Evening star., 1951-06-24
The Lincoln Cabinet
Impending Civil Strife Influenced
Selection of Able and Brilliant Group
By John CIoaett Proctor

3ett FfoCtor
Lincoln's Secretary Of War, wM
BORN In Maytown. Lancastei
County, Pa, March 8. 1899. HI
vas one Of the many printers wha
eft the case to become editors
and political leaders. He succeed.
ID James Buchanan In the Sen.
ate, at the time that gentleman re
signed in 1845 to become Secretar,
,f State In the cabinet Of Jamel
&. Polk. And when Lincoln as.
sumed office Mr.. Cameron resigned
his seat In the Senate to cast hii
lot with the first Republican ad.
ministration.
While Simon Cameron wa,
serving as Secretary of War hi
resided at the northeast corner OF
I and Fifteenth streets, the sih
later occupied by the Hotel Nor.
His administrative post was evi.
IDENTIFY not to his liking, for h,
resigned it the same year h,
was appointed and again en-.
gagged in politics, was later re.
turned to the Senate, where hi
remained until March IL, 1877
when he resigned and his son
James Donald Cameron-Secre.
tary Of War In Grants second
administration was elected II
succeed him. Don" Cameron, a,
he was generally called, resided
In the old Tayloe house, No. 2.
Madison place. which was built b,
Benjamin Ogle Tayloe in 1929
Here resided Presidents JohI
Quincy Adams. Jackson. William
Henry Harrison, Taylor. Fillmor,
and Buchanan, and here visited
Lords Napier. Ashburton, Lyon
and Radstock, who were . few d
Mr.. Tayloe's most intimate friends
Later 1t was the home Of Vica
President Hobart, and during the
Mckinley administration, whel
occupied by Senator Hanna. u
was called the Little Whit
House." Secretary Cameron die(
near Maytown. Lancaster County
Pa. June 26, 1889: interment wal
In Harrisburg Cemetery, Pa.
Armchair Officers
Edwin M. Stanton felt thai
the Army should be in thu
field fighting and the ON.
GERS not on dress parade. Upol
one occasion. it is related. whes
visited at the War Department
by a general officer, he greeted
him thus brusquely: Come, sir;
what are you doing in Washing.
ton? If you are not needed al
the front III see about musterinl
you out"
During the Civil War there were
two Secretaries Of the Interior
Cabel B. Smith and John P. Up.
shur. Secretary Smith was one Of
the 96 men of that familiar nams
who had served in the American
Congress sometime between the
years 1774 and 1927. He was born
in Boston, Mass, April 16, 1903
and served in the House Of Repre-.
sentatives from Indiana from 1843
to 1849. Like other members OF
Lincoln's cabinet, he was q mem
Der Of the famous Peace Commis.
sion which met in 1851 in the old
Willard Hall Building, which stood
on r street about at the western
end of the Willard Hotel. in an
effort to devise means to prevent
the impending war.
Gideon Welles. while serving al
Secretary of the Navy, from 1851
to 1869. in Lincoln's and john
sons cabinets. lived in the resi-.
dence erected by Commodore
Richard Stockton at 1907 H street,
then facing the White House. but
no longer standing. John Slidell,
who left the United States Senate
and cast his fortunes with the
Confederacy, resided there from
1853 to 1861.
Secretary of the Treasury Chose
Salmon p. Chase, one Of the
outstanding members of Lincoln's
official family, and as Secretary Of
the Treasury from March 6. 1861,
to July l. 1864, the financier Of
the Civil War, was born In Cornish,
N. H., January 13, 1908.
The Capital City was not new
to him when he entered the cabi-
net. for it was here that he studied
law and was admitted to the bal
In 1929, but left Washington soor
afterward for Cincinnati. Ohio
where he engaged in the practic,
lof law and drifted into politics.
Lincoln had two Attorney Gen
erals. Edward Bates and jaime
Speed. The former, like so man
Iof our great men. was a native o
Virginia.