no president ever assumed office under such circumstances as abraham lincoln. nominally chief magistrate of the whole united states, seven members of the confederation had already seceded. these were south carolina, georgia, alabama, mississippi, texas, florida, and louisiana. some had been hurried out of the union by a few hot-headed politicians, against the wishes of a considerable part of their inhabitants. it is known that general lee and alexander h. stephens, though they ultimately went with their states, were exceedingly reluctant to array themselves in opposition to the government.
mr. stephens used these patriotic words in an address before the legislature of georgia, nov. 14, 1860, after the result of the election was made known: “the first question that presents itself{209} is, shall the people of the south secede from the union in consequence of the election of mr. lincoln to the presidency of the united states? my countrymen, i tell you candidly, frankly, and earnestly that i do not think that they ought. in my judgment the election of no man, constitutionally chosen to that high office, is sufficient cause for any state to separate from the union. it ought to stand by and aid still in maintaining the constitution of the country. to make a point of resistance to the government, to withdraw from it because a man has been constitutionally elected, puts us in the wrong.... we went into the election with this people. the result was different from what we wished; but the election has been constitutionally held. were we to make a point of resistance to the government, and go out of the union on this account, the record would be made up hereafter against us.”
these wise and moderate counsels did not prevail. there was a feeling of bitterness which impelled southern men to extreme measures. more over, the temper and firmness of the north were misunderstood. it was thought they would make the most humiliating concessions to preserve the{210} integrity of the union, while on the other hand the constancy and determination of the southern people were not sufficiently appreciated at the north.
mr. lincoln’s first necessary act was to make choice of a cabinet. he demonstrated his sagacity in surrounding himself with trained and experienced statesmen, as will be seen at once by the following list:
secretary of state, william h. seward, of new york; secretary of the treasury, salmon p. chase, of ohio; secretary of war, simon cameron, of pennsylvania; secretary of the navy, gideon welles, of connecticut; secretary of the interior, caleb b. smith, of indiana; postmaster-general, montgomery blair, of maryland; attorney-general, edward bates, of missouri.
these gentlemen were confirmed, and entered upon the discharge of their duties. thus the new administration was complete. simon cameron, as secretary of war, was superseded in less than a year by edwin m. stanton, who proved to be the right man in the right place. a man of remarkable executive talent, never shrinking from the heavy burden of labor and care which{211} his office imposed, he worked indefatigably, and though he may have offended some by his brusque manners, and unnecessary sternness, it is doubtful whether a better man could have been selected for his post. he had been a member of mr. buchanan’s cabinet in its last days, and did what he could to infuse something of his own vigor into the timid and vacillating executive.
it will be seen that mr. lincoln called to the most important place in the cabinet the man who was his most prominent rival for the nomination, william h. seward. in doing this he strengthened his administration largely in the minds of the people at large, for who was there who was ignorant of mr. seward’s great ability and statesmanship? it may be remarked here that the new president left to each of his secretaries large discretion in their respective departments, and did not interfere with or overrule them except in cases of extreme necessity. a man of smaller nature would have gratified his vanity and sense of importance by meddling with, and so marring the work of his constitutional advisers; but having selected the best men he could find, mr. lincoln left them free to act, and held them responsible{212} for the successful management of their departments.
the new president was not long left in uncertainty as to the intentions of the seceding states. on the 13th of march he received a communication from two gentlemen, claiming to be commissioners from a government composed of the seven seceding states, expressing a desire to enter upon negotiations for the adjustment of all questions growing out of the separation. to have received them would have been to admit the fact and right of secession, and therefore their request was denied. on the 11th of april, general beauregard, in accordance with instructions from the rebel secretary of war, demanded of major anderson, in command at fort sumter, the surrender of the fort. major anderson declined, but was compelled to do so on the morning of the 4th, after a bombardment of thirty-three hours. thus the south had taken the initiative, and had made an armed attack upon the government. thus far the president had pursued a conciliatory—some thought it a timid—policy, but when he heard that sumter had been taken forcible possession of by rebellious citizens, he felt that{213} there was no more room for hesitation. the time had come to act.
on the day succeeding the evacuation of the fort, he issued a proclamation calling for 75,000 soldiers to recover possession of the “forts, places, and property which have been seized from the union,” and at the same time summoned an extra session of both houses of congress, to assemble on thursday, the fourth day of july, “to consider and determine such measures as, in their wisdom, the public safety and interest may seem to demand.”
it is needless to say that the evacuation of fort sumter, and the president’s proclamation, created a whirlwind of excitement. the south was jubilant, the north was deeply stirred, and the proclamation was generally approved and promptly responded to. these spirited lines of the poet whittier are well called
the voice of the north.
up the hill-side, down the glen
rouse the sleeping citizen;
summon out the might of men!
like a lion growling low—
like a night-storm rising slow—
like the tread of unseen foe—{214}
it is coming—it is nigh!
stand your homes and altars by,
on your own free threshold die!
clang the bells in all your spires,
on the grey hills of your sires
fling to heaven your signal fires!
oh! for god and duty stand,
heart to heart, and hand to hand,
round the old graves of the land.
who so shrinks or falters now,
who so to the yoke would bow,
brand the craven on his brow.
freedom’s soil has only place
for a free and fearless race—
none for traitors false and base.
perish party—perish clan,
strike together while you can,
like the strong arm of one man.
like the angel’s voice sublime,
heard above a world of crime,
crying for the end of time.
with one heart and with one mouth
let the north speak to the south;
speak the word befitting both.
in contrast with this, i will cite a poem, which might be called, not inappropriately,{215}
the voice of the south.
rebels! ’tis a holy name!
the name our fathers bore,
when battling in the cause of right
against the tyrant in his might,
in the dark days of yore.
rebels! ’tis our family name!
our father, washington,
was the arch rebel in the fight,
and gave the name to us—aright
of father unto son.
rebels! ’tis our given name!
our mother liberty
received the title with her fame,
in days of grief, of fear and shame,
when at her breast were we.
rebels! ’tis our sealed name!
a baptism of blood!
the war—ay, and the din of strife—
the fearful contest, life for life—
the mingled crimson flood!
rebels! ’tis a patriot’s name!
in struggles it was given;
we bore it then when tyrants raved,
and through their curses ’twas engraved
on the doomsday book of heaven.
rebels! ’tis our fighting name!
for peace rules o’er the land,{216}
until they speak of craven woe—
until our rights received a blow,
from foes’ or brother’s hand.
rebels! ’tis our dying name!
for although life is dear,
yet freemen born and freemen bred,
we’d rather live as freemen dead
than live in slavish fear.
then call us rebels if you will—
we glory in the name;
for bending under unjust laws,
and swearing faith to an unjust cause.
we count a greater shame.
