Upon his return, he farmed for two years, clearing and selling lumber on his father's land near Atlanta. Then for a year he was a reporter, then city editor, of Atlanta's
Daily Intelligencer. In 1869, he returned to
practicing law and served in a number of political positions including member of city council, member of the state Senate, and solicitor-general of the Atlanta circuit. One of his law clients was
The Atlanta Constitution, where he learned E.Y. Clarke was willing to sell his one half interest in the paper. His son
Clark Howell took up his mantle at the
Constitution. ==References==