Yet, now, now I will record my life though life surges around Washington, though each one of us is sorely tried; we have read anew life’s “great tragic volume,” as John Adams called it. The pages lie open as drums thud along the Potomac.
Executive Mansion
May 7, 1863
North versus South, we have a population of 18 million fighting a population of 5 million, folly vs. folly, brother vs. brother, Commander Lee vs. General Lee, Major Crittenden vs. General Crittenden.
Europeans assure me that my cause is a lost cause. They say I will never eradicate slavery. The South says I will never end slavery because it is an honorable way of life. Our Indian brothers have sided with the South. But it is the cause of the Union that gives us strength, gives us right.
Union forever...flags...they wave yet do not heal...they acclaim patriotism. But patriotism can blind us. It is a “whirlwind,” as Emerson reminds us. For my part, it is my oath to preserve and protect this government of freedom for all men.
My convictions do not wane as cabinet members fail me. I am firmly convinced that tact can win against men who oppose, who are selfish or temporarily deaf. I believe the citizenry understands me as I understand them, as they pour into my office and talk with me.
May 19, 1863