Reminiscences of public men in Alabama : for thirty years, with an appendix, Part 5

Author: Garrett, William, 1809-
Publication date: 1872
Publisher: Atlanta, Ga. : Plantation Pub. Co.'s Press
Number of Pages: 826

USA > Alabama > Reminiscences of public men in Alabama : for thirty years, with an appendix > Part 5

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).

Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.

he was personally responsible for everything contained in the paper. The House refused to lay it on the table, and ordered it to be spread upon the Journals, where it may be seen at page 202 of the House Journal, 1837, a monument of the faithfulness of a Representative in his vindication of his constituents in the city of Mobile. Afterwards, Mr. May of Tuskaloosa, offered resolutions censuring the author of the protest; but they were never acted upon by the House. The bill passed the Senate and became a law; and, in pursuance of its provisions, Gov. Bagby appointed a commission of three distinguished citizens of Mobile, to examine, consider, and report a plan for an extensive ware-house, where the produce of all sorts coming to the city for sale could be stored, and disposed of under the supervision of proper agents, to the exclusion of all other factors. Those gentlemen reported the plans of extensive ware-houses, and they were laid before the Legislature, accompanied by drawings of the ground-floor, upper stories, etc. But here the matter ended in nothing.

I have often thought of this measure and its purposes, since passing through the business portions of Mobile a few years after- wards, and seeing the large amount of produce sold in large quan- tities every day, and the hundreds of thousands of bales of cotton on the wharves and in ware-houses, sold by honest commission merchants and dealers to ready purchasers, and could not resist the conclusion that the members of the Legislature who passed the bill providing for a system of trade-narrow, selfish, and destructive to the free exercise of mercantile competition, which is the life and developement of a commercial community-had but little conception of the future extent of the business that would be transacted by a high-toned, honorable class of merchants, in building up and enlarging the city and business they were seeking to destroy.

UNIVERSITY CEREMONIES.

At the Commencement Exercises of the University of Alabama during this session (1837) its Presidency changed hands. This institution is so closely connected with the State that it will not be considered out of place to speak of it in passing. It was founded by a liberal grant of land by Congress. The trustees

Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.

were elected from the different judicial circuits by joint vote of the two branches of the Legislature, and the trustees elected the Faculty, and made by-laws and regulations for the government of the Faculty and students. The Governor was President of the Board of Trustees, and ex-officio a member of it. The members of the Legislature and officers of State were annually invited and expected to attend.

The Rev. Alva Woods had been the President many years; but difficulties had arisen, of which it is not now necessary to speak, which induced or obliged him to resign, and the Rev. Basil Manly, D. D., of Charleston, South Carolina, was elected in his place. The circumstances attending the resignation of Dr. Woods had attracted general attention, and the occasion of installing a new President, whose election was hailed as the dawning of a new era in the history of the college, had brought together a large number of the leading citizens and families of the State, and the day presented a vast multitude of Alabama's noble men and women. There was but one graduating speech, and that was by Walter H. Crenshaw, of Butler, whose future connection with public life and its rewards will bring him frequently to the notice of the reader in the course of these reminiscences.

Dr. Woods delivered his valedictory, which was lengthy, eru- dite, cold, and formal, showing a good deal of the blood and tem- perament of the author. This was the first occasion of the kind I had ever attended, and although deeply interested in everything, and paying the closest attention for fear something would be said or done that would be missed, and without assuming a manner and decorum that would make it appear I had been familiar with such exercises, and was well at home within the walls of a college, (the first really I had ever entered,) I did not feel competent to pronounce judgment upon the discourse, as everybody was doing, I reckon mostly out of compliment to a retiring President. As Dr. Woods concluded, and while the audience were cheering, (which was regarded by some as equivocal in the motive,) the robe of office as President was lifted from his shoulders, and trans- ferred to Dr. Manly, who was brought forward and presented to Gov. Bagby for installation. This portion of the ceremony, on the Governor's part, consisted in the delivery of a large bundle

Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.

of keys of the buildings, saying that he invested him with the control of the premises and dignity of the office; and a few admonitory remarks in rather a low tone, expressed with clear- ness, and enforced by several shakes of the left hand, with the forefinger pointed. Dr. Manly, holding the bunch of keys in his hand, made his acceptance; first to the Governor as President of the Board of Trustees, and then, advancing to a table, delivered his inaugural address, which was well conceived and delivered, and warmly applauded by a delighted auditory.

