The Civilian War Abraham Lincoln cradled his baby for one last time as she quietly slept,

while the hands of the Union and Confederacy raise the knife, the light of dawn gleaming off its blade, and with a swift motion leave nothing but a river of her blood, warm an' pure , to connect the divided country. The Civil War spanned from 1861 to 1865, claiming the lives of approximately 620,000 men, wiping out nearly 2% of the population. These statistics account for the soldiers, however there we many more casualties than just those who were on the battlefields. The Civil War was supposed to unite the country and emancipate African Americans in the United States, however it caused the deaths of many of the innocents it was fighting for. In the context of It's Mornin' by Shirley Du Bois, the Civil War was the beginning of a chain of events that led to Cissie killing Millie. The Civil War caused a shift in many households, leaving them without a male figure present and struggling to survive. Although the reason for Master Tilden going to war is unknown, it has certainly had an negative effect on the Tilden household and plantation. Mrs. Tilden says I'm an old woman...I'm helpless. Oh if this war would only end if our men would come back! They don't know what it's doing to us. They don't know. (Du Bois 11). The Union's Armed Forces consisted of over 2.1 million soldiers, compared to the Confederacy's Army which had a little over one million soldiers. This disparity caused a draft to be implemented. In 1862, the Confederacy began to draft soldiers, with the exception of those who owned over 20 slaves. In 1863, the Union began drafting soldiers, which consisted of any able bodied male ages 18 to 35 (Civil n.pag.). Because the absence of Master Tilden leaves the plantation struggling to survive, Mrs..

Tilden has no choice but to sell Millie. Mrs. Tilden says that she had to sell Millie because The war's beat [the plantation] down [and their] cotton's worthless. There's nothing else. (Du Bois 11). The South's economy suffered during the Civil War. Union naval blockades prevented Southern farmer and cotton-growers from selling their goods overseas, therefore making no profits. (Arrington 2). According to Figure 1 in the article Measuring Slavery in 2011, young female slaves ranging from ages 17-30 were the second most profitable slaves to sell because they not only were able to work in the fields but also bear children. Some young female slaves ranged from prices of $1250 to $1525. (Jordan 5). Because Millie will be sold away from the plantation, Cissie decides to have a party to celebrate her last night on the Tilden's plantation. At this party, Grannie Lou told a story about a woman in the same situation as Cissie, who killed her children instead of letting them be sold away, which causes Cissie to contemplate killing Millie. The story that Grannie Lou tells resonates with Cissie to the point where the other guests' at the party believe she's under a spell. After contemplating killing Millie, Cissie decides to act on it for various reasons. Young, slave girls were sold not only for their labor but also to bear children. Cissie had nightmares about Millie being raped and losing her innocence. She did not want the young and lively, Millie to lose her song and dance. ( Du Bois 15) The Civil War took the men away from the households, leaving the women to fend for themselves. This was made nearly impossible in the South due to the failing economy. The failing economy left many farmers, like Mrs. Tilden who depended on the cotton crop for income, to have to find income elsewhere. Being that slaves were property, the profit made was enough to replace the absence of profit from crops. Young, female slaves were the second most profitable, which is why Mrs. Tilden decided to sell Millie. However, Cissie, who did not want

her child to suffer what was to come on another plantation, instead kills Millie.

Works Cited Arrington, Benjamin T.. Industry and Economy during the Civil War. The Civil War Remembered. National Park Services and Eastern National, n.d. N.pag. Nps.gov: National Park Service. Web. 26 Feb. 2013. Cain, Louis P., Williamson, Samuel H.. Measuring Slavery in 2011. MeasuringWorth, 2013. Web. 26 Feb. 2013.

Civil War Facts. Civil War Trust: Saving America's Civil War Battlefields. History. Google., 2013. Web. 26 Feb. 2013. Du Bois, Shirley. It's Mornin'. 2013. Black Drama. Web. 26 Feb. 2013. Jordan Jr., Ervin L..Prologue. Black Confederates and Afro Yankees in Civil War Virginia. Virginia: The University Press of Virginia, 1995. Page 5. Google.com: Google Books. Web. 26 Feb. 2013.