USA > Alabama > Reminiscences of public men in Alabama : for thirty years, with an appendix > Part 30
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In his early public life, Col. Erwin belonged to the Whig party, but changed his political relations about the year 1840. In his
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latter days he received an accidental injury which affected his nervous system, and prevented him from mingling freely in public circles, or in discussion. He died suddenly during the war.
The personal qualities of Col. Erwin were remarkable. He had talents, besides, courage and vanity in a high degree-all essential, with certain modifications, to form a combative nature, so as to command success under the difficulties which he had to encounter in his early career. As an advocate, he was in the habit of commenting, with great severity, upon the character of parties and witnesses adverse to the interests of his client. On one occasion, when the Circuit Court was held at Erie, the first county-site of Greene, he indulged in this vice at the expense of Mr. Ross, a very respectable citizen, who happened to be a party of record. He felt himself unjustly treated, and in a moment of passion, he struck Mr. Erwin with a cane, as he stepped out of the Court-House; whereupon the latter gentleman stabbed him with his pen-knife, which produced immediate death. Mr. Erwin was subjected to the forms of a trial for the homicide, but the jury acquitted him on the ground that he acted in self-defense.
It is believed that this unfortunate occurrence tended to in- crease the natural austerity of Mr. Erwin's character. He be- came cold, haughty, and supremely selfish, throughout his future life, even though he pursued the forms of courtesy and high- breeding in his intercourse with his fellow-men. His person was of a mold to command attention, symmetrical, comely, and active, while his face beamed with intelligence, and his clear blue eyes expressed the depths and intensity of the soul within. His voice, in its undertones, was very rich; but when he reached the higher notes in his long speeches-frequently from four to six hours, in Court, and sometimes half a day on the stump, or in party Con- ventions, and in the Legislature-his voice was disagreeable, even discordant. Of this he appeared to be wholly unconscious, and he still persevered in the agony. On such occasions, his perform- ance was a mixture of lofty intellectual conceptions, of rambling facts, strong emphasis on half his words, respectable logic, offens- ive personalities, and a zeal bordering on rage, with tedious repe- titions. Such war Mr. Erwin as a declaimer. Crowds went to hear him on popular occasions, and crowds melted away between the meridian and the setting sun, if his time was not limited by circumstances, or by special agreement. He was a gifted man, intellectually and vocally, of which fact no one seemed to have a more decided impression than himself.
Yet, with all the infirmities of his disposition, Col. Erwin was the very soul of honor in his business transactions. He was faith- ful to his clients, and to all his engagements. His services he rated high, as a general rule; but then, his efforts and his zeal
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were equal to the emergency, and success, in most instances, crowned his professional labors. He seemed to be always in full harness for work, no amount of which ever appalled him, where the incentive was adequate. A large fortune was the result of his personal exertions. All that he needed to complete his happiness was political preferment, as Governor of the State, or as a Senator or Representative in Congress. Perhaps a seat on the Bench of the Supreme Court might have been accepted. But none of these stations were accessible to him, not for want of qualification on his part, but purely from his stern, haughty bearing toward others, of which no parallel has been known in Alabama, where the example was so meritorious in other respects. He was a model of grace and dignity as President of the Senate, and as Speaker of the House of Representatives, equal to that, perhaps, of the best Speaker of the British House of Commons. His pride, his ambition, and his intelligence, served him in his official character; but, as an individual, he had no sympathy for others, and he died, probably without a warm personal friend in the world, outside of his domestic relations.
13. ISAAC H. ERWIN, of Mobile, was a native of Tennessee, and a son of Andrew Erwin, Esq., a prominent citizen of that State, and a brother of James Erwin, Esq., of New Orleans, who married a daughter of the Hon. Henry Clay. After he settled in Mobile for the practice of the law, Mr. Erwin married a sister of Col. Lorenzo James, of Clarke county, which alliance brought him a large family influence, and he soon rose to distinction. He was a member of the House so early as 1838. In 1841, he was elected a Trustee of the University, and took an active part to promote the success of that institution, and of the cause of educa- tion generally. He was a gentleman of fine intellect, and, at the session of 1842, frequently shared in the debates. He possessed a good business capacity, and was much respected in social circles, making friends wherever he went. This was his last session, and in 1843, he died of yellow fever, in the prime of life, with the prospects of much usefulness in the future.
