The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-28
TEN YEARS OF ALABAMA
No. Administration of Governor Parsons
1865-1874

be lost. If so. he continued, let it be so.
THE north had almost twice the popula-
tion of the south; the north was never so
rich; the south never so poor. The north
had school and church on every hill top;
the south had few schools and few
| churches scattered over a vast area, and
| IL the north could not retain Its advan-
tages. in face of such competition, let II
lose. Thus the great high priest of radi-
| calism wrote to a convention of sailors
and soldiers who wished to make him
| their chaplain.
| The election of August third transpired
| in quiet. Probably not exceeding half a
normal vote was cast, nor more than 80 :
600. But body of higher intelligence and
| experience in political elaboration had
never been seen in the state than the
convention they had chosen.
Benjamin Fitzpatrick, former governor
and United States senator of long tenure
was chosen president of the convention.
On the floor sat Coleman of Choctaw.
Crenshaw of Butler. boy OF Madison.
Henry of Marshall, Hunter of Dallas.
James Taylor Jones of Narengo, Lea of
Perry, Langdon of Mobile. Mcclellan of
Limestone Mudd of Jefferson, John A.
| Winston of Sumter. Alexander White of
Talladega. Hatton of Lauderdale, Rather
| speake, Stansil and their peers, ninety
ana nine men from every walk of life,
| many bearing the scars of the great war.
The convention opened its session in
the House of Representatives September
y and adjourned on its completed work
4 September 80. a remarkable evidence of
Il hard work in brief time.
i A resolution informed President Johnson
4 that the people of Alabama had taken
! and subscribed to the oath of amnesty
and all conditions necessary to the res
| toration of the state to the union then
prevailed. The resolution nsked that all
federal garrisons IN the state be at once
withdrawn except the garrison OF the
| coast"
The constitution was brief and compre-
hensive. The Declaration OF Rights con-
| sisted of Sc sections. The 34th section OF
! which was as follows: '"fhat hereafter
there shall be In this state neither slavery
nor involuntary servitude, otherwise than
for the punishment of crime, whereof the
party shall have been duly convicted"
Thus some ninety days before the 18th
article of amendment of the federal con-
stitution went into effect the state had
abolished slavery Not only was every
slave freed, but a special provision of the
constitution, section 35 required the legis-
| lature at its next session to enact statutes
| that would secure TO the freedmen the
! full enjoyment of every right of person
ana property possessed by the white. the
| freedmen under the new state constitu-
ton possessed every civil right enjoyed by
white minors and white women.
| The next constitution limited the right
of suffrage to the white race. In this it
was not different from the majority OF
| the states OF the north at that time.
| An ordinance of the convention pro
| nounced legal the marriage relations
which then subsisted between former
| slaves who had in time OF slavery lived
as man and wife There had been no laws
of matrimony for slaves.
| No apology or recantation OF the action
of the state in withdrawing from the
union was hipted at in the new constitu-
ton nor was there reference in any form
to that event Let the dead past bury
| its DEAR was the controlling sentiment.
| The official conduct of the provisional
/ governor was warmly commended by
resolution. There was no more popular
| man in the state at that time.
| Upon the adjournment of the conven-
| ton. according to its provisc, the pro-
visional governor ordered an election for
his successor anu legislaturo. The con-
sttution was not submitted for ratifica-
ton at the polls The system prescribed