The dawn of the 4th of March was pleasant, and the day was a bright one. Washington City was crowded by more than twenty-five thousand strangers, a large portion of them the political friends of the President elect. The streets around Willard's Hotel were densely packed, at an early hour, with eager watchers for the appearance of Mr. Lincoln. The forenoon wore away, and he was yet invisible to the public eye. He was waiting for Mr. Buchanan, who was engaged almost up to twelve o'clock, the appointed hour for the inaugural ceremonies, in signing bills at his room in the Capitol. Then he was conveyed rapidly to the White House, where he entered a barouche, waited upon by servants in livery, and hastened to Willard's. The President elect, with the late Senators Pearce and Baker, there entered
Scene of the inauguration. |