The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1921-09-27
STORIES OF OUR SOUTHLAND
RecolIections of Alex. H. Stephens,
Vice-President of the Southern
Confederacy

There was not that unity and har-
meny in the administration of our
Confederate government essential to
the success of a great cause. The
differences between President Davis
and Vice-President Stephens about
the conduct of the war were so great
as to almost amount to personal an
tagonism. Mr.. Stephens was Union
man, but when Georgia seeded, he
went with his State. Mr.. Davis was
an aggressive secessionist. Mr.. Ste
phens urged that peace be made as
speedily as possible, and after Get
tysburg insisted that the seeding
States accept the best terms procur-
able. At the Hampton Roads confer
ence, Mr.. Stephens urged this, while
Mr.. Davis insisted that the only terms
he would accept was an acknowleds-
ment of the independence of the Sou
thern Confederacy. It was even
charged that Mr.. Stephens told the
Georgia soldiers that they were fight
ing a hopeless cause; but I do not be-
Eeve he went that far. And in the
cabinet there was strife and bitter
ness. At meeting, during a heated
argument between B. H. Hill and
VIM. L. Yancey, the former hurled at
the latter a heavy leaden inkstand,
striking him on the head, and many
believe that Col. Yancey's death was
fastened by the blow inflicted.
knew Mr.. Stephens well and lnti-
mately. While publishing a weekly
paper at Lexington, Ca, Mr.. Ste
phens regularly attended court there
and has been a guest at my home.
He was a very small man, almost
dwarfish in stature, but with strong
mental powers. His courage was I'M
questioned, and when a young man
he fought an antagonist twice his
size and strength, until he (Stephens)
was almost cut into ribbons. Gen.
Bob Toombs and A. H. Stephens lived
in adjoining counties, and while in
their views on the war were as wide
apart as the poles, they were always
warm and intimate friends.
While using the organized Demo-
, cratic party to secure Office, Mr.. Ste
phens had broad streak of independ-
ence running through him. When l
was making a fight to defeat Emory
Speer for Congress, because he made
the race as an independent and
against the regular nominees, Speer
was reading a letter on the stump
from Stephens eulogizing him to the
skies and stating that it would be
great mistake to defeat such bril-
liant young man. / wrote Mr.. Ste
phens about this letter, arguing that
as he was making the race as an or
ganized Democrat in the eighth dis
trict, it was really harmful to the
party and inconsistent to endorse an
independent in the ninth district. Mr..
Stephens replied to my letter, saying
that he would see me at the State
University commencement and tell
ing me not to go off half cooked. /
had long talk with Mr.. Stephens,
and could not get him to acknowledge
or repudiate the letter. He talked all
around the subject, but Speer con-
tinued to read the letter of endorse
ment from every stump in the dis
trict.
The politicians OF the towns were
never for Mr.. Stephens at heart, but
he had such hold on the masses that
they knew they could not defeat him.
They once stocked the district con-
vention, that met at Thomson, Ca,
while Mr.. Stephens was occupying his
seat in Congress, md nominated DR..
Casey for, the position. But next
morning, after adjourning and be-
fore boarding the train, the delegates
bought copies of the Augusta Chron-
icle, which paper stated that their
Washington correspondent had mott
fled Mr.. Stephens about the result OF
the Thomson convention and asked
his views. Mr.. Stephens's only reply
was, "Tell the voters of the eighth
district that / shall stand for Cor
gress." Seeing that they could not
bluff Little Alec" into vacating his
seat, and knowing that he would liter
Ill ,,o +bo oor+b with their nom