1870, it was suggested to Lieutenant-Governor Powers, presiding officer
of the Senate, that he invite the Rev. Dr. Revels to open the Senate
with prayer. The suggestion was favorably acted upon. That prayer,--one
of the most impressive and eloquent prayers that had ever been delivered
in the Senate Chamber,--made Revels a United States Senator. He made a
profound impression upon all who heard him. It impressed those who heard
it that Revels was not only a man of great natural ability but that he
was also a man of superior attainments.

The duty devolved upon that Legislature to fill three vacancies in the
United States Senate: one, a fractional term of about one year,--the
remainder of the six year term to which Jefferson Davis had been elected
before the breaking out of the Rebellion,--another fractional term of
about five years, and the third, the full term of six years, beginning
with the expiration of the fractional term of one year. The colored
members of the Legislature constituted a very small minority not only of
the total membership of that body but also of the Republican members. Of
the thirty-three members of which the Senate was composed four of them
were colored men: H.R. Revels, of Adams; Charles Caldwell, of Hinds;
Robert Gleed, of Lowndes, and T.W. Stringer, of Warren. Of the one
hundred and seven members of which the House was composed about thirty
of them were colored men. It will thus be seen that out of the one
hundred forty members of which the two Houses were composed only about
thirty-four of them were colored men. But the colored members insisted
that one of the three United States Senators to be elected should be a
colored man. The white Republicans were willing that the colored men be
given the fractional term of one year, since it was understood that
Governor Alcorn was to be elected to the full term of six years and that
Governor Ames was to be elected to the fractional term of five years.