Lawyer and Political Career
Clements studied law at Cumberland School of Law at Cumberland University, Lebanon, Tennessee, and graduated from that school in 1868. He was admitted to the bar in 1869 and commenced practice in La Fayette, Georgia, remaining in practice there until 1887. Clements was elected as school commissioner of Walker County in 1871 and 1872. He served as member of the Georgia House of Representatives from 1872 to 1876, then in the Georgia State Senate for the 44th Senatorial District from 1877 to 1880. While in the Georgia General Assembly, he helped write that state's railroad laws.
The representative from the Seventh District of Georgia, where Clements resided, was William Harrell Felton, an independent. Clements and his five brothers lived in six different counties of the Seventh District, and Felton found himself faced with local issues from six different counties. However, the campaign was non-confrontational, and was described as one of the quietest ever known. Clements' surprising win over Felton by 800 votes was attributed to overconfidence by Felton, hard work by Clements, and the Republican vote voting solidly for Clements. Clements' brothers would keep his political "fences in good repair", assuring his renomination in subsequent years. Clements was elected as a Democrat to the Forty-seventh and to the four succeeding Congresses (March 4, 1881-March 3, 1891). While in Congress, he helped write the legislation which authorized the Interstate Commerce Commission.
On December 2, 1886, Clements married Lizzie Eleanor Dulaney, daughter of a wealthy real estate owner in Louisville, Kentucky, in that city. In 1887, Clements moved from La Fayette to Rome, Georgia, where he served for a year as president of the Chattanooga, Rome, and Columbus Railroad. Clements was defeated for renomination in 1890 due to political manoeuvering in his district.
Clements welcomed reconciliation between North and South. At an 1889 reunion of veterans, Clements stated that Northern and Southern veterans had worked together to rebuild the South after the Civil War.
In 1891, President Benjamin Harrison appointed the former congressman as a special United States Attorney to negotiate the purchase of lands for the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park. Clements had represented the Chickamauga area, and he had worked hard for the passage of the bill authorizing the park. In an April 1891 interview, Clements indicated that he had been able to secure 1,300-1,400 acres but progress had been slow due to absentee owners and the unwillingness of landowners to live under War Department rules in the incipient park. He stated that he expected most negotiations to be concluded by late 1891.
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