The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1907-01-13
IN THE OLD soUTH's VIEW.


Robertson Garrett a.. M. PHI p, FRO
fessor OF American History in Peabody
Normal College. Tennessee, ana Kooers
repuie. Printed for Subscribers only
by George Barrie & Sons, Philadelphia
This volume has all the good quail
Ties in makeup, wealth of Illustration,
and artistic excellence, as well as IN Uhe
presentation of fac SMILES, original
documents and papers. that have dls-
tinguished the other volumes IN inns
series The contents as written, now
ever. are n sort of quaint anachronlsm'
often IL is ludicrous to read the stun,
with its charming Inconsistency ana
pompous vacuity, which are relics OF
the ante bellum literary Judgment OF
the Southern critics. Flord and HI
falutin. it proceeds in a style of vain
glorious boasting which on most occa-
sions is made exceedingly fat by the
actual results of that which is puffed up.
There is sort of tolerant lntroduc-
ton from the general editor, Guy Garlic
ton Lee, which prepares the reader IN
q general way for the extraordinary
which appears. The authors preface
frankly states that il is their Intention
and design TO go present the history OF
the GREAT Civil war that the South may
in the popular Judgment he vlndieated
IN its intents and purposes. This idea
is more clearly expressed on page 4o3,
where the last appeal of the Confed-
crate Congress is summarized, and the
quotation is made from ii that "failure
will compel MS to drink the cup of hu-
initiation even to the bitter dregs OF
having the history of our struggle writ
ten by New England historians. The
history of that struggle, as matter
of fact, has been written by New Eng"
land historians, written in way that
is entirely in the historical spirit, and
In marked contrast in method and ami
mus-where animus at all appears
from this avowedly sectional and post
mortem presentation. This is an effort
to make the worse appear the better
cause, bat the manner of it is such as
to defeat the purpose in view; For no
one reading this in pure historical
spirit can fail to see that il rs merely
impassioned pamphletecring in behalf
of lost cause.
The first chapter discusses "Seces-
sion and It's Causes from the South
ern standpoint, the assumption beng
throughout that il was necessary for
the South to have an equal voice with
the North in National affairs But az
the North grew much faster than the
South, and more Northern States than
Southern States were admitted into the
Union, the South lost control IN the
Senate; and as the population of the
that of the South. the South lost con"
troll of the House Of Representatives.
That seemed to the Southern politicians
to threaten the life OF slavery, which
was the main bone of contention, and
rather than to occupy minority posi-
tion in both houses they preferred Sc
cession. Prior. however. to coming TO
that conclusion they undertook TO de-
mand and did demand from the North
the active protection of slavery by the
National power even to the extent of
making the masses OF the people Of the
North active slave-chasers in behalf of
the Southern shareholders. The South
ern politicians had been constantly de
manding guarantees from the Nation
with respect 10 the preservation of
slavery rights, but whenever they saw
an advantage for slavery they had no
hesitation in demanding The disregard
or repeal Of such compromise that had
previously been entered into II was
the South that demanded and obtained
the repeal of the Missouri Compromise.
1t assumed, enormously, that the North
was determined TO extirpate slav-
cry in the South. although it is no
doubt true that slavery. being confined
within the limits of those States. would
have died out. However that may be.
The Southern politicians. precipitated
secession and staked their all on the
war. This chapter is fully devoted to
the Southern view OF the slave ques-
tion, and of the contention in which it
was made the cause of the war.
The second chapter details the out
break of the war, censuring the Ma
tioual authorities and magnifying the
efforts of the Southern leaders
Tho Subiugation of the Border
States ie the way the writer put the
theme of the third chapter: being an en-
tire mlsnomer, for the attempt to use the
border States as a buffer and through
them prevent the National power from
reacbing any of the actual seeding
States was manifestly such an impossi~
BILE situation that it could not endure
And yet the failure of the National
Government to respect this barrier that
the seeding States undertook to set
up In their own defense, is made the
subject of plaiDtive wall as if some
great wrong had been done The al
Legged repression and invasion of the
border States is devoted very largely
to Missouri, where the successful efforts
OF the National authorities to prevent
the Southern sentiment from dragoon-
Ing this State into secession is com
planned of as something outrageous and
1ndefensible. The ordinary reader will
see no reason why the National authori-
influence the people of Missouri in
favor of the Union rs the Southern
sympathizers were to influence that
State against the Union. In this. as in
The entire work, there is an assumption
that the National Government, by in
sisting upon it's rights, was doing some
terrible wrong, while the Southern lead
ers, in undertaking to carry out their
schemes, were engaged in some holy
propaganda that no one had any right
to oppose. All this sort of thing has
mouldy and graveyard aspect which.
when not exasperating is apt to be CON
temptibly ludicrous.
Chapter VI. Campaign of 1851
gives the Southern civic view of the
operations in the field, the Southern
leaders hcing always chivalrous, bie6.
toned, patriotic. altruistic and thorough
gentlemen. while the Northern leaders
we're. cruel brutal, unchivalrous, and
despicable. 1t would seem that all this
sort Of folly should have been releeated
TO oblivion with the end of the war
and we confess TO some surprise in see
ing, that rubbish revamped now and
made the bulk of n volume in tbis
series II is quite true that it is annro.
pirate to have In this history pres.
entation of the Southern case from the
Southern standpoint but II does soan,