The gale., 1888-03-17
THE SOUTHERN SIDE.

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The resentments OF the war are dying
out, yet feeling fingers at the North
that the men who rebelled against the
Government were guilty of crime, and
that they ought to repent of it. That
feeling grows weaker, there is dispo-
sitlon to give the South the benefit Of a
sort of moral statute of limitation, and
forgive what was done so long ago; but
whatever vividly recalls the events OF
the war is liable to revive feeling that
The Soutnerners rebelled wickedly and
without any excuse. Now. why did the
Southerners fightp Let the Northern
reader try to put himself IN the place
of the average white Southerner of 1860
and see how things looked to him.
Slavery was pant of his whole social
life. As child he had been nursed by
black "msmmy. The servants in
his house belonged to him. Ii he was
a planter his iaborers were his property
This the state of things he had grown
up in. He believed it right; he read
in the Bible how Jews and Christians
owned slaves, and Christ and the apos-
ties said not word against it. He
knew that there was great deal OF
kindness and fidelity in the actual re-
lation of masters and slaves and let
the Northern reader who doubts this
remember that as the war went on the
blacks were left ungirded on every
plantation by she withdrawal of the
whites to the army, yet nowhere did
they rise for revolt or revenge. The
whole industrial system was built on
slavery. The slaves represented com.
mercial value of over thousand mil.
lions. Well, the Southerner had for
many years heard this sytem assailed
throughout the North, and himself de.
uounced as criminal. He was bar
red from. what he considered his clear
rights of property If his slave ran
away. the Northern people would not
let him be reclaimed, though Constitu-
ton and law required it. 1t he wanted
to 60 into Territory, and to take with
hlm his house servants and field hands,
he was told chat he could not keep them
| there. On just that point the right tt
1
take slaves INTO the Territoris, the Re
| publicans and Democrats battied 1t
| uutil at last the Republicans won ir
the election of Lincoln Now the
Southerner saw the National Govern
ment IN the control of q party whose
avowed purpose was to exclude from
the Territories, and to limit and dis
courage, wherever possible, the right to
hold slaves. TheIeupon the South said
to the North: "Since you hate our sys-
tenn of Industry, and mean to restrict it
and hope by and by abolish it, it is time
we parted company. Good bye!"
'Hold on" said TING North, "this
union is not partnership terminable at
will. 1t Is marriage, and there can
be no divorce. But the South had
long held that in effect the union was a
voluntary alliance of States. The
Southern people had htt.e expectation
hat the North would oppose it by arms
and at the Norlh and among RepubIi-
cans the right and expedlency .'of coor-
cing State" was very much in doubt
antil debate was cut short by the can
non of Sumter. So, first, the gulf States
seeded; then. when blood was shed
and passion aroused, the other Sonth-
erp States went too.
Up to this point, many Southerners
had opposed secession, and in the bor-
der States had made some head against
the passion of the hour and the tyranny
Of public sentiment. But when once a
State had voted to leave the Union,
almost every SoUtherner belieYed that
this State had right to his allegiance.
Even if disapprovlng of secession, he
fell himself in the position uf any citizen
whose country goest to war, contrary
t his judgement, but with the right to
command his services After all, very
lev men reason out the right and wrong
of things clearly, especially amid great
social excitement. They catch fire from
the feeling in the arr. North and
South alike, men enlisted under an
impulse to fight for their noms and
along with their neighbors and in de
fence OF their country. To Massa.
chusetts man. his country meant the
United States; to Virginia. has cour try
meant Virginia or the South. George
Washington, in his letters during the
revolution. wrote Tiny country when
he meant Virginia.) Then the war be-
came to the South, what 1t nevere was
TO the North, war of defence. The
ONE and fireside were threatened.
Who blames the men who took arms
against thatp Who has no feeling fol
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