The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-03-10

.cy--AIexanaer H. stephens's Own
 Statementyvhy MT. Toombs's Name
 Was Not Placed Before the Congressl Savannah News.
 The Morning News of last Sunday, February 24, printed story telling why Alexander H. Stephens was not elected President of the Southern Con- federacy!"
 It began with the statement that the subject of his election to that office was preached to MT. Stephens on the way from his home at Crawfordviile. Ga, to Montgomery, Ala, where the first. or provisional government of the Confederate States was organized in February. 1861. forty-six years ago this month. The gentleman said to have done the alleged preaching was Mir. Chestnut, one of the delegation from South Carolina to the congress of dele gates then about to meet in Montgom- cry to prepare a provisional constitu- tion and elect the chief executive off, cers for the new Confederacy then and there to be formed. He is represented as having said to MT. Stephens on the ears that the South Carolina delega- tion were looking to Georgia for no names but Toombs and Stephens. and that the majority of them favored Stephens. Whereupon, according to the Sun article, MT. Stephens excitedly replied, NO: that can never be-" And I thought his face turned a little pale" adds the narrator of the story. as printed.
 He goes on to say that Mir Toombs joined MT. Chestnut in urging Mir Ste- phens to consent to take the presi- dency, saying that he was the choice of the Georgia delegation; and that after they arrived in Montgomery MT. Stephens was called on by Willy P Harris and Col. A. M. Campbell" of Mississippi, who told him that he was the choice of that states delegation and asked to be allowed to present his name: and that 8 few days later he was waited on by delegation headed by MT. Toombs, who told him that he was the choice of every man in the congress. but sought to extract from him, as condition precedent to his nomination, a promise that he would strike" the first blow" and that MT stephens declaration that he would never strike the first blow at the Union was what prevented him from neing made the President of the Confeder- 'acy.
 Such is the substance of the story. without it's embellishment As printed in The Sun and reproduced in The Morning News it leaves little to he de- sired with respect to dramatic quality. As sensational story 1t quite meets the requirements of up-to-date journal ism. But if the ed.to- of The Sun. be- fore printing it had trimmed it of ev erything but fact. 1t would have shrunk to proportions the contemplation of which would have been painful to the talented space writer and artist who shaped it. As one of the first results of the trimming process the editor would, apprehend. have stricken the Chestnut of South Carolina, preferred Mir. stephens rather than Mir. Davis for the presidency of the ConfedAracv. He could hardly have refrained from doing this after reading MT. Chesnut's own statement in the following words:
 'Before leaving home had made up my niftd as to who was the Attest man to be President and who to be Vice President. MT. Davis for the first. and MT. Stephens for the second. And this was known to all my friends as we'll as to my colleagues"
 This statement may be found on page 239 of Volume I of Mir Davis's history, the Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government" It was in a letter writ ten by General Chesnut January 24, 1880. and in the summer of the follow ing year I talked with him on the
  Camden, S. C. Prior to the secession If that State he represented it in the United States Senate, and during the war that followed he served as aide to General Beauregard, and was later a member of President Davis's staff. Rob- ert Barnwell Rhett and Lawrence M Keitt were members of the South Caro- lima delegation to Montgomery. and in 2 part of the above quoted letter which ls not included in Mir. Davis's book. MT. Chestnut wrote that those two gentle men Were strongly opposed to MT. Da- wis throughout" He made this state ment in correction of General Toombs. who had said that MT. Rhett held the South Carolina delegation we'll in hand for MT Davis" Rut notwithstanding the opposition of Mir. Rhett and Colonel Keitt the vote of the South Carolina delegation was cast for MT. Davis. and the Hon. William Porcher Miles, anoth- CT member of it. write, under date of January 27 1880. as follows:
 'I would say that to the best of my fly in the South Carolina delegation at Montgomery on the subject of the choice of a President. I think it very likely that Keitt, from his warm per sonal friendship for MT. Toombs, may at first have preferred him. Davis was the choice of our delegation and of the whole people of South Caro-
 MT. Miles's letter may be found on page 240 of Volume l of MT. Daviss work.
 does not sustain the statement that majority of the South Carolina delega- ton favored MT. Stephens for President of the Confederacy, but 'all eyes ito use General Chesnuts own words. @turned to him to fill the second place, the presidency. 4o
 We come next. in the Sun story, to the statement credited to MT Toomos, that MT. Stephens was the choice or the Georgia delegation for the presi- dency. and with reference to 1t VIII ouote from MT. Stephens himself, In a letter under date of January IF, lSSO' . conv, of which is before me, he wrote 4bese words: "The truth is. there was rot a single member of the Georgia deIeration in favor of presenting my name for the presidency, as far as l
 was then aware of or now believe The error of the statement that MT stephens was the first choice of Geor- gia is shown also in letter Of the Hon. Mar tin J. Crawford Ca delegate from Geo"gia and a close friend of MT stephens- published in the Columbus S,,n and Times on June 28, 1870.
 Next in order in the Suns historical C? narrative comes the statement that within an hour after the arrival of MT Stephens in Montgomery Willy F. Harris and Col A M. Campbell of Mis- .oTIaa that MT. Harris