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 45
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dollars and thirty-seven cents, and that the sum of five hundred and fifty- one dollars and forty-seven cents remains on hand in " notes, accounts, and attorneys' receipts," mostly on insolvent persons, and all barred by the statute of limitations. I have inspected a list of these debts, a copy of which is marked No. 30, and was informed by Col. Blount that no part had been collected. Those corresponding in amount and description with those mentioned in the report of 1824 are believed to be the same, and the only bad debts which accumulated in the hands of the commissioners during their service, by which a balance of one hundred and forty-eight dollars and forty-two cents is left in favor of the commissioners, exceeding their receipts. The public hands were increased to twenty-one, sixteen of whom were delivered to the marshal of Milledgeville, as will be seen by a copy of his receipt, marked A, and a part of the balance sold, and others died. None of the proceeds of sale were received by the commissioners with whom I settled, but their successors, for which Mr. Hines, former States' Agent, has accounted.
In the report of Mr. Hines, acted upon by the last Legislature, allusion was made to a settlement which Col. Blount, in behalf of the board, had made with Gen. Blackshear for moneys received and expended by the latter. This reckoning extended several years beyond the report in Senate of 1824, and was simply an ascertainment, between members of the same board, how funds committed to each had been applied. Col. Blount was of opinion, as stated in his letter to Mr. Hines, that he had omitted to charge Gen. Blackshear with five hundred dollars received from John T. Rowland. In that settlement, a copy of which I have before me, it is perceived that Gen. Blackshear was charged with ten hundred and twenty dollars received from Mr. Rowland, generally, without referring to any particular date. I considered it due to the State, to all the members of the board, and particularly in justice to Gen. Blackshear, that this should be sought into and explained, and herewith submit a copy of Col. Blount's communication to me, marked B, and the account it enclosed, marked C, which puts the matter at rest. By the document which I have taken as a guide, I am clearly impressed that the State as well as commissioners acquired rights which it is not my business to disurb, and that all trans- actions between the parties up to 2d December, 1824, are adjusted by solemn legislation.
I have thus endeavored, in the best manner of which I am capable, to perform the duties required by my appointment, and earnestly hope that the result may be approved by your Excelleney and satisfactory to the Legislaturc. I am, most respectfully, sir, your obedient servant,
STEPHEN F. MILLER.
His Excellency GEORGE R. GILMER.
The communication of the Governor and report of the Agent were referred to the Committee on Agriculture and Internal Improvement.
REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE.
IN SENATE, December 16, 1831.
The Committee on Agriculture and Internal Improvement, to whom was referred the report of Stephen F. Miller, the agent appointed under
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a resolution of the last Legislature to effect a full settlement with the Commissioners of the Oconee River below Milledgeville, together with the accompanying documents, have had the same under their attentive con- sideration, aud ask leave to submit the following report :-
The agent has properly, in the opinion of the committee, limited his investigation to the period between the 2d December, 1824, at which time the funds and property of the association were ascertained, a satisfactory report made thereon to the Legislature, and the creation of the new board by the act of 26th December, 1826. By the account-current accompany- ing the report, it appears that the commissioners have had in disposable funds, including bank-stock, $13,901 42, and that they have expended $13,498 37,-leaving a balance in the hands of the commissioners of $403 05. The agent remarks that the balance against the commissioners consists chiefly of notes, accounts, and attorneys' receipts, mostly on insol- vent persons, and all barred by the statute of limitations, and that he was informed by Col. Blount that no part of the same had been collected. The agent also states that lie has inspected a list of these debts, a copy of which is appended to his report, marked No. 30; that they correspond in amount and description with those mentioned in the report of 1824; that they are in his opinion the same, and that they are the only bad debts which accumulated in the hands of the commissioners during their service. Admitting that the commissioners have done all that could have been reasonably expected of them in the collection of these debts, there would be a balance in their favor of $148 42; but this they do not even assert, nor does it appear that all of the above-mentioned debts were bad ; so that the committee cannot assume the settlement to be complete until those evidences of debt are more satisfactorily accounted for; and in no event, in the opinion of the committee, could the commissioners rightfully charge the State more than the amount of the funds placed in their hands : though it is the opinion of the committee, under the circum- stances as they are presented in the report of the agent, that a further prosecution of the settlement with the commissioners would only result in expense to the State without any corresponding benefit.
