Mr. Lincoln was within one and a half votes of a nomination when the roll-call was completed. Ohio quickly transferred four votes to him, and then delegation after delegation changed in his favor until he had 354 in all. On motion of Mr. W. M. Evarts, of New York, seconded by Mr. John A. Andrew, of Massachusetts, the nomination was made unanimous with the greatest enthusiasm.

At a later session on the same day the convention voted twice for a candidate for Vice-President, with this result:

The nomination of Mr. Hamlin having been made unanimous, the convention closed its proceedings by the adoption of the following resolution, offered by Mr. Giddings, of Ohio:

Resolved, That we deeply sympathize with those men who have been driven, some from their native States and others from the States of their adoption, and are now exiled from their homes on account of their opinions; and we hold the Democratic party responsible for the gross violation of that clause of the Constitution which declares that citizens of each State shall be entitled to all the privileges and immunities of citizens of the several States.

The canvass which ensued after these several nominations had been made was fierce and exciting. On the part of the Republicans there was a well-grounded confidence that they were to be victorious. The nomination of Mr. Lincoln, like that of General Harrison twenty years before, was exceedingly popular with young men; although, of course, the remark is true in the later case of the young men in the Northern half of the country only. The tactics which had been so efficacious in the successful Whig campaigns were again resorted to, and the Northern States were alive with processions, torch-light parades, and mass-meetings. In the South there was a grim determination to win the victory if possible, but in no event to submit to defeat. The mutterings of secession and war, should Mr. Lincoln be elected, were frequently heard; the supporters of the Republican party refused to believe that the South would be guilty of such madness. In the Northern section of the Democratic party there was an earnest effort to fuse

all the elements in support of a union ticket of electors, with the implied, and in some cases the expressed, agreement that in case the ticket should command a majority the electoral votes should be given to that candidate who should come the nearest to an election. This course was pursued in the close States only. Where there was no hope that fusion would give the Democrats a majority, the two wings of the party had each its own electoral ticket. All the planning was without avail. Had there been complete fusion in every State, the Republ cans would have lost no electoral votes save those of California and Oregon. The early elections in Maine, Ohio, Indiana, and Pennsylvania, to say nothing of other States where the contest was not so close, foreshadowed the certain election of Mr. Lincoln, and the result in November more than justified the deductions from the September and October elections. Every Northern State except New Jersey was carried by the Republicans, and even that State gave a divided electoral vote. The decision was hardly made by the people of the country before the South began to carry out the threats which had been only muttered before the election; and the new President succeeded to the administration of a government which was to fight for its very existence.

Thirty-three States took part in this election. Minnesota had been admitted to the Union on the 11th of May, 1858, and Oregon on the 12th of February, 1859. The popular and electoral vote, together with the details of fusion, are given on the next page.

The official record of the electoral count contains nothing of interest. The proceedings were in strict accordance with preċedent. Nevertheless a single remark made by a member of the House of Representatives after the count was over indicates the condition of affairs at the time. Some trouble had been feared on the occasion of the count of votes, and no doubt precautions were taken against violence at any time, and particularly at that time. At all events, the Southerners scented hostile preparations; and Mr. Hindman, of Arkansas, suggested that the committee to wait on the President-elect "be directed to inform General Scott that there is no further need for his janizaries about the Capitol, the votes being counted and the result proclaimed." The only attention paid to the sneer was in a retort from Mr. Grow, of Pennsylvania, that "gentlemen seem to trouble themselves a good deal about General Scott on all occasions." The proceedings then terminated.

* Vote for fusion tickets. † Although the Fusion ticket in New Jersey received popular majority, four of the candidates were defeated by "scratching," and fou Lincoln electors had a plurality. Electors appointed by the legislature.

XXII

LINCOLN RE-ELECTED

SEVEN of the Southern States had taken the step of secession before the inauguration of President Lincoln. A futile attempt to save the Union was made by the Peace Convention which met in Washington on February 4, 1861, at the call of Virginia. Within six weeks after the attack upon Fort Sumter, Virginia and three other "Border" States had joined their more Southern sisters. The outbreak of the war almost obliterated parties. The South was eliminated from the politics of the country. Hundreds of thousands of Democrats eagerly adopted the view expressed by Douglas, "There can be no neutrals in this war, only patriots and traitors." Many of the War Democrats became merged in the Republican party; others retained their political independence, but cordially supported all the war measures of the administration, and furnished to the army their due share of officers and men. There were,

it is true, many Democrats who offered a persistent and unrelenting opposition to the war, and were querulous critics of the method of its prosecution. Not all who were denounced as "Southern sympathizers " were really desirous of the success of disunion; but the Northern temper was naturally intolerant, and, exaggerating the offence of those who opposed the administration, classed them all as traitors." The favorite term of opprobrium was "Copperhead," the name of a venomous reptile. As the war proceeded, the spirit of acquiescence in the conduct of affairs diminished greatly, and a strong political opposition developed. The effective prosecution of a civil war necessarily involved the use of harsh and summary measures against men who were suspected of giving aid to the enemy. Nevertheless the suspension of the writ of habeas corpus, and the arbitrary arrests of citizens, drove into opposition many men whose loyalty could not be suspected. It was their misfortune that they were forced to make a political alliance with the more virulent enemies of the administration, not

a few of whom rendered themselves obnoxious to the patriotic by rejoicing openly over defeats of the Union armies. The opposition was also ever ready to espouse the cause of generals who for any cause fell into disfavor at Washington. This was especially the case with respect to General McClellan, who became more and more a favorite with Democrats as the real or fancied wrongs which he suffered at the hands of the President increased. In 1862 the Republican party met with many reverses, the most important of which gave the great State of New York to the Democrats.

The President's trials did not come from those alone who regarded his acts, and those of his officers and agents, as arbitrary and tyrannical. He was beset also by an active minority of his own party, who chafed at his conservatism and his unwillingness to adopt the radical measures which they were persuaded would hasten the success of the Union arms. They urged the enrollment of colored troops and the complete emancipation of the slaves. Mr. Lincoln moved slowly, because public sentiment was slower still. The people at large learned to trust his calmness and good sense. If they did not approve all his acts, they were sure of his high purpose, and they pardoned much to the terrible exigency that forced him to sanction doubtful or objectionable measures. The firmness with which he withstood the demand for emancipation, when it was clamorously urged upon him, made them all the more ready to accept his judgment as to the wisdom of the step when at last and with deliberation he proclaimed that all the slaves within the territory held by the Confederacy were thenceforth free. His wisdom and strength commended him to thoughtful men, and his quaint shrewdness in word and act brought him near to the common people.

Mr. Lincoln neither obtrusively urged himself as a candidate for reëlection nor made any coy professions of unwillingness to be chosen again. He was simply and frankly a candidate. He believed that it was best for the country, in the circumstances, that he should be continued in office. It was not good policy, he said, and the phrase made the one argument which in any case would have turned the scale in his favor, "to swap horses while crossing a stream."

The certainty that the Republican convention

- which was

called on February 22, 1864, to meet in Baltimore on the 7th of June would nominate Mr. Lincoln led certain radical