The daily Green Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1861-1865, 1862-07-29
From the Norfolk County Mass Journal


AMONG THE PINE, or, South in Secession Time.
By EDAUND kIRKE. New York J. r. Gill
more.
This book deserves more than ordinary recog-
milton, botn from the press and the public Its
vgor of style, graphic powey OF narrative, and
dramatic arrangement Of events, would give it
note aud popularity In any ti1ae and before any
audience. And when we add To this that il is u
most remarkable revelation Of facts, and that
these facts bear directly on o.sr present national
contest, and intimately affect the welfare OF the
American people, We give it an interest >rarcey
equaled by any work yet published
We have accidentally learned some things re-
lallng to It's author and the scenes he describes
which We trust we commit NO indisereton in
giving the public Edmund krke 10 the as
sumed name OF a gentleman who was formerly
a leading merchant in trade with the South
who did IA business of over u million dollars
year, y with that locality, and has at present
sum of money permanently invested there, whlch
would constitute a fortune for almost any one
He knows the South better than any man who
has ever before written concerning it, beiny IA
miliar with nearly every inch Of the soil OF four
States there and having passed many winters
on the plantations of all these Here he saw
the inside working of the institution, and gain
ed familiarity with it which no mere traveller
has had 1T in his power to cohesive Of. He WAS
not an Abolitionls,. For the Fifteen years which
he spent among the planters he saw enough t.,
prevent his being pro-slavery man, but he as
disposed, during this time, to ae them work out
their own salvation ia their own way The
music OF Fort Sumter woke him up. lie could
Dot handle musket, bat he felt that he could
at any rate, blow bugle This book 10 his
hrst blast. lie means that it shall NOT be with
outlts successors. BE is 90; :" literary uan''
and has no literary ambition. All he alas "
do Is to contribute the facts which bis remarka-
Die experience has taught him 70 the ration 3
stock vi knowledge.
he has plan in what be ls dong He docs
not regard our contest as oEe ~ much between
slavery and freedom, AS between two system. Of
labor. Ills plan of subdGiag slavery j. oy break
ING down the dominant oligarchy Q, ID. South
WHO honorable the white isan no leee thar thew
debasc tho Negro. He would educate not alone
thp latter class, be-, he would elevate the South
ern whites Who are not slxvsho deY. Ebie ne
believes may be done by intusiAg among them d
YANKEE element; and he regards tn. proposed
settlsmen: OF the South by Northern soldiers a.
the material agency ios this. On this sa oec, o.,
the poor whites, No book Aas eve. been 70 thor
cugh and explicit. Its daguerreotype OF them
10 entirely faithful; and IL is through these that
the shareholders, taking advantage OF their ~.
norance and debasement have governed Amer
lea.
he incidents OF the book-startins and dra
matte 81 they always are-are true. Not true
10 that they occurred exactly az there related
ihey did not tsansplre IN the order here given
Them, and occupied wider range OF time in
tneir occurrence. But every one of them actu
ally happened and came under the immediate Oh
serVatlon OF the author. This is the fact, to
the mlnutest detail. There is abundant mate
rial IN the booK to confirm this even il the high
character OF the author admitted of it's question
Character is Disseminated in it to the n,eest
shades Ut difference, No close ob4 erver can fail
10 believe that such portraits as he make. Ar,
drawn from originals The dialect of the negro
the poor white, and the corn cracker is each
gwen with careful on.istency which only
years OF observation among them could have en-
aoled the author to appreclat.. Jim (the sor
OF white MANI on ordinary occasions tai ks Xix,
country negro house servant, but under ex
cltemen speaks almost like white man An,
IL is an established truth that persons of mixet
blood, when aroused, always show predominant
ing the characteristics OF the stronger race
Sclp, pure African. always talks and sneak
In hish-toned, elevated manner (.houg n h
never gets out OF the negro lingo,) and it is
curious fact that the native African shows al
ways, when brought in contact with educate
whites, a higher order of character than do thos
whose fathers have had their souls crushed GU
by slavery. Old Pomp has the religion of
good old "ngger who gets an idea of tn
Bible thoroughly literal and whose only con
ceptlons of God are that he is a great good man
who can be approached and talked to by hi