scarcely any objection to it. I shall have trouble with every
other cabinet appointment--so much so, that I shall have to defer them
as long as possible, to avoid being teased into insanity, to make
changes."[680]

[Footnote 678: _Atlantic Monthly_, October, 1860; _Lowell's Political
Essays_, p. 34.]

[Footnote 679: Thurlow Weed Barnes, _Life of Thurlow Weed_, Vol. 2, p.
301.]

[Footnote 680: F.W. Seward, _Life of W.H. Seward_, Vol. 2, p. 493.]

In 1849, Seward had thought the post of minister, or even secretary of
state, without temptations for him, but, in 1860, amidst the gathering
clouds of a grave crisis, the championship of the Union in a great
political arena seemed to appeal, in an exceptional degree, to his
desire to help guide the destinies of his country; and, after
counselling with Weed at Albany, and with his wife at Auburn, he wrote
the President-elect that he thought it his duty to accept the
appointment.[681] Between the time of its tender and of its acceptance
Seward had gained a clear understanding of Lincoln's views; for, after
his conference with Weed, the latter visited Springfield and obtained
a written statement from the President-elect. This statement has never
appeared in print, but it practically embodied the sentiment written
Kellogg and Washburn, and which was received by them after Seward left
Washington for Auburn.

[Footnote 681: F.W. Seward, _Life of W.H. Seward_, Vol. 2, pp. 481,
487.]

With this information the Senator returned to the capital, stopping
over night at the Astor House in New York, where he unexpectedly found
the New England Society celebrating Forefathers' Day. The knowledge of
his arrival quickly reached the banqueters. They knew that Weed had
seen Lincoln, and that, to hear the tidings from Springfield, Seward
had travelled with his friend from Syracuse to Albany. Eagerly,
therefore, they pressed him for a speech, for words spoken by the man
who would occupy the first place in Lincoln's Cabinet, meant to the
business men of the great metropolis, distracted by the disturbed
conditions growing out of the disunion movement, words of national
salvation. Seward never spoke from impulse. He understood the value of
silence and the necessity of thought before utterance. All of his many
great speeches were prepared in a most painstaking manner. But, as
many members of the society were personal or political friends, he
consented to address them, talking briefly and with ch