CHAPTER III.

Political Topics-Men of Action Introduced.

The subject of National politics engaged the attention of both Houses of the Alabama Legislature at the regular session of 1837. Mr. Van Buren had been elected President the year before, and soon after his accession to office, he issued his proclamation con- vening Congress, to consider the state of the country under the severe revulsion, and especially the financial question, as con- nected with the operations of the Government. The banks had all suspended specie payment, and in many instances were worth- less. The receivers and custodians of the public money at several of the important centers had squandered the funds of the Gov- ernment, and had withdrawn to foreign countries to avoid punish- ment. There was no confidence or credit, no cheerfulness or hope; but, on the contrary, wide-spread ruin seemed to brood over every pecuniary interest.

In his message to Congress, on its assembling in September, 1837, Mr. Van Buren recommended, among other things, an entire separation of the Treasury Department from the banks-conse- quently the discontinuance of the local banks as the depositories of the public money, and the establishment of a Sub-Treasury,

Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.

with receivers of the public money at leading commercial points, and nothing but coin to be recognized in the transactions of the Government.

This recommendation met with favor in some of the leading men of the South who had stood in direct opposition to the Dem- ocratic party, and especially to Mr. Van Buren, its head and leader. It was understood, at this session of the Legislature, that Mr. Calhoun of Dallas, Mr. Dixon H. Lewis, and other prominent leaders of that wing known for years as the State Rights or Nul- lification party, favored this policy. This organization had existed since 1832, and while it never attained in numbers to the control of the State, it exerted no little influence as a "balance of power," check and ally; and the more so, as it was made up mainly of gentlemen possessing a high order of talent, highly educated, wealthy, occupying high social positions, and bold and decided in the advocacy of measures and principles in consonance with the feelings and sympathies of Southern men, especially the younger ones. They had voted generally with the Whig party, for Judge White in the Presidential election of 1836, and were regarded as more in sympathy with it than with the Democratic party, espe- cially under the lead of Gen. Jackson; were patriotic in their views and votes, looking, highest of all, to the maintenance of those great principles which would protect the States in the undis- turbed exercise of their "sovereign rights."

By a large number there was much prejudice entertained, espe- cially among the masses, and what were termed the "flat-footed" Democrats, against this class of politicians known as Nullifiers, not a few attaching to it a stigma little less than treason. In some instances, candidates for office before the Legislature were a little cautious in going among them for votes, and when they did go, it was with secrecy and tact, lest the dominant party should sus- pect them. An anecdote in point is told of Col. T. B. Tunstall. In 1834 he was a candidate for Secretary of State iu opposition to E. A. Webster, of Jackson county. He had long been Clerk of the House, and was popular. The State Rights men were dis- posed to vote for him quietly in concert, as they usually voted, especially as Mr. Webster was distasteful to them as a "Jackson Democrat." Col, Tunstall was asked, [during the canvass, if he 4

Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.

expected to get the vote of the Nullifiers? He replied, with no little assumption of manner, that he did not-he hoped not-as it would "put him upon explanations if they voted for him, and he did not wish to be bothered with such things." This reached the ear of Columbus W. Lee, of Perry, a member and leader of that organization, and in the election that vote was cast for Mr. Web- ster, electing him. I am indebted for the incident to Mr. Lee himself, who was a gentleman of strong convictions and feelings, and promptly resented any insinuation upon his principles or associates.

SUB-TREASURY SCHEME.

Some time after the two Houses met (1837), resolutions were offered in the Senate favoring Mr. Van Buren's plan of divorcing the Federal Government from the banks in the management of its financial affairs, which gave rise to a general discussion, in which Messrs. Elmore, Terry, Mr. President Beene, and Posey advocated, and Messrs. Burke, Crabb, H. C. Lea, Rains, Riddle, and Wallace opposed the measure. The subject was new, and the discussions, which were conducted with much spirit and ability for several days, drew attention, not only of the visitors to the Capi- tol, but of the paper's throughout the State. Politicians were about to enter upon a new issue before the country, involving the question of finance, at a time of much pecuniary derangement; and while some entered the field boldly, with clear convictions, determined to go forward without halting, there were others who could not see their way clear through the difficult questions. At length, after many parliamentary moves to change the resolutions which had been brought forward in rather an unprepared state, Mr. Elmore, the Senator from Lowndes, proposed an amendment, which had doubtless been prepared by political concert, as follows:

Resolved, That in the opinion of the Legislature, it is expedient that the rev- enues of the Federal Government be so collected as ultimately to save the Goyern- ment from all connection with banks.

