that, with our penitentiary buildings de stroyed, and the, dOiirts in a state of semJ-dLsoirganizatlon, eriiue does noit receive its just, pnnisfhirtomfc; but it is unwise to legislate permanency on. a tempor.airy evil, ^and to the wisdotn of -ages -which, has rejecited branding, cropping, pillorizmg and whijiping as cruel anid. barba.rous pnnishments, a>nd not preventi^e of crime. In the largest, class of cases, we would have to iietnm. to hanging1, perhaps do so in. lar ceny if ifihe thing stolen was the Tr|alue of the hangmans T*ope, as was once the law of England. Jjjom what I Wave said, tonchijig th !e legislatinrej I do noit wa.n!t it inferred that tliere is -R. positive ladk of talent, business capacity, or e^peTieiiee. OTI tihe eontrary, the president. !o!f the geai-ate? Oolouiel A^m. Gibson, and tihe speaker of the ho-use, Colonel TliOntas Haideman, altho^ugh young men, iarc "old st.ager3? in legisla.tioji. Eaeli one miakes an able and excel-
374
MEMORIAL.
lent presiding officer, atad brings to bear a swa/viter in mod whicOi. makes every member feel at ease.
Colonel Weems, the secretary iof the senate, is an effi cient and experienced officer, and Colonel "WaddteZZ, the clerk of the house, gives complete satisfaction. Prom the pronunciation of tth)e name, one would not suspect him -to be a lineal descendant of the renowned Professor Waddell. I confess I prefer the old pronunciation. It is suggestive of "the men .aind times when fche great scholar made his repuitatioii. It is humiain natUTte to like a main better in (the g*arb Hie liad -wthen you first fell in love with him, ieveii thougli it may bo country jeians, lalfihough. he may after\vards appear fixed up by a Broadway tailor and be done up regardlessof expense. The senate is fortumaite iu. having as a member Hon.. Benning B. JVtoore of Thomas. He is a sound law yer, has strong- Anglo-iSaxon sense, rand is perfectly familiar walih tiho rouitime of Georgia legislation. jVmiong the1 rising men, tliere is J. W, A. Jdhii^OD of Whifcfiekl. He is emphalt-ioally a man of p^ointe. His perception is quick nothing escapes his vigilance. In fact, he has eyes all around his head. One -will search in vain for his blind side. 3STear him, <aind under one -of tfhe life-size pOTttraits., sits Hon. Ohas, H. Smith, Who hias become .celebrated as "Bill Arp." At first sight, one is disappointed in Ms -ap pearance, Las it is natural to expect to see .one who has fun pabeai-t upon, his fece, ain^l whose couiiteTiance would gener ally win a smile. A second took cliscloses tlie "lurking* devil in his ye/ .and a temperament that revels in sly and quiet mischief. His heiad and. facie indicaifce .a mind far above mediocrity. His features >are regiular and nicely chiseled. His heigtht is ratiher below the medium. A:d<d to tihat a fine form aind graceful maniner, and you have a man whose "touit eiieeuible" are of <a style Which, in the
MEMORIAL.
37
old country, would be pro.nounced "aristOOratic." It is nothing new for humorists to hide tiheir waggery tinder a quiet -or solemn mien. The contributors to the "London Punch" are feniown. by t)heir "affidavit faces." Mr. William .Arp, aboVe all, is a gentleman modest in feeling and in demeanor whtose head has not been .turned by the fame he has acquired. My aoqiiaintainec "with him having been very slight, I forbore to ask after the health iof "Bull Rtm a.nd OhickaitQminy _A_rp."
From the senate I ttirn bo tilie house, and there find an able la-wyer and e!loqu.i0nlt spc.aker in tihte person of Major R. J". Moses -of Muscogsee, dhiairmain of the judiciary com- mittee. His knowledge of his pr*ofession, aind his wellbalamced mimd., mabo ihim an (almost ilidlispen^able membei* of the house. He is as pleasianlt socially as he is useful leg islatively. He is one of those gemblomon ^Vho (remind you" of Byr^o-ns noted oomiplimjent to Shcridian, "Whten he said lie was the oinly dontomporary Avfho had excelled in everytlhinghe had "undertaken. He had .at ottoe made the most elo quent speech in the English language on preferring- the charges against Warren Hastings, mid written the very best English comedy. Whether Major Moses -alddresaes a court or a legislature, or indulges a leisure moment in tihe ITrenelinians commentairies 011 SHiaibespeaiie* plays, Oie is the same inimitiable person. He T-vas, during the war, ooni-missary of Ijoiigstrects GOrps, and %vas know-n as the rara> a/vis !an hone^t and popular oornmiseary. One of the most experienced and dignified members of t^i-e house is G-eii!eral Oeorge P. Hainiigon of Ohastihaaii. AVhen Shermans army "wenlfc through the 00urn try, he had. General Harrison arrested, although a private citizen, and had him incarcerated in a ISIortiher.n. prison for four months, the pretext being that he bad burned the bridges and felled
g?6
MEMORIAL.
the trees in tike road in his front. itTe is tibe father of GBorge P. Hkprison, Jr., -wlio so disftiiig-nished himself as coltoaifil of tho gallant Thirty-stecond Georgia. One !of the clearest Tic ads, and most practical -of tibe lionse meraibeTS, is _i\Ir. Ivh/by of OhaitboOga, I judge him to have fine tal ents, and I" aim certain lie is an. excellent tactician, lie looks ahead, land prepares for it, and if an unexpected emer gency /arises, lie -will be found equal to it. Tie. impressed me as the master spirit of JSTortTi Ge^>rgia. Anofrlier p^oninient. inoxnber fre/m t!h;e same section i,s Oolonel Gleim of Wliitfi.eld. He is a mem of decided talents. All lie requires is sturlv and pirndeni.ce to mak-e lirai a.ble and formi dable, and perfbJaps a disting-nisJred .man. "By prudciTce, I mean for liun to d>o Ins best o/nly wlien be (lias a subject yooitliy iof liis powers, and. not- to n-se all pOWers of Jlis mind to allow a quack doctor to killpeople Kr.'otnwJ.ti'-m .rfcm,, aiid to hel-p a iibii-ecimbaitaiit =to steal a soldiers wife. A fine specimen. iof a. g.entlemian, and a rapidly rising maai in !Kis jn-ofessioii and. in tlie log-islat-nrc, is tliO new member from liiclimiond, the PloTi, Claiboviic -fc"1 . S-iiead. iSTcar liim sits a lo\v-scit, stroiig-minded, useful member from Afuseog-ee, lion. .James .if. "Russell. Jiis-t before leaving I kojjt. out of his way, ioi* fear ho would tiake me for a. member who bad voted against. Gerreral Beriining.
Another Cxpeijieneed -and able member is Adams, <of Claike. He has, and deserves to have, -dire confideiiee of his coiisrfiitiicmts. "Whietiher rig^it or wrong, be adheres tcnaeioiTsly to his principles. Ho litas a fine form aoid a haiidsonic face- the latiter denotin^ rtlre -po>ctic teixiperameiiT., and reminds you of (Jlre refined features of Tenny son.
