 An interpretation of the article is that it was part of the movement to reconcile North and South, while supporting the southern side in arguments about the Constitution.Johnson's work as editor of the fifty-volume "Chronicles of America" series, which was acclaimed for its scholarship and high standards, led to his invitation from the American Council of Learned Societies to edit the proposed "Dictionary of American Biography", which led Johnson to leave his position at Yale in 1926 and move to Washington, DC, to oversee work on the "DAB".After a few years, Johnson invited his former student from Yale, Dumas Malone, to become assistant editor of the project.