Resolved, That in the opinion of this Legislature, the revenues of the Federal Government should be so deposited, kept, and disbursed, as not to be connected with or used in banking operations.

Resolved, That it would be unconstitutional, inexpedient and dangerous to incorporate a National Bank for managing the fiscal operations of the Federal Government.

Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.

Messrs. B. W. Hudson and Neill Smith, Democrats, were in favor of, and voted for, a motion to strike from the last resolution the word "unconstitutional," while Mr. H. C. Lea and Mr. J. B. Wallace, gentlemen who stood high with the opposition, voted against it. These resolutions, after a good deal of parliamentary tact, were adopted by a vote of yeas 19, nays 12; among the latter were the names of Mr. T. S. Mays, of Montgomery, and Mr. B. W. Hudson, of Franklin, who the next year were in full accord with the Democratic party, upon a more explicit declaration of the principles contained in the issue. -

In the debate upon the question touching the specie clause of Mr. Van Buren's policy, some gentlemen took the ground that the Government should receive the notes of specie paying banks in payment of public dues, especially for the Public Lands; and this position was wisely taken for party purposes, as it elicited the approbation and support of men who wished to secure to them- selves homes, and at the same time enlisted the support of the local banks that were striving to resume specie payments at no distant day, and looked upon the specie feature of the Sub-Treas- ury as likely to embarrass their operations.

After their passage in the Senate, the resolutions were commu- nicated to the House; and when they were read, Mr. J. M. Cal- houn, of Dallas, rose in his place, and said that he was prepared to vote for every one of them; but the session was far advanced, members were determined not to remain longer than Christmas; the questions of bank policy had not been settled, and on his mo- tion, by general consent, the resolutions were allowed to lie upon the Speaker's table-the subject to be brought forward at the next session in a more specific and organized form, as we shall see. After fixing upon two or three periods to adjourn, in the hope of getting away before Christmas, the two Houses were obliged, by considerations of the public interest, to rescind, and having com- pleted the business on the morning of the 26th of December, at 11 o'clock, then adjourned sine die.

Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.

RETIRING MEMBERS.

JESSE BEENE was a Tennesseean, and came to the State of Alabama early in its history, settling at Cahaba, the then Seat of Government. He became engaged in political alliance, ranging himself on the side of the Democratic party, which relation was strictly maintained through his life. He was a lawyer, and became extensively engaged in the practice, amassing a fine property. Several times he was elected to the House from Dallas, and then to the Senate, of which body he was elected President. He was regarded then as an aspirant to Gubernatorial honors, and his bearing in his intercourse with his party proved it. Indeed, he was looked upon with general favor for that position for a time, and there were not a few who predicted that he would succeed Gov. Bagby. He attended the Democratic Convention in Decem- ber, 1839, as a delegate from Dallas, and was made President of that body. His speech on taking the chair was violent, and de- nunciatory of the Whig party, so much so that many of his friends regretted its tone and spirit, not because they believed the Whig party of the State was not open to the objections alleged, but they feared its reactionary influence upon himself; and so it turned out. His chances declined, and his name was not submitted to the Nominating Convention. His health had been giving way for some time, and in a few years thereafter, he died. Without the advantages of early culture, as they fall to the lot of many, Mr. Beene possessed a good practical mind, and was well versed in the details of business; was a good speaker, an ingenious de- bater, and usually became much excited in his public addresses. He was a gentleman of fine social qualities, and fair conversational powers.

