LateinJune，theCabinetdecideduponthepoliticalcourse，overruledthemilitaryadvisers，andgaveitsvoiceforanimmediateadvanceintoVirginia。Lincolnacceptedthisrashadvice。Scottyielded。GeneralIrwinMcDowellwasorderedtostrikeaConfederateforcethathadassembledatManassas。[8]OnthefourthofJuly，thedayCongressmet，thegovernmentmadeuseofacoupdetheatre。Itheldareviewofwhatwasthenconsidereda“grandarmy“oftwenty-fivethousandmen。Afewdayslater，thesensibilitiesoftheCongressmenwerefurtherexploited。Impressionablememberswere“deeplymoved，“whenthesamehostinmarchingorderpassedagainthroughthecityandwheeledsouthwardtowardVirginia。Confidentofvictory，theCongressmenspentthesedaysinhighdebateuponanythingthattooktheirfancy。When，afortnightlater，itwasknownthatabattlewasimminent，manyofthemtreatedtheOccasionasapicnic。Theytookhorses，orhiredvehicles，andawaytheywentsouthwardforajollyoutingonthedaytheConfederacywastocollapse。InthemindoftheunfortunateGeneralwhocommandedtheexpeditionadifferentmoodprevailed。Indepression，hesaidtoafriend，“Thisisnotanarmy。Itwilltakealongtimetomakeanarmy。Buthisdutyasasoldierforbadehimtoopposehissuperiors；“thepoorfellowcouldnotproclaimhisdistrustofhisarmyinpublic。“[9]
ThoughtfulobserversatWashingtonfeltdangerintheair，bothmilitaryandpolitical。
Sunday，Julytwenty-first，dawnedclear。Itwasthedayoftheexpectedbattle。AnotedEnglishman，settingoutforthefrontaswarcorrespondentoftheLondonTimes，observed“thecalmnessandsilenceofthestreetsofWashington，thisearlymorning。“AftercrossingthePotomac，hefeltthat“thepromiseofalovelydaygivenbytheearlydawnwaslikelytoberealizedtothefullest“；and“theplacidbeautyofthesceneryaswedrovethroughthewoodsbelowArlington“delightedhim。
Andthenaboutnineo’clockhisthoughtsabandonedthescenery。
ThroughthosebeautifulVirginiawoodscamethedistantroarofcannon。
AttheWhiteHousethatdaytherewaslittleifanyalarm。
Reportsreceivedatvarioustimeswereconstruedbymilitarymenasfavorable。These，withtherootedpreconceptionthatthearmyhadtobesuccessful，establishedconfidenceinavictorybeforenightfall。Lateintheafternoon，thePresidentrelievedhistensionbytakingadrive。Hehadnotreturnedwhen，aboutsixo’clock，Sewardappearedandaskedhoarselywherehewas。Thesecretariestoldhim。HebeggedthemtofindthePresidentasquicklyaspossible。“Tellnoone，“saidhe，“butthebattleislost。Thearmyisinfullretreat。“
ThenewsoftheroutatBullRundidnotspreadthroughWashingtonuntilclosetomidnight。Itcausedaninstantaneouspanic。Inthesmallhours，thespacebeforetheTreasurywas“amovingmassofhumanity。Everymanseemedtobeaskingeverymanhemetforthelatestnews，whileallsortsofrumorsfilledtheair。Afeelingofmingledhorroranddespairappearedtopossesseverybody……Oursoldierscamestragglingintothecitycoveredwithdustandmanyofthemwounded，whilethepanicthatledtothedisasterspreadlikeacontagionthroughallclasses。“ThePresidentdidnotsharethepanic。He“receivedthenewsquietlyandwithoutanyvisiblesignofperturbationorexcitement“’[10]NowappearedinhimthequalitywhichledHerndontocallhimafatalist。Allnightlonghesatunruffledinhisoffice，whilerefugeesfromthestrickenfield——especiallythoseoverconfidentSenatorsandRepresentativeswhohadgoneouttowatchtheoverthrowoftheConfederates——pouredintohisearstheirvariousandconflictingaccountsofthecatastrophe。DuringthatlongnightLincolnsaidalmostnothing。Meanwhile，fragmentsoftheroutedarmycontinuedtostreamintothecity。AtdawnthenextdayWashingtonwaspossessedbyaswarmofdemoralizedsoldierswhileadrearyrainsettledoverit。
