Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1874-07-14
The Count de Paris ON the war of Sc.
cessiOn.

EXTRACT FROM BOOK on THE CIVIL WAR
SHORTLY To BE PUBLISHED.
The first two volumes of "Hstory of the Civil
War in America" by the Count de Paris, ara
shortly to appear in Paris. The Rsruc des Deun
Aondes, published on the LIST OF July, contained
several passages from this work. The follow
ing extracts are taken from the RsUue:
AT the beginning of the year 1851 one of those
acts OF violence which ambitious men often
know how to disguise under names which are
the inner In proportion to the culpsbility OF
their motives, rent the United States Republic
and kindled in ii civil war. A c6uD de e,Gt was
attempted against the Constitution Of that re.
pubic by the powerful oligarchy which reigned
In the South, and had long domineered in the
council OF the nation. Whenever the common
law, which insures equally to the few and iso-
lated the respect of their rights, and to the ma
Jorlty the full enjoyment OF political power Is
violated by any section OF society, desDotism il
founded, unless that attack is severely repealed.
Beaten In the Presidential election of 1850 the
southern states wished to recover by intimda-
ton or force the influences which they had
hitherto exercised for the advantage of slavery,
and while proclaiming aloud the words "Inde-
pence and Liberty" they trampled under foot
sacred contract as soon as the national vote
pronounced against their policy But success,
that great Justiter of prOvidential men, was
wanting to them, and victory sanctioned
the cause of right against legality. 1t was
then seen what fund of ensrgy the wide
ana constant practice of liberty amasses among
nations happy enough to possess and wise enough
10 guard 1t. America has already solved one OF
the most difficult problems of our age by deyel-
oping liberal institutions amid democra attic So
clety, but no great internal crisis had vet come
TO try their solidIty. Many people asserted that
at the first storm this fra gile plant would be
plucked up from soil incapable of nourishing
II. Inc blast OF civil war arose, and it was, on
the contrary, the vigorous tree OF American in
stltutlons which, extending its shadow over the
country in which it had struck such deem roots
preserved them from imminent destruction. At
TINS Crisis the American people learned to value
their constitution more than in the past and
proved to the world that the statue OF Liberty
- not vain idol, deaf in the hour of danger,
but the holy image of a powerful divinity which
must be invoked in adversely. X
Happily the comparison between the noble
movement OF MS and the resort to arms by the
slaFe-eWneFs IN 1861 was as false from the mil
ltary as from the political point of view At
the time the colonies rejected the authority OF
the mother country all the strategic points Of
their territory were cupied by the English,
IL was sheer necessity to conquer the whole
They had nothing TO lose, and could not deem
themselves beaten even when the enemy was
still in the heart Of the country. In 1861 on the
contrary, tie cOnfederates. masters of all the
territory which they claimed to withdraw from
The legal power of the new President, had need
OF that vast region, on the one hand, to main
tam the institution OF slavery, aud, on the
other, to support their numerous armies
when II was invaded they felt themselves
vanqu shed. What was possible in the
War of Independence, when the number of the
complaints was limited, was NJ longer So
washington aud Gates, Howe and Corn gallIs
bad ususlly under their orders only 10000 or
1900, and very rarely 10000 men. These small
armies could subsist upon the country they oc-
cupled. 1t was not, indeed, always without
difhculty, and WashingtOn's soldiers suffered
terribly in the winter they passed at Valley
Forge. The English army, tTaversIng a COM
paratlvely rich country from Philadelphia to
New York, was obliged to carry its provisions
with it, and COrnwallis lost all his baggage in
North Carolina, which he IL srched through as
a conquerOr; but neither were subject to the
vast commissariat system which supposes a
fixed and assured basis Of operations and with
out which considerable armies cannot be sup
ported in America. They subsisted and So
Journed for long months beside an enemy who
was master of the country.