Lin-coln’s speech was a grand one. He did not boast nor tell what great things he would do. He spoke as would a fa-ther to way-ward chil-dren, and told those who were try-ing to break up the Un-ion that their move would bring ru-in to the Na-tion. He asked them to stop, and turn back while there was time. In sad-ness he told them that it was not right for an-y to try to des-troy the Un-ion; that it was his sworn du-ty to pre-serve it. This speech did much good, but most-ly where there were folks who had not known which side to take. These saw, then, that the Pres-i-dent was bound by his oath to do his dut-y. No Chief of the U-ni-ted States, when he took his chair, had so hard a task be-fore him as Lin-coln had. Sev-en States had gone out of the Un-ion, made a start at a new gov-ern-ment, and found a pres-i-dent and a vice-pres-i-dent for them-selves. Some of the folks in oth-er states were mak-ing plans to leave the Un-ion. The peo-ple of the far South laid hold of Un-ion forts, ships, guns, and post-of-fi-ces. Some men who had held high posts in the ar-my and na-vy left the Un-ion and gave their help to the oth-er side. They had sent out the news to the world that they would have the name of the “Con-fed-er-ate States of A-mer-i-ca,” and that their pres-i-dent’s name was Jef-fer-son Dav-is. [Illustration: JEFFERSON DAVIS] How to save the Un-ion, bring back all the states, make the North and South friends once more were themes of the day. These thoughts hung like a weight o-ver Lin-coln as he paced his room at night, and as he talked with the men he had with him. He did not wish to de-clare war. He must, he thought, work for peace. This he did till he saw war must come, but he made up his mind that the first act that brought a-bout war should not come from him but from those whose wish was to break up the Un-ion. At last the foe struck the first blow. It was on a spring day, the twelfth of A-pril, 1861, that the first gun was fired in Charles-ton har-bor up-on the Un-ion flag on Fort Sum-ter. The call was sound-ed. The great heart of the North grew hot with shame and rage. “What! De-grade our coun-try’s flag?” they cried. “’Tis the flag for which our fa-thers fought and died!” “We will give the last drop of our blood for it! We will leave our trades, our homes and dear ones, and fly to put down the foe who has dared to strike a blow at it!” But in Charles-ton, S. C. the folks were wild with joy. The Gov-ern-or of the state, Pick-ens, made a speech from the bal-co-ny of a ho-tel. He said, “Thank God, the day has come! The war is o-pen, and we will con-quer or pe-rish. We have de-feat-ed twen-ty mil-lions, and we have hum-bled their proud flag of stars and stripes.” There was much more talk in the same vein.