USA > Georgia > A standard history of Georgia and Georgians > Part 31
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Less can be said of the self-sacrifice of the Georgia trustees than of their ability. Of the seventy-one who were chosen, thirty-six seem to have contributed no money to the enterprise, and the whole sum eon- tributed, according to their own accounts, was only about £900 from their own resources. # The test of contributing money is not final as to the interest a man may have in an enterprise, but when the under- taking is charitable in its aims and dependent on charity for its support, the amount given by the trustees may be some measure of the regard in which the colony was held by its managers. The attendance percentage of the whole body of trustees on the meetings of the corporation was only 17 per cent of what it might have been, as shown on pages 101-104 herein. It was the case with many of the trustees that as soon as their vanity was satisfied by their election to so honorable a body as the Georgia board they lost much of their interest in the work; and when affairs in the colony went badly and when debts began to accumulate, such members ceased entirely to act with their colleagues. It was only a small handful that stnek to their duty through fair weather and foul until the end. And yet who can blame the trustees for quitting their task? No financial rewards awaited them, and little honor was attached to the office after the early years. The duties were arduous and the
* Wright 165.
+ C. R. V: 116.
# Bouverie, one of the Trustees, gave £1000; but it was from a fund in his pos- session left for charity; it did not come out of his own resources.
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performance of them was greeted with criticism from the government at home and complaints from the colonists in Georgia.
The eriticisms just made apply only to the whole body of seventy- one members. The self-sacrifice of the working members of the trust-, Oglethorpe, Vernon, Egmont, L'Apostre, Smith, Hales, Shaftesbury, and a few others like them-cannot be too highly praised. To these few may be applied the words used by a historian of Georgia in summing np the work of the whole body: "At every stage of progress and in every act, whether trivial or important, these trustees, capable and worthy, evinced a clear conception of duty, a patience of labor, a sin- gleness of purpose, an unselfish dedication of time and energy, an integ- rity and a rigid adherence to all that was pure, elevated and human- izing, which become quite conspicnons when their proceedings are minutely and intelligently scanned." #
* Jones, "History of Georgia." I: 443.
CHAPTER XXII
ILAVING PASSED UNDER THE DIRECT CONTROL OF THE CROWN OF ENGLAND, A NEW FORM OF' GOVERNMENT IS REQUIRED FOR GEORGIA-MEAN- WHILE THE RULES OF THE TRUSTEES CONTINUE IN EFFECT-PATRICK GRAJIAM IS PLACED TEMPORARILY AT THE HELM, WITH FOUR ASSIST- ANTS-GEORGIA'S POPULATION IN 1753 ESTIMATED AT 2,380 WHITES AND 1,066 BLACKS-EFFORTS TO REVIVE THE SILK INDUSTRY- ON MAY 8, 1754, A NEW FORM OF GOVERNMENT IS PROPOSED-GEORGIA TO HAVE A ROYAL GOVERNOR LIKE THE OTHER PROVINCES-ALSO A KING'S COUNCIL, TO CONSIST OF TWELVE MEMBERS-CAPT. JOHN REYNOLDS, OF THE ROYAL NAVY, IS APPOINTED GOVERNOR, VICE- ADMIRAL AND CAPTAIN-GENERAL-OTHER APPOINTMENTS MADE BY THE CROWN-GEORGIA'S NEW PROVINCIAL SEAL-DUTIES OF THE GOVERNOR DEFINED-THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY TO CONSIST OF A LOWER HOUSE, SITTING IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE KING'S COUNCIL-TO BE GIVEN FULL LEGISLATIVE POWERS-PROPERTY QUALIFICATIONS-GOV- ERNOR REYNOLDS ARRIVES IN THE PROVINCE-GIVEN A JOYOUS RECEP- TION-FINDS THE PROVINCE IN AN UNSETTLED CONDITION-CEREMONY OF INSTALLATION-WRITES A LETTER TO THE BOARD OF TRADE -- WRITS OF ELECTION ISSUED-GEORGIA'S FIRST LEGISLATURE CONVENES IN SAVANNAH, JANUARY 7, 1755-EARLIEST LAWS RELATIVE TO SLAVERY IN THE PROVINCE-GOVERNOR REYNOLDS MAKES A TOUR OF INSPEC- TION-HARDWICKE, A NEW TOWNSITE, IS RECOMMENDED FOR A FUTURE CAPITAL-EDWARD GRAY, A DISSOLUTE CHARACTER, SETTLES A COL- ONY AT BRANDON, BUT LATER REMOVED TO SALTILLA RIVER-GOVERNOR REYNOLDS, WITH THE AID OF DE BRAHM, PLANS NEW FORTIFICA- TIONS-THE ACADIANS IN GEORGIA-ON ACCOUNT OF THE PROSCRIP- TION OF CATHOLICS A PROBLEM IS PRESENTED-FATE OF THE POOR UNFORTUNATES-GOVERNOR REYNOLDS PROVES A DISAPPOINTMENT- INFLUENCED BY A CORRUPT SECRETARY, TO WHOM HE LARGELY COM- MITS THE MANAGEMENT OF AFFAIRS-COMPLAINTS MADE BY THE COLONISTS-RECALLED TO ENGLAND-LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR ELLIS Is GIVEN A TEMPORARY COMMISSION-GOVERNOR REYNOLDS RESUMES IHIS PLACE IN THE NAVY, WHERE HE ERASES THE STIGMA FROM HIS RECORD.
