THE OTHER AMERICAN VICE PRESIDENT
In spite of his size and frail health, Stephens never backed down from a confrontation. During his first term or two, he challenged fellow representatives from Alabama and Georgia to duels. He also challenged a fellow Whig, Benjamin Hill, to a duel. Hill had accused Stephens of being a “Judas Iscariot to his party” for his continued support of slavery. Hill declined the invitation to fight saying, “It might be some satisfaction to you to shoot at me, though I should entertain no great fear of being hit, but I might possibly kill you, and though you may not consider your life valuable, to take it would be a great annoyance to me afterward.” Stephens would not drop the challenge and said that Hill was “not only an impudent braggart but a despicable poltroon besides.” Hill still refused to fight, saying, “I have a soul to save and a family to support, and you have neither.”
In another exchange, Stephens is said to have yelled, “My opponent is not fit to carry swill to swine!” There were immediate calls of “Order! Order!” from other Congressmen as personal insults were against the rules. Called upon by the Speaker to apologize, Stephens said meekly, “Mr. Speaker, I do apologize. My opponent is absolutely fit for the duty to which I referred!”
While in Congress, Stephens supported the annexation of Texas, the Compromise of 1850 and the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854. Although he defended slavery and favored its extension into all territories, he opposed the dissolution of the Union. As a delegate to the Georgia Convention of 1861, he voted against secession. However, once decided, he accepted the decision and served as a delegate from Georgia to the convention in Montgomery that created the Confederacy. That convention elected him provisional Vice President of the Confederacy, and he was later elected the first Vice President of the Confederate States of America, with Jefferson Davis as President.
As Vice President, Stephens consistently opposed the policies of President Davis, and not surprisingly played little role in the Davis administration. He objected publicly to the conscription and the suspension of the writ of habeas corpus. In a speech early in the war, Stephens declared that slavery would become the “cornerstone in our new edifice” of the Confederacy. This was in direct contrast to Davis’ policy that the war was about states rights and not slavery. Unfortunately for the Confederate cause, this admission
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