USA > North Carolina > Biographical history of North Carolina from colonial times to the present; > Part 30
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Popular and attentive to their business, they soon established an extensive and lucrative practice and won many friends in their county. Following in the footsteps of his father, the subject of
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this sketch attached himself to the Democratic Party, and in 1850 he was elected as a Democrat a representative from Rockingham County to the Legislature, and served with great acceptability to his constituents, but he had no liking for public life and never afterward sought any political preferment. He was ambitious to excel in a professional career, and in 1854 was elected Solicitor of his district. In performing the important duties of this office he attained widespread celebrity for his fearless discharge of duty and as being a master of the criminal law. He had married early in life Miss Mary Cain, a lovely lady of his native community, and his father being then a resident of Alamance County, he moved to Graham, continuing, however, his partnership relations with Mr. Dillard in the Rockingham business. At that period Mr. Ruffin held rank among the foremost of the younger lawyers of the State. With a fine person and a high order of intelligence, he united strong characteristics and high professional attainments. His home at Graham was a center of a charming circle and the life of his household was most happy and enviable.
While he entered but little into politics, he was much interested in the vital questions that convulsed the South in 1860, and with great earnestness he advocated the election of Breckenridge, the nominee of the regular Democratic Convention. Although he was not an advocate of secession in the earlier stages of the trouble, he realized that it became every Southern man to stand shoulder to shoulder when war had become inevitable. When news was received of the first gun being fired at Fort Sumter, Mr. Ruffin im- mediately organized a company in Alamance County, and on April 16th hastened with it to Fort Macon, and together with others seized that fort and held it for the State of North Caro- lina. Upon the organization of military forces by the State he was on May 3. 1861, duly commissioned Captain of his company, and he continued to serve with it when it was organized as a part of the Third Regiment, later known as the Thirteenth Regiment of North Carolina Troops. Its first colonel was William D. Pender, who was succeeded in the Fall of 1861 by Colonel A. M. Scales. In October, 1861, Judge Dick, of the Superior Court,
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died, and Governor Ellis tendered the appointment to Captain Ruffin, who accepted it, and he held the remaining terms of the first court. But he felt drawn to the military service and resign- ing returned to his company in the field.
On April 26, 1862, upon the reorganization of the volunteer regiments Captain Ruffin was elected Lieutenant-Colonel of the Thirteenth, which was under General Colston and on duty near Williamsburg on the Peninsula. It was there that the regiment had its first engagement, Colonel Ruffin being in command of the left wing. It was a hand-to-hand fight, which lasted but a few min- utes, some of the Thirteenth being bayoneted; but if short it was hot. The companies engaged under the direction of Colonel Ruffin behaved with the greatest gallantry and utmost coolness. "Not a man moved except to the front." Colonel Ruffin served with distinction along with the Thirteenth throughout the battles be- fore Richmond and in the battles at Second Manassas, South Mountain and Sharpsburg, the regiment being then in Garland's Brigade, and he was in command of it on the return from Mary- land. At South Mountain, the regiment, under Colonel Ruffin, covered itself with glory. Garland's Brigade alone defended the pass against a division led by General Butterfield. Brigade after brigade assaulted our line, but each time they were driven back with heavy loss. Never was there a more stubborn contest. "Ow- ing to the fact that Colonel Ruffin was very careful of the lives of his men, cautioning them against unnecessary exposure, the casualties of the Thirteenth were fewer than might have been ex- pected, but it was one of the most heroic actions of the war." In that battle Colonel Ruffin was severely wounded, and in March following he resigned his commission in the army. It was about that time that he was recommended by the officers of the Twelfth Regiment to be appointed Colonel of that regiment. He, however, declined to accept that position, but was soon afterward appointed Presiding Judge of the court of Kirby Smith's corps in the West- ern army, which he continued to hold until the end of the war. On the field he had exhibited a fearless courage and unusual coolness in positions of peril and difficulty, and he was distinguished for
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his sympathy with the soldiers and his care and kindness for them.
