Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1861-03-21
w. B. BELL, Seer
From the North Carolina Journal of Education
Abolition Text Books.
CLeUeland's Compendium of american Literature

CleUelands Compendium of american Literature.
AT the suggestion of several brother teachers beg
leave to expose through your pages the virulent Abo
tion character of School Text Book, issued by
E. c. & j. Bidde, Philadelphia, called Cleveland's
Compendium of American Literature" In this new
compilation the author is alike guilty of violation of
good faith, good taste, and good His first work
was "Compendium of English Literature book still
used in our best schools and highly priced have also
been using this work, and about twelve months SINCE
upon learning from the publishers that similar work
out American Literature, | ordered copies for
my first class in reading. In about two weeks use,
found out that it unique abolition manual and dis
carded it at once.
74O pages is made up of the peculiar phanthropc
Binsgate of the Garrison, Sumner, Seward and Beech
School, with all of its choice perfumed phraseOlogy,
and all of its utter contempt for decency and truth
Twelve pages devoted to Harriet Beecher Stowe
who, Cleveland says, is without a rival in either
Hemisphere the benefit Of which aduIaton is most
cheerfuy conceded for no ever before shocked
the moral of the world by such black msrepresenta
tion to harsher term The extracts selected from
her writings oil on the " bleedng' subject mostly
if not all, from the redoutabe "UncIe Toms Cabin.
! Charles Sumner is immortaized in about the same
number of pages with minute, dolorous account o
his affair with Brooks, in which our author rings the
changes upon cowardly assaants, lasting disgrace
of South Carolina, Inherent wickedness" "cause o
| freedom" &C., &c.
Miss Elizabeth Chandler, a Delaware Abolitionst
fills several pages with five EXTRACTS all on the interest
ing subject. A Boston poeess, and slave there, till
Natures Higher Law dissolved the institution North
whose is Phis Peters, the wife of man, some
times called DR.. Peters," is also rendered immortal in
several pages while the impartial author finds it con
venient to omit even the name of VIM. Gilmore Simms
and that in work protesting to give the best specimens
of american Literature. Next comes DR.. Charming
| Whittier Barnes and others, including Washington
Franklin and Jefferson whose writings have been cued
vile purposes of sectionaliSm. Indeed, school boy
would at once infer from Cleveland that the world en-
masse. was made up of first water Aboitonists.
Daniel Webster is indeed allowed embaming by our
auhor-but to oblvio for having fallen from grace
| the Fugitive Slave Law question
But enough. The facts speak without extracts
hope my brother teachers will pass round the name
Cleveland and his publisher. To the latter we would
say that the confidence reposed by the South in North
schoOlbook publishers has heretofore been liberia
and unsuspcous but that confidence has at length be-
alarmed and its eyes will henceforth be close upon
you, and upon any vehicles in whatever disguise you
may send them FORTH for the circulation of social
political poison in our midst. There are some other
school-books which the guardians Of education and q
the South should inquire into
Six years ago excluded from my list of text books
" Wayland's Moral Philosophy, yet it is used in ou
University and other schools. Mrs. Wizards Histories
in universal use yet she is first class abolitonst
So is Dr. Cutter, of bleeding Kansas notoriety. LIE
every DOCK In which the individual sentiment and mora
of section is disparaged be at published ant
repudiated in all schools of every grade The omi
nous agitation of the great social question: which un
derlies the present political excitement demands it.
But aside from interests do nothing to pride
to seltrespect and dignity-nothing to the cause 0
Southern educational progress and independence ?
our text books at fault is there not ability and in
dusry enough in the great body of Southern teachers t.
make them, and enterprise enough in our publishers t.
print and bind them In this connection it is but jus
to say, that the firm of E. H. Butler Co., Philade phia
never published an unsound book of any kind, and il
their Goodrichs Pictorial History of the United States
just published the offensive part with regard to the his
tory of the abolition of slavery in Pennsylvania, is ex
plunged.
But will close my hasty remarks. l hope to hea
from the Journal of Education on this subject Yours
| d. S. RICHARDSON.