GEN. GEORGE W. CRABB was also a Tennesseean, and brother of Judge Henry Crabb, who so long adorned the Bench of the Supreme Court of that State. Removing to Alabama when young, he settled in Tuskaloosa, then the Seat of Government. He was first elected Assistant Secretary of the Senate, and after- wards to the office of Comptroller of Public Accounts, which he held a few years, until the force of party displaced him. Soon

Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.

after this, the Indian war in Florida opened, and he went, in a campaign of twelve months, as Lieutenant-Colonel of a regiment raised in Alabama. In this he established a high character for bravery, and for kindness toward those under his command, and returned home the idol of his men .. His future preferment was certain. Immediately elected a Major-General, and to the Senate, he took high rank in that body, not only for his excellent business qualities, but for ability in debate. In 1838, upon the death of Judge Lawler, he was brought forward by his friends, and the Whig party, to which he belonged, as a candidate for Congress, in opposition to Harvey W. Ellis, Esq., the Democratic candidate. The contest was animated, and the District was closely canvassed in debate with an ability seldom before exhibited in the State. The public mind was greatly excited, and everybody took sides. Gen. Crabb was elected by a small majority. In 1839, at the regular election, both these gentlemen were again before the pub- lic in opposition, and another spirited campaign ensued, which resulted in the re-election of Gen. Crabb. He took position in Congress, from his high personal worth, that reflected honor upon the State. In 1841, in the election under the general ticket sys- tem, he was defeated, and left in private life. To the surprise and regret of his Whig friends, he espoused the cause of "Polk, Dallas and Texas," in 1844, and at a public barbecue given by the Democrats at Tuskaloosa in June, he made a speech of considera- ble length and power, in which he reviewed the former relation of Texas to the United States; the circumstances under which it was ceded to Spain in 1819; the opposition of Mr. Clay to that treaty, as shown by his speech in the House of Representives, April 3, 1820, on the ground that he (Mr. Clay) considered Texas of greater value to us than Florida; and the general opinion entertained by the Whigs of the South that Mr. Clay was · in favor of annexation until the Raleigh letter of April, first pub- lished in the "National Intelligencer," announced his disapproval of that measure, with the reasons assigned, which Gen. Crabb did not consider satisfactory, and at once determined him to cooperate with the party which had made the annexation of Texas an article in its platform. This brought him in unison with the Democrats at least upon that question. The elaborate speech of Gen. Crabb

Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.

was extensively published in the newspapers, and henceforth he ceased all connection with the Whig party, of which he had been a shining light since its organization under the gallant lead of Mr. Clay.

In February, 1844, I was in Mobile when the Hon. Henry - Clay visited that city, on his Southern tour to fulfil an engage- ment at Raleigh, to be present at the celebration of his sixty- seventh birthday, April 12, 1844. A committee of twenty had been appointed by the Whigs of Tuskaloosa to wait on Mr. Clay in person, and to invite him to the hospitalities of the Seat of Gov- ernment. Gen. Crabb was then in Mobile, and through his civil- ities, the intercourse between Mr. Clay and the committee was rendered very pleasant. Though differing politically from all the parties engaged in this mission of respect to their illustrious chief, as the members of the committee were my fellow-townsmen, and some of them my personal friends, I take occasion to introduce their names as a memento of other days. The gentlemen of the committee present in Mobile, were Robert Jemison, Esq., chairman, Marion Banks, Alfred Battle, William Braly, Thomas Carson, J. C. Clements, Gen. Dennis Dent, Dr. John R. Drish, Capt. Otis Dyer, John Fitch, Dr. Rufus Haywood, Robert Lacy, Stephen F. Miller, Daniel T. Nooe, Major Hardin Perkins, Dr. Nicholas Per- kins, A. P. Pfister, and Hon. Benjamin F. Porter.

After this brief digression, I return to Gen. Crabb, who was appointed by Governor Martin, in 1846, Judge of the County Court of Mobile, the duties of which office he faithfully discharged. His declining health induced him to pass the Winter of that year in Ha- vana, Island of Cuba, and the next Summer he visited Philadel- phia to consult the best of the medical faculty, where hedied in 1847.

As to the personal character of Gen. Crabb, there can be no diversity of opinion among those who knew him. He was the model of a high-minded, chivalrous, upright gentleman in all the relations of life, public and private. His talents were of a high order, and his dignity was never compromised by any departure from the strictest propriety of conduct. His grave at Tuskaloosa may well be visited as a shrine where the purest affection and patriotism may offer its tribute in honor of the noble dead, and to stimulate the virtues of the living.

Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.

JAMES B. WALLACE likewise came from Tennessee to Ala- bama, and settled in Lawrence county, where he filled the office of Judge of the County Court, and was twice elected to the Sen- ate, in which he served with distinction as a member of the Whig party of the State 'Rights school. In 1838, upon the death of Judge Henry Minor, he was appointed Clerk of the Supreme Court, which office he held for ten years. In 1851 he was elected from Tuskaloosa a member of the House of Representatives, in which capacity he gave the State the benefit of enlarged expe- rience and observation in public affairs. In 1853, he was again a candidate, but died suddenly before the election, of apoplexy. Judge Wallace was certainly a gentleman of intelligence and culture, well read in history and biography, with quite a taste for litera- ture. Of fine person and manners, he was a good type of the gentleman, and filled a wide sphere in associations with the first intellects of the State.

JOHN M. BURKE was for many years connected with the legis- lation of the two Houses. Industrious and attentive to his duties, with a fine business talent, he made himself useful in the councils of the State, and was held in high esteem at the Seat of Govern- ment, and wherever known. A premature partial deafness no doubt caused him to retire from public life, as, to some extent, it embarrassed him upon the floor of the Senate. He was an opu- lent, intelligent planter of Wilcox county, active and enterprising, so that his usefulness did not cease upon his becoming a private citizen; but he devoted all his powers to the improvement and independence of his State in agricultural and commercial pursuits. He traveled much and observed closely, and dispensed liberally the advantages of information gained. Of Irish descent, he was a genial, polite gentleman, and filled a large place in the social circle. He died many years ago.

. JOHN T. RATHER, of Morgan, retired voluntarily this year, in the meridian of life, carrying with him the regrets and respect of a large number of friends. He became connected with the State Government at an early day, and assisted in the enactment of those fundamental laws, which, amended and improved in the

Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama.

progress of events, have become the settled landmarks of the State. A quiet, working member, with a good fund of common sense, and intimate knowledge of the wants of the people; with feelings and sympathies in common with the masses, he was emi- nently qualified to act an important part in the important work of laying the foundations of the State Government. A sagacious turn in managing men, and directing the political movements of his (Whig) party, he was looked to as a leader. He was a gentle- man of unobtrusive bearing and manner, a boon companion in the social circle, witty, and with a rich fund of anecdotes, which he told with much gusto. Few men were regarded with more favor in the Legislature. Withal, his habits were good, rather abste- mious, and consistent as a professor of religion, which brought about him the respect and society of that class. From 1837 to 1865 he continued in retirement, in the peaceful pursuits of agri- culture, and exerting a salutary influence upon the community and section in which he lived. That year, his old constituents and their descendents called him to a seat in the Constitutional Con- vention, and he aided in framing the State Constitution of 1865. At the present writing (1870) he still lives, respected for his virtues, and venerated for the past.

JOHN RAINS, the Senator from Marengo, was a native of New- bern, and graduated at the University of North Carolina in 1823, and read law in the office of Judge Gaston. He removed to Alabama, and opened a law-office at Linden, where, by his talents, he soon rose high in public estimation. Entering the Senate early in life, he was made Chairman of the Judiciary Com- mittee in 1837, in deference to his service in that body, and his acknowledged abilities. His early prospects were flattering, with promise of much usefulness and success; but he too soon fell a victim to the influence of convivial habits, brought about, it was supposed, by the too ardent caresses of admiring friends. He was usually quiet, and fully up to his business in the Senate, as his reports show. . He was a Whig in the political classification, and in the debate on the financial policy of the Government, made a strong argument against the Sub-Treasury scheme of the Admin- istration. This was his last speech in the Senate, and in a few

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.

Reminiscences of public men in Alabama : for thirty years, with an appendix, Part 5

Author: Garrett, William, 1809- Publication date: 1872 Publisher: Atlanta, Ga. : Plantation Pub. Co.'s Press Number of Pages: 826

Author: Garrett, William, 1809-
Publication date: 1872
Publisher: Atlanta, Ga. : Plantation Pub. Co.'s Press
Number of Pages: 826