Maryland, My Maryland

MARYLAND WAS FOUNDED as a plantation colony like Virginia and its way of life did not differ greatly from Virginia's. Everybody knows that the "Star-Spangled Banner" was written by Francis Scott Key as he watched the British attack on Fort McHenry in Baltimore harbour during the War of 1812. But few know that in 1861 Francis Key Howard, the grandson of Francis Scott Key, wrote this of his grandfather: The flag which then he so proudly hailed, I saw waving at the same place over the victims as vulgar and brutal a despotism as modern times have witnessed. Howard was one of the many Marylanders who were political prisoners of Abraham Lincoln, arrested to prevent the people of Maryland from ever having an opportunity to vote on secession. As soon as Union occupiers departed at the end of the War for Southern Independence, Maryland elected conservative Southern Democrats to office, a practice that continued well into the 20th century. Joyce Bennett is a patriot holding a last outpost of the real Maryland. She knows the history and original culture of her commonwealth. She has watched that pleasant and very American culture - its speech, manners, cuisine, attitudes, and traditions - being vigourously wiped out by newcomers who have turned Maryland into a mere minor part of the northeastern megalopolis. The things sadly lost are the things that constitute civilization and create community. ______ P.S. - This book was originally published by the author under the title Letters from the Outpost. P.P.S. - This title is enrolled in Kindle MatchBook. FREE if print edition is purchased on Amazon.