The American Cyclopædia (1879)/Georgia (American Union)

GEORGIA, one of the thirteen original states of the American Union, situated between lat.

30° 21′ and 35° N., and lon. 80° 48′ and 85° 40′ W., having an extreme length N. and S. of 320 m., and an extreme breadth E. and W. of 254 m.; area, 58,000 sq. m. It is bounded N. by Tennessee and North Carolina, N. E. by South Carolina, from which it is separated by the Savannah river, E. by the Atlantic ocean, S. by Florida, and W. by Alabama, from which it is partly separated by the Chattahoochee river.

It is divided into 136 counties, viz.: Appling, Baker, Baldwin, Banks, Bartow, Berrien, Bibb, Brooks, Bryan, Bullock, Burke, Butts, Calhoun, Camden, Campbell, Carroll, Catoosa, Charlton, Chatham, Chattahoochee, Chattooga, Cherokee, Clarke, Clay, Clayton, Clinch, Cobb, Coffee, Colquitt, Columbia, Coweta, Crawford, Dade, Dawson, Decatur, De Kalb, Dodge, Dooly, Dougherty, Douglas, Early, Echols, Effingham, Elbert, Emanuel, Fannin, Fayette, Floyd, Forsyth, Franklin, Fulton, Gilmer, Glascock, Glynn, Gordon, Greene, Gwinnett, Habersham, Hall, Hancock, Haralson, Harris, Hart, Heard, Henry, Houston, Irwin, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Johnson, Jones, Laurens, Lee, Liberty, Lincoln, Lowndes, Lumpkin, Macon, Madison, Marion, McDuffie, Mclntosh, Meriwether, Miller, Milton, Mitchell, Monroe, Montgomery, Morgan, Murray, Muscogee, Newton, Oglethorpe, Paulding, Pickens, Pierce, Pike, Polk, Pulaski, Putnam, Quitman, Rabun, Randolph, Richmond, Rockdale, Schley, Scriven, Spalding, Stewart, Sumter, Talbot, Taliaferro, Tatnall, Taylor, Telfair, Terrell, Thomas, Towns, Troup, Twiggs, Union, Upson, Walker, Walton, Ware, Warren, Washington, Wayne, Webster, White, Whitfield, Wilcox, Wilkes, Wilkinson, and Worth. The counties are subdivided into 1,136 militia districts, and contain 134 incorporated towns. There are eight cities, viz.: Savannah (pop. in 1870, 28,235), the chief port, on the river of

the same name, 18 m. from the sea; Atlanta (pop. 21,789), the capital, in the N. W. part of the state; Augusta (pop. 15,389), on the

248 m. from its mouth; Macon (pop. 10,810); Columbus (7,401); Athens (4,251); Milledgeville (2,750), the former capital; and

Rome (2,748). Among the towns are Albany, Americus, Bainbridge, Brunswick, Cartersville, Covington, Cuthbert, Dalton, Dawson, Eatonton, Fort Valley, Griffin, La Grange, Marietta, Newnan, Thomasville, Valdosta, Washington, and West Point, having each more than 1,000 inhabitants.—The population of the state in 1790 and at subsequent decennial periods was as follows:

Included in the last total are 1 Chinaman and 40 Indians. Georgia ranked 12th among the states in 1870 in total population, a gain since 1860 of 12 per cent.; 16th in the number of white inhabitants, gain 8.01 per cent.; and 1st in colored population, gain 17.06 per cent. There were 1,172,982 natives and 11,127 foreigners, 578,955 males and 605,154 females. Of the natives, 933,962 were born in the state, 54,937 in South Carolina, 26,858 in North Carolina, 19,034 in Virginia and West Virginia, 12,230 in Alabama, 9,394 in Tennessee, and 4,781 in Florida. There were 374,142 persons born in the state living in other states and territories. Of the foreigners, 5,093 were natives of Ireland, 2,761 of Germany, and 1,088 of England. Of the colored, 501,814 were blacks, and 43,328 mulattoes. The number of male citizens of the United States 21 years old and over was 234,919. There were 237,850 families, having an average of 4.98 persons to a family, and 236,436 dwellings, averaging 5.01 to a dwelling. There were 418,553 persons 10 years old and over unable to read, and 468,593 unable to write, of whom 343,637 were colored and 1,070 foreigners, 220,070 males and 248,523 females; 101,114 were between 10 and 15 years of age, 92,120 from 15 to 21, and 275,342 21 and over. Of the last number, 21,899 were white males and 100,551 colored males. The number of blind persons was 740; deaf and dumb, 326; insane, 634; idiots, 871; paupers, 1,816, of whom 507 were colored and 39 foreigners; persons convicted of crimes during the year, 1,775. There were 444,678 persons 10 years old and over engaged in occupations, viz.: 336,145 in agriculture, 64,083 in professional and personal services, 14,410 in trade and transportation, and 27,040 in manufactures and mining. Included in these numbers were 264,605 agricultural laborers, 70,468 farmers and planters, 953 clergymen, 37,027 domestic servants, 14,976 laborers, 851 lawyers, 1,537 physicians and surgeons, 2,225 teachers, 5,429 traders and dealers, 3,545 clerks, salesmen, &amp;c.,

