ssing by,
Ourselves are great.

SCENE IV.

_About the same date. A meeting of the Cabinet at Washington_. SMITH
_has gone and_ CAMERON _has been replaced by_ EDWIN M. STANTON,
_Secretary of War. Otherwise the ministry, completed by_ SEWARD,
CHASE, HOOK, BLAIR, _and_ WELLES, _is as before. They are now
arranging themselves at the table, leaving_ LINCOLN'S _place empty.

Seward (coming in_): I've just had my summons. Is there some special
news?

_Stanton_: Yes. McClellan has defeated Lee at Antietam. It's our
greatest success. They ought not to recover from it. The tide is
turning.

_Blair_: Have you seen the President?

_Stanton_: I've just been with him.

_Welles_: What does he say?

_Stanton_: He only said, "At last." He's coming directly.

_Hook_: He will bring up his proclamation again. In my opinion it is
inopportune.

_Seward_: Well, we've learnt by now that the President is the best man
among us.

_Hook_: There's a good deal of feeling against him everywhere, I find.

_Blair_: He's the one man with character enough for this business.

_Hook_: There are other opinions.

_Seward_: Yes, but not here, surely.

_Hook_: It's not for me to say. But I ask you, what does he mean about
emancipation? I've always understood that it was the Union we were
fighting for, and that abolition was to be kept in our minds for
legislation at the right moment. And now one day he talks as though
emancipation were his only concern, and the next as though he would
throw up the whole idea, if by doing it he could secure peace with the
establishment of the Union. Where are we?

_Seward_: No, you're wrong. It's the Union first now with him,
but there's no question about his views on slavery. You know that
perfectly well. But he has always kept his policy about slavery free
in his mind, to be directed as he thought best for the sake of the
Union. You remember his words: "If I could save the Union without
freeing any slaves, I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing
all the slaves, I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some
and leaving others alone, I would also do that. My paramount object
in this struggle is to save the Union." Nothing could be plainer than
that, just as nothing could be plainer than his determination to free
the slaves when he can.

_Hook_: Well, there are some who would have acted differently.

_Blair_: And you may depend upon it they would not have acted so
wisely.

_Stanton_