ItwasLincoln’sfatetoseehispolicyonceagainatthemercyofhisCommandingGeneral。Thatwashissituationinthespringof1862wheneverythinghungonMcClellanwhofailedhim;againintheautumnoftheyearwhenMcClellansonarrowlysavedhim。Thespringof1864paralleled,inthisrespect,thatotherspringtwoyearsearlier。Tobesure,Lincoln’spositionwasnowmuchstronger;hehadagreatpersonalfollowingonwhichherelied。Butjusthowstrongitwashedidnotknow。Hewastakingagreatriskforcingapolicyhigh-handedindefianceofCongress,whereallhisbitterestenemieswereentrenched,glowering。IfhisGeneralfailedhimnow——
ThemanonwhomthishugeresponsibilityrestedwasGrant。
LincolnhadsummonedhimfromtheWestandplacedhimattheheadofallthearmiesoftheRepublic。AstoHalleckwhohadlongsinceprovedhimselfperfectlyuseless,hewasallowedtolapseintoobscurity。
GranthaspreservedinhisMemoirshisfirstconfidentialtalkwithLincoln:“HetoldmehedidnotwanttoknowwhatI
proposedtodo。ButhesubmittedaplanofcampaignofhisownthathewantedmetohearandthendoasIpleasedabout。HebroughtoutamapofVirginiaonwhichhehadevidentlymarkedeverypositionoccupiedbytheFederalandConfederatearmiesuptothattime。HepointedoutonthemaptwostreamswhichemptyintothePotomac,andsuggestedthatanarmymightbemovedonboatsandlandedbetweenthemouthsofthosestreams。
WewouldthenhavethePotomactobringoursupplies,andthetributarieswouldprotectourflankswhilewemovedout。I
listenedrespectfully,butdidnotsuggestthatthesamestreamswouldprotectLee’sflankswhilehewasshuttingusup。“[6]
GrantsetoutforthefrontinVirginia。Lincoln’spartingwordswerethisnote:“Notexpectingtoseeyouagainbeforethespringcampaignopens,Iwishtoexpressinthiswaymyentiresatisfactionwithwhatyouhavedoneuptothistime,sofarasIunderstandit。TheparticularsofyourplansI
neitherknownorseektoknow。Youarevigilantandself-reliant;and,pleasedwiththis,Iwishnottoobtrudeanyconstraintsorrestraintsuponyou。WhileIamveryanxiousthatanygreatdisasterorcaptureofourmeningreatnumbersshallbeavoided,Iknowthesepointsarelesslikelytoescapeyourattentionthantheywouldbemine。Ifthereisanythingwantingwhichiswithinmypowertogive,donotfailtoletmeknowit。Andnow,withabravearmyandajustcause,mayGodsustainyou。“[7]
Ifthepoliticiansneededadefinitewarning,inadditiontowhatthegroundwassaying,itwasgivenbyanincidentthatcentereduponChase。Afewboldmenwhosesenseofthecrowdwasnotsoacuteasitmighthavebeen,attemptedtoworkupaChaseboom。AttheinstanceofSenatorPomeroy,asecretpaperknownto-dayasthePomeroyCircular,wasstartedonitstravels。TheCircularaimedtomakeChasetheVindictivecandidate。Likealltheotheranti-Lincolnmovesoftheearlypartof1864,itwaspremature。TheshrewdoldSenatorswhoweresilentlymarshalingtheVindictiveforces,letitalone。
Chase’sambitionwasfullyunderstoodattheWhiteHouse。
Duringthepreviousyear,hisirritableself-consciousnesshadledtoquarrelswiththePresident,generallyoverpatronage,andmorethanoncehehadofferedhisresignation。Ononeoccasion,Lincolnwenttohishouseandbeggedhimtoreconsider。AloneamongtheCabinet,ChasehadfailedtotakethemeasureofLincolnandstillconsideredhimasecond-rateperson,muchhisinferior。HeratedveryhightheservicestohiscountryoftheSecretaryoftheTreasurywhomheconsideredthelogicalsuccessortothePresidency。
LincolnrefusedtoseewhatChasewasafter。“Ihavedetermined,“hetoldHay,“toshutmyeyesasfaraspossibletoeverythingofthesort。Mr。ChasemakesagoodsecretaryandIshallkeephimwhereheis。“[1]Inlightervein,hesaidthatChase’spresidentialambitionwaslikea“chinfly“
pesteringahorse;itledtohisputtingalltheenergyhehadintohiswork。[2]
WhenacopyoftheCircularfounditswaytotheWhiteHouse,Lincolnrefusedtoreadit。[3]Soonafterwarditfellintothehandsofanunsympatheticorindiscreeteditorandwasprinted。
Therewasahubbub。Chaseofferedtoresign。Lincolnwrotetohiminreply:
“MyknowledgeofMr。Pomeroy’sletterhavingbeenmadepubliccametomeonlythedayyouwrotebutIhad,inSpiteofmyself,knownofitsexistenceseveraldaysbefore。Ihavenotyetreadit,andIthinkIshallnot。IwasnotshockedorsurprisedbytheappearanceoftheletterbecauseIhadhadknowledgeofMr。Pomeroy’scommittee,andofsecretissueswhichIsupposedcamefromit,andofsecretagentswhoI