5,105 officials and employees of railroad companies, 1,279 carmen, draymen, &amp;c., 2,262 blacksmiths, 1,375 boot and shoe makers, 1,005 masons and stone cutters, 4,723 carpenters and joiners, 3,519 cotton and woollen mill operatives, 1,206 millers, 1,215 saw-mill operatives, and 2,604 tailors, seamstresses, &amp;c.—Georgia presents a great variety of surface. Along the coast and the Florida line it is low and swampy, while a little further back occur parallel ranges of sand hills, 40 or 50 ft. high. Near the S. E. corner is the Okefinokee swamp, or rather series of swamps, about 180 m. in circuit, filled with pools and islands, covered with vines, bay trees, and underwood, and teeming with alligators, lizards, and other reptiles. The elevation for 20 m. inland rarely exceeds 40 ft., and averages 10 to 12 ft. above the sea. Then the land suddenly rises by a terrace 70 ft. higher, and this table land continues nearly level about 20 m. further inland, when another rise of 70 ft. leads to a third tract, which continues to ascend toward the north, till at Milledgeville, about 150 m. from the sea, the elevation is about 575 ft. From the central portion of the state the surface becomes more elevated, the hills increasing in size toward the north. The southern spurs of the Appalachians, which cross the N. portion of the state from N. E. to S. W., are reached in the Etowah hills of Bartow and Cherokee counties, and the Amicolola hills of Gilmer and Lumpkin; and the Blue Ridge, ranging with these between Lumpkin, White, and Habersham counties on the south, and Union and Towns on the north, constitutes the great watershed. These mountains attain an elevation of from 1,200 to 4,000 ft.—The coast of Georgia extends S. S. W. from Tybee sound to Cumberland sound, a distance of about 100 m., with a shore line estimated at 480 m. Though generally uniform as to course, it is very irregularly indented, and is skirted by numerous low islands which extend parallel to the shores. The principal of these from N. to S. are Cabbage, Ossabaw, St. Catharine's, Sapelo, St. Simon's, Jykill, and Cumberland. The inlets and sounds which divide the islands from one another and from the mainland are generally navigable, but too shoal to admit vessels of more than 100 tons. Vessels of larger dimensions can enter only four harbors: Savannah, Darien, Brunswick, and St. Mary's. The bar of the Tybee entrance of the Savannah, has 19 ft. of water; that of the Sapelo entrance of the Altamaha, 14 ft.; that of St. Simon's sound (entrance of Brunswick harbor), 17 ft.; and that of St. Mary's river, 14 ft. These figures represent the least water in the channel ways at low water of mean tides; the mean rise of tides on this part of the coast varies from 7 ft. in the Savannah to 5.9 ft. in the St. Mary's. The Savannah, the largest river of Georgia, and the boundary toward South Carolina, rises by two head streams, the Tugaloo and Keowee, in the Appalachian chain, and near the sources of the Tennessee and

on the one side and of the Chattahoochee on the other. From the junction of these confluents (lat. 34° 28') the river has a S. S. E. course of 450 m. to the sea, which it meets near lat. 32° and lon. 81°. It is navigable for large ships to Savannah, 18 m., and for steamboats of 150 tons to Augusta, 230 m. further; and by means of a canal round the falls navigation for small steamboats is prolonged for 150 m. above. The Chattahoochee rises near the W. constituent of the Savannah, pursues at first a S. W. course, but at West Point (lat. 32° 52') on the Alabama line turns S. and enters Florida (lat. 30° 41') under the name of the Appalachicola. Its whole length to the gulf is about 550 m., and steamboats ascend it 300 m. to the falls at Columbus. Flint river rises in the hilly country S. of the Chattahoochee, and joins that river in the S. W. corner of the state after a course of 300 m.; it is navigable for steamboats to Albany. The Ochlockonnee, Withlacoochee, and Allapaha drain the S. section of the state, and pass through Florida to the gulf of Mexico. The Withlacoochee and Allapaha by their junction in Florida form the Suwanee. Next to the Savannah, the Altamaha is the largest river falling into the Atlantic. It is formed by the junction of the Oconee and Ocmulgee, which rise in the hilly region S. of the Chattahoochee and flow for about 250 m. nearly parallel to each other, when the latter bends to the east and unites its waters with those of the former. The main river is navigable for sea-going vessels to Darien, and steamboats ascend the Ocmulgee to Macon and the Oconee to Milledgeville. The Ogeechee drains the country between the Savannah and Altamaha, and has a S. E. course of 200 m., with 30 or 40 m. of sloop navigation; its southern branch, the Cannouchee, is navigable for 50 m. The Santilla and St. Mary's drain the S. E. section of the state; both are navigable for sloops about 40 m., and for boats much further; the St. Mary's forms the boundary toward Florida. The N. and N. W. sections of the state are drained by the Tacoah, the Notley, and other tributaries of the Hiawassee; and by the Oostenaula and Etowah, which, uniting at Rome, form the Coosa, one of the tributaries of the Alabama. The Tallapoosa, also a tributary of the Alabama, has its sources in this state between the Coosa and Chattahoochee.—Georgia is naturally divided into two regions distinguished by their geological structure, as well as by their topography, climate, and vegetable productions. The line of the first falls which are met with in ascending the streams marks here, as well as further N., the ascent upon the platform of granitic and palæozoic rocks, which stretches on to the Appalachian mountains. This line crosses the central portion of the state from Augusta on the Savannah, by Macon on the Ocmulgee, to Columbus on the Chattahoochee. It is nearly parallel with the range of the Alleghanies, which crosses in a N. E. and S. W. direction

the northern portion of the state; but it is so distant from these mountains that the intervening hilly region of the metamorphic and lower Silurian rocks is here much broader than elsewhere along the eastern slopes of the Alleghanies. The width of the belt is not far from 150 m. On the south it is succeeded immediately by the lowest tertiary, the eocene, whose sands, clays, and calcareous and silicious strata are seen reposing upon the ancient metamorphic slates and gneiss along the line of contact with these. The cretaceous formation only intervenes from a point almost in the centre of the state, near Macon, gradually widening in its outspread toward the west and pushing the outcrop of the overlying eocene further to the south. The cretaceous group is also seen at a few isolated points rising through the tertiary near the Ogeechee river. S. of the line designated above, the whole country toward the gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic ocean is occupied by the eocene and the modern tertiaries of the coast; a belt wider even than that of the ancient formations of the N. half of the state. In the alluvium, which attains an elevation of only a few feet above the water, skeletons of the mastodon, mylodon, megatherium, an extinct species of elephant, and of the ox, have been found; and beneath the muddy peaty soil in which they lie the sands and clays are of the post-tertiary formation, containing fossil shells, all of the same species that now live in the neighboring salt water. In Bartow co. the limestones of the lower Silurian are met with just N. of the Etowah river, and the formation extends toward Tennessee, till in the N. E. corner of the state it is overlaid by later members of the palæozoic rocks, which finally are capped by the coal formation. Near the junction of the limestone with the metamorphic rocks immense deposits of iron ore are found, in the latter ranging N. E. from the S. E. corner of Bartow through Cherokee co. Gold was discovered in 1829 in Habersham co. It occurs in veins and alluvial deposits in almost every county N. of the central line of the state, the W. limit being the W. base of the mountains. The chief deposits are in a belt, 15 to 20 m. wide, extending across the state on the E. slope. The production from 1829 to 1838 is estimated at 800,000 ounces; from 1838 to 1849, at 200,000 ounces; and it has gradually diminished until in 1870 only five mines were in operation, the product being valued at $29,780. The amount of gold deposited at the United States mint and branches, from Georgia, to June 30, 1873, was $7,267,784 76. The copper veins worked in Polk co., Tenn., are traced across the line into Gilmer co. The other mineral productions of the state, except the limestones, and in the eocene region the marls and buhrstone of this formation, are of little importance.—Among objects of interest are the falls of Tallulah, in a branch of the Tugaloo, in Habersham co.; Toccaco falls in the same

