Week 10 Blog Post

Week 10 Blog Post

Comments on Major Problems in the Civil War and Reconstruction Documents and Essays:

The President of the Detroit Ladies Aid Society (Isabella Duffield) Calls on Women to Assist the war Effort, Nov. 12, 1861 (published in the Detroit Free Press): I liked Duffield’s message to women not to waste time wondering “whether you think the North is right,” but “work for humanity[‘s] sake.” (P & T, 212) She also told the women not to listen to anyone who said they had enough hospital supplies since even though it looked like there were lots of boxes, thousands of men needed the supplies. Duffield specified to the women that mittens needed pockets for both the thumb and forefinger so that the men could fire their guns. This is something that the ladies might not think of themselves. Mittens would have been much easier to knit than gloves and not required fitting. She further emphasized the need for caps and other articles to keep the men warm. Not only do the women need to “feel” for the men but also act. It is interesting that Duffield understood that once “rich” men became soldiers they could easily lose or wear out their belongings and become as “poor” as the rest of the recruits. She reminded the ladies that their work would be in God’s favor. Compassion, Christianity, and patriotism were the main motivators for women’s war-time service.

Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton Appeal to Northern Women’s Loyalty, March 1863: Elizabeth Cady Stanton felt that the reason Northern women did not appear loyal to the war was because they did not fully understand what the North was fighting for which was liberty. According to Stanton, some Northern women couldn’t grasp the concept of liberty because they were clinging to Old World values of aristocracy and class. These women have traveled in Europe or the South and become “out of time with independence and equality.” (P & T, 213) Stanton appealed to women to give up the trappings of aristocracy in order to support the Republic and guarantee freedom and equality. Stanton and Anthony called women to meet “the church of the Puritans,” a coincidentally appropriate name for their Christian appeal. They equated work for the war effort to worship if and “when a noble purpose fills the soul.” (P & T, 214)

Cincinnati Sewing Women Protest Their Wartime Wages, Feb. 1865: I thought that the Cincinnati sewing women had a very reasonable request for the government to eliminate the middle men, the contractors, and give the work directly to the seamstresses. The women phrased their request politely emphasizing that they were not objecting to the workload nor intending to charge the government more money. Eliminating the contractor’s cut would raise their wages. I wonder how much administrative work the contractor’s did that would have made it more feasible for the government to use them. No doubt the contractors would be opposed to their elimination.

Henry W. Bellows Explains the Work and Goals of the Sanitary Commission, Jan. 1864: Bellows made an insightful analogy when he stated that the main reason people objected to the formation of the Sanitary Commission was the same as that which started the war, namely, opposition to a strong, federal authority. Bellows further asserted that citizen devotion to nationalism would be essential to winning the war. He praised “the wonderful spirit of nationality that beats in the breasts of American women” (P & T, 216) since female volunteers were the ones who carried out the commission’s work.

Pres. Lincoln addresses the Philadelphia Central Fair, June 1864: Lincoln thanked all those who contributed their time to the Sanitary Commission and the Christian Commission emphasizing the fact that they were volunteers. When I read that Lincoln refused to attempt to predict when the war would end, I thought of the troop withdrawal timetables under Obama for Iraq and Afghanistan. I agreed with some commentators that Obama should not have publically announced when he would withdraw troops. It gave information to the enemy and set up expectations that the war might not comply with. On the other hand, Lincoln was not willing to risk the public’s disappointment if the war did not go according to his prediction. (P & T, 217)

Secretary of the Treasury Salmon P. Chase Appeals to the Public for Financial Support, July 1861 and Melinda Lawson, “Jay Cooke and the War Bond Drives”: Secretary Chase had a great idea which he termed “a national loan.” (P & T, 218-219) Later, such financial transactions were called “government bonds.” As Melinda Lawson points out in her essay, “Jay Cooke and the War Bond Drives,” Chase’s idea was not popular with banks or the public until he hired Jay Cooke to market the loan. (P&T, 231-244) Chase thought of the same reasons as Cooke regarding why the subscription loan would be attractive to the public; however, Chase put patriotism and liberty before profit. Cooke promoted the loan as a guaranteed high interest savings account where the government was the public’s bank. (P & T, 236-238)

The New York Tribune Supports Expansion of the Government Bond Drive, March 1865 and Melinda Lawson, “Jay Cooke and the War Bond Drives”: The New York Tribune excerpt confirms that the Seven-Thirty Loans were marketed to Southerners as well as Northerners. The newspaper spoke of Jay Cooke’s subscription agents being ready to fan out in Richmond, Virginia as soon as Union troops were able to occupy it. (P & T, 219-220)

Lawson reported that the bonds sold in the border states as well as areas that were “openly secessionist.” Cooperheads, who opposed the war, still bought bonds due to Cooke’s emphasis of “self-interest,” meaning guaranteed profit. (P & T, 241)

Nina Silber, “The Problem of Women’s Patriotism”: Silber asserts that Northern women during the Civil War were following the old model of female patriotism from the American Revolution as well as forging a new model of political participation and consciousness. Her examples of Harper’s Weekly stories were interesting especially those concerning “Mrs. Shoddy.” (P & T, 224) Finding out that there were Civil War contractors who gouged the government and/or made inferior goods, recalls the saying, “Some things never change.”

I do not agree with Mary Abigail Dodge (Gail Hamilton) who asserted that the Unionists did not deserve victory because they had “excessive amounts of material comforts.” (P & T, 224) I do not believe that women or men needed to give away all their fine possessions just to demonstrate their patriotism. Dodge was mistaken to categorize all northern women as living in luxury. The wealthy were still a small percentage of the population. In fact, women who were not poor or just “getting by” would have had more time to devote to volunteerism. Silber’s proposal that female writers’ ridiculed rich women to gain the support of the northern working-class seems a bit of a stretch to me. It is equally likely that these writers may have been motivated by jealousy as well as patriotism.

Written by Molly Kettler