To his less-known associate
Stanton showed a brutal rudeness that was characteristic. It
would have been hard in 1861 to find another man more difficult
to get on with. Headstrong, irascible, rude, he had a sharp
tongue which he delighted in using; but he was known to be
inflexibly honest, and was supposed to have great executive
ability. He was also a friend of McClellan, and if anybody could
rouse that tortoise-like general, Stanton might be supposed to be
the man. He had been a valiant Democrat, and Democratic support
was needed by the government. Lincoln astonished him with his
appointment as Secretary of War in January, 1862. Stanton
justified the President's choice, and under his strong if
ruthless hand the War Department became sternly efficient. The
whole story of Stanton's relations to his chief is packed, like
the Arabian genius in the fisherman's vase, into one remark of
Lincoln's. "Did Stanton tell you I was a fool?" said Lincoln on
one occasion, in the odd, smiling way he had. "Then I expect I
must be one, for he is almost always right, and generally says
what he means."
In spite of his efficiency and personal force, Stanton was unable
to move his friend McClellan, with whom he soon quarreled. Each
now sought in his own way to control the President, though
neither understood Lincoln's character.
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