the rest of the world will have for them neither
political sympathies, nor moral sympathies, nor religious sympathies.

Will they at least have the consolation of having killed the United
States? Will a glorious confederation have perished by their retreat?
No, a thousand times no. Even though they should succeed in drawing the
border States into the Southern Confederacy, the United States, thank
God! will keep their rank among nations. Where will the United States
be after secession? Where they were before; for a long time the
gravitation of their power has been tending towards the Northwest. The
true America is there, that of ancient traditions, and that of present
reality. If any serious fears might have been conceived as to its
duration, they disappeared on the day of the election of Mr. Lincoln. On
that day, we all learned that the United States would subsist, and that
their malady was not mortal.

Great news was this! Did you ever ask yourself how much would be missing
here on earth if such a people should disappear? It lives and it will
live. Look at the calm and confident air of the North, and compare it
with the noisy violence of the South. The North is so sure of itself
that it does not deign either to become angered, or to hasten; it even
carries this last to extremes. It has the air of knowing that, in spite
of the apparent successes which may mark the first efforts of the South,
the final success must be elsewhere. Let the South take care! to have
against it both right and might is twice as much as is needed to be
beaten. The North supported Mr. Buchanan because it was awaiting Mr.
Lincoln. Mr. Lincoln came, the North still has patience, but will end
by falling into line, and the serious struggle will begin, in case of
need.

The final issue of this struggle can scarcely be doubtful. On one side,
I see a confederacy divided, impoverished, bending under the weight of a
crushing social problem, seeing constantly on its horizon the menace of
insurrections and of massacres, unable either to negotiate, or to draw
the sword, or to resolve any of the difficulties from without, without
thinking of the still more formidable difficulties from within; on the
other side, I see the United States, masters of themselves, unanimous,
knowing what they want, and placing at the service of a noble cause, a
power which is continually increasing.

The match will not be equal. I cannot help believing, therefore, that
the tri