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John G. Nicolay, The Outbreak of Rebellion, Chapter 2: Charleston Harbor. (search)
tional administration. Three members of President Buchanan's cabinet-Cobb of Georgia, Secretary of purpose or thought appears to attach to President Buchanan; but his condition of mind predisposed ht that reinforcements be sent to Charleston. Buchanan becoming also a trifle anxious over the situat of Cass. Seizing adroitly upon a phrase of Buchanan's message, which affirmed the duty of the Preble visions of revolutionary violence, that Mr. Buchanan was both frightened and soothed into a relu Stanton appointed Attorney-General. If Mr. Buchanan flattered himself that his concession to Flshrewdly calculated on their influence over Mr. Buchanan. For two days he hesitated, leaning evidenl was finally broken on December 31st, when Mr. Buchanan accepted Floyd's resignation, which the lat wrote, cannot possibly do more for us than Mr. Buchanan has done. When therefore, most unexpectedlassumption that negotiations were pending. Mr. Buchanan, always indisposed to act, always welcoming[11 more...]
John G. Nicolay, The Outbreak of Rebellion, Chapter 3: the Confederate States' rebellion. (search)
nt, the leader of the conspiracy was entrusted with the supervision and management of the plot. The caucus programme was executed with but slight deviation. The States seceded, appointed delegates to Montgomery, and the conspirators withdrew from Congress at the last moment to assume the more active control of the rebellion in their respective States. As events progressed it became evident to the leaders that it was important to complete their new government before the expiration of Mr. Buchanan's term. They understood perfectly his temper and purpose. Though he denied them the treasonable complicity they had hoped and asked, and discontinued the important concessions with which he began, he still stood committed to non-coercion. What his successor might decide was uncertain. Repeated efforts had been made to draw from Lincoln some expression of his intention --some forecast of his policy, but they had been uniformly unsuccessful. Accordingly the secession delegates met i
John G. Nicolay, The Outbreak of Rebellion, Chapter 4: Lincoln. (search)
tes, and to their posterity in all coming time. It is your business to rise up and preserve Union and liberty for yourselves, and not for me. For one thing Mr. Buchanan and his Cabinet should be remembered with gratitude. All winter long there had been fears and rumors that the conspirators were maturing a plot to seize the custify apprehension on this score, but an investigation held by a Committee of Congress, disclosed no traceable combination. Under such apprehension, however, Mr. Buchanan authorized General Scott to assemble sufficient troops at Washington to insure both a peaceable count of the electoral votes on February 13th, and the peaceabls Sumter. To crown all, news came that the commander of the fleet at Pensacola had refused to allow the reinforcement of Fort Pickens from the ships, because of Buchanan's January truce, and of the technical objection that General Scott's order had not come through the regular channels of the Navy Department. Amid these growi
John G. Nicolay, The Outbreak of Rebellion, Chapter 5: Sumter. (search)
March sent by the rebel government to Charleston to assume direction of military affairs and to complete the preparations for its capture. The Governor had been exceedingly anxious that the capture should be attempted before the expiration of Mr. Buchanan's presidential termthat is, between the 12th of February and the 4th of March. Mr. Buchanan cannot resist, wrote the Governor to Jefferson Davis, because he has not the power. Mr. Lincoln may not attack, because the cause of quarrel will haveMr. Buchanan cannot resist, wrote the Governor to Jefferson Davis, because he has not the power. Mr. Lincoln may not attack, because the cause of quarrel will have been, or may be considered by him, as past. But the rebel President doubtless thought it unwise to risk offending and alienating his party friends at the North by placing the responsibility of such an affront and loss upon their administration. Even when General-Beauregard came, the Governor was admonished that no attack must be attempted without mature preparation, as a failure would seriously demoralize and perhaps prematurely wreck the rebellion. Beauregard found, as he reports, that S
John G. Nicolay, The Outbreak of Rebellion, Chapter 6: the call to arms. (search)
uthern complaints as insufferable grievances, and predicted the coming revolution as a terror to obstinate voters. President Buchanan even went so far in his annual message as to assert that a neglect of Northern States to repeal their personal libedeclared that the North would not entertainnay, would not permit, a policy of subjugation. ExPresi-dent Franklin Pierce-Buchanan's predecessor-had given Jefferson Davis very broad confidential assurances on this head. Without discussing the questioe an elaborate argument in the Senate to show that the President possessed no right of coercion; repeating the theory of Buchanan's message, that the army and navy and the militia of the States could not move except behind a marshal with his writ, anthe whole North was called or came voluntarily to prompt espousal of the Union cause by public letter or speech. Ex-President Buchanan, ex-President Pierce, Edward Everett, General Cass, Archbishop Hughes, Mayor Fernando Wood, John A. Dix, Wendell
John G. Nicolay, The Outbreak of Rebellion, Chapter 7: Baltimore. (search)
