USA > Alabama > Reminiscences of public men in Alabama : for thirty years, with an appendix > Part 26
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87
261
Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.
CHAPTER XVI.
Judicial Elections, 1842-Character of the Judges.
Among the duties devolving upon the General Assembly at its long and laborious session of 1842-'3, was the election of all the Judges of the Supreme Court, for a new term, and several Judges of the Circuit Court. Chief Justice Collier, and Associate Jus- tices Goldthwaite and Ormond were reelected without opposition, for the first tribunal. For four of the Circuits there was, like- wise, no competition, and the incumbents were reelected, to-wit:
For Second Judicial Circuit, Hon. Ezekiel Pickens; For Third Judicial Circuit, Hon. Peter Martin ; For Fourth Judicial Circuit, Hon. Daniel Coleman;
For Seventh Judicial Circuit, Hon. Samuel Chapman.
There was a contest in relation to the Sixth Circuit, as shown by the ballotings here given :
1st Ballot. 2d Ballot. 3d Ballot. 4th Ballot. 5th Ballot.
George W. Crabb 40
45
46
50
51
John Bragg .. 52
54
54
53
62
Robert McAlpin 12
8
8
8
0
Joseph Seawell 12
8
6
5
0
Judge Bragg having received a majority of the whole number of votes cast was declared duly elected.
For the Ninth Circuit, Hon. Eli Shortridge received 82 votes, and George W. Stone 27. Thus ended the contest for Judicial offices on that occasion.
As it is intended to furnish in this work, more or less complete, a series of sketches, to include, not only Governors, Senators and Representatives in Congress, and members of the Legislature, but also a personal sketch of some of the Judges, it is believed that the present is a suitable occasion to begin the task. Nothing like biography will be attempted, but a mere outline of character, with such materials, or such facts as may be at command to give it form.
HON. EZEKIEL PICKENS, of Dallas, served in the Senate in 1828, but was on the Bench of the Circuit Court in 1837, when I became connected with the State Government, and continued in
1.
262
Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.
office until 1847, when he was defeated for reelection. In 1850, when the election of Judges was given to the people, he was tri- umphantly restored to his old dignity, and remained upon the bench several years, when he resigned and removed to Mississippi. He died, a few years thereafter, at his new home.
Besides being a lawyer, Judge Pickens was also a planter and a bachelor. His legal talents and acquirements were respectable, without being profound. He had many eccentricities and odd sayings, and an odd way of saying things, that detracted a good deal from the dignity that would otherwise have attached to his character, and his long connection with the bench. His charges to the jury were sometimes intermixed with his oddities, and fre- quently, in court, his irony burnt like caustic. It is related that a man was tried before him for cutting another to pieces with a bowie- knife, when that fearful weapon was frequently in use. Much to the surprise of everybody the jury brought in a verdict of not guilty, at which the Judge exclaimed, "My God!" a common ex- pression with him. The next case was that of another man who was indicted for larceny, in having stolen a hat, and jury No. 2 re- turned him guilty, without hesitation. The Judge called him'up to receive the sentence of the Court, before pronouncing which, he said, in a soft, sympathetic, low tone, "My friend, I reckon you have not lived long in this part of the country, and don't know the way crime is estimated here. Now, you have made a mistake. If you had cut a man all to pieces with a bowie-knife, that is no crime here; but if you steal anything, they will get you sure." This was no doubt intended as a castigation to jury No. 1, who were seated in the box, listening to the judge.
Another instance is related, where a young man of respectable parentage was accused of an offense of which he was found guilty, and the punishment was confinement in the Penitentiary from one or two to four years, in the discretion of the Court. Sentence was deferred until the next morning. In the meantime, the father of the youth, a respectable old gentleman, naturally feeling much for his son, ventured to approach the Judge, backed by the indorse- ment of friends, asking that the Judge, in consideration of the tender age of the prisoner, and his previous good character, would sentence him for the shortest period. The Judge took the night to reflect on the appeal to his leniency, and next morning, after the Court opened, he directed the Sheriff to bring in the prisoner. His father being present, Judge Pickens asked him to come up and take a seat by him. In the interval, while the Sheriff was ยท bringing in the prisoner, and while the father promptly complied with the invitation of the Judge, persuading himself that it was a favorable sign, Judge Pickens told him that he had been thinking over the case of his son, and concluded it would be better for him to
263
Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.
learn a trade in the Penitentiary, so that, when his term would ex- pire, he would be ready to start in the world; and now, my friend, said he, four years is the shortest term in which he can do this- yes, four years is the right time; so, you see, my friend, I will send him for four years.
