State

Judah P. Benjamin Marker Erected By WHS. E. II. >>lcKFTIIA\ ON November 2, a marker commemorating the life and services of Judah P. Benja¬ min, was presented to the Daugh¬ ters of the Confederacy at Fayette¬ ville. The memorial was given through the B'nai B'rith Society. Historians agree that Benjamin was one of the outstanding Jews ever to have lived in this country. Memorials to him have been erected in Florida and Louisiana, but this is the first one to be placed in North Carolina. It is fitting that the memorial should be placed in the custody of the Daughters of the Con¬ federacy because of Judah P. Benjamin’s invaluable service to the Cause of the South. During the four years of the War Between the States, he was a member of President Jefferson Davis’ cabinet. He held not one but three positions at various times: Attorney Gen¬ eral. Secretary of War and Secre¬ tary of State. In his book, “Judah P. Benjamin, Confederate Statesman," Dr. Robert D. Meade uses the tribute which came from Jefferson Davis twenty years after the War: “A master of law, and the most ac¬ complished statesman I have ever known." Born in West Indies Benjamin was born of Spanish Jewish ancestry in the West Indies in 1811 and was brought to this country in the early years of his life. About 1817, the family moved to Fayetteville, and Judah attended the Fayetteville Academy on Green Street. The marker records this fact and it is erected on the site of the academy. In his biography. Dr. Meade says of his life in Fayetteville: "The Carolina Scotchmen perhaps in¬ fluenced Judah in the direction of conservation and industry: certain¬ ly they helped him get a good scholastic education. As early as 1794 they had founded the Fay¬ etteville Academy, and by the time the Benjamins moved there, it was one of the best in the South, with a fine reputation for good scholastic standards. Judah studied under the Rev. Colin Mclver, a native Scotch Presbyterian, under whose guidance he displayed a quickness of mind which placed him above his schoolmates.” In 1825, Benjamin entered Yale University, and then joined his family who had moved to Charles¬ ton, S. C. Soon he was making his home in New Orleans and was elected to the U. S. Senate. After the War Between the States, he became a member of the British Bar, rising to the rank of Queen’s Counsel. Married in 1833 In 1833 he was married to Natalie St. Martin. The wedding took place in New Orleans. She spent most of her life in Paris, and their only child, Ninette, mar¬ ried a French officer and died with¬ out issue. Benjamin died in 1884 in Paris. At the dedication of the marker in Fayetteville last week, Hon. Charles G. Rose, former president of the North Carolina Bar As¬ sociation, praised the Southern statesman as the highest type of character of his race and country. Beyond his great brilliance in law was his abiding faith in the princi¬ ples of honor and patriotism. The exercises at the dedication were most impressive. Miss Mar¬ garet Broadfoot, president of the J. E. B. Stuart Chapter, U. D. C.. presided and brought greetings. The marker was presented by Mrs. Harry Stein and was accepted by Mrs. E. R. McKethan who, in turn, presented it to Mrs. John S. Rowe, president of the North Carolina di¬ vision. Mrs. James Edwin Woodard. President-General of the U. D. C., expressed her appreciation of the A number of out-of-town Daugh¬ ters of the Confederacy attended the exercises. Among them were Mrs. Paul Borden, of Goldsboro, incoming State President; Mrs. Walter Woodard, of Wilson, a past President, and Mrs. Quentin Gregory. Halifax, a former Vice President. The life of Judah P. Benjamin is a splendid example of what a person of high character and great determination can accomplish. Fayetteville is proud of the fact that he received his education there and that his education at the Academy undoubtedly had a marked influence and effect upon his future career. Only a few years before his death he spoke to Francis Lawley, of London, in high praise of the Fayetteville Academy. Tribute is paid ait Fayetteville to famous Jewish patriot who ren¬ dered such effective service to the Cause of the South during the War Between the States.