The senate and house have each its ackno^vledged wit. I\Tr. Paris, of T^arle, roigna in the senate, and J\lr. Swoarin-
j
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377
gen, of Decatur, in tJhc house. Paris (has been several times .a member, and persists in tying; his cravat on one side, under lus left ear, thus reminding one -of tlic hamgmans vocation. jYfr. Swteiringeii lha:s been somewhart eniburrassed this session npoii the point whether it is better to be g-ovoTmed by principle or policy., and in his -dilemma took counsel of an experienced Georgia statesman. I do not kiiOW the counsel, but it is suggest.! ve ;tbat since Swearingen lias been lecturing flic members on tflie necessiry of boing g-overned !by ]>olicy. He says he finds no tronlble in indoOtrioa-tdng yonng- men and old members, but old in on who -are her-o for fhe firsif, tliine., like ilr. Stro^ier, are the dullest scholars he ever tried to teach. Mr. SweJariiigcii finds g;reat, sympaitiliy yrilli the members, because of Ills losses, consequent upon an investment at am auction in Snvamiah. iTTe has a tiastie for literaitm-e, bnt sbig-ularly Jiis favorite book is "Pollolcs "Oonrse of Time/ "\vhich is his traveling compiamioiii. IVFr. S\\"oanngen, nevieitheless, ia >a gxroid 1 eg-islator, and a.n efficient member. "Both houses have als^o their !handsoine men. T"!icrc a i^c (Colonel Sim. JMann iof Ora\vfo-rd, Coloncls Madclox of Elbert and IVFaddox of "Fnltori, and Mr. Frost, of Tronp, who are fine speci mens of manly beauty. Tlhese gentlemen are nevertlielass useful as well as ornamental.
Among the distinguished outsiders, T note Generals .Benning, Cobb, Jloilm 1C -Jackson., and Oolonel 131a.ndfo.rd. Th latter went out as a eapitafin in tlie T^vclfHh Georgia, lost -his arm at !iIcI>OAVidl, a,nd Was afterward a iriembcr of the Con.fede.rato Congress. TTe is tine pririoe of good fello^vs, lias a taste for literature., and very .prtoiperly prefers gjoiod books. There is another clisitiiigulshed gteiitleman -\\^ioso acquaint ance I made -in Milledgeville a PrencihinJan, jusJt arrived, 3-Fonsieur Charles Farre. lie is handsome, bright and
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sparkling, but, like >alll ^Fi^encihmezi^ lias a way of suddenly disappearing. His visit to this country is entirely a socml one. He wishes to -establis^i "with American society that "entente ooo-diale" which niations talk so much -aboitt. His mission, so far, ;h-as been, very successful. Shoiild he visit ]\I_acon7 I have no doubt he would be welcomed by the larger portion of the population. I would, however, ad vise soirLe to be on ttihieir gniard against lnis fascimartion. Too much of his society is corrupting to youmg men.
Gutbbert's Career.
The newspapers of the country have "been very "brief and meager in their notices of the death, of the Hon. John ACuthbert, which occurred at his home on ]Vfon I^ouis Island, near Mobile, on the night of the 22d of September. Yet it was one of the moslt notable evenits in bhe necrology even of this present year, which has !h"een marked by the deaitih of o many -emment and remarkable men- It was libe enid of ;a life distinguished, not Only for its great length, but for its association with some of tlie most remarkable passagesill. American histoiy.
Judge Cuthbert was nimety-threie years old. Tie was born m Savannah, the yetar before tihe oonstiltution of fthe United States "\venit into aperatiton. The old articles of co-nfederation -were then in f Oi*ce. All tibe settled parts of the conntry, now Constituting the Stiatds of Florida., Alabama, Mis sissippi, Doiiisiiaria and Te^as, werfe tihen SpanisTri territory. It was before the outbreak -of the first French revolution. ISTapoleon Bonaparte was an obscure lietrteriianit of artillery, and Walter Scott an laippronitice in his faHliers office. Ed mund Burke and Benjamin Franklin "were still living. Geiorge Canning and Henry Broiigiham were college sifudecote, Oalhoun. iand AVeteter were little children, and liienry Clay was riding astride his meal-ba-g" in the Hanover slashes, fie was born in tlie same year with Byron and Peel. He was nearly twenty years in advance of Bulwer, and ISeacoinsfield, and liobont E. Lee, just twenty yearssenior *o Jefferson I)avis, and still moi-o to Lincoln, and Glaldstonie. He was a member of Congress (in his second
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srsaiom) when John. O. Breckiriridge was born, and -was a middle-ag-ed man at it!h>e l>inbli of G-a.rflold.
Ofher mien may be living as old or older none are left of like age, who have been so conspicuous as actors in great historica,! events. -Judge Cutihibea-t sa>t in tJlio ho\ise of rep resentatives, ras <i\. menvber from Georgia, more than sixty years ago. lie was there from 1819 to 1821, the memora ble period when, the .Missouri, question was agitated that question "which shook the .Federal Union to its foundation;? and foreshadowed the conflict that culmi nated in \\-ar more than forty years afterwards and took part, in its discussion. In ithait (.^ongreiSS he \vas tihe contemporary and assoeiate of O];ay, and "Maeon, aird T^owndes, and Randolph -of JJioanoke, and linfus Ivmg of !New Vork, a.nd AVilliam Rufus Xing of Alabama, and William l*irickiiey of !Maryland, and Oharles ir*irjckney of Sonth Carolina, (one of the authors of the eonstitvitiori), and tflio IJarboiirs of "\irginia, and ia -host of others (both in the senate and the IvOii^e), eminent even in the days when there were statesanon. in the Iaiid.
Some yeaire afterwards he wa^ a coTiipetito.r <of the cele brated Joint _Far?v.th, before the Geoi^iM legislature, for oleetiiou. Jto tho l.rriited Stales senate. The vote was a tie on repeated iballots, and ho was defeated only after- the contest iliad boeai coiitinned into the aocond day.
lie removed >to ^lohilo \Vlieii nearly uity years of age, served two terms as judge, hrsT. of tJhe coirnty, and then of the circuit court, and afterwards continued fco pi-actice lav? mitil the entl of his life, a raie exainplo for this country of tile prolongation of intellectual vigor and acitivity. J-ess titan six aiiOUths ago a Ponsacola paper meiitiomed his arri val at trluit jjlace to attend to an ijtiportant suit before the United States district court, a.nd his name appears more
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than once in file reports of the supreme court of Alabama during1 flie- last few years, us of counsel in cases submitted to that tribunal.
The writer of this a.Ttiele li!ad an opportunity of hearing him once, and once only, in <a political speech. This was in. Mo>bile during the iagiita.tiioii of the 3?:noiw-!Norhing ques tion, abou)fc twenty-five years ago. It was a sipaedh of great vigor and chasraeterristic firmness and fearlessness. The Know-jSToUiing party was tiheii preidomiriant in Mobile. The mystery enshroudmg it, and tlie secrecy of its meth ods and. opier^atiiloTis? ?h>ad rendered it >an object of some dread, and its opponents were in gcncial very cautious in express ing themselves on the subject. Judge Cuthbert., ho^veve^r. was Olitspoken and uncompromising1 in liis denun-ciatiom of the Wllole moveimeiit .as a"relic of barbarism." lie -^vas then nearly sevenity ycai"e olcl? a>nd it w:as probably fclie last public speech, that he ever made on a polit.ica,l question.