When at Tuskaloosa, many years ago, Mesmerism and Phrenol- ogy were having a run, and the Judge was fully in the excite- ment, and carried away with astonishment at the wonderful exhi- bitions he witnessed. He was said also to be a strong believer in Physiognomy; but Phrenology was his divinity. When the Mor- gan Masonic excitement occurred in 1830-31, Judge Pickens took decided ground in favor of the anti-Masonic party, and, if I mis- take not, was President of a Convention held in those days, at Selma, to organize an anti-Masonic party.
It is said that in his earlier days, while at the bar, he exhibited ability as a public speaker. He was a Democrat from principle, and enjoyed the confidence of the party. In person, he was of small stature, much below the ordinary size. This, together with his peculiarities, made him a queer looking man. He possessed great integrity of character, and was useful in his sphere, with com- mendable public spirit.
Hon. PETER MARTIN was born and educated in North Car- olina, but came to Alabama when a young man, about the time the State was admitted into the Union. He soon took a decided position at the bar and in politics, and served a number of ses- sions in the Legislature. He was then elected Solicitor, and after- ward Attorney-General of the State, in which capacity the writer first knew him for the prosecution against a wealthy, overbearing man, who had collected a crowd of fellows of the baser sort, and visited in an unlawful manner the house of a poor man who had offended him, inflicting severe chastisement. It was an aggra- vated battery, and it was pressed with great zeal and ability by the Attorney-General, who succeeded in having condign punish- ment administered.
On the promotion of Judge Collier to the Bench of the Su- preme Court in 1836, Judge Martin was elected to preside over the 3d Circuit, a position he continued to fill until 1843, when he resigned, probably because he was not appointed Judge of the Supreme Court to fill a vacancy.
In 1844, he was brought forward on the Democratic ticket to represent Tuskaloosa county in the Legislature, and entered the canvass with his accustomed zeal and energy. It was the year of the Presidential election, and all other contests were but subsid- iary. Judge Martin was elected on a divided ticket. Upon the organization of the House, he was appointed Chairman of the
264
Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.
Committee on the State Bank and Branches, justly considered in those days laborious and responsible. He was an active member, frequently engaging in the debates, for which he was always ready. In shaping many useful measures of legislation, he ren- dered valuable aid. His service in the House, in 1844, was the last public position he held. He resumed the practice of the law, in which he continued, and died at Tuskaloosa, where he had lived many years.
On the Bench, Judge Martin gave general satisfaction, by the impartiality with which he presided. His face had by no means a prepossessing expression. It conveyed the idea of irregularity in other days, and was very deficient in those graces of the soul, of which the countenance is said to be the representative when they really exist in character. Besides a general insipidity of feature, and rather a forbidding scowl of the brows, his enun- ciation, or the quality of his voice, with a sort of mincing his sen- tences, made him a somewhat disagreeable speaker. Yet, in spite of all these defects, there was so much good sense, and, as a Judge, such evident honesty of purpose, in him, as to smooth over the deformities of his face, and to create an interest in the subject-matter upon which he was descanting. On first view, a stranger would decide that Judge Martin was a very coarse, not to say stupid, man. Nature had not dealt bountifully with his exterior, but his mind was a gem which, rubbed a little by oppo- sition, gave a pure light-the light of intellect and knowledge, which always commanded respect in whatever public situation he was placed. As Attorney-General, as a Judge, and as a legisla- tor, he has left behind him, in the memory of those who knew him in those several capacities, an impression favorable to his character.
