Author: Edna M. Colman

Publisher: Library of Alexandria

Published: 2020-09-28

Total Pages: 560

ISBN-13: 1465519734

Late April and early May of 1865 brought none of the usual springtime joys to Washington, the Capital City; its residents, in common with the rest of the nation, were shaken with grief over the death of President Lincoln. Public buildings and private houses hid behind dismal swathings of crêpe, and the people were still subdued with the harrowing incidents that had their beginning on the terrible night of April 14th. Previous sectional opinions were set aside in the general regret over the loss of the gaunt, kindly man whom the troubled, disrupted country had learned to trust. The tragedy at Ford’s Theatre, with the simultaneous attack upon Secretary of State William Seward, was the hourly topic of conversation. Search for the conspirators had begun, and suspicion, fear, and suspense hung like a pall over the land. Peace and security were gone. None knew when or where the relentless arm of the law would pounce upon another suspect. Innocent and guilty alike went through the gruelling. Especially did the fear of Northern soldier vengeance lie heavily upon Southern hearts already bowed in the sorrow of defeat. Andrew Johnson, the Union Democrat, the “Tailor from Tennessee”—“The Knight of the Shears and Goose,” as Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton had so often dubbed President Lincoln’s running mate—had stepped into the presidential shoes and was handling the reins of government with dominant force and decision. Punishment radiated from every fibre of his being. As he turned from the bier of his slain chief, two paramount purposes were definite in his mind: to follow Lincoln’s policies, and to punish those guilty of his death. He could think of the tragedy in no other terms but those that spelled treason in its blackest form, especially as, upon every hand, because of the attack upon Seward, he found public sentiment committed to the belief that a general conspiracy had been formed in the South for the purpose of exterminating the entire Lincoln Cabinet, together with himself as Vice President, and also General Grant. From the hour he took the presidential oath and established his offices in the Treasury building, the demands for vengeance poured in upon him from every side. At the moment, the surrender of all of the Southern arms was incomplete, and a vast Northern army, two hundred thousand strong, chafing at restraint, was ready at a word to take the matter of avenging the death of “Father Abraham” into its own hands and thus renew the bloody conflict. Never had a man stepped into the Presidency under such difficult and soul-trying conditions, or been confronted with greater tasks, more exacting demands, or more serious responsibilities. Never had there been such urgent need for a calm, judicial, well-balanced mind, able to rise above partisan bias, poised to hold firmly to the ability to see both sides of each problem and to refrain from impetuous action. A nation torn asunder through an internal upheaval had to be brought together and welded into one again. Although Andrew Johnson had spent thirty years in public service, fighting for what he conceived to be right, his experience had not been of the type to furnish the subtle diplomacy or suave poise needed to handle successfully the great problems that now confronted him. It is doubtful if any man who participated in the political contests of that period, even the great, wise Lincoln, could have brought harmony out of the hysteria and chaos that prevailed in the nation on the morning of April 15, 1865. Following his induction into office and his inaugural address, Johnson called his first Cabinet meeting at twelve o’clock on April 15th, at which two important measures were decided. These were the arrangements for the funeral of Mr. Lincoln and the appointment of Mr. W. Hunter as temporary Secretary of State pending the recovery of Secretary Seward. At this time the new President requested the members of the Cabinet to retain their portfolios.