New York January 22,
1861.
My dear Sir.
At the risk of being deemed somewhat troublesome, yet with
the greatest respect and deference, I take the liberty of addressing you once
more on the subject of your cabinet appointments.
I believe you do not differ with me in regard to the
importance of giving Mr. Chase a place in the Cabinet, as one whose wisdom,
rigid integrity and force of character would make him a most safe counsellor
and efficient coadjutor of the Chief Magistrate, not to speak of the need of
his presence as a counter poise to another member, who, to commanding talents,
joins a flexible and in[d]ulgent temper, and unsafe associations. The
appointment of Mr. Chase would give a feeling of security and confidence to the
public mind which the rascalities of Mr. Buchanan's cabinet have made
exceedingly sensitive and jealous, and would, it seems to me, settle the point
in advance that the new administration will be both honored and beloved. For
some time to come the federal government must depend largely upon its credit
for its resources, and how potent is the effect of placing an honest and
economical man at the head of the Treasury Department, is shown by an example
now before our eyes. General Dix, with all his mistakes, is a man of
unquestioned integrity, and his appointment as Secretary of the Treasury has
already greatly raised the credit of the government brought so low by the
misconduct of Cobb.
Now, according to what I learn from Mr. Opdyke, who has just
returned from Ohio, it is nearly certain that Mr. Chase would not take a place
in the Cabinet, unless it were offered him early. He is not inclined to do it
at all, preferring a seat in the Senate, but this preference he would forego;
yet there are, I am told, some personal reasons, as well as others connected
with the choice of his successor in the Senate, that will, if the offer be
delayed, induce him to remain where he is. I am not a judge of the force of
these reasons; it is enough that they exist.
The only motive for delay is the hope of pacifying Mr.
Cameron and his friends. It is thought here, by some who know him to be very
tenacious of his purposes, that there is no probablility of doing this
effectually, whether the offer to Mr. Chase be postponed or not. If, however,
it be possible to satisfy him, it is to be considered, whether it will not be
as easily done after Mr. Chase shall have been fixed upon as now, and whether
the hope of obtaining better terms may not lead Mr Cameron to affect to spurn
any reconciliation, as long as the appointment which he expected is kept open.
One thing, however, is perfectly clear, that by failing to secure the services
of Mr. Chase in the Treasury Department, both the country and the Republican
party will lose infinitely more than the incoming administration can possibly
suffer from the enmity of Mr. Cameron and his adherents.
I leave this subject here, that I may say a single word on
another. From Mr Opdyke, I learn, that in a letter written to you some weeks
since, on the subject of “protection,” I did not make myself fully understood.
It seemed to me that I had clearly expressed my meaning when I said, that those
who thought with me were “willing that this should be an open question.” I
wished merely to express a hope that the administration would not throw its
entire influence on the side of protection. The Republican party not being
agreed among themselves on this point, the cabinet policy as it seemed to me,
should be so moderated, not to disaffect the friends of free trade.
I am, dear Sir,
truly yours
W. C. Bryant.
Hon. A. Lincoln.
_______________
[An earlier draft of this letter can be found in Parke
Godwin’s, A Biography of William Cullen Bryant, Volume 1, p. 150-2
included below:]
New York, January 21, 1861: At some risk of being deemed
troublesome, yet with the greatest respect and deference, I take the liberty of
addressing you once more on the subject of the Cabinet appointments. I believe
you do not differ with me in regard to the importance of giving Mr. Chase a
place in the Cabinet, as one whose wisdom, rigid integrity, and force of
character would make him a most safe counsellor and efficient co-operator, not
to speak of the need of his presence there as a counterpoise to the one who
joins to commanding talents a flexible and indulgent temper of mind and unsafe
associations.
The appointment of Mr. Chase would give a feeling of
security and confidence to the public mind which the rascalities of Mr.
Buchanan's Cabinet have made exceedingly sensitive and jealous, and would, it
seems to me, settle the point in advance that the new administration will be both
honored and beloved. The Government will be compelled, for the next four years,
to depend somewhat for resources upon its credit, and how important it is to
have an honest and economical man at the head of the Treasury Department is
shown by an example now before our eyes. The appointment of General Dix as
Secretary of the Treasury, who, with all his mistakes, is a man of
incorruptible honesty, had already greatly raised the credit of the Government,
brought so low by the misconduct of Cobb.
Setting out with this position, I proceed to remark that,
from what I learn through Mr. Opdyke, who has just seen Mr. Chase, it is not
certain that Mr. Chase would take a place in the Cabinet unless it were offered
to him early. He is not inclined to do it at all, preferring a seat in the
Senate; and there are, I am told, some personal reasons, and others, connected
with the choice of his successor in the Senate, that will, if the offer were
delayed, induce him to remain where he is. I am not a judge of the force of
these reasons, but am only certain that they exist. The only occasion for
delaying is the hope of satisfying Mr. Cameron and his friends. It is thought
by some who know him to be very tenacious of his purposes, that there is no
probability of doing this effectually, whether the appointment of Mr. Chase be
delayed or not. If, however, it be possible to satisfy him, it is to be
considered whether it will not be as easy to do it after the offer be made to
Mr. Chase as now, and whether the hope of obtaining better terms for him will
not induce Mr. Cameron to affect to spurn any reconciliation as long as the
appointment which he expects is kept open. One thing, however, is perfectly
clear — that, by losing the chance of securing the services of Mr. Chase in the
Treasury department, both the country and the Republican party will lose
infinitely more than the administration could possibly suffer from the enmity
of Mr. Cameron and his adherents.
I leave this subject here, that I may say a single word upon
another. I learn from Mr. Opdyke that, in a letter written to you some time
since on the subject of “protection,” I did not make myself fully understood. I
thought I had clearly expressed my meaning when I said that those who thought
with me were “willing that this should be an open question.” I wished merely to
express a hope that the administration would not throw its entire influence on
the side of protection. The Republican party, not being agreed among themselves
in regard to this matter, the [cabinet] policy, it seems to me, should be
extremely moderate, and not calculated to disaffect either side.
SOURCES: Abraham Lincoln Papers
in the Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.; Parke Godwin, A
Biography of William Cullen Bryant, Volume 1, p. 150-2
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