“Monsters of Virtuous Pretension” . . .

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"Should you capture Charleston, I hope by some accident the place may be destroyed. And if a little salt should be sown upon the site, it may prevent the growth of future crops of nullification and secession." These words advocating the centralization of American government along with the destruction of Charleston came in 1865 from Lincoln's Chief of Staff, Major General Henry Halleck. The message was addressed to Sherman, whose mode of warfare was hailed in Northern papers as genius and decried in the South as barbaric.

Learn more:
http://www.abbevilleinstitute.org/review/monsters-of-virtuous-pretension/