USA > Georgia > The bench and bar of Georgia: memoirs and sketches. With an appendix, containing a court roll from 1790-1857, etc., volume I > Part 13
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But the whole State has sustained an irreparable loss. Who in Georgia had attained to his full stature ? As a lawyer and a citizen, who will dispute with him the premiership ? What completeness and harmony of organiza- tion of the mental, moral, and physical nature ! He aimed at noble ends, and pursued them by none other than honorable means. Whatever he attempted he did well. Nothing half done ever came from his hands; for, uncommon as were his great abilities, his industry was still more extraordinary.
Who can estimate the impulse and advance which he gave to the cause of legal learning in this city and circuit and throughout the land ? Reference has been made to his service in the Councils of the nation. Permit me to say, upon competent authority, that his Constitutional argu- ments in the Senate of the United States were exhaustive of the subjects which he discussed, and that, on such occasions, no member was deferred to more in that body. His logic was the clearness of the perfect day, approaching the certainty of mathematical demonstration.
Judge Berrien was a striking example of the love of the law,-supposed by many not to be altogether lovely; and his attachment, instead of waning, seemed to wax warmer and warmer under the pressure of super- added years. Hence his brilliant and triumphant success. He had many cotemporaries at the Supreme Court bar of the Union,-Johnson, of Maryland, Badger, of North Carolina, Crittenden, of Kentucky, and such like; but yet we may say that, while thinking of these gifted men, we feel new and increased pride in the consummate lawyer whom we have lost. Had he been placed on the bench of that court, for the headship of which he was so pre-eminently qualified, his judicial fame would have been measured by that of Mansfield, and Eldon, and Stowell, of England, and Marshall, and Kent, and Story, in this country.
But our father and friend has gone. He has taken his place higher in the same firmament whence beam the milder glories of the beloved and lamented Charlton. Ilis race is run. His course is finished. For him earth has no longer any future. He is beyond change,-beyond chance. His home is heaven.
Is it not well with him? He died happy, in the bosom of his family,
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full of years and full of honors. His bright sun has set. Far above us he dwells, in a world where there is no night !
The last time I saw Judge Berrien was under my own roof,-the sun- shine of the festive circle, and seeming "to breathe a second spring." But we shall see him no more in the flesh. How difficult to realize this sad truth ! Seek him at the domestic hearth, the office, the court-room, the Cabinet-council, the Senate-Chamber, the sanctuary, and the solemn response from each is, " He is not here : he is risen."
We shall never again witness the illumination of that countenance, which, when lighted in the glow of his mind, was almost supernatural. We shall no more listen to the silvery eloquence of those lips, " upon which the bees of Hybla might have rested."
But we forbear. The theme is exhaustless. That a deep feeling of sorrow should be entertained, when one thus virtuous and accomplished is stricken down by death, is natural; and that an expression of these feelings and a just tribute of regard for the deccased should be preserved on the records of this court, of which he was so distinguished an orna- ment, is most meet and proper. We therefore order the resolutions to be entered of record, and that the court do adjourn for the day.
Resolutions of the Georgia Legislature concerning the death of the Hon. John Macpherson Berrien.
Whereas, In the death of the Hon. John Macpherson Berrien, Georgia has sustained a loss of no ordinary magnitude,-the loss of one of her most gifted sons,-one eminent alike for all the graces that adorn private worth and the excellencies that exalt public station, and of whose dis- tinguished services during half a century every Georgian may justly feel proud,-it is mcet that we should make some record of the deep sense we entertain of this touching bereavement: Be it therefore
Resolved, That we have heard with the deepest regret of the death of the Hon. John Macpherson Berrien, whose talents while living reflected honor on his State and country, and the memory of whose services, now dead, will be traced in one of the brightest pages of their history.
Resolved, That while the pre-eminent public services of the deceased- his carcer at the bar, on the bench, in the Cabinet and the Senate-have given a lustre to his name too well earned and wide-spread to be contined within the limits of this State, Georgia mourns the loss of her illustrious son with a sadness which is peculiarly her own.