These reminisejenjces a.re given mainly as introductory to a more interesting and precious souvenir of tne venera ble jurist and staitefemlain, Which Uhe writer is fortunate enougih to possesis. This is an "autograph letter written aboUt a year before (his doatli, in an^ver to .a request, for his recollections on some questions relative to the ^Missouri compromise.
The first of these questions, briefly stated, was, wihetfher tine oompriomise was at tftie time of its adoption considered to be-j in the main, la Nortihern. or a. Southern measure.
The second may be best uuderstood by an extract from the letter of inquiry, ITI wthiob it was stated as follows:
"Again: I find, from I3entons Abridgment of IDebatcs (Vol. VI., pp. 570, 571), that on the 2d of March, 1820, IMr. Randolph, of Virginia, in the house Voted againsit the restriction on Missouri, which, was defeated by only three
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votes 90 ito 87, land abstained from "voting- on the eooiipromise proper. Tlie next day (March. 3d) Mr. Ilanidiolph moved to reconsider the vote on the Restriction (or rather on the admission of Miseonri), but before tflie speaker (Mr. Clay) would enter-talm the motion it "was declared that the .action of the hoii-sie ha;d -been oommunicaited to the senate by title clerk, and thlat therefore the bill was 010 longer in the possession of the 4i<ouse. Whiereupon Mr. Ttandolpli submitted a resolutiooi censuring1 the action iof the clerk, -\vfl-j.:icih "Was defeia-ted yeas 61, nays 71. Mr. Archer, of Virginia, acted witih BJaindolph, both in voting and second ing his motion fo reiconsidier,
"I am ajfc a loss to rundea-sifcand Mr. Randolphs motive in moving -a reconsideration tff tli^at vote -\vliic1i defeated the proposed restriotion on Missou.[ri; as w-eill as tttie proceedings by whleh the gpeab&r and the clerrk seem :to have th-warted liis -purpoise. Oan you give me an explantion of it? "
In reply to these inquiries tilie following letter wias re ceived :
"jVton Jjoiais Island, Ala., August 4th, 1880. "My Dear Sir: I have received your letter ;of June 27th, making inquiry of my recollection of the passage of the Missouri Compromise!. I will readily give you my recollections, and tihis is not -an unpleasant labor. I say in advance that parts of "tfhe ocourrence referred to may have passed from my memory, but my presenlt recollec tions of wlhait I do remember .are cleax and certain. "I now say tfliat at the time the Missouri Oompriomise wias under eonsideratJOii and was established by ain act of Congress, I know distmicfcly that it wais a Southern measure. "The people of flhe Territory of Missouri had previously applied to Congress for admission iinto the Federal Union as a State. They exftilibitied a Cionstituitiion, whioh they had
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framed for :felieir future government >as a .State, and. this constitution Tnatle no provision, touching the nuaitter of slavery. This application was rejected by a majority in Congress.
"I ihave no personail remembrance of this .application or its rejection. I believe they occurred ait the session next before I went initO1 Congress j but it was uiniverSally under stood in Ooiigresis that this .application of Missouri Was re jected because of u general opposition in the ASTcM-them States to the admission of another slave.}]olding State in the Union,.
"The Southern people -were dissatisfied with, the (rejec tion, of Missouri, because it seemed. !to indicate a design in the ISTorthern States to exclude tlie people of the Southern States from. an. equal partticipation in benefits from *t!h.e territories. A committee of the house was appointed early irt the session to attend to matters relative to the admis sion of JMissOUri into the Union. I was on ithat commit tee, and aittenlded its meetings. I retmemiber that I met seveiral miembers of tibJo liouse &t its meetings, but do nlot recollect that I ever saw a Northern, man. tliere.
"Some one suggested the scheme of extending- Mason and ZJisons line (the iilorthern boundary of Virginia) west ward through Missouri, niaking ia gieog^raphictal division of tihatt territory, arid, that tlhe people -of tihat territory should form a constitution whiclh Would exclude slavery from the poition of the territory lying iniortik -of this line, leaving i^ho people of the teiTitory freo to aet for tfheinseilvos in the maitter !of slavery in -the part of the territory soutln of this line. This schemio Was quic-ldy aidopfceid by the South ern men, >an!d -was zealously advocated by tibefm. It was accepted by the people of the territory, and was carried into operation as far as depended, on them. This was t/he basis
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of fche Missouri Compromise. It 'was, approved, by ZVfr. Ivowndes, a Democrat who had the reputation. o;f being- the wisest and beslt statesman in. Congress. T bore a part in a prolonged discussion to which it gave rise in Congress.
".Before the time- of voting I knew, by name >ancl person ally, every Northern member who was expected by the T)em!o(cratie members to vote for tho compromise. Among these were Meigs, a representative from New York, broth er-in-law -to the elder John. FoTsyt/h, and Sfcorrs, also a representiaitivo frtoan. iNc-Av York, a Tespectable man and a Democrat of high, italent. T!hor*e was -.a. young naeanber from Illinoiiis whom I knew wiell, wlio :told Tn>e repeatedly tjliat lie would vote for tibe cOmpromise, and <who felt a fear that lie -v^Oiild lose -popularity in Illinois by suoh. -a vote. They made a slhort test. I know tihat a large majority >of jSToT-tlbeim. msmbers voted against the oompiromise.
"I knrow nothing of tdie record to -Which, you refer. To conitradidfc a record by unwritten recollections is contrary to tftve esta.blisaed rules of evidence. False cnitries .may be made in records. I know tihiat my reeollections, as herein stated, aie correct and certain declanaltionis of truth.
"SO-uitibem. lue-rabeTs., in voting for this settlement, knew thaifc they were making1 ;a eoncessiioii. !But !Nor<thern men wer"e making a larger c:on;cessiioin in agreeing -to admit Uhe SoutihertL part of Missouri insto tilie Uniion. wiljliout. restric tion -as to slavery. Here was another slavdholdinig State in the Uniioii. Tiliis -was regarded by Southern men as a great \nictiory achieved by the S:outh.
"The exclusion of slavery from northern. Missouii was agreea~ble to -the sen-tiineruts of the people on whom it was to operate; it was therefore no grievance to iis.
^All my reoollections hiarmonize \vith the belief tihat the
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Missouri Compromise originated -with. Southern men, amJcl that it was carried into1 Operation by iSourtihern men.
