The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1905-02-21


Virginia, the traveller passes over u
territoryi3which has seen one Of the
greatest events off5human develop
ment. II should be the. aim Of every
American to some dayiyisit;the scenes,
Of The Virginia campaigns, for here
is theionly3 place fWlleres the effects Of
the war can be, fully understood. "
Sherman said war is hell sher.i
man knew, for no other conquering.
invader ever spread such desolation
behind him as Sherman was com.
pelledto: leave In that gigantic swath
of ruin which marked the route from
Atlanta 10 the sea and from the sea
north through the Carolinas. Sher!
mans trlte saying has been repeated;
SO much that 1t passes as a fappant
Jest. Built Is a terrible truth. War:
Is hell, and more, for It. Is theS cui:
mination Of all the Ills that beset
mankind We OF The North see In
war a bereavement OF families, a
property loss in additional taxation,
and such temporary incidentais. But
where the campaign drags It's blight;
ing length through the weary years.
il is another story. &
War ragged four years in Virginia
In the most virulent form, and it
meant more than simply killing men,.
An army OF hundred thousand men
cannot move along q country road
like n Sunday school parade. When
an army moves, the trail left is like
the path of a gruesome plague. The
track is as wide as counties, for an
army cannot move on a single track.
When Virginia emerged from the
four years of destruction, not only
were her men gone, but her homes
were burned, her farms were de.
stroyed, stock was scattered, seed
corn was eaten, farming implements
had been used for lrewood when
fence rails were exhausted, railroads
were pulled up and destruction ruled
supreme. Ne can still see evidences
of what war did for Virginia.
Not that Virginia has stood still
in these forty years. The contrary
is the case. But time has not yet
been able 10 Ienface the scars. We.
talk of the readiness with which the
French recovered from the war with
Germany and paid an enormous in.
demnity. We should rather talk of
the manner in which Virginia, left
with nothing but the terrible mem.
Dry of four years OF fire and con.
scription and foraging and fighting
and all the horrors of war, has come
into courageous prosperity and re.
newed her industries, created new
ones and advanced with the other
States Of the nation. Virginia was
the scene of. the most detructive
war ever fought Every regiment
on either side was recruited from In.
tellisence and ability. 1t is reputed
to President Lincoln that he said
that every regiment that went TO the
front from the North had sufficient
material in 1t TO select cabinet from
us good rs tho one he had. All pro-
fesslons and all crafts were repre-
sented In the ranks. All manner of
American inventive genius was call.
ed in ito help make this war destruc.
tive. The brcech-loading rifle, the
machine gun, the iron.clad battle.
ship, and an innumerable list of in.
fernal devices were invented and put
into practical use in the war that
devastated Virginia. The whole
country, the most civilized country
on the globe, with the most limitless
resources, was brought into the Sc.
vice to make the war hell And
while the effect reached all over the
South, the persistent and relentless
force swept back and forth from
Richmond TO Washington, which is
the Potomac Valley of Virginia.
But cruel as the theory may seem,
war has It's compensating side. From
every great war has followed a great
step in human progress. The Amer
lean people were awakened to Won
drous new effort by the civil war,
and the strides made since the clos.
ing days at Appomattox are without
parallel in the history of the race.
There is notion in the North
that the war is not yet over. The
wrong idea prevails, however, for in
the South the struggle has been too
costly 10 let hatreds occupy much
time. Virginia, like the other South: