The Lost Gettysburg Address (33 page)

There is another point of this subject, which ought to be noticed in
this connection. It is alledged, that these are great dangers to be
apprehended by the Northern States, in case of a general emancipation,
from an inundation by a tide of black barbarism. In consequence the
white laboring population may be greatly injured by this new
competition and in addition, to this special trouble, our whole property
being made to bear the heavy burdens of a new pauper-tax. These
cases seem to me very easy of solution. If the Southern Confederacy
shall be established, then so long as Slavery exists, the Northern
people and government will be actually infested and cursed by alien
and heterogeneous multitudes of fugitives. The evils of this calamity
to the Northern society and government it will be scarcely possible
to exaggerate by language. If Slavery should be abolished, however,
throughout the south, then there will be no slaves to fly nor any
possible motive for the enfranchised individuals to migrate hither. On the
contrary; every motive, as climate, custom, society, with their likes
and equals etc. will conspire to withhold the absent and to withdraw
from us even those who are now here. And so seriously do I estimate
those evils—of such black immigrations and colonization amongst
us, that if all or
other
causes of war against the establishment and
recognition of the Southern Confederacy of Slave states, could be
obviated and removed, I do really think that these dangers from having
our land converted into a vast Cloaca Maxima for their overflowing
filth, would constitute a just and sufficient cause of war, to the end
of the century. But there is one middle course. It is in reunion, either
with, or without Slavery.

We may be all willing, as the least of two evils or of two doubts,—I
am willing—to tolerate this monster-disease and crime
within the
Union
, until Providence may, in his own good time and way,
mitigate or remove it. With the Union restored and its political
powers retrenched in fact, as they already have been in the progress of
this, its own war, it seems to me better for us to bear with slavery,
in its unquestionable constitutional rights, than for us,—beyond the
point of the Union restored,—to press this cruel War for other ends
of doubtful, perhaps vain benevolence. But Slavery
in an adjacent
Foreign State, must
be fought without respite or forbearance, so long
as it is cruel, crafty, and despotic, or as this Free people have sense,
or courage or virtue or love of Peace.

And lastly let it suffice on this head to say, as a perfect justification
for our resolution to conquer peace, by restoring our Union, that we
think it to be the only road to Peace. It is the generic law of separate
and neighbor Republics that they cannot dwell together in amity. As
the thoughts and passions of the people in a
Representative
Form of
Government, are
also
represented in its legislation, all the feuds,
forays, mobs, conflagrations, and murders of the respective populaces,
necessarily and directly culminate into National public Wars. Then
again; Wars breed Wars. And to all these certain and terrible causes
of ferocious war, must be, once more, added those peculiar
circumstances of these two particular Republics already indicated Oh! My
friends, what infinite blessings of Peace did our glorious Union
ensure us? Oh! What endless sufferings and crimes from War—Wars—Horrid
Wars—must Disunion entail upon us thru all the coming
years and ages? And to perpetuate those blessings of Peace, to avert
those ruins and curses and woes of War, these heroes have died on
this now glorious Battlefield.

Such then, my dear fellow Patriots (I am not ashamed
here
to call
myself a patriot) are some of the grand issues of this War. And such
were the rights and interests, for which these mute forms have poured
out their life-blood. Our
fathers
of the first Revolution have
alone
shed blood in a cause so great and so good. They—the few and feeble
colonists of 76, all naked and unarmed, first encountered the mailed
and gauntleted legions of Despotic power and broke into slivers those
shackles of steel, in which old Europe had enchained young America.
They indeed, alone opened to the Human Race, a new career, not
only in the enjoyments of public liberty, but in all the enterprises, arts
and delights of private Life. They by their wisest words and bravest
deeds, first aroused Mankind,—like another Sampson sleeping in the
lap of Delilah,—to the highest visions, the high hopes and the earnest
passions of the new Era. We may not compare ourselves, or these our
dead, with our dead
Fathers
. Our wars cannot be claimed, to have
initiated a new career for our Race. But, if their mission and want,
were to create and to and inaugurate, It must be ours, to conserve
and transmit. Accordingly, this War, will decide,—the one way or
the other,—for our Country and our Kind, for the time present and
the times to come;—whether, or not, this youthful Giant of American
Liberty shall be re-enthralled by the Old World’s ideas, usages, and
powers? Whether the risen dawn of this better Era shall at once
be quenched in eternal gloom, or shall spread and shine and glow,
within all the encircling Skies and around all the enclosed Earth,
until the black night of all Barbarisms and Despotisms shall blanch
and lighten into an unending Day of universal Liberty and of calmest
Peace?