"I can explain in general terms tttie course of Mr. Ran dolph in relation, to the Missouri question. He was -anx ious to maintain the comparative superiority of "Virgioiia (the ancient -dominion) in the Union. He "Was Opposed to admitting into ;tine Union anidiiher State west of tihe Missis sippi. As lthe .empire extended westward, "Virginia lost comparative importance. He wae opposed to the admis sion of Missouri. But as the people of "Virginia, "were zeal ous ior the admission, of Missouri, VbJe would not oppose it openly, but he -would Covertly prevent her admission. This was developed in proceedings by which Mr. Monroe "was the second time declared president. The vote of Missouri for president had been given, but. there was some ground for doubt whether Missouri hiaid ;a right to vote. It was agreed in the senate tibJat its president, efhould anniounce theresult in tfhis ~\vay: If ithe viOte of Missouri be counted, Mr. Mooiroe has 231 votes, whidh is >a majority of the votes; and he is elected president of the United States. If the voh& of Missouri be not counited, Mr. Monree has 228 votes, which is a majority of -flhe Votee, and he is elected president of tihe United States/
"The senate had been received -into the hall tvf represent atives, and the president begian to make the proclamation agreed upon, "when he "was interrupted by Mr. Randolph,, who .made a motion to amend, the prociamation, aird began an .argumeoit in support of his motion. A crv of ^Order! Order! -was made from all parts of the (hall. Mr. Riamdolph -ceased speaking, but retained his place upon tihe floor. As soon &s isilen!ee was restored, Mr. Randolph ag*ain atitemptefd to address the presiding officer, wihen the1 cry of Order! wias again raised by a greiater -number of voices anki
25
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MEMORIAL.
in a more imperative tone. IVIr. Randolph yielded and
withdrew, uttering abusive language in a passionate tone.
The president o!f tflie eemate then made the proclamation
that (toad been agreed on.
With high regard,
"JOHN A. ClJTHBEKT."
Thlis letter gives no evidence of tttie great age of its author, either in handwriting or style unless it be in
some superfluous verbal repetitions. Whether from this
cause., lioiweveaj or some other, it is certain that his recol lections "were :ait fault on tihe mJain subject ito Which they refer. He makes the common error of -confounding -the
two di-gtinelt -and sepairaste questions which. Constituted the ^^comproniisie." One -of itfhese ^ivas tihalt of Uhe admission of ^Missouri witfh '& OoniStitultlion contlaining no prohibition of slavery. On ifliis the South was .afcsoliit&ly "UinasnimioTis, no Southern member voting against it in either house, while the !NV>rthern members were nearly as unanimous in opposition to it. Tlhe other measure, which "Wtaa really and properly -the "-compromise/consisted of the adoption of an arbitrary line 'o. denaiaa^oatian for all future -States to be formed out of What was then fohe lUDissouri tierritory ^tihose north of fihat line (to be required to prohibit slavery, while
those south of it might exercise their own judgment. On this question the I^ortihern vdte wias nearly nnanimous in
its favor in both houses; the Southern vote was divided, but a majority in each, (house in the negative.
Judge CutfbJbert also seems to confound the proposed ex tension of Mason and Dixons line witth the line nltimajtely adopted, more than tihree -degrees fartiher south. South ern members might very naturally favor the one but op pose the other. His rettmarks with regard to the -discrep ancy between his recollections and the recoirds (tihlat is, in the journals of Congress wfhich had ibeen referred to) are
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characteristic of the tenacity of purpose and opinion for which 'he was somewhat noted. Writing sixty yeais after "the events refearned to, and having himself, although of the Soutfhem school in politics, been a warm advocate of the coonpTomise; these mistakes "were not unnatural.
- Witih regiard to itttie adtiion o-f Mr. Randolph (of Koanake), Judge -Cuthberts explanation is as satisfactory iamd his recollections no doubt as correct as they are interesting. Indeed, lt!he "whole letter is highly interesting, (not only on .account !of its writer ^and its stibjeCt, but because it is Tmdonbtedly the latest lacconnt of the events that has been or ever will be given by any of the actors in thlat great and .memorable contest.
IReforms.
It has been established beyond question that the present law code of Georgia., completed in 1860, arid whidh -wont into effect on tiite 1st of January, 1862, was the first in stance, where the common and equity law of England pre vailed, of reducing the common law and principles of equity to statutory enactments.
This .suggests another assertion, which, though strange, is true that Georgia, the youngest and greatest of theoriginal United States, has taken tihe lead in judicial re form am:d kept it.
The Georgia judiciary ra<ct of 1799 is often cited as tlhefirst innovfastioii upon the tfhein existing system of pleading. Prior to that, what is called special pleading prevailed, everywthere. This system Wias unfavoa^aihle. to justice, because *he case, "was liable to, and -often did, turn upon tiheskill of the pleader, instead of evidence and justice. T*he consequence Was that often Justice, lay bleeding in her own. temple, and the blind goddess was helpless to avert it. Theautfhor of tlhis reform should be known, arid live in tiho histOry of the Staite; but., like so many transactions of the far past, the author is involved in some doubt, bedause his contemporaries are dead and the records either lost ordeetroyed. But, before discussing tshe authorship, it is well to correct one popular error, arid that is that the man who originated tihe act of 1799 is the one who is entitled to credit for the chlange in the system, of pleading. The act of 1797 was intended to make the latter more complet/e, aind yet the change is known in history by the date of the.
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amendment, and not by that of the original act. Then who is fthe author of the iact of 1797? The journals of that year of 1799 are to be found in tfhe library department of the Sifcaite capitol. As at present informed, -we must depend for our infonnaiBOTi npon tradition, am!d tradition gometimes conflicts, as this instance wi1!! show. The genoral understanding, so far as my information extends, is that the elder Judge Sititih was the author of the judiciary aat of 1799. Rev. Dr. White, author of ithe "Georgia Historical lOollectiions," told the writer more than tihirtf^years ago that in his search for historical materialS he had discovered that Judge Stith "was the author of the judiciary "adfcof.1799. But if such is true, the question arises, was he .solely the aulihor of the ameindmenft refera-od to, or was he the author of the original act only, or was he the author of T^dth ? If the author of the amendment only, yhen (the author of the Original .act is entirely unknown. But talcing it for granted Judge iSititfh is the author of either or tooth, it is .strange how little is known of him. His name as ia judge of. the superior court, oo- of iany other court, is not to foe found in tJhie records of our Deparfemenlt of State. It may "be in the Executive Department. And yet tihe records of the superior courts of some of the counties now ootmprising- {/he Northern circuit attest the fact that Judge Stith presided therein in the year 1794, two years after the present superior court system was established. These counties may have then been in the Western circuit. Tradition also tells us that the first Judge Stitfh had la 00*1 who afterwards occupied the samle official position his father did. There is likewise no State Department record of him. What is the history of Judge Stith, and who and where are his descendants? Any ome who can answer this question will maike an interesting .contribution to the history of the State. But now come
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MEMORIAL.
in th;e errors thlat may creep into tradition. Judge Juntas Hcillyer, who is old enough. tto (have talked with fhe men of - these times, anld did fialk -with some of <tihean, aye thte infosrnation he got from them -was that Abraham Baldwin wasthe auttlhoT of the judiciary act of 1799. Can it be .tibat Judge Stith was the author of one act, and Abraihaim Baldwin of the otiber? The aut/hor, whoever he may be, of -tihis reform, in pleading1 deserves to be rescued from oblivion, and to go down to the latest posterity with the credit of his achievement. While tlhe atiithorrshap may bein doubt, itftio fact remaiins tihiat to Oeorgia belongs th : credit of this important judicial reform.