14. ALFRED HARRISON, of Lowndes, was a Democratic mem- ber of the House from a Whig county, in which he had been Sheriff several terms, and always faithful to the trust confided. He was young and unmarried, and lived with his mother, Mrs. Jane Harrison, who came from Georgia, where her son was born. He was brother to Mrs. Jane Owen, the accomplished lady of Col. Lewis Owen, of Montgomery, and to Mrs. Judge Stone. While taking but little interest in the debates of the session, Col. Harrison was an active, working member. Although a Democrat
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without disguise, such was his standing at home, that he seldom failed of an election to any office for which he was a candidate.
In person, Col. Harrison was tall and spare, with manners not only agreeable but even captivating. These brought around him at all times a circle of admirers, who caressed him so that his social feelings yielded to an influence it was hard to resist, and which proved his ruin. The grave gained a victory in the flower of his age, and Lowndes county lost one of its noblest citizens.
JOHN W. HENLEY, of Marengo, came to the House in 1842, and served but the one session. He was a young lawyer of promise, a Whig in politics, impulsive and zealous in the advocacy of his principles. This, added to the rapidity of speech, which was accelerated in the heat of debate, marred, to some extent, the effect of his arguments, which, in substance, deserved a better pre- sentation. He participated freely in the business and discussions of the House, and was esteemed a gentleman of fine character and qualities, especially in social life.
16. DAVID HUBBARD, of Lawrence, was called out by the peo- ple this year to give the Legislature the benefit of his large experi- ence, and great practical sense, while passing through the ordeal of public exigencies. Few men occupied more space in the general estimate of working members that he did. Major Hubbard had been, in one way or another, connected with the State Govern- ment almost from its organization, filling the office of Solicitor of his District, Senator from his District, and a Representative from his county. He was also for years, a member of the Board of Trustees of the University.
In 1839, Major Hubbard was elected to Congress from the Florence District, and, as a member of the Committee of Ways and Means in the House of Representatives, he took a decidedly front rank, establishing a high character for his clear comprehen- sion of the great political questions then engaging the country. In 1849, he was again a candidate for Congress, but was beaten by Gen. George S. Houston.
After serving at the session of 1842, he was returned to the House in 1843, 1844, 1845, 1853, and 1859, always taking an active and leading part in the deliberations and proceedings of the Legislature. He was a Democrat of the State Rights school, and was particularly watchful on the tariff and slavery questions. He participated largely in the Presidential canvass of 1840, and again in 1844, and frequantly had a place in the Democratic Electoral Ticket. This was his position in 1860, when he was one of the Electors for the State at large on the Breckenridge and Lane ticket.
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On several occasions Major Hubbard aspired to a seat in the United States Senate, but never succeeded. The same reasons which influenced the Jackson Democracy in withholding their support in former days from the men who came over with Mr. Calhoun, operated against him in these aspirations; and yet few men possessed stronger elements of character requisite for such a responsible position. Somehow, the public mind came to regard him as a man of great shrewdness and cunning, and this idea, attaching suspicion to his movements, weakened his position, and no doubt contributed no little to keep him in the background, while his fellows of less substantial attainments were advanced. His ambitious, proud spirit no doubt chafed under this treatment, and it likely intensified the impatience and bitterness manifested in the latter part of his public life. However this may be, Ala- bama has had few men in her councils who understood the frame- work of government better, or guarded her interests more faith- fully, and with more ability, than David Hubbard. He suffered heavy losses of property during the war, and after its close he removed to Nashville, Tennessee, where, I believe, he still resides.
The fact is worthy of mention, that in 1856 Major Hubbard was a delegate from Alabama to the Southern Commercial Con- vention at Savannah, where he took part in the discussions with some of the leading men of the South, and displayed his usual ability. He was by no means a pleasant speaker. His voice was harsh in the extreme, and he soon lost all control of it in the excitement of his feelings. He had not the least idea of har- mony, taking the vagaries of his voice as a specimen, nor had he any grace of gesture. He was a strong man lashed into fury by a phantom of his own creation, and he dashed off in debate with a headlong speed, which exhaustion and a loss of voice alone could arrest. He then took his seat.
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CHAPTER XVIII.
