DECEMBER 21, 1863:
A letter,
purportedly written by Union soldier D.G. Griffin, is published in the
fire-eating Charleston Mercury, under
the title, “One Yankee’s Opinion of Their
Friends In East Tennessee.” It reads in part:
Our Union friends
have fanaticism and enthusiasm enough, but they are so ignorant and ill-bred as
to disgust any gentleman. The women know how to make "corn dodgers"
and dirty little Federal flags, "ginger cakes and the like," and to curse
and point out their superiors--rebel ladies and rebel gentlemen--and that is
about all.
The rebel ladies are
intelligent, well bred, and good looking--dignified and bold in their demeanor.
But they won't talk to us--consider themselves our superiors, simply from the
fact that we are fighting for their inferiors, the Union ladies. They are not
to blame. I often blush when I think of the common herd that I am imperiling my
life for. God save me from such ignorant trash.