The public hands under the control of the commissioners have been accounted for to the satisfaction of the committee.
It appears by the report of Mr. Hines, made to the late Governor and acted on by the last Legislature, that Col. Blount believed he had omitted to charge Gen. Blackshear with $500 paid him by Mr. Rowland : it now appears that the transaction took place previous to the settlement acted on by the Legislature in 1824, and consequently, in the opinion of the com- mittee, must have been accounted for in that settlement. The committee, in conclusion, respectfully recommend the adoption of the following resolution :-
Resolved, That the further interference of the Legislature in regard to the settlement with the Commissioners of the Oconee River is unnecessary.
Approved, December 26, 1831.
It is due to the character of the Hon. Beverly Allen, who was chairman of the committee, to say that he had long been a faithful Senator from Elbert county and was a man highly respected for his virtues and intelligence. The communication of the Governor, the report of the agent, and the report of the committee were all
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published in the Georgia Journal of January 12, 1832, as a final settlement with the commissioners.
SERVICE IN THE LEGISLATURE.
Whether Gen. Blackshear had served in the Legislature previous to his return from his military expedition against the Indians and British, the author has not been able to satisfy himself, and of course cannot enlighten his readers on the subject. From con- versations he has had with Gen. Blackshear about the inception and defeat of the Yazoo Grant and the stormy times in the Legis- lature at Louisville, of which he was an eye-witness in 1795-96, it is probable that he was a Representative from Washington county, standing side by side with Gen. James Jackson in repealing that iniquitous measure. It is certain, however, as the journals will show, that he was a Senator from Laurens county from the year 1816 to 1825, inclusive, until he voluntarily retired from public life.
At page 67 of the Senate Journal for 1816 the following entry appears, as of December 16 :-
Mr. Blackshear, from the committee appointed to make arrangements for the funeral and interment of the Honorable GEORGE G. NOWLAN, a Senator from the county of Effingham, reported the following resolu- tions :-
Resolved, That the Senate, deeply impressed with the sudden and unexpected dispensation of Providence which hath deprived it of one of its most valuable members, will wear crape on the left arm during the remainder of the session, and for ten days thereafter, as a testimonial of their high respect for the deceased.
Resolved, That the said committee do, in the name of the Senate, invite his Excellency the Governor, the Speaker and members of the House of Representatives, with all the Executive officers, to attend the interment of the deceased to-morrow at nine o'clock A.M.
Resolved, That the committee appointed do wait on the Rev. Myles Greene, and request him to attend on the said interment.
At the session of 1823, Gen. Blackshear was appointed Chair- man of the Committee on the State of the Republic, the other members being Messrs. Berrien, Jones of Baldwin, Cook, Allen of Burke, Val. Walker, and Wooten. A few passages from the journal will be given :-
P. 49. On motion of Mr. Blackshear, --
Resolved, That the Judiciary Committee be instructed to inquire into the expediency of reporting a bill to prevent the repeated running away of slaves under aggravated circumstances, with death or such other
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punishment as the court or jury may think best calculated to prevent the pernicious practice.
[The Committee on the Judiciary were Messrs. Berrien, Gamble, Bur- ney, Wellborn, Bouner, and Robinson.]
P. 94. On motion of Mr. Blackshear,-
Resolved, That the Judiciary Committee be instructed to inquire into the expediency of reporting a bill to enable a jury to find a divorce, on legal principles, for acts of either of the parties after as well as before the contract of matrimony is entered into.
P. 94. On motion of Mr. Blackshear,-
Resolved, That the Judiciary Committee be instructed to inquire into the expediency of reporting a bill to have for its object so to amend the penal code as not to subject persons convicted of crime resulting from the heat of passion, or self-defence, to penitentiary punishment, but in the usual mode.
