But such
criticism is now less frequent than it used to be. Both men were
seeking the Presidency; both, we may fairly believe, were shocked
by the turmoil of political currents; each tried oiling the
waters, and in the attempt each ruined his candidacy. Seward's
speech in condemnation of John Brown in February, 1860, was an
appeal to the conservative North against the radical North, and
to many of his followers it seemed a change of front. It
certainly gained him no new friends and it lost him some old
ones, so that his star as a presidential candidate began its
decline.
The first ballot in the Republican convention surprised the
country. Of the votes, 233 were necessary for a choice. Seward
had only 173 1/2. Next to him, with 102 votes, stood none of the
leading candidates, but the comparatively obscure Lincoln. A gap
of more than 50 votes separated Lincoln from Cameron, Chase, and
Bates. On the second ballot Seward gained 11 votes, while
Lincoln gained 79. The enemies of Seward, finding it impossible
to combine on any of the conspicuous candidates, were moving
toward Lincoln, the man with fewest enemies. The third ballot
gave Lincoln the nomination.
We have seen that one of the basal questions of the time was
which new political group should absorb the Whig remainder.
Pages:
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90