The Portland daily press., 1888-02-08

his Cabinet as William H. Seward and Sal
mon P, Chase. that lowered above all others
and dominated them all, you VIII get little
idea Of the meaning Of the fact that ADra-
ham Lincoln was President, and not MS CAD,
met. / will call 10 your minds historical
fact almost In the very first days OF tne OF
ganiZatiOn OF his administration. The ques-
tl0n was presented TO his Cabinet whether
Fort Sumter should be surrendered or not,
and the Cabinet voted yes" but Abraham
Lincoln voted mo-" and II wasn't done.
lApplausel. / state that fact because It has
nOt.been stated historically. But i know,
cannot say how many, but great many, other
instances, where the whole direction Of the
government was controlled and directed by
Abraham Lincoln, with his Cabinet not 40
harmony with him. The result proved that
Abraham Lincoln was right, and that the
Cabinet was wrong.
Mr. Lincoln was a humorist. Everybody
knows it. He told stories that had points
all over, and they were so clear and so plain
that anyone who listened 10 them could not
fail to see the points IL was remarkable.
and think that, with the terrible responsi-
bility resting upon him, his humor saved his
life. No man could have endured so much
without some recreation, and he employed
that humor to relieve himself, as 1t was. to
him what safety valve Is TO an engine.
That waslthe great good that II produced 70
him. He was brave, morally and physically.
and as gentle as woman. Oh! how many
mothers In this land have reason TO bless his
memory that he relieved some poor boy In
blue who had transgressed the simple rule
of military discipline without any real crime.
How many mothers will bless his memory
that he relieved them from the penalties and
the terrors Of the law.
The most severe dependency In President
Lincoln of which / had any knowledge was
at our first victory at Bull Run. l say first
victory for ii was a victory. We were forced
to retire. but II Johnson had failed 10 come
uD in time, and had been kept back by Pat
terson as he should have been. we would
havehad an Overwhelming victory at Bull
Run. Wen. we did get the victory, although
we retreated. How a victory? Because IL
opened the eyes Of the American people to
the condition in which the county was, and
the benefits Of that victory almost Delleue
was our salvation. Like the treaehery OF
Andrew johnson, who undertook TO pros
titute the Republican party to his own ends,
and whose unmitigated rascality en-
abed us TO pass the reconstruction acts, ana
without which believe we never would have
done tit showed usIwhat our duties demand
ed Of us, and we discharged those duties.
What sublime pictured Abraham Lincoln,
George Washington, side by side, on the
same sunny page OF human history, VIII 90
away down the corridors Of time into the
quiet and the stiffness Of uncounted ages.
lGreat applause.
want TO say that the emancipation pro-
clamation was the act Of Abraham Lincoln
and not the act OF his cabinet. 1t was the
act of Abraham Lincoln, and Of nobody else.
Mr.. Lincoln, we thought, sometimes was
slow. He was great deal slower than /,
| but he was nearer right, as 1t in the end
proved. | was urging him In season and out
| of season to issue that proclamation, but the
| time had not come. / happened TO be In
Washington just before 1t became known
that the proclamation was to be issued, and
called upon the President, and he asked me
when was going home? l said "this eve.
ming" "NO" YES" mo" was his reply
again. every WELL" said |, ''if you have any
commands upon me I shall not go. II you
haven't, / shall" ''Well," said he, II CON-
mand you You will 60 with me to the Sol
dier's Home this evening. There Is some-
thing that | want TO show you, Mr.. Hamlin. "
met him at his chambers at the White
House and we repaired to the Soldiers
Home. After tea we went to his study, and
he said that had been urging him at all
times to Issue an emancipation proclamation,
| and said he, II think the dme has about
come, Mr.. Hamlin, and as you have said a
| good deal about it l am going to show It TO
| you as the first man who has ever read II.
| No member Of my cabinet has seen 1t" So
| / use the language that it was Abraham Lin
coins proclamation, and not the pr0clama-
| tiOn OF his cabinet.