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CHAPTER 50 1872 'RIDAY, January 12, 1872, was a day long to be remembered in Atlanta and throughout Georgia. James M. Smith was inaugurated as governor, and, for all practical purposes, Reconstruction in Georgia was over. The Constitution jubilantly recorded the event:1 "A Day of Rejoicing "This, the 12th day of January, 1872, is one of Georgia's memorable days, to be blazoned in her history for all time to come for the occurrence of one of her leading and momentous events. "It marks THE DOWNFALL OF THE RADICAL DYNASTY "What a world of meaning in the expression, misrule ended! An oppressed people redeemed! The restoration of honesty to public office! "The morning dawned beautifully—a rare, sunny, cheerful, lovely day, as if nature itself rejoiced over the auspicious event. "The occasion recalled the good old days of the State. By eleven o'clock the ladies began to flock to the State House, and by half-past eleven every available seat in the Representative Chamber and its galleries was occupied, and hundreds vainly sought admission. It was the spontaneous outpouring of the PEOPLE in rejoicing over the advent of the new era. It recalled in salient contrast the sham of inauguration that occurred when Bullock took the reins of government. Those who had the misfortune to witness that spectacle, with its immense concourse of negroes and its small attendance of whites, can realize the contrast between that occasion and one in which the sympathies and convictions of the people are enlisted. The contrast is typical too of the whole philosophy of the two occasions; one, the installation of a dynasty of corrupt adventurers forced upon a free people, by the bayonet, against their will; the other, the inauguration of a regime based upon the consent of the governed, and reflecting the virtue and intelligence of a great Commonwealth. "A deep, electric, intense feeling of joy pervaded the vast assemblage of Georgia's best sons and fairest daughters. "At seven minutes of twelve the Senate entered the Representative Chamber and President Trammell took the chair. "At precisely twelve Governor Smith entered the Chamber, accompanied by the Acting Governor, the State House officers, Supreme and Superior Court Judges, and by several leading citizens, among them General Toombs, General Colquitt, Colonel P. W. Alexander, Ex-Governor Brown and others. "Governor Smith, according to the old custom, delivered his inaugural, and then took the oath of office himself. . . . "The inaugural was received with repeated applause. As the Governor concluded taking the oath of office the applause was deafening and prolonged. It rolled forth in a vast and increasing volume, representing the spontaneous outbursting of popular joy at the great event. "The Governor retired, the Senate withdrew and the House adjourned. F 874 ATLANTA AND ITS ENVIRONS "Then burst forth a long, strong call for 'Toombs.' But Mr. Toombs had retired. "The crowd dispersed. Once more we breathe. The reign of law and order begins. Since Governor Jenkins was deposed by military despotism, we have had a long night of Radical rule and Cimmerian darkness. That rule is ended. The darkness is succeeded by light, Thank God Georgia is redeemed." Ex-Governor Jenkins, deposed in 1868, returned shortly after the inauguration of Governor Smith, with the Executive Seal of the State which had "never been desecrated by the grasp of a military usurper's hand." In appreciation the Legislature of 1872 authorized Governor Smith to present to him a gold facsimile, bearing the inscription, In arduis fidelis.2 In the regular gubernatorial election of 1872, held in October, Governor Smith was re-elected for a full term, defeating Dawson A. Walker, of Murray County, the Republican nominee, by a vote of 104,256 to 45,812.3 The Legislature of 1872 occupied considerable time with an investigation of the Bullock regime and the H. I. Kimball empire, the latter having fallen apart about the time of Bullock's departure. Upon leaving Atlanta, Kimball went to Chicago and Bullock to his old home at Albion, New York.4 Robert Toombs volunteered his services as prosecuting attorney for the investigating committees, which found Bullock guilty of corruption, dishonesty, and general mismanagement. The charges against Bullock and his administration occupied 161 printed pages. Many of these charges were indictable offenses. Yet, when he was finally brought to justice in Georgia in 1876, proof to convict was insufficient and acquittal resulted. Bullock's defense of his term as governor, made in October, 1872, in an Address to the...

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