I first posted this material in the New Recruits area, but it really belongs here, and what I have since found in Sherman’s writings may be of interest.
The writer David Goldman, who also publishes under the pen name "Spengler" (referring to the historian Oswald Spengler) wrote a column for the June 12, 2003 edition of The Asia Times, entitled "More Killing, Please!" He has since recycled this column several times in various other publications. At present you may read it quoted in full in a more recent column:
https://pjmedia.com/spengler/2017/05/05/more-killing-please-mr-president/
Here are Goldman/Spengler's words (from 2003) which inspire my curiosity:
"In all, one-quarter of military age Southern manhood died in the field, by far the greatest sacrifice ever offered up by a modern nation in war. General W T Sherman, the scourge of the South, explained why this would occur in advance. There existed 300,000 fanatics in the South who knew nothing but hunting, drinking, gambling and dueling, a class who benefited from slavery and would rather die than work for a living. To end the war, Sherman stated on numerous occasions these 300,000 had to be killed."
In my original post on the New Recruits forum I asked if anyone knew of a source for such a statement by Sherman, and two members (diane and rbasin) said they recalled something like it in Sherman’s correspondence, in particular with Halleck. That clue led me to discover something relevant, in Sherman’s Memoirs, near the end of Chapter XIII: Vicksburg. January to July, 1863.
Upon receipt of a letter from Halleck, dated August 29, 1863, which brought up "the question of reconstruction in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Arkansas," Sherman replied "unofficially" as Halleck had suggested, so that he could express himself freely without being annoyed by the press.
[from Sherman's reply to Halleck]---------------------------------------------------
H. W. HALLECK, Commander-in-Chief, Washington, D. C.
...We accepted the issue, and now [the Southerners] begin to realize that war is a two-edged sword, and it may be that many of the inhabitants cry for peace. I know them well, and the very impulses of their nature; and to deal with the inhabitants of that part of the South which borders on the great river, we must recognize the classes into which they have divided themselves:
[Sherman lists and describes four classes: The large planters, the "smaller farmers, mechanics, merchants, and laborers", the Southern-residing Union adherents, and finally, "the young bloods of the South." I have bolded one sentence.]
Fourth. The young bloods of the South: sons of planters, lawyers about towns, good billiard-players and sportsmen, men who never did work and never will. War suits them, and the rascals are brave, fine riders, bold to rashness, and dangerous subjects in every sense. They care not a sou for ******s, land, or any thing. They hate Yankees per se, and don't bother their brains about the past, present, or future. As long as they have good horses, plenty of forage, and an open country, they are happy. This is a larger class than most men suppose, and they are the most dangerous set of men that this war has turned loose upon the world. They are splendid riders, first-rate shots, and utterly reckless. Stewart, John Morgan, Forrest, and Jackson, are the types and leaders of this class. These men must all be killed or employed by us before we can hope for peace. They have no property or futures, and therefore cannot be influenced by any thing, except personal considerations.
[End of letter extract]----------------------------------------------------------------------
Goldman is a highly educated fellow, very careful of his reputation as a scholarly writer, and therefore I incline to believe his claim that Sherman said something like this more than once, and somewhere also mentioned the figure 300,000 in this context. But so far I have only found the above. Any further ideas, anyone?
If I ever manage to find other Sherman statements which complete the picture, I’ll be sure to post them here, for the sake of completing an investigation. I may also attempt to communicate with Goldman himself.
The writer David Goldman, who also publishes under the pen name "Spengler" (referring to the historian Oswald Spengler) wrote a column for the June 12, 2003 edition of The Asia Times, entitled "More Killing, Please!" He has since recycled this column several times in various other publications. At present you may read it quoted in full in a more recent column:
https://pjmedia.com/spengler/2017/05/05/more-killing-please-mr-president/
Here are Goldman/Spengler's words (from 2003) which inspire my curiosity:
"In all, one-quarter of military age Southern manhood died in the field, by far the greatest sacrifice ever offered up by a modern nation in war. General W T Sherman, the scourge of the South, explained why this would occur in advance. There existed 300,000 fanatics in the South who knew nothing but hunting, drinking, gambling and dueling, a class who benefited from slavery and would rather die than work for a living. To end the war, Sherman stated on numerous occasions these 300,000 had to be killed."
In my original post on the New Recruits forum I asked if anyone knew of a source for such a statement by Sherman, and two members (diane and rbasin) said they recalled something like it in Sherman’s correspondence, in particular with Halleck. That clue led me to discover something relevant, in Sherman’s Memoirs, near the end of Chapter XIII: Vicksburg. January to July, 1863.
Upon receipt of a letter from Halleck, dated August 29, 1863, which brought up "the question of reconstruction in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Arkansas," Sherman replied "unofficially" as Halleck had suggested, so that he could express himself freely without being annoyed by the press.
[from Sherman's reply to Halleck]---------------------------------------------------
H. W. HALLECK, Commander-in-Chief, Washington, D. C.
...We accepted the issue, and now [the Southerners] begin to realize that war is a two-edged sword, and it may be that many of the inhabitants cry for peace. I know them well, and the very impulses of their nature; and to deal with the inhabitants of that part of the South which borders on the great river, we must recognize the classes into which they have divided themselves:
[Sherman lists and describes four classes: The large planters, the "smaller farmers, mechanics, merchants, and laborers", the Southern-residing Union adherents, and finally, "the young bloods of the South." I have bolded one sentence.]
Fourth. The young bloods of the South: sons of planters, lawyers about towns, good billiard-players and sportsmen, men who never did work and never will. War suits them, and the rascals are brave, fine riders, bold to rashness, and dangerous subjects in every sense. They care not a sou for ******s, land, or any thing. They hate Yankees per se, and don't bother their brains about the past, present, or future. As long as they have good horses, plenty of forage, and an open country, they are happy. This is a larger class than most men suppose, and they are the most dangerous set of men that this war has turned loose upon the world. They are splendid riders, first-rate shots, and utterly reckless. Stewart, John Morgan, Forrest, and Jackson, are the types and leaders of this class. These men must all be killed or employed by us before we can hope for peace. They have no property or futures, and therefore cannot be influenced by any thing, except personal considerations.
[End of letter extract]----------------------------------------------------------------------
Goldman is a highly educated fellow, very careful of his reputation as a scholarly writer, and therefore I incline to believe his claim that Sherman said something like this more than once, and somewhere also mentioned the figure 300,000 in this context. But so far I have only found the above. Any further ideas, anyone?
If I ever manage to find other Sherman statements which complete the picture, I’ll be sure to post them here, for the sake of completing an investigation. I may also attempt to communicate with Goldman himself.