Daily union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1865-1866, 1866-08-05
SOUTHERN PERIODICAL LITERA-
TURE.

The field Of current periodical literature
] has never been fully occupied in the South
ern States We have ever been, as people,
prone to go elsewhere for the intellectual
pabulum which we should have produced
and cultivated at home. It has not arisen
from deficiency of mental strength, or
lack Of literary taste on the part of the
Southern people. It may be true that n
taste for reading is not rs universal at the
South, as at the North, but where it does
exist, il is certainly as correct as that of the
people elsewhere. The comparative few of
our people who have devoted their lives
exclusively to literary pursuits have not
met with encouraging success-not that
their labors were wanting in substantial
merit, but there were other causes which
brought disappointment and often failure.
One ofthese causes, and perhaps the most
important one, was the lack of publishing
capital and enterprise. The amount of capi-
tai invested in printing books and periodi-
Gals in the three principal cities of the
North, together with the immense provision
Of machinery and material for binding, COW
ering and throwing the results upon the
markets and before the people, created a ne
oessity for a constant supply Of the products
Of the intellect The publishers, who had
embarked hundreds of thousands in the
business Of book-making were forced to have
books written, or stop business at great loss.
This demand was absolute, and invited the
brain Of their section to constant and remu-
neratiye employment Book-writing be-
came as much business as book printing,
and 50 they were multiplied with astonish-
ing rapidity and profusion. Every depart
ment Of periodical literature was occupied,
and next came the necessity for the sale of
these products, in order to realize a reason
able interest on the money capital thus ex-
pended
With this branch Of the business the wri-
ter had nothing to do-except in exception
al cases. A reputation once established he
had none Of the annoyances of publication
but sold his manuscripts by the page, just as
the merchant sold his goods, or the farmer
his hay. These conditions, Of course, pro
duced many worthless publications. The
anxiety Of scribblers to gain fame. AID the
efforts Of publishers to drive trade in their
line conspircd together to foist upon the
public great amount Of trash. But the
business Of writing, printing binding, selling
and reading goes on still without abatement.
And our booksellers are compelled to 60 to
them for their stocks-forthoy have nowhere
else to 90, and our readers are compelled 10
read them, or read nothing. So. likewise, is
il with the more ephemeral publications en-
titled generally periodical literature-which,
though not requiring so much capital. has
been blended with the larger enterprise Of
book-publishing.
This has never been the case in the South.
We have never had the money and business
enterprise thrown into this channel to make
the business successful either to writers or
publishers. Nearly every venture Of the
sort that has been made in the Scu,h has
lived a sickly and neglected life, and died
premature death. Ourliterary writers, even
the best and most verify Of them, have
been miserably compensated or not COM
pensaied at an, and reduced 10 the extremity
Of giving up in dispair, or writing for Moth
ing This will have to be changed before
we can have an enduring, able and credita-
bic southern literature.