We TtOW pass over >a pteriod of neiarly sixlty years (fromi 1797 to 1852)., and we find, fur-ther Teform ^>n Uhe same line and subject. The act of 1797 required the pleader to plainly, fully and distinctly set forth his cause of action; but the act of 1852 said you need not do this, provided youcomply with certain forums it established ioor diffeirent lands of actions. These forms have Come into general usie, and have Sitood the test of more than -a third of ia century. The precendents not long after were followed iu England. I heard Chief Justice I/umpkin announce this from the su preme court bench, and say it was sufficient to make their author immorisal. And yet, foow many of the present gen eration of lawyers can (tell you. of their author ? They may ii/ave heard them called ^the Jack Jones forms," but what do they know of Jaek Jones? Jack Jones "Was the Hon.. John A. Jones, of Faulding county the father of Oaptain Jack Jones, of Atlamlta, wtOom w^e hear so frequently called "Treasurer Jack/ and "tflie brother of Sieabom Jones, of Columbus, whOse hig^liest station ws not official (aliihOugili he had held several), but was the foremost lawyer of all Georgia in his palmy days. Judge Jaok Jones lived to be-
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391
about ninety years of age, and died not many years ago, after a long and adtive life, during which, (he was well known, tlhrougihout all of amie-bellum Georgia.
The next period in our judicial reform came ia few years after, in. tSb_e xn&king <xf tine Georgia code. As I demoiTstrated from the records in my previous letter, the author of the scheme of tliat code, embracing its distmguiething fea tures of reducing tthe common law and equity principles to statutory enactments, was George A. Gordon, of Savannah, Ga., wMle >a memlber of the legislature in 1858. He waa the oldest son of Wm. ~W. Gordon, <of !tfhrait city, Who died in th:e year 1842? and a brother of the present member of the legislature from ChaiihSam oounity, of the same name as his father. The father was a well known lawyer and politiciam of Savannah o^tein a memlber of *ii!he legislature, but best known as the fir^t president of the Oenlbral Kailroad and Banking Coimpany. A splendid monument stands to perpetuate him in the parik an Bull ^tareet, in front of tine oourt-house.
George A. Oordon was advancing rapidly in law and politics when the war checked his civil career. He served bravely and faithfully tihrougli tih war, closing his career with the nank of either colonel or brigadier-general. After the war he moved to Huntsville, Ala., and there died some ten or twelve years ago.
Whale George Gordon was liftie anthor of tihe Bcheme of that code, the lalte General T:hos. H. R. Oobb is entitled to the exclusive credit for the execution of its said distin guishing feature. He was perhaps the only lawyer in Georgia already equipped for the performance of the task. He is a well krtiown Georgia historical dhiaraoter, and any thing I should say of him would be superfluous.
There are three general and radical reforms in the judi-
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MEMORIAL.
clary of the State, but they are by no means all the improve ments in that respect. There are many laws in the code, from the early history of the State up to recent years, yet further repealing- or altering old laws or making new :ones? -which aid in tlhe perfection iof our whole body -of laws and should redound to the credit and even glory of their authors. "They are too numerous for (recital here, but I would suggest to the Georgia Bar Association tio (appoint some competent person (Jo report upon the improvements of our laws from the foundation of the St/ate to a recent period, and tlo name the -authors of them, tfhat justice may be done tlhe dead. "Honor to whom honor is due" should always be given, .and it is a -greater justice to honor"the noble deadithian the living. Most prooriinentt among our "wise and useful legis lators will be found tine n!ames of Andrew J". Miller and -Francis H. Cone. Then the members of that association should live up to Uhe I/atari maxim wihich should govern all such orgiaoiiziati/ans, "non, sibri 'sed onvnihus."
In view -Off the leading part Greorgia has talren in judicial reform, I tihinlc her sons may justly be proud of her. It is not Hxaly in this Greorgia excels. The imtegrdty and enteirprise of her citizens and the value of her promises to pay are exceptifonial in these times of genenal depression. In. fact, every -one must admat Oeorgiia is a, great Stiaite, and -will staoid side by side with tlhJe greatosit of her sister States. If Georgia would only correct herself in two particulars, she would "be. -as perfect as humanity dan be. These are '<bo surrender tcea* bias for low salaries and her love for ^beepkilling dogs.
(Beorgia Cobe.
A code of laws for Georgia first assumed practical shape with George A. Gordon, of Chatfliam county, who was one of the members of the legislature of 1858. Colonel Gor don had maTried an Huntsville, Ala., and from his visits to that place hlad become familiar witih the code of Alabama, published in 1852. Becoming ia member of the Georgia legislature, he miade such representations of itftie utility of the Alaibama code ito tfhe other members ias bo satisfy them oi the necessity o on1 for Greorgiiaj <amd a law to pTOvide for its preparation was enacted without Opposition. Having heard from time to time a differenit version of tihe -origin of the code, I examined the journals iof 1858, to see if the informiation g-iven me was correct, or if I luafd been under a wrong- impression for -the last twenlty-six yeans, and I found I had not been in -error.
In the house journal of 1858, ait p. 96, it will "appear tibat Mr. Gordon, of Qhialthiani, on November 29, introduced the following bills:
"A bill to be entitled an aclt to provide better means for the navigation of Romoiey OMJansh."
"A bill to be entitled an act to provide for the codifica tion of the laws of Georgia."
"A bill to be entitled an act to incorporate the Savannah. Flour Mill Company."
"A bill to be entitled aai act to amend the act too incor porate the Orphanfe Home of the Protestant Episcopal Church in Chatham counJty."
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MEMORIAL.
"A bill to be enititled an act to incorporate tihe Ogletfborpe Ligfht Tnfatribry."
T5i bill which Mr. Gordon, of Chatham., introduced to provide for tth/e codification of tine laws <of Georgia became a law in December, 1858, and "will "be found in the laws of tbat year at pages 95 and 96. The most material pontoon: of it thus reads:
"Thalt it shall be the duty of said -commissioners to pre pare for Itttie people of Georgia a code, which, shall, as nearly as pnaictidaJble, eonbrace in a condensed form. t!be laws of Georgia., whether d&rvued -from the common law., the constitution of tihte State, tibe statufces o>f lDhe State, the decision's -of the supr.&m<6 oouri^ \ar itihe statutes of England of force in this .Sbate, >and shall Tie -modeled, if practiocvble, upon tlie present code of A.la-bc&mO'."
T^he italics in -tfhie .a/bove qu0*aitiioai from, .the law are my own, for tih-e purpose of -sailing atttexrtion tflataJt itihe law pro vided in expipess tesrms for the codification of the eoaiimoai laW th1 diecisions of our supreme court, and io be upon tiite plan of the Alaibaim-a code. All !tih.e pr!oTvisions of the law were, in itilie origimal billf introdTieed by JMr. Grordon, except the ja^ovision "for including "tli;e statutes of England of force in this State," "which was addeld by amendment in the siemate, an^d offered by John A. Tucker of Stewfart county.