stream, 185 ft. high; Amicolah falls in Lumpkin co., with a descent of 400 ft. in as many yards; Towaligo falls in Monroe co.; the falls in Rabun co., and a series of falls in the Hiawassee. Stone mountain in De Kalb co., 7 m. in circuit, and 2,220 ft. high, abounds in fine scenery, and Track rock and Pilot mountain (1,200 ft. high) in Union co. are worthy of mention. Nicojack cave extends into the Raccoon mountains, near the N. W. extremity of the state, for several miles, with a portal 160 ft. wide and 60 ft. high, through which flows a stream, up which boats can pass for 3 m. to a cataract. In Hancock and Bartow cos. and near Macon are artificial mounds, containing ruins of fortifications, articles of pottery, and human remains.—In the low lands and swamps along the coast the climate is hot and unhealthy, malarious fevers being prevalent, while in the pine lands further back the air is salubrious. In the N. portion of the state the climate is cooler and healthful. The following table embodies the results of meteorological observations made at Augusta and Savannah, under the direction of the chief signal officer of the United States, for the year ending Sept. 30, 1872:

The number of deaths in 1870 was 13,606, including 3,923 from general diseases, 1,519 from diseases of the nervous system, 445 of the circulatory, 2,247 of the respiratory, 2,230 of the digestive, and 241 of the integumentary system; 741 deaths were caused by enteric, 405 by intermittent, and 300 by remittent fever, 875 by consumption, 248 by dropsy, 270 by measles, 145 by cerebro-spinal fever, 277 by encephalitis, 379 by meningitis, 116 by apoplexy, 165 by paralysis, 214 by convulsions, 356 by croup, 1,363 by pneumonia, 233 by hydrothorax, 239 by enteritis, 327 by dysentery, 448 by diarrhœa, 344 by cholera infantum, and 100 by ascites.—The soil of the coast islands is light and sandy, but productive of long-staple or ”sea island” cotton. The mainland possesses a rich alluvial soil, producing corn and cotton, while the tide swamps of the rivers are fertile in rice. Back from the coast is a stretch of sandy land, chiefly valuable for its timber and naval stores, but capable of being made

productive. The S. W. portion of the state is light and sandy, but yields good crops of cotton, and the middle region, possessing a red loamy soil, produces cotton, corn, tobacco, &amp;c. These two portions of the state have been much exhausted by unscientific cultivation. The N. region contains much fertile land, particularly in the valleys, yielding grain, fruits, potatoes, and other vegetables, but is not so well suited to cotton. Near the coast, the growth along the banks of the streams is of canes, cypress, magnolia glauca and grandiflora, gum of different species, including the liquidamber tree, oaks, tulip, ash, sweet bay, and many other genera; while back upon the sandy lands pines and scrub oaks are almost the only trees. Several species of palmetto give a tropical aspect to the sea islands, and the magnificent live oaks largely obtained in the vicinity of Brunswick furnish the most valuable ship timber grown in the United States. In 1870 Georgia produced more cotton than any other state except Mississippi; more rice than any other except South Carolina; and more sweet potatoes than any except North Carolina. The number of acres of improved farm land was 6,831,856; value of farms, $94,559,468; of farming implements and machinery, $4,614,701; wages paid during the year, including the value of board, $19,787,086; estimated value of all farm productions, including betterments and additions to stock, $80,390,228; value of orchard products, $352,926; of produce of market gardens, $193,266; of forest products, $1,281,623; of home manufactures, $1,113,080; of animals slaughtered, or sold for slaughter, $6,854,382; of live stock, $30,156,317. The productions were 308,890 bushels of spring and 1,818,127 of winter wheat, 82,549 of rye, 17,646,459 of Indian corn, 1,904,601 of oats, 5,640 of barley, 402 of buckwheat, 410,020 of peas and beans, 197,101 of Irish potatoes, 2,621,562 of sweet potatoes, 143 of clover and 540 of grass seed, 48 of flaxseed, 22,277,380 lbs. of rice, 288,596 of tobacco, 846,947 of wool, 4,499,572 of butter, 4,292 of cheese, 2 of hops, 983 of flax, 14 of silk cocoons, 31,233 of wax, 610,877 of honey, 473,934 bales of cotton, 21,927 gallons of wine, 109,139 of milk sold, 553,192 of cane and 374,027 of sorghum molasses, 644 hogsheads of sugar, and 10,518 tons of hay. The live stock consisted of 81,777 horses, 87,426 mules and asses, 231,310 milch cows, 54,332 working oxen, 412,261 other cattle, 419,465 sheep, and 988,566 swine. There were in addition 28,460 horses and 111,764 cattle not on farms.—The number of manufacturing establishments was 3,836, having 405 steam engines of 10,826 horse power and 1,729 water wheels of 27,417 horse power, employing 17,871 hands, of whom 15,078 were males above 16, 1,498 females above 15, and 1,295 youth; capital invested, $13,930,125; wages paid, $4,844,508; value of materials, $18,583,731; of products, $31,196,115. The principal branches are shown in the following table:

There are three ports of entry, Savannah, Brunswick, and St. Mary's. The imports from and exports to foreign countries, with the shipping belonging to the several ports, for the year ending June 30, 1873, are shown in the following table:

The exports consist almost wholly of cotton and lumber, the cotton being shipped from Savannah. The quantity of the former was 376,431 bales, valued at $32,169,060; of the latter, 48,425,000 feet of boards, clapboards, deals, &amp;c., and 3,176,457 cubic feet of timber, together valued at $1,609,140. Of the vessels, 27 of 9,009 tons were steamers. The entrances and clearances were as follows:

ENTERED.

CLEARED.

