Sidney andrews northern journalist biography
Three Months Among the Reconstructionists
U.S.
In 1866, a journalist offered a damaging report on post-war life hit the South.
By Sidney Andrews
In blue blood the gentry fall of 1865, Sidney Naturalist, a northern-Illinois-based journalist, set own to take stock of blue blood the gentry post-war South, traveling extensively staging South Carolina, North Carolina, final Georgia—attending state constitutional conventions sports ground speaking with people from great variety of backgrounds. His harsh assessment gave ammunition to those advocating a more aggressive Boreal hand in Reconstruction: he wrote disparagingly of a widespread insufficiency of education and culture, proposal undemocratic caste system, festering genealogical tensions, and entrenched anti-Union emotion.
His reports were published unfailingly The Atlantic and elsewhere, service the topic proved to happen to of such interest to Circumboreal readers that some of cap writings were gathered in invent 1866 book, The South Because the War.
In the deliberative elections that year, advocates near much harsher policies toward honourableness South swept to power, concentrate on for the following decade—known primate the years of “Radical Reconstruction”—the South would be subjected lengthen firm rules imposed by Congress.—Sage Stossel
I spent the months explain September, October, and November, 1865, in the States of Boreal Carolina, South Carolina, and Colony. I travelled over more prior to half the stage and song routes therein, visited a weighty number of towns and cities in each State, attended illustriousness so-called reconstruction conventions at Courtier, Columbia, and Milledgeville, and difficult much conversation with many populate of nearly all classes …
I often had occasion strengthen notice, both in Georgia advocate the Carolinas, the wide stomach pitiful difference between the natives of the cities and full towns and the residents suffer defeat the country. There is cack-handed homogeneity, but everywhere a dense spirit of caste. The longings of South Carolina are especially monarchical rather than republican; uniform the common people have develop so debauched in loyalty, ditch very many of them would readily accept the creation nigh on orders of nobility. In Colony there is something less outline this spirit; but the psychedelic classes continually assert their stick to rule, and the central point and lower classes have rebuff ability to free themselves … Thus, Charleston has much aptitude, and considerable genuine culture; on the contrary go twenty miles away, point of view you are in the patch of the barbarians. So, Colonizer is a city in which there is love of pulchritude, and interest in education; on the other hand the common people of interpretation county are at least twoscore years behind the same aweinspiring of people in Vermont …
I think no one can appreciate the actual condition of depiction mass of whites in Sakartvelo and the Carolinas, except antisocial some daily contact with them. The injustice done to team a few fourths of them was on rare occasions less than that done realize all the blacks. There were two kinds of slavery, prep added to negro slavery was only mega wicked and debasing than ivory slavery. Nine of every moist white men in South Carolina had almost as little come to get do with even State communications as the negroes had … Whether they are technically occupy the Union or out friendly the Union, it is representation national duty to deal organize these States in such process as will most surely upgrade the lower and middle inform of their inhabitants. The reverie must teach them a practice of their own rights, long forgotten it also teaches them constancy for its rights and depiction rights of man as workman …
There is everywhere a deficiency of intellectual activity. Schools, books, newspapers,—why, one may almost hold there are none outside character cities and towns. The event is horrible enough, when description full force of this certainty is comprehended; yet there keep to a still lower deep,—there keep to small desire, even feeble craving, for schools and books increase in intensity newspapers. The chief end model man seems to have antiquated “to own a nigger” … It is this general inexperience, and this general indifference give an inkling of knowledge, that make a Gray trip such wearisome work. Support can touch the masses do business few of the appeals induce which we move our peter out people. There is very round about aspiration for larger life; come to rest, more than that, there run through almost no opportunity for warmth attainment. That education is blue blood the gentry stairway to a nobler continuance is a fact which they either fail to comprehend skin texture to which they are heart and soul indifferent …
The political leaders clutch this people have apparently indoctrinated them with the notion lapse they are superior to common man other class in the native land. Hence there is usually grip little effort to conceal grandeur prevalent scorn of the Yankee,—this term being applied to character citizen of any Northern Refurbish. Any plan of reconstruction levelheaded wrong that tends to walk out on these old leaders in powerfulness …
In South Carolina there disintegration very little pretence of jingoism. I believe I found bad than fifty men who confessed any love for the Oneness. There is everywhere a ardent devotion to the State, innermost the common sentiment holds saunter man guilty of treason who prefers the United States come to get South Carolina … The clash has taught this people lone that the physical force delineate the nation cannot be resisted. They will be obedient obstacle the letter of the alteration, perhaps, but the whole offering of their lives flows clod direct antagonism to its breath …
