r of slavery seemed to
insure to him, and then contemplates the promptness of his choice and
the steadfastness of his perseverance, the impulse and the action seem
to find a parallel in the life of the great Hebrew statesman, who, "_by
faith_, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of
Pharaoh's daughter," and "_by faith_, forsook Egypt, not fearing the
wrath of the king."

The first half of this period of twenty years witnessed only the
preliminaries, equally brave and sagacious, of agitation, promulgation
of purposes and opinions, consultations, conventions, and political
organizations, more and more comprehensive and effective. All this time
Mr. Chase was simply a citizen, and apparently could expect no political
station or authority till it should come from the prosperous fortunes of
the party he was striving to create. Suddenly, by a surprising
conjunction of circumstances he was lifted, at one bound, to the highest
and widest sphere of influence, upon the opinion of the country, which
our political establishment presents--I mean the Senate of the United
States. The elective body, the Legislature of Ohio, was filled in almost
equal numbers with Whigs and Democrats, but a handful of Liberty party
men held the control to prevent or determine a majority. They elected
Mr. Chase. The concurrence is similar, in its main features, to the
election of Mr. Sumner to the Senate, two years afterward, in
Massachusetts. Much criticism of such results is always and necessarily
excited. The true interpretation of such transactions is simply a
transition state from old to new politics, wherein party names and
present interests are unchanged, but opinions and projects and prospects
are taking a new shape, and the old mint, all at once, astonishes
everybody by striking a new image and superscription, soon to be stamped
upon the whole coinage. The part of Mr. Chase in this election, as of
Mr. Sumner in his own, was elevated and without guile. His term in the
Senate brought him to the year 1856, and was followed by two successive
elections and four years' service as Governor of Ohio, and a reelection
to the Senate. In these high stations he added public authority to his
opinions and purposes, and gained for them wider and wider influence,
while he discharged all general senatorial duties, and official
functions as Governor, with benefit to the legislation of the nation and
to the administration of the State.

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