&mdash;The mileage of railroads in the state at different periods has been as follows: in 1841, 271; in 1851, 795; in 1861, 1,420; in 1871, 2,108. The Central railroad of Georgia, which extends from Savannah to Macon, leases and operates the Augusta and Savannah railroad, from Millen to Augusta; the Milledgeville and Eatonton, from Gordon to Eatonton; the Southwestern, which extends from Macon to Eufaula, Ala., 144 m., with branches from Fort Valley to Columbus (72 m.), Smithville to Albany (23½ m.), Cuthbert to Fort Gaines (20 m.), Fort Valley to Perry (13 m.), and Albany to Arlington (36 m.); the Macon and Western, from Macon to Atlanta; and the Upson County railroad, from Barnesville to Thomaston. The Georgia railroad, from Augusta to Atlanta, with branches from Camak to Warrenton (4 m.), Union Point to Athens (40 m.), and Barnett to Washington (18 m.), operates the Macon and Augusta line, which connects Warrenton and Macon. The Western and Atlantic railroad, from Atlanta to Chattanooga, Tenn., 138 m., was built by the state. The other lines are the Alabama and Chattanooga, from Chattanooga, Tenn., to Meridian, Miss., 295 m.; the Atlanta and West Point, between those places; the Atlantic and Gulf, from Savannah to Bainbridge, with branches from Thomasville to Albany (58½ m.), and from Lawton to Live Oak, Fla., 48½ m.; the Brunswick and Albany, between those points; the Cherokee, from Cartersville on the Western and Atlantic to Rockmart, to be extended to Pryor, Ala., 22 m. further; the Macon and Brunswick, between those places, with a branch from Cochran to Hawkinsville (10 m.); the North and South (in progress), from Columbus to Rome, 135 m.; the Rome, from that point to Kingston; the Savannah and Charleston, between those cities, 104 m.; the Savannah, Griffin, and North Alabama (operated by the Macon and Western), from Griffin to Newnan, to be extended to Guntersville, Ala., 116 m. further; the Selma, Rome, and Dalton, from Selma, Ala., to Dalton, 236 m.; the Atlanta and Richmond Air Line, from Atlanta to Charlotte, N. C., 263 m.; and a branch of the East Tennessee, Virginia, and Georgia railroad, from Cleveland, Tenn., to Dalton, 27 in. The mileage of these roads and branches in operation in Georgia in 1873, with the capital stock and cost as far as reported of those lying wholly or chiefly in the state, is shown in the following table:

The canals of this state have been constructed for local convenience: that around the falls of the Savannah, at Augusta, is 9 m. long; another (16 m.) connects the Savannah and Ogeechee rivers, and another (12 m.) connects Brunswick and the Altamaha, making a total length of 37 m. All the chief towns are connected by telegraph. The number of national banks in 1873 was 12, having an aggregate capital of $2,725,000; of state banks (including 3 savings banks and 2 trust companies), 16, with $4,082,000 capital. There were 7 insurance companies in 1872, of which 2 were life companies, having a capital of $1,785,418.—The government is administered under the constitution of 1868, which ordains that there shall be neither slavery nor involuntary servitude except as a punishment for crime, that the social status of the citizen shall never be the subject of legislation, that there shall be no imprisonment for debt, and declares that every citizen owes paramount allegiance to the constitution and government of the United States, and that the state shall ever remain a member of the American Union. All elections are by ballot, and the right of suffrage is conferred upon every male person 21 years old and upward who is a citizen of the United States, or has legally declared his intention to become such (except idiots, insane persons, and those who have been convicted of heinous crimes), who shall have resided in the state six months before the election, and 30 days in the county in which he offers to vote, “and shall have paid all taxes which may have been required of him, and which he may have had an opportunity of paying, agreeably to law, for the year next preceding the election.” No one convicted of felony or larceny, unless pardoned, nor any defaulter in public funds, is eligible to office; nor can any resident of the state who sends or

a challenge, or engages in or aids or abets a duel, vote or hold office. General elections commence on the Tuesday after the first Monday of November, unless otherwise provided by law. The legislative power is vested in a general assembly, consisting of a senate and house of representatives. For senatorial purposes the state is divided into 44 districts, each returning one senator. The senators are elected for four years, one half retiring biennially, and must be citizens of the United States, 25 years of age, and have resided two years in the state and one year in the district from which they are elected. The house of representatives consists of 175 members apportioned among the counties, who are elected for two years, and must be citizens of the United States, 21 years of age, and have resided one year in the state and six months in the county from which they are elected. The legislature meets annually on the second Wednesday in January; no session can continue more than 40 days, unless prolonged by a vote of two thirds of each house. Appropriations to “sectarian corporations or associations” are prohibited. No town or city can be granted permission to become a stockholder in or to contribute to any railroad or work of public improvement, unless a majority of the voters desire it; and restrictions are placed upon the power of the state to become a stockholder in or to pledge its credit to any company. The executive power is vested in a governor, elected by a majority vote of the people, who holds office for four years or until his successor is qualified. If no candidate receives a majority, the general assembly chooses one of the two who have the highest number of votes. The governor must be 30 years of age, for 15 years a citizen of the United States, and for six years of the state. He is the commander-in-chief of the army and navy of the state and of the militia, may grant reprieves and pardons except in cases of impeachment, and has a veto upon acts of the legislature which can only be overcome by a two-thirds vote of each house. In case of the death, resignation, or inability of the governor, the president of the senate, and in case of the latter's inability, the speaker of the house of representatives, acts as governor until the disability is removed or a successor is elected. There are also a secretary of state, comptroller general, treasurer, and surveyor general, elected by the general assembly, an attorney general, and a state school commissioner, appointed by the governor with the consent of the senate, each holding office for four years. The power of impeachment is vested in the house of representatives. The senate, presided over by one of the judges of the supreme court, constitutes the court for the trial of impeachments, but no person can be convicted without the concurrence of two thirds of the members present. The supreme court consists of three judges, who hold office for 12 years, one

every four years, and has appellate jurisdiction only of cases from the superior courts and the city courts of Savannah and Augusta. There is a judge of the superior court for each of the 19 judicial circuits, who holds office for eight years. These courts, except in matters of probate, have general original jurisdiction both civil and criminal, at law and in equity, issue writs of certiorari to inferior tribunals, and may have appellate jurisdiction conferred upon them by law. A session is held twice a year in each county. The judges are appointed by the governor with the consent of the senate, and may be removed by him upon the address of two thirds of each branch of the legislature, or upon impeachment and conviction. The judges of the supreme and superior courts and the attorney general must be 30 years of age, for three years citizens of the state, and must have practised law seven years. There is an ordinary for each county, elected by the people thereof for four years, who holds a court of ordinary and probate; from his decisions there may be an appeal to the superior court. A justice of the peace is elected by the qualified voters of each militia district for four years. Justices have jurisdiction in civil cases in which the sum claimed does not exceed $100; when the amount is more than $50, an appeal may be taken to the superior court. A notary public (ex officio a justice of the peace) for each militia district may be appointed by the governor for four years. County courts presided over by a single judge in each county were established by the act of Jan. 19, 1872, in most of the counties. The judges, who have the same jurisdiction as justices of the peace, are appointed by the governor with the consent of the senate for four years, and must be 25 years of age and residents of the county for which they are appointed. Each head of a family is entitled to exemption from execution on a homestead of realty to the value of $2,000 in specie, and personal property to the value of $1,000 in specie, “except for taxes, money borrowed and expended in the improvement of the homestead, or for the purchase money of the same, and for labor done thereon or material furnished therefor, or removal of encumbrances thereon.” The militia consists of all able-bodied males 18 to 45 years of age, except those conscientiously opposed to bearing arms, who may purchase exemption. Amendments to the constitution may be proposed by a two-thirds vote of each house of two successive legislatures, after which they must be ratified by the people. No convention of the people shall be called by the legislature in the election of delegates to which any person qualified to vote by this constitution is disqualified, nor unless the representatives therein shall be based on population. Georgia is entitled to nine representatives in the lower house of congress. The rate of interest is 7 per cent. All property owned by a married

