Page:Heroines of freethought (IA cu31924031228699).pdf/174

166 as minutely and thoroughly as possible with the habits, laws, politics, and even sectional prejudices, of the American people. Whoever has read her “Society in America”—the literary result of her two years’ sojourn here—cannot have failed to observe the fact that, while frankly stating her convictions as to what she considered the mistakes and exaggerations of this government "by the people, for the people," the whole book is yet permeated by a heartfelt, loving admiration of the Americans and their country. The one great stain on the national character, slavery (which she has fortunately lived to see blotted out), she speaks against boldly and frankly; but even here, where she felt so deeply and indignantly, she does not fail to speak justly and fairly, admitting that the Southern people— whose manifold good qualities she does full justice to—were misled by sophistical reasoning on this point, and were mistaken in their policy, rather than intentionally doing wrong.