ThesilentmanintheWhiteHousehadforgottenforthemomenthisdependenceuponhisadvisers。WhiletherunawaySenatorsweretalkingthemselvesout，whiletherainwassheetingupthecity，hehadreachedtwoconclusions。Earlyinthemorning，heformulatedboth。Oneconclusionwasageneraloutlinefortheconductofalongwarinwhichthefirstmoveshouldbeacallforvolunteerstoservethreeyears。[11]Theotherconclusionwasthechoiceofaconductinggeneral。Scottwastooold。
McDowellhadfailed。Buttherewasayoungofficer，aWestPointer，whohadbeenputincommandoftheOhiomilitia，whohadenteredtheVirginiamountainsfromtheWest，hadengagedasmallforcethere，andhadwonseveralsmallbutrathershowyvictories。Youngashewas，hehadservedintheMexicanWarandwassupposedtobehighlyaccomplished。OnthedayfollowingBullRun，LincolnorderedMcClellantoWashingtontotakecommand。[12]
WhilethesestartlingeventsweretakingplaceinthemonthsbetweenSumterandBullRun，Lincolnpassedthroughasearchingintellectualexperience。Thereconceptionofhisproblem，whichtookplaceinMarch，necessitatedareadjustmentofhispoliticalattitude。Hehadpreparedhisarsenalfortheuseofastrategynowobviouslybesidethemark。Thevitalpartofthefirstinauguralwasitsattempttocutthegroundfromundertheslaveprofiteers。Itsassertionthatnothingelsewasimportant，theideathatthecrisiswas“artificial，“wassincere。TwodiscoverieshadrevolutionizedLincoln’sthought。
ThediscoverythatwhattheSouthwasinearnestaboutwasnotslaverybutStatesovereignty；thediscoverythattheNorthwasfarfromaunituponnationalism。Tomeettheone，toorganizetheother，wasthedoubletaskprecipitatedbythefallofSumter。Notonlyasalineofattack，butalsoasameansofdefense，Lincolnhadtoraisetoitshighestpowertheargumentforthesovereignrealityofthenationalgovernment。TheefforttodothisformedthesilentinnerexperiencebehindthesurgingexternaleventsinthestormymonthsbetweenAprilandJuly。Itwasgovernedbyafirmnessnotparalleledinhisoutwardcourse。Asalways，Lincolnthethinkeraskednoadvice。ItwasLincolntheadministrator，painfullylearninganewtrade，whowastimid，wavering，pliableincouncil。Behindtheapprenticeinstatecraft，thelonelythinkerstoodapart，inflexibleasever，impervioustofear。Thethinkingwhichheformulatedinthelatespringandearlysummerof1861obeyedhisinvariablelawofmentalgradualness。Itaroseoutofthedeepplacesofhisownpast。Hebuiltuphisnewconclusionbydrawingtogetherconclusionshehadlongheld，bychargingthemwithhislaterexperience，bygivingtothemanewturn，anewsignificance。
Lincoln’swasoneofthosenaturesinwhichideashavetobecomelatentbeforetheycanbeprecipitatedbyoutwardcircumstanceintodefiniteform。Alwayswithhimtheideathatwastobecomepowerfulatacrisiswasonethathehadlongheldinsolution，thathadpermeatedhimwithouthisformulatingit，thathadentwineditselfwithhisheartstrings；
neverwasitmerelyaconsciousactofthelogicalfaculty。
Hischaracteristicsasalawyer——preoccupationwithbasalideas，withethicalsignificance，withthoseemotionswhichformtheultimatesoflife——thesealwaysdeterminedhisthought。Hisideaofnationalismwasatypicalcase。Hehadalwaysbelievedintherealityofthenationalgovernmentasasovereignfact。
Buthehadthoughtlittleaboutit；ratherhehadtakenitforgranted。Itwassoclosetohisdesirethathecouldnotwithoutaneffortacknowledgethesincerityofdisbeliefinit。
Thatwaswhyhewassoslowinformingatruecomprehensionoftherealforceopposinghim。Disunionhadappearedtohimameredeviceofpartystrategy。Thatitwasgroundeduponagenuine，apassionateconceptionofgovernment，oneirreconcilablewithhisown，struckhim，whenatlasthegraspedit，asadeepoffense。Theliterarystatesmansprangagaintolife。Hethrewallthestrengthofhismind，thepeculiarstrengththathadmadehimpresident，intoastatementofthecasefornationalism。
