The Memories of Fifty Years: Containing Brief Biographical Notices of Distinguished Americans, and Anecdotes of Remarkable Men; Interspersed with Scenes and Incidents Occurring during a Long Life of Observation Chiefly Spent in the SouthwestSparks, W. H. (William Henry)
History
The Memories of Fifty Years: Containing Brief Biographical Notices of Distinguished Americans, and Anecdotes of Remarkable Men; Interspersed with Scenes and Incidents Occurring during a Long Life of Observation Chiefly Spent in the Southwest
Sparks, W. H. (William Henry)
Georgia -- History -- 1775-1865; Southwest, Old -- History; United States -- Biography
The Senate came into the Representative chamber at noon, to effect, on
joint ballot, the election of Governor. The President of the Senate
took his seat with the Speaker of the House, and in obedience to law
assumed the presidency of the assembled body. The members were ordered
to prepare their ballots to vote for the Governor of the State. The
Secretary of the Senate called the roll of the Senate, each man, as his
name was called, moving up to the clerk's desk, and depositing his
ballot. The same routine was then gone through with on the part of the
House, when the hat (for a hat was used) containing the ballots was
handed to the President of the Senate, Thomas Stocks, of Greene County,
who proceeded to count the ballots, and finding only the proper number,
commenced to call the name from each ballot. Pending this calling the
silence was painfully intense. Every place within the spacious hall,
the gallery, the lobby, the committee-rooms, and the embrasures of the
windows were all filled to crushing repletion. And yet not a word or
sound, save the excited breathing of ardent men, disturbed the anxious
silence of the hall. One by one the ballots were called. There were 166
ballots, requiring 84 to elect. When 160 ballots were counted, each
candidate had 80, and at this point the excitement was so painfully
intense that the President suspended the count, and, though it was
chilly November, took from his pocket his handkerchief, and wiped from
his flushed face the streaming perspiration. While this was
progressing, a wag in the gallery sang out, "The darkest time of night
is just before day." This interruption was not noticed by the
President, who called out "Troup!" then "Talbot!" and again there was a
momentary suspension. Then he called again, "Troup--Talbot!" "82--82,"
was whispered audibly through the entire hall. Then the call was
resumed. "Troup!" "A tie," said more than a hundred voices. There
remained but one ballot. The President turned the hat up-side down, and
the ballot fell upon the table. Looking down upon it, he called, at the
top of his voice, "Troup!" The scene that followed was indescribable.
The two parties occupied separate sides of the chamber. Those voting
for Troup rose simultaneously from their seats, and one wild shout
seemed to lift the ceiling overhead. Again, with increased vim, was it
given. The lobby and the galleries joined in the wild shout. Members
and spectators rushed into each others' arms, kissed each other, wept,
shouted, kicked over the desks, tumbled on the floor, and for ten
minutes this maddening excitement suspended the proceedings of the day.
It was useless for the presiding officer to command order, if, indeed,
his feelings were sufficiently under control to do so. When exhaustion
had produced comparative silence, Duffie, with the full brogue of the
County Carlow upon his tongue, ejaculated: "O Lord, we thank Thee! The
State is redeemed from the rule of the Devil and John Clarke." Mercer
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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