Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1872-10-25
SECTIONAL WEAKNESS.
No North, No South, No East, No West,
but tile Union.

From the Nashville Banner.l
We have no doubt in the world that
there are a number of virtuous people of
the otiice-seeking persuasion who look
upon the frank, free, Outspoken nation
aiity of the Republican Banner as only
so much evidence of its treason to the
South ~ or tro achery to "Our people" 3"
lust as they regarded its Unionism of an
earlier date as evidence only Of its "ab-
s,lition,D or black republican, or
Yankee" tendencies. We really have
no desire TO wound the sensibilities Of
any Of our fellow-beings, but we confess
we have little patience with the silli-
ness, weakness and sectional vanity Of
those who dislike to have their intense
Southernism handled with little mas
culine rOughness, when they ought to
have sense enough to know that it is
good exercise for their little souls to
shake them up occasionally. We are
honestly tisgusted with hearing re-ech-
ocd with damnable iteration nothing
but "the South,n or Southern this
or Southern that. You rarely hear
ANYTHING about "the NOrth,n or
"Northern" this, that and the other,
when YOU visit any of the larger
cities that happen to be north Of
US on our cOuntry's map. 1t would be a
happy thing for tour people," If ''our
people" could only reform the silly af-
fectation ofmouthing about "the South, +"
as il II was sacred soil for the exclusive
benefit Of the "first families y who hap
pened to emigrate here from Yankee
land OF from Europe a little earlier than
some Of their neighbOrs.
# nrrr the frufh i there Il ufIxT M
''South" nor any "North" in this cOun-
try, in a strictly political sense. Where,
pray, would any sectional extremist on
either side now locate Mason and Dix
on's line? Tennessee, for example, is
not the South, nor the North-it is as
much AmeTicd-the United States, as is
Maine OF Florida. We remember that
50 intensely Southern were the tenden-
eIes Of some Of "our people" Immediate
ly after the war that few went " South
TO Mexico, and even as far "South" as
Brazi-but, as we observed, they gen
orally came "North' again--came back
under the hated stars and stripes, which
is as much now the emblem Of liberty
and genuine republieanism In Tennes-
see as TO any other State in the sister
hood Of the Union We are Americdns-
not "Northernersn or "Southernersn-
citizens Of the United Tdtes-uot Of
Confederate States on paper. We shall
never have any prosperity, any peace,
any hCalthful progress in this portion
Of The Union, until we abandon all sec
tional eXclusiveness, In spirit, word and
deed. We fondly hope that this will be
the last political campaign in which a
mans devotion to the present Union
shall be called in question, or a mans
fidelity 10 the cause Of disunion shall be
raised, in contrast, to decide the suita-
bleness Of either for representatives OF
our community in the National Legis-
lature. The South, as a section, has
been the Flanders and ohopping-bloek
of all the Presidential fights Tor the last
decade. What we wish to see is q de-
termination on the part OF its business
men 10 sink II out Of sight as an arena,
aud meantime, work to become a part
Of the Republie-thereby supplying it.
self with the necessary currency 10 con-
duct its commerce, having education,
immigratiOn and all other blessings fol-
lowing in its train. Let us be an inte-
gral part Of the American Union, and
sink all shams and sentmantalities out
of sight.