proved a harmful one under a foolish chief.  Stanton was most loyal, and invaluable as head of the War Department.  Chase, as Lincoln said in private afterwards, was “a pretty good fellow and a very able man”; Lincoln had complete confidence in him as a Finance Minister, and could not easily have replaced him.  But this handsome, dignified, and righteous person was unhappily a sneak.  Lincoln found as time went on that, if he ever had to do what was disagreeable to some important man, Chase would pay court to that important man and hint how differently he himself would have done as President.  On this occasion he was evidently aware that Chase had encouraged the Senators who attacked Seward.  Much as he wished to retain each of the two for his own worth, he was above all determined that one should not gain a victory over the other.  Accordingly, when a deputation of nine important Senators came to Lincoln to present their grievances against Seward, they found themselves, to their great annoyance, confronted with all the Cabinet except Seward, who had resigned, and they were invited by Lincoln to discuss the matter in his presence with these Ministers.  Chase, to his still greater annoyance, found himself, as the principal Minister there, compelled for decency’s sake to defend Seward from the very attack which he had helped to instigate.  The deputation withdrew, not sure that, after all, it wanted Seward removed.  Chase next day tendered, as was natural, his resignation.  Lincoln was able, now that he had the resignations of both men, to persuade both of their joint duty to continue in the public service.  By this remarkable piece of riding he saved the Union from a great danger.  The Democratic opposition, not actually to the prosecution of the war, but to any and every measure essential for it, was now developing, and a serious division, such as at this stage any important resignation would have produced in the ranks of the Republicans, or, as they now called themselves, the “Union men,” would have been perilous.

On the first day of January, 1863, the President signed the further Proclamation needed to give effect to emancipation.  The small portions of the South which were not in rebellion were duly excepted; the naval and military authorities were ordered to maintain the freedom of the slaves seeking their protection; the slaves were enjoined to abstain from violence and to “labour faithfully for reasonable wages” if opportunity were given them; all suitable slaves were to be taken into armed service, especially for garrison duties.  Before the end of 1863, a hundred thousand coloured men were already serving, as combatants or as labourers, on military work in about equal number.  They were needed, for volunteering was getting slack, and the work of guarding and repairing railway lines was specially repellent to Northern volunteers.  The coloured regiments fought well; they behaved well in every way.  Atrocious threats of vengeance