When backed into a corner by those who insist that there is something called the Truth, revisers of Maryland’s history resort to linguistic trickery to achieve what they call "balance." These days students of Maryland’s past will find that a degree in English is far more useful than one in history and that they must read critically to separate honest scholarship from left-wing "perspective."

Recently this writer ran across a striking example of the Orwellian language of revisionism in a book entitled Postcard History Series, Calvert County by Carter T. Gray. Although Mr. Gray’s history contains wonderful photographs, the author unfortunately reveals his revisionist inclinations when he, in his introduction, writes:

"In 1861, the War Between the States had begun. Calvert County became a very confused place. Many men in the county joined the Confederacy and fought for the Southern cause while, at the same time, the county was occupied by Union forces who established a camp for Confederate prisoners at Battle Creek."

These days students of Maryland’s past will find that a degree in English is far more useful than one in history and that they must read critically to separate honest scholarship from left-wing "perspective."

Critical readers, those among us who are wise to the bland lies that pass for history, know loaded words and sneaky syntax when we see them. In the sentence, "Many men in the county joined the Confederacy and fought for the Southern cause while, at the same time, the county was occupied by Union forces…" we have a linguistic device designed to create the impression that Calvert Countians were sharply divided during the war. The author’s deceptive disjunction falls flat, and it is painfully obvious that he is telling readers that on the one hand Calvert County was secessionist but, on the other hand, Calvert County was secessionist. His calculated use of the word "confused" in the second sentence is an attempt to pound an historical square peg into a round hole.

Judging Maryland’s temperament by one set of criteria and that of other Southern states by a completely different set of criteria, revisionists attempt to reduce Maryland’s history to a more palatable romance.

Calvert County, Maryland was not occupied by the Yankees because she was "confused" but precisely because she wasn’t.

In Maryland and elsewhere in the South certainly there were bitter fights over secession in the days before the war. When Lincoln invaded—reinforcing and re-provisioning Fort Sumter in April 1861— Southerners stopped arguing about this issue and prepared to defend themselves. But revisionists exaggerate Maryland’s unionist leanings, writing an overblown, contrived history that bears little resemblance to what actually happened. The truth is that Maryland was no more at war with herself over the question of secession than were other Southern states. And Calvert County, Maryland was not occupied by the Yankees because she was "confused" but precisely because she wasn’t.

Judging Maryland’s temperament by one set of criteria and that of other Southern states by a completely different set of criteria, revisionists attempt to reduce Maryland’s history to a more palatable romance.

Next time we will take a close look at "Civil War" Trails "History." Note to my readers: Last week a "Best Of" Dispatches from Little Dixie appeared in St. Mary’s Today. It created the impression that the annual Pilgrimage to Point Lookout is scheduled for this November. The pilgrimage, however, will be held in October. I will keep my readers informed so that they can plan accordingly. God bless the South.