Resolved, That his Excellency the Governor be requested to forward a copy of these proceedings to the family of the deceased.
WILLIAM H. STILES, Speaker of the House of Representatives. DAVID J. BAILEY, President of the Senate.
Approved Feb. 18, 1856. HERSCHEL V. JOHNSON, Governor.
As an enduring memorial,-one that will exist while Georgia retains her organization as a sovereign State,-the Legislature, by Act of February 25, 1856, created a new county from portions of Lowndes, Irwin, and Coffee, and gave it the name of "BERRIEN,"
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in honor of the great man to whose memory the poor contribution in this volume has been made by the author, with profound respect.
NOTE TO THE MEMOIR OF JUDGE BERRIEN.
Not only the citizens of Savannah, but the public at large, no doubt, feel an interest in the matter touched upon by the Savannah Journal, as follows :- -
WHO SUNK THE WRECKS IN SAVANNAH RIVER?
In the course of the debate in the Senate on the 13th February, 1856, a warm discussion arose touching the historical truth of the fact recited in the original Appropriation Bill for Savannah River, members of the Finance Committee contending that the wrecks were placed in the river, not by the American forces for the "common defence," but by the British to prevent the French from coming up the river,-a point upon which Senator Butler, of South Carolina, spoke as follows :-
MR. PRESIDENT :- I have bad my attention drawn to this subject more than once. I recollect that on one occasion Mr. Berrien, of Georgia, on this floor certainly gave me to understand, and I think gave the Senate to understand, a very different statement of things from that which has been to-day presented to the Senate. He stated what I always understood to be the historical fact in relation to the obstructions in the Savannah River. My State, I confess, is deeply interested in their removal; but that faet would not change my opinion with regard to the Constitutional power of Congress to appropriate money to clean out rivers.
I recolleet distinctly the ground on which this appropriation has been heretofore placed, or at least the ground on which I was reconciled perhaps to make some appropriation. In 1778, Robert Howe, the American general, a North Carolinian or a Virginian, was in possession of Savannah. Campbell was the commander of the British forces who attacked Howe and drove him from Savannah, under a capitulation, I think, on Christmas day in 1778. I have always understood that the British garrison kept possession of Savannah from that period until the time when it was threatened by D'Estaing, and then ships were sunk at the mouth of the Savannah River by the British garrison, to prevent the French fleet from coming up. It was a war-measure adopted by the British and American Governments when they were alternately in possession of Savannah ; and I think, when the true faets are ascertained, it will be found that both the officer representing the Ameri- can Government and the officer representing the British Government sunk ships at the mouth of that river for the same purpose, -to protect the city of Savannah.
However that point may be, I can see a great difference between an appropriation for removing these hulks and the incidental obstructions occasioned by them, and one for regulating commeree by cutting ditches and canals or opening rivers. I recollect that on former occasions the bill making appropriations to remove these hulks underwent discussion, and the ground was distinctly taken that when the Government of the United States used the property of a State or individual for general purposes, for the common defence, it was bound, under the obligations of honor and good faith, to make compensation for the use of the property. At the period of the Revolution the Savannah River was, as it is now, a great highway of commerce. If our own Government, as one of the means of defending the city of Savannah, sunk ships there, and thus appropriated that highway for its own purposes, as one of the means of carrying on war with Great Britain, I could vote for appropriations to remove them, on the ground that when property has been taken for the public use we have made appropriations for it. When, as in the Revolution, private property was used for public purposes, -as the occupation of a house as a place of defence,-compensation has been allowed. The principle has been recognised in a general act; and so, also, when American property was destroyed or injured while in the occupation of the enemy, and destroyed by Wash-
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ington's cannon, as in the same case in Germantown, compensation had been made on the broad ground that, when flagrante bello during a state of actual war, property bad been used for public purposes, and was destroyed in consequence of such use, the Goverment was bound to allow compensation. In regard to the ships sunk in the Savannah River, I have always understood that they were placed there both by the British and American Governments, as a means of defending Savannah when they were alternately in possession of that city.
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF WAR.