woman at the time of marriage, and all that may be given to and inherited or acquired by her, is her separate property, and not liable for the debts of her husband. A married woman may sue and be sued in matters pertaining to her separate estate as though single, and with the consent of her husband may trade as a feme sole. No total divorce can be granted except on the concurrent verdict of two juries. The grounds of total divorce are intermarriage within the prohibited degrees, mental or physical incapacity at the time of marriage, adultery, wilful and continued desertion for three years, conviction of crime and sentence to the penitentiary for two years or more, force, menace, duress, or fraud in procuring the marriage, and pregnancy at the time of marriage unknown to the husband. For cruel treatment or habitual drunkenness the jury may grant either a partial or a total divorce. Treason in the first degree, murder, arson of an occupied dwelling or of a house in a city, town, or village, castration, and rape may be punished with death. Other punishments are fines, imprisonment, and whipping, not more than 39 lashes.—According to the federal censuses, the valuation of property has been as follows:

The diminution in the value of personal property is chiefly owing to the emancipation of the slaves. In 1870 the taxation not national amounted to $2,627,029, of which $945,394 was state tax, $906,270 county tax, and $775,365 town, city, &amp;c., tax. The public debt was $21,753,712, of which $6,544,500 (funded, but not including bonds issued subsequently to 1868) was state debt; $561,735, of which $300,386 was funded, county debt; and $14,647,477 town, city, &amp;c., debt, of which all but $264,162 was funded. The total receipts into the state treasury during the fiscal year amounted to $1,164,304, of which $732,898 was from general taxes, $35,924 from liquor tax, $5,778 from licenses, $21,446 from corporations, $45,000 from state railroad, $10,292 from interest, $310,000 from loans, and $2,966 from miscellaneous sources. The disbursements amounted to $1,444,817, of which $17,035 was for the executive department, $526,891 for legislative expenses, $35,280 for the judiciary, $2,547 for penitentiary expenses, $114,647 for institutions for deaf and dumb, blind, and insane, $20,000 for educational purposes, $57,321 for printing, $495,608 for payments and interest on public debt, and $175,488 for miscellaneous expenses. The treasurer in his report for the year ending Dec. 31, 1873, gives the outstanding debt of the state, Jan. 1, 1874, as follows:

BONDS.

The issue of 1870 is gold bonds; the rest, currency. The total annual interest is $586,460. During the administration of Gov. Bullock, 1868-71, bonds to the amount of $8,360,000 were issued, and the state indorsed bonds of various railroad companies to the amount of $7,923,000. It having been charged that the greater part had been illegally and fraudulently issued or indorsed, a committee was appointed by an act of Dec. 9, 1871, to investigate the subject, which sat at Atlanta during March and April, 1872. Of the state bonds $2,280,000 were returned and cancelled, $3,482,000 were declared null and void by the legislature in accordance with the report of the committee, and $2,598,000 were recognized as valid, $2,098,000 of this amount being included in the preceding table. Of the indorsed bonds $240,000 were returned and cancelled, with respect to $4,475,000 all obligation is disclaimed, while $194,000 of the Alabama and Chattanooga railroad, $464,000 of the South Georgia and Florida railroad, and $2,550,000 of the Macon and Brunswick railroad, in all $3,208,000, are admitted to be binding upon the state. This amount being added to the aggregate of the table, the total recognized debt at the beginning of 1874 becomes $11,550,500. The receipts during 1872, with the balance on hand at the beginning of the year, are shown in the following table :

The disbursements were $1,335,207 14, viz.: $692,892 paid on public debt, $295,227 73 on special appropriation, $172,251 92 on legislative pay rolls, $99,403 49 on civil establishment, $39,628 72 on contingent fund, $26,977 23 on printing fund, $5,261 32 on educational fund, and $3,564 73 on overpayment of taxes; cash on hand Jan. 1, 1873, $776,133 70, of which $100,000 was set apart to pay coupons maturing on that day, and $108,706 20 belonged to the special and $184,277 46 to the general school fund. The total receipts in 1873 were $2,406,655 04; total disbursements, $2,250,232 49. The state owns the Western and Atlantic railroad, valued at $7,000,000; 10,000 shares of stock in the Atlantic and Gulf railroad company (par value $1,000,000), worth $200,000; and 186 shares in the Georgia railroad and banking company, $18,600; total, $7,218,600. It also owns 1,833 shares in the bank of the State of Georgia and 890 shares in the bank of Augusta, but they have no market value. The Western and Atlantic railroad was leased to a company for 20 years in December, 1870, at the monthly rent of $25,000. The assessed value of property in 1872 was $243,620,466, of which $226,633,263 was taxable. The taxable property in 1873 amounted to $242,487,382. The rate of taxation was 50 cents per $100; 40 cents for general purposes, and 10 cents for school purposes. The institution for the deaf and dumb, at Cave Spring, Floyd co., in 1873 had 5 instructors and 63 pupils, of whom 29 were males and 34 females. The academy for the blind, at Macon, had 4 instructors (2 blind) and 47 pupils. The state lunatic asylum, near Milledgeville, has 10 officers (2 non-resident); number of patients, Dec. 1, 1873, 576. The penitentiary is at Milledgeville. The convicts, 664 in number (93 white and 571 colored), are all leased to a corporation, and employed on public works in different parts of the state. The state has only one officer, the principal keeper, under pay, and derives a revenue from the lease.—Before the civil war no common school system existed in the state, although certain funds had been set apart, and were distributed to the various counties, for the education of indigent children. The constitution of 1868 required the legislature to establish a system of common schools, and to carry this provision into effect an act was passed in 1870, which has been superseded by the general school law of Aug. 23, 1872. This law constitutes the governor, attorney general, secretary of state, comptroller general, and state school commissioner, the state board of education, which is an advisory body to the commissioner, and hears as a court of last resort appeals from his decisions touching the administration or construction of the school laws. The state commissioner is charged with the administration of the school laws, and is general superintendent of the public schools; he apportions the school revenue to the several counties in

