The Continuing War

THE CONTINUING WAR by James I. Robertson, Jr. When the groundwork for the centennial program of the Civil War was first laid, conscientious historians of the period began to harbor strong fears. Their apprehensions were not directed toward the sentimentality , the pageants, the purely local observances, the serious commemorations —or even to the cheap trinkets that would flood commercial markets. All but the last-mentioned items have a definite place in the centennial. The real worry of those who cared was the harm that the unskilled writers, the literary opportunists, would do to American history in general and the Civil War in particular if their scissors-andpaste manuscripts found publishing outlets. In book stores across the nation shelves are now straining under the weight of Civil War literature. More than 300 new volumes have appeared in the last eighteen months. The percentage of those undeserving even ofpamphlet status is amazingly high. Moreparticularly, unless the present trend is abated—and quickly—the real contributions to Civil War history will be lostin the avalanche and the reading public may grow weary of searching for works of real historical and literary value. Such a course could be fatal—to the centennial, to the reverence accorded our nation's heritage, and, conceivably, to the longstanding desire of Americans to broaden their intellect through literature. The old adage that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link easily applies to American history. The Civil War at present is the most popular period of our past. But if those sincerely desirous of knowing more about the 1861-65 conflict are continually subjected to publications rehashing familiar events, quirking with personal opinions and reeling with factual errors, is it not possible that readers will come to regard our nation's rise to greatness not with pride but with apathy or even contempt? Onepoint is certain: the literaryforces now marshaled have a greater potential for destruction than did the armies of Lee, Grant, Johnston, and Sherman. It is not too late for recovery. Publishers (as well as radio, television, and movie producers) can be an integral and very important part of 81 82JAMES I. ROBERTSON, JR. the centennial observances by exercising extreme care in their choices of production. Readers can assert their power by protesting bad works to both publisher and author. And those writers not thus deterred from indulgingin a field about which they know little may be at least coerced into the novelty of seeking the assistance and approval of historians more capable of retelling America's history. Authors, publishers, and readers all have obligations to one another in perpetuating the true saga of the Civil War. And all assuredly owe an inestimable debt to those men of Blue and Gray who demonstrated a courage, fortitude, and devotion to duty so characteristic of America. We must keep that image alive—and undistorted. The successful team of Hirst Milhollen and Bell Wiley is now completing a pictorial history of the Confederacy. Publication is still several months away. . . . Miss Josephine Cobb of the National Archives is laboring diligently on what will be a valuable bibliography: a complete listing of Civil War pictures in all major depositories of the nation. One installment, containing the illustrations in about thirty archives, has just been published. . . . Dutton has recently produced an attractive volume on land warfare in America. Fields of Glory is the title, and its compilers were William H. Nelson and Frank E. Vandiver. Over 300 illustrations enhance the very readable narrative. At least four state centennial commissions have forged ahead in the field of publications. As noted in our December column, LSU will publish a two-volume history of Mississippi's role in the war. The Massachusetts commission has issued in paperback the first volume of Massachusetts in the Civil War. Subtitled The Call to Arms, the booklet treats of the major events in the Bay State from 1830 through the April 19, 1861, clash between the citizens of Baltimore and troops of the 6th Infantry. The commission's headquarters is Room 27, State House, Boston 33. John G. Barrett is the author of another paperback commemorative booklet, North Carolina as a Civil War Background, 1861-1865. Profusely...