Author: Judge Walter B. Jones

Publisher:

Published: 2015-07-18

Total Pages: 22

ISBN-13: 9781331694939

Excerpt from Alabama Secedes From the Union: An Address If you had been in Montgomery on the fateful night of Tuesday, November 6, 1860, you would have seen the streets of the little city, for then it had only 12,000 people, thronged with citizens and visitors. They were of all sexes, classes and colors; men, women and children, professional men, tradesmen, mechanics and planters; whites and blacks, all serious and anxious. They jostled and crowded each other on the sidewalks. Market Street (now Dexter Avenue) was filled with horsemen and the fine equipages of the wealthy. The lobby of the Exchange Hotel was packed, and the adjoining sidewalks jammed with humanity. Men and women stood anxiously around the telegraph office, and hundreds were about the newspaper offices eagerly scanning each bulletin. Large groups gathered about Estelle Hall. The people generally so happy and carefree, wore looks of disquietude that night, and there was an unwonted seriousness brooding over the city. What was the cause of all the anxiety? Why were the multitudes so grave that night of November 6, 1860? Do you ask me? A presidential election had been held that day, and the people were waiting to know who was to be the future head of the nation. It was a most momentous election, for that day's decision would shake the very foundations of the government. The early hours of the evening had passed. The election returns were coming in slowly. It was now near midnight. The result of the election depended upon the vote of one State. New York had 35 electoral votes. Without her votes Abraham Lincoln and Hannibal Hamlin, whose political teachings and principles were hostile to the people of Alabama and of the South, could not be elected. Election of Republican Candidates And so, as midnight came on Tuesday, November 6, 1860, the people of Montgomery awaited with deep concern the result of the balloting. No one could safely predict how New York would cast her votes. But now the time is at hand. The ballots have all been counted, and on every tongue is the question, How did New York vote? New York's votes went to Abraham Lincoln. The standard bearer of the Republican Party, elected on a political platform deadly inimical to the civilization of the South, would soon be president of the United States; the affairs of the national government would soon be in the hands of the political foes of the South. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.