NOTE: OLD INDEPENDENT.
Georgia having passed under the direct control of the Crown of England, it was necessary to adopt a new form of government. On taking over his royal charge, the king announced that all laws enacted by the trustees would remain in effect for the present and that all appointees would continue in office until further notice. President
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Parker, who died while the surrender to the Crown was taking place, was succeeded temporarily at the helm by Patrick Graham, whose four associates were: James Habersham, Noble Jones, Pickering Robinson and Francis Harris. The population of Georgia, as shown by a census taken at this time, was 2,381 whites and 1,066 blacks. But this enumeration did not include the Midway Puritans who were then set- tling in the province, some 280 in number, with 536 slaves. Joseph Ottolenghe, an Italian, succeeded Mr. Pickering in charge of the silk industry, to relinquish which the Crown was still reluctant, since nowhere in the British dominions was silk produced; and to England the success of this enterprise meant the saving of millions.
It was not until March 5, 1754, that a new form of government for Georgia was proposed by the Board of Trade, to whom the matter was referred. As finally agreed upon, this plan was as follows: that a governor be appointed by a commission, under the Great Seal, in like manner as the governors of his majesty's other provinces and planta- tions, with powers to call an assembly to pass laws, to erect courts, to grant lands, and to do all other necessary and proper things; that twelve persons be appointed by his majesty to serve as the king's council, in said province, with the same powers, authorities and privileges given to other councils of a like character; that the governor be appointed vice-admiral of said colony; that such other officers be appointed as registrar of grants and receiver of quit rents, a secretary of the prov- ince, to act as clerk of council and keeper of records, a surveyor of lands, an attorney-general, and a provost marshal. Besides a governor, there was also to be a lieutenant-governor.
Five months later, the foregoing plan having received royal sanc- tion, appointments were approved by the king as follows: Capt. John Reynolds, of the Royal Navy, to be governor of the Province of Georgia; William Clifton, attorney-general; James Habersham, secre- tary and registrar of records; Alexander Killet, provost marshal, and William Russell, naval officer.
At a salary of £50 each, Messrs. Henry Yonge and William De Brahm were commissioned as joint surveyors of land in Georgia ; while Sir Patrick Houstoun, with a like salary, was selected as registrar of grants and receiver of quit rents. To serve as members of the king's council the following were appointed: Patrick Graham, Sir Patrick Houstoun, baronet; James Habersham, Alexander Killet, Wil- liam Clifton, Noble Jones, Pickering Robinson, Francis Harris, Jona- than Bryan and William Russell. Later the name of Clement Martin was added.
On June 21, 1754, his majesty approved a design submitted by the Board of Trade for a public seal to be used by the authorities of the province in attesting its solemn transactions. Accordingly an order was given for a seal to made of silver, to correspond in size with those sent to North and South Carolina. The design of the seal was as fol- lows: On one face a figure representing the Genius of the Colony offer- ing a skein of silk to his majesty, with the motto, "Hinc Laudem Sperate Coloni," and this inscription around the circumference: "Se- gillium Provincae Nostrae Georgiae in America." On the other side appeared his majesty's arms, together with his crown, garter, and sup-
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porters, and this inscription : "Georgius II, Dei Gratia, Magnae Bri- tanniae, Franeiae et Hibernia Rex, Fidei Defensor, Brunswici et Lun- eburgi Dux, Sacri Romani Imperii Archi Thesaurius et Princeps Elector."