The journals .and itbe la,w thus firmly esltalblished the claim, of the lorigin, plan, land scope of the present oo<ie to Oolonol Gordon. He -Was -tfee son of "W. W. Goa-kioin, the first president of the Central Railroad Company, and the brotfcea: of t(he presetnit nuemiber of itihe (house from OhatJhain of tihat n^ame. About twelve years iag?o lie depacrtied this life at Huritsville, Ala., fto which place he moved soooa after iirt3ie war betrw;een .tlhe States." He inherited the first-rate
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practical ability possessed ;by nis father, land -was one of the rising lawyers and polifcieianis of tlie State at the time of Ma removal.
The law provided for tibiae commissioners of codification, to -be elected by the legislative. Ivengon L. Harris, Darvid Irwin, and Herscihel V. Johnson were eledte-d. Jndge Harris and Gtovernor Joihnson declined bo serve, on the grounid tibat it T-vaB impo^aotiQable to c-odify flne common, law and ijh'O' decisliofns of tibe supreme ooTir^t. In the recess of" the legislature! Governor Brown appoinlted in their stead Thfomias R. E. Oobb an;d myself, who "were elected ait "thesUCC-eeding session >of the legislature.
The1 reason given fey Messjrs. Harris iand Johnson fofrdedining w^as a grave one^ rand very generallv sustaimed by the profession in 4Jhe State.
It tfhen be^oame difficult to find >a la^vyer -who (h>ad -the neoessary quallincationis and ;h:ad confidence in Ihis ability to codify tlhe oom:mon law and the decisions of lihe supi"emeconrt. !From "a survey of the field/ Governor Brown thOugOat Tom Ciofcb !tihie only m-an in the State who pos sessed these requisites. He was among .tihe first of eoholiars, !he w*as tih-orougthly read as n lawyer, and had been iand tiberi \vas a profestsor in tfbe l!aw scihool of ;#he State TTniversity. He "was freenly familiar witli fehe elementtary principles of law iaiid equity to be fomnd in the texrt-books, and had per haps leotured. to thte das&es \i.p!on -every feiandh of -tihe law.. Thus he was, by reiason of these advantages, the .only law yer in Hhie State already prepared and equipped for the work. This being the Case, he fwas fa.9sigfned the second" part, called the "civil code," and lthe fonrtlx partt of the pemal l!a)ws. The pemal la^ws had been codified since the year 1833, ,and needed only slight skill and labor thereon. I "foelieve it is niow gene-rally admitted by the profession,.
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after the work of Mr. Cobb and an experience under it of more than twenity years, that his Godifioation -of lihe com mon law, and the gen<e<ral principles of law prevailing in tiiia State, as :a success. A few -of <t3ie ablest of th-e profes sion yet doubt tike wisdom of iihe undertaking.
Bu/t whale General CWbb executed *he most difficult part of (file code, and tfhat requiring tihe most leairning, ye-t, aa a -work, it is not "mainly" -his. TQie other commissioners ^performed tfhe work assigned to them ito 1Jhe satisfaction of General Oofob and tike committee of tfbe legislature, the latter going through the oodie section by election.
It must mot foe presumed from the above form >of stat&ment thaJt eacfh cddifier confined Ihamiseilf to -iflie part aesignied Qriicm., for eadh part passed under itihe review of all, and "was C/hlamged or amaended as lagireted upon. As to1 tihe mere matter of labor, there was more work done -on iihe first than on any other parfc, as will be apparent from the number of its sections, and many of the ec^tioxis firsit pre pared for it were tramsfered to tftie other parts. The firet part, preparekl by tihte "writer, is tttie "Politioal amd Public Organization -of itflie tiaite," and much, that is there even whole chapters or larticle twas m^de without any or very little legislation ras -a basis. Tnese were necessary to give a (better sysifcem of laws, and to narononize with existinglaws. S-ueih, diave very generally sH)Ood the test of time and "practice. It is not nteeessairy to >th& reputation of Oeneral Oobb *to give Uiim the entire cr(edit of tihe code, and it is an injustiOe to his .eolalborers. I am sure, if he were living, he would b!e prompt to dieclaim it. It is Oonoeded by ^e commissioners andby all infonned nipoii the sufojedt lihait Ma task required more learning than that of any other; that he isiiceeeded in it when other learned men tihtought it impossi ble; tihat for this late is entitled to th-e first place among tihe
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co m Tnissioners and the fame which "belongs to it, but not so that that firstt place shall entirely ignore thte oitiherB.
"Wftren the law was passed for itfbe preparation of the Georgia code, there were, as I recollect, some five or six codes in Operation in otflier States, and for several yeiars I can recall the codes of Virginia, Alabama, and Tennessee. I think California also hias a code. These "were not "codes of procedure," but the whole body of the statute law of the respective States. Virginia tnen had the second edition of her code. In adopting tihe first edition, the legislature sat for six months, exclusively for that purpose, and went through the code, (adopting it a section at a time. The code of Georgia was the first to put g-enteral principles of law and equity, in the shape of statutory enactments, in the embod iment of the laws, arid so far as tJhaft goes it is, I believe, the first yet, but it is nevertheless only a code of laws, and therefore not tihe first code of :tlhe United States ;tih!at wias not a "code of procedure only."
The purpose with wttiildh rtftie foregoing is written is, in. the first place, Lan .attempt to promulgate the facts connected with tihe origin iand progress of the Georgia code; and, in the Second place, but on the same line of trutlh, to maintain that David Irwin and myself were trwo out of Hhe tihree commissioners, and that we did our duty faithfully and cred itably. This society world -we all have to live in is a strangeone. One lof ;iflie- mamy strangle Ways it has is to award tosome men credit for evetrytihing tlhey do, and to others credit for notlhing they do. It is my misfortune to fall in tEbe,. latter Oategiory. I will "bear it (as -dheerfully as I can, and will only openly protest, that error may not prevail. There is an old maxim of "Friends de^ar, but truth detarer." It is
in this spirit tihis communication is made, and not to com plain of or to rai^e issues witih any one wlio may have sim ply adopted sonie popular emor without koiOwing it.
tribute of Hove.
The sense of grief which I feel in tOie deatih of Judge TRicQmrd H. Clark partakes too much of the -nature off a per sonal bereavement to lend itself treiadily to> words, !Nevertheless, I gratefully appreciate this opportunity of laying my simple tribute upon his grave.
To say (tihiat I eoiterteiiied for Judge dark deeper and stronger feelings of attachment than are commonly implied in the meaning of the word friendship is to speak the truth without ex/tr-avag&.nce ior iaffeetation. To m!& lie -Was one of the niablest and tmiost geoiieroTis ot friends; and nauoh of "th^e inspinatdon "wihidh Ihlas <?omo into any lifes wotrk I owe to the advice land sympathy wihich he ib-eatowed upon, me freely at all times. What measure of loss I feel, therefore, in the death, of such, a friend my he^ar-t alone can aippreojate.