As presiding judge he discharged his duties with considera- tion, and with a spirit that met the approbation of the Confederate authorities.
After the war he returned to his home and sought to battle with the adversities that surrounded the home life of the South- ern people. He was by no means a political agitator ; on the con- trary, his breadth of view was that of a statesman, and his dis- position was to foster in the hearts of the people a complacent ac- quiescence in the unfortunate termination of the struggle for Southern independence. He recognized the facts and was not un- mindful of the logic of events ; but the spirit of the Northern people was too intolerant to win his approbation, and he took his place among his neighbors and friends in their great effort to secure for the people of the State the control of their local affairs. In 1868 he steadfastly opposed the Reconstruction measures and the pro- ceedings of the Federal authorities under them.
While never a prominent leader in public affairs, he was always a faithful and steady friend to and an advocate of all measures tending to the amelioration of social conditions, and he sought to elevate public sentiment and to add by his example and counsel to the march of virtuous, enlightened and material progress. De- voting himself with patience to his professional work, he became well known as one of the strongest and most resourceful lawyers of the State. As an advocate it has been said that he was truly eloquent. While his language was not remarkable for its elegance, it was pure and forcible and his argument was convincing and aroused the fervid emotions of his audience. He prepared his cases with great labor and fortified them strongly with well-ar- ranged evidence and selected his authorities with careful dis- crimination. In forensic debate he was a formidable adversary, fertile in intellectual resources, well equipped and persistent and energetic in maintaining his position, and ready with quick per- ception to take immediate advantage of any mistake on the part of opposing counsel.
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Judge Dick mentions in particular a speech that greatly im- pressed him :
"The incidents and outside facts relating to his client that awakened his sympathies and called forth his intellectual powers were that she was poor, a woman, a widow, a stranger, without money and far from friends and her home. There may have been greater speeches at the bar than he delivered ; but for clearness of statement, for force of logic, for keenness of invec- tive, for nobility of sentiment, and for tenderness of pathos, I have never heard the speech equaled in any forum."
He again became associated in partnership with Judge Dillard and conducted a joint business with him until the latter was ele- vated to the Supreme Court bench in 1878, and after that he con- tinued to practice alone. Year by year he grew more and more largely in the public estimation and came to be regarded as the first lawyer of the State. At the time of the sale of the Western North Carolina Railroad in 1880, he was employed with Honorable George Davis to advise the Legislature and to put the contract in proper shape. This work, because of its delicate nature and the many provisions the contract necessarily contained to guard the interest of the State, was highly important, and the skill displayed by these distinguished attorneys in its preparation gained for them unmerited applause, which was not diminished when they avowed that on their part it was the work of patriotism, and that they would receive no compensation for their labor.
Upon the resignation of Judge Dillard in 1881 the profession at once turned to Judge Ruffin as his most worthy successor, and Governor Jarvis tendered him the appointment to the vacancy, which he accepted and for a few years adorned the bench. His health, however, was now impaired, and the exacting service of the Supreme Court bench did not facilitate a recovery, and on September 23, 1883, he retired from the bench and resumed the practice of law at Hillsboro in connection with Major John W. Graham.
Judge Ruffin had passed his life as an advocate and came to the Supreme bench without any training in a judicial career. As a lawyer in full practice, the habit of his mind had become that of
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the advocate, which in some respects differs from a judicial in- vestigation of the principles underlying legal cases and the prep- aration of judicial opinions. He had had no experience in juridi- cal composition. He therefore came to the bench under circum- stances somewhat adverse to an immediate manifestation of his superior excellence. That he was an industrious and impartial and learned and able judge is evidenced by his work upon the bench ; and his opinions also show that his views of the law were broadly comprehensive and enlightened, while in his methods of thought he was judiciously conservative and cautiously progres- sive. His greatness as a lawyer frequently led to his being com- pared favorably with his distinguished father, the great chief jus- tice ; but he was on the bench too short a time to develop his capabilities as a writer of jurisprudence, and while in thought and in learning he occupied the same high level as his father, he had not the opportunity to attain the same training as a writer of incom- parable judicial opinions. Of him it has been said that he "pos- sessed dauntless physical courage, but his high moral courage was far more admirable. He had due regard for public sentiment when he believed it to be right, but he never quailed before the clamor and prejudices of political bigotry or popular frenzy. He dis- countenanced all forms of social disturbance and lawless violence, and by words and acts bravely combatted all kinds of public or private injustice and oppression. He was the friend and defender of the poor, the weak, the helpless and unfortunate ; and he aided even the erring in their efforts at reformation by kind words and acts of sympathy and encouragement."
