Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1909-02-12
Friday, February IL. 1909.
A NEW PHASE OF THE CIVIL
WAR.

anu r lnloy, WHO TtCeutly uCSiuOU eiiS
question of award for the best essay on
General Lee and gave it to Miss Boy
son of Minnesota, have realized what
dangers War carries with it. To make
. decision satisfactory to everybody in
such case was as great task as moy-
ing the world without fulcrum,
and these gentlemen should have an
ticipated the result. They who go
down to the sea in ships, and they who
decide the virtues Of heroes take great
risks. DR.. Alderman and DR.. Smith
have each assigned the reasons govern
ing them, and by Mrs. Randolph, the
head of the Richmond (Va.) Chapter
Of the Daughters of the Confederacy,
the reasons given by DIR. Alderman are
taken most seriously. DR.. Alderman
says the judges were guided by "litera-
~ and structural merit" not by his
torical merit, SO the daughters think
tn at it made no difference with the
judges what estimate Miss Boyson
placed ON Gen. Lee, what names she
called him, what character she gave
him, and what motives she ascribed to
his course, SO the language was elevated
and scholarly, and the article had
structural merit above the others, the
prize should 60 to her. This would be
bad logic, we think, as well as bad
judgment. If the paper for pure and
beautiful English had excelled, indeed
had put McCauley or Edgar Allen Poe
to shame by its superiority over any of
heir efforts, and at the same time re-
fected on Gen. Lees personal or pri-
vate character, had said that he deserv-
ed the gallows as traitor, that he lay
in his tent intoxicated during battle,
and other statements as much at yari-
ance with fact as these, such paper
should not have received attention
tn Tough its merit from structural and
literary standpoint may have excelled
oil others or have been perfect in Ian
guage and structure.
To have awarded a prize, therefore
for this reason is to be criticized pro
vided the essay had disparaging his
torical faults. But we do not under
ut and that this was the case. At thu
worst the Objectionable sentences were
not either historically distorted or ma
liciously biased, we are told, and thai
to make them seem SO, they had to b.
taken out of their context, and rea(
separately and independently. W.
h ave fear that the Daughters are BIZ
overzealous, and possibly jumped al
TOO hasty conclusion. But it must b.
admitted at the same time that they
are on the safe side. There is today ar
apologize class springing up in the
South who are willing to pass unnot
iced any criticism of the character
of the leaders of the Southern cause,
and sanction at least any mild defama-
ton of their character. Thus will the
tendency grow. A little at first, then
more and more, until after awhile all
barriers will be broken down, and the
cause we slowed and lost" will be a ia
dsd memory, blackened and If possible
despised by the very descendants of
the men who did more than all others,
TO teach the world true greatness and
chivalrous deeds. This il what the
Daughters of the Confederacy are try
ing to avoid. Mrs. Randolph says in
part in replying to DR.. Alderman
ut would have been an act of cour-
tesy as well as justice, if DR.. Alderman
and DR.. Smith had sent an eXplana-
ton to the American people to be print
ed along with the prize essay of the
United Daughters Of the Confedcracy,'
stating as they do now, that they gave
this award on literary and structural
merit, and not on historical merit.
I'VE are also glad to have DR.. Alder
man explain to us that there are de-
grees in the 'odium' attached to the
word traitor We also are glad to
know that Miss Boyson's phrase wrong
side,' in reference to Gen. Lee choosing
the wrong side, meant unsuccessful,
and that the civil war has since taught
what is right meant forever. settled
We acknowledge that this structural
merit was a little too deep for our
committee"