Legislature of 1842-3-Sketches of Members Continued.
17. JOHN JACKSON, of Barbour, a merchant, was somewhat an extraordinary'character. From his familiarity with treasury and bank accounts, and their practical management, it is believed that he had, at some period of his life, been connected with the public departments at Washington, or had been a merchant of large deal- ings. He could at any time give the rates of exchange between New York and Liverpool, for twenty years, or the dividends of the United States Bank, the amount of Treasury Notes, the re- ceipts from customs, from the public lands, and from miscellaneous sources, and the expenditures under each administration, and what measure of policy produced a stringency in the money market, and through what precise form every account presented for settlement at the National Treasury had to pass, from the first Auditor to the final order of the Secretary at the head of the department. He could even tell who were the stockholders in the Bank of the United States, what year the officers changed, and what transac- tions the Government had with the banks-with the scale of exchange, how it rose and fell, and how produced. His mind seemed to be a perfect commercial dictionary, with sums and defi- nitions without limit, which he introduced more or less in debate while discussing the bill to place the Branch Banks in liquidation, and its probable effect on the currency. In addition to this class of minute knowledge, he was well acquainted with political affairs, with the history of leading men from the foundation of the Gov- ernment, and what measures of National policy they introduced or approved. His resources of this kind appeared to be inex- haustible.
This preliminary view of his character is submitted in order to show what he might have been as a legislator, had he been dis- creet and self-poised, and free from the bitterness which soon deformed his efforts on the floor.
On the second day of the session, Mr. Jackson brought forward a set of charges against the Hon. John P. Booth, a Judge of the Cir- cuit Court, which occupied nearly an hour in the reading-a labor which he performed himself, with dramatic intensity. It was his debut in the Legislature. His rich and sonorous voice, his bright and glowing face, the scholarship of the composition, and the em- phasis by which he gave force to particular passages of enormity,
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inspired the idea of power in the Representative from Barbour, that would have eminently qualified him for a prosecuting officer in some court of criminal jurisdiction. The charges were in the nature of impeachment, with a strong case made out, on paper; and whatever might have been the result, a trial was rendered unnecessary by the immediate resignation of the Judge. Thus began and thus closed the first chapter in Mr. Jackson's legislative career.
He had doubtless been a spectator for many years, more or less regularly, of the proceedings in Congress, and had imbibed a a somewhat diplomatic style of intercourse, and of personal eti- quette, which he preserved in the Legislature, even when aggress- ive in debate, or parrying the thrusts of an opponent. He was the Tristham Burges, of Rhode Island, or the Ben. Hardin, of Kentucky, who used the scalping knife with savage cruelty in the debates of Congress, when provoked by John Randolph, or other sarcastic adversary, to lay aside the virtue of forbearance. Mr. Jackson was at all times ready for the tournament, and ten to one his rival was unhorsed in every tilt.
His hostility to the banking system was openly declared in his speeches and by his votes. While the bill to put the Huntsville Branch in liquidation was before the House, Mr. Jackson made some remarks which induced Mr. McClung, of Madison, to say, half-pleasantly, that "he feared the gentleman from Barbour would be disturbed in his sleep that night at seeing ghosts and hobgoblins." Mr. Jackson promptly replied, that "he hoped he should be spared the affliction of seeing the ghost of a broken bank !"
Another instance may be given, when Dr. Moore, of Madison, brought forward a measure of relief in behalf of a constituent (an Irishman), from the penalty of illegal voting. Mr. Jackson at once rose in his place, and in 'his usually excited manner, said "he had no doubt, or would venture the opinion, that the violator of the law had voted the Democratic ticket." This was the first suggestion to his mind. He was an entire Whig, and had no charity for anything that savored of Democracy. But with all his bitterness and want of amiability, he was a useful man in his place, and as honest in his purposes as it was possible for one to be who had been so scorched and warped by severe visitations of adversity, and had encountered his disappointments. After the ses- sion of 1842-3, Mr. Jackson did not appear in the Legislature of Alabama. He then seemed to be about fifty years of age, and I believe he was a native of Pennsylvania.
