The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1899-06-09
d JUNE 8. 1899.
ALEssON FOR THE SOUTH.

When General Wheeler went to Bos-
ton to make his Federal decoration
.day address, he made a big departure.
He was treated well by some, but 9TH
>ers were very hot over having a mis-
cradle rebel to pow-wow over the
graves of the men who invaded the
south. Wheeler made a great sacri-
flee as q Confederate in accepting the
invitation. With the history of the
wrong doings and expressions OF New
England towards the south for more
than one hundred years., and it's con-
duct in mercilessly waging war against
the south after it's own record for Sc
cession n traitorism, beginning in
Washington's first term of the presi-
adency, and running to the infamous
Hartford Convention, composed Of a
gang of traitors, 1T vas a great stretch
of forgiving and forgetting that per-
mitted the reconstructed Confederate
to go to Boston, the fanatical. But he
was dashed afterwards by a Colonel
banners who illustrated his name in
a fine way. He foamed at the mouth.
LIN udu LhdI IIACo ICClli6 "lEiL
southern men crawled on their bellies
and tried to explain We could not lis
ten with any degree of patience to
one of these su~pplicating "explainers."
The Atlanta Journal said of the damn
ing of the banners:
ION this point a great many south
ern people agree with banners. The
explanation and apology business has
been carried too far already. 1t never
satisfied anybody and has accomplished
nothing toward the justification of the
south in the eyes OF those who are far
enough to seek the truth of history.
banners, in the course of his still-for-
war speech, said: How could the
rebel general apologize? What could
they do, anyway, to atone for what
Union soldiers was not a thing they
. could atone for should they devote
their lives to the attempt. y 1t
is outrageous to have General Wheeler
here on Decoration Day."
There was another fierce fighter who
was heard. He, too, was exhausted
and evidently ~despised the eager way
of some southrons in trying to placate
the north. We have never gushed or
sought in any way to induce the
haorth to forgive" the south. So far
from it we know positively that all the
wrong is on the other side. 1t was
the greatest of crimes when the north
erbegan the war, and tn- way it was on
- Quoted on it's part was q disgrace to
a the very name of humanity Il civil
zzation and ~vandalic all through. Moth
ing in cruelty has been found in three
centuries equal to it, except the Span
ish wars and England in the East in
Ehe Sepoy war. Of course the present
war in the Philippines is IN a par
with it. The other d~enouncer was a
Colonel w. l.. French, probably a
cousin to G.. z. French, now in this city.
He said:
THE frequency with which the rebels
have been dragged into patriotic ceie-
brations in the north is shameful. 1t
should be stopped. So far as I have
heard from the members of the Union
veterans they are in accord in the
main with what Mr.. banners said"
The south will not care what hap
pens to the next gray coat who goes
up north to beg for reunion and to
PROSTATE his section if he an. The
north has done nothing since 1866 to
win the smiles of the south and to give
any assurance of repentance for its
great crime perpetrated upon the south
in 1916. There is a world of false
sentimentality and manufactured bun-
combe in the annual occurring talk over
the forgotten past and our people n
so on. The south has been the newer
Of wood and the drawer of water for
the north since the day that George
Washington took the oath of office.
The curses and maledictions of the nor
thern fire-eaters do less harm to truth
n self-respect h supposed patri-
otto gable and misapplied adulation.