The new governor was to hold appointment direct from the Crown. His official title-a somewhat elongated affair, was to be: Captain- General and Governor-in-Chief of Ilis Majesty's Province of Georgia and Viee-Admiral of the Same. The proper form to be used in address- ing him was "Your Excelleney," a form which has ever since been observed. As captain-general he was to command all land and naval forces belonging to the province and to appoint all officers of militia. As governor-in-chief he possessed the sole power both to convene and to dissolve legislative bodies. All laws to become valid required his sane- tion. It devolved upon him either to approve or to disapprove all measures passed by the legislature. All officers who were not directly appointed by the Crown were to be appointed by him, and he likewise filled all vacaueies pending action by the home government. He was custodian of the Great Seal. He presided as chancellor in a court of errors, composed of himself and members of his council, sitting as judges. He served as ordinary in probating wills and granting letters of administration. He also issued writs of election; and in him was lodged the pardoning power for all erimes save treason and murder. As vice-admiral he exereised jurisdiction over Georgia waters. He did not sit in the court of vice-admiralty, but in time of war he issued war- rants to its officers, empowering them to grant commissions to privateers.
The general assembly was to consist of two branelies: an upper and a lower. The king's eouneil, though a body somewhat in the nature of a cabinet, was to constitute the upper branch; while the house of assem- bly was to constitute the lower branch. Composed of the representa- tives of the people, it was the exclusive right of this body to propose bills, to levy taxes, and to appropriate money. The king's eouneil, as we have already seen, was to be composed of members appointed by the king, of whom there were to be twelve in ordinary and two in extraordi- nary commission. The surveyor-general of customs and the superin- tendent-general of Indian affairs filled the two places last mentioned. The king's council sat in a legislative capacity only when the general assembly met; but as an advisory board it met from time to time at the call of the governor. On such occasions the governor presided; but when the council sat as a legislative body, either the lieutenant-governor or the senior member present was to occupy the chair. There was a property qualifieation for suffrage. To be an elector or voter the own- ership of fifty aeres in the district was a prerequisite; to hold office as a representative the ownership of 500 aeres in some part of the prov- inee was required. However, these restrictions were modified somewhat in response to a memorial dated February 21, 1755. Provision was made for the establishment of a court of record to be known as the general court, in which eivil business was to be transaeted. Criminal jurisdie- tion was given to a court of oyer and terminer, for which letters patent were issued; but since the judges of the two courts were the same, the latter was eventually abolished. Court was to be convened four times a year at Savannah. Its presiding judge was to be appointed under the
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king's sign manual, was to hear the high and solemn title of "Chief Justice of Georgia" and was to receive $2,500 per annum. There were to be three assistants appointed by the governor, but these were to serve without salary, except in certain cases. Inferior courts were also to be established.
Governor Reynolds did not reach Georgia until October 29, 1754. Ile was an officer in the king's navy and was qualified neither by pre- vious experience nor by temperamental fitness for executive responsi- bilities. But he was given a cordial welcome by the colony which he had come to govern. When the British man-of-war, Port Mahon, on which he took passage, arrived at the docks in Savannah, there was a great delegation assembled upon the bluff to meet him, and his arrival upon Georgia's soil was hailed with signal honors. At night bon-fires were kindled in the public square. Patrick Graham, acting as presi- dent of the colony, made a formal speech of welcome, introducing him to the board of assistants. Governor Reynolds was then conducted to the chair, at which time he formally dissolved the old board and announced the new king's council. On the following day its members were duly sworn. The oath was likewise administered to the various officers appointed by the Crown. The commission given to Governor Reynolds was "next read and published at the head of the militia under arms," and was heard with profound respect. At its conclusion a salute of musketry was fired. Then followed, in honor of the new government, a publie dinner, at which the members of council and the prineipal inhabitants of Savannah were present, and with this bountiful repast an eventful day was brought to an end.
Governor Reynolds found the province in a greatly reduced condi- tion. Back of the joyful acelamations with which he was greeted upon his arrival in Savannah there were many anxious hearts. All looked to his coming as a harbinger of better times. It was a period of transi- tion. Much depended upon the new form of government. There was great latent wealth within the colony, but it needed the vitalizing touch of Prospero's wand. Some idea of conditions in Savannah may be obtained from an early letter written by Governor Reynolds to the Board of Trade. Said he :
"The town of Savannah is well situated and contains about a hun- dred and fifty houses, all wooden ones, very small and mostly very old. The biggest was used for the meeting of the President and Assistants, where I sat in Council for a few days, but one end fell down whilst we were all there, and obliged us to move to a kind of shed behind the Court-house, which being quite unfit, I have given orders, with the advice of the Council, to fit up the shell of a house which was lately built for laying up the silk, but was never made use of, being very ill- calculated for that purpose as Mr. Ottolenghe informs me, wherefore he says he has no further use for it, but it will make a tolerable good house for the Council and Assembly to meet in, and for a few offices besides."