proportion to the number of youth from 6 to 18 years of age and of confederate soldiers under 30 years of age resident in each, and is required to make an annual report to the legislature. Each county constitutes a school district, under the control of a county board of education consisting of five freeholders, who are elected for four years by the grand jury. The board chooses a secretary for the same term, who is ex officio the county school commissioner, divides the county into subdistricts, and in each is required to establish one or more primary schools, and, where the public wants demand them, graded schools from the primary to the high school grade. The county boards have a general supervision of the schools and school houses of their counties, employing the teachers, and prescribing the text books, but no sectarian nor sectional books are to be used, nor can the Bible be excluded from the public schools. These boards constitute a tribunal for the determination of any local controversy respecting the construction and administration of the school laws, an appeal lying from their decisions to the state school commissioner, and are required to provide separate schools, with equal facilities, for white and colored children. The county school commissioner is the medium of communication between the state commissioner and the subordinate school officers; he is required to visit each school in his county at least twice a year, to make an annual census of the children of school age, to apportion the school fund of the county to the subdistricts in proportion to the number of such children in each, and to make such reports to the state commissioner as may be required. He examines teachers, who are licensed by the county board, and are divided into three grades, with licenses continuing one, two, and three years respectively. No county is entitled to its share of the state school fund unless the county board has provided by taxation or otherwise for keeping primary schools in operation for three months in the year, or two months in the case of ambulatory schools, which may be established in counties in which from sparseness of population it is impracticable to maintain schools for three months. The schools are free to the children of the respective school districts. The county boards may establish evening schools for youths over 12 years of age who cannot attend during the day, and under the direction of the state board they may organize self-sustaining manual labor schools. Public school buildings and furniture and the site (not more than four acres) of a public school house are exempt from taxation and from sale on execution. The school system of two cities and of four counties is organized under special laws. The school fund consists of the proceeds of the poll tax and of the taxes on shows and exhibitions, and on the sale of spirituous and malt liquors, one half of the monthly payments made by the lessees of the Western and Atlantic railroad, the dividends on 186

shares of the Georgia railroad and banking company, set apart as a permanent educational fund by the act of Jan. 22, 1852, and the interest (6 per cent.) on $350,000 in bonds issued under the act of Dec. 11, 1858, as a permanent school fund. By an act of 1818 certain lands or the proceeds thereof were set apart for the education of poor children, but it is believed that but a small portion is now available. By the act of Feb. 19, 1873, it is provided that when legal bonds of the state are purchased and cancelled, or paid off, the same amount of bonds having 100 years to run shall be issued by the governor payable to the school fund, and that the interest on these at the rate of 7 per cent. per annum shall be paid semi-annually for the support of the public schools. From the adoption of the constitution of 1868 to Dec. 1, 1873, $739,722 42 belonging to the school fund had been collected, of which $354,418 39 had been diverted to other uses, but measures had recently been taken to restore it to the proper channel. The present school revenue is about $250,000 a year. The state school commissioner in 1873 reported (two counties wanting) 349,164 children of school age, of whom 198,816 were white and 150,348 colored. Public schools were in operation in 120 counties; 89 reported 1,379 white and 356 colored schools; number of pupils enrolled, 76,157, of whom 58,499 were white and 17,658 colored; average attendance, 32,224. According to the United States census of 1870, the state contained 1,880 schools, having 2,432 teachers (1,517 male and 915 female), 66,150 pupils (32,775 male and 33,375 female), and an annual income of $1,253,299, of which $66,560 was derived from endowments, $114,626 from taxation and public funds, and $1,072,113 from other sources, including tuition fees. Of this number 246 were public schools, viz.: 4 normal, 9 high, 26 grammar, 18 graded common, and 189 ungraded common, having 327 teachers, 11,150 pupils, and an income of $175,844, of which $59,293 was derived from taxation. Of the schools not public, 151 were classical (28 colleges and 123 academies), 3 professional (1 law and 2 medical), and 9 technical (3 commercial, 1 for the blind, 1 for the deaf and dumb, and 4 of art and music). Of the residue, 1,452 were day and boarding schools and 19 parochial and charity schools. The colleges had 77 male and 56 female teachers, 973 male and 1,620 female pupils, and an income from endowments of $36,350, and from other sources of $112,516, The university of Georgia, at Athens, was chartered in 1795 and organized in 1801. It has a permanent endowment of $100,000, derived from the sale of lands set apart in 1784 by the revolutionary statesmen and soldiers of Georgia, to found a university. The interest on this sum, which has been invested by the legislature, is paid by the state. The university has a preparatory department, an academic department, embracing the ordinary branches of collegiate study, and a law department. The state college of

agriculture and the mechanic arts, endowed with the congressional land grant of 270,000 acres, which has been sold for $243,000, was organized as a fourth department in 1872; it embraces instruction in agriculture, engineering, and chemistry. Students intending to enter the Christian ministry are relieved from payment of tuition when in need of aid, and other poor students, residents of the state, to the number of 50 annually, have their tuition remitted, in return for which they are expected to teach in some school in Georgia as many years as they have resided at the university. The number of professors and instructors in 1872 was 15, including 2 in the law and 3 in the preparatory department; number of students, 317, viz.: 7 resident graduates, 255 undergraduates (including 15 law students), and 55 in the preparatory department; number of volumes in the college and society libraries, 20,000. The North Georgia agricultural college, at Dahlonega, became toward the close of that year a branch of the state college and a department of the university. Atlanta university, in the city of that name, was established in 1867 by the freedmen's bureau and the American missionary association. It is not restricted as to color or sex, but is designed especially for the higher education of colored youth. Preparatory, normal, collegiate, agricultural, and theological departments have been organized, and in 1872 there were 7 instructors and 178 students. Oglethorpe university (Presbyterian), also at Atlanta, had 5 professors, 48 collegiate and 62 preparatory students; but it has since been suspended for want of funds. Mercer university (Baptist), at Macon, in 1871 had 5 professors and instructors, 82 students, and a library of 5,000 volumes. It has a theological department. Emory college (Methodist Episcopal church south), at Oxford, in 1872 had 12 professors and instructors, 50 preparatory and 189 collegiate students, and a library of 3,000 volumes. Bowdon college, at Bowdon, Carroll co., had 4 professors and instructors and 22 students. The other institutions classed as colleges are chiefly for the superior instruction of females. The principal are Furlow Masonic female college at Americus, Griffin female college at Griffin, Hamilton female college at Hamilton, the Southern female college at La Grange, the Wesleyan female college at Macon, the Georgia female college at Madison, Marietta female college at Marietta, La Vert female college at Talbotton, West Point female college at West Point, and Monroe female college at Forsyth. The Atlanta medical college in 1872 had 14 professors and instructors and 52 students. The medical college of Georgia, at Augusta, had 10 professors and instructors, 103 students, and a library of 5,000 volumes. The Savannah medical college in 1872 had 14 professors and instructors, 36 students, and a library of 3,000 volumes. The census of 1870 returns 1,735 libraries, containing 467,232

