第93章 A WAR BEHIND THE SCENES(5)

"'This,'said he,looking towards me with a triumphal laugh,'cuts the Gordian knot.'An air of satisfaction spread over his countenance such as I had not seen for some time.'I can dispose of this subject now without difficulty,'he added,as he turned in his chair;'I see my way clear.'"[12]In Lincoln's distress during this episode,there was much besides his anxiety for the fate of a trusted minister.He felt he must not permit himself to be driven into the arms of the Vindictives by disgracing Seward.Seward had a following which Lincoln needed But to proclaim to the world his confidence in Seward without at the same time offsetting it by some display of confidence,equally significant in the enemies of Seward,this would have amounted to committing himself to Seward's following alone.And that would not do.Should either faction appear to dominate him,Lincoln felt that "the whole government must cave in.It could not stand,could not hold water;the bottom would be out."[13]

The incredible stroke of luck,the sheer good fortune that Chase was Chase and nobody else,--vain,devious,stagey and hypersensitive,--was salvation.Lincoln promptly rejected both resignations and called upon both Ministers to resume their portfolios.They did so.The incident was closed.Neither faction could say that Lincoln had favored the other.He had saved himself,or rather,Chase's character had saved him,by the margin of a hair.

For the moment,a rebuilding of the Vindictive Coalition was impossible.Nevertheless,the Jacobins,again balked of their prey,had it in their power,through the terrible Committee,to do immense mischief.The history of the war contains no other instance of party malice quite so fruitless and therefore so inexcusable as their next move.After severely interrogating Burnside,they published an exoneration of his motives and revealed the fact that Lincoln had forced him into command against his will.The implication was plain.

January came in.The Emancipation Proclamation was confirmed.

The jubilation of the Abolitionists became,almost at once,a propaganda for another issue upon slavery.New troubles were gathering close about the President The overwhelming benefit which had been anticipated from the new policy had not clearly arrived.Even army enlistments were not satisfactory.

Conscription loomed on the horizon as an eventual necessity.Abank of returning cloud was covering the political horizon,enshrouding the White House in another depth of gloom.

However,out of all this gathering darkness,one clear light solaced Lincoln's gaze.One of his chief purposes had been attained.In contrast to the doubtful and factional response to his policy at home,the response abroad was sweeping and unconditional.He had made himself the hero of the "Liberal party throughout the world."Among the few cheery words that reached him in January,1863,were New Year greetings of trust and sympathy sent by English working men,who,because of the blockade,were on the verge of starvation.It was in response to one of these letters from the working men of Manchester that Lincoln wrote:

"I have understood well that the duty of self-preservation rests solely with the American people;but I have at the same time been aware that the favor or disfavor of foreign nations might have a material influence in enlarging or prolonging the struggle with disloyal men in which the country is engaged.Afair examination of history has served to authorize a belief that the past actions and influences of the United States were generally regarded as having been beneficial toward mankind.Ihave therefore reckoned upon the forbearance of nations.

Circumstances--to some of which you kindly allude--induce me especially to expect that if justice and good faith should be practised by the United States they would encounter no hostile influence on the part of Great Britain.It is now a pleasant duty to acknowledge the demonstration you have given of your desire that a spirit of amity and peace toward this country may prevail in the councils of your Queen,who is respected and esteemed in your own country only more than she is,by the kindred nation which has its home on this side of the Atlantic.

"I know and deeply deplore the sufferings which the working men at Manchester,and in all Europe,are called on to endure in this crisis.It has been often and studiously represented that the attempt to overthrow this government which was built upon the foundation of human rights,and to substitute for it one which should rest exclusively on the basis of human slavery,was likely to obtain the favor of Europe.Through the action of our disloyal citizens,the working men of Europe have been subjected to severe trials for the purpose of forcing their sanction to that attempt.Under the circumstances,I can not but regard your decisive utterances upon the question as an instance of sublime Christian heroism which has not been surpassed in any age or in any country.It is indeed an energetic and reinspiring assurance of the inherent power of the truth,and of the ultimate and universal triumph of justice,humanity and freedom.I do not doubt that the sentiments you have expressed will be sustained by your great nation;and on the other hand,I have no hesitation in assuring you that they will excite admiration,esteem,and the most reciprocal feelings of friendship among the American people.Ihail this interchange of sentiment,therefore,as an augury that whatever else may happen,whatever misfortune may befall your country or my own,the peace and friendship which now exist between the two nations,will be,as it shall he my desire to make them,perpetual."[14]