Writs of election were issued at this time for a general assembly to be held at Savannah, on January 7, 1755, only the lower house of which was to be elected. When the house of assembly met at this time in association with the king's couneil, sitting in a legislative capacity,
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these two bodies constituted Georgia's first real legislature, for, as we have seen, the pioneer assembly which met in 1751 possessed no author- ity to enact laws. David Montaignt was the house of assembly's first speaker. Twelve aets were passed at this session. To enumerate some of the more important measures, there was first an aet to provide for a eurreney. Paper bills aggregating in amount £7,000 were to be printed, issued and cirenlated, these bills to be considered as legal tender in the province and to be let out at interest, on good security, at 6 per cent interest per annum. There was also an act for raising revenue. This was to be acomplished by a tax levied upon negroes, lands, and moneys at interest or invested in trade. To keep the lighthouse on Tybee Island in repair, an impost was to be levied on all vessels engaged in trading with the province. It was made obligatory upon the planter to enclose his fields with a fence at least five and a half feet in height. The legal rate of interest was fixed at 10 per cent. Provisions were also made for laying out new roads, to prevent fraudulent deeds and conveyances, and to require all such transactions to be registered ; and to establish a town market in Savannah. Finally an act was passed governing the ownership of slave property in the Province of Georgia. This aet is of primary importance since it embodies the earliest legis- lation in Georgia upon this subject; but we can only outline its essen- tial features.# Cruelty to slaves was prohibited by the following section :
"Whereas ernelty is not only highly unbecoming those who profess themselves Christians, but is odious in the Eyes of all Men who have any sense of Virtue or Humanity, therefore to restrain and prevent Barbarity being exercised towards Slaves, be it enaeted by the Author- ity aforesaid, that if any person or persons whatsoever shall wilfully murder his own Slave or the Slave of any other person, every such person shall, upon conviction thereof by the oath of two witnesses, be adjudged guilty of Felony for the first offence and have the benefit of Clergy, making satisfaction to the Owner of such Slave: but the second offenee shall be deemed Murther, and the offender shall suffer for the said Crime according to the Laws of England, except that he shall for- feit no more of his Lands and Tenements, Goods and Chattels, than what may be sufficient to satisfy the owner of such Slave so killed as afore- said. And in ease any shall not be able to make the satisfaction hereby required, every such person shall be sent to any Frontier Garrison of this Province, or committed to the Goal at Savannah, and there to re- main at the publie expence for the space of seven years, and to serve or to be kept to hard labour; and the pay usually allow'd by the public to the Soldiers of such Garrison, or the profits of the Labour of the Offender, shall be paid to the owner of the Slave murdered.
"And if any person shall, on sudden heat or passion, or by undue correction, kill his own Slave, or the Slave or any other Person, he shall forfeit the sum of fifty pounds sterling.
