The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1873-11-13
Richmond 1lspattl1.
Southcrn History.

The final success of the attempt 10 III ~
lie southern Historical Sociels j. nay,
nj General congratuiaisop. some lhon.nS
400 4 call was issued having the ioi'l'a'io.'
~ S,ch q society in view. a rrcihll,h"is
,,,o,;in, MAS held. al when Jclicr>oh h"' :"
,rqdc his Inst and most notorious sicc,"'
and which drew down on HIM not oliis ',c
.,,cr dcnunciationS Of the press y, ~,
North, but also that OF the Soul''' ''ui','
without exception. This preliminary s''n.''
iu.s Adjourned, subject to The car oI ta' t's.
ID ut. i short time since c"' N"s ,:,,
and ycrv full representation ti'' y, h,.'
,rond, Va. Gcucrai Juhal Easly oe''N,l,'
the ouennc address. ana WAS iol'e"cu
other gentlemen OF greater OF HSS pioin''
hence. ~ , ,,ord
~, r,jec,ion intcrposcd as TO the keynote OF
,,,,,,. If ,hc .neccbcs, Several Of the speak
,r> were full OF the example .! Hungary.
,>I.;cn. after being under the heel of Austria
for many wears. al length secured feco&ni-
,;vr. Nor wa, Prussia forgotten. iTus-la,
u,oIch was ovrr!uu BY France, suh'u@atcG
and hul.5ljatcG. bu; which in time iohed
n.,k The tide ci conquest upon lac 'oh-
o.!cyor al Waterloo and sedan. These com
r,;;sons arr NOT analogous cases. nor are
'rry il good taste, cvcu admitting their cor
rcc.ness.
r,,,. North i not foreign power. In The
next ,!acr. i; is not the NoTih that opposes
;hc south. but il j. IL party. Inc repre-
sentative element OF the North has no SYM
nltiv Whatever with the crusad" aSaInSi The
South.
Al, oppression of the South is engineered
by yoliti,mu., and is not nj all the Wolk OF
tie pcor'e. Tie masses OF The Norm Fave
a prot1und sym:athy With the southern
S;aies. and would willingly do anything to
relieve them in their present difficulty. In
i,.tunately, party machinery has thus tar
ie,n more popular than tic popular sense
"a right, and the South has been held III hui
initiation against the wishes OF majority OF
;,> northern ;eUplc. Ii seems altogether
}Iohaba that this infamous conspiracy
adjust TIC nights Of the south Is bat te!G-
pvgary alLs!I. and tha, the present corfupt
ng1 you;cnp!ibIc Administration will 20
down, Together with its supporters, at the
next general election. However. III order
HAT This h"pcl-ior contamination may BIZ
surely attained il is essential that the south
.ru people snaI! assist in the work OF re-
d InyiiGn. They should look 10 the ballot
DON, and not to the sword for relief.
80 far a, the historical purposes oil tie
Southern society are concerned, they are
c0:nncnlaL!c in the highest degree. There
:, az sci. no hsSo1y Of the war. All that
HAS been given TO tuc country, III the name
y! History, las been no more than partisan
documents. This is true both in the North
and South. The production Of sel!-st! led
history in E:chulond. and putrOriing to be
q history from the southern standpoint, was
NOTING more than IN elaborate political
document against the administration OF JET
!rrSuu DAVIS. The brief OF IL prosecutor i
mol history. In the North, the same, Is
well as other. objections apply to All
Tic so-ga!lcd histories OF the war.
GTce'cy's work is the most plctenllouS
effort OF the Find; Int Greeley, however
fair hv may have tecn disposed 10 be,
vas too violent IL partisan 10, make "A hI>to-
Iitu. His effort is not Il narration Of occur
.,rce> IL they took place, but IS SIMPLY
groupings Of real or pretended events Tor
tie purpose Of d.ivudng his own prtcpn-
t.iycd theory OF tie causes and results Of
Tie wur. Nearly ali Tie ether northern his
tories" aIe extracts from newspaper ac-
counts OF battles and political occurrences,
landed IN Il manner 10 most eGectlnilly re-
i~ct the partisan views Of the writer. There
!, not today II single history OF the war
iimt rises above the dignity OF Il campaign
document.
il historian should not belong 10 the age
oi which nc writes nor should Dc be too II.
lnJlU from it. IL tue Que ca>C. he shares III
IL animUsitic> and mi>cun>irue>: and III The
otter. he Tails 10 perceive thousand minute
events, which. however insignificant, form
complete links in the grand Chain OF events.
Ike must not be Il foreigner. for in such 4
ease he would fail 10 comprehend the feel
ingS and motives ui the actors whom he dc.
Ey,ibes: IL which case his results would
either lack III" warmth OF real life, OF else he
WUuiii always mi,Uouccyc the character vi
tIc sentiments and purposes OF those whom
he mllhe> study.
I he most that can De done in the interests
OF truth by this generation /, 10 collect dat',
and leave their working up ~ the future.
The south has it., historical society and the
Ncith should have the same. Each should
rXmu>tivriy gather aIl that it knows in rele-
rene: 10 the ralIsr, progress, ana result OF
tie contest. The true historian OF Il @cncln-
ton o. two later can labor upon these data,
and strikH:, Il balance between them, can
react, impartial conclusions. Southern his
turic, OF northern histories viii be by them
selves Of no Waite, save a5 illustrations OF
plltlsan>lip and natural hatred Of the see
tioHs. 10 sunlC cXtrut they will serve Il de-
siIuilc euu Us showing the coming historian
how the sections hated each other and how
nl.th each lelt r>eit aggricyrd and lulnii-
altQ ~ the action oi the other.