Reminiscences of Sixty Years in Public Affairs, Vol. 1Boutwell, George S. (George Sewall)
History
Reminiscences of Sixty Years in Public Affairs, Vol. 1
Boutwell, George S. (George Sewall)
Boutwell, George S. (George Sewall), 1818-1905; United States -- Politics and government
When the vote was declared, it appeared that eight States had voted in
the affirmative, and eleven States in the negative. The border State
men were sorely disappointed, and some of them wept like children. The
result they must have anticipated, but they had been wrought to a high
condition of nervous excitement, due in part to the circumstance that
they were unable to discuss the business of the convention in public.
The disagreeable silence which followed the announcement of the vote,
was broken by Mr. Francis Granger, who counseled calmness and
deliberation, and finally, he appealed to the States of the majority
to move a reconsideration. This was done by the State of Illinois,
through Mr. Turner, who made the motion. The next day the resolution
was adopted by a vote of nine to eight. Upon this question the
Missouri delegation refused to vote, under the lead, it was said, of
General Doniphan, who denounced the resolutions as not satisfactory to
either side. Doniphan was a large, muscular man, who acquired some
fame in the Mexican war as the leader of a cavalry expedition to
California, of which nothing was heard for about six months.
The reconsideration was attributed to the interference of Mr. Lincoln
or of his recognized friends.
When the convention was about to adjourn, President Tyler made a speech
in which he thrice invoked the blessing of Heaven upon the doings of
the convention, and from that act he went to Richmond, and in less than
three days he was an avowed and recognized leader in secession.
Indeed, it was understood in the convention that Mr. Seddon was his
representative on the floor. The doings of the Congress were endorsed
by Maryland, but in the National Congress, and in the States North and
South they were neglected utterly. The result which Mr. Seward
anticipated was not realized by the country.
After the arrival of Mr. Lincoln the Massachusetts delegation called
upon him to recommend the selection of Mr. Chase for the Treasury
Department in preference to General Cameron, and to say that the
capitalists of the East would have more confidence in the former than
in the latter. Mr. Lincoln did not say what his purposes were, but
he made this remark:
"From what I hear, I think Mr. Chase is about one hundred and fifty to
any other man's hundred."
On the Saturday next but one, preceding the 4th of March, we called
upon Mr. Buchanan at about eleven o'clock in the morning. He said that
he should prefer to see us in the evening. In the evening we found him
alone. He at once commenced conversation, which he continued with but
slight interruptions on our part. His chief thought seemed to be to
avert bloodshed during his administration. Next, he thought he had
been wronged by both sections. Said he:
"When I rebuked the North for their personal-liberty bills, the South
applauded; but when I condemned the secession movement, then they
turned against me."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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