supposedweresentoutbyit,forseveralweeks。Ihaveknownjustaslittleofthesethingsasmyfriendshaveallowedmetoknow。Theybringthedocumentstome,butIdonotreadthem;
theytellmewhattheythinkfittotellme,butIdonotinquireformore。Ifullyconcurwithyouthatneitherofuscanbejustlyheldresponsibleforwhatourrespectivefriendsmaydowithoutourinstigationorcountenance;andIassureyou,asyouhaveassuredme,thatnoassaulthasbeenmadeuponyoubymyinstigationorwithmycountenance。WhetheryoushallremainattheheadoftheTreasuryDepartmentisaquestionwhichIwillnotallowmyselftoconsiderfromanystandpointotherthanmyjudgmentofthepublicservice,andinthatview,Idonotperceiveoccasionforachange。“[4]Butthiswasnottheendoftheincident。ThecountrypromptlyrepudiatedChase。Hisownstateledtheway。AcaucusofUnionmembersoftheOhioLegislatureresolvedthatthepeopleandthesoldiersofOhiodemandedthereelectionofLincoln。
Inahostofsimilarresolutions,Legislativecaucuses,politicalconventions,dubs,societies,prominentindividualsnotinthepoliticalmachine,allringinglydeclaredforLincoln,theonepropercandidateofthe“Unionparty“-asthemovementwaslabeledinalastandrelativelysuccessfulattempttobreakpartylines。
Asthedateofthe“UnionConvention“approached,LincolnputasideanopportunitytogratifytheVindictives。FollowingtheEmancipationProclamation,therecruitingofficeshadbeenopenedtonegroes。ThereupontheConfederategovernmentthreatenedtotreatblacksoldiersasbrigands,andtorefusetotheirwhiteofficerstheprotectionofthelawsofwar。A
crywentupintheNorthforreprisal。Itwasnotthefirsttimethecryhadbeenraised。In1862Lincoln’sspokesmaninCongress,Browning,hadwithstoodaproposalforthetrialofGeneralBucknerbythecivilauthoritiesofKentucky。Browningopposedsuchacourseonthegroundthatitwouldleadtoapolicyofretaliation,andmakeofthewaragratificationofrevenge。[5]TheConfederatethreatgaveanewturntothediscussion。FrederickDouglas,themostinfluentialnegroofthetime,obtainedanaudiencewithLincolnandbeggedforreprisals。Lincolnwouldnotconsent。Soeffectivewashisargumentthateventheardentnegro,convincedthathisracewasabouttosufferpersecution,wassatisfied。
“Ishallneverforget,“Douglaswrote,“thebenignantexpressionofhisface,thetearfullookofhiseye,thequiverinhisvoice,whenhedeprecatedaresorttoretaliatorymeasures。’Oncebegun,’saidhe,’Idonotknowwheresuchameasurewouldstop。’Hesaidhecouldnottakemenoutandkillthemincoldbloodforwhatwasdonebyothers。Ifhecouldgetholdofthepersonswhowereguiltyofkillingthecoloredprisonersincoldblood,thecasewouldbedifferent,buthecouldnotkilltheinnocentfortheguilty。“[6]
InApril,1864,theNorthwassweptbyawildrumorofdeliberatemassacreofprisonersatFortPillow。HerewasanopportunityforLincolntoingratiatehimselfwiththeVindictives。ThePresidentwastomakeaspeechatafairheldinBaltimore,forthebenefitoftheSanitaryCommission。Theaudiencewaskeentohearhimdenouncethereputedmassacre,andeagertoapplaudapromiseofreprisal。Instead,hedeprecatedhastyjudgment;insistingthattherumorhadnotbeenverified;thatnothingshouldbedoneonthestrengthofmerereport。
“Itisamistaketosupposethegovernmentisindifferentinthismatter,orisnotdoingthebestitcaninregardtoit。
Wedonotto-dayknowthatacoloredsoldierorwhiteofficercommandingcoloredsoldiershasbeenmassacredbytheRebelswhenmadeaprisoner。Wefearit——believeit,Imaysay-butwedonotknowitTotakethelifeofoneoftheirprisonersontheassumptionthattheymurderours,whenitisshortofcertaintythattheydomurderours,mightbetooserious,toocruelamistake。“[7]
Whatatame,spiritlesspositionintheeyesoftheVindictives!Adifferentopportunitytolayholdofpublicopinionhemadethemostof。Andyet,herealso,hespokeinthatcarefullyguardedway,makingsurehewasnotunderstoodtosaymorethanhemeant,whichmostpoliticianswouldhavepronouncedover-scrupulous。AdeputationofworkingmenfromNewYorkwerereceivedattheWhiteHouse。“Thehonorarymembershipinyourassociation,“saidhe,“asgenerouslytendered,isgratefullyaccepted……Youcomprehend,asyouraddressshows,thattheexistingrebellionmeansmore,andtendstomore,thantheperpetuationofAfricanslavery-thatitis,infact,awarupontherightsofallworkingpeople。“
