Time has borne us so far from the men and events of the period which ushered in the fratricidal war of 1861-'5 that it is well for a new generation to be taught the truth of Southern History. It is not amiss to review the causes which produced the late war, and by examining the more humble and minute incidents of local discussion and action, to arrive at a correct conclusion as to the motives of those who engaged in the formation of the Southern Confederacy.
It will be seen from the following imperfect sketch that a majority of the people of the South were opposed to secession in 1850, and even in 1860; that the Unionists of the South were driven from their position after a protracted struggle, not so much by the advocates of disunion at the South as by the advocates of disunion at the North; and that the great mass of Southern people were led into acceptance of the Ordinance of Secession under the belief that the remedy they thus sought against grievances, would be acquiesced in by the people of the Northern States and by the Federal Government.
The author will not have had his labor in vain, if he succeeds in saving from the wreck of time, and in preserving in the more durable form of a book, many facts which throw light upon our local history, and which, after a few years, might otherwise be lost to memory. And if the facts here presented should aid in convincing the people of this Republic that the South-Western States were driven by Northern enemies, rather than by Southern leaders, into the act of secession, the author will rest satisfied that he has contributed one important aid towards an obliteration of sectional misunderstanding, and towards a return of that fraternal feeling which should exist between peoples bound together by common language, laws, kindred, and commerce.