Early Times in Raleigh: Addresses Delivered ... at the Dedication of Tucker Hall, and on the Occasion of the Completion of the Monument to Jac
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Early times in Raleigh : addresses delivered ... at the dedication of Tucker Hall, and on the occasion of the completion of the monument to Jacob ... of Raleigh, for the years 1792, 1834 and 1847
(This book was originally published prior to 1923, and rep...)
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David Lowry Swain was an American governor and college president. He is known as the 26th Governor of the United States state of North Carolina from 1832 to 1835.
Background
David Swain was born on January 4, 1801 in Buncombe County, North Carolina. His father, George Swain, a native of Massachusetts and a man of some learning and much intelligence, had gone South in 1785, and, after service in the legislature and a constitutional convention of Georgia, had moved to North Carolina. He was a hatter by trade, ran a small farm, and for many years was postmaster of Asheville. There he married a widow, Caroline (Lane) Lowry.
Education
Being a second child in the family, David was taught at home until he was fifteen, and was then sent to school in Asheville. He entered the University of North Carolina in 1821 but remained only four months, leaving to begin the study of law in Raleigh.
Career
David Swain was admitted to the bar late in 1822 and represented Buncombe in the House of Commons from 1824 to 1827, and from 1828 to 1829, when he became solicitor of an eastern district. Within a year he was a superior court judge, and, after two years, was elected governor, the youngest in the history of the state. Reelected twice, he served from 1832 until 1835.
In the latter year he was a member of the constitutional convention and was elected president of the University of North Carolina. In 1857 he was made a commissioner of the sinking fund and in 1861 was sent by the legislature to Montgomery, Alaska, as one of a commission to represent the state near the Confederate government.
In 1863 Governor Zebulon Vance wished to appoint him to the Confederate Senate that he might "modify and soften the present violent and desperate temper of Congress, " but he declined. Throughout the war he was the constant and invaluable adviser of the governor.
In April 1865 he went as a special commissioner to meet General Sherman on his approach to Raleigh and arrange favorable terms for the surrender of the state, and on April 13, he surrendered the keys of the capitol to Sherman when he entered the town. The next month he was summoned by President Johnson to advise him as to reconstruction, and during the three years following he was consulted constantly by the President and by Governor Jonathan Worth.
Johnson appointed him to the board of visitors of West Point and secured for the University of North Carolina its share of the public land allotted under the Morrill Act, but Congressional reconstruction resulted in the displacement of the trustees and faculty of the University and in virtual heartbreak for Swain; soon afterwards he was injured in a runaway accident and died within ten days.
In North Carolina history Swain was a constructive figure of first rank. An excellent lawyer and judge, he performed his greatest service as legislator and governor, effectively pressing forward the cause of tax reform, public education, internal improvements, and amendment of the constitution to put an end to the dangerous sectional controversy then existing.
He had acquired by 1832 remarkable personal influence, and his messages--dynamic, and charged with telling facts presented in vigorous style--aroused the state. He induced the legislature to call the constitutional convention of 1835, and in it he led the western forces, which were bent on reform.
The student body was multiplied more than fourfold, and by 1860 included representatives from every Southern state and many Northern ones. The faculty was strengthened and enlarged.
During the Civil War by heroic efforts he kept the University open, delaying the conscription of students and carefully husbanding its diminishing resources. The war swept away the endowment, however, and only Swain's resourcefulness made it possible for the institution to continue in operation until 1868.
(This book was originally published prior to 1923, and rep...)
Politics
A Union Whig, he did not believe in secession, but, after the call for troops, accepted it as a necessity. He was a genuine liberal, and so wise in counsel that he was kept in close touch with public life by those who sought his advice.
Views
David Swain desired that the constitution be entirely rewritten, but, that being impossible, he favored every liberal reform proposed, advocating complete religious toleration, the reform of the system of representation, and popular election of the governor.
He opposed the disfranchisement of free negroes. He spoke but seldom, doing his chief work off the floor, but when he raised his voice the convention listened. Occasionally he was fiery in speech, as when he warned the convention, "Unless our demands are granted, unless our wrongs are righted, we will rise like the strong man in his unshorn might and pull down the pillars of the political temple".
Swain was also a constructive figure in a quite different sphere of activity. His choice as president of the University aroused much feeling in the faculty, one professor acidly remarking that the people of the state, having elected Swain to every office in their gift, were now sending him to the University to be educated.
The trustees were wise in their choice, however, for he proved an excellent executive. He was a shrewd and able businessman and the funds of the institution under his management increased largely.
Membership
David Swain was a member of the North Carolina Historical Society.
Personality
David Swain was fair, patient, tactful, and yet perfectly frank; to him more than to anyone else belongs the credit of what the convention accomplished.
He was tall and heavy with a grotesquely ugly figure and ungraceful carriage. His voice was harsh, hollow, and high-keyed, but these defects were soon forgotten in the charm of his conversation. In temperament he was cautious and politic; in manner, suave and mild; but, as his political career showed, he had an abundance of fighting spirit. Teaching constitutional and international law, history, and moral science, he proved a rare teacher; though unconventional he had a dynamic personality and inspired his students with passion for public service.
Connections
On January 12, 1823 David Lowry Swain married Eleanor H. White of Raleigh.