His life was terminated by a melancholy accident in 1850, or thereabout. He had started with his family for Texas, and while crossing the Gulf from Mobile to New Orleans, the steamer ou
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which he had taken passage was burned, and, with a number of others on board, he perished in the flames, or was drowned in the sea. Mr. Jackson was a man of strong intellect, and of mature business capacity. Had his nature been less excitable, his record as a legislator would have been quite different, and probably he would have taken a proud rank with the benefactors of his coun- try. Whatever his infirmities of temper, charity forbids that they should be remembered with unkindness, after a death so sudden and appalling.
18. WILLIAM GILES JONES was a son of the Old Dominion. He was a nephew of the Hon. William B. Giles, who was a Rep- resentative in Congress from 1790 to 1798, and again in 1801-2, and a Senator from 1804 to 1815, and afterward Governor of Virginia.
Mr. Jones came to Alabama about the year 1834, and, for a while, held some position in the land office at Demopolis. He was a lawyer by profession, and afterward removed to Greenesboro, where he formed a partnership with William M. Murphy, Esq., who resided at Erie. This connection at once introduced Mr. Jones to a good practice, and, being comparatively a stranger, it expedited his advancement in public confidence. His merits were always sufficient to open a way for him in any community; but the extensive influence of his partner, who had formerly been as- sociated with William J. Vandegraff, Esq., was attended with happy results to both. Mr. Murphy distinguished himself at the session of 1840, and Mr. Jones succeeded as a Representative from Greene, in 1842, with no less ability and reputation.
In debate, Mr. Jones was calm and forcible. His mind was amply stored with information which served him to good purpose, while his logical acumen gave him a mastery over all questions which he handled. The emanations of his intellect were like sunbeams, giving light wherever they fell. For one very little over thirty years of age, this rare quality was remarkable. His elocution and whole manner was much to his advantage. There was no rant, no mere attempt at display or ornament. With him, language was but the vehicle of thought, and its transparency was beautiful and captivating. He was much respected for his cour- tesy in debate. Though a Whig in politics, he never failed to ob- serve the amenities of life on every occasion where he had to measure strength with an antagonist. His course in the Legisla- ture gained him many friends throughout the State.
The second marriage of Mr. Jones, was with a daughter of Matthew Hobson, Esq., a wealthy and influential citizen of Greene. She was a relative of Mrs. William M. Murphy-both beautiful and accomplished ladies. He afterward removed to Mobile, as a
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better field for the exercise of his professional talents. In 1849, he was elected to the House from Mobile county, and took the first legal position, as Chairman of the Judiciary Committee.
After the Whig party was dissolved, or after the old issues had become, in a measure, obsolete, Mr. Jones cooperated with the Democratic party. On the death of the Hon. John Gayle, Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Alabama, about the year 1858, President Buchanan appointed Mr. Jones to fill that office, in which he was confirmed by the Senate. He held this position with great ability, and with satisfaction to the public, until the Confederate Government was organized, when he resigned his first commission, and accepted the same office from President Davis. When the war closed he was, of course ejected, and, under some pretext, he was arrested by the Federal authori- ties, perhaps to atone for his change of allegiance. After some detention and delay, during which no definite action was taken against him, he was discharged. Judge Jones still resides in Mo- bile, enjoying the rewards of a well-spent life, and the universal respect of all who knew his lofty qualities, and his unblemished character.
19. WILLIAM B. MARTIN, of Benton, was born and educated in Tennessee, and is a nephew of Gov. J. L. and Judge Peter Martin. He came to Alabama, and settled in Benton county, about the year 1832, to pursue his profession as a lawyer. He was first elected to the House in 1838, and again in 1842, and reelected in 1843. In 1844 he was on the Electoral Ticket for Polk and Dallas, and aided in casting the vote of Alabama for these candidates for the Presidency and Vice-Presidency. In 1847 and in 1849, he served in the Senate. In 1853, he was again elected to the Senate, and was made its presiding officer, in opposition to Gen. Joseph P. Frazier. He opposed Sampson W. Harris, for Congress, in 1855, and was defeated. In 1861, he was returned to the House, and served two years. This ended his public course. After the war begun, he entered the Confederate States Army as a private, but his age and infirmities compelled him to return home. He yet lives, and resides at Gadsden, Etowah county.