Aiside froin possessing in a mairfeed degree thoee sturdy traits of character ^vhich render life heroic, Judge Clark also possessed in rare measure those softer qualities "which xender it atftracitfLvei. In many respects Hie Tvas my id-eal cav alier. Old ;age never impaired his allegiance (to> tih-e fair sex, nor restrained him in the least from, paying to woman that measure of deference -Vhieh. Tie felt tio be (her due. With ihim coucrtesy ^wias noit ia borrow^ed gni&e, but a fcnigirtly Tadiartion fi*om tn>e mian ^himself. In refiiecting upon the mingled q-raalities -Which, dmpaaited such a ohiarm to the chara<^tjeir of Judge Clark, it seems to me th&t, more thkn any diiher nian I ever knew, lie efmbodied the graces of the old school of Southern manners, and illustrafjed the conception
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which the poet must have had in mlind when he "wrote of one who
" bore without abuse The grand old name of gentleman."
In one of his quaint esays, Emerson, -wisely observes tihat the surest -way to make friends is (to be one. This bit of philosophy is strikingly exemplified in the life of Judge Clark; for if -any man ever possessed a warm, generous heart, overflowing wMi love and sympathy for -his fellow men, surely that man -was he. Though rigorous upon, the bench, and ofttimes harsh in rebuking evil-doers for the -wrongs wthich brougiht them too tfhe bar of justice, this sever ity was not congenial to one of his forgiving nature, and sprang only from the stern compulsion of a Romans sense of duty. TJinh/appily, it was not niy privilege to know Judge Clark in What may be called the judicial phase of his charac ter; but in knowing him as he appeared to those who came "within tihe melloW influence of his sio-cial dharms, I feel tfhat I knew him at his beet. M<any indeed were the hours which kindly fortune permitted m(e to spend in oonveiisataon with this best of all talkers for who ever possessed such a rare fund of information 0ori!cernifng men and measutrefe as Judge Hichard H. Clark, and who could dwell more charmingly upon the past? As to his knowledge of genealogy, it "was something marveiLous. Indeed, witfhout the least exaggeratdon, it may be said that he had at [his tongues end tfhe combined records of most of rfche fairaily Bibles in1 Georgia, f remember saying to him on one occasion, "Judge, why dont you embody your reeoO.lectioms in book form ? ""Ah!" said he, with a -touch, of eiajdmeas, "Im kept too busy in tihe court-room. If I could afford to retire from the bench, I would spend tihe remainder of my life in literary work, for nothing suits me better than to write; but I
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must give up such a tihoiught for the present." Alas! there is n!o tolling what G-eorgia has lost through the inability of Judge dark to devote ttihe quiet eventide of his life to more congenial labors tilian those, which fettered him with irk some "bonds to the dull, prosaic routine of tiie 1 bench.
While Judge Cliao-k possessed the happy faculty of en dearing himself fco almost every one witfh Whom he ctame in contact, there was sometihing in his genial nature which was especially attractive to yooing- men. He ooiild neTef do too mucjh for those Tv^ha were stairtin^ out in. life, and, mattirally? the interCSft "which he^ took in -their lambiticvus st gles secured for him ia warm place in. their affections.
Though inuoli of the element -of ga tineas mingled in Judge Olarks life, seildbm did it find its -way into his cronversattion, or darken, the play *of siinshine upon his featTiree. Even to the last he \vas rfclie same jovial and kindly-hu mored old geTitlemian. Only a sfoonfc tirne before fhis death I c-alled to gee him ait tlhe Maikhain Hoirse; and tihough I found him pale amd enTacialted, witih the light -of anlotheT woa*ld in. his eyes, there "vvfas, nevertHieOeSs., a merrv ring about his voice which see.nied to scorn the shadows whicli. were g-athering about his form. On this occasion, ho placed in my hands a little volume which I shall always treasure with sacred care1. "That is a copy of Wildes Summer Rose/ my favorite poem," said he, " and I w^ant you to keep it. In iaffcer yciaire it may remind you of your old friend, Judge Clark. On the fly-leaf you will find that I liavte inscribed it to you witli my own hands." Sueh is a fragment of the last inltieTview "wliieli I ever had ~witih him. Words fail me to dwell upon it further. "When I saw him again, tilie face which had looked so kindly upon me only a short time before w^as cold in deafli, -and tihe heart which had throbbed in such tender sympathy with mine was
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dumb forever. Would that I could frame some fitting
tribute to the memory of my noble friend; but, alas, I
cannot. In the bitterness of my grief for one whose friend
ship in life "was so precious and inspiring, T realize the
utter vanity of human speech. Pare thee well, thou
golden-hearted gentleman! J>id I not feel that in some
higher sphere thine eyes had opened to the light again, I
might sootihe my -aeliing heart "with, tins persuasion: iShiat
sweefcj indeed, would be thy rest in dear old Georgias lap
if the love which thou hiaeft kindled m the hieafts of others
could return to lig-ht thy dreams, and that fairer tfluan. any
wreath of spring would be the turf above thee if the virtues
Which adom.0d thy life could blossom inibo flowers upon thy
breast!
L. !_/. KNIGHT.
Interesting %etter.
NEW OULEANS, LA., 22d September, 1897. My De'ar MTS. Wylie: It gives me pleasure to learn that a volume of the writings of the late Judge TticTrard H, Clark, edited by yourself, is soon to be published. I had been liappy if curcumStanccs had. permitted me to share with you the labor io love in which you have been, engaged in the preparation of this volume, not that any interest or value could (have been imparted to -it thereby, but that I might in that way have testified my affectionato remem brance of him whose name its pages will commemorate.. Absence from Georgia liaving put it out of my power to enjoy that privilege, I gratefully avail myself of the op portunity afforded by your kirnd >aii(d highly appreciated re quest, though conscious that I >oan say nothing of the distiiiguished and lamented subject of your memoir tkaft Iras not already beeai better said by yourself and by others w"lio Uave doubtless cojLtnibuted to the pages of the forthcom ing volume. In .thinking of Judge Clark memory goes back; -to the time when I first sa.w him when. I was quite a little school boy, in the town of Morgan, Oalhoun county, Georgia. He Was then. a. practicing lawyer and <a resident of Albany, in. the adjoiaiing county of Dougherty, and "was attending a session of the superior court in Morgan, "where he was a guest at my fathers house. He "was then called "Colonel" Clark, in accordance with a very ridiculous custom of con ferring1 that military title on lawyers in Georgia and Otiher sections of the South. His talent and learning had made
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him. a leader at what was at that time one of the ablest bars in the State; and. his spirit -of Comradeship, bis generous and amiable disposition., his wit and humor, -and a rare gift of story-telling made him a favorite with all classes, and the especial life of the company of lawyers tlvat used to gather at my fathers during court-week in the little coun try town; an occasion that "was anticipated by me with all tho more pleasure because of the opportunity I expected it would give Tne to hoar "Colonel Dick darks" stories. Howfar off it all seems in the retrospect, and how saddening to think of the many cliairges in the dear old State since then, and to know that of all that company of choice spirits not one is left to remind us of the others. They have all passed the dread bound across whieh the.Te are no returning footsteps, and the gates aire shut l>ehind them forever. "Where are they now1 "where bo their flashes of nierrimeTit that -were woriut to set the table on a roar?" F-roiii some higher and sereiier sphere, with wider knowledge and mwe abounding wisdom, do> they vic^v the fret and fury of this, lifes fitful fever in. the world they left a world whose paltry prizes, when -all is won that all desire to win, are hardly worth the cost, land where right and wrong are accidents ? Par beyond -and above its vanities and liolloW mockories, its unsubstantial pageants, its wretched inter change of wrong- for wrong, its fleeting- and uneCirtiain pleas ures. its sure atnd lasting sOrrow*s, do tliey smile or do tihey weep at the fantastic tricks of those wh(o still stiiit and fret their hour upon its stage?