Our thanks are due the Hon. Alfred Iverson for the Report of the Secretary of War, 1855-56, with accompanying documents. The follow- ing extracts will prove interesting to our readers :-
REMOVING OBSTRUCTIONS IN THE SAVANNAH RIVER, AT A PLACE CALLED THE WRECKS .- Since September 30, 1844, the pile-work closing the upper end of Fig Island channel has been completed, and an embankment of moderate extent placed along the foot of the piles as a protection against the washing of a rapid ebb-current. This work now serves to turn the volume of water which formerly passed through the Fig Island channel to the Front River. The increased volume and velocity thus given to the water flowing down the latter channel tends to give permanence to the greater depth which has been obtained by dredging over the Wreck bank and along the southern edges of Garden bank. The greater part of the funds expended in the prosecution of this work of improvement, during the past year, has been supplied by the city of Savannah, as the appropriation of $40,000, approved August 30, 1852, had been previously expended, with the exception of a small balance, in working the dredging-machines. The total number of cubic yards dredged from the shoals in the channel of Front River, since the commencement of this work of improvement, is 102,500 cubic yards, giving a channel full ten feet To make deep at mean low-water, or sixteen and a half feet at mean high-water. this channel permanent, however, it is essential that the deflecting works proposed by the commission at the upper end of Hutchinson's Island, and at the lower end of Fig Island, should be constructed at an early day. But as the appropriation of $161,000 for the Savannah River, approved March 3, 1854, is specific, it can, in its present form, be applied only to the removal of the obstructions placed in the river during the Revolutionary War for the common defence, and the accumulations of sand and mud immediately over and around these obstructions or wrecks. In order that these flats and shoals, which have been caused by these sunken wrecks at other points of the Front River, may be removed, and in a permanent manner, I would most earnestly advise the Department to urge upon Congress such a modi- tication of the phraseology of the act of 3d of March last as will make the amount applicable to the completion of the plan reported by the Commissioners and approved by the War Department in 1853.
The 6th of August last, the work of dredging was resumed on the Wreck bank. and has been prosecuted with as much regularity since as the weather would permit. The dredge-boat, tug-boat, and scows employed at this work were char- tered from the former contractor to execute work by the cubic yard for the period of six months ; but experience has now demonstrated that the chartered machinery is too weak to dredge on the wrecks to the same advantage as a machine of greater power. It is therefore advised that steps be taken to procure a dredge or elevating- machine of greater power, to be employed on the wrecks after the expiration of the charter now existing, provided the restrictive character of the act of appropriation be removed by further legislative action.
SURVEY OF THE RIVER OCKMULGEE, GA .- The survey is completed. The map is finished, but is still in the hands of the draughtsman, whose work has been much hindered by sickness. As soon as the map is received the report will be prepared and forwarded.
IV. EDWARD J. BLACK.
THIS gentleman is entitled to a high place in public estimation, as his brief history will prove. He had qualities which made him felt and appreciated wherever he was known. His record is without blemish, and may be summed up on good authority.
In reply to a letter from the author, a gentleman* of Augusta courteously furnished some interesting passages :-
Mr. Black was a schoolmate of mine, and received almost his entire education at the Richmond Academy in this place. He never was much of a student; but his ambition, which was great, would doubtless have led him to steady application had it not been for his frail health. When about twenty-one years of age, he was attacked with hemorrhage of the lungs, to which he was ever after occasionally subject. As his mother had died of consumption, he expected the same fate as the issue of his disease ; and this tended much to weaken his energy and cast a gloom over his future prospects.
The principal lawyers in the circuit where Mr. Black practised were Messrs. Flournoy, Reid, (his uncle,) Crawford, Jenkins, Cummings, Wil- liam and John Schley.
His taste was for letters rather than science. From his want of re- gular study, he was not profound, but on occasions was very brilliant. He was fond of poetry, and wrote verses of very decided poetic inerit. He excelled in the humorous ; and some of his early effusions, published in the Constitutionalist over the signature of "Quip, Crank & Co.," are quite creditable productions, and were well received here. In his speeches he often indulged in witty sarcasm, and was quite a formidable antagonist. If his opponent gave any opening for ridicule, he generally seized upon it and showed him up without much mercy.
