Proclamation of Emancipation would begin to operate within a month;
it would produce by the end of the war a situation in which the country
would be compelled to decide on the principle of slavery, and Lincoln
had at least done his part in preparing men to face the issue.

Before this, the nervous and irritable feeling of many Northern
politicians, who found in emancipation a good subject for quarrel among
themselves and in the slow progress of the war a good subject of
quarrel with the Administration, led to a crisis in Lincoln's Cabinet.
Radicals were inclined to think Seward's influence in the
Administration the cause of all public evils; some of them had now got
hold of a foolish private letter, which he had written to Adams in
England a few months before, denouncing the advocates of emancipation.
Desiring his downfall, they induced a small "caucus" of Republican
Senators to speak in the name of the party and the nation and send the
President a resolution demanding such changes in his Cabinet as would
produce better results in the war. Discontented men of opposite
opinions could unite in demanding success in the war; and Conservative
Senators joined in this resolution hoping that it would get rid not
only of Seward, but also of Chase and Stanton, the objects of their
particular antipathy. Seward, on hearing of this, gave Lincoln his
resignation, which was kept private. Though egotistic, he was a clever
man, and evidently a pleasant man to work with; he was a useful
Minister under a wise chief, though he later 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