(Excerpt from A Parallel Between the Great Revolution in E...)
Excerpt from A Parallel Between the Great Revolution in England of 1688, and the American Revolution of 1860-'61 No sooner v as he elected than the Southetn States were aroused to their danger. Theiruight to hold slavesmvas expressly gua1antied in the onstitutionnhad heén 113011 stantly lecognized by all the departments of the government executi1e,legislati1e and judicial, in all the pasthistory ot' the U11ieu - and it was well 111101111 that the right 11 as inc01 pmated as an indispensable condition oi the Union. '10 de 31101 o1111ateiialls to impait that right was the1elo1e to nnnnl a tuudamental condition ofthe Union. It 1111's to subvelt the L10nst1tuttonbz/ retolutwn 1n10111ngthe destruction ofthe main business, 11011111 ty and wealth as well as the social system 01 the soutl1c1 11 States. Tsho e States saw that the govern went about to undergo a revolution to 1esult 1n the de 8 motion of their institutions and their most samed 1ights. All, their efio1ts, made in Congwss (10111 the 1st Uecembm, ttl, to the 4th March following, to obtain sceulity for tl1ei1 fights, and to pretent the (head necessity of thei1 withdrawal from the Union, were met with insult and de tianee, and with threats that the pledges of the party had received the verdict of the people at the hallothox, and'that nothing remained but to execute it. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
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Alexander Handy was born on December 25, 1809, in Princess Anne, Maryland, United States. He belongs to that branch of the family, whose ancestor, Samuel, settled in Somerset Count, Maryland, as early as 1665. Colonel George Handy, of the third generation, father of Alexander, was an officer in Lee’s Legion of Revolutionary fame. He married Betsy Wilson, daughter of James Wilson, and Alexander was his fifth son.
At the age of thirteen Alexander was enrolled in Washington Academy, where he remained six years, being thoroughly grounded in the classics.
After graduation Alexander Handy became deputy clerk to his brother, George, who at that time was clerk of the county court. This aided greatly in his legal studies which he undertook during spare hours, and in 1834 he was admitted to the bar. Several years later he decided to seek fortune in Mississippi, then the far Southwest, settling in the town of Canton after living several years in Madisonville. Handy built up an extensive practice before the high court of errors and appeals, and in chancery and federal courts as well. His prominence brought him before the public and in November 1853 he contested successfully the reelection of William Yerger, a Whig, to a judgeship on the high court of errors and appeals. Handy was a Democrat and his known views on the constitutionality of the Union Bank bonds probably brought him the popular vote, though he maintained a strictly judicial reserve during the campaign.
Yerger had rendered his noted decision in the case of The State of Mississippi vs. Heyron Johnson, which decreed that the Union Bank bonds, now worthless because of the failure of the bank, in which the state had a large interest, were therefore a valid obligation of Mississippi.
Shortly after the secession of Mississippi, Handy was appointed by the governor as commissioner to the authorities and people of Maryland to arouse secession sentiment in that state. After interviewing Governor Hicks, who refused to convene the legislature for the purpose of cooperating with the South, he delivered several speeches in the state. On December 20, 1860, in Baltimore, he urged secession as a natural right, giving to his plea for the rights of the states great dignity and eloquence.
During the war he continued to serve Mississippi as associate justice, and on April 18, 1864, he was made chief justice of the high court of errors and appeals. On October 1, 1867, he resigned in consequence of the court’s being placed under military control and moved to Baltimore, where he resumed the practice of law and taught during the session 1870-1871 in the University of Maryland Law School. In the fall of 1871 he returned to his old home at Canton, Mississippi, where he practised law and lived out the last uneventful and peaceful years of a wellrounded life, declining appointments to a professorship in the state university, and to his old position of chief justice, offered him by the governor.
Alexander Handy was one of the leaders at the bar in Mississippi. He also served as Chief Justice of the High Court of Errors and Appeals from 1864 to 1867. His numerous opinions may be found through volumes 26 to 41 of the Mississippi Reports. They have contributed much to the law of that state and show independence of thought, clearness of reasoning, wide learning, and painstaking research.
(Excerpt from A Parallel Between the Great Revolution in E...)
Handy was married to Susan Wilson Stuart.
