Atlanta And Its Builders, Vol. 2 - A Comprehensive History Of The Gate City Of The South. Thomas H. Martin
resolution was adopted with enthusiasm, congratulating and sending greeting "To the gallant Democracy of Pennsylvania and Ohio for their great victories and noble defense of the sublime principles of constitutional liberty."
On October 19th, the district convention met in Atlanta in conformity to the call, and organized by electing Judge Echols, chairman, and Henry Hillyer, secretary. The speeches made were bitterly denunciatory of the Federal reconstruction, and the ticket nominated was designated "the anti-convention, anti-reconstruction, anti-radical ticket." Delegates were nominated as follows to the "so-called" state convention, "should such a body be called by the voice of the people of Georgia to assemble:" J. B. Key, of Clayton county; W. T. Winn and Daniel R. Turner, of Cobb county, and James P. Hambleton, E. M. Taliaferro, T. T. Smith and James E. Gullatt, of Fulton county.
The election began on October 29th, 1867, and continued until sundown on the 30th, when the registrars received an order from General Pope to keep the poles open until 6 o'clock p. m., November 2nd. The general stated in the order that the extension of time was made necessary by the fact that owing to delays in voting, many citizens would be deprived of the privilege of suffrage unless they were given more time to deposit their ballots. He said he took this action upon the recommendation of a majority of the registrars.
General Pope issued his order for the meeting of the state convention to frame a constitution and inaugurate a civil government for Georgia, on the 19th of November, 1867, as provided by the act of congress. When framed by the convention, the constitution was to be submitted to the registered voters for ratification.
In the meantime, the "anti-radicals" were active in their opposition to the reconstruction programme. They called a state convention to meet at Macon, on December 5th, "to save Georgia from negro domination and radical rule." The adherents of the conservative party in Atlanta met in mass meeting at the city hall on the 23rd of November, to nominate delegates to the Macon convention. Judge Jared I. Whittaker was chosen as chairman, and Dr. Charles Pinckney, secretary. A resolution was introduced by Col. T. T. Smith, providing for the appointment of a committee of five to nominate twenty delegates to the Macon convention. The nominating committee, which consisted of John Thomas, John C. Whitner, Dr. James F. Alexander, John M. Clark and Judge Echols, returned thirty names instead of twenty, as provided in the resolution, and their action was approved by the meeting.
CHAPTER III. THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION
The constitutional convention met in conformity to the call of General Pope, on December 9th, in the city hall at Atlanta. When the temporary organization was effected the first day with J. L. Dunning as chairman and Walter L. Clift secretary, 130 delegates presented their credentials — 108 white and 22 colored. There were 140 delegates present on the second day. when J. R. Parrott was elected permanent chairman; P. M. Sheibly, permanent secretary, A. E. Marshall, assistant secretary; M. J. Hinton, sergeant-at-arms; William H. De Lyons (colored), doorkeeper, and a colored man of the name of Campbell, messenger. Colonel R. B. Bullock offered a resolution that a committee of seven be appointed by the president to wait upon General Pope and advise him that in obedience to general orders No. 89 the constitutional convention was assembled and organized, and invited him to address the body. General Pope was escorted into the hall by the committee and made a brief address on the requirements of the situation, and wishing the convention success in its responsible task. The speech was received with much applause.
On December 28th, 1867, General Pope was removed from his command, and Major-General George G. Meade, the Union commander at Gettysburg, appointed to succeed him. General Pope left Atlanta on the 2nd of January, 1868, accompanied by his family and two members of his staff. Quite a demonstration of friendliness on the part of the citizens attended his departure, several hundred people accompanying him to the depot and cheering as the train moved out. A band from the post, and all the post officers, helped to make the general's departure impressive. General Meade put in his appearance four days later, in the company of three staff officers — General R. C. Drum, Colonel George Meade and Colonel C. D. Emory. He was accorded as hearty a welcome as General Pope upon his arrival in Atlanta, and entered at once upon the discharge of his duties.
This change was made during the holiday adjournment of the constitutional convention. There had been much dissatisfaction with General Pope's methods of administration, and it was represented to President Johnson by some of the most influential citizens of Georgia that reconstruction could be accomplished more speedily and with much less friction under a different commanding officer. It was not urged against General Pope that he was tyrannical or unduly arbitrary by nature, but that he was too easily influenced by unscrupulous upstart politicians who had no interests or sympathies in common with the people of Georgia. The ring that Pope surrounded himself with was in the highest degree odious to the better element of citizenship. Still, much of the opposition to General Pope undoubtedly had as its basis opposition to the policy he had been sent south to enforce, and the prime movers who effected his removal were mainly the political enemies of the dominant national party. There can be no doubt but that President Johnson was in sympathy with the majority element of the states subjected to the harsh measures of reconstruction, and lent a compliant ear to the many complaints and charges brought against General Pope. When, at length, he transferred the obnoxious officer to a different field of service, there was much rejoicing in Georgia, and better things were predicted of the Meade administration. As has been stated, the constitutional convention which convened in Atlanta upon the order of General Pope, remained in session a very brief time before adjourning over the holidays, and in the interim the change of commanders was made. One of the last official acts of General Pope was to order State Treasurer John Jones to pay to N. L. Angier, disbursing officer of the constitutional convention, the sum of $40,000 which it had voted itself for the payment of its expenses. General Pope's order was dated December 20, 1867, and Treasurer Jones responded on the next day declining to pay the amount because he was "forbidden to pay money out of the treasury except on the warrant of the governor and the sanction of the comptroller-general, and having entered into heavy bonds for the faithful performance of the duties so prescribed." General Pope's removal came so soon after the issuance of the order that he took no action with reference to the matter, but left the settlement to his successor, General Meade.
This action of the constitutional convention was vehemently denounced by the conservative element in the state, and General Pope came in for a large share of the criticism. During the last few weeks of his administration he had been the target for much newspaper and forensic abuse, and to judge from the anathemas hurled at him, the Northern student of the Southern situation must have thought Georgia was about to draw her sword again in the defense of state rights. In Atlanta there was no little ill-feeling toward General Pope. On the 4th of January a number of citizens who were dissatisfied with the general's administration of his office met in mass meeting and adopted a preamble and series of resolutions with reference to the manner in which the duties of the commanding general of this military district should be performed, in part as follows: "His (General Pope's) indorsement of the action of the so-called State convention, and its attempts to draw from the public treasury $40,000 to defray the expenses of said unconstitutional assemblage, conceived as it was in fraud and brought forth in iniquity, is a direct violation of the act of Congress which prescribes the mode and manner of their payment, and at the risk of prostituting the credit, and to the dishonor of the State; and hence it is he was surrounded while in this city by evil counsellors in civil life to whom he lent a listening ear, and whose thirst for office influenced them to counsel to further oppression and degradation of our people, in order that they might fatten on the spoils thereof; therefore, be it
Resolved, That this meeting, composed of conservative citizens of Fulton county, do hereby tender their acknowledgments to President Andrew Johnson for the removal of Brevet Major-General John Pope from the command of the Third Military District.
Resolved, That while this meeting is unalterably opposed to the military acts of Congress, under which it is proposed to 'reconstruct' the Southern States, and while it disclaims any wish (were it possible) to influence the action of Major-General George G. Meade, politically or otherwise, yet it can but express its gratitude that our people shall have in him, as military commander of this district,