It is a satisfaction
to know that the calamities which have befallen the Southern States were
the result of their credulous reliance on the power of the Constitution,
that, if it failed to protect their rights, it would at least suffice to
prevent an attempt at coercion, if, in the last resort, they peacefully
withdrew from the Union.

When, in after times, the passions of the day shall have subsided, and
all the evidence shall have been collected and compared, the
philosophical inquirer, who asks why the majority of the stronger
section invaded the peaceful homes of their late associates, will be
answered by History: "The lust of empire impelled them to wage against
their weaker neighbors a war of subjugation."

CHAPTER V.

Meeting of the Provisional Congress of the Confederate
States.--Adoption of a Provisional Constitution.--Election of
President and Vice-President.--Notification to the Author of his
Election.--His Views with Regard to it.--Journey to
Montgomery.--Interview with Judge Sharkey.--False Reports of
Speeches on the Way.--Inaugural Address.--Editor's Note.

The congress of delegates from the seceding States convened at
Montgomery, Alabama, according to appointment, on the 4th of February,
1861. Their first work was to prepare a provisional Constitution for the
new Confederacy, to be formed of the States which had withdrawn from the
Union, for which the style "Confederate States of America" was adopted.
The powers conferred upon them were adequate for the performance of this
duty, the immediate necessity for which was obvious and urgent. This
Constitution was adopted on the 8th of February, to continue in force
for one year, unless superseded at an earlier date by a permanent
organization. It is printed in an appendix, and for convenience of
reference the permanent Constitution, adopted several weeks afterward,
is exhibited in connection with it, and side by side with the
Constitution of the United States, after which it was modeled.[123] The
attention of the reader is invited to these documents and to a
comparison of them, although a more particular notice of the permanent
Constitution will be more appropriate hereafter.

On the next day (9th of February) an election was held for the chief
executive offices, resulting, as I afterward learned, in my election to
the Presidency, with the Hon. Alexander H. Stephens, of Georgia, as
Vice-President. Mr. Stephens was a delega