The same gentleman procured from a sister of Mr. Black a statement which answers the questions propounded by the author. It is here given without abridgment, though perhaps it was intended rather as suggestive than otherwise :-
1. EDWARD J. BLACK was born in Beaufort district, South Carolina, in the year 1806. His father's name was William Black, a native also of the same district, and a gentleman of fortune, but lost a portion of it by an unfortunate security-debt, and in consequence, for economy's sake, moved his family and planting-interest to Barnwell district, where Ed- ward J. Black remained until about eight years old. Being a boy of
* Dr. Ignatius P. Garvin.
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unusual talents, the late Gov. Reid, his mother's brother, took him home with him to Augusta, placed him at the Rev. Mr. Brantley's school, directed his studies, and, no doubt, daily strengthened his natural taste for litera- ture. He never went to college, and laughed at the idea of a nominal college education, but read and searched out every thing for himself, feeling that more depended on his own research than the august reputa- tion of college professors. It may be said he was educated in Augusta ; for, though not a very strict attendant at school, it was there his appre- hension of letters, men and measures, strong intellect, great power of thinking quickly, perceiving the right and wrong of any question, were developed. I have often heard him say he was indebted to his fond mother for his early ideas of oratory, botany, habits of reading, &c. He esteemed her the unparalleled of her sex in natural talent, education, accomplishments, and personal appearance. She was indeed a noble woman ; and her piety sustained her in her many trials of life, which was only extended to thirty-two years.
2. He read law under Judge Reid, was admitted to the bar at the age of twenty-one years, (in 1827,) and practised a short time in Augusta in company with Judge Reid. A few years after, he married Miss Kirk- land, a lady of fine sense, beauty, and wealth, of Barnwell, and then settled in Scriven county, lived on his plantation, devoting himself to his family, studies, planting, politics, and the practice of law. He was a very domestic man, and, although so fitted for society and the world, he never loved its glare and bustle, and always shrank from the multitude. A tea or dinner party, where each one was to measure his words, study attitude, or dress as a narrow-minded tailor might dictate, was his aversion. But place him in his own drawing-room, or anywhere else where he dared be natural or sensible, and then you would see what he was. No one, on those occasions, failed to be charmed by his good-humor, wit, and gaiety.
3. He obtained a great deal of practice, and was a hard student at times,-not always : his health would not admit of constant study ; but he could see through a case, seize the best points of it, and know how to manage it, while other men would be wondering what was best to be done.
4. Ilis style was any thing the occasion called for, -diffuse or compact, as the case required. His language was easy and eloquent, always to the point. On the spur of the moment he made as good a speech as if he had had a week to consider. His anecdotes and stories were always told in his peculiarly original and laughable manner. When well, his spirits were light and buoyant, full of hope. IIe was entertaining to the young and the old, to the ignorant and the learned. He avoided all display or manner that would make an ignorant man feel his own inferiority ; and to the honest poor he was ever a warm friend. On the other hand, he could be grave, and sombre, and thoughtful, with a heart always open to the distress of others and never neglecting the unfortunate.
5. He died in 1849, at the residence of Mr. G. Robinson, (Mrs. Black's grandfather,) in Barnwell district, whither he had gone for a change of scene. He lived but three weeks after his arrival there; and, notwith- standing the tender care of his family, his sufferings were intense,-and he endured them well, though at times so desponding the mental darkness was scarcely endurable. But when reaction would come he would be as bright and patient as ever. His love and tenderness for his family was absorbing. He would follow them with loving cyes; and the thought of
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leaving them so soon to contend alone with the trials of life filled his heart with regret. But from the first he knew he must die. He there- fore arranged his temporal matters, and committed his soul and body to his heavenly Father, feeling that he had made his peace with God and man, patiently awaited his final hour, which was passed without one struggle ; and so casily did he pass from time into eternity that his family, who surrounded him, knew not the moment of the spirit's flight.