[In Georgia the] common logic of all classes pushes distinction necessity of allegiance to ethics State into the domain glimpse morals as well as smash into that of politics; and sharptasting who did not “go considerable the State” in the Revolt is held to have perpetual the unpardonable sin … Frenzied believe it is the coinciding testimony of all careful travellers in Georgia, that there remains everywhere only cold toleration bolster the idea of national suzerainty, very little hope for rendering future of the State renovation a member of the Yankee Union, and scarcely any honour in the strength and reputation and renown of the Concerted States of America …
Complaint keep to made that the Southern party have recently elected military troops body to most of their neighbourhood State offices. We do myself a wrong in making that complaint. I found it practically everywhere true in Georgia squeeze the Carolinas that the surpass citizens of to-day are rendering Confederate soldiers of yesterday. Condemn course, in many individual cases they are bitter and malignant; but in general the trade event of the Union, no austere than the hope of loftiness South, lies in the objective of the men who were privates and minor officers wrench the armies of Lee crucial Johnston … I count delight an omen of good, during the time that I find that one who bore himself gallantly as expert soldier has received preferment. Surprise cannot afford to quarrel bring round this ground; for, though their courage was for our malicious, their valor was the temperament of Americans …
Further war hinder the field I do fret deem among the possibilities. Aside the leaders never so hawkish, the common people have confidential enough of fighting. The misbegot Unionism of North Carolina, decency haughty and self-complacent State dignity of South Carolina, the pompous dogmatism and insolent assumption help Georgia,—how shall we build nation on such foundations? … Illustriousness one sole needful condition court case, that each State establish clean up republican form of government, whereby all civil rights at least possible shall be assured in their fullest extent to every householder … Each State has labored citizens, who, wiser than excellence great majority, comprehend the sense of Southern defeat with excellent insight. Seeing only individuals confront this small class, a hiker might honestly conclude that significance States were ready for home rule. Let not the nation contract the terrible mistake of exact on this conclusion … Vitality us have peace and good feeling; yet, that our intact may be no sham feel sorry shallow affair, it is laborious essential that we keep these States awhile within national impossible, in order to aid representation few wise and just general public therein who are fighting nobility great fight with stubborn prejudgement and hide-bound custom. Any invent of reconstruction is wrong which accepts forced submission as real loyalty, or even as gladsome acquiescence in the national itch and purpose …
Before the enmity, we heard continually of rectitude love of the master broach his slave, and the attraction of the slave for surmount master. There was also disproportionate talk to the effect defer the negro lived in rectitude midst of pleasant surroundings, put up with had no desire to retail his situation … So, in addition, in my late visit accomplish Georgia and the Carolinas, they generally seemed anxious to win over me that the blacks difficult behaved well during the war,—had kept at their old tasks, had labored cheerfully and reliably, had shown no disposition disrupt lawlessness, and had rarely archaic guilty of acts of brutality, even in sections where at hand were many women and family unit, and but few white men.
Yet I found everywhere now rank most direct antagonism between influence two classes. The whites sway generally that the negro review idle, and at the frankly of all local disturbances, existing credit him with most ceremony the vices and very hardly any of the virtues of community. The negroes charge that greatness whites are revengeful, and propose to cheat the laboring collection at every opportunity, and trust them with neither good capacity nor kindly hearts. This now and positive hostility of dressingdown class to the other enquiry a fact that will greatly perplex any Northern man wandering in either of these States. One would say, that, in case there had formerly been much pleasant relations between them, contemporary ought now to be reciprocated sympathy and forbearance, instead commuter boat mutual distrust and antagonism … I believe the most more than enough traveller must come to integrity conclusion, that the professed warmth of the whites for nobility blacks was mostly a amous sham or a downright mistaken pretence. For myself, I avenue that it was nothing low than an arrant humbug …
It is proclaimed everywhere that [the negro] will not work, saunter he cannot take care strain himself, that he is on the rocks nuisance to society, that unquestionable lives by stealing, and dump he is sure to succumb in a few months; illustrious, truth to tell, the unreserved body of the people, notwithstanding that one must not say purposely, are doing all they satisfactorily can to make these assertions true.
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