of which 545, having 162,851 volumes, were not private, classified as follows: state, 1, with 16,000 volumes; town, city, &amp;c., 4, with 3,730; court and law, 63, with 8,610; school, college, &amp;c., 15, with 41,100; Sabbath school, 369, with 63,114; church, 82, with 16,002; historical, literary, and scientific societies, 2, with 2,000; benevolent and secret associations, 1, with 400; circulating, 8, with 11,895. Besides the college libraries, the principal are those of the young men's library association at Atlanta (3,000 volumes), of the mechanics' and scientific association at Columbus (8,000), and of the Georgia historical society at Savannah (7,000). There were 110 newspapers and periodicals, issuing 15,539,724 copies annually, and having an average circulation of 150,987, viz.: 15 daily, circulation 30,800; 5 tri-weekly, 3,600; 9 semi-weekly, 5,100; 73 weekly, 88,837; 2 semi-monthly, 700; and 6 monthly, 21,950. They were classified as follows: agricultural and horticultural, 6; illustrated, literary, and miscellaneous, 5; political, 93; religious, 4; technical and professional, 2. The number of church organizations was 2,873. The number of edifices and sittings, and the value of church property, are shown in the following table:

&mdash;Of the thirteen provinces which declared themselves independent in 1776, Georgia was the latest settled. The country lying within its present boundaries was a wilderness previous to 1733, and, though comprehended within the charter of Carolina, had been claimed by Spain as well as England. By patent dated June 9, 1732, George II., in honor of whom it received its name, granted the territory to a corporation entitled the “Trustees for settling the Colony of Georgia.” The double purpose proposed in the settlement of this region was, on the one hand, to afford a retreat for the destitute at home, and on the other, to secure the frontiers of the Carolinas from the incursions of the Indians and the Spaniards of Florida. In November of the same year 116 persons were embarked at Gravesend under the direction of Gen. James Oglethorpe, and arrived at Charleston in January, 1733. From this place Oglethorpe explored the country, and soon after purchased a large tract of land from the Creeks. On a high bluff overlooking a river the foundation of a town was laid,

which received the name of Savannah. Here the settlement was commenced in the spring of 1733. The condition upon which the lands were parcelled out was military duty, and so grievous were the restrictions to which the colonists had to submit that many returned into Carolina, where the lands were held in fee simple. The number of inhabitants in the colony nevertheless continued to increase, considerable accessions to its population being received from Germany and Scotland. In 1739 war broke out between Spain and England, and Gen. Oglethorpe was appointed to the command of the South Carolina and Georgia troops. Having mustered 1,000 men and a number of Indian allies, he invaded Florida, but, failing in an expedition against St. Augustine, returned unsuccessful. In 1742 this invasion was retaliated, and a Spanish fleet of 36 ships and 5,000 men appeared in the Altamaha river, took Fort St. Simon, and were proceeding against Fort Frederica, on St. Simon's island, when from a stratagem conceived by Oglethorpe they became alarmed, retired to their ships, and sailed for Florida. Peace was soon restored; but restrictions of various kinds, and especially the prohibition of slavery, rendered the people discontented, and many abandoned their settlements, while those who remained with difficulty obtained a scanty subsistence. The restrictions upon slavery were removed about 1750, and in 1752, the trustees having surrendered their charter to the crown, Georgia became a royal government, with privileges and regulations similar to those of the other colonies. The first good effect of the change of government was felt in the establishment of a general assembly in 1755. The limits of the colony to this time were the Savannah on the north and the Altamaha on the south, extending westward to the Pacific. In 1763 all the lands between the Altamaha and St. Mary's were annexed to Georgia by a royal proclamation. From this period the colony made rapid progress; the rich swamps and lowlands on the rivers were brought into cultivation, and production rapidly increased. At the commencement of the revolution the colonists did not hesitate to make the grievances of their northern brethren their own, and take part in the coming struggle. In July, 1775, a convention gave the sanction of the colony to the measures of congress, and appointed delegates to that body. During the war that ensued Georgia was overrun by British troops, and the principal inhabitants were compelled to abandon their homes and fly into the neighboring states. In 1778 Savannah was captured, and in 1779 Augusta and Sunbury. In the latter year an unsuccessful attempt was made by the Americans and French to recapture Savannah. Georgia framed its first constitution in 1777, a second in 1789, and a third in 1798, which was several times amended. The constitution of the United States was ratified by Georgia on Jan. 2, 1788. After

the revolutionary war Georgia suffered on her frontiers from the incursions of the Creeks and Cherokees. In 1790 and 1791 treaties were concluded with the chiefs of those nations. By the treaty of Fort Wilkinson in 1802 the Creeks ceded to the United States a large tract which has since been assigned to Georgia, and now forms the S. W. counties of the state. In the same year Georgia ceded to the United States all its claims to the lands westward of its present limits. Subsequently serious difficulty arose between the state and national governments respecting the Cherokees, which was terminated by the removal of that tribe in 1838 to the Indian territory, when Georgia came into possession of their lands. In the presidential election of 1860 the vote of Georgia was 51,889 for Breckenridge, 42,886 for Bell, and 11,590 for Douglas. Immediately after the result became known the legislature (Nov. 18) ordered an election to be held on Jan. 4, 1861, for the choice of delegates to a convention to consider the question of withdrawing from the Union. This convention, consisting of 301 delegates, assembled at Milledgeville on Jan. 16, and on the 19th passed an ordinance of secession by a vote of 208 to 89. A proposition to call a congress of the disaffected states, with a view to coöperation, was defeated by a vote of 164 to 133. All the delegates subsequently signed the ordinance except six, who caused an entry to be made in the journal that they acquiesced in the will of the majority. On the 24th 10 delegates were appointed to the congress of the seceded states, to be held at Montgomery, Ala., Feb. 4, and on March 16 the constitution of the Confederate States was unanimously ratified. Ordinances were also passed resuming jurisdiction over places ceded to the United States, and transferring all forts, arsenals, and munitions of war to the confederate government. On Jan. 3, 1861, Fort Pulaski, on Cockspur island at the mouth of the Savannah river, mounting 60 guns, was seized by order of Gov. Brown, and at the same time Fort Jackson, 4 m. below Savannah, was occupied. On the 24th the arsenal at Augusta, containing two 12-pound howitzers, two cannon, about 20,000 small arms, and large stores of ammunition, was taken possession of by 700 state troops under Gov. Brown. Georgia, except on the coast, was not the theatre of active hostilities until 1864. On Nov. 25, 1861, Com. Du Pont, who had just taken Port Royal, S. C., occupied Big Tybee island at the mouth of the Savannah, and soon after other points commanding Fort Pulaski were taken possession of, and that fort was reduced, April 11, 1862, by a bombardment from batteries erected on Tybee island. Early in March Com. Du Pont, with a fleet from Port Royal, took possession of St. Mary's, Brunswick, Darien, and St. Simon's island, and left a small force at each. On Feb. 28, 1863, the Nashville, a confederate ironclad, was destroyed in the Ogeechee river by Commander Worden; and on March 3 an