Judge Dick, in the course of his address on the life and char- acter of Judge Ruffin, says :
"We may reasonably ask ourselves what were the object and purposes of his creation : what the rewards of his toils, his sufferings and his noble endeavors? The fame which he acquired as a brilliant advocate may live in tradition for many years and then be obscured by the mists of time. In a half a century the reports in which are printed the memorials of his genius and wisdom will be retired to the dust of law libraries. But he had a more blessed faith. He lived for a nobler purpose. He believed that death was only the natural process of transmutation to a higher and
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nobler life. He was cheered with the sublime Truth revealed by his Re- deemer and Saviour."
In this blessed hope the end came to the fearless soldier who, amid the perils of the most desperate battlefields, manifested a coolness and an intrepidity in entire harmony with his courageous nature ; a citizen no less distinguished in civil life than in military action, eminent for his forensic ability and who by his virtues, his character and his learning adorned both the bar and the bench of his native State.
His health remained precarious after leaving the bench in 1883, and although he still engaged in the practice, he did not pursue his labors so actively as in former years. At length on May 23, 1889, he passed away, greatly lamented by the people of the State.
S. A. Ashe.
ATSIOM
WILLIAM SKINNER
OTH in peace and war the Skinner family of Eastern North Carolina has borne an honor- B able record. At the time of the Revolution its most noted member was Brigadier-General William Skinner, of the county of Perquimans, one of the most active patriots in the Albe- marle section. He was the son of Richard Skinner, who died in 1752. To avoid confusion, we may here mention that there were at least two members of this family living in colonial times who bore the name Richard Skinner. One of these died in 1746.
The town of Hertford, in the county of Perquimans, was erected by Chapter 6 of the Private Laws of 1758, which was amended by Chapter 22 of the Private Laws of 1767, and by Chapter 2 of the Private Laws of 1773. By the two amendatory acts last mentioned, William Skinner was elected one of the com- missioners or "directors" of said town. He also served in the Assembly of North Carolina during the colonial period.
In the Revolution Mr. Skinner's first service appears to have been as a member of the Provincial Congress of North Caro- lina which met at Hillsboro in August, 1775; and that body (which continued its sittings till the following month) elected him lieutenant-colonel of North Carolina militia for Perquimans County on September 9th. He was a member of the Provincial Congress at Halifax in April, 1776; and of a similar body which
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held its sessions at the same place in November and December, 1776. The last named Provincial Congress elected him a Justice of the Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions for the county of Perquimans on December 23, 1776. On the same day, December 23rd, Congress passed a resolution, requesting Colonel Skinner to take into his possession the records of the Inferior Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions for the county of Perquimans, and also authorized him to act as clerk (vice Miles Harvey, deceased) until a clerk could be regularly elected by the justices of said court.
On December 20, 1777, Colonel Skinner was elected brigadier- general of the North Carolina militia for the district of Edenton ; and, at the same time he was elected treasurer of the northern counties of the Colony. These two offices he held at the . same time. He was re-elected treasurer for several terms. He was also commissioner to settle the accounts of North Carolina with the general Government ; and, on April 25, 1778, was voted 5,000 pounds by the Assembly as compensation for that service. The reader must not be led to think that this five thousand pounds was over-generous compensation, for it was paid in the paper currency of that day. General Skinner himself in a peti- tion (or "remonstrance") addressed to the Assembly on January 28, 1779, complains of the great inconvenience by him in "con- veying great cart-loads of money through the country," so we may safely assume that North Carolina was adequately supplied with currency of its own manufacture.