Hon. DANIEL COLEMAN, of Limestone county, was on the Bench in North-Alabama, and was but little known personally south of the mountain. He was for many years Judge of the Circuit Court, and could have secured higher judicial promotion if he would have accepted it. He resigned his commission as Circuit Judge in 1847, for the purpose of engaging in the mer- cantile business, for which he had a strong inclination. In 1848, he was placed on the Electoral Ticket for the State at large, but, having no taste for politics, he declined the honor. In June, 1851, upon the resignation of Mr. Justice Parsons, he was pre- vailed upon to accept the appointment, tendered by Gov. Col- lier, to fill the vacancy in the Supreme Court; but he declined an election by the Legislature. This ended his public connection with the State-a connection that had been maintained on his part, for many years, with great probity of character, and an
265
Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.
upright administration of the laws, which won for him the mer- ited title of the "Good Judge." He died many years ago.
Judge Coleman was a plain, quiet, unassuming Christian gen- tleman, who exerted in his intercourse with society a most salu- tary influence. Had he indulged more ambition, with his solid attainments as a jurist, and as a general reader, with the strong hold he had upon the public confidence and respect, his public career might have been more varied than it was. He was a worthy member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South.
Hon. SAMUEL CHAPMAN came from Alabama to Virginia at an early period of the State's history, and settled first in North- Alabama, to pursue the practice of the law. He was on the Cir- cuit Bench in 1837, when I first knew him, and he continued in the office a number of years. In 1842, he was reelected by the Legislature without opposition, and reelected again in 1847, over his competitors, James D. Webb and Gideon B. Frierson, Esqs. But in 1850, when the election of Judges was given to the people, he was beaten. This ended his connection with public life, and in a few years thereafter he died at Livingston, where he had resided since the prime of his days, and where he lost his wife in 1836.
In regard to his defeat before the people, for a high judicial station, the fact should be kept in mind that he was a gentleman of the olden school, high-minded, sensitive, and wholly unpre- pared by habits and education to cater to the popular sentiment. Before the Legislature, his opportunity was very different. There, his personal dignity was no barrier to success, and the decorum of his manners was understood and appreciated as something quite unlike haughtiness, which the people were apt to ascribe to a candidate who would not render himself familiar on their own terms. Judge Chapman had been in a station many years which necessarily precluded these interchanges of good-will and clever- ness with the people as a mass. His personal associations and tastes were of another kind; and he was not solitary in the expe- rience, that a modest, high-toned gentleman is often distanced at the polls, by a man whose chief merit, perhaps, is to gain public favor by arts and appliances from which a lofty nature would shrink in disgust.
The high character of Judge Chapman, socially and officially, calls for the warmest eulogy. He had fine stores of anecdote, and much humor to embellish their relation, when he had around hin congenial minds, those who could value and enjoy his rich offer- ings. When thus favorably situated, he seldom failed to con- tribute to the entertainment of his friends and his select audience in his own way, reminding the looker-on of what he may imagine
266
Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.
to be the relaxation of an English Peer or Lord Chancellor, after the severe labors of the House or the Wool-sack. In physique, in the breadth and symmetry of his person, the round, intellectual forehead and manly features, all expressive of a great soul, Judge Chapman possessed rare advantages. His person on the Bench was a power of itself. He not only acted as a wise and upright Judge, but he looked the character. His brother, Gov. Chapman, by his long service in Congress, and by his term in the Executive, seems to have crowned the family name, in Ala- bama, in popular estimation. Much as I respect the latter gen- tleman, and willing as I am to render him full justice, I believe I do not claim wrongfully, when I bring forward his judicial brother as best entitled to that distinction. Merit of a high grade may exist in both, without detracting from either.
One of the daughters of Judge Chapman married the Hon. E. W. Pettus, late a Judge of the Circuit Court in Alabama, and another married George B. Saunders, Esq., the present Judge of the Probate Court of Sumter county.
HON. ELI SHORTRIDGE was a native of Kentucky, where he commenced the practice of the law. His liberal education, fine lit- erary acquirements, and a sweet, persuasive elocution, soon opened the way to success. About the year 1826 the people of Kentucky became divided into two great parties in relation to the old and the new court system, a history of which will not be attempted here. Mr. Shortridge allied himself with the latter and was elected a Judge under the new organization. It was overthrown in the contest of 1828, which resulted in the election of Gov. Metcalf, over William T. Barry, who was the next year appointed Postmaster-General, by President Jackson, and afterward Min- ister to Spain, in which character he died abroad.