Afterreviewinghisownargumentonthissubjectinthesecondmessage,heconcluded:
“Theviewsthenexpressednowremainunchanged,norhaveImuchtoadd。Nonearesodeeplyinterestedtoresistthepresentrebellionastheworkingpeople。Letthembewareofprejudices,workingdivisionandhostilityamongthemselves。
Themostnotablefeatureofadisturbanceinyourcitylastsummerwasthehangingofsomeworkingpeoplebyotherworkingpeople。Itshouldneverbeso。Thestrongestbondofhumansympathyoutsideofthefamilyrelation,shouldbeoneunitingallworkingpeople,ofallnations,andtongues,andkindreds。
Norshouldthisleadtoawaruponproperty,ortheownersofproperty。Propertyisthefruitoflabor;propertyisdesirable;isapositivegoodintheworld。Thatsomeshouldberichshowsthatothersmaybecomerich,andhenceisjustencouragementtoindustryandenterprise。Letnothimwhoishouselesspulldownthehouseofanother,butlethimworkdiligentlyandbuildoneforhimself,thusbyexampleassumingthathisownshallbesafefromviolencewhenbuilt。“[8]
Lincolnwasnevermoreanxiousthaninthisfatefulspringwhensomanyissueswerehanginginthebalance。Nevertheless,inallhisrelationswiththeworld,hisfirmserenitywasnotbroken。Thoughsubjecttodepressionsodeepthathisassociatescouldnotpenetrateit,hekeptitsternlytohimself。[9]Heshowedtheworldalighter,moregracefulaspectthaneverbefore。’ApreciousrecordofhislatermoodistheaccountofhimsetdownbyFrankB。Carpenter,theportraitpainter,amanofnoteinhisday,whowasaninmateoftheWhiteHouseduringthefirsthalfof1864。Carpenterwaspaintingapictureofthe“SigningoftheEmancipationProclamation。“HesawLincolninformallyatallsortsofoddtimes,underallsortsofconditions。“Allfamiliarwithhim,“
saysCarpenter,“willrememberthewearyairwhichbecamehabitualduringhislastyears。Thiswasmoreofthemindthanofthebody,andnorestandrecreationwhichheallowedhimselfcouldrelieveit。Ashesometimesexpressedit,’noremedyseemedevertoreachthetiredspot。“[10]
Agreatshadowwasdarkeningoverhim。Hewasmorethaneverconvincedthathehadnotlongtolive。Nonetheless,hispoisebecamemoreconspicuous,hiscommandoverhimselfandothersmoredistinguished,asthemonthsracedpast。Intruthhehadworkedthroughaslowbutprofoundtransformation。TheLincolnof1864wassofarremovedfromtheLincolnofPigeonCreek-butlogically,naturallyremoved,throughtheabsorptionoftheoutermanbytheinner——thatinevitablyonethinksofShakespeare’schange“intosomethingrichandstrange。“
Alongwiththeweakness,thecontradictionsofhisearlierself,therehadalsofallenawayfromhimthemeregrossnessthathadbelongedtohimasapeasant。Carpenterisunconditionalthatinsixmonthsofcloseintimacy,seeinghimincompanywithallsortsofpeople,heneverheardfromLincolnanoffensivestory。HequotesSewardandLincoln’sfamilyphysiciantothesameeffect。[11]
Thepainter,likemanyothers,wasimpressedbythetragiccastofhisexpression,despitethesurfacemirth。
“Hiscomplexion,atthistime,wasinclinedtosallownesshiseyeswerebluishgrayincolor——alwaysindeepshadow,however,fromtheupperlidswhichwereunusuallyheavyremindingmeinthisrespectofStuart’sportraitofWashingtonandtheexpressionwasremarkablypensiveandtender,ofteninexpressiblysad,asifthereservoiroftearslayverynearthesurface——afactprovednotonlybytheresponsewhichaccountsofsufferingandsorrowinvariablydrewforth,butbycircumstanceswhichwouldordinarilyaffectfewmeninhisposition。“[12]Asaresultofthegreatstraintowhichhewassubjected“hisdemeanoranddispositionchanged-sograduallythatitwouldbeimpossibletosaywhenthechangebegan……Hecontinuedalwaysthesamekindly,genial,andcordialspirithehadbeenatfirst;buttheboisterouslaughterbecamelessfrequent,yearbyyear;theeyegrewveiledbyconstantmeditationonmomentoussubjects;theairofreserveanddetachmentfromhissurroundingsincreased。Heagedwithgreatrapidity。“[13]