Let us, therefore, my friends, ever honor these our martyred fellow
countrymen, above all the dead heroes of other lands and ages and
next only to our Fathers of the Revolution, who lived and died to
establish that general Liberty, which American Treason in
rebellion
now strives to slay and which these, their worthy sons here died in
arms to defend.

Nearly ten years ago I came across a blog posting by a
controversial antiracism activist. Tim Wise was infuriated at what he called
the “men of their times” defense of slavery and other apologies for
America’s legacy of racism. Wise cited Charles Anderson’s brave
speech against a doctrine of white supremacy that was accepted as
fact by nearly all white U.S. citizens in the nineteenth century. I had
just published a study of free blacks in New Hampshire and was
developing several other projects, so I dropped Anderson into my
“ideas” file and forgot about him. A few years later I returned to
Anderson as a potential story candidate. I was astonished at what I
discovered.

Indiana University’s Rob Tolley had stumbled upon the original
manuscript of Anderson’s oration that concluded the Gettysburg
cemetery dedication events. As I pieced together Anderson’s remarkable
life story, Rob was always on call, introducing me to local contacts
and directing me to archives where he had donated the remainder of
Anderson’s personal papers. Without Rob’s passion and dedication,
this small piece of Gettysburg lore might have remained lost forever.
Anderson is certainly one of many “B-list” characters in U.S. history
who merits more attention.

Many people deserve special mention for their cheerful
assistance and patience as I slogged through innumerable letters, diaries,
photographs, and other treasures. Olga Tsapina and the efficient
staff at the Huntington Library in San Marino, California, did an
incredible job cataloguing and preserving the largest collection of
Anderson papers and ephemera. Archivists at the Ohio Historical
Society, Cincinnati Historical Society, Cincinnati Public Library,
Dayton Metro Library, and especially Robert Schmidt and his staff
at the Miami University Archives helped make my research trips to
the Buckeye State worthwhile and productive. Sally Whittington of
the Lyon County (Kentucky) Historical Society offered me gracious
Southern hospitality in abundance. James Holmberg’s archivists at
the Filson Historical Society in Louisville were friendly and helpful.
The fine folks at the Dolph Briscoe Center for American History at
the University of Texas at Austin assisted me in every way
imaginable, as did the staff at the Texas State Library and Archives and
the Institute for Texan Cultures in San Antonio. Finally, James B.
Lewis and his exceptional cadre of park rangers at the Stones River
National Battlefield took great pains to help me understand the
challenges and horrors inherent in the duties of Civil War soldiers. All
of these people and many others are the true unsung heroes of the
history profession.

I am heavily indebted to friends and colleagues who helped me
during the course of this project. Dan Roper, editor of
Georgia
Backroads
, published six of my articles while providing substantive
advice and encouragement in my transition to a full-time writing
career. Dan read the entire manuscript and offered countless
suggestions that improved the work measurably. Holly Farmer also gave the
drafts plenty of red ink, combing through the paragraphs line by line
and challenging me to think more clearly about my protagonist, his
unique talents and character traits. Dr. Julie Winch, eminent
professor of history at the University of Massachusetts, sparked my interest
in both African American history and biography with her incisive
intellect, keen sense of humor, and unwavering mentorship. Dave
McGuire read early drafts of the manuscript, contributed important
insights, and asked excellent questions. Dr. Alan Ebenstein of the
University of California at Santa Barbara and Andrea Hartman were
notable among my readers for their comments and suggestions on
the book and its marketing. Kate McMillan, my web guru, and Peter
O’Connor, who designed the book cover, are young entrepreneurs
who are already masters of their respective crafts. Copyeditor Amy
Smith Bell’s attention to detail helped me find the hidden little
mistakes that too often embarrass independent authors. The terrific tag
team of book designer David Peattie and proofreader Tanya Grove
gave the book visual elegance while eliminating distracting errors of
grammar and format. Finally, my wife, Jeanne, lived with the ghost
of Charles Anderson for several years, displaying patience with my
history obsession. She is also a knowledgeable and helpful reader
when the spirit moves her.

