Daily Republican., 1882-08-17
DEATH OF SENATOR HILL.
A LEADING sPlRlT TAKEN FROM
TnE COUNBELS OF THE MA
TION-9KEEOH OF HIS LIFE

TION-SKETOH OF HIS LIFE
--&-W-S-----
The newspaper reading public have
for long time been cpprised of the
dangerous illness % xSanator Hill, OF
Georgia, and will not therefore be sur.
prised to hear of his death, which oc.
CURED little after 6 O'Clock, yesterday
morning at Atlanta, Ga.
| About 2 o'clock in the morning he
was found to be rapidly sinking. He
breathed with much difficulty. He
continued to sleep, however, and at a
few minutes after 6 O'Clock his death
occurred without a struggle. He died
from exhaustion.
Several hours before death 1t was evil
dent that the end was near. Soon after
day break his family were summoned
to his bedside, and there were present
at his death the following persons ::
Mrs. Hill, his wife, B. H. Hill, Jr., and
wife, DR.. II. p. Ridley and his wife,
Senator Hills daughter, Charles d.
Hill, his son, two nephews Of the Sena-
tor and DR.. Wright, attending surgeon.
Four hours before passing away he
made a sign for hypo demi injection
of morphine, which was administered.
He appeared to be awake and conscious
several times, but could not speak.
At 6.15 he was apparently awake.
He then closed his eyes gently and
died without even tremor. The funeral
will take place on Saturday. A Wash.
ington despatch says Senators Lamar,
Morgan, Beck and Salisbury, accom-
panied by Col. Sneed, Assistant Post
master Of the Senate, and Mr.. Dalton,
Superintendent of the Senate folding
room, will leave this morning for
Atlanta, Georgia, to attend the funeral.
The south front entrance to the Senate
Chamber was draped in morning and
the flag over tn Q Senate placed at half
mast, In which position IL will remain
until after the funeral.
| SENATOR HILLS CAREER.
The HON. BENJAMIN HARVEY HILL,
United States Senator from Georgia,
whose death, after a long and painful
illness, Is announced this morning, was
born in Jasper county, Georgia, Sep.
tember IA, 1923. He received classical
education. graduating at the Univer-
sity of Georgia at Athens in 1874, with
the highest honors of his class. He
studied law and was admitted to the
bar in 1S45, and commenced practice at
La Grange, Georgia. He was member
of the Stats House of Representatives
iu 1851 and ofthe State Senate in 1859
and 1860. He was defeated as the
"American" candidate for Congress in
1856. receiving 681S votes against 1888
for HI. Warner, Democrat. He was
defeated as the Amer. can candidate for
Governor Of Georgia in 1857 by j. e.
Brown, Democrat.
He was Presidential Elector on the
Fillmore and Donelson ticket in 1856,
| and on the Bell and Everett ticket in
1860; was delegate to the State Con-
vention in 1861, and was strong oppo-
nent to secession until it had been ire
vocably decided upon, when he cast in
his lot with the people of his State. He
was delegate from Georgia to the Con-
federate Provisional Congress, and af-
forwards Senator from Georgia in the
Confederate Congress, and was arrested
| in 1865 by the Union authorities and
imprisoned in Fort Lafayette. He was
elected a Representative from Georgia
in the Forty-tourth Congress (to fill the
vacancy caused by the death Of Garrett
Mcmillan and was reelected to the
Forty fifth Congress, but resigned, hav-
ing been elected United States Sena-
tor from Georgia. He took his seat
March 9th, 1877, and his term of ser.
vice would have expired March Sd,
1888.
In 1856 while he was candidate for
Presidential Elector on the Fillmore
nd 4 ,,wiNp han
Yass Of the State he made q speech, in
the course of which he said: The
northern extremist who would have the
Union at the expense Of the constitu-
tion, and the Southern extremist who
would save the Constitution by destroy
ing the Union, are to be equally con-
demneI. Let us have both-the Con-
stitution inviolate, and the Union as
its surest Defense" The declaration
was tbs keynote to his course at the
outbreak of the rebellion. Hel accepted
the nomination to the State Legisla-
ture in 1859, for the express purpose of
fighting the secession movement which
he anticipated in case o. the election Of
Republican President in 1860. From
his first appearance in public life in 1851
up to this time, his speeches had been
distinguished by the strongest Union
sentiments, and when the Ordinance OF
SECESSION was introduced he combated
its provisions with all the energy and
eloquence of his sanguine nature.
The measure, however, passed, and,
like hundreds of other prominent men
Mr.. Hill followed his State into the
Conf6deraGy. During the progress OF
the war he served in the Confederate
Senate. 1t is related that he had me-
morable personal encounter with Will
liam L. Yancey, the great Thereafter,
during his service Ia that body. Dur
ing a heated debate Hill called Yancey
liar, whereupon the latter sprang
forward to strike Hill, who caught
Yancey and threw him violently over
a desk. Hill was much the larger and
stronger man and Yancey the more &C
tive. In the tall his spine was injured
and he lay unconscious on the floor,
| with blood oozing from his lips, He
was taken away and the members tried
to keep the matter secret, and dld pre-
vent it from being known for eix
months. Yancey never recovered; he
dropped from day to day, became hope
less, listless and vacant, and finally
died.
In 1877 Mr.. Hill was elected to the
National Senate, after bitter contest,
the opposition to him being led by
Fl Herschel V. johnson and Robert
Toombs. HIS course at this time had
been so fair and bipartisan, that fis
antagonists oppenly accused him of
heinz more of Republican than a
Democrat, and predicted that he would
eventually come out as a third termlgor
Grant man. In the Senate he contin-
ued to enforce the policy that he had
advocated in the House, and one of his
first acts was to vote for the confirma-
ton of Fred Douglass as Marshal Of
the District of Columbia. lie soon lost
some of his standing, however, by his
auibbling on the silver question, and
by his assault on The Hayes admins
tration henause he failed to secure the