Confederacy Never Falls!!! 1865, Week 5

    As the war goes on and on and on, my fellow soldiers are all getting tired of it. And since the situation is becoming worse on our side, many people are becoming pessimistic about the outcomes. They have been talking about surrender and negotiation of peace. When I ever feel tired or unwilling to fight, I would think of Rebecca. We write to each other regularly, and our love for each other has developed even deeper since we apparted.
    Last year, Lincoln appointed two new generals to the Union army: Grant and Sherman. They believe in a strategy known as the "tatal war", which involves striking civilians as well as the military. They don't care about their own losses, as long as we lose more than they do. They not only want to weaken our army, but also want to weaken the southern economy and people's will to fight.

General Grant

General Sherman

    This strategy of "total war" succeeded in several battles such as the Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House and Cold Harbor. I think this is very cruel and unhuman because it involves the innocent civilians, and also brings a lot of damage to the country. These generals are trying to fully use their advantages in population and resources, although it's extremely cold-blooded to the southern residents.
    In May 1864, Sherman sent 60,000 troops on a march to capture the port of Savannah, Georgia. This "March to the Sea" lasted 60 miles. Sherman's army seized and destroyed all the properties along their way.

March to the Sea Route

Ruins Along the March

    On September 2, Sherman's army occupied the city of Atlanta, which had been abandoned by the Cofederate army, and burned it to ground. Then the troops continued their march. In late December, they captured Savannah and accomplished their goal.
    I think it's so unnecessary to cause all these destruction -- although it might be a good short-term strategy, it would lead to a lot of hardship reconstructing the cities later. Besides, it's extremely cruel to destroy the southern cities completely. If the Union wants us to rejoin their nation, they shouldn't have been so harsh on us -- what good can they get in long term, except more hatred from the South and a lot of unnecessary effort for reconstruction?
    Late last year, another bad news added onto our despair -- Lincoln won the reelection with 212 electoral votes out of the total of 233. I was very upset to hear that Lincoln became President again. In my opinion, he's too stubborn and narrow-minded on his "equality" dream. He doesn't really have a plan to solve the unemployment problem that would rise if slavery is abolished. He doesn't see the racism problem either. He is only forcing the country to go along the path as he wishes. He not only holds control of military power, but also suspends habeas corpus which abuses people's fundamental freedom. From his presidency, I can see a shadow of dictatorship, and I believe it's very dangerous to have him as the president.
    Sadly, after we suffered so much losses and destruction, this February, our vice president, Alexander Stephens met Lincoln to negotiate a peace to end the war. However, that wasn't very successful, because Lincoln was planning on passing the 13th Amendment, which would outlaw slavery in the United States. That is absolutely not acceptable -- agriculture is the core of economy in the South, and we are not going to have a future without slavery! Therefore, the negotiation failed, and we continued into war.
    This March, he gave the Second Inaugural Address, in which he declared his vision of a united and peaceful nation. It's impossible to reach a "united and peaceful nation" with so much descrimination going on, and besides, what the North did to us would only cause the nation to be more divided if we do become one.

Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address

    Anyways, I do not believe in a future without slavery. Equality is a fairy tale. Abolition would not do any good to our homelands. My fellow soldiers should not die for nothing! The North wants to implant their beliefs into ours, and we shall never yield to them!

CONFEDERACY NEVER FALLS!!!

Bibliography
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