Yankee Doodle Dixie; Or Love the Light of Life

In submitting this book for public perusal, the author does so with feelings -which none but those who have essayed to enter the doria nof a literary life can possibly appreciate; for, while the lights which hope and novelty, courage and ambition kindled along the paths of labor as the work progressed did seem to glow with something of color, now, that the task is accomplished, seem to burn with a feeble, flickering flame, and I turn from penning the last line back to the first page, and sigh when I say, I would that it were better done or not done at all. So far the work has been mine wholly mine and the thought that my hands found employment congenial with the feelings of my heart has been a real pleasure and a substantial comfort; but soon the book will belong to the public, and its many defects will be noticed; wile its merits, if indeed it has any, will be passed over in silence. I have tried to place truth and virtue, honor, patriotism, and principle in that light in which they should be viewed by the world. I have tried to exalt purity of character and chastity of thought, because I believe there lies the only foundation for real happiness. I have tried to give a clear, concise, and accurate statement of the facts and circumstances which culminated in the war between the States, because I believe a full knowledge of all the facts, and a clear understanding of the feelings and opinions to which they give rise, is the only ground upon which the North and the South can meet in friendly greeting, and the only means that can be employed that will destroy sectional prejudices and sectional animosities. I have adopted the style of fiction and the language of romance, because I believe that many who ought to read and learn the truth would never peruse the matter-of-fact manner of historical writing. Nothing has been set down in malice, nothing is cherished in
(Typographical errors above are due to OCR software and don't occur in the book.)