ineffectual attack was made on Fort McAllister on the same river, a few miles S. W. of Savannah, by a federal fleet. On June 11 Darien was burnt, and on June 17 Capt. John Rodgers in the Weehawken disabled and captured in Warsaw sound the confederate ironclad Atlanta, which had just come down from Savannah. A portion of the operations around Chattanooga in the autumn of 1863 took place in N. W. Georgia. On May 6, 1864, commenced the decisive campaign from Chattanooga under Gen. Sherman, which resulted, after a persistent resistance and much severe fighting, in the evacuation of Atlanta by the confederates on Sept. 1. Sherman started, Nov. 15, on his memorable march to the sea. Passing through the heart of Georgia, he entered Milledgeville on the 23d, and reached the vicinity of Savannah on Dec. 10. On the 13th Fort McAllister was taken by storm, and on the 21st Savannah was occupied, having been evacuated the night before by the confederates under Gen. Hardee, who had destroyed the navy yard, two ironclads, several smaller vessels, and much ammunition and stores. A cavalry force under Gen. Wilson in April, 1865, entered Georgia from Alabama, took Columbus and West Point, arrived at Macon on the 21st, and captured Jefferson Davis, the fugitive president of the confederacy, at Irwinville, May 10. Andersonville in this state was the seat of the most noted of the confederate military prisons, and there was another at Millen, which was removed upon the approach of Gen. Sherman. After the surrender of the confederate armies, the state was under the control of the military until June 17, 1865, when President Johnson appointed James Johnson, a citizen of the state, provisional governor, with power to call a convention of delegates chosen by the citizens loyal to the United States, who were qualified as voters by the laws in force immediately before the passage of the ordinance of secession, and who should take the oath prescribed in the amnesty proclamation of May 29. The election of delegates took place Oct. 4, and the convention, assembling at Milledgeville on the 25th, remained in session 13 days, during which time it repealed the ordinance of secession and acts in pursuance thereof, declared the war debt void, amended the constitution by abolishing slavery and in other respects, and ordered an election to be held on Nov. 15 for governor, members of the legislature, and congressmen. The legislature convened Dec. 4, and soon afterward ratified the amendment to the constitution of the United States abolishing slavery, by a unanimous vote. On the 14th Charles J. Jenkins, who had been elected governor, was inaugurated, and on the 19th the provisional governor was instructed to turn over to him the government of the state. These measures not meeting with the approval of congress, the senators and representatives were not admitted to seats; and under the reconstruction acts of 1867 Georgia, with Alabama

and Florida, was constituted the third military division, and placed in command of Major Gen. Pope. A registration of those entitled to vote under these acts was subsequently made, when 192,235 voters were registered, viz.: 96,262 white and 95,973 colored. An election was held during the five days commencing Oct. 29, which resulted in a large majority for a constitutional convention (the whites generally refraining from voting), and in the choice of 166 delegates, of whom 33 were colored. The convention met at Atlanta Dec. 9, and adjourned finally March 11, 1868, after framing a constitution, and providing for an election for its ratification or rejection and for the choice of state officers and congressmen, to be held April 20 and the three following days. The result was a majority of 17,699 for ratification, and the election of Rufus B. Bullock, republican, by 7,047 majority over John B. Gordon, democrat. The legislature consisted of 22 republicans and 22 democrats in the senate, and 73 republicans and 102 democrats in the house; 3 senators and 25 representatives were colored. On June 25 an act of congress was passed providing for the readmission of Georgia, with other states, upon the ratification by the legislature of the 14th amendment to the constitution of the United States, and the abrogation of certain provisions of the state constitution prohibiting suits on debts contracted prior to June 1, 1865. The legislature organized on July 4, and on the 21st complied with the prescribed conditions by a vote of 24 to 14 in the senate and 89 to 70 in the house, and on the following day Gov. Bullock was inaugurated. On the 29th United States senators were elected, and on the 30th the government of the state was turned over to the civil authorities. The congressional representatives had been admitted to seats on the 25th, but the senators were still excluded. In September the colored members of the legislature were expelled, and the candidates having the next highest number of votes in the respective districts seated in their places, on the ground that by the code and the laws existing at the adoption of the constitution, which were continued in force by one of its provisions, negroes were ineligible to office. This action was regarded by the majority at Washington as a violation of the reconstruction acts and of the conditions upon which the state had been admitted; and on the organization of the 41st congress, March 4, 1869, the representatives from Georgia were not permitted to take their seats. Subsequently the supreme court of the state decided that negroes were entitled to hold office, and on Dec. 22 congress passed an act directing the governor by proclamation to convene at Atlanta all persons declared by the order of Gen. Meade (who had succeeded Gen. Pope in December, 1867) of June 25, 1868, to be elected to the legislature, who were required to take the test oath prescribed by the act as a condition precedent to organization, and to ratify the 15th

to the constitution of the United States, to entitle the state to representation in congress. By an order of Dec. 24 Major Gen. Terry was placed in command of the troops to carry the act into effect. The legislature met, Jan. 10, 1870, in pursuance of a proclamation of Gov. Bullock, and adjourned from time to time until the 26th of that month, when a commission appointed by Gen. Terry to determine the eligibility of certain members reported against 21 as ineligible under the 14th amendment, or for refusing to take the test oath, and the candidates having the next highest number of votes in the respective districts were seated in their places. Both houses were declared duly organized on the 31st, and on Feb. 2 the 15th amendment was ratified by a vote of 26 to 10 in the senate and 55 to 29 in the house. The conditions prescribed in the reconstruction acts of 1867 were also assented to, and subsequently United States senators were elected. On July 15 an act for the readmission of the state received the approval of the president. An election for congressmen was held Nov. 20-22, and they, together with the senators elected in 1868, having been admitted to congress in the following December, the reconstruction of the state became complete.