j\_ftcr those days in ilorgan I did not again see Judge dark till I nie-t him in. Atlanta -after T was grown, and after he had been on the bench of the Southwestern circuit, and had therefore ceased to be "Colonel" Clark. I supposed that lie had either forgotten me altogether, or that be would
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not recognize me after the lapse of so many years, with their attendant changes, but I was not aware then of that wonderful memory of his. To my surprise, lie approached ine, calling me by name, and referring to that schoolboy ti.me in the little Southwest Georgia town; the time when, to use his own expression, I was "a russet-headed lad." The years Irad already lain their whitening touch on his h&ad, and they have since been h Jsily leaving their impress on my own stealing ruthlessly from it as woll !as fast chang ing the hue that called forth the judges descriptive appella tion. JTow swiftly they pass! .Plow everv letter we trace tell*-- us with, what rapidity life follows the pen ! The days and hours of it are frying over our beads like light clouds of a windy day? !aud golden and raven locks grow gray even while the jeweled fingers twist thorn.
J3ut the years that changed Judge darks hair from jet to silver wrought no change in his heart. That was golden ever, aoid when its pulses ceased and the spirit of life departed from it, I folfc that a part of the light of my own life had gone out too, because for many years the relations between ITS had been like unto those between father and yon, and it saddened me inexpressibly to know that tliat warm heart, with all its generous emotions, was now com passed in a clod of the valley, and that I should not again see the good gray head and gentle presence I Ivad known arid loved so long. The news of his death came to me here "when the revelries of the -carnival season in this pageantloving (but, alas! now stride on) city were at their height, but I could take 11-0 part nor pleasure in tliem, for my thoughts were all of him "whose lifeless clay then lay in Georgias (list-ant capital, awaiting the last sad rites that the living can pay to the honored dead. It had been but a little while since, in the very room where death had be-en
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beleaguering Mm for weeks, and where at. last he yielded to it, I bad bidden him adieu, -with little thought that our parting1 vheii was the final prelude to the eternal separation tliat was so shortly to come, -and when I realized that it was so T. conrprehended the full significance of his words when lie wrote that to him the saddest word in the world was "Iarewell to the dying and to one we love, whom we never expect to see again, in this life."
What I am writing is but an endeavor far, far short of its object to express my love for one whom I can never see again in tihis life; the friend "of soul sincere, in action faithful and in honor clear," to whom I was bound by ties so strong that the recollecticm, of them (h.as liot been de stroyed nor dimmed by time and death. There is n;o occa sion for me to dwell here in eulogy on bis virtues or merits. His services to the State are hnperisbably recorded in its annals; and in the volume which you have lovingly prepared, besides what your own appreciative and graceful pen has written, thcre will be, I doubt riot, a becoming tribute from tflie members of the bar of Atlanta to the distinguished and venerable jurist who presided so long in the tribunals of justice there and elsewhere in Greorgia. I have not seen a report of their proceedings in honor of his memory, but they knew him as lawyer, <as judge, -and as man, and I doubt not tihjat they have fittingly told how well, how up rightly, how purely he bore himself in all those relations how, through ia loing and chequered life, he bore, from first to last, "(the grand old iiarne of gentleman." They know, too, as do you, how pitilessly, in his age, he was pelted and pierced by "the slings -and arrows of outrageous fortune" how "grief -with grief continued still to blend," till little joy did life have left to Loud; and they and yo-u have doubt less borne testimonv to the fortitude with which he en-
406
MEMORIAL.
dured it all, presenting fclie sublime and pathetic spectacle of "a "bravo man 'Struggling in the sto<rms of fate," down to the hour when death brought surcease of lifes long sorrow and stilled forever the heart that had so much of the milk of human nature and so little of its asperities.
Fate was kind at last in not permitting him to lag super fluous on the stage. lie fell in harness, disdlrarginrg -the (infries of his high office almost in the hour and article of death; and how meet it was that, though, none of kindred blood was near in that last honr, womans gentle Ivarid was there to smooth the dying pillow for him who liad so Tnudh of womans tenderneSS and purity.
-Judge Clark was a man of strong convictions and great decision of character., arid a native modesty, withal, that made him perfectly free of professional and personal vanity. There was in him. a rare and striking blending of firmness and gentleness, but it may be said of liim, as ho himself once .said of another eminent Georgian,"x" that love was tlie law of his nature not occasional or fitful, but. constant and uni form; such as Timrod, the IBivrns of the South, has depicted iu the following lines:
Most men know love but as a part of life ; They hide it in some corner of the breast, Even from themselves ; and only when they rest
in the brief pauses of that daily strife Wherewith the world might else be not so rife, They draw it forth (as one draws forth a toy To soot-he some ardent kiss-exacting boy), And hold it up to sister, child, or wife.
Ah ine ! why may not love and life be one ? Why walk we thus alone, when by our side
i dungeon floor by weary feet, a a golden court-way of the sun
* The late Judge E. J, Harden.
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407
Fortunate is bo whose finished and open book of life -will reveal .a record as stainless as was that of Richard H. Clark, and fortunate the commonwealth on whose brow rests a diadem, enriched with names like his, for they are the brightest jewels th<at can glitter -there, anld his native State will be indebted to you for the book that will be at once an appropriate and enduring memorial of one of her noblest sons., and a valuable contribution to her history -and litera ture- It -will be interestJTig to the public generally, be cause it will, contain the charmingly told reminiscences of an intellectual and cultured gentleman, whose mind was stored with higtoHcal and biographical lore; -a Georg-ian who bore a pTOimncnt part in the affairs of a great State, whose life extended -over a period of more th.au three score years and ten, and whose memory retained with astonish ing fullness and aeonracy the incidents of more than sixty years of Chat period; while by me it will be especially prized as a beautiful reminder of one whose memory I shall always fondly cherish and whose friendship was one of the most valued possessions of my life.
For l)^m the long days task is done, the weariness orf life is ended. !N"o longer stretched upon the rack of this tough world, for him is solved the great mystery that enshrouds us all, poor children that we are of doubt and death, nor below
"Can love or sorrow, fame, ambition, strife, Cut to his heart again \vith the keen knife Of silent, sharp endurance."
In the eternal splendor of a brighter day, with no shadow of earths grief resting on it, may hie gentle spirit live forevermore.
With high, regard, I am, dear madam, Yours very sincerely, T. K. OGLESBY.