Mr. Martin is gifted by nature with a splendid intellect, which has been well trained in the political and professional forums, where he has long acted a conspicuous part. He was a good de- bater, and always ready for a tilt on any question, on the stump or in the Legislature. Some of his efforts were truly eloquent. With all his rich endowments, however, he has been unjust to himself, and to the same extent has increased the disability of serving his country as he might have done, in the absence of the
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only impediment to his promotion in high quarters. He permitted a subtile enemy to fasten itself upon him-the convivial habit, strong drink-until he is now only the shadow, in success and capacity, of what nature designed in moulding his noble intellect.
20. JAMES W. McCLUNG, of Madison, was born and raised in East-Tennessee, where his family connection was large and influ- ential. He was a nephew of the Hon. Hugh L. White, long a member of the United States Senate, and a candidate for the Pres- idency in 1836. He came from Knoxville to Alabama, soon after the State Government was organized, and settled at Huntsville, as a lawyer. His great abilities at once secured him success in his profession.
The first wife of Col. McClung was a daughter of Gov. D. B. Mitchell, of Georgia, an alliance which strengthened his prospects, by securing material advantages, and largely contributing to his happiness. After this union was severed by death, his spirits be- came greatly depressed, and he sought temporary relief in the in- ebriating bowl. But, before the strong man was entirely bound, he burst the fetters, and with manly resolution stood erect once more before his fellow-men. Would that his example of self- redemption were more generally imitated, so that the wrecks from intemperance would not form such an extensive chapter in human misery !
There was one circumstance in the life of Col. McClung which, it is said, he always regretted. A severe attack had been made on his character, in a newspaper, at Huntsville, edited by Mr. Wills, which led to the death of Wills at the hands of Col. McClung. After judicial investigation he was acquitted; yet his mind con- stantly dwelt upon the unfortunate affair, and he has been known, on several occasions, to interpose his friendly offices to prevent similar results, by referring to his own sad experience. It has been reported that, for many years afterward, and so long as it was necessary, Col. McClung made liberal provision for the family of Mr. Wills, in a way the most delicate, and perhaps without their knowing the source from which it came.
Col. McClung was elected a Representative from Madison county, about the year 1830, if not previously. He was Speaker of the House at the sessions of 1835, 1837, and 1838, and his qualifications as a presiding officer were of the highest order. His person was well formed and commanding, and his address, at all times dignified, was that of a complete gentleman. He was well acquainted with parliamentary law, and prompt in deciding ques- tions of order, as well as in the general application of rules laid down in Jefferson's Manual, and other standard authorities for the government of deliberative bodies, There was a pleasant courtesy
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toward the members who addressed the Chair, which at once re- lieved them from all embarrassment, especially the younger class, who needed such countenance. The writer served as Clerk at two sessions when Col. McClung was Speaker, and will never cease to remember the many acts of kindness and favor rendered him in the performance of his duties, many of them new.
In 1841, Col. McClung was the competitor of Col. Fitzpatrick for the office of Governor, and was defeated. In 1842, he was returned to the House, and was appointed to the first position on the floor, that of Chairman of the Judiciary Committee. He was patient and laborious at his post, and generally took part in all important discussions. His voice was distinct and sonorous, his language that of a refined scholar, and his bearing in debate was courteous and elevated, reminding the spectator of the better days of the United States Senate, when Calhoun, Clay and Web- ster were its pillars and its ornament. Indeed, had justice been done to the talents of Col. McClung, the greatest wish of his life would have been gratified by the Legislature of Alabama, in sending him to the distinguished forum at Washington, to unite with these illustrious statesmen in serving the country. But his support of Judge White for the Presidency in 1836, in opposi- tion to Mr. VanBuren, and his neutrality in the Presidential elec- tion of 1840, together with previous Whig affinities, precluded him from Democratic favor, which would otherwise no doubt have made him the colleague or the successor of the Hon. William R. King in the Senate. Though the sphere of his ambition was more limited from necessity, he was always the leading figure in his subdued relations to the public, and showed, without any seeming effort, a capacity for the highest employments. In the British House of Commons, he perhaps would not have been the inferior of Sir Robert Peel in breadth and gracefulness as a leader. Without the royal ceremony of knighthood, or a patent for the peerage, Col. McClung was a nobleman of still better origin- the stamp of Nature. As such he always appeared in council, and in social intercourse among his fellow-men.
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