MONDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 1980
MEDFORD MAIL TRIBUNE. MEDFORD, ORE.
A.
a
Secession Move Gains Speed
By MERTON T. AKERS
UPI Correspondent
From where President-elect
Lincoln tat in the governor't
room of the Illinois State Cap
itol, the national picture was
beginning to show signs of
grimnesa thii late November
of 1860.
Portents were crowding in.
They came by mail. They
came with every visitor in the
stream that wore down the
bright Brussels rug in the
room the governor had lent to
Lincoln for an office. Every'
body, it seemed, knew what
was the matter with the coun
try. And none rested until he
had told Lincoln.
The nation appeared to be
crumbling at the age of 84-
mere infancy as history reck
ons time for a great country
nd everybody knew what to
do about it, everybody, that is,
except the spare and some
times mystic man who had
to do something about it.
No Swell of War Spirit
No flippancy now from this
untried Chief Executive-to-be.
In an earlier day his fledg
ling hand, which eventually
would write great English
prose, had traced in a school
boy copybook, entirely inno
cent of punctuation,
"Abraham Lincoln , ,
his hand and pen
he will be good but
God knows when."
Now could be the test, But
Lincoln was not sure.
Threats of secession were
common enough. Nothing ever
had come of them. Northern
leaders, feeding information
to Lincoln, were saying that
even If a few states did leave
the Union, they would soon
be knocking at the door and
asking to come back in like
small boys who had run away
from home in a pet.
Lincoln, who read public
opinion as easily as a teen
ager reads comic books, de
tected no swell of war spirit
in the North. Of course the
abolitionists were talking
tough but they never had
counted for much. The only
people who wanted to fight it
appeared, were down South
and that brand of fire eating
was pretty well discounted
All in all, It was hard to add
up all this into a crisis.
But riffling through his
mail and talklns to Deoole
Lincoln could read and hear
darker news. The grim lines
were beginning to show
through. -Five
States Act
Less than a month had pass
ed since he had won the presi
dency, but he could count
these clouds on the hlrizon.
some no bigger than a man's
hand, but clouds, nevertheless:
South Carolina-She would
vote Dec. 6 for delegates to a
convention to consider seces
sion. No one doubted the out
come.
Mississippi - Gov. John J.
Pettus called the legislature
to meet Nov. 26, saying that
the state must provide better
safeguards for life and liber-
ty than could be expected
from "Black" Republicans.
The legislature promptly call
ed an election to select dele
gates for a secession conven
tion on Dec. 20.
Alabama-Set Dec. N 24 to
vote on delegates to a dis
union convention Jan. 7.
Georgia-Set Jan. 2 for elec
tion of delegates to a conven
tion which was to convene
two weeks later.
Florida - Before November
ended the Florida legislature
had called a convention to
vote on secession.
The wheels of secession
were turning in five states.
The evidence was there for
anyone to read. Lawyer Lin
coln read it and quietly be
gan making up his mind how
to meet the problem.
Attiiudt Summarised
His private secretary, John
G. Nicolay, summed up his
chief's current attitude on se
cession' like this:'
1. The existence of a na
tional government Implies the
power and duty to maintain
itself.
2. Right of secession is not
debatable.
3. The President must ex
ecute the laws and maintain
government. The government
cannot entertain views of dis
solution.
4. If the people tire of the
present government, they
may change it in the manner
prescribed by the Constitu
tion.
Other Indicators flew in
the wind. Before Lincoln was
a copy of a document written
earlier by Lt. Gen. Winfield
Scott, commander of the
Army, and sent to President
Buchanan. It was a two-part
plan to meet any disunion
crisis,
Scott's political plans were
fantastic.
Military Plan Sound
But the military part was
sound. The old general point
ed out that there were nine
Federal forts in the southern
states, six unmanned and
three with skeleton forces.
Let them all be manned
against surprise attacks, the
general advised.
President Buchanan Ignored
all this.
Formally, Lincoln only ac
knowledged receipt of the
plan. Privately, he told Rep.
Elihu Washburne of Illinois
to relay word to the general
that after inauguration, - "I
wish him to be prepared . . .
to make arrangements at once
to hold the forts, or, if they
have been taken, to take them
back."
' Lincoln's policy was taking
shape.
Mail was pouring into Lin
coln's office by. the bushel.
Half or more came from Job
seekers. Salted through the
rest -were warnings. One was
typical. It came from a Gener
al Hubbard and had been writ
ten from Marion, Ala., to Wil
liam H. Seward, New York
senator, who apparently had
forwarded it to Springfield.
It read in part:
"I find myself in the m idst
of rebellion and revolution.
The Cotton States are all on
fire-enlisting minute men. I
am told . . . that Mr. Buch
anan had pledged himself
that if any southern states
wish to secede he will not
oppose but would aid them
They sweare that Mr. Lincoln
shall never be Enaugurated -
as sure as He comes to Wash
ington he will be shot. . . .
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SIGNS OF GRIMNESS To President-elect
Abraham Lincoln the national picture was
showing signs of grimness in late November
of 1860. Everyone seemed to know what was
the matter with the country and none rested
until he told Lincoln either in person or by
mail. Lincoln detected no swell of war spirit
In the north, but he could count the dark
clouds on the southern horizon. Lincoln,
shown here with his son, Tad, on the porch
of his home, stayed at Springfield after the
election and kept a close eye on the public
opinion.
(UPI Telephoto)
Please write to me by an
early mail but do put on a
postage stamp for if I were to
re(receivc) a letter Franked
by W. H. Seward I should be
hung before night . . ."
(Spelling, punctuation and
capitalization by General
Hubbard).
Another from Richmond by
Quotes From the News
BY UNITED PRESS INTERNATIONAL
Washington House Speaker Sam Rayburn. in a telegram
to President-elect Kennedy and his wife congratulating them
on the birth of John F. Kennedy Jr.:
I trust he will grow like his father and look like his
mother."
London A Buckingham Palace source, offering one rea
son .why the royal family is opposed to letting Princess
Margaret's commoner husband Antony Armstrong-Jones work
in a competitive field such as photography:
Me d have put the other society photoqraphers out of
business . . . the royal family naturally would not permit
its glamour and prestige to be used in this way."
Washington A U.S. Department of Justice official, ex
plaining why slot machines continue to plague enforcement
officials:
"There's so much easy money involved."
Havana Premier Fidel Castro, referring to U. S. Presi
dent-elect Kennedy in a nationwide TV broadcast:
Let s see if we can educate Kennedy politically with our
literacy campaign perhaps it can contribute to opening
Kennedy's understanding."
Henry Wise, Jr., son of a for
mer Virginia governor, to
some one In West Philadel
phia named Quicksall read:
". . . the secession move
ment will be consummated
soon under Buchanan - rec
ognized by him as legitimate
ly establishing the independ
ence of the seceding members
Thus the question cannot
arise under the Lincoln ad
ministration ... He cannot
find any just cause of war. . ."
Some Mail Light
But this letter drew a smile:
''My wife got on Election
Day a little Girl, and I mnrln
the proposition that if it is a
gin io give your wiles name,
and if it is a bov vnur nnmp
Abraham. Will you have the
Kindness and give me a line
on what your wifes name
is? "
It came from La Crosse,
Wis., and was signed by G. C.
Neumeistcr.
(Next Week A nervous
lame-duck Congress meets.)
EDITORIAL WRITER DIES
New York - (UPD - Herman
Appelman, 58, chief editorial
writer for the New York
Journal-American, died Sunday.
6l
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