An event occurred at this session which the author thinks may with propriety be noticed in this memoir,-the death of William Robertson, Secretary of the Senate, who had filled the office some twenty-five or thirty years with credit to himself and with the approbation of the whole country. He was indeed a faithful public servant, who died at his post,-a warm personal friend of Gen. Blackshear.
P. 95. November 24, 1823, Mr. Berrien presented the following report :-
It being represented to the Senate that William Robertson, Esquire, late Secretary of this House, hath departed this life yesterday at the seat of Government, in indigent circumstances ;
And it appearing to this House that it is a just tribute of respect to the memory of a man whose public services have been so long devoted to the people of Georgia, and to this House in particular, that the funeral of the deceased should be conducted under its immediate superintendence, and at the public expense :
Therefore Resolred, That Messrs. Berrien, Walker, Coffee, Groves, and Baker, be a committee to make the necessary arrangements for the funeral of the said William Robertson, and that they report thereon without delay to this House, to the intent that the President and members may attend the same.
And be it further Resolved, That the Governor be, and he is hereby, requested to defray, out of the contingent fund, the expense of the funeral and last sickness of the said William Robertson, deceased.
P. 98. Mr. Berrien, from the committee to make arrangements for the funeral of William Robertson, Esq., late Secretary of the Senate, re- ported,-
That the committee had made the necessary arrangements for that purpose ; that they have united on the Rev. William Capers, who would attend on the interment of the deceased ; that the committee had, in the name of the Senate, invited his Excellency the Governor, the Speaker and members of the House of Representatives, with all the State-House officers, to attend the interment of the deceased, this evening, [Nov. 24,] at three o'clock, and that the funeral-procession be formed at the house of
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Mr. Betton at that time, and proceed to the place of interment in the following order :-- 1. The clergy, with the committee of arrangements ; 2. The CORPSE, supported by six members of the Senate as pall-bearers ; 3. The President and members of the Senate as chief mourners, two-and- two; 4. The Governor and State-House officers ; 5. The Speaker and members of the House of Representatives, two-and-two; 6. Citizens, two- and-two.
The most important document with which the name of Gen. Blackshear was connected during the session was a response to the special message of Gov. Troup, stating the rights of Georgia to the lands occupied by the Indians within her chartered limits, and insisting that the General Government should be urged, by every possible means, to extinguish the Indian possessory title at the earliest moment, under the compact of 1802.
P. 278. Mr. Blackshear, from the Joint Committee on the State of the Republic, made the following report :-
The Committee on the State of the Republic, to whom was referred the communication of his Excellency the Governer on the subject of the ex- tinguishment of Indian claims to the lands within the territorial limits of Georgia, beg leave to report,-
That they have derived much gratification from the perusal of this interesting document. It presents to them an unequivocal manifestation of the disposition of the Executive to sustain the just rights of the State on the important subject of the extension of her jurisdictional limits, with a firmness which is tempered by discretion, and a zeal which is guided by intelligence,-a disposition to which, in the unanimous opinion of this committee, every suggestion of duty and every feeling of honorable pride on the part of this Legislature will be accordant and responsive.
The committee do not deem it necessary, in this report, to enter into a minute examination of the luminous exposition of the rights of this State which is contained in the communication of his Excellency the Governor. Adopting it, as they do, unanimously and in its whole extent, they be- lieve they will best perform the duty which is assigned them by recom- mending that an address be presented to the President of the United States, based on the principles and fortified by the arguments of the com- munication. They ask leave, therefore, to report the following memorial and resolution.
Here follows a memorial to the President of the United States, from which the following is an extract :-
In recurring to the articles of agreement and cession entered into between the commissioners of the United States and of Georgia, on the twenty-fourth day of April, 1802, these memorialists find a stipulation that the United States shall, as soon as may be, extinguish the Indian title to all the lands within the State of Georgia. This stipulation was not gratuitous on the part of the Government of the Union, but was in consideration of the surrender by the State of Georgia of a territory suf- ficiently valuable and extensive to constitute two independent and powerful members of the Federal compact. The motive to this surrender cannot
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be misunderstood. In consenting thus to restrict her right of soil and her sovereignty, Georgia looked, with the confidence which she has always reposed in the plighted faith of the Union, to the prompt extinguishment of the Indian title to all the lands within her remaining limits, and the speedy settlement of her then, and still, vacant territory. Limiting her ultimate views of extensive empire, she had hoped by such limitation to escape from the helplessness of a protracted infancy, and, marching in quick time to the accomplishment of her destinies, to have seen her laws and her sovereignty coextensive with the limits of the territory within which she had consented to confine herself. Twenty-one years have passed away, and she is still destined to experience the disappointment of her hopes. She has witnessed, during this period, the extension of the Union, the multiplication of members of the Federal Republic, by repeated acquisitions of territory, while she is still doomed to have a long line. of frontier exposed to the predatory incursions of the savage, and the lives of her citizens who dwell there, to his subtle and relentless vengeance.