HisvehicleforpublishinghiscasewasthefirstmessagetoCongress。[1]Itformsanamazingcontrastwiththefirstinaugural。Theargumentoverslaverythatunderliesthewholeoftheinauguralhasvanished。Themessagedoesnotmentionslavery。Fromthefirstwordtothelast，itisanargumentfortherightofthecentralgovernmenttoexercisesovereignpower，andforthedutyoftheAmericanpeople——togivetheirlivesfortheUnion。Nohintofcompromise；noughtofthecautiousandconciliatorytoneoftheinaugural。Itistheblastofatrumpet——awartrumpet。Itisthevoiceofasternmindconfrontinganadversarythatarousesinhimnosympathy，notoleranceeven，muchlessanythoughtofconcession。
Needlesstoinsistthatthisadversaryisanidea。Towardeveryhumanadversary，Lincolnwasalwaysunbelievablytender。
Thoughlittleofatheologian，heappreciatedintuitivelysomemetaphysicalideas；heprojectedintopoliticsthephilosopher’sdistinctionbetweensinandthesinner。Forallhishatredoftheideaswhichheheldtobetreason，heneverhadavindictiveimpulsedirectedtowardthemenwhoacceptedthoseideas。Destructionfortheidea，infiniteclemencyfortheperson——suchwashisattitude。
Itwastheideaofdisunion，involvingashebelieved，amisconceptionoftheAmericangovernment，andbyimplication，amisconceptionofthetruefunctionofallgovernmentseverywhere，againstwhichhedeclaredawarwithoutrecourse。
ThebasisofhisargumentreachesbacktohisorationonClay，tohisassertionthatClaylovedhiscountry，partlybecauseitwashiscountry，evenmorebecauseitwasafreecountry。ThisidearanthroughLincoln’sthinkingtotheend。Therewasinhimasuggestionofinternationalism。Atthefullheightofhispower，inhiscompletematurityasapoliticalthinker，hesaidthatthemostsacredbondinlifeshouldbethebrotherhoodoftheworkersofallnations。Nowordsofhisaremoresignificantthanhisremarkstopassingsoldiersin1863，suchas，“Thereismoreinvolvedinthiscontestthanisrealizedbyeveryone。Thereisinvolvedinthisstrugglethequestionwhetheryourchildrenandmychildrenshallenjoytheprivilegeswehaveenjoyed。“Andagain，“IhappentemporarilytooccupythisWhiteHouse。Iamalivingwitnessthatanyoneofyourchildrenmaylooktocomehereasmyfather’schildhas。“[2]
Thisidea，theideathatthe“plainpeople“arethechiefconcernofgovernmentwasthebedrockofallhispoliticalthinking。Themature，historicLincolnisfirstofallaleaderoftheplainpeople——ofthemass——astrulyaswasCleon，orRobespierre，orAndrewJackson。Hisgentlenessdoesnotremovehimfromthatsterncategory。Thelatentfanaticismthatisineveryman，oralmosteveryman，wasgroundedinLincoln，onhisfaith——sowhimsicallyexpressed——thatGodmusthavelovedtheplainpeoplebecausehehadmadesomanyofthem。[3]Thebasalappealofthefirstmessagewasinthewords：
“Thisisessentiallyapeople’scontest。OnthesideoftheUnionitisastruggleformaintainingintheworldthatformandsubstanceofgovernmentwhoseleadingobjectistoelevatetheconditionofmen；toliftartificialweightsfromallshoulders；toclearthepathsoflaudablepursuitforall；toaffordallanunfetteredstartandafairchanceintheraceoflife。“[4]Notawaroverslavery，notawartopreserveaconstitutionalsystem，butawartoassertandmaintainthesovereigntyof——“We，thePeople。“