About the year 1830, Judge Shortridge removed to Alabama, and settled in Tuskaloosa, where he at once took a high position at the bar and in politics. He was a Democrat, and it was not long after he became eligible, from citizenship, before he was elected a Representative in the Legislature, where his influence and ability were soon felt and acknowledged. In 1835, he was elected Judge of the Ninth Judicial Circuit, then just formed, the duties of which office he discharged with firmness, patience, and integrity. He was the father of the late Hon. George D. Shortridge, who also became a Judge of the Circuit Court, and, in 1855, was a candi- date for Governor; and, also, the grand-father of Burwell Boykin Lewis, Esq., of Shelby county, a lawyer, and justly regarded as one of the rising young men of the day.
It is due to the memory of Judge Shortridge, who has been dead many years, to say that his addresses to the jury, while at
267
Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.
the bar as an advocate, were models of beauty and eloquence, so pronounced by competent men who have heard him. He had a peculiar softness and euphony in his voice which exerted a charm on the listeners. Nothing could be more captivating. It was like the tones of a parlor organ, rich in melody, and gushing out in a perpetual concord of sweet sounds. If Cicero, himself, had been present, he must have been satisfied that the Kentucky and Ala- bama orator had reached as near perfection in this respect, as it was permitted any man to attain. I speak of the art or gift of de- livery alone. His style, however, was not less beautiful in the purity of diction; and it seemed as if he always held a check on himself, as if to curb a vivid imagination. There were occasions, however, when he soared beyond this restraint, though never to the height of his capacity. In his youth, he had drank from the purest fountains of eloquence, with such models as Clay, Critten- den, and Barry, all of the first order, to influence his taste.
After this flattering picture, it may possibly be demanded why, with such gifts, Judge Shortridge did not figure to more advantage in the public arena? The reply is brief, and made with regret. He was truly social, and the most entertaining of company. Con- viviality ripened into habit, and the strong man-the prince of orators-the best of Judges-gradually languished, and then his light perished in the ruin. Strength and weakness, how mysteri- ously combined !
HON. JOHN J. ORMOND was upon the Bench of the Supreme Court when I first knew him, in 1837. He had previously been a member of the Legislature from Lawrence county, and from the solid order of his talents, and his capacity for legislation, he be- came very prominent and influential in that sphere. He was a Whig in politics, and it is a proof that his merits and character were commanding, when he received promotion at the hands of the Democratic majority. In fact, such was the general confidence in his integrity as a man, and the great respect entertained for his liberality as a politician, that a mere party name did not seem to work him the least prejudice. He aimed at uprightness in all his conduct, judicial and otherwise, and it was a severe trial to his sensibilities, when, in 1841, Mr. John M. Bates, a citizen of. Greene county, and formerly a member of the Legislature, published a pamphlet of about seventy pages, stating facts, and reviewing the opinions of Chief Justice Collier and Associate Justice Ormond, in the case decided at June Term, 1841, of the Supreme Court, wherein the Bank of the State of Alabama was plaintiff, and John M. Bates and others were defendants in the Court below, which they brought up by writ of error. As considerable litigation grew out of the advances made by the Bank, in 1838 and 1839, on the
268
Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.
pledge of cotton, and on contracts for the delivery of cotton, to enable the Bank to obtain specie funds, it is deemed proper to no- tice the case as made out by the appeal of Mr. Bates to the public, to impair the influence of the majority of the Supreme Court. Judge Goldthwaite, having delivered a dissenting opinion, was not included in the harsh criticism indulged by the reviewer.
On the 29th August, 1838, the Directors of the Bank adopted a series of rules and regulations, of which the following is a copy :
The Board of Directors, being desirous of placing the Bank in a situation to resume specie payments as early as possible, and to maintain the character and value of its paper, and in order to accomplish these two important and desirable objects, she must be provided with a suitable proportion of specie and exchange funds, will make advances on cotton under the following rules and regulations :
1. The receipt of the warehouse keeper, or the agent of the Bank at Mobile, or other satisfactory voucher, shall be submitted to the committee hereafter ap- pointed under the provisions of the 8th section.