With regard to his intellect, disposition, and manner, I could say much ; but the public know as much about that as I do. His intellect was clear. He perceived quickly and understood thoroughly. He had a genius for every thing,-music as well as politics,-and, with his power of mimicry, would have made as good an actor as orator. His disposition was kind. He never took advantage of the weak; but he never spared an enemy of power. At home, in his family, he was all love and good-humor, taking every thing just as it happened. But in the court-house, in the House of Representatives, or elsewhere in public, he always maintained his opinions with spirit, and, if requisite, a little touch of sarcasm was at his command. He was independent in his feelings and actions, and, once right, he defied the world. Policy was not his ruling principle. His manner was easy, and a natural polish marked his manly bearing. He was not a slave to habits or customs, but, with his native politeness, acted on every occasion as his own good judgment dictated.
The public life of Mr. Black commenced in 1829, when he was elected a Representative in the Legislature from Richmond county, and was re-elected in 1830. He at once became prominent as a debater, and was heard with great satisfaction on the floor and in the galleries. His praise as a witty, animated, graceful speaker was sounded in every quarter. The author saw him for the first time at the session of 1830, when Mr. Black signalized himself by a course of bitter opposition to Franklin College. The Journal of the House (p. 108) contains this entry, under date of November 2, 1830 :-
Mr. Black, agreeably to notice, moved for the appointment of a com- mittee to prepare and report a bill to remove the site of Franklin College from Athens to Milledgeville, and to appropriate money for the crection of suitable buildings for that purpose, and to appoint fit and proper persons for designating the spot upon which said buildings shall be erected, and for superintending the erection of the same.
Ordered, That Messrs. Black, Dougherty, and Howard of Baldwin, be that committee.
For what particular reason he agitated this measure, or what good he expected to accomplish by it, the author is not prepared to say. IIc remembers to have heard Mr. Black, while discussing some question in the House, make very light of the scholarship of the university, stating that he had received "Bucket letters" from the students, with such poor spelling as to render it a sufficient cause for him to turn off his overseer had he perpetrated such inaccuracy
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in a note relative to his plantation. He was quite merry and sc- vere on the subject, causing much laughter,-mostly, however, at his own expense in appearing to think that the students had ex- pended all their ability and intelligence in framing those letters, when in truth their only object was to annoy him for some indig- nity he had offered them as a class, and to disguise their style so as to prevent detection. Possibly he supposed that, by having the college under the immediate inspection of the Legislature, a higher tone in letters and in morals might be infused by social contact with the members of that body. Mr. Black was then only twenty-four years old, and may have indulged this theory,-which further ex- perience, no doubt, led him to abandon. From a hasty examina- tion of the journal, no evidence is seen that the bill was ever re- ported by the committee proposing to discontinue the college at Athens and rear it up again at the seat of government. Mr. Speaker Hull, who was always vigilant and fair, so arranged the committee as to represent both localities. Judge Dougherty was of Athens, and Major Howard of Milledgeville, whilst Mr. Black was between, fighting as earnestly as a certain Spanish cavalier who drove his lance into a machine described by Cervantes, which threw rider and horse both prostrate without material damage to the machine. It is probable that when the committee met for con- sultation the majority voted down the project, and thus left the originator powerless, as he could not introduce his bill except through a committee. With all due respect for Mr. Black and his motives, it is a matter of gratulation that he failed to disturb the college, which continues to hold up its head on the beautiful elevation at Athens, whilst some of its jolly inmates still write " bucket letters" to such persons as they believe will profit by that kind of correspondence.
Mr. Black was a candidate for Attorney-General in 1831, and was defeated by one vote. The ballot stood-C. J. Jenkins, 108 ; E. J. Black, 105 ; scattering, 2.
It is not necessary to follow up the interval from 1830, showing what courts Mr. Black attended, in what important cases he ap- peared as counsel, or what articles he wrote for the newspapers, or what speeches he made in support of the Whig party, until his election to Congress in 1838. It suffices to say that, in 1840, he, with two of his colleagues (Messrs. Colquitt and Cooper) of the House of Representatives, divided from the remaining delegation from Georgia by refusing to support Gen. Harrison for the Presi- VOL. I .- 8
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