On the evening of election day Mr. Lincoln went to the War Department, and there stayed until two o’clock at night, noting the returns as they came assuring his triumph and steadily swelling its magnitude.  Amid the good news his feelings took on no personal complexion.  A crowd of serenaders, meeting him on his return to the White House, demanded a speech.  He told them that he believed that the day’s work would be the lasting advantage, if not the very salvation, of the country, and that he was grateful for the people’s confidence; but, he said, “if I know my heart, my gratitude is free from any taint of personal triumph.  I do not impugn the motives of any one opposed to me.  It is no pleasure to me to triumph over any one; but I give thanks to the Almighty for this evidence of the people’s resolution to stand by free government and the rights of humanity.”  A hypocrite would, probably enough, have said much the same thing; but when Mr. Lincoln spoke in this way, men who were themselves honest never charged him with hypocrisy.  On November 10 a serenade by the Republican clubs of the District called forth this:—­

“It has long been a grave question whether any government, not too strong for the liberties of its people, can be strong enough to maintain its own existence in great emergencies.  On this point the present rebellion brought our republic to a severe test, and a presidential election occurring in regular course during the rebellion added not a little to the strain.  If the loyal people united were put to the utmost of their strength by the rebellion, must they not fail when divided and partially paralyzed by a political war among themselves?  But the election was a necessity.  We cannot have free government without elections; and if the rebellion could force us to forego or postpone a national election, it might fairly claim to have already conquered and ruined us.  The strife of the election is but human nature practically applied to the facts of the case.  What has occurred in this case must ever recur in similar cases.  Human nature will not change.  In any future great national trial, compared with the men of this, we shall have as weak and as strong, as silly and as wise, as bad and as good.  Let us, therefore, study the incidents of this, as philosophy to learn wisdom from, and none of them as wrongs to be revenged.  But the election, along with its incidental and undesirable strife, has done good, too.  It has demonstrated that a people’s government can sustain a national election in the midst of a great civil war.  Until now, it has not been known to the world that this was a possibility.  It shows, also, how sound and how strong we still are.  It shows that, even among candidates of the same party, he who is most devoted to the Union and most opposed to treason can receive most of the people’s votes.  It shows, also, to the extent yet known, that we have more men now than we had when the war began.  Gold is good in its place; but living, brave, patriotic men are better than gold.