2. The cotton shall only be shipped to the agents for the Bank at Liverpool, New York, New Orleans, or Mobile.
3. All cotton advanced on will be shipped by the Bank, for account and risk of the party to whom the advance is made; and the Bank will in no case be account- able for losses, etc., except arising from neglect or mismanagement of its own agents.
4. All expenses of freights, commissions, insurance, etc., shall be paid by the party for whose account and risk the cotton is shipped. The shipper may fix the price and the time at which he desires the cotton to be sold, but that limit, as to price and time, must terminate at the expiration of four months from the time of its arrival in a foreign port, at which time the sales must be closed.
5. From the time the proceeds of any cotton coming into the hands of the agents of the Bank, or is deposited to its credit in any corresponding bank, the amount of net proceeds, with interest at the rate of six per cent. per annum, shall be allowed to the credit of the note or bill which may have been given for the amount of said advance.
6. Any person obtaining an advance on cotton as above, shall give his bill, payable at not exceeding nine months, for the amount advanced, secured by two good and sufficient indorsers.
7. In the event the net proceeds of the cotton be more than the amount advanced, the bank shall refund; if less, the party so indebted to the Bank may settle the deficiency by a good bill, not having longer to run than the 15th of Feb- ruary thereafter, provided the same be offered twenty days before the maturity of the bill first given for the amount advanced, and no advance shall exceed twenty- five per cent. above the actual value of the cotton at the time it is received by the Bank.
8. A committee of five (the President or Cashier being one) shall be appointed, which committee shall have power to pass on any paper offered under this ar- rangement. [Messrs. John Marrast, Joel White, Robert Jemison, Jr., and James Hogan, were appointed the committee.]
9. The Bank shall, for the mutual safety of itself and the party for whose account and risk it ships, have the right of insuring all cotton it may ship, and in the event of loss, the insurance money, when received, shall be placed to the credit of the bill given for the advance on any cotton thus lost.
10. All the exchange existing at the time the cotton is sold, between the United States and Liverpool, for cotton sold there, if any, shall enure to the account of the shipper, the Bank retaining one and a half per cent. only for the transaction.
11. The Bank will appoint an agent here for the purpose of receiving, sam- pling, marking and shipping cotton to the agent at Mobile, and that he be allowed twelve and a half cents per bale for such service.
269
Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.
12. The adoption of the above regulations will not be so construed as to forbid advances being made before the delivery of the cotton, but in cases where the cit- izen is in danger of having his property sacrificed, on his giving satisfactory paper and evidence of solvency, the Bank will, under the foregoing regulation, purchase bills of exchange on New York, having n'ot longer than the first day of February to run, provided the drawer will execute his written pledge to deliver a warehouse receipt, or the receipt of its agent in Mobile, by the 15th day of January next, a sufficient quantity of cotton to cover said bill, to be shipped to our agent in Liverpool, New York or New Orleans. The drawer of the bill shall have the privilege, after delivering the cotton to our agent, of taking up the bill payable in New York with one payable in Mobile, at nine months from that time, and in case the cotton is not delivered agreeable to contract, the bill shall be for- warded to New York and protested, and the parties immediately sued.
. 13. That Pitcher & Ball, Esqs., our agents in Mobile for receiving and ship- ping cotton, be furnished with a copy of the foregoing regulations, and that they be authorized (until otherwise instructed) to receive cotton on account of this Bank for shipment to Liverpool, and that they transmit to this Bank the number of bales, marks, weights, classification, and valuation of such lots or parcels of cotton, and on such report and receipt, the shipper will receive his advance here, according to the foregoing regulations.
14. That Messrs. Fontaine & Prince are appointed the agents of this Bank at Liverpool; Messrs. William & Robert Kelly, at New York; Messrs. Pitcher & Ball, at Mobile, and Messrs. Marr, Brown & Co., at New Orleans.
WHEREAS, Different opinions are entertained as to the intention of this Bank, in the 10th section of the Cotton Regulations, be it, therefore,
Resolved, That in all cases of shipment, whether to New York, New Orleans, or.' Liverpool, or elsewhere beyond the limits of the State, that the difference of exchange shall inure to the planter, except the per cent. retained by the Bank for the transaction, and that the same be reduced so as in no case to exceed one per cent.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.