The report and resolution were unanimously agreed to by the Senate and in the same way concurred in by the House.
Extracts might be multiplied from the journal of the Senate, showing the part Gen. Blackshear took in legislation, his motions of inquiry, his amendments to bills, and his reports from committee. He justly exercised great influence in the Legislature, and the wisest and most experienced minds were glad to confer with him. He occasionally addressed the Senate, always. to the point, and with a manner so positive and dignified, and a voice so clear and rich in expression, that he never failed to command the most per- fect attention. IIe was usually an observer of forms ; but on one well-known occasion he laid aside mere etiquette and gave way to his feelings. This was in 1818, when the two Houses had convened to elect a Senator in Congress. He rose, and confessed that it was not customary to advocate the claims of any candidate, beyond the simple announcement of his name, while assembled on joint-ballot ; but he would take the liberty of saying that the country needed a man of the highest qualifications, and such a man was John Forsyth, whose talents and patriotism all admired. He therefore proposed Mr. Forsyth to represent Georgia in the Senate of the United States, and he wanted him elected by a large vote. The scale was at once turned, and Mr. Forsyth was triumphantly elected. To Gen. Blackshear belonged the praise of first intro- ducing him, amid discouraging prospects, (in a party sense,) to that sphere in which he gained so much national renown.
RESIGNATION AS BRIGADIER-GENERAL.
Long before his commission as brigadier-general in 1812, Gen. Blackshear had made military tacties and the methods of fortifica-
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tion and defence a subject of carnest study. He understood well how to employ his command in the field, in presence of the enemy, though, beyond a few skirmishes with the Indians, he never had the opportunity of leading his troops into battle. He was a man of quiet chivalry, and never compromised with danger where duty called. He was a good disciplinarian, rather stern in enforcing system, and had his reviews conducted properly as often as the law required. Whether it be possible for any inspector, adjutant, or even major-general, to improve the militia into a warlike corps, has yet to be tested. Whatever could be done by the best drill- officers, and the most persevering practice, Gen. Blackshear ac- complished in his brigade.
The author claims the thanks of the reader in advance for ex- hibiting a document which has never been excelled in delicacy of expression and force of compliment ; and no one but the writer of it could produce its equal :-
EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT, MILLEDGEVILLE, February 21, 1826.
DEAR SIR :- It would be ungenerous, after you had filled so many offices of trust and honor, civil and military, and all to the satisfaction and advantage of your country, to deny to you, in the decline of life, the privilege to retire from your military command. I regret, notwith- standing, that the infirmities of age, or any other cause, should deprive the public of your usefulness in any sphere of action. It is known to me that, if your strength has departed, your patriotism remains unquenched, and that in any peril or danger threatened to the country we can still confidently appeal to that first of virtues which has never failed you in the worst of times, and which you will carry with you to the grave. Your resignation is accepted, with a sincere hope that many days of happiness remain for you. G. M. TROUP.
Brig. Gen. BLACKSHEAR.
The author begs to publish in this connection a letter he received from Gov. Troup, to whom he had addressed one of his circulars to collect matter for the biographies in this work, and also a pri- vate letter requesting him to furnish, at his leisure, such outlines, facts, and suggestions about the public men of Georgia, within the range of his extensive acquaintance, as he might think proper. The following is the brief yet courteous reply, and the author regrets that it is the only communication he ever received from that distinguished citizen on the subject :-
LAURENS COUNTY, September 4, 1851.