Having the good sense to realize that his want of knowledge in military matters might jeopardize the lives of soldiers serving under him. General Skinner determined to resign his commission, and accordingly did so on May 10, 1779, when bodies of troops were being organized to serve beyond the limits of the State. Addressing the General Assembly, which was in session at Smith- field, in Johnson County, he said :
"As my experience in military matters is very small, my continuing in that office might, perhaps, be a public injury, as well as fatal to those
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whose lives might in a manner depend on my conduct. For these rea- sons I take the liberty at this time of resigning that appointment which I heretofore with reluctance accepted."
Two days after his resignation as brigadier-general, Mr. Skin- ner was once more elected treasurer.
When a law was enacted creating the offices of district treas- urer, General Skinner became treasurer of the district of Edenton.
It is greatly to be regretted that so little is known of the per- sonal history of General Skinner. He died in the winter of 1797-98. He lies buried in the Yeopim section of Perquimans County, four or five miles from the town of Hertford, and a marble slab marks his grave. He was twice married and left five children. By his first wife he had three daughters: Penelope Skinner, who married Lemuel Creecy; Elizabeth Skinner, who married Josiah Cotton ; and Lavinia Skinner, who married Mr. Harvey. The two children of General Skinner's second wife were William and Caroline Skinner.
When the first official census of the United States was compiled in 1790, General Skinner owned more slaves than any other citizen of Perquimans County.
Marshall De Lancey Haywood.
EDWARD STANLY
E DWARD STANLY, the subject of this sketch, was born in New-Bern in 1808. He was a son of Jolin Stanly, an ardent Federalist and a noted figure in North Carolina political history. Edward Stanly was educated at the North and was graduated from Norwich University in 1829. He studied law and commenced the practice of the pro- fession in Beaufort County, North Carolina. Soon after he mar- ried a daughter of Dr. Hugh Jones, of Hyde County.
His success in his profession was immediate, but his ambitions were political rather than professional, and his mind was soon turned to politics, though he did not enter political life actively for some time. From his father he inherited an intense hatred of the Democratic Party, and consequently he was, from the birth of the Whig Party, an ardent believer in and supporter of its doctrines. This intense hatred of the Democratic Party, combined with his passionate and ficry nature, led to many difficulties with his political opponents. He, like other members of his family, possessed an uncontrolled temper which often injured him and made for him many bitter enemies. But like most similar natures, he was possessed of a wonderful ability to make warm friends. Personally he was attractive, with a great amount of magnetism, which affected even those who were not personally acquainted with him.
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In 1837 he was elected to Congress and served for three terms. While there he distinguished himself by his ability as a debater and by his eloquence as a speaker. His repartee was exceedingly clever, but so sharp as to excite anger. His "Cock Robin" retort to Mr. Preston was particularly memorable. At times he was very bitter in his denunciation of opponents, and in an attack upon the Tyler administration he excelled himself, and won great ap- plause from his Wnig associates in the House. He also dis- tinguished himself by several personal encounters. Henry A. Wise on one occasion was so arcused by a sharp speech of Stanly that he walked over to the latter's seat and threatened him. Stanly refused to apologize and a fight followed. A committee investigated the matter and utterly exonerated Stanly, John Quincy Adams taking occasion to make a very complimentary speech in reference to Stanly's conduct in the affair. On another occasion a quarrel with Samuel W. Inge, of Alabama, led to a duel between them. Neither one was injured. Thomas L. Cling- man attacked him in the House and a fight followed. But by the end of his term he was recognized as one of the leaders of his party in the House. Mr. Stanly attracted so much attention by his Congressional career that when Harrison was elected presi- dent in 1840 he was considered for the navy portfolio. The men- tion of the probability of his appointment was most favorably re- ceived all over the country, the press, regardless of politics, being particularly complimentary. The honor, however, did not fall to him, but to another North Carolinian, Judge George E. Badger.