1.
Chief manuscript sources for Richard C. Anderson (1750–1826) are
found in the Richard Clough Anderson Papers, Huntington Library, San
Marino, California, and in the Anderson-Latham Papers, Filson Historical
Society, Louisville, Kentucky. Most of Anderson’s papers relating to his
position as surveyor (and those of his son-in-law and successor, Allen Latham)
are found in the Anderson-Latham Collection, 1777–1881, Personal Papers
Collection, Library of Virginia and the Richard Clough Anderson Papers,
William L. Clements Library, University of Michigan.

2.
George Washington to John A. Washington, December 18, 1776, George
Washington Papers, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.

3.
Edward L. Anderson,
Soldier and Pioneer: A Biographical Sketch of
Lt.-Col. Richard C. Anderson of the Continental Army
(New York: G. P.
Putnam’s Sons, 1879), 20.

4.
Charles Anderson, “Ye Andersons of Virginia and Some of Their
Descendants bye One of Ye Familie,”
The “Old Northwest” Genealogical
Quarterly
11 (October 1908): 231–288.

5.
Marquis de Lafayette,
Memories, Correspondence and Manuscripts of
General Lafayette
(New York: Saunders and Otley, 1837) vol. 1, 264.

6.
Anderson,
Soldier and Pioneer
, 39–60.

1.
For an interesting perspective on the migration of settlers from Virginia
to Kentucky, and eventually to Ohio, see John V. H. Dippel,
Race to the
Frontier: “White Flight” and Westward Expansion
(New York: Algora
Publishing, 2005).

2.
Edward L. Anderson,
Soldier and Pioneer: A Biographical Sketch of
Lt.-Col. Richard C. Anderson of the Continental Army
(New York: G. P.
Putnam’s Sons, 1879). Charles Anderson, “Ye Andersons of Virginia and
Some of Their Descendants bye One of Ye Familie,”
The “Old Northwest”
Genealogical Quarterly
11 (October 1908): 231–288. Thomas McArthur
Anderson,
A Monograph of the Anderson, Clark, Marshall, and McArthur
Connection
(printed by author, 1900). Edward L. Anderson,
The Andersons
of Gold Mine, Hanover County, Virginia
(Cincinnati, Ohio, 1913). William
Pope Anderson,
Anderson Family Records
(Cincinnati, Ohio: Press of W. F.
Schaefer & Company, 1936).

3.
Primary source for scenes and quotations in this chapter are from
Charles Anderson, “The Story of Soldier’s Retreat: A Memoir,” unpublished
manuscript, Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky.

4.
Anderson,
Soldier and Pioneer
, 56–60.

5.
Anderson, “Ye Andersons of Virginia,” 251–288.

1
. Larz Anderson to William Marshall Anderson, April 18, 1825; and
Larz Anderson to Maria Latham, July 26, 1826, Anderson Family Papers,
Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

2.
Larz Anderson to Maria Latham, August 27, 1827; September 4, 1827;
November 18, 1828, Anderson Family Papers, Huntington Library.

3.
Larz Anderson to Maria Latham, November 7, 1829, Anderson Family
Papers, Huntington Library.

4.
Walter Havighurst,
Men of Old Miami 1809–1873: A Book of Portraits
(New York: Putnam, 1974), 49–63. Walter Havighurst,
The Miami Years
1809–1984
(New York: Putnam, 1984). Miami University,
Recensio
(Oxford,
Ohio: Miami University, 1905), 120–124.

5.
Charles Anderson, “An Oration on the Influence of Monumental
Records upon National Morals,” speech delivered at Miami University,
Oxford, Ohio, September 25, 1833, Walter Havighurst Special Collections,
Miami University Library, Oxford, Ohio.