DEAR SIR :- My health is very feeble, and I cannot promise aught ; but it would give me great pleasure to be able hereafter to oblige and serve you.
Very respectfully,
G. M. TROUP.
STEPHEN F. MILLER, Esq.
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His resignation only completed what he had otherwise done in part,-his withdrawal from public life altogether, at the close of the session of the Legislature for 1825. Nor did Gen. Blackshear per- mit his name to be used for any public trust afterward, except as a
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTOR.
In 1800, he was in the Electoral College of Georgia, and voted for Mr. Jefferson as President, and Aaron Burr as Vice-President, such being the ticket of the Republican party. Twenty-eight years afterward, he was also an elector, and voted, in 1828, for Andrew Jackson for President, and probably for William Smith, of South Carolina, for Vice-President, of the United States,-thus having the singular fortune of aiding to displace both the elder and the younger Adams from the Executive of the Union, each at the end of one term. Mr. Calhoun was the regular candidate for the Vice-Presidency on the Jackson ticket in 1828; but, as a personal feud existed between that gentleman and the Hon. William H. Crawford, growing out of the Presidential contest of 1824, the State of Georgia, which adhered to Mr. Crawford, refused to sup- port his adversary, only two of the electors voting for Mr. Calhoun. The names of the Presidential electors in 1828 were David Black- shear, of Laurens; Augustin S. Clayton, of Clark ; Solomon Graves, of Newton; John J. Maxwell, of Bryan ; John Moore, of Oglethorpe ; Oliver Porter, of Greene ; Robert R. Reid, of Richmond ; John Ru- therford, of Baldwin, and William Terrell, of Hancock.
Gen. Blackshear was also a Presidential elector in 1832, for the last time. The names of his colleagues appear in the following message of the Governor, taken from the Senate Journal, p. 161 :-
EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT, GEORGIA, MILLEDGEVILLE, December 3, 1832.
I have deemed it proper to communicate to the General Assembly that the persons elected electors of President and Vice-President of the United States-viz., Beverly Allen, Elias Beall, David Blackshear, William B. Bulloch, John Floyd, Seaton Grantland, Hines Holt, Henry Jackson. William Terrell, John Whitehead, and Wilson Williams, Esqs .- are in attendance at the seat of Government, and have signified their acceptance of the appointment conferred upon them by the people.
WILSON LUMPKIN.
CONDUCT OF JUDGE FORT.
By reference to No. 130 of annexed papers will be seen a letter from Col. Scaborn Jones to Gen. Blackshear, dated January 23, 1825, relative to a proceeding in chancery, at the instance of Archibald B. Ridley and wife, against Joseph Blackshear, executor of Elijah Blackshear, deceased, to recover a large estate. In a VOL. I .- 25
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note to that letter, the author has made allusion to certain charges preferred by Col. Joseph Blackshear against Judge Fort, who pre- sided on the trial of the case, and whose decisions were deemed erroneous, either from improper motives, or incapacity resulting from habitual intoxication. As the brothers were strongly united, all men of large property and of high character, the case natu- rally enlisted a great deal of public attention, and gave rise to parties for and against a recovery. After final decrec had, the Clerk* of Laurens Superior Court refused to issue an execution ; and this brought upon him a mandamus, which Judge Fort made absolute. The execution was then issued. Col. Blackshear, who thought himself aggrieved, laid a memorial before the Legislature at its session in 1827, the proceedings on which are noticed of record :-
[From the Journal of the House of Representatives.]
P. 168. The Speaker laid before the House a communication from Joseph Blackshear in relation to the conduct of Judge Fort, which was read and referred to a select committee, consisting of Messrs. Dougherty, Burnside, Haynes, Saffold, Stiles, Copp, and Davis.
Mr. Dougherty offered a resolution, which was read, amended, and agreed to, as follows,-to wit :
Resolved, That the select committee to whom was referred the commu- nication of Joseph Blackshear, preferring charges against Moses Fort, Judge of the Southern circuit, be authorized and empowered to send for persons and papers to investigate said charges, and that said committee notify said judge of the investigation, and furnish him with a copy of the charges.
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