Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-02-01
ON ELECTION NIGHT.
SECRET HISTORY OF THE FORMA-
TON OF LINCOLN's CABINET,

The President-elect Reading the Elcctio,
Dispatches in the Telegraph ONCE a
Springfield, IIls.-How He Received tn.
Tidings of Victory.
There is distinguished authority for til.
settlement that the work of framing the new
cabinet was mainly performed on the even
ing of the presidential election. After the
polls were closed on Nov $50 Mr.. Lincolr
related a year or two later, the s,lperintend
ent Of the telegraph at Springfield invited
him to come and remain in his office and
read the dispatches as they should come in
He accepted the cffer: and, reporting himself
in due time at the telegraph office. from
which all other visitors were excluded at s
o'clock, awaited the result of the eventful
day.
Soon the kilograms came thick and fast,
first from the neighboring precincts and
counties; then from the great western cities,
Chicago, st. Louis, Cincinnati, and finally
from the capitals of the doubtful states, In
diana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and the empire
state of New York Here in this little room,
III the company of two or three silent opera
tors moving about their mysteriously click
ing Instruments, and recording with imper-
turbable gravity the swift throbbing mes
sages from near and far, Mr.. Lincoln read
the reports as they came in. first in vague
and fragmentary driblets, and later in the
rising and swelling stream of cheering news
There was never nicer or closer calculator
of political probabilities than himself. He
was emphatically at home among election
figures. All his political life he had scanned
tables of returns with as much care and ac-
curacy as he analyzed and scrutinized max
Inns OF government or platforms Of parties.
Now, as formerly, he was familiar with ali
the turning points in contested counties and
close" districts, and knew by heart the
value Of each and every local loss or gain and
its relation to the grand result. In past
years, at the close of many hot campaign
he had searched out the comforts of victory
from discouraging and adverse looking col.
umn of figures, or correctly read the fatal
omen of defeat in some fragmentary an-
nouncement from precinct or county.
TIDINGS OF VICTORY
Silently, as they were Transcribed the 3D.
orators handed. him the messages. which he
laid on his knee while he adjusted his epec-
tacles, and then read and re-read several
times with elaboration. He had not long to
wait for indications. From a scattering be-
ginning, made up of encouraging local frag-
lnents, the hopeful news rose to almost unin-
terrupted tidings of victory Soon a shower
Of congratulatory kilograms fell from the
wires, and while his partisans and friends
from all parts of the country were thus
shaking hands with him ''bv Hghtnings
over the result. he could hear the shouts aud
speeches of his Springfield followers, gath
cred in the great hall of the state house
across the street, and fairly making that
building shake with their rejoicinss.
Or course his first emotions were those Of
klnd4lng pleasure and pride at the sweep
ing completeness Of his success But this
was only momentary glow. He was in
Iced presidentelect; but with that conscious
ness there fell upon him the appalling shadow
u his mighty task and responsibility. 1t
seemed as if he suddenly bore the whole
world upon his shoulders, and could not
shake it off; and sitting there in the vet
ear!y watches Of the night, he read the still
,omlng kilograms In a sort OF absent minded
routine. while his Inner man.
ooS up the crushing burden of his colntrv's
roubles and traced cut the laborious path OF
'omlng duties. When | finally babe my
friends good night and left that room" said
lincoln, Il had substantially completed the
framework OF my cabinet as it now exists
Ii the grouping and combining OF the new
residents intended councillors occurred a,
his time, II Is no less true that some of them
we're selected at much earlier date. In the
meantime 40 one was informed of his in.er,. |
ions IN this regard For full month after
he election he gave no intina,ion whatever |
4 his purpose. Century