part minor offices and most of them were ignorant
men. Some of them were venal and vicious but
this was not true in all cases. Indeed the Freedmen were pathetic too in their attempt to choose
the best persons but they were singularly limited
in their choice. Their former white masters were
either disfranchised or bitterly hostile or ready to
deceive them. The “carpet-baggers” often cheated
them; their own ranks had few men of experience
and training. Yet some of the colored men who
served them well deserve special mention:
Samuel J. Lee, a member of the South Carolina legislature, was considered by the whites as one of the best criminal lawyers of the state. When he died local courts were adjourned and the whole city mourned. Bishop Isaac Clinton who served as Treasurer of Orangeburg, S. C. for eight years was held in highest esteem by his white neighbors and upon the occasion of his death business was suspended as a mark of respect. In certain communities Negroes were retained in office for years after the restoration of Democratic party control as, for example Mr. George Harriot in Georgetown, S. C. who was Superintendent of Education for the county. Beaufort, South Carolina, retained Negroes as sheriffs and school officials.
J. T. White who was Commissioner of Public Works and Internal Improvements in Arkansas;