Buthowwasittobeprovedthatthiswas，infact，thetrueissueofthemoment？Here，betweenthelinesofthefirstmessage，Lincoln’sdeepestfeelingsaretobeglimpsed。OutofthediscoverythatVirginiahonestlybelievedherselfasovereignpower，hehaddevelopedinhimselfadeep，slow-burningfervorthatprobablydidmuchtowardfusinghimintothegreatLincolnofhistory。Butwhy？Whatwasthereinthatideawhichshouldstrikesodeep？WhywasitnotmerelyoneviewinapermissibledisagreementovertheinterpretationoftheConstitution？WhydidthecauseofthepeopleinspireitschampiontoregardthedoctrineofStatesovereigntyasanti-christ？Lincolnhasnotrevealedhimselfonthesepointsinsomanywords。Buthehasrevealedhimselfplainlyenoughbyimplication。
Theclueisinthatelementofinternationalismwhichlayatthebackofhismind。Theremustbenomisunderstandingofthiselement。Itwasnotpointingalongthewayofthemodern“international。“LincolnwouldhavefoughtBolshevismtothedeath。Sidebysidewithhisassertionofthesanctityoftheinternationalbondoflabor，standshisassertionofasacredrightinpropertyandthatcapitalisanecessity。[5]Hisinternationalismwasethical，notopportunistic。Itgrew，asallhisideasgrew，notoutofatheorem，notfromaconstitutionalinterpretation，butfromhisoverpoweringcommiserationforthemassofmankind。Itwasapracticalmatter。Herewerepoorpeopletobeassisted，tobeenrichedintheirestate，tobeenlargedinspirit。Themodeofreachingtheresultwasnotthething。Anymode，allsortsofmodes，mightbeused。Whatcountedwasthepurposetoworkrelief，andthewillingnesstothrowoverboardwhateveritmightbethattendedtodefeatthepurpose。Hisinternationalismwasbutadenialof“mycountryrightorwrong。“Therecanbelittledoubtthat，inlastresort，hewouldhaverepudiatedhiscountryratherthangoalongwithitinoppositiontowhatheregardedasthetruepurposeofgovernment。Andthatwas，toadvancethewelfareofthemassofmankind。
Hethoughtuponthissubjectinthesamemannerinwhichhethoughtasalawyer，sweepingasideeverythingbutwhatseemedtohimtheethicalrealityattheheartofthecase。Forhimthe“right“ofaStatetodothisorthatwasaconstitutionalquestiononlysolongasitdidnotcrossthatothermoreuniversal“right，“theparamount“charterofliberty，“bywhich，inhisview，allotherrightswereconditioned。Hewouldimposeonallmankind，astheirbasicmoralobligation，thedutytosacrificeallpersonallikes，personalambitions，whentheseintheirpermanenttendenciesrancontrarytothetendencywhichheratedasparamount。Suchhadalwaysbeen，andwasalwaystocontinue，hisownattitudetowardslavery。
Nooneeverloatheditmore。Butheneverpermittedittotakethefirstplaceinhisthoughts。Ifitcouldbeeradicatedwithoutintheprocesscreatingdangersforpopulargovernmenthewouldrejoice。ButalltheschemesoftheAbolitionists，hitherto，hehadcondemnedasdangerousdevicesbecausetheywouldstraintooseverelythefabricofthepopularstate，wouldviolateagreementswhichalonemadeitpossible。
Therefore，beingalwaysrelentlesstowardhimself，herequiredofhimselftherenunciationofthispersonalhopewhenever，inwhateverway，itthreatenedtomakelesseffectivethegreatdemocraticstatewhichappearedtohimthecentralfactoftheworld。
TheenlargementofhisreasoningledhiminevitablytoanunsparingcondemnationoftheVirginiantheory。OneofhisrareflashesofirritationwasanexclamationthatVirginialoyaltyalwayshadan“if。“[6]Atthispoint，tomakehimentirelyplain，thereisneededanotherbasicassumptionwhichhehasneverquiteformulated。However，itissoobviouslylatentinhisthinkingthatthemainlinesaretobemadeoutclearlyenough。BuildingeveronthatparamountobligationofallmankindtoconsiderfirstthewelfareofGod’splainpeople，heassumedthatwheneverbyanycourseofactionanycongregationofmenwerethrowntogetherandledtoformanypoliticalunit，theywereneverthereafterfreetodisregardintheirattitudetowardthatunititsvalueinsupportingandadvancingthegeneralcauseofthewelfareoftheplainpeople。
Asweeping，andinsomecontingencies，aterribledoctrine!