The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 13, No. 75, January, 1864: A Magazine of Literature, Art, and PoliticsVarious
History
The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 13, No. 75, January, 1864: A Magazine of Literature, Art, and Politics
Various
American periodicals
As to the guerrillas, we know that they are an exasperating set of
fellows, but they must soon disappear before the advance of the Union
armies. A guerrillade on an extensive scale and of long continuance is
possible only while it is supported by the presence of large and
successful regular armies. Had Wellington been driven out of the
Peninsula, the Spanish guerrillas would have given little trouble to the
intrusive French king at Madrid. Defeat Lee, and Mosby will vanish.
After all, the Southern guerrillas are not much worse than other
Southrons were at no very remote period. It is within the memory of even
middle-aged persons, that the southwestern portion of our country was in
as lawless a state as ever were the borders of England and Scotland, and
with no Belted Will to hang up ruffians to swing in the wind. As those
ruffians were mostly removed by time, and the scenes of their labors
became the seats of prosperous and well-ordered communities, so will the
guerrillas of to-day be made to give way by that inexorable reformer and
avenger. Order will once more prevail in the Southwest, and cotton,
tobacco, and rice again yield their increase to regular industry,--an
industry that shall be all the more productive, because exercised by
free men.
The political incidents of 1863 are as encouraging as the incidents of
war. The discontent that existed toward the close of 1862--a discontent
by no means groundless--led to the apparent defeat of the war-party in
many States, and to the decrease of its strength in others. But it was
an illogical conclusion that the people were dissatisfied with the war,
when they only meant to express their dissatisfaction with the manner in
which it was conducted. Their votes in 1863 truly expressed their
feeling. In every State but New Jersey the war-party was successful, its
majority in Ohio being 100,000, in New York 30,000, in Pennsylvania
15,000, in Massachusetts, 40,000, in Iowa 32,000, in Maine 22,000, in
California 20,000. And so on throughout the country. The popular voice
is still for war, but for war boldly, and therefore wisely, waged.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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