nd that the ten miles square of Federal territory known as the District of Columbia, in which the capital of the country, Washington, is situated, lies between Virginia and Maryland, and was formed out of the original territory of those States. In all wars, foreign or domestic, the safety of the capital, its buildings, archives, and officers, is, of course, a constant and a paramount necessity. To guard the City of Washington against a rumored plot of seizure by the conspirators, President Buchanan had in January permitted Secretary Holt and General Scott to concentrate a small number of regular troops in it. Some of these had ever since remained there. As soon as President Lincoln decided to send provisions to Sumter, he had, in anticipation of coming dangers, ordered General Scott to take additional measures for the security of the capital, and to that end authorized him to muster into the service of the United States about fifteen companies of District militia. When Sumter f
John G. Nicolay, The Outbreak of Rebellion, Index. (search)
Border Slave States, 80 Breckinridge, John C., Southern electoral votes cast for, 4, 8 Breckinridge party, character of, 8 Brown, John, 158 Brown, Governor, of Georgia, 12 Brown, Mayor, of Baltimore, 86, 89 et seq. Buchanan, James, President, character of, 17 et seq., Southern sympathy of, 18; his message to Congress, 19, 23 et seq.; interview with the South Carolina Commissioners, 28, 30, 31; correspondence with the Washington Cabal, 37; justifies the revolution of the Soutenant, 38 Small's Pennsylvania Brigade, 88 Smith, General G. W., 211 Smith, General, Kirby, 194 South Carolina, attitude of, with regard to secession, 1; secession of, 5, 14 South Carolina Commissioners have an interview with President Buchanan, 30; their blindness to their opportunity, 31 Southern States, their differences of territory, etc., 10 et seq. Stone Bridge, the, over Bull Run, 176 and note Stone, General, 163 Strasburg, Va., 163 Sudley Ford, Bull Run, 182
Varina Davis, Jefferson Davis: Ex-President of the Confederate States of America, A Memoir by his Wife, Volume 1, Chapter 20: visit of Calhoun, 1845. (search)
e made on me then was never effaced, and years after ripened into a sincere friendship that was never interrupted. Mr. Buchanan, who was then Secretary of State, came to the hotel one evening, and made a strong impression on me. He was very talla wreath of ivy, but had not uttered the wish. The master of the house — an aspirant for office, and not over fond of Mr. Buchanan-seeing her admiration of it said, I wish I were tall enough to reach that dove, Miss B , you always put me in mind of one. and I would give it to you. Mr. Buchanan reached up several times to get it, and the host remarked, Take care. even you may reach too far. Mr. Buchanan turned a searching look upon him, and, making another effort, secured the toy and remarkMr. Buchanan turned a searching look upon him, and, making another effort, secured the toy and remarked, Fearless minds climb soonest unto crowns, you know. He had a reticent temper, but masked it under a diplomatic frankness of speech that was very engaging. Montgomery Blair, then a slender young widower, used to come very often to see Judge W
Varina Davis, Jefferson Davis: Ex-President of the Confederate States of America, A Memoir by his Wife, Volume 1, Chapter 30: Anti-slavery agitation. (search)
Chapter 30: Anti-slavery agitation. Mr. Randolph thought and expressed the opinion to Mr. Buchanan, that the Anti-slavery agitation in the North was the only thing that had prevented the passage of a law in the Southern States for gradual emancipation. When the agitation was fairly inaugurated the legitimate uses of the Post-office Department were perverted from their end by packing the mails full of incendiary documents urging our slaves to servile insurrections. General Jackson, on December 2, 1835, recommended that a penalty should be attached to the dissemination of these documents. A bill to restrict the circulation of incendiary matter was introduced and defeated, June 8th, by 19 to 25 votes. Not a single New England senator voted for General Jackson's measure. From the State legislatures, the press, the county meetings, the pulpit, the different societies, no matter what their object, the lecturers, and above all the abolitionists, came this downpour of petitio
Varina Davis, Jefferson Davis: Ex-President of the Confederate States of America, A Memoir by his Wife, Volume 1, Chapter 31: thirty-first Congress, 1849-50. (search)
h. Mr. Clay, addressing me in the friendly manner which he had always employed since I was a schoolboy in Lexington, asked me what I thought of the speech. I liked it better than he did. He then suggested that I should join the Compromise men, saying that it was a measure that would probably give peace to the country for thirty years--the period that had elapsed since the adoption of the Compromise of 1820. Then, turning to Mr. Berrien, he said: You and I will be under ground before that time, but our young friend here may have trouble to meet. I, somewhat impatiently, declared my unwillingness to transfer to posterity a trial which they would be relatively less able to meet than we were, and passed on my way. President Buchanan made a plea of a somewhat similar kind when he said: I hope, gentlemen, you will postpone any overt action until my term of office has ended. As the faculties decay, the aged deprecate a strife with which they feel they have not the force to contend.
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