Georgia and Georgians - the Digital Library of Georgia

2828 GEORGIA AND GEORGIANSsafety. Hitherto the Georgians had only heard of British aggressions, butnow their own soil was moistened with the blood of the slain; their quiethomes had been assailed, their property pillaged, and their province threatened with devastation and ruin. The crisis had arrived. They met it likeheroes."BENJAMIN HARVEY HILL was born in Jasper County, September 14, 1823,and died at his home in Atlanta, Georgia, on August 16, 1882. Not quitefifty-nine years of life was given to this, one of the two greatest men Georgiahas ever produced "William Harris Crawford in one generation, and Benjamin II. Hill in the next two men of such transcendant merit in a statesmanlike way that any state could call itself rich which had contributed them tothe nation. The elder of these great men passed away when the younger wasa little boy of eleven; and the younger, coming to years of maturity, illustrated Georgia as eminently in his generation as his great predecessor haddone in his.In 1841 Benjamin II. Hill entered the University of Georgia as a sopho-.more, and upon his graduation, three years later, commenced the study oflaw. After another year's study he was admitted to the bar and commencedpractice at La Grange. His professional business at once became lucrative.In 1851 he was elected to the Lower House of the General Assembly as aunion candidate. He entered political and public life, therefore, as a whig.In 1856 he was selected as a Fillmore elector for the state at large. In theensuing campaign Alexander II. Stephens was one of his democratic opponents. A bitter correspondence was the result of their discussions which, inturn, resulted in a challenge from Stephens to fight a duel. He bravelydeclined it, two of his reasons being that he had a family to support and asoul to save whereas, Mr. Stephens had neither. He was elected to theState Senate in 1859. At the election of Lincoln to the presidency he and hisold adversary, Stephens, ranged themselves on the side of those, opposed tosecession, those who favored it including Robert Toombs, Howell Cobb andGovernor Brown. When the unionists lost the fight, Hill went as a delegateto the Secession Convention and afterward to the Confederate Senate. Although the youngest member of the latter body, he was chosen chairman ofits Judiciary Committee. During the trying times of the war he was one ofPresident Davis' stanchest supporters. At the close of the war he returned tohis home at La Grange. The Federal authorities arrested him in May, 1865,and kept him in prison until July, when he was paroled.During the succeeding three years Mr. Hill confined himself to the practice of the law. In 1867, the Reconstruction laws were passed; Mr. Hill wrotehis celebrated "Notes on the Situation" and became the acknowledged leaderof the Southern democracy.On December 8, 1870, Mr. Hill wrote a letter in the shape of an addressto the people of Georgia, which, while wise and consistent with his positionin 1867-68, was misunderstood, and so made an excuse for abuse by a part ofthe press and some of the politicians. Shortly after this came up the lease ofthe Western and Atlantic Railway, which was the cause of further misconstruction. He supported the Greeley movement in 1872, believing it foundedin patriotism. He would undoubtedly have been sent to the United StatesSenate in 1873 but for the misunderstandings caused by these political actions.In the next two years the people came to their better judgment, and by 1875he had regained all that he had lost of influence and standing.By an uprising of the people he was elected to Congress and took his seatin December, 1875. This was his first appearance in the Federal Congress,his speech in January, 1876, on the proposition to extend general amnesty .toSouthern men, having long been considered as historic. He was re-elected tothe Lower House, but before entering upon that term, was elected to the