The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-11-29
TEN YEARS OF ALABAMA
1365-t874
No. 81

I in the settlement of the Oregon dispute with Great Britain, which by his master
 ly inactivity policy accomplished the ob- l ject and averted war.
 1 He led in the annexation of Texas move
 ment and entered President Tyler's cab
 met as Secretary of State to effect an- nexation. The historians interpretation of the man is narrow and callow, mislead- l ing and enervating of public opinion and I public morals.
 l We look in vain for robust and satls- 1 flying interpretation of pivotal events
 from Dr. Woodrow Wilson. His cotem-
 porary just mentioned set the pace by de- claring as the most interesting incident | of Yancey's speech before the Charleston convention, 1860, that the ladies in the gall leries waved their pocket handkerchiefs | in compliment. pr. Wilson says Yancey
 entertained the public by the delivery of 1 speeches, but was never leaderl We re-
 member the habit of Forrest, when about I to attack the enemy, riding down his line calling out, Move up, boys, and mix with I em." Perhaps he did not lead We re- member that at the bloody angle" Gen eral Lee placed himself at the head of his advancing column, when some Texans seized his rein, stopped his horse, called l to him, General Lee to the rear; we
 know what to do' Perhaps Lee did not lead
 The aspiration of American history evil dently is to cover up the argument of the southern history demonstrated in civics. The performances of the Confederate army and navy are not so readily to be slurred over. The soldiers and sailors are excused, on the plea of their liability to impulse generated by the warm climate and little measure of work they found to do. Sherman says in a letter to his wife, toward the end of the great Daiton- Atlanta campaign, that Johnstons men fought Hike devils and Indians combined' and that the Confederate cavalry was "the best the world ever saw Our voluminous histories all accept the definitions, fitting them into their narratives to apply to several million gallant knaves and chival- rous fools inhabitants of the land of cot ton.
 We have seen that on December 1s, 1872, one month after the two Legislatures had begun their separate sessions, the two lower houses met in theNhalI of represen- tatives at the capitol and perfected an organization by the election of Parsons speaker in place of his opponent, the dem ocrat Stone from Pickens, and elected
 Barber. carpetbagger, clerk in place of Ellis Phelan, democrat.
 On the same 18th of December the senate notified the already organized house of the fact of it's organization by the cleo tion of Col. Michael l.. Woods, democrat, secretary.
 The next day, however, a message came to the house from the lieutenant gov ernor presiding over the senate correcting the notification. The senate was not or ganized and not prepared to go on with business.
 The situation became serious. A mum Der of the original court room men re- turned and elected new officers for their
 Legislature" Speaker Parsons for one day at least. left the seat in the capitol. to which he had been chosen under the Attorney Generals plan and presided again at the court room. Senator Hamil- ton telegraphed the fact of the speakers s conduct to the Attorney General and that officer at once instructed the United States marshal at Montgomery to close the court room against all such political uses as were then being made of it. Noth- ing daunted, the radical members sitting there moved to another building. but con tinued their sessions.
 The plan of the Attorney General re- quired that neither branch of the legisla- ture should do any business until both were organized. The house organized by seating the radical members from Bar bour and by the democratic members from Marengo giving up their seats with out contest to the radical claimants
 The plan proposed that the radical sem ator from Barbour should be seated. He
 
 fore the senate organized it should take testimony and determine whether James Taylor Jones, democrat, was duly elected from Marengo or ]. w. Dereen, carpet bagger Also that by testimony taken the senate should determine whether w. F.. Martin, democrat, from the district oi Butler Conecuh and Escambia was elect ed. or William Miller. Jr., carpetbagger. It was in the third month, February, be- fore the testimony in these two cases was ready. Under normal conditions. 1t IS probable adjournment would have been taken to await the preparation of the cases.
 The Jones-Dereen case was first decided. The supervisors In MareDgo were R. L Maupin, probate judge; Harrison, sherin, and Cleveland. clerk of the court All were democrats. With the board sat Patrick, United States deputy. This deputy approved all the findings of the board.
 About 1900 ballots were thrown out the precinct returns by the board because the names on the poll list could not be found on the registration list. Rain fell heavily on election day. The returning officer from the Dayton precinct. where many negroes from the surrounding plantations voted and practically all voted for Dereen. started the 12 miles ride to- Linden. the county seat. where the board met with the ballots in firnsv paste board box. The continuous rainfall penetrated the box and the contents became pulp. The board made no attempt to count the votes
 from Dayton precinct. It was proven that