In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

214CIVIL WAR HISTORY rooted in the faith that if men were dashing enough they could not fail. Earlier wars had already proved that idea wrong; the War of tiie RebeUion proved it wrong finally and forever. William E. Porter Washington, D. C. A History of the Freedmans Bureau. By George R. Bentley. (Phfladelphia : University of Pennsylvania and the American Historical Association. 1955. Pp. x, 298. $5.00.) the freedmen's bureau, which often receives only passing notice in some historical volumes, was actuaUy one of the most intricate and responsible organizations ever set up by the United States government—one which was made up of coundess branches and which was assigned to care for the multitude of ex-slaves who had either escaped or had been freed during the Civil War. It is obvious, then, tiiat the bureau had great influence on the Ufe and status of today's American Negro. Mr. Bendey's book deals precisely with the problems which confronted the initial organization of the bureau and the difficulties which arose during the bureau's nine-year existence. The precarious situation caused by the sudden appearance of countless freedmen —hteraUy lost in the free world, the standards, values, and manners of which they could not comprehend—was indeed one which needed a rapid and comparatively flawless solution. Such a solution was, of course, impossible; only after letter after letter had been written to high authorities, after the problem finaUy reached the Thirty-eighth Congress, after a bfll for the bureau was set up and, because of its many controversial aspects, was made to go through numerous channels—only then, on March 3, 1865, was a law passed setting up a freedmen's bureau as a part of the War Department. Little over a month later, OUver Otis Howard was selected to head the organization. Howard, new to such responsibilities, encountered various problems both in handling Negroes and in supervising their "Americanization," and, during the early phases of the bureau, there were times when the entire effort seemed futile and impossible, though always necessary. The responsibilities taken on by die bureau were simply too great, so that problem after problem caused extreme confusion . This was an era of decided conflictbetween the two leading political parties over matters of restoration and reconstruction, and many of Howard's and the bureau's difficulties arose from that political strife. By the time the bureau had done as much as it could, financial difficulties finally caused it to disappear. The chief accomplishment of the bureau was done; to a considerable extent the American Negro had been set on his feet. Howard University, which was begun via Freedman's Bureau funds in 1867, proved one of the bureau's most controversial tasks. A combination of weak building material and fierce weather caused several of the university's structures to collapse before they were completed. There foUowed a detailed investigation Book Reviews215 by Washington authorities andconsiderable harsh criticisms from the press which combined to postpone construction. Subsequendy, great controversy surrounded the bureau. As his final comment in the book, Mr. Bentiey criticizes the bureau for rushing the Negro into economical, social, and political advancement and thus increasing the prejudices of southern white people. This is certainly a valid comment from a personwho obviouslyknows whathe is talking about, but whatever setbackthe bureau caused, its influence upon America's social, economic and political life is still commendable. One wonders if the bureau, were it stiU in existence, could handle some of the racial problems which are causing so much worry, confusion, and strife in America today. William F. Donaldson Iowa City, Iowa. Southern Negroes, 1861-1865. By BeU Wiley. (Yale Historical pubhcations , Miscellany, Vol. XXXI. Reissued, New York: Rinehart and Company , 1953. Pp. x, 298. $5.00.) bell trvin wtjley, now at Emory University in Georgia, wrote much of the material contained in this volume when he was a graduate student, and the book was first published nearly twenty years ago. This second pubUcation has, aside from the customary changes which usually mark a second issue, a special preface —an interesting account of Wiley's view of his own work via his later perspective. The following statement...

pdf

Share