The western sentinel. [volume] (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 1887-1926, 1897-02-25
THE SOUTH.
Refutation of Recent ISLANDERS
Against Our People

h5Tutat1On OF Recent SsanQerS
Against Our People.
Washington Post
The Nav York Sun has latterly in
terested itself somewhat iervently in
the moral condition of the southern
people-not to their betterment or
credit at all, but to their disparage-
ment and criticism. The Sun has dis
covered that che children in Southern
schools are taught to regard the
north with contempt and to believe
that secession represented all the
courage and virtue of the American
people. The Suns latest utterance
10 this connection is as follows:
1.-The original trouble is that the
southern people speak and think of
their nome as section Southern
born tradition and southern-made
histories cultivate the habit of re-
.,ardiog the Southern States as a
section divided aud differentiated
from the United States This ia a
narrow and unsound view, of parti-
cular detriment TO people who hold
it :"
The truth is that southerners
speak Of the South as a section, just
as the westerners speak of the west
e,r the New Eng landers of New Eng
land. 1t is a section, not only from
a purely geographical! point of view,
but because OF its peculiar character
as an exclusively agricultural region
and it's social character as being in
habited almost wholly by native
born Americans. There is almost no
foreign element, outside Of few sea-
port towns, such as New Orleans;
the population is entirely homogene-
GUS, and thus the South is a ''sec-
ton" at once unique and logical.
The southern people have never
sought for or desired foreign immi-
grafton upon any considerable scale.
/ Tney are atisfied with the conditions
under which they live and feel no
! strong disposition to experiment in
| amalgamation. They constitute the
N g. conservative, the most distinc-
lively Am. rican element in our popu
lation, and the time may come when
the Anglo Saxon race throughout
the country will be glad that it is So
Meanwhile it is ridiculously absurd
to speak of the southern people as
seeking to "divioe and diff-rentiate''
themselves from the United States
1t is not true. They feel for the
nation, its flag and it's institutions,
| the deepest and most patriotic pride.
They are glad to have native Ameri-
cans come among them and settle
there and enter into their social and
| industrial schemes. Northern and
| western men have been going south
| in large numbers ever since the war
and have been received with genuine
affection and cordiality. Northern
| and western men are engaged there
in every department OF enterprise
and progress and absolutely no dis
tinction is made as between them
and the southerners born. There
| was time, just after the war, when
q swarm of political Migrants over
ran the south, not for the purpose OF
| becoming legitimate citizens and
| taking part in the material develop
| ment of the section, but for the pur-
pose of playing upon the ignorance
and prejudice of the neHl y enfran-
chised negroes and by that Means
helping themselves to Office and
emolument. The southern people
| never pretended to respect these
creatures or to treat them in any
way save that of resentment and
hostility. They do not regret their
conduct in that episode. They
would repeat it again and again
| under similar conditions. But
twenty years have passed since then,
and the southern people have for
their brethren of the north and west
only courtesy and kindness, esteem
and good will. Every intelligent
man who has Travelled or sojourned
in the south knows the Suns state
ment, above quoted, to be mischiev-
Gus and false and foolish.