The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 47, July 1943 - April, 1944 Page: 441

Book Reviews

on an early morning march after the destruction of Atlanta,
Upson related that his company saw the lifeless bodies of
several citizens swinging from trees with a placard which read:
This is done in retaliation for the unwarranted attack
made upon my foragers yesterday. Any repetition of this
offense will be similarly punished; and in addition, all
buildings upon ten square miles of adjacent territory will
be destroyed.
The placard was signed: "W. T. Sherman, General Com-
manding."
CLAUDE ELLIOTT
San Marcos State College
The South in American History. By William B. Hesseltine.
New York (Prentice-Hall, Inc.), 1943. Pp. xiv+691.
Bibliography, maps, illustrations, and index. $4.25.
This volume is a comprehensive work, presenting in a
modified chronology the story of the South from the founding
of Jamestown to the Southerners' support of Franklin D. Roose-
velt's foreign policy. It is a competent revision of the author's
earlier book, A History of the South, and is intended for a
college text.
About one-seventh of the volume is devoted to the develop-
ment of the Southern colonies. In many respects this is the
best section of the book. The early history of Virginia and
the chapter on life in the tobacco colonies are written in a
very clear and readable style; the student is favorably im-
pressed with the text at the start.
The book has many other excellent parts. Particularly, the
contest over the admission of Missouri, the Southern defense
of slavery, Northern opposition to the Fugitive Slave Law, the
Confederate constitution, the Unionist movements in Virginia
and Tennessee, and life in the Confederacy are topics adequately
and ably handled. On the other hand, some subjects are
slighted and some are presented in a way that confuses the
student. For instance, Calhoun's Jefferson Day dinner toast
is not mentioned (the dinner is discussed and Jackson's toast
is given), and Webster's Seventh of March speech receives

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