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Story
March 15, 1865
Mineral Point Weekly Tribune
Mineral Point, Iowa County, Wisconsin
What is this article about?
Commentary in Madison Journal on a Civil War-era poem from Harper's Weekly (1861), originally by a loyal New York mother, altered by pro-Confederate 'copperhead' newspapers to substitute 'Northmen' for 'Rebels' and promote southern rights.
Clipping
OCR Quality
95%
Excellent
Full Text
"The following lines were found on the body of a young soldier belonging to one of the Alabama regiments in Gen. Lee's army, and are supposed to have been written by his mother, as none but a mother's loving heart could have prompted such exquisite sentiment."
The above paragraph is published in the Mineral Point Intelligencer—doubtless copied from some eastern copperhead sheet—as an introduction to the touching little ballad originally published in Harper's Weekly, beginning
"I know the sun shines and the lilacs are blowing"
In this copperhead version, the word "Northmen" is substituted for "Rebels," and he "rights of the south" for rights of the North." It is noticeable that the correct version, written by a loyal New York mother, never found any favor in the eyes of the northern democratic newspapers, though widely published in loyal journals as long ago as 1861. They only begin to see beauties in it after it has been recast and inoculated with the virus of treason.
—Madison Journal
The above paragraph is published in the Mineral Point Intelligencer—doubtless copied from some eastern copperhead sheet—as an introduction to the touching little ballad originally published in Harper's Weekly, beginning
"I know the sun shines and the lilacs are blowing"
In this copperhead version, the word "Northmen" is substituted for "Rebels," and he "rights of the south" for rights of the North." It is noticeable that the correct version, written by a loyal New York mother, never found any favor in the eyes of the northern democratic newspapers, though widely published in loyal journals as long ago as 1861. They only begin to see beauties in it after it has been recast and inoculated with the virus of treason.
—Madison Journal
What sub-type of article is it?
Historical Event
Deception Fraud
What themes does it cover?
Deception
Justice
What keywords are associated?
Civil War Poem
Copperhead Newspapers
Harper's Weekly
Madison Journal
Political Deception
Story Details
Event Date
1861
Story Details
A poem originally published in Harper's Weekly in 1861 by a loyal New York mother is misrepresented in pro-Confederate newspapers, with words altered to substitute 'Northmen' for 'Rebels' and 'rights of the south' for 'rights of the North', as critiqued in the Madison Journal.