The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-09-03
ALEXANDER H. STEPHENS.
By Savoyard.

~
poetry and romance such as no other
can boast, in ancient or modern story.
/ When Charlie became a fugitive
Stephens became an emigrant, and
settled in Pennsylvania for William
| Penn who founded the colony, was
ever friend of the house of Stuart,
and might have fought for it had he
been a lighting man. He was now long
dead, but his colony welcomed Alex
Iander Stephens. who settled on the
banks of the Blue Juniata." But he
was full of adventure, and Joined the
command of George Washington in
| Braddock'S expedition Not Il great
while later he fell in love with a pref
| ty girl whose father owned the ferry
where the Juniata falls into the Sus-
lquehanna. Her father would not give
her to him, and he took her. They
were married, but never forgiven, and
later the family, now three sons and
five daughters, went to Georgia.
Alexander H. Stephens, grandson of
the old Cavalier, was born in 1872. He
lived to be more than three-score
years and ten. Every day of that long
life was day of sickness. His
greatest weight was ninety-siX pounds.
lie never knew an hour without physi-
cal pain most of it acute, much of it
excruciating. 1t was in capricious
mood that nature fashioned the taber-
nacle where glowed the giant minds
| of John Randolph and Alexander III.
Stephens. But this sickly boy was a
! day laborer on his fathers farm and
a plowman at eleven. His father died
when he was fourteen. but he man
aged to get a superior education. and
| when twenty he was graduated from
the University of Georgia.
He taught school for two years and
studied law. At twenty-five he was
admitted to the bar and soon distin-
guished himself in the profession
IWhen he was twenty-four he was
chosen to the State legislature, and
that from community that believed
| in Calhoun and notification, though
Stephens strongly assailed that dogma.
He also opposed harsh treatment of
aboltionists who went to Georgia to
make converts. He believed that the
preservation of slavery depended on
| conservative action on the part of the
shareholders, and he would have met
with absolute silence every diatribe of
! Garrison and Phillips. He believed in
slavery as it existed at the South. be-
| licved it was the ideaI condition for
| both races, but his clear mind saw
| that slavery would be doomed when
! ever it became the paramount issue
| in politics. Had the South taken his
advice. slavery would have died a
natural death-the death of gradual
and peaceful cmanciDatiOn-and there
would have been no race problems
for the present or future generations
to blundcr over.
Stephens was a Wing. So were
Toombs and Hill. When thirty years
of age Stephens was chosen member
of the Twenty eighth Congress, and
for the succeeding sixteen years he
was one of the most distinguished
public men in America. Pygmy that
he was. physically, no labor daunted
him, and his mind was ever busy. He
and Toombs were like brothers. Their
principles were identical, and it was
rare that they disagreed on queS-
ton of policy. Stephens had the
greatest admiration for the noble
qualities and gigantic intellect of his
friend, and loved to lend him the aid
of his industry. 1t is related that
one day Toombs made a speech in
the Senate that was at once the ad-
miration, the envy, and the despair of
all his rivals in that body. When
asked tho question, Toombs asserted
that he had never given the subject
a days thought before he addressed
the Senate. THAT is exactly true"
said Stephens when he heard of it;
that is extractly true. But 1 worked
two weeks on that speech before
Toombs ever thought of it"
William H. Seward said that
Toombs' speech asserting the right of
secession was the most powerful ar
gument he ever heard, and simply I'M
answera bic, and no doubt Toombs was
indebted to Stephens for many of the
ideas Of that mastery production.
1t was in 1917 that Stephens and
Lincoln first met. They became fast
friends, and Lincoln declared
Stephens speech against the $1,000.
900 bill" AS it was called. was the
greatest effort he ever heard. That
bill was 70 enable the Polk admins
tration to negotiate treaty with
Mexico ceding vast areas of territory.
Stephens opposed it on the ground
that it would make the slavery ques-
ton paramount and lead to disunion.
iAnd if you will read it today you will
not be SO much impressed with the
argument of it as you will with the
prophecy of it,
In 1859 Stephens retired from Con-
Eress and hoped to spend the remand
er of his life in reDoSe. He was forty
seven years of age, and a sage. His
farm at wfordville, Liberty Hall.
was a Mecca, where public men were
welcomed from all parts of the coun-
try. He kept open house for Georgians
and the rest of mankind. and thou
sands visited him. consulted him, and
partook of his hospitality. But the
storm conjured by twenty years of sec
tional reproach, was about to burst
/ Upon the country. The Methodist
Church had divided when Texas was
ANNEXED, and now the Democratic
party was to divide because the North
and the South were engaged in mutual
murder in Kansas. John Browns
raid was the answer the North made
| to Preston Brooks assault.
Secession was the answer the South
| made to the election of Lincoln. and
coercion was the answer the North
made to the bombardment of Sumter.
That bombardment saved Maryland,
West Virginia. Kentucky, East Ten
nessee, and Missouri to the Union.
Had Mr.. Davis accepted the advice of
Stephens the South would have sue
ceeded in the war in all probability.
| Stephens proposed to buy 100000
| 900 worth of cotton. the winter of
1S60-'61, sell it in Europe and invest
4 49,