The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1901-12-15
svsrr NV BooKs.-
tho Constitution and tho civil War.

aOA
lions 70 our power Of measuring the effects
Of the Civil War on the constitutional his
tory of the United States we are indebted
70 Prof. John w. Burgess OF Columbia n
yersity, the author of the two volumes col
Iectiyely entitled The CirIi War and the Con-
situfon. (Scrfbners). In the preceding
number Of "The american. History Series,
the number devoted to the so-caled Mid
die Period" the same author discussed the
events which began with the Missouri
Compromise and eliminated in the seces-
sion OF most OF the slave-holding States,
The volumes now before us carry the narra-
tive to the concluding act OF the war, TO
wit, Gen. Kirby Smiths Surrender OF all
the Confederate forces remaining west
of the Mississippi. We should note at the
outset that the writer's aim IN two-fold' 1t
Is not merely to set forth the constitutional
results Of 'ehe War Of Secession, but also
10 give q ~succinct account of the war itself.
That is to say. he offers us at once a con-
stitutional history and a military history
The conclusions TO which he Is led as a
professor Of political science and Vonstitu-
tonal law will, for the most part, be found
embodied In the first seven chapters OF the
frst volume and In the sixteenth and TWEEN
tv-eiehth chapters OF the second. The
ultimate consequences Of the war from legal
and political points Of view will he traced
hereafter by Prof. Burgess in the con-
cluding volume Of the series. which is TO be
allotted to Reconstruction and. the Con-
stitution.' =
II.
y After a pre- liminary chapter in which
are portrayed ,the personalities Of Davis,
.---I --l Do,.1nu tho rpDraGRntnTlyaR
Of the three doctrines which met In the
Presidential contest OF 1850, the author
proceeds TO inquire how much anti-slavery
sentiment existed in the South between
1857 and 1900. We shall dwell at length
upon the Examination Of this subject
which, as Prof Burgess points out, is one
Of the most neglected parts OF our history,
We begin by RECALLING a fact not mentioned
In these volumes, though, OF course. II
received due attention in the book on The
Middle Period. the fact, namely. that In
October. 1851. II. s. Foote was elected Gov
ernor OF Mississippi over Jefferson Davis
on an anti-secession platform, and that the
convention of that State held in Novem-
hes of the same year declared the alleged
right Of secession to be entirely INSANE
tioned by the Federal Constitution. Foote
himself .believedfthat this declaration put
n rest forever the question OF secession
In Mississippi, and he averred in the United
States Senate that no man with secession
sentiments could be elected to the most
insignificant office in his State. During
the nett nine years, however, various
eyents, such as 2e infraction Of the Fugi-
I've Slave law. the struggle In Kansas, the
publication Of uncle Toms Cabin the
John Brown raid and the election OF Lin
coin by a sectional minority, intensified
the feeling Of hostility toward the North.
Prof. Burgess, as we shall see, regards
the John Brown raid as probably the princi-
nal factor in engendering disunion senti-
ment In the South. Meanwhile. let us note
what he has to tell US about the existence
of anti-slavery sentiment In the slavehold-
ing States before the event Just named
excited apprehension Of negro uprisings
and race war.
Our author holds that the most generous
estimate will not attribute a direct interest
m slave property to over two millions OF
The eight millions Of whites ~inhabiting the
sl~ave-holding Commonwealth in the sixth
decade of the nineteenth century. Accord
ing to the census Of 1880 there were in those
States about s2s 900 slave owners. II
zach one of these be counted as the head
of q family comprising five or six white
uersons we obtain something like the sug-
oested aggregate Of whites interested in
slave property. II follows that some six
millions OF whites in the South had no such
interest, and the question is what their
feelings were with regard TO slavery. II Is
hard 10 determine what their feelings were
for two reasons: In the first place, the
press Of the South was either In the hands
of the shareholders or in their pay. Conse-
ouently, the anti-slavery sentiments in the
South left no such literary results as would
enable us TO gain any definite knowledge
of their character or extent. The second
reason is that the development OF these
sentiments received "A rude shock In 1859
from tho Harper's Ferry massacre; the
shock Icing received befoe they had gained
sufficient strength and clearness To mani
fest themselves decidedly. and, In fact,
h>fore the mass Of the people entertaining
them knew that they were anti-slsvey
ssntimsnts. Prof. Burgess. however. for
his part thinks that no one who had any
psrsonAl acquaintance with the south
during the period Immediately preceding
yohn Browns raid will dispute that such
ssptimsns existed and woro leooming
formidable.
Ths authors view " That the hostility
% slavery. or. rather, "a the slave oSnsrs
az tie south ny to isSs, va chi'ny social.
hut ln some degree, ala, pohtiral II IL
point.d out that IA Slins partitions % uio
Mouth a osgtain town oiNiiisation had ho-'n
dsV.lotrd, and With u q bopfgso,s's had
hon evolved vhioh had bsoom" oonscinus
81 rs lAck ~ full sympaihy With the plan
,asion ordsa II lf. Lag. dtlss ~rf..
Indeed. f"s Ia uumba', but throughout
tho xhols - krniunhy and 1rnn"-s@s.
snd IA Us malof part - all ds "il"f hlu'h-
sul raltis, = srrs lafgu bumlsf
IL handsome. ialfJ "uIstTsins and poe
- .1uuip tpsn % hsi Efu~n ~ Strfu
tlsfs frrldrd lasfsfs nssraants lankris
-lasris4s aHd sunas ms-rLaHltHl usf Ftu
hNi ntflr puisfty intsisst ~ 80 l=u-fAa
tss - slavery shu irh uHn 900 inul
l-sunal s~sisuaHy q. ur "s.iisF Hfssrs
Aisd tiau 80 NuAui,s isasr sasf lnaf
fsl..uas 1910 ai.d Ode "tsulasnuB
A-rHLai naiH A.ari-HYaHiHs "a urW sist
Eala fsfaalIF pHI uru IIsft Hur
Da.siaif rasI fsssH ifsst us fssif
400 ~ ua t.rH aiH al" bHutf sisHfs
49,. ...H..H. .H"