"And in case any person or persons shall wilfully eut the tongue, put out the eye, sactrate, or eruelly scald, burn, or deprive any Slave of any limb or member, or shall inflict any other cruel punishment other than by whipping or beating with a horse-whip, cow-skin, switch, or
* Colonial Records " History of Georgia, " Jones, I, pp. 480-485. Vol. 1-15
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small stick, or by putting irons on, or confining or imprisoning such Slave, every such person shall for every such offence forfeit the sum of ten pounds sterling." *
On visiting the southern confines of the province, Governor Reynolds found the Town of Frederica in ruins. The fort was dismantled. Most of the guns had been taken to Savannah, where they were lying in the sand; but some twenty cannon still remained. These-some of them eighteen-pounders-"were all spoiled for want of care." The houses in the town were in a greatly dilapidated condition; but, in the opinion of Governor Reynolds, Frederica was the best situation for a garrison to cover and protect the province from invasion by sea. On a bluff of the Ogeechee, fourteen miles from its month, Governor Reynolds found an ideal site for a seat of government. Here, on February 4, 1755, a town had been laid out to which, with the approval of the king's coun- cil, he had given the name of Hardwicke, in honor of a relative, the lord high chancellor of England. In a letter to the board of trade, dated May 1, 1755, he thus speaks of the new town : +
"Hardwicke has a charming situation, the winding of the river making it a peninsula ; and it is the only fit place for the capital. There are many objections to this Town of Savannah being so, besides its being situated at the extremity of the province, the shoalness of the river, and the great height of the land, which is very inconvenient in the loading and unloading of ships. Many lots have already been granted in Hard- wicke, but only one house is yet built there; and as the province is unable to be at the expence of erecting the necessary public buildings, and the annual sum of £500 allowed for erecting and repairing public works, entertaining Indians, and other incidental expenses being in- sufficient for all those purposes, I am in hopes your Lordships will think proper to get a sufficient sum allowed for erecting a Court-House, and Assembly-House, a Church, and a Prison at Hardwicke, which will be
* COLONIAL SLAVE LAWS .- The following regulations were in force during the whole or a part of the period in which slavery existed in Colonial Georgia. All negroes mulattoes, mestizoes, and other persons of color, except Indians in amity with the colony, were presumed to be slaves unless the contrary could be established. A slave must not be absent from the town or plantation where he belonged without a ticket from his master or overseer. When found violating this law a slave might be pun- ished by any white person. In case the slave should strike the white person, he might lawfully be killed. Patrols were organized throughout the province, with the duty of riding at least oue night in each fortnight to visit the several plantations in each district, and to whip every slave found abroad without a ticket. Slaves might not buy or sell provisions or similar articles without a ticket.
The following offenses were capital crimes when committed by a slave: Burning stacks of rice or stores of tar, or destroying similar valuable commodities; insurrec- tion, or the attempt to excite it; rape, or the attempt on a white female; assault on a white person with a dangerous weapon; maiming a white person; burglary; arson ; murder of a slave or free negro. A slave might be tried for a capital offense by two justices of the peace and three freeholders. Free negroes were included under most of the slave regulations.
The earliest law was positively barbarous in some of its provisions, such as the offer of rewards for the scalps of slaves escaped beyond the Florida boundary, and the fixing of the limit of the legal working day for slaves at sixteen hours. The harshest provisions of the first laws were not continued longer than 1765 .- U. B. Phillips, in "Georgia and State Rights, " pp. 152-153.
+ "History of Georgia," Jones, I, p. 470.
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sneh an encouragement to private people to build there as will soon make it fit for the seat of government to the universal benefit of the province,"
Antedating the administration of Governor Reynolds a community had been established in upper Georgia known as Brandon. Its founder was a man by the name of Edmund Gray, a pretended Quaker. His colony occupied a site not far from where the famous old Town of Wrightsboro flourished in after years. Bnt Gray was a dissolute char- acter and he gave Governor Reynolds no end of trouble. His settlement was composed of men who were little better than himself. To quote an authoritative account : "Brandon may be recognized as still maintaining a feeble existence in the later village of Wrightsboro, although its original features and peculiarities have encountered essential modifieations. The founder of Brandon was Edmund Gray, a pretending Quaker, who came from Virginia with a number of followers. A man of strong will and marked influence, he was nevertheless a pestilent fellow and, during the administration of Gov. Reynolds, was compelled to abandon his little town. He subsequently formed a settlement on the neutral lands lying between the Altamaha and the St. Johns. Thither flocked criminals and debtors anxious to escape the just demands of creditors." The Town of Bran- don was settled not later than 1754 and the land was probably obtained by direct purchase from the Indians.
With the assistance of De Brahm, to whose pioneer work as an en- gineer, Georgia owes a lasting debt of gratitude, Governor Reynolds spent much time in a systematic effort to strengthen the defenses of the province. Cockspur Island, Savannah, Hardwicke, Frederica and Augusta, all needed to be more securely garrisoned. Besides, the land passages called for defensive safeguards. To this end, plans and specifi- cations for strongholds at various places were submitted, with esti- mates as to the garrisons needed for each and the cost of constructing same with negro labor; but little was done toward putting this general scheme of defense into effect. The reasons for this will appear later. To conciliate the Indians. Governor Reynolds by appointment made a visit to Augusta, late in December, 1755, taking with him a number of pres- ents to be distributed. Here he spent ten days waiting for the Indians to put in an appearance. Finally he returned to Savannah, leaving these presents with his secretary, Dr. William Little, who delivered them to the Indians, together also with an address from the governor and in return received from the Indians cordial expressions of friendship.
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