In 1844 he was a delegate to the National Whig Convention in Baltimore. The same year he represented Beaufort County in the House of Commons and had conferred upon him the un- usual honor of being chosen Speaker at his first session. This was, of course, due to the reputation he had made in Congress. He presided with dignity, impartiality and ability and was elected again at the following session. In 1847 he had been made at- torney-general, but resigned in 1848 to go to the General As- sembly and was succeeded by B. F. Moore. He was elected to the Commons for the third time in 1848, but failed to be chosen
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Speaker. On the floor he was a leader, and by throwing his in- fluence against the proposed railroad from Charlotte to Danville de- feated what he called "The Danville Sale," agreeing instead to charter the North Carolina Railroad, as proposed by W. S. Ashe.
In 1849 he was again nominated for Congress and defeated W. K. Lane by a substantial majority. In 1851 he defeated Thomas Ruffin, of Wayne, making his campaign on the question of secession, which at the time was agitating the country. There was no discussion in North Carolina as to the advisability of the State's severing her connection with the Union, the question being purely an abstract one. Alfred Dockery, who was also a Whig candidate for Congress, declared that if he should be elected, he would vote men and money to whip South Carolina back into the Union, in the event of her secession, adding that he would do the same if North Carolina was the State in question. Stanly ex- pressed somewhat the same sentiments, and both were elected by large majorities. William W. Holden, the editor of the Stand- ard, tried vainly to create the impression that Stanly was an ab- olitionist, and after the election declared that he was elected by the anti-slavery Quakers in Wayne and the adjoining counties. In 1853, in consequence of the growing discontent in the State with the attitude of the North regarding slavery, he was defeated by Thomas Ruffin for reelection. In the Fall of the same year he removed with his family to California.
In his new home he attained great prominence as a lawyer, both from his ability and on account of his past record. He soon allied himself with the Republican Party, and in 1857 was nom- inated for governor in spite of the fact that he still owned slaves and was a believer in the institution of slavery. He made no secret of his belief and on the stump advocated non-interference with slavery. The Democrats nominated John B. Weller, who had just retired from the United States Senate. Weller was suc- cessful, receiving a majority of over 32,000 votes.
Mr. Stanly saw with alarm the gulf which was yawning be- tween the North and the South, but he never quite realized that the threat of the South to secede would be put into effect. Even
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after secession had begun, estimating public sentiment by what it had been nearly ten years before when he left the State, lie was confident that North Carolina would remain in the Union. He felt sure that the majority of the people in the State were opposed to secession and favorable to the Union, or at least that they were acting through a misunderstanding. Consequently, he felt that if the real facts, as he believed them to be, in regard to the purpose of the North could be put fairly before them by one whom they felt was a friend and one to be trusted, they would at once renew their allegiance to the United States. He accordingly notified Pres- ident Lincoln of his willingness to undertake such a commission for the Federal Government. The President seemed to have considered the secession movement as merely a slaveholders' re- bellion and without much strength, and just at that time was con- sidering a plan for the restoration of the Southern States by the establishment of military governments, about which those citizens who were loyal to the Union might rally and thus weaken the power of the State administrations. The two States where the plan seemed most likely to succeed, according to belief then pre- vailing in the North, were Tennessee and North Carolina. He accordingly appointed Andrew Johnson, of Tennessee, and Ed- ward Stanly military governors of their respective States with the rank of brigadier-general. The appointment of Stanly, for some reason, never went to the Senate for confirmation, but he had arrived in Washington in May, 1862, and at once assumed the duties of his new office, reaching New-Bern, which had been chosen as his headquarters, on May 26th.
By his commission Stanly was empowered to perform all the duties of governor, and to appoint officers, institute courts, and suspend the writ of habeas corpus, during the pleasure of the president